Overnight in Canberra

Over the October long weekend Dave + I made a last minute decision to hop in the car and spend a night in Canberra for no particular reason other than to get out of town. As usual we stayed at the lovely East Hotel (we first stayed there during the Human Brochure weekend and fell IN LOVE with the place)!

Smoque

Before we checked into the hotel we made a beeline to Smoque for some good ole American style BBQ right in the centre of town.

There's a lot on offer on the menu so in order to try and get a taste of most things we ordered a Combo Platter, namely the Trifecta ($39.00) filled with pulled pork, pork ribs, brisket and a choice of one side (we chose red cabbage coleslaw and added a side of "Mexican Street corn" for $3.90).

Our cornbread was a bit of a (dry) write off but the pork ribs were the shinning star on the platter - super tasty, moist with a great smokey flavour (they do their smoking off site in case you're wondering why the restaurant doesn't smell smokey at all). The brisket was also quite good, but the pork ribs won the day for me.

Because I can't help myself when buffalo wings are on the menu we ordered a side of these too. They were FANTASTIC - super flavourful with a slightly spicy, sticky sauce. And the blue cheese sauce was spectacular...I could eat this all day, every day!

Of course all of this was washed down with a Miller's brewski - though isn't Miller's Canadian, not American?

Smoque is at Baileys Arcade, Shop 2, 131 London Circuit, Canberra. Phone them on 6162 3350.



Addicted to Fabric

After lunch we went and checked into the hotel and then Dave dropped me off at Addicted to Fabric to catch up with some Canberra sewing ladies I've become friends with; and he headed off to the War Memorial.

I love fabric shopping and this is a pretty great shop! I'm not sure if there are a lot of fabric stores in Canberra, and this is a food blog so why would you give a hoot, right? But just in case you do...I bought this lovely fabric that I hope to make into a dress soon - the bodice using one side and the skirt using the other.

Parlour Wine Room

I decided I wanted to go somewhere a little bit fancy for dinner and we decided to check out Parlour Wine Room, in the New Action area - which offers Spanish style tapas dishes in a luxe, old school style dining room.  It was a bit hard to find this place from the address but it's actually inside the Peppers Gallery Hotel - at the back.

When we first arrived we were sat at one of the lovely chesterfield lounges but after sitting there for a drink (Negroni for me, beer for Dave) I needed to move to a "proper table" as my back couldn't handle sitting on the sofa.

The menu has a number of raciones, or small plates, so we start off with a few of things over (another) cocktail. Nearly everything in this part of the menu appeals to me so it's really hard to pick just a few things...

Pork Crack ($8) - really good, air puffed pork rind.

Cider battered anchovies ($7) - Brilliant! The batter was thick and crisp, almost like a dagwood batter. Perfect for the salty anchovies and creamy, spicy sauce.

Smoked pork butter with bread ($2). This was good, but not as good as the chicken crackling butter we had at Jamie's Fifteen in London last year.

Moving right along to the larger Tapas plates. We initially ordered three of these these but as they weren't overly large and I needed just *one more* to finish off the night. The descriptions of each item is fairly light-on (which is the trend de jour I think with many modern restaurants) so we choose by simply going with the ingredients that sound good to us (those we could identify that is)!

House code, ancient grains, baby turnips + aoili ($19) - very tasty, though I found our cod overly salty. Loved the crunch of the grains and the creamy aoili.

Dusted calamari, squid ink, black garlic romesco, almonds ($17) - really nice, great seasoning on the calamari.

Twice cooked crispy pork belly, px glaze, fried onion, hazelnut ($18) - very delicious, excellent pork though I did find our  glaze a tad salty and thick...it overpowered the pork in a way.

Carrot + onion escabeche, labneh, crushed seeds ($15) - really loved this dish, light, refreshing and delicate flavours.

The Parlour Room is at 16 Kendall Lane, Newacton Pavilion, Canberra. Phone them on 6257 7325.



Me + Mrs Jones

The next morning we decided to head over to Kingston and revisit Me + Mrs Jones. Afterwards we wandered around the area and I spied another great looking cafe, Penny University that I'm keen to try next visit.

There seems to be a few more places to brunch/lunch in Kingston since our last visit so we have no trouble getting a table this time around.  We promptly order coffees and a juice whilst studying the menu.

Dave ordered the Spanish Eggs ($18.00) that was a fry up of A fry up of chorizo, smoked spec,
roast capsicum, olives, roquette and scrambled eggs, served with romesco sauce and linseed toast. It was packed with flavour and to be honest I had BIG breakfast envy!

In comparison to Dave's tasty, flavour packed breakfast I found my Breakfast Quesadilla ($17.00) a little bland.  Squashed between two tortilla warps was a bevy of scrambled eggs and manchego cheese, served with sides of smashed avocado, braised black beans and and house made hot sauce.  I think this dish would've worked better for me if the sauce and beans were inside the Quesailla to give a bit of moisture to this mix - like the Spanish Eggs above which were a medley of flavours and textures all mixed together..

Me + Mrs Jones is at 26 Giles St, Kingston ACT. Phone them on 6162 3355.



After breakfast we checked out a HUGE craft market that happened to be on during the same weekend we were visiting. I think (ok, I know for a fact) Dave found this SUPER boring but I loved it. It's always inspiring to see others people's creative endeavors. 

We also decided to for a spin before lunch and check out some of the embassy's and fancy houses nearby. Whilst we thought this was fun the AFP, and the guards at the American Embassy didn't seem too impressed at first.  Still...it's a free country and we continue on our merry way picking our favourite embassay's and houses.

Jamie's Italian

Although we have Jamie's Italian in Sydney, Dave was keen to go here for lunch as he'd seen Pavlova on the specials board when we walked past the day before.

Although we been to Jamie's Italian in Edinburgh I really wanted Dave to try Jamie's "famous polenta chips" ($8.50). I LOVE these crispy fried polenta chips that are sprinkled with rosemary and parmesan.

I always love to have a salad when I'm eating pasta. The simple green salad ($7.00) was really lovely, though I found the plating a bit awkward as dressing spilled off the plate. Anyway, our salad of  roundhead and babygem lettuce with a lemony yoghurt, tarragon and  basil dressing went perfect with my pasta, "Jools' favourite tuna fusilli" ($13.50 for a small serve).  I really loved this dish - sustainable tuna, slow-cooked tomatoes, garlic, herbs and cinnamon with crunchy, herby breadcrumbs. I really like the addition of bread crumbs and might try this in my pastas at home.  I'm not sure why Dave forsook Pasta, but he seemed very happy with his Tuscan Wild Boar Sausage ($25.00).

And the Pavlova you may ask? It was more of a Meringue but still pretty good!

Jamie's Italian is at 125 Bunda Street, Civic, ACT (Canberra Centre, under the Dendy Cinema).  Phone them on 6268 0400.



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And that my friends is the end of our overnight trip to Canberra. I keep hearing people say how boring Canberra is...and to them I say YOU ARE WRONG! There is loads of great food to be had, wineries to visit, galleries to explore, shopping to be had and friends to meet.

Until next time...

Me + Mrs Jones, Kingston (Canberra)

Despite all my up-selling and waxing lyrical Canberra is still getting a bad wrap from people. I know it's not Manhattan in terms of loads of mega-exciting things to do, but it's certainly not as dull as some of the places I've lived (I'm not naming towns here as I'm sure to upset somebody if I go on and say that xxx was the most boring place on the planet).

I think could quite happily live in Canberra (for a few years at least), especially when there are cute cafes like Me + Mrs Jones popping up. When we rocked up for breakfast there was a bit of a wait for a table but I assured the waitress that "we are from Sydney and a 20 minute wait for a table was child's play to us". Yes, except for the fact that it was COLD, really cold - the wait was not bad at all.

Me + Mrs Jones is a BIG open space with lots of exposed beams and brickwork and those industrial-type windows over the kitchen that always remind me of a 1930s factory.  There are large mental pendant lights hanging from the exposed beams and cozy nooks and + crannies everywhere. There's also a huge shared dining table that's good for couples to sit side-by-side or for bigger groups.  Despite the hard, industrial edge the room still contains elements of warm and the overwhelming feeling is one of warmth and cosiness.

Despite the cold, when we finally get inside I feel the need for a refreshing juice - mainly as it comes in one of those nifty jam-jar glasses that I love so much. At Me + Mrs Jones you can create your own juice and this one is Orange, Pineapple and Ginger Juice -- a concoction I've been drinking since the time blenders were invented.

The coffees here were very good - a nice, bold flavour and my piccolo latte wasn't too bitter for me (only needing a teensy bit of sugar).  The boy stuck with tradition and had a cappuccino.

There was A LOT on the brunch menu that I wanted to try but in the end it was the blini of rainbow trout, potato and shallot that came with ruby chard, smoked salmon + dill creme fraiche that got my vote. I also added a side of haloumi as it seemed too good to resit. The halmoui was the most golden colour I've even seen and was deliciously salty. I wonder if it did a quick stint in the deep-fryer before being plated up.  The pancakes (aka blini's) were a little on the...gluggy side, perhaps not 100% cooked through, or perhaps too starchy from the addition of potatoes, but the smoked salmon was amazingly fresh.

The Boy really went for a meat filled brunch with the "build your own" Big Breakfast that comes with two free range eggs cooked "how you like"on toast ($12.00). He then added  chat potatoes ($2.00) along with bacon, sausages, grilled haloumi ($3.00 each).  Despite being a little sad that his poached eggs weren't runny I think he enjoyed his breakfast...given that not a crumb was left on the plate afterwards!

Me and Mrs Jones is at 26 Giles Street, Kingston, ACT. Phone them on (02) 6162 3355.

#humanBrochure, Canberra

The Boy and I are already BIG fans of Canberra and we try to hop down there once or twice a year for a weekend out of the Big Smoke. Many people seem to think Canberra is boring...well, I'm telling you THEY ARE WRONG! There are great cafes + restaurants, GREAT shopping in the city, wonderful farmers + craft markets, a beautiful lake, wide open spaces, trees galore, galleries, museums and food...lots and lots of food!

Just recently I was lucky enough to be selected as one of "500 humans" to visit Canberra as part of a new tourism campaign called The Human Brochure (#humanBrochure on twitter and Instagram). What's the Human Brochure you ask?  It's the world's first crowd sourced online tourism brochure...and it was loads of fun.  I was thrilled to be choosen as over 30,000 Aussie humans applied for a spot!

Here's what we got up to (photos are all from my Instagram stream - you can see all my snaps on the Human Brochure website HERE).  You can check out what we ate and what we drank...loosen your waistbands as it was one hell of a weekend!

East Hotel - my eyes nearly fell out of the sockets when we got into our room at the newly opened East Hotel. I mean look at this palce - the Eames inspired decor is enough to make any girl swoon. Try as I might I could not figure a way to smuggle the beautiful mustard coloured chair out of the bedroom and into our car without be busted. D'oh.

The Australian War Memorial - the first night we were in Canberra ALL of the humans (plus their partners and kids) descended on the Australian War Memorial for the official welcome function. All four steams came together - the Foodies, the Arts + Culture people, the Adventurers and THREE BUS LOADS of families with children in tow!  The War Memorial is a wonderful place - it doesn't celebrate war, but remembers Australia's military history and those who have died during conflicts.It's a moving and humbling place that we should all visit.

Capital Wines - the next day their foodies jumped up their big white bus and headed off to Gundaroo for a wine matching lunch at Capiral Wines.  The food and wine was SPECTACULAR, really fresh + innovative - smoked lamb chops anyone, they taste just like bacon. I also really loved the flavoursome and unusual dish of  beetroot ravioli with kangaroo tail  - but it was the stunning (and large) kitchen garden, chooks and ducks that captivated my imagination. Such a restful place.

The National Gallery of Australia - after all of that eating it was time to squeeze a little bit of culture into the foodies life, so we made a pitstop at The National Gallery.  The Boy + I have been here before and love the chance to visit again and see the Sydney Long exhibition. I also enjoyed checking out the Sky Scene - a relaxing outdoor installation.

Rubicon - for dinner the Foodies were split into two groups and The Boy + I ended up dining at Canberra's darling restaurant, Rubicon. 

I don't like to be critical of restaurants on my blog as food blogging means talking about peoples livelihood.  I try to be respectful of the people behind the food who are putting their heart + soul into their businesses.  People have bad days at work - I sure I know I do.  Usually, if I don't have anything good to say I just don't blog the restaurant - what's the point?  That said as I'm writing about the whole #humanBrochure experience I'll give you my thoughts on Rubicon in the interests of full disclosure.  I have to say, for me, this wasn't the best Canberra dining experience I've ever had. The waitstaff weren't particularly nice or attentive towards our table (and didn't apologise when they spilled wine in our dining companions lap).  I thought the food just didn't "hit it" either in terms of flavour (other than the beautiful fish dish with stuff clams with I LOVED) - which is a shame as I was all set for a stellar night out.

The Australian National Botanic Gardens - Day 2 sees us waking up bleary eyed to some much needed Berocca that the East Hotel kindly left in the rooms of the Humans! Then we're off to the Botanical Gardens for a brunch with ALL of the other humans. Loads of fun, and loads of tasty food (like the yummy grass-fed beef snag sambos with caramelized red onions).

Mount Majura Vineyard - our last stop on the #humanBrochure weekend is at the stunning Mount Majura Vineyard where we don gumboots and wander through the vines. Beautiful. The afternoon ends with a wine tasting and I am thrilled to have FINALLY found a wine I like - I'm a Pinot Gris gal, thank you very much. I also enjoyed the cheese tasting and the amazing kangaroo prosciutto from Canberra's Poachers Pantry.

So there you have it. I had NO idea that Canberra has SO many wineries. We're heading back in January to explore a bit more on our own - and do the "Poacher's Way" drive.