The Phoenix Diner, Broadway

Miss Piggy and her friend Bunny dined at The Phoenix Diner as guests of The Lansdowne Hotel.

The bistro at Broadway's grand old dame, The Lansdowne Hotel has received a bit of a makeover.  Both the menu and fit out have been revamped since a fire gutted the place earlier this year. Befittingly the new bistro has been named The Phoenix Diner. 

The last time I was at The Lansdowne for a meal was on a very bad date. Halfway through our lunch I knew that this guy was not the one for me when he declared that he liked to drink his coffee in the mornings whilst ON THE TOILET! Think about it for a minute...yep, gross right?  Sadly not even a fire can burn that image from my memory -- but my dinner date this time round, Bunny, had no such confessions and a lovely evening was had by all.

The Lansdowne is still primarily a student hangout and things haven't changed too much since it's rebirth.  The pub still retains its vibe as a great live music venue and thankfully it's not been changed beyond recognition by its makeover like so many great old Sydney pubs.

The menu at The Phoenix Diner is all new however, with a learning towards modern American diner-style offerings. Everything looks great, but we couldn't make our way past all the great things the SNACKS section of the menu had to offer - so snacks for dinner it was!

We start of with something quite un-American Biltong Jerky ($3.00) - nice and peppery without being too dried. An interesting dish to find on a bistro menu, but a delicious one. This would be a great snack with a nice cold beer.

Both Bunny and I LOVED the stuffed Jalapeno poppers ( $6.00) that came to the table pipping hot and filled to the brim with with luscious creamy cream cheese and bacon.  The poppers came with a side of garlic aoili and a few shreds of rocket to divert us from the fact the poppers came deep-fried and looked more like a mini Dagwood Dog than a Jalapeno pepper. I've not seen a battered popper before, but I have to say it works - it would work a treat with an icy beer (are you sensing a theme re the "ice cold beer" here)?

I was so excited about the basket of Buffalo Wings ( $12.00) when they arrived that I promptly upended the bowl of blue cheese sauce on the table. IDIOT! Not to worry as we scrapped most of it back into the bowl and happily dipped away - three second rule definitely applies to blue cheese sauce! The wings were good - super crispy on the outside with the meat inside still being tender and moist. Again the token green, celery, diverts us from the fact that this chicken is deep-fried.

Next up is a red basket lined with greaseproof paper and a mountain of nachos.  For me, the 12 hour slow roasted pull pork nachos ($15.00), whilst a generous serve, was missing the heady smokiness that pulled pork should have - I've been spoiled by Smokey O I think.  The nachos come topped with  oodles of  melted cheese, fresh guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo - it's a colourful looking dish.

Last but not least comes a serve of Mac + Cheese Bites ($9.00). These little morsels of cheesy heaven come topped with Parmesan and watercress and they are perfectly bite-sized - one bite and they're gone.  I like that these bites weren't too big - a basket of these would be perfect for sharing if you just want something small and snacky. There are lots of "not deep-fried food" on the menu, honestly - we just didn't quite get there on this visit.

The Phoenix Diner is a fun rebirth of an old pub bistro and a great spot for a bite between classes if you study nearby...or perhaps a Friday lunch if you work in the 'hood.

The Phoenix Diner is on Level 2 of The Lansdowne Hotel, 2-6 City Road, Chippendale. Phone them on 8218 2333.

 

Mary's, Newtown

I'm trying to wean myself off of racing around trying to get to all the new "hip" places that open up in Sydney. Let's face it, it's tiring, costly and I'm getting kinda fat existing on a diet of sliders, tacos, fried chicken and cheesy fries (I think I've just listed my death row meal right there).

But when I saw a picture on Instagram of the cheeseburger at Newtown's newly opened Mary's -- part pub + part greasy American diner -- I just could not resist the junk food lure. I'd had heard talk that the cheeseburger at Mary's was as close to my beloved Shake Shack burger that you could get here in Sydney.

Mary's is located on Mary Street (no guesses where the name came from). It's a street I've walked down a thousand times before yet I've never really noticed this building before. Apparently it's had a million previous lives but I'd go out on a limb and say that this is by far the tastiest.

The space is fairly large, made more so by the addition of a mezzanine level that offers table services. We decide to sit downstairs (where you order at the bar) as it's closer to the bar for my beer loving companions (and closer to the loos for me)! I love that the place is still a bit rough around the edges and hasn't been tarted up too much -- it gives it that slightly Melbourne edge that we all love so much. It reminds me of what Newtown "used to be like" before the Max Brenner's and Gloria Jeans moved in.

I'm proudly told by Mr Shawn and Miss Chicken that Mary's serves Young Henry Beer - a local brew.  I feel pleased I can reply that Parramatta now has its own brew house and The Boy has given it his tick of approval. I have a sip of the Young Henry's - it tastes like...beer.

The menu is fairly small which makes ordering a breeze.  I get heart palpitations just looking at all the fast-food (but done in a kinda slow way) goodness. I'll have one of everything please!

First order up is a plastic basket lined with greaseproof paper that somehow manages to contain the pool of creamy, oozy Mash + Gravy ($5.00). It looks a bit like something The Colonel would make but it's WAY beyond anything he could ever serve up. The mash is so creamy it's almost liquid and the gravy is nice and peppery. The thing with mash + gravy is that it's perfect for dipping things in to -- like Fried Chicken ($16.00 for half a bird). This chicken was great! The peppery note in the batter is what really made it for me along with the combination of moist meat and crunchy outer.

Our burgers arrive snugly wrapped in greaseproof paper. The basket is piled high with hot, crunchy chips that have the perfect amount of salt on them (FYI, chips dipped into mash + gravy = an OMG moment).

I opted for the Cheeseburger ($14.00) and Miss Chicken went with the Mary's burger (also $14.00) that comes with a bit of salad on it. Mr Shawn embraced his inner vegetarian and ordered the 'shroom burger ($12.00) which I had a bite of - loved the big, juicy, meat field mushroom that they've used in lieu of a meat patty.

Now onto the cheeseburger.  It's wrong  of me to compare it to Shake Shack as it's really nothing like it (I'm told that honour goes more to the Mary's Burger which I'm going to try next time).  If I had to make a comparison I'd say it's similar to a McDonald's cheeseburger - soft bun (though Mary's is a buttermilk bun) with a thin patty, tomato sauce, melty cheese, onion and my beloved gherkins. Unlike Macca's though the patty has real flavour to it -- it's quite smoky and peppery and the super soft bun is like biting into air.  As soon I finished my last mouthful I was wondering if I could order "just one more"?

Mary's is at 6 Mary' Street, Newtown.

(Dinner at) The Baron, Castle Hill

Often I find myself describing a cafe (or person) as "hipster". When The Boy asked me what exactly a hipster was I couldn't actually tell him (and Google isn't much help). I'm sure I know a hipster (cafe and/or person) when I see them, but generally it's just anyone younger + thinner than me that looks good in skinny jeans with lace up broques. It's an overarching term for young people that dress...not like me, and who like cold-drip coffee.

One thing I do know is that there are hipsters to be found at Castle Hill's favourite hipster hangout, The Baron. Although now that I think about it some of those young-uns look more grungy and skaterish - but they do drink cold drip coffee so they must be hipsters, right? Geez, I'm old aren't it!

And old people (like me) love nothing more than an early dinner which is how Tara + I found oursleves to be seated bright and early for The Baron's dinner.  We booked for such an early time our cute little reservation card doesn't even have a time on it and the places was totally empty - staff not included of course.

The Baron is a buzzing (and totally excellent) cafe that operates as a small bar and restaurant on Thursday + Friday nights (shut by 11pm as we like to go to bed early out here). As far as I know this is the ONLY small bar in the West and I hope more open ASAP. The food during the day leans a little towards Dude Food and this note is carried into their dinner menu that is also peppered with lots of hearty, local fare.

There were lots of tempting meaty dishes to be had (pulled pork sliders!!!) but as I'm dining with VegeTARAian we decide to order all the veggie options on the menu and share them. We order a couple of cocktails to kick things off and ponder the menu over a bowl of mixed Gibson Grove olives ($6.00) from the "smalls" section of the menu.

I really like eating out with Tara as it's a good motivation to explore the veggie options on a menu. Sadly there are no vegetarian main meals (I hope that changes) so we hit up the "mediums" and are pretty happy with our feast. Things kick of with an American diner-style basket of corn fritters with housemade aoili ($11.00). These are not oily at all and are incredibly moreish. They are well seasoned too which is good to see (or taste).

The Macaroni + Cheese ($14.00) made me really sad that we'd decided to share as I wanted this all to myself as soon as I took my first mouthful! Oh. My. God. Creamy, al dente macaroni was topped with a gooey mound shredded cheese, chives + diced chills. Again this dish was really well seasoned which just helps to elevate the flavours.

We couldn't pass up the rosemary salt smashed potatoes with a scrumptious house made aioli ($11). The potatoes have a lovely crisp outer with innards that are softer and fluffier than a bunny rabbit and I think rosemary and potatoes is a match made in heaven! A little salad helps offset any carb/deep-fried food guilt (though the buttermilk dressing is a tad on the naughty side). The salad ($15) is a medley of baby gem lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, Persian feta with that naughty butter milk dressing I just mentioned.

This Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownie is TO DIE FOR! Literally!!!  It's so naughty that if you eat the whole thing yourself you might just keel over from pure happiness (or a heart attack)...so it's best to share it if you can bare it. This wasn't on the dessert menu, but as we are sort-of-semi-regular at The Baron we knew if was on offer during the day and they thankfully caved in to our pleading to hand over the brownie. THANKS!

We left The Baron full, happy and pleased that we didn't have to battle the M4/M2/Parramatta Road/Victoria Road to get home. What a great night out in The Hills.

The Baron is at Shop 461, 4-16 Castle Street (Castle Towers Shopping Center), Castle Hill.  You'll find them down on Old Castle Hill Road, next to Games Workshop.

Sweet Mother's Kitchen, Wellington (NZ)

I was lured to Sweet Mother’s Kitchen by the promise of po’boys.

I first tried po’boys at Hartsyard where I fell in love with their hearty crumbed oyster po’boy that comes smothered in a hot chilli sauce, served on a homemade English muffin and crammed full of creamy ‘slaw. It was seriously one of the best things I’ve ever put in my month.  Since that day I’ve decided to make it my life’s mission to try po’boys every time I see them on a menu.

In a token nod to Meatless Monday I ordered the Fish Po Boy (NZ $10.00) (I just could not bring myself to try the Tempeh Po Boy – as much as I love Tempeh). Sweet Mother’s po’boy is fashioned more on the New Orleans style sandwich than Hartsyard's more fashionable rendition.

Sweet Mother’s specially makes their baguettes which are then toasted and topped with lettuce, tomato and Creole mayonnaise. The fresh fish was coated in a cornmeal and Creole spice blend (that wasn’t very spicy).  It didn’t have the flavour punch of Hartsyard po’boy - a good dash of hot sauce, some ‘slaw and seasoning would’ve lifted things – but it was a good, simple sandwich.

To say I had food envy over The Boy’s choice of Fried Chicken (NZ$17.00) is an understatement - so much so that I went back for lunch the next day and ordered it for myself!

The buttermilk soaked (free range) chicken strips were so moist and tender, and the crispy fried outer shell gave an audible crunch as it was bitten in to.  It's incredible to me that even in a little student filled cafe like this they're using free-range produce. Way to go NZ, you're tops! The chicken was served with New Orleans style dirty rice that resembled turkey stuffing, along with some creamy coleslaw and the most amazingly flavoured sausage milk gravy that was peppery, fatty and smoky.

On our return visit (the VERY next day) The Boy ordered the Pulled Pork Po’boy and it really was very very good! The smoky marinade of the pork really lifted things in terms of flavour and the coleslaw added a nice fresh “crunch” to the sandwich.

We also ordered a side of crunchy and seasoned curly fries (NZ$6.50) served with Creole mayo that came served in an American diner style red plastic basket.  The fries go REALLY well dunked into the sausage gravy from The Boy's fried chicken dish.

I’m one of those people that study the menu of restaurants weeks, and sometime months before I actually get to eat there.  I’d had my heart set on the Peanut Butter Pie here for months so when the waitress told me they’d sold out of all their pies I was, needless to say, totally and inconsolably devastated.

Miracles do happen sometimes though as the waitress quickly turned my frown upside down when she told us that they’d unearthed one last, lone piece of Peanut Butter Pie. Oh my, it was everything I’d hope for – a thick, moist chocolate cookie crust with a chilled, whipped peanut butter filling that was as light as whipped cream!

Oh, Sweet Mother’s Kitchen – you really as are sweet as, bro!

Sweet Mother's Kitchen is at 5 Courtenay Place (Te Aro), Wellington, New Zealand.

El Loco, Surry Hills

Following on from my foray into Dude Food at The Dip a few weeks ago it seemed only natural to make tracks over to El Loco in Surry Hills to try their hybrid Mexican-Dude-Food-esque offerings.

In his bid to take over the world, of wining and dining at least, Justin Hemmes of Merivale fame has acquired the old Excelsior Hotel in Surry Hills. A revamp of the hotel to bring it up to Merivale's hip and trendy standards is imminent, but in the meantime a rustic Mexican inspired cantina has opened at the back of the pub.  Dan Hong, the chef behind Ms G's and Lotus, is also behind the food here at El Loco - giving it a fun, modern yet casual edge.

Although I'm visiting on a school night with Laura, Marty and The Chefette I decide it's early enough in the evening for a cocktail (I'm a one pot screamer so need to pace myself on school nights - sad I know). Turns out my teetotaling ways are a smart move as this is one lethal, but tasty, Classic Margarita ($13.50).

To start we order a side of Corn Chips with guacamole and salsa ($5.00). The corn chips are lovely, crisp and salty. The guacamole is lush and creamy, and the salsa fresh and zesty, if a just a little bit too watery. Lucky for me the chips and dip were sat right in front of me so I spent the night happily picking away at them.

There are five tacos on offer at El Loco and at $5.00 each it is tempting to want to try them all.  As I'm also eyeing off  Hot Dog I decide I need to pace myself - which must be a first for me. In the end I decide to go for the Al Pastor (spit roasted pork with pineapple salsa - on the right below) and the Queso de Soya (chilli marinated tofu with pico de gallo). Tofu seems like an odd ingredient for a taco, but it works really well - crunchy tofu is a nice contrast to the soft taco shell, and the pico de gallo (aka Salsa) is light and fresh tasting.

After I've finished my dinner though I'm still feeling a bit peckish, so opt for just one more taco.  El Loco has a "Mystery Taco" on offer each night and after the chef assures me it's not tongue, innards or any other squishy bits I decide to be brave and order one. I'm rewarded with a crunchy, spicy Fish Taco - which I don't photograph so get to experience the joy of eating hot food for a change. Amazing!

And last but not least the El Hot Dog ($12.00).  The pork frankfurt is a monster squeezed into a fresh bun accompanied by pickled jalapenos, mayonnaise, pico ge gallo and a mound of cheese.  In an attempt to save my arteries from self combustion I push most of the cheese to the side and tuck in...and the hot dog slides right out of the bun, through my hands, bounces on the table and ends up back on it's plate. What a mess, but once the dog is returned to its rightful place in the bun it is very tasty. The jalapenos give the hot dog a kick, but it is not overpoweringly spicy - the heat is quite manageable.

I have to say though...the Hot Dawg at The Dip is still in first place as my favourite Hot Dog of all time.  Sorry El Loco - but I'll be back to try more Tacos. Promise!

El Loco is at 64 Foveaux St, Surry Hills. It's just up from Central Station before Foveaux Street becomes too steep for most humans to climb.

The Dip, Sydney City

The Dip is one of the latest Dude Food joints to hit Sydney and word about their tasty Hot Dawgs (that's Hot Dog for any baby boomers and Gen X-ers reading the post) and Pulled Pork Sandwich's has been the talk of the foodie town for weeks.

What's Dude Food I hear my fleet of (one or two) baby-booming readers ask?  Simply put it is American style junk/fast food cooked by cool and hip young chefs.  The food usually has an Asian or Mexican spin to it, and pork as well as tooth achingly sweet desserts are a must.  This article pretty much covers if it you're keen to know more...or not.

I quickly gathered up a group of food-blogging Dudettes (aka chicks who like to eat Dude Food cooked by cool and hip young chefs) to come and try this place out with me one Friday night.  It's a darkly lit place, but with the help of iPhone torches and the help of fellow bloggers I think we all managed to get some semi-decent photos of the food - the food is 100 times better than it looks...trust me!

As is the case with the food-blogger catch ups I've been too the scene is generally chaos.  The Baking Lady From Work, who has come along with me, is reeling at our inability to focus long enough on the menu to actually order. Thankfully for us she quickly takes charge and orders a pile of Starters n Sides for us to try, organises our main meal options, collects our money and heads up to the bar to order for us.  If it wasn't for her I wonder if we'd still be sitting in our Flintstones inspired booth, unfed and happily chatting away and sharing camera tips.

For starters I push heavily for the Grilled Corn ($8.00) as corn is one of my all time favourite vegetables.  Seasoned with lime and mayo and chipotle salt this dish is a winner for me. The Snow Peas ($8.00) are still on the right side of crunchy and the dressing of coriander and vinaigrette takes them to a whole new level making them zesty and fresh tasting.  Adding apple and cabbage together in the Slaw ($6.00) is a stroke of genius - the tart flavour of the green apple sings in my mouth. And of course Salsa Fries ($6.00) are amazing - uber fat, crunchy fries liberally topped with fresh tomato salsa and cheese - heaven!

We also decide to share a plate of the Pulled Pork Nachos ($15.00) as these have become legendary despite The Dip only being opened for a few weeks. Now I have to say the Pulled Pork tastes really similar to the Kalua Pork The Boy made at home a few weeks ago and he is beyond chuffed when I tell him this.  The slow cooked pork has a lovely smokey flavour, and is topped with pinto beans, salsa, BBQ sauce, lime cream and cheese.

Wendy and I are both keen to try the Lev's Dawg ($12.00) and the Southern Smoke Sandwich ($12.00) so we go halvies which gives us a chance to try both.  The Lev's Dawg hit it out of the ball park for me...I have no idea what's in a Kosher Hot Dog, but oh my it sure is tasty!  A soft bread bun houses a smokey hot dog and is topped with salsa, chipolte mayo, yellow peppers and American mustard.  It is so delicious that I then share another half with The Baking Lady From Work.  Hey, we're here for a good time, not a long time. Right?

The Southern Smoke is pretty tasty, but oh so messy to eat.  I end up with pulled pork, BBQ bean, slaw and BBQ sauce landing everywhere but in my mouth. You can't take me anywhere!  I love the addition of the apple slaw - I "might" even try making this at home one day.

And what meal would be complete with our dessert. As I'd studied the menu before arriving for our dinner I already knew that the Cookies N Cream ($10.00) was going to be a must have. The salted caramel ice-cream is AH-MAZING and dotted with pieces of honeycomb and salty/sweet caramel. The chocolate molasses cookies with hot fudge defies description. All I can say is get yourself to The Dip and try for yourself.

The Dip is at 5 Liverpool Street, Sydney and can be found downstairs at The Goodgod Small Bar.