Pizza non pazza at La Cannella

"I'd like to book a table for eight, please - five kids in total."

"Great!  We'll put you in the back room, upstairs."

Cue visions of a cobwebbed seclusion room for breeders and their spawn.  I imagined having to traverse this lovely neighbourhood bistro to "the back room", dragging my snotty children as diners looked on like smug business class passengers do as you stumble through to economy, head bowed.  What awaited us "upstairs"?  Boxes of napkins for seats and the only music the tinkle of a flushing toilet below?

Imagine my delight when this is what I discovered La Cannella meant by "the upstairs back room".

The stairs in question are only two or three and mean that your group can have relative seclusion, meaning that if you have kids with you, you may actually find dinner a relaxing experience.

This little pizzeria is tucked away in a gorgeous part of Kensington, nestled among big old trees.  They're open Wednesday to Sunday evenings (live music Sundays from 4 pm!)

Now, not only will the lovely staff bring the kids unbreakable cups, allow them to play with the animals in the old fireplace (not as Victorian as it sounds) and ply them with colouring books, as well as delicious pizza, the big drawcard here is the "make your own pizza" activity for kids.

Littlies get a mini ball of dough and pizza tray and can then squish, squeeze, stretch and smoosh to their heart's content...

Roast garlic focaccia, $8.50

...while parents can high five it over the table while reaching for a piece of this awesome foccaccia, each piece studded with a juicy, caramelised garlic clove.

The "kids - we get it" approach continues with kids' pizzas for $8.50 each, with anything you want on them.  Saffron only wants pesto and artichoke?  You got it.  Ham and cheese, hold the tears?  No sweat.  (No Aussie tinned pineapple though!)

Melanzano (eggplant, passata, ricotta, pesto), $19

Grown-up pizzas are generously sized.  With six out of twelve pizzas vegetarian and gluten-free bases available, there's something for everyone.  This eggplant number got the thumbs up.

Rustica (scamorza, caramelised onion, potato, rosemary), $19

At first I found the chunky potato on my "Rustica" odd, as I had been expecting thinly sliced, but combined with silky sweet onion and a top-notch base, it won me over in the end.  I'd love to check out their recent special, the Yabbie Dabba Do, with yabbies, marscapone and chives.

Savoy cabbage salad, $8.50

Big love for this clean and refreshing shaved Savoy cabbage salad with parmesan, lemon, pepper and mint - gorgeous!

Fish of the day, $25

La Cannella also do daily-changing mains like slow-roasted pork belly, veal saltimbocca and gnocchi, perhaps baked with blue cheese.  This blue grenadier was delicate, fresh and lovely.

Dinner done, the kids' dough creations are returned to them, dusted in cinnamon and icing sugar!

Dessert pizza, $9.50

...leaving surprisingly non-frazzled parents to enjoy ZEE BEST dessert pizza with luscious poached pears and a scandalous amount of molten dark chocolate.  Fifty shades of yum.

Coffee roasted by Flemington's STREAT (formerly the Social Roasting Company) tops off a dinner that has managed to please everyone - parents, kids and, in our child-centred world, the oft-forgotten other diners.  With genuine, switched-on service, La Cannella make it seem almost easy.

Thanks for the lovely company, M, B, C, E and F!

La Cannella (Facebook)

43 Epsom Road, Kensington

Phone:  9939 7241

Open:  Wed-Sat from 5.30 pm, Sundays from 4 pm


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CafeSmart 2012, plus Sourdough's new breakfast menu

I love living in the west, from being able to eat around the world in a day, to having awesome coffee, injera and cheese kranskies right at my fingertips (perhaps not all at the same meal, though!)  However, it's important to remember that as cafes and gourmet supermarkets rise, other parts of our community remain static.  The Star recently reported that Braybrook - right next to edgy cool WeFo - is the second most disadvantaged area in all of Victoria.  The Leader reports that Braybrook grade 2 kids' reading levels are the third lowest in the entire state.

So what can we do?  One way is to get involved is CafeSmart, a new project by StreetSmart.  When you buy a coffee tomorrow from a participating western suburbs business, 100% of $1 out of that coffee will be put into a fund.  When the campaign's over, local organisations will be able to apply for grants out of that fund.  In the past, through CafeSmart and DineSmart StreetSmart has channelled funds to the Iramoo Youth Refuge in Footscray, Flat Out in Flemington (supporting women upon release from prison), and the Multicultural Sudanese Centre, also in Flemington.

So let me twist your arm - go on, sigh a big heavy-hearted sigh and force yourself to buy a coffee from any one of these fabulous western/NW suburbs participating businesses.  I know I will be doing my civic duty!

*  Sourdough Kitchen
*  Common Galaxia
*  West 48
*  Footscray Milking Station
*  Petitou
*  Reverence Coffee and Tea
*  STREAT Flemington (formerly Social Roasting Company)
*  Luncheonette

Thanks very much to Kate from Sourdough Kitchen who got in touch to spread the word about CafeSmart.  While we're here, let's talk about SK.  There've been some changes here, from new staff, new bread lines (like beetroot and hazelnut) and a brand new cooked breakfast menu.  I'm digging the natty blue aprons!

It was so busy here on a Saturday morning, and I can see how the staff have to juggle a line of customers wanting a loaf of bread plus a full house of eat-in patrons.  They did a great job this morning.

Coffee is by Genovese with that old-school, pleasantly bitter espresso edge.

$16.50

Sourdough have not gone too crazy with their breakfasts, evidently preferring to keep it simple and reply on good quality produce to do the talking.  Bryan relished this simple combo of maple-glazed bacon, spinach, mushroom and perfect eggs.

$14.50

I covet Sourdough's pumpkin bread - so sweet and moreish.  Here it came layered with premium Meredith goats' feta, poached eggs and avocado with a squeeze of lime.  Simple yet simply delish.

$4.20

Everything that Sourdough Kitchen make is sourdough - right down to the buttery French pastries.  This makes them tangy and slightly heavier than their yeast-raised counterparts.  I know some people don't dig this, but as a sourdough nut, I love them!  Try the croissant with tangy plum jam...

$3.50

...or an innocent fruit bun...

$5.20 (dairy free!)

...or the big berry scroll bursting with raspberries and melty dark chocolate!

But most of all, buy a coffee from a CafeSmart participant tomorrow.  You might think it's a drop in the ocean, but many drops make a drought-quenching rainstorm.

Sourdough Kitchen
172 Victoria Street, Seddon
NOW OPEN SEVEN DAYS


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The Bank, Yarraville

Big things are brewing at Yarraville's The Bank.  This gorgeous heritage building occupies a top-notch spot in the Village and recent developments are very exciting.

Owner Bernard Mondon has assembled a dream team of sorts, with James Kummrow emigrating from Dunkeld's Royal Mail Hotel, which scored a coveted three hats in the most recent Age Good Food Guide.  In addition, great steak pedigree is virtually in the bag by Conall Flay, ex-The Station, coming on board.

The wine list's currently in development with the help of Sommelier Jeremy Shiells of the Royal Mail.  Winter comes through in all its cosy root veg glory on the menu - think seared scallops with smoked beetroot puree and silverbeet, or slow-cooked pork belly with pear puree and baby turnips.

Roasted Jerusalem artichoke veloute, sunflower seeds, golden raisins $12

Jerusalem artichokes are a somewhat intriguing vegetable that are neither artichoke nor from Jerusalem. They're a knobbly kind of tuber looking not unlike ginger.  This veloute (a roux-thickened soup) was so luxurious, rich and buttery.  Loved the inspired addition of swollen golden raisins that popped like sweet beads in the mouth, plus the occasional crunch of tiny toasted sunflower seeds.

Leek, mushroom, goats cheese and hazelnut terrine, $15

The menu proper is light on vegetarian options, but a specials board offered a few gems.  Here, a fat mushroom was surrounded by creamy goats cheese, with round leek sections forming the final border.  While the veloute had turned a humble tuber into something magical, to me this was the sum of its parts.  On this chilly night, my friend said she had serious food envy of my warm, snuggly soup.

Can we just pause a minute and check out the prices?!  Honestly, I could have stopped right here and been down $12.  We're talking very generous serves.  Now, maybe that's my fault because the section we chose from is called "Market Harvest" rather than "Entrees", but make sure you come hungry or otherwise, stomach rapidly filling, you may approach mains with apprehension rather than anticipation.

Roasted free range chicken, bacon and sage stuffing, onions, carrots $28

...Sorry, what was I saying?  Full?  Oh - um - I meant famished!  Now, ordering chicken breast might seem like a bit of a castrato effort but this is one spunky bird.  The skin was golden, the white flesh incredibly juicy, and on top popped sweet puffed grains which added snap and crackle.  Melty-soft mini onions complemented stuffing rich with bacon, while baby carrots offered innocent sweetness.  Delicious.

Cone Bay W.A. barramundi fillet, olive oil crushed potato, watercress, lemon $29

This is very special fish.  Just off tiny Turtle Island off the pristine, remote WA coast, barramundi are raised in vast ocean pens for six months before harvest.  Go on the virtual tour on the website to see what best practice looks like (never thought I'd daydream about working on a fish farm!)  This is one fish I wouldn't feel guilty about eating, and the flavour was totally no compromise - delicate petals of mild white flesh.

Quinoa and caramelised cauliflower $7

Continuing the generous theme, The Bank's mains don't really need sides, but anything "caramelised" demands investigation in my book.  Loved this combo of nutty, al dente quinoa and cauli florets just kissed with crispness.

Chef James kindly did up this super-purty sampler of sweet nothings.  Apparently his dad had told him, "Don't you go getting too fancy," so the triple cream cheesecake in the middle is his mum's recipe...  Well, at least right up until Mum puts it in the trusty springform!  This was just delish, the gorgeous house-made lime juice jelly cutting through the luscious cream cheese crème.  On the right was a milk chocolate parfait, which in this world of 85% cocoa or nothing was a ballsy, retro move, but one that paid off in spades.  Coffee was the secret ingredient that balanced the sweetness while salted caramel added more deep, dark flavour notes to bounce off.  Carrot cake on the left was quite lovely but got overshadowed by her two more flamboyant plate mates.

"No more," we cried, and a great short mac with Syndicate coffee (from Richmond) was a satisfying final chord.

Finer dining destinations are thin on the ground in the west, so this new, "up-town" direction for The Bank is both a smart and a very welcome move.  The Station Hotel is my all-time happy place, and like The Station, The Bank offers top-notch fare alongside down-to-earth western suburbs hospitality.

The Bank Food & Wine

13 Ballarat Street, Yarraville

Phone:  9362 7222


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Indo-Chinese zaniness at Pandu's

You know those stories of ghost ships?  Not only spectral vessels like the Flying Dutchman, doomed to sail the sea for all eternity, but ships that are found drifting with their entire crew having vanished without a trace.  For a long time, Pandu's was my ghost ship.  It used to inhabit a bare-bones little spot in Buckley Street in the strip of shops now demolished for the rail link.  Mr Baklover would insist that it was a restaurant, that he had seen people inside eating, drinking and making merry.  Yet every time I drove past it would be empty, and though I craned my neck I could see no signs of life.  "You're going mad!" I told my long-suffering husband.  "There's no restaurant there!"

Very happily I was proven wrong when Kenny checked out Pandu's, reporting an exciting Indian-Chinese menu at prices guaranteed to make even the saltiest sea dog grin from ear to ear.  It closed down and again thanks to Consider the Sauce, we learnt that Mr Pandu would be taking up new deluxe digs where the old Western Mart had been on "Upper Barkly" (if you like).

It was a long time coming but Pandu's is finally open.  It's quite quirky inside, with pimpin' cream lounge suites almost levitating on tinted wooden blocks instead of legs.

There are lots of little nooks and kind of "private rooms".  I can totally see a Bollywood dance scene happening in here, with the star crooning on the table while big wok flames jump out of the kitchen and a flash mob of bodacious Indian babes start grooving seductively.  As it stands, though, the only sound is the hum of the kitchen extraction fan, and the lack of colour makes it feel a bit like a bunker.  With some art or other decoration on the walls and a banging sound system, there's great potential here for a very cool hang-out spot.

Indian Chinese is the result of Chinese restauranteurs in India adapting their cuisine for local tastes.  According to this quite authoritative article from CNN Go, the Chinese Hakka community has been resident in Calcutta since the 1700s.  Thus began the authenticity acrobatics which see migrant communities all over the world begin to adapt traditional recipes for local palates.  As author Sanjiv Khamgaonkar puts it, "Quick to figure out that Indians love spicy, oily preparations, the Chinese merely masala-fied and greased their cuisine into a glutinous, winning combination".

Source:  www.chingssecret.com

That's extremely matter of fact (and rather unappealing) but it's essentially Indian Chinese in a nutshell - take (sometimes vaguely) Chinese recipes like battered chicken and fried rice and add Indian flavours like curry leaves, spices, tomato, chilli, plus a generous helping of soy sauce.

An example at Chilli India, CBD

Oh, put those eyebrows down!  I know it sounds horrible, but I am a big fan.  Aangan in West Footscray do great Indian Chinese like gobi Manchurian - battered cauliflower florets in a dark, almost sticky sauce with onion and green capsicum, and Chicken 65 - battered chicken tossed with an intense, spicy red sauce, cashews and glistening green curry leaves.  Aangan are known for their Indian Chinese and it's what you'll see many Indian customers enjoying, rather than what we might see as "the classics" like butter chicken and Rogan Josh.

Cashew milk, $3.95

But anyway - onto Pandu's!   A liquor licence is in the works, so while waiting we imbibed this homemade cashew milk.  Holy Bolly(wood), this was delicious.  The honey drizzled down the sides mixed with the cardamom-scented, slightly frothy milk for a cooling taste sensation.

Szechwan chicken, $10.95

Just after we ordered, the sweet waitress came back and asked if we wanted our dishes "with sauce".  "Well, yes," we replied, thinking without sauce we might just receive a plate of battered chicken, not unlike KFC opposite.  This was a big mistake as instead of those wonderful intense, reduced sauces I'm used to, our Indian Chinese morsels came in a lake of glutinous sauce.  This Szechwan chicken was quite nice but the sauce - very thick tomato - was overpowering.

Cauliflower Manchurian, $8.95

Likewise the gobi Manchurian, battered cauli in a moat of sweet brown sauce, lacked that intense flavour punch I covet.  Moral - make sure you have your choices "dry" or "without sauce".  Check out Kenny's more successful visit for how your dishes should look.

$11.95

Sometimes I want something but I can't order it because I can't bear to say the words.  The very hip "magic" falls into this category - it's a double ristretto in a 3/4 cup and is quite a lovely drink (especially for single origins) but every time I try to say, "I'll have a magic, please", the hipsterese jams in my throat.  Likewise, don't you sometimes see things on a menu and have such a giggle that you simply have to have them?  Ladies and germs, I give you SEVEN JEWELS OF PANDU'S.  This Indian-style fried rice was delicious, each separate grain dusted with turmeric and other spices, and nestling amongst them crunchy almonds, fresh pops of colourful capsicum, juicy egg and nutty nuggets of well-fried chicken.  Yummo.

So unfortunately our Pandu's experience wasn't as good as it could have been, but that was probably our fault for not investigating what "sauce" entailed (it's probably served like that because they figured we were having rice and wanted to have lots of sauce to wet the rice - a really southern Indian thing to do).  "Indian barbecue" is coming soon, plus the liquor licence.  Good on you, Captain Pandu, and looking forward to climbing aboard your love boat again soon!



Pandu's Indo-Chinese Restaurant
351 Barkly Street, Footscray
Phone:  0468 378 789


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Reverence Specialty Coffee & Tea

Ascot Vale is a very cool little suburb with a little bit of everything - and by everything, I mean everything from Yemeni or Somali food, a hardcore organic bakery (vegan sourdough donut, anyone?), a gangster past and a Hollywood "Walk of Fame" of famous racehorses, complete with horseshoes instead of handprints.  Now we can add specialty coffee house to that list.

Reverence has been open since the start of the year and does carefully made, just delicious food along with a raft of specialty coffee choices.

Latte, $3.80

This latte was unreal, silky, balanced and made even more gorgeous with unrefined sugar.  This blend was a Cup of Excellence contender from Guatemala.  The Cup of Excellence is an awards system that many serious cafes are sourcing coffee through.  Producers can enter their beans in a competition which is very thorough and audited by a third party.  They are then auctioned live on the internet direct to coffee roasters and can command very high prices according to their quality and the subsequent demand.  It's argued that this system is more fair than Fair Trade certification, as capital-F-and-T Fair Trade is a business and a sort of middleman who still set the price for producers, even if it's higher than standard trade, rather than letting the (high) quality dictate the price.

Tart, $12

This tart was sublime - melt-in-the-mouth goats cheese with buttery leeks and tender pumpkin in perfect short crust.  Every bite had a tantalising tiny buzz of my favourite spice, whole fennel seeds.  I tried to do a bit of a fanfic effort and make this it home, but it didn't come close.

Roast chicken sandwich, $11.00

Move over, smashed avocado, you overexposed starlet of the brunch scene.  Mushy peas are where it's at!  This inspired sandwich comprised roasted free range chook, just-cooked, mashed green peas and stuffing, which was more like a crispy crumble of golden breadcrumbs, like mini croutons.  So good.

Aeropress, $5

Reverence are so serious about coffee, they roast their own single origins in store.  They're also known for tea and have three separate urns with water kept at three precise temperatures.  This fabulous cup was made using the Aeropress, which is like a very fancy plunger.  Water and ground coffee are added to a tall tube, before another, slimmer tube is inserted and gently pressed to extract an extremely smooth brew.  I can't recall where this blend was from but it was remarkable for having no bitter aftertaste at all - like drinking coffee juice rather than assertive espresso.

If you haven't tried alternative brewing methods like filter or cold drip, do give them a shot.  Reverence is an excellent place to start that journey.



Reverence (Facebook)
155 Union Road, Ascot Vale
Mon-Fri 7.30am-4pm, Sat-Sun 8am-4pm


In response to a request, I used to put accessibility info on posts, but it's enough of a battle to remember to write down the opening hours let alone make sure I've considered steps, bathrooms and counter height.  Actually, sometimes it's enough of a battle to get out of the house at all!  Luckily Maribyrnong Council have done a very comprehensive job in putting together a Cafe Access Guide of cafes in the area that have all accessibility bases covered.  Check it out here.



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Vicolo Risotto Bar

This is a sponsored post for Australian Mushroom Growers' "Mushroom Mania" campaign.  The Mushroom Mania campaign is on for all of July 2012 and over 2,000 restaurants are participating by putting delicious mushrooms on the menu.  Please see end of post for full disclosure.

Pizzeria, taqueria - so why not risotteria?  Vicolo is tucked away in Moonee Ponds and specialises in risotto.

From a somewhat uninspiring location off the Woolies parking lot, on a Tuesday it filled up fast with couples and families escaping the winter chill.  Vicolo has been open since 2004 and is very gluten-free conscious.

When looking at a menu, I often order what I would never or have no idea how to make at home.  Do you do this too?  So, duck - check.  Sous vide poached eggs - check.  My favourite Cantonese whole steamed fish with ginger - check.  Risotto largely falls into this category for me too.

Risotto Funghi e Salvia, $20.50

This mixed mushroom risotto was yummy.  Under a snowdrift of Parmesan grated tableside, a lucky dip of mushie varieties were ensconced in tender arborio rice.  I scored sweet little enoki, with tall stalks like tottering palm trees; fat, velvety oysters; and quartered, nutty buttons.  Fried sage leaves added a muted herby flavour.

Risotto Salsicce, $15 lunch special

Here, Italian sausage with fennel seeds and a good dose of chilli married well with sliced Swiss browns, their dark brown tops contrasting against creamy white flesh.  Delicious, comforting and just like wearing a big warm winter coat on the inside.

Pear tart, $12

Dessert was a lovely tug of war between pistachio panna cotta, orange creme brulee, good ole chocky self-saucing pudding and many other tempting tastes.  We went for this pear tart that was delicious, with tender pear halves on good pastry.  Caramel sauce, ice cream and icing sugar put it into sweet overdrive.

Vicolo also do pastas and daily-changing mains that abut the $40 mark.  A great deal is the $15 lunch, which gets you a plate of this winter warmer and a glass of house wine.  The best tip is that it's valid until 7 pm - Vicolo recommend aiming to sit down by about 6.30 pm so you're sure to order on the right side of 7 o'clock.

I know we love to have a whinge about the weather here in Melbourne (and believe me, when I got hailed on yesterday when it was sunny only five minutes earlier, I was doing more than having a whinge) but I say, 'tis the season of risotto, stew and other lovely slow-cooked things.  If you can't change the world, change yourself - embrace the season!



Vicolo
28-30 Young Street, Moonee Ponds
Phone:  9372 9500
Hours: Mon-Fri noon-3pm, Tues-Sat 6pm-9pm

Disclosure:  This post is the final in a series of three for Australian Mushroom Growers' "Mushroom Mania" campaign.  I had free choice of any three participating Victorian restaurants and was required to choose at least one dish in which mushrooms were the "hero" ingredient.  I am being paid a flat sum for my writing which does not include meal expenses.  The restaurants were not aware of exactly who was visiting and when but may have been aware that they would be reviewed at some stage over the course of the campaign period.  Australian Mushroom Growers and Vicolo have not sought nor been given any editorial control of this post.


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