Archive for BAR

nick | 31/07/2009
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Watt Park Lounge at the Powerhouse Review

I freakin’ love the Powerhouse. There’s just something about the place that makes me feel at home. It’s great to chill on Sunday afternoons – you can sit, grab a beer, talk shit with your friends and when you’ve run out of stuff to talk about you can go and watch some comedy or live music for free. I can’t think of another venue in Brisbane where there is so much to do and so much variety.

The downstairs river walk area is constantly bustling with traffic as people ride bikes, walk dogs, run and it’s ideal for just sitting back with a coffee or a beer and people watching.

To keep you on premises when the hunger pains kick in, there’s also 3 different options for food; Bar Alto (upstairs) which features Italian fare, Watt Modern Dining (downstairs) which is a formal white table cloth kinda restaurant and Watt Park Lounge, a cut down café style menu and our choice for a recent late lunch.

Park Lounge is definitely the ‘entry level’ option at the Powerhouse as you order over the bar and the menu is compact and affordable – most options are around $12 – $16. But that’s not to say they haven’t made it interesting. I can’t recall the last time I saw a Croque Monsieur ($12) (fancy French ham & cheese sandwich) on the menu and Gravalax of Salmon with Dill and Mustard ($18) is not your standard café grub. After suitable deliberation over the first round of beers we settled on 2 of The Watt BLT ($12), a Salt and Pepper Squid ($16) and Roast Pumpkin Pide with Red Peppers, Goats Curd and Rocket ($15).

The crowd at the Powerhouse on a Sunday afternoon are a diverse mob. People seem of fit in no matter what they’re wearing and I dare say t-shirt, boardies and pluggers would effortlessly blend with those in a suit and tie. The young family with kids on scooters mingle with those that have dropped in for a coffee break on they’re Sunday afternoon cycle – in full bike kit.

But back to the point of this post… our food arrived in a timely manner and it’s clear that the kitchen goes to a little bit more trouble than many other places when it comes to presentation. The plates were sparkling and the food looked delicious. My Pumpkin Pide (pronounced pee-day as I was reminded when I went to order) sat in the middle of the plate, and the vivid colours of the capsicum, rocket and pumpkin just screamed take a picture.

I couldn’t help but be a little disappointed by the portion size though. Both the pide and squid dishes didn’t look like they should of cost as much as they did, despite the artistic flair.

My pide was delicious – the creamy goats curd and pumpkin working especially well together and it took a conscious effort on my part to savour the flavours rather than wolfing it all down. The flat bread was crisp and the whole package was spot on – I just wish there was more of it.

Around the table there were nods and smiles as the BLTs and squid received equal praise. The squid was served with capsicum and a little onion as well as a dipping sauce, the flavour of which now escapes me – the whole lot was cooked well with the squid nice and tender.

If being able to sit back with a beer (these start from about $6) or a glass of wine ($9 – 14) and laze away a Sunday afternoon with some good food is your style then definitely get along to the powerhouse – it’s not perhaps the best value in Brisbane but it’s certainly got a lot going for it.

Watt Park Lounge

The Powerhouse
119 Lamington Street
New Farm map

07 3358 5464

Tuesday – Friday: 10.00 am – Late
Saturday – Sunday: 8.00 am – Late

www.watt.net.au

http://www.brisbanepowerhouse.org

Visited on Sunday 19 July 2009

Category: BAR, CAFE, INNER CITY, INNER CITY |
ally | 06/07/2009
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Regatta Boatshed review

Pricey Pub Plates
Ahh, the Regatta. How I’ve spent many a night there as an 18-year-old, trotting around in inappropriate clothing and busting a move on the dance floor. Much as I don’t enjoy reliving my days as a Cruiser-guzzling, squealing teen, I had to pay the Toowong establishment a little visit the other night. And dare I say it, it was pretty good.

Okay, I’m cheating a bit-I was at the Boatshead, the restaurant that ajoins the bar. Nick has previously reviewed the Street Cafe, but the Boatshed is a bit more up-scale and offers heavier meals. Well, maybe not ‘up-scale’, but it definitely has restaurant prices.

For some bizarre reason we weren’t allowed to book a table for eight people at 6.30pm. We were told over the phone that 8.30pm would be the earliest spot available. Five minutes later, I rang back and asked for seven people at 6.30pm. Bingo! This really puzzled us, especially since up until 7.30pm the place was fairly quiet. It’s a huge space too, with seating that’s appropriate for large groups.

The Boatshed is known for steak, and patrons can choose from a variety of cuts and weights. If you’re not very enthusiastic about your beef, there are plenty of other options on the menu. I ordered a starter, the Smoked Salmon Stack ($16.50), as well as a Greek side salad ($9, both pictured).

Since it was a starter, I wasn’t expecting it to be very big, but the serving was decent: a huge mound of aioli-dressed rocket, a decent amount of shaved smoked salmon, and some capers sat atop a mini pizza base. Once I pulled it all apart, I saw how simple it was and felt a little disappointed: bread, packaged salmon, lettuce, sauce. But it was very tasty and the flavours went perfectly together. It was an ideal light dinner. The salad was very large as well, and was packed with cubes of a lovely creamy fetta, olives, roasted capsicum, cucumber, onion, and lettuce.
Salad
The boys all got Meat because they are Men. The steaks (from $29.90) got grunts and nods of approval, ditto the sides (your choice of potato, vegie, and sauce-I snagged a chip and they were crispy and delicious).

Steak DishThe Garlic Lamb Cutlets w/Baked Polenta ($29.50), and the Sweet Pork and Leek Sausages w/Mash ($18/$22.50) were also agreeable. I tried some of the 400g Angus Rump ($29.90, pictured), and it was quite tender and seemed a high-quality cut of beef.

Drinks-wise, there’s a plethora of wines and beers on offer, or you can be sneaky and make like we did and nip to the bar for drink specials. White Stag that night was $4 for a stubby, and tap beers are well-priced as well. One gripe: later after dinner when we settled at the bar for a few drinks (yes, I went to the bar. No, I did not booty dance after), I asked for a cocktail list. A sign had boasted there was a huge cocktail list, but we were told it “hadn’t been printed yet”. It would have been great if the bartender had then suggested a cocktail, but she didn’t, and I settled on something boring (brownie points though: they have diet coke on tap! Phenylalanine lovers rejoice!)

I was very satisfied after my Boatshed experience because I didn’t really have any major complaints. Sure, it wasn’t perfect, but there was enough of a balance between good and bad that everything evened out. For example: the waitress initially forgot to bring us water, but our meals were delivered to the right person and all roughly at the same time. Some meals might seem too basic, but flavours are fresh and complement each other well. I have a slight gripe with the prices. For a couple of extra dollars you can dine in a very high-class restaurant. The Boatshed, despite the prices, is strictly casual dining. Having said that, the servings are very generous, but it does sort of make you think.

It’s pretty difficult to find a decent place for dinner outside of the city that’s still kind of fun, but the Boatshed fits the bill. I find the atmosphere fairly appealing, although that’s coming from a twenty-something. There were a few young families dining, but remember that one has to exit and enter through the beer garden of the Regatta. And, like I mentioned before, the whole dining experience has a very casual feel. It does, however, make for a very relaxed atmosphere, and is handy if you want to pop next door for a few after-dinner drinks. Or to bust a dance move. Robot, anyone?

Regatta Boatshed

543 Corontation Drive (corner of Sylvan Road)
Toowong map

(07) 3871 9595

www.regattahotel.com.au

Open daily from noon for lunch/dinner
Boatshed

Category: BAR, RESTAURANT, WESTERN SUBURBS, WESTERN SUBURBS |
nick | 25/06/2009
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Boardwalk Bar and Bistro Review

Ah, 5pm on Friday. The end of the working week and the start of the weekend. I, like so many city dwellers mark this point in the week by grabbing my sociable co-workers and making a beeline for the pub.

Over the years I’ve tried pretty much every bar there is in the CBD, and have established a list of criteria in my head that will ensure a good start to the weekend. A decent Friday night pub must have:

  • Cheap drinks, so that you can start to forget the week that was… in bulk,
  • Snack options, because drinking on an empty stomach is just going to end in tears (and the gutter),
  • An atmosphere that is relaxed, bubbling and welcoming (if a place is popular with pretentious wanker banker types then count me out), and
  • Available seats on which to sit.

Some may say that I’m being unreasonable to expect all of this from a venue, and I’m sure more than a few of you would consider point 1 as being the only criteria worth considering.
Exterior View
There is, however, a place I’ve found that consistently meets all the above: Boardwalk Bar and Bistro on Eagle St, at the base of the Riparian plaza.

On a Friday night you can get a jug of beer with a bowl of chips for less than $14, so that satisfies the drinks and nibbles (basics are $6 and winos can join the fray from $7 a glass). Boardwalk also has an excellent view of the Story Bridge which you can appreciate when you’re not examining the contents of your glass. On my most recent Friday night escapade Boardwalk even had table service! I must say, the concept of sending attractive women to the bar to do my bidding was rather appealing.

There’s a lot of seating, both inside and out, and the whole place manages to make me feel comfortable-whether it’s been a serious tie and shirt kinda day or I’m slumming it in jeans and tee.

They also have food options all day but experience has taught me that a decent bowl of chips isn’t necessarily an accurate representation of the kitchen’s ability to do anything else. I’d subsequently recommend you try elsewhere when the deep fried carbs are no longer cutting it and the 7pm hunger pains kick in. If you need ideas try Verve or Groove Train.

A couple of hours at Boardwalk on a Friday afternoon is an excellent way to start your weekend. Bottoms up.

Boardwalk Bar + Bistro

Boardwalk Level Riparian Plaza
71 Eagle St
CBD map

(07) 3221 0026

http://www.boardwalkbar.com.au
Boardwalk Bar and Bistro

Category: BAR, CAFE, CBD, CBD |
nick | 24/05/2009
3 comments

The Pancake Manor Review

Pancake manor exteriorGolden Brown Discs of Goodness

For some very odd reason, finding a decent place for food in Brissy after 9pm is extremely difficult. I know there are exceptions but I always get a sense of dread running over me when I realise that it’s 8:55pm and I haven’t organised anything. Countless times I’ve gone door to door asking “are you still serving?” only to wind up at the end of the street frustrated and disappointed. Where do you go if you’re like me and like to eat late?

I’d like to introduce to you my all purpose standby for such occasions… the Pancake Manor. The Pancake Manor provides a fantastic all night option with great value for money, a kick-arse location and a menu that includes much more than just dessert pancakes, something I think many people forget. Most importantly though, it means that you don’t have to settle for a mass-produced grease burger wrapped in wax paper to be consumed in somewhere resembling a garbage tip.

The Pancake Manor is located on Charlotte St, and has one of the best dining spaces in Brisbane. An old church has been converted into a restaurant and if you’ve never seen inside before, I guarantee you’ll be wow’d. The place is full of stained glass with impressive arches and there is no where else like it in Brisbane. The furniture is simple; lots of wooden tables and booths along the walls. While some new upholstery wouldn’t go astray, everything is clean and neat, and the whole place feels warm and inviting.

The menu is heavily weighted to both sweet and savoury pancakes and crepes, but has several other options including steak, salads and a full all-day breakfast menu. I’ve sampled most of it over the years with the exception of breakfast, and haven’t been disappointed yet.

We strolled in at 10:40pm on a busy Friday night and for the first time in recent memory had to wait for a booth – clearly the GFC hasn’t reached the Pancake Manor yet. After cooling our heels for 20 minutes downstairs in the Good Knight Bar, we were seated in the restaurant and our orders were promptly taken. Curiously, our drinks were not served in advance of our meals and instead we suffered a noticeable wait for a cappuccino ($3.5) and table water. I can’t ever remember this happening before and on the whole, service at the Pancake Manor is very good – the staff are polite, enthusiastic and will share a joke with you but a cappuccino still shouldn’t take 20 minutes.
Short stack + bacon
Luckily the delicious pancakes distracted us and I wasted no time getting stuck into my Short Stack with cream, ice cream and special syrup ($8.5) with a side of bacon ($2.95). BACON?! I hear you say? Yes, that’s right, I like bacon with my pancakes. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it ‘eh.

The pancakes were light and fluffy; scrumptious discs of golden brown goodness. I really must remember to make these at home more often. The ice cream was good quality, the syrup plentiful and the bacon crispy without being burnt (yes I know I’m weird). By the end of it I was well and truly full.

My companions had another short stack sans-bacon, and The Ultimate – two French crepes filled with cream cheese, sultanas, lemon juice and vanilla with raspberry coulis and ice cream ($12.95). Both dishes managed to silence my friends for an extended period, which is a good way to tell whether or not a dish is up to scratch. The only comment I heard was that the crepes weren’t quite thin enough, which left them bit heavy rather than light and crisp.

It’s extraordinarily hard to fault the Pancake Manor in terms of value for money as there simply isn’t an alternative that does good quality food at this time of night. Freestyle closes before midnight and all you’re really left with is pizza and gelato (boring) or nightclub food, neither of which are particularly appealing in my book.

The Pancake Manor provides an excellent option for those whose bedtime is the other side of midnight and if you haven’t been recently I’d definitely recommend you get along. Try the bacon.

Pancakes at the Manor

18 Charlotte St
Brisbane map

(also 43 Brisbane Rd, Newtown Ipswich)

07 3221 6433

www.pancakemanor.com.au

Visited: Friday, 15 May 2009
Pancake Manor

Category: BAR, CBD, CBD, CBD, DESSERT, RESTAURANT |
ally | 10/05/2009
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Blu Grotto Review

My mum is an awesome lady, but I admit that Mother’s Day holds a second agenda for me.

Breakfast.

“Dearest mother, why don’t we go out for breakfast next Sunday?” “You’re such a sweet daughter! Yes, let’s do that!” Excellent. Breakfast out for me is a rare occurrence, so this was exciting. Cue me spending the next day eagerly pouring over menus, trying to decide where to go.

Eventually I settled on Blu Grotto, a restaurant/bar in Rosalie that usually draws a lively crowd at night. I might be wrong, but I’m sure that their brekkie menu has changed recently-what I saw when wandering by a few weeks ago looked totally different (and actually a lot more exotic) to what it is now. Correct me if I’m wrong, anyone-I have been known to confuse restaurants and loved ones when food is on my mind.

We were in contact with three waiters and all of them were both welcoming and professional. We started off with cappuccinos ($3.70). The coffees arrived promptly and were excellent; I haven’t had that good a coffee in a very long time. Creamy froth, no bitterness, not watery but not too milky. Perfect!

After finishing the delicious drinks, we waited for our food. And waited. And waited… 40 minutes past the time we had first parked our bums, they finally came out. Usually this wouldn’t really bother me, but a long wait at breakfast can mean that the meal becomes lunch, or a weird hybrid in no man’s land.

We all went for egg dishes – I the Pesto Eggs ($14.50, right), Mumsy the Eggs Royale ($15.90, bottom left), and Bro got the Regular Bacon & Eggs ($11.50). Since the breakfast menu is pretty standard (museli, pancakes, bacon & eggs, etc.), I got the Pesto Eggs hoping for something different. Unfortunately I was let down. Two eggs, tomato, mushrooms, and rocket were piled high on a slice of sourdough toast. There was perhaps two teaspoons of pesto on the eggs, and a little dish holding a generous serving of chopped avocado. I wish it had been the reverse-the pesto was delicious and could have made an otherwise ordinary dish really pop. I’d also asked for soft poached eggs and they were definitely hard – that yolk wasn’t going anywhere. I sadly waved goodbye to my dreams of gooey yolk rivers being mopped up with my toast.

The Eggs Royale was an eggs benedict dish of sorts, with poached eggs, smoked salmon, spinach, and hollandaise sauce on a toasted English muffin. While the eggs were perfectly poached (I’m going to say it – they were eggsellent) the hollandaise sauce let the dish down. It had an overpowering lemon flavour, and was a bit too sweet for Mumsy’s liking.

Bro was happy with his scrambled eggs, tomato, and bacon on sourdough toast. The bacon was quite burnt around the edges, but the eggs looked fluffy and were piping hot.

I have always felt that restaurants have a hard time doing a really good breakfast – part of the problem is that diners are expecting too much. We don’t want to taste something that is like what we make at home – we want something different, sometimes even a bit decadent. I’m not opposed to regular meals like bacon and eggs, but they need to be done right - not burnt slightly, or poached for not long enough. Apart from a few minor hiccups, Blu Grotto does do a decent breakfast, but so do hundreds of other places in Brisbane – it’s time to see some more adventurous offerings.

Note added on 27/5/09: Dudes, I went here last night for dinner and it was delish. The dinner menu offers kinda fancy dishes at reasonable prices, as well as staples like pizza and steak. I had a pork tenderloin salad ($22) that was a decent-sized serve of juicy pork bundles, greens, beetroot, fetta, olives, and other delicious bits. And thankfully, we only waited a very reasonable 20 minutes. Yay! Game has officially been picked up. – Ally

Blu Grotto
Bistro and Bar

Shop 4/155 Baroona Road
Rosalie map

07 3876 4653

www.blugrotto.com.au

Open Mon & Tues 3pm to late
Wed-Fri 11am to late
Sat & Sun 8am to late

Breakfast served until on weekends until noon; limited breakfast menu served until 3pm.

Visited Sunday, 10 May 2009

Blu Grotto

Category: BAR, CAFE, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, RESTAURANT |
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