Archive for TAKE-AWAY

ally | 28/10/2009
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Area profile: South Bank

All the Colours of the Food Rainbow

South Bank used to have a beverage that my friends and I thought was the ultimate in culinary delights: the Rainbow Smash. I can hear you all sneer, “Oh, it’s just a frozen coke.” It is not just a frozen coke. It is a Rainbow SMASH, people. It’s all in the title. The range of flavours in the Rainbow Smash are not to be reckoned with. As I’ve grown older, my tastes have matured (somewhat), and so have South Bank’s. Here’s a brief run down on some of the dozens of restaurants, bars, and cafes that are scattered around this relaxed riverside community.

Breakfast
Poppy’s Basket earned rave reviews from Nick recently for their accommodating service and fresh eggs. Era do an all day breakfast on the weekend, and are more higher-end.

Lunch & Dinner
There is such a huge number of food places in and around South Bank that I’m going to just list them under the one heading-I am fairly sure that all of them are open for both lunch and dinner. I’m also going to list them by cuisine, as the beauty of South Bank is the plethora of different foods.

Pub-style
The Fox is on the outskirts of South Bank, and is a busy bar by night and a relaxing spot for a pub lunch by day.
The Plough Inn and The Shipp Inn have this same relaxed open-air feel and upscale pub grub.
Beastie Burgers are the perfect spot for a working lunch; they’re outdoors in the sunshine, they’re licensed (gets you through that arvo meeting), and they have awesome burgers.

Italian:
Dell ‘Ugo are an upscale restaurant with traditional Italian food, available on both a set menu and a regular menu.
La Via Pizzeria is ideal if you want to seduce someone (sexy low lighting and waiters that don’t hover), plus enjoy some pizza and Italian fare while you’re at it.
Amici’s do some impressive sounding banquets, or just some singular Italian dishes for all you weaklings out there.

French:
Piaf do possibly the most well-priced French food in Brisbane (think under $20).

Asian:
Satay Hut have low prices, a casual and modern setting, and mainly Thai and Malay food.
Viet De Lites: I am dying to try some food off this fresh, healthy-sounding Vietnamese menu.
Ginga Japanese are a sushi train (yay!), as well as a more up-scale Japanese restaurant.
Gandhi Curry House is another very reasonably priced, clean and chic restaurant, this time offering South Indian and Sri Lankan food.

Other
Mado do delicious Turkish food and are ideal for large groups.
Chez Laila have some of the best river and city views, and offer Lebanese dishes.

Modern:
Toscani’s have a huge, varied menu, including pasta, seafood, steak, and sandwhiches.
Sardine Tin was recently opened by Piaf’s owner Simon Livingstone, and is a small, open-air space serving mainly tapas.
5th Element is possibly the best-looking lady on the strip, with low lighting, open flame features, and a waterfall behind the bar. The menu is a bit more up-scale, and the service is fantastic.
Stone are located within the Saville Apartments, and are being very mysterious and saying that they have a new concept coming soon.

Drink
Era Bistro has a restaurant menu as well as a varied tapas menu, and are well-stocked with a variety of wines. Aside from The Fox, The Plough Inn, and The Shipp Inn, there aren’t many large bars or pubs around South Bank. You can take a short walk down the road to West End, or simply enjoy drinks at a South Bank restaurant’s bars (like 5th Element, who have a well-stocked wine bar, or Sardine Tin).

Sweet
Speaking of 5th Element, I am still yapping to people about my recent, unique dessert experience there. There’s also cute cupcakes at My Sweetopia, which is open until late on the weekends and also serves coffee. For something more casual, Movenpick ice cream serves up Swiss ice cream scoops that are all-natural. And, well, I have to say it: Cold Rock is right nearby. It’s no Rainbow Smash, but the ice cream flavours and mix-ins are equally as enticing.

Category: BAR, CAFE, DESSERT, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, RESTAURANT, SPOTLIGHT, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 22/10/2009
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Beastie Burgers Review

Bloody Good Burgers

Has anyone seen the news story about the Krispy Kreme burger? It’s disgusting, isn’t it. Imagine: a greasy burger, dripping with fat, sandwhiched between a Krispy Kreme doughnut. There’s a sick part of me that is curious, and would probably take a bite. Maybe it tastes fantastic? Maybe it could be the new culinary delight, but everyone is too scared to try it in fear of getting fat and heart disease?

Luckily, if I’m ever feeling this way again, I’ve found a good burger place to satsify my burger craving and not increase my cholesterol level. I’m talking about Beastie Burgers at South Bank, a licensed burger joint that offers imaginative and unique burgers, with nary a doughnut in sight (damn).

Yeah, I’m a little slow to jump on the Beastie bandwagon, but whatever. The point is, I’ve now been, and it’s damn good. On our recent visit we ordered an IT Support (tandoori chicken, yoghurt dressing, roast tomato, onion jam, lettuce), and a Spice Route (sweet potato, beef patty, haloumi, chill jam, tomato relish, hummus). Or, as D called it, “A Spice Rowte? Rootay? What is it?” Lucky he’s cute.

Both burgers were $10.50, which seemed like a reasonable price given their size and the quality of the ingredients. The IT Support contained a huge fillet of grilled chicken in a subtle Tandoori coating, along with generous serves of the vegies. Similarly, D’s Spice Rowte was packed to the brim, with thick discs of haloumi and beef taking centre stage.

Goddamnit, D’s burger beat mine. The combination of the sweet potato, beef, and haloumi was fantastic. Suprisingly, the flavours all complemented each other really well. My only complaint was that there were too many condiments-while delicious, in the end they made the burger a little soggy and start to fall apart. Having said that, the condiments were all so tasty. Very conflicting.

It was the opposite story with my burger-I felt there could have been a little more yoghurt dressing, to really push the whole ‘Tandoori’ focus of the burger. Here’s a funny story. I thought they called it IT Support because it must be what nerds eat. D is a nerd, but does not eat Tandoori chicken burgers all the time (nerds prefer Pepsi Max and Chicken Crimpy Shapes, it seems). Then I made the Tandoori-IT Support connection. Ohhh. Very un-PC, but cleverly named.

Despite my lack of sauce, my burger was also really tasty. The chicken was very lean and cooked perfectly, and not an ounce of any sort of greasy substance spilled out of either of our burgers. The buns were large, fresh, and fluffy, and made the burgers easier to eat (rather than those thicker yet smaller buns that force the burger to be really high, thus impeding eating technique).

Beastie Burgers also has salads, onion rings, fries, and a variety of drinks, including a Lindt Chocolate Milkshake. God that sounds good. There’s also beer from $5.50, wine, and coffee.

There’s friendly and polite table service, free water, and very relaxed and casual outdoor seating. I admit I still find it weird eating at places that have elements of both restaurant (licensed, table service) and casual take away (simple furniture, open-air, fairly low prices), but Beastie’s is still worth a visit. The burgers are, to date, the best I’ve had in Brisbane. Follow the delicious rawte to Beastie’s.

Beastie Burgers
Cafe and Takeaway

Shop 60D
Little Stanley St
South Bank

(07) 3844 4070

Beastie Burgers on Urbanspoon

Category: INNER CITY, INNER CITY, RESTAURANT, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 19/10/2009
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Rosalie Gourmet Market Round-Up

Deli-cious

God I love delis. They’re exciting places. So much food and produce is just crammed into a small space. I feel like Charlie Bucket in a deli. But there are no Oompah Loompahs (I find them freakish and they scare me). There’s only rich chocolatey brownies, fresh meats, stuffed olives, and loaves of just-baked bread.

I may not have been in a Roald Dahl novel, but I was at the Rosalie Gourmet Market. I cannot believe it took me so long to actually go into this place. From the outside it may look like a humble neighbourhood grocery store, but it is not.

Inside it’s crammed with everything you could think of. There’s fresh fruit and vege, along with various stores and even kitchenware and gifts. So what? Well, then you turn your head and see a counter dedicated solely to cheese. The case is crammed with 100 quality cheeses of varying prices and types, and helpful staff offer suggestions for matching.

There are two other counters as well: one for meats and other deli items, and one for baked goods. The meats/deli counter offers chorizo, turkey breast, rare roast beef, and other treats like stuffed bell peppers and marinated vegies. There are 18 different antipasto items, and sampling of the olives is encouraged. I like this place.

The baked goods counter is nuts. I stood there staring with my mouth wide open, possibly a droplet of drool hanging off my chin. This section is stuffed with cakes, tarts, pastries, bread, cookies, you name it. Bread comes in loaves, sticks, and small single-roll portions, and there are whole cakes as well as smaller slices.

I’ve had the Ricotta Crostada cake before, and the texture was unlike anything I’ve had-like a baked ricotta cheesecake, but far more complex and flavoursome. Eight different pastry chefs supply the sweet goods, fresh every day. On our visit to the Market, we sampled chocolate brownies (there are samples all over the place). They were rich, dense, and right up there with my Top Brownie Experiences. Some people mark their lives with milestones like graduations, jobs, and events. I mark mine with Brownies.

Inspired, we got a white chocolate and pistachio blondie, and a piece of baklava. For those of you who aren’t familiar (and if so, I shake my head), a blondie is a white chocolate brownie. The Market’s blondie was, without a doubt, the best blondie I’ve ever had (probably the best brownie, but making that assumption scares me. Then what will I have to live for?). It was that perfect balance between cookie and cake, just how a brownie/blondie should be. The white chocolate flavour was strong, and the pistachios gave the blondie a nice crunch. The baklava was also pretty damn good, although the pastry was a tiny bit dry. It still dripped honey all over the box, our fingers, and my pants, so that’s a good sign.

The Market is good for other food too-the fetta stuffed olvies were fat, fresh, and bursting with a creamy fetta. The chorizo had a smoky flavour and didn’t taste too fatty, and a sundried tomato pesto was a nice spin on an old favourite. The sliced turkey breast makes you feel like never getting meat from the supermarket again-there is just no comparison in quality.

Prices at the Market are quite standard for gourmet food, but reasonable. Cupcakes are as little as $2.50, while whole cakes range from $20-$30. Given the quality and the freshness, this is a very fair price. Antipasto products are also reasonably priced, starting at $25 per kilo.

Don’t wait until you’re planning a party, a wine-and-cheese night, or need something to impress your in-laws. Go to the Rosalie Gourmet Market now, eat some cheese, scoff some cake, and then think how a crappy Monday suddenly turned out so well.

Rosalie Gourmet Market
Gourmet Deli, Bakery, Butcher, and Grocery Store

Corner Nash St and Baroona Road
Rosalie

(07) 3876 6222

www.rosaliegourmet.com.au

Category: DESSERT, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, SPOTLIGHT, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 12/10/2009
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Sugar and Spice Mini Review

And All Things Nice

What are little Allys made of? Sugar and spice and all things nice, that’s what little Allys are made of. Well, in reality, I was sweaty, wearing old gym clothes, and probably didn’t smell that fantastic. But at that moment, sitting in Sugar and Spice in the city, I felt rather sweet and pretty.

The white chocolate triangle I was scoffing might have had something to do with it. This little beauty was like a cross between a brownie and a cheesecake. It was very dense and chocolately, but had a creamy aftertaste. Topped with a layer of white chocolate ganache, it was an absolute steal at $3. Most of the other treats at Sugar and Spice are the same price-like the brownie, pecan tart, or lemon tart. They’re all quite sizeable portions, and if the white chocolate triangle is anything to go by, the quality is fantastic. The pecan tarts in particular looked awesome-little piles of pecans were sitting in a rich, honey-coloured goo, all enclosed in a flaky pastry shell.

Sugar ‘n Spice bake all of their treats in their own patisserie, which is quite hard to find in this sad but delicious age of wholesale and mass production. They also sell sandwhiches and quiches, and coffee is priced from $2.80. The whole thing reeks of cheap and dodgy, right? But the ambiance is quite the contrary. It’s a cosy little space with warm colours, high stools (as in chairs. Not poo. In case you were wondering), and cute teapots and mugs adoring the walls.


Sugar ‘n Spice was one of those places that I passed by a million times a week and never went in. Now, I sort of wish I hadn’t gone in, because I know of the delights inside. Ass, expect to get a lot bigger in the months to come.

Sugar ‘n Spice
Cafe

210 Adelaide St
Brisbane

79 Albert St
Brisbane (correct me if I’m wrong, and this location isn’t owned by the same people?)

(07) 3221 2222
Sugar 'n' Spice

Category: CAFE, CBD, CBD, DESSERT, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 08/10/2009
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Little Lily Sushi Bar Review

‘Bursting’ with Flavour

It seems it is my goal in life to eat my way through every sushi train in Brisbane. What is it about plates of rice on a moving vehicle that excites me so? As a child, did I make a little sushi hut and transfer sashimi and inari over to it on the backs of toy trains? Do I have a bit of a thing for train drivers? Who knows. All I know is conveyor belt + nori = happy Ally.

Although this Ally had a little confused frown on a recent sushi train trip. I was at Little Lily Sushi Bar, a sushi train that adjoins the Little Lily Vietnamese Restaurant, at Kelvin Grove.

The good news first-it’s rather cheap. Plates are $2.80, $3.50, and $4.80, and green tea is served free. The train track is large, so there’s lot of seating too.

So why was I frowning? Because when you try to place some sushi in your mouth and it falls apart, all over you/the floor/your neighbour’s foot, you look like a damn fool. Unfortunately, this was the story with most of the sushi. It was either put together rather sloppily, or rolled so tightly it was bursting at the seams. Either way, the end result was me picking dried rice off my top that afternoon (although that tends to happen after most meals).

There’s also not a lot of choice with what’s on the train; on my visit, there was mainly rice-based rolls and a few deep fried things. I may have seen a lone inari, but the train was moving so fast (seriously, this thing was flying), I could have been imagining it.

Now-once I finally got the sushi in my mouth, my grumpiness evaporated. The sushi tastes good. I tried a salmon and avocado plate ($3.50), and the salmon was of a really high quality. The avocado was perfect and was very fresh.
I also grabbed a mysterious plate of what I thought was spicy tuna ($2.80). It was actually some sort of canned salmon mix, and as weird as that sounds, it tasted really good. On a previous visit I also tried some deep fried tofu and picked vegie rolls, which were fantastic and held together well. This makes me think the chef might have just been having an off day with her rolling technique.

The sushi is all fresh and prepared on the spot, and there is a menu that presumably you can order whatever you want off (like sashimi). The ambience isn’t fantastic; it’s rather plain inside and austere. Having said that, it’s clean and it is a sushi train, designed for quick and cheap meals. The servings are bigger than most places, but still don’t match up to such monster servings like at Toowong Sushi Station.

So, despite the sushi falling apart, it was really quite tasty and good value. I’ll go back, and risk looking like an idiot who can’t feed herself.

Little Lily
Sushi Bar (and Thai Restaurant)

Shops 19 & 20, 8 Carraway St
Kelvin Grove

(07) 3832 2888
Little Lily Thai Restaurant and Sushi Bar

Category: INNER CITY, INNER CITY, RESTAURANT, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 05/10/2009
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Jindalee Bakery Mini-Review

Suburban Sweets

High school can be a difficult time. Exams, peer pressure, bullies, break ups, puberty. FUN. There was one thing that got many of us through the day: tuckshop. Before everyone got too fat and lollies were banned, school tuckshops were a delight for dougnut lovers. Scoff if you will-but to this day I have never had a jam and cream bun as good.

I took a chance on one from a bakery in Jindalle as I was really, really impressed with their other goods. This humble little suburban bakery had an Oreo cheesecake-now that doesn’t sound ground-breaking, but this one was.

How frustrated do I get when I go somwhere, order something that calls itself an Oreo cupcake, and find that it’s just a chocolate cupcake with an Oreo on top? It’s a similar situation with other flavours – the Rocky Road cupcake at The Cupcake Parlour springs to mind.This Oreo Cheesecake had an Oreo on top, AND Oreros throughought the cake, AND what looked like an Orero cookie base. Finally the Dessert Gods are hearing my cries for creativity, decadence, and that ingenious mixture of cream cheese and cookies.

I saved the Oreo Cheesecake for my next visit, and instead settled on stealing a bit of my mother’s jam and cream bun (this woman downs trans fats like there’s no tomorrow and remains a size 8. Unjust). I would definitely make the trip out to Jindaz to sample some of the treats here-I also spied Jaffa Cupcakes, Strawberry & White Chocolate Muffins, and other bakery staples like Neenish Tarts. But back to the bun-it was quite tasty; the cream was real and very fresh, and the bun was soft and doughy. But…

There still is nothing like a dirty school tuckshop jam and cream bun.

Jindalee Bakery

11/168 Sinnamon Road
Jindalee

I visited the one in the same complex as the Jindalee Hotel. There is another similar bakery across the road.

(07) 3161 3881

Category: DESSERT, TAKE-AWAY, WESTERN SUBURBS, WESTERN SUBURBS |
ally | 28/09/2009
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The Boys Review

Chillaxing
I have a few things that make me insanely happy. One is kittens. One is cracking a beer after moving the lawn. The other is trashy, trashy magazines, full of pretty pictures and celebrity gossip.

Usually I am forced to indulge this habit at the doctor’s office, or the library. But I’ve recently found a nice place where I can sit on a cushy couch, get a sugar hit, pretend I’m as cool as the waitstaff, and read a supply of free trashy mags to my heart’s content.

I’m talking about The Boys, a Kelvin Grove cafe with a big menu and an even bigger trashy magazine stack. Yessss.

The Boys is a very cool space; there are comfy seats, funky wall art, and all the people who work there have hairdos that make me and my ponytail feel like losers. Food includes salads, sandwhiches, pastries, muffins, and the like, as well as an ever-changing specials board. On a recent visit the board included pancakes, a chicken shnitzel burger, and a marinated lamb backstrap.

But forget all that. I was after some of the hard stuff. I ordered a Lindt Hot Chocolate ($4.50 for a regular), and an Organic Choc Chip Cookie ($3). Other sweet treats that looked good included a raspberry & choc muffin, and a pistachio friand.

Coffee

I’ve had coffee from The Boys a few times and it’s always been really good. They use their own blend, which you can buy in-store. My first non-coffee Boys experience had the unmistakeable flavour of Lindt dark chocolate, which gave a hint of bitterness to the drink. This was quite ideal, as otherwise it would have been too rich and sickly. My only complaint: marshmallows on the side? Seriously? Put those babies in there to melt, man!

The cookie was rather large (I like), and rather hard (do not like). I want my cookies chewy, soft, and sort of under-cooked. But this probably violates several Food & Beverage laws, so don’t be put off by my tastes. The cookie was rich and buttery, and crammed with big discs of choc chips. And yes, I dunked. I dunked in public, and it was great.

The cafe has lots of indoor and outdoor seating, and is also open on Sundays for breakfast. Trashy mags are my equivalent of the Sunday paper, so I daresay I’ll be back.

The Boys House of Coffee
Cafe and Take-Away

Shop 3, The Village Centre
Musk Avenue (corner Blamey St)
Kelvin Grove

(07) 3832 2822

Boys House of Coffee on Urbanspoon

Category: CAFE, INNER CITY, INNER CITY, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 24/09/2009
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Raun Thai Review

Sweet and Sour

I’m usually a bit of a softie on here. Well. Things have changed. There are two things that make me angry. One is finding used bandaids in the shower. The other is bad Thai food.

Normally, I’d focus on the very sweet and friendly service. Or the fact that the ambiance was actually quite nice and not tacky, which can be rare in Thai restaurants. Or the swift service and little touches like constant water refills and free prawn crackers. But no. My name is Ally, and I’m about to get a little bad ass.

I’ll back up a bit. I was on a blind date with fellow blogger, GG. Being with someone else who whips out their camera at the dinner table was quite magical, I assure you. We started with Kao Tung Savoai ($7). Little rice cakes that very closely resembled rice crispie squares came out, accompanied with a dish of tamarind chicken. I’m sure these cakes were made from Rice Bubbles. The fact that they looked like LCMs but were hot and sort of buttery was very disconcerting. This was a shame, because the chicken dipping mixture was really good; light and fresh, with delicate lime leaf flavours. There was one more rice cake left but I happily left it there and scooped up the chicken in a spoon.

Next came the Yum Neua (Thai beef salad, $16.50) and Moo Kratiam Prigthai (garlic and pepper pork, $16.50). The pork was really chewy. That’s all there is to it; chewy, chewy pork. I got a hint of some nice flavours in the broth, but that meat was an effort to chomp through.

The beef salad was a little better. Flavours were quite nice; lime leaf, coriander, and a hint of chilli came through nicely. The beef, however, also put my chompers to work. My tongue was performing acrobatics trying to wrangle a piece out of my back molar. There was a massive absence of vegies; the dish mainly just had some very large limp lettuce leaves. It was a similar lack of roughage situation with the pork.

Now, this is where Bad Ass Ally takes a break and goes to punch through concrete walls and whatnot, and Soft Ally returns from the land of fairy floss and ginger kittens. I feel bad bagging out on Raun Thai, because the service we encountered was very lovely. The owner (presumably) and the waitress were very sweet, and looked after us. I also feel funny writing this less than stellar review because everyone I speak to just loves Raun Thai. In fact, friends went there on the weekend and had nothing but good things to say. I’ll also point out (not that this is criticism
by any means) that Raun Thai is a bit tricky to find, and is tucked away up a flight of stairs near Woolworths.

So. Did I catch the chef on a bad night? Am I just looking for a chance to flex my bad ass muscle? Or does most of the food leave patrons with a sour expression on their face too? Who knows. What I do know is that you can find far better Thai in this town. Now I have to go soften up and bake some cookies or something. Bad ass does not suit me.

Raun Thai
Thai Restaurant and Take Away

1/6 Sherwood Road
Toowong

07 3870 8103

BYO
Open daily, 6pm-10pm

Raun Thai on Urbanspoon

Category: RESTAURANT, TAKE-AWAY, WESTERN SUBURBS, WESTERN SUBURBS |
ally | 21/09/2009
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Gelatissimo Review

Die Happy and Refreshed

The duvet is getting kicked to the end of the bed every night. A chilled can of XXXX sounds like a really good idea at 10 in the morning. Sweat is getting into all sorts of crevices. Isn’t this weather fantastic?

What better way to cool down than with sugar and dairy (what did you think I was going to say-water?) You know that I advocate gelati even in winter, so really, that opening paragraph was just a chance to get excited about the steamy months to come.

Back to the treats, then. Gelatissimo is a small chain of stores serving up Italian gelati and coffee. There is one store in Brisbane-ONE, people! You know what this means. Either move to the CBD, or plan every upcoming holiday around the location of their other four Queensland stores.

The various tubs of gelati always look amazing, like little whipped mountains of deliciousness. If you could shrink me down to Sea-Monkey size, and if gelati climbing was a respected sport, I would surely fail as I would just eat it all.

Flavours include Red Bull (I’ve always been curious about this-is it good? Does it give you wings, or a satisfied belly?), Chocolate Mint, Honey & Macadamia, Snickers, Raspberry, and faithful Pistachio. On a recent visit I went with the Chocolate Sorbet. D wasn’t going to get any; “Oh I am too full,” he had moaned, clutching his belly. Then we walked into Gelatissimo and he saw Canadian Maple & Walnut. “One scoop, please.”

Usually I don’t really like sorbet. It’s icey, too sweet, and makes you feel like you’re having the diet option of gelati (it’s fat-free, so you kind of are). But either Gelatissimo totally rock, or someone accidently mixed up the signs that day. The Chocolate Sorbet was just too good. It tasted creamy and rich, and the taste of the 85% Lindt dark chocolate was so clear it was like I was hanging out in the factory in Switzerland. Amazing.


The Canadian Maple & Walnut was also pretty tasty, and the flavours worked really well together. I think the maple flavour could have been a bit stronger, but extra points for them using actual maple syrup and not the crap Cottees ‘maple flavoured’ syrup.

Whether you’re motivated by sweat or satiety, trot down to Gelatissimo and get your own little mountain to scale.

Gelatissimo
Italian Gelati

Shop 3, Cnr Albert & Queen St (turn left at Hungry Jacks, stop before you reach the strip club)
CBD

(stores also at the Gold and Sunshine Coasts)

07 3012 9797

http://www.gelatissimo.com.au/

Category: CBD, CBD, DESSERT, TAKE-AWAY |
ally | 16/09/2009
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Cicada Review

Cool Confusion

I hate Crocs.

Not because they’re sort of ugly (apologies to any Crocs lovers out there). I hate them because as a shoe, they fail. What are they? Are they gardening shoes? Are they shoes to wear in the shower at the gym? Are they casual weekend shoes? Do you wear socks with them? They don’t know what they’re doing. They need to find a singular identity.

So does Cicada, a fairly new joint on upper Adelaide Street (this could or could not be King George Square-I’ve only lived here for 18 years, what do I know) in the CBD. It’s downright beautiful inside: little candles; gold, black, and grey tones; chunky, new modern furniture; and cool copper wall hangings. There’s lots of seating and it’s a popular place for after work drinks. Outside is simple but pleasant, and has a lively vibe.

That all sounds dope, but what’s with the incredibly loud, pounding house music inside? What’s with all the low tables that make you feel like you’re in a restaurant, but the menu that makes you feel like you’re in a pub? What’s with them not being open on the weekend? What’s with such a gorgeous place mainly offering just cheap takeaway breakfasts (from $4) and lunches (pastas, sandwhiches, etc.) during the day?

On the one hand, it’s awesome that one place has managed to capture the holy triumvirate: restaurant, bar, and office takeaway. The bar part is fantastic, although the lack of lounge- and bar-style seating may throw some. It’s mainly the restaurant part of Cicada that is a little weird; the interior design and furniture make you feel like you’re in a restaurant, but the loud club music makes you think you’re wearing fat pants and ordering your third Red Bull.

Now, having said all that: the food is good. Yay! The menu is quite small, with six or seven main dishes and a small snack selection with chips, antipasto, and the like. I ordered the Salt and Cayenne Pepper Squid ($16~), while D went with the Chicken Burger with Portugese Chili Mayo ($15~). Other menu items included a lamb salad; a beef burger; and fish fillets.

While you order and pay at the bar, food is brought to the table. Service was very good: the waiters and bartenders were young and relaxed but still had that professional vibe. Squid Photo
So many places stuff up squid. Often, I find deep frying is the culprit: why deep fry something that only needs a minimal amount of cooking time? In animal life, a cicada would have no chance in a throw down against a squid. But this is food land, and Cicada nailed that bad boy. The generous serving of the squid strips were very lightly crumbed and flash-fried, and melted in my mouth. The accompanying aioli resembled a pile of mayo, unfortunately; a bit of garlic would have made the fish pop. The side salad was quite standard but fresh.

Speaking of salad, who hates iceberg? Hands up. It’s a shame the ‘filler lettuce’ was used on D’s grilled chicken burger, because the rest of the dish used very quality ingredients. A thick breast rested between a pair of very soft buns. Who else is giggling right now? But seriously, it was a good burger. The accompaying chips were a bit of a wedge/chip hybrid, which to me is the perfect love child: a thick, crunchy, seasoned skin gave way to a little pocket of fluffy potato. The Portugese Chili Mayo was another nice addition, although it was very mild in spiciness.

I really like Cicada, but make sure you brace yourself if you’re going there to just eat dinner. The food is tasty and of good quality, and it seems like a great place for drinks. Eating a ‘proper’ meal there, however, can be a little weird.

Cicada
Bar/Restaurant/Takeaway

275 George St
Brisbane CBD

07 3211 2161

Cicada on Urbanspoon

Category: BAR, CAFE, CBD, CBD, CBD, CBD, RESTAURANT, TAKE-AWAY |
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