Pod Food

Pod Food is one of those lovely places I keep meaning to spend more time at – I couldn’t believe that this was my first visit this year! A friend and I just scraped in for breakfast (last orders at 10:30), excited to try the truffle-enhanced menu. I started out with a pot of earl grey tea and picked the scrambled eggs with beetroot, gruyere and olive sourdough to eat. Plus truffles. The food took a bit of time to come out, but when it did, the waitress explained that the truffle had been cooked through the scrambled eggs to enhance the earthy flavour. The eggs were light and fluffy, and the rather generous flecks of truffle certainly lifted the entire meal. I loved the minced beetroot’s tartness against the rich egg, and the olive sourdough added a nice hit of salt. I am a huge fan of mushrooms at breakfast, and this one was particularly delicious. We weren’t rushed out as we chatted after finishing our meals, which is always appreciated. Oh, and if you can, ask the waiter about centaurs. I promise, it will make for great conversation to pair with the great food.

Pod Food, 12 Beltana Road, Pialligo ACT                     http://www.podfood.com.au/

Barrio

Some places just scream ‘Instagram me!’, and Barrio in Braddon’s Ori building has to be one of them. From the hexagonal tiles to the branded high stools, Barrio is a New York-style tiny cafe that I would love to while away an afternoon  in. A friend and I went for breakfast, so I started out with a dairy-free hot cocoa, which came out in a large camping-type mug and was made with nut milk produced in-house. I expected sweet but being cocoa, not hot chocolate, it was definitely not sweet. The nut milk has a dense froth, but it was warming and went well with the food. I had the rye with avocado and togorashi seasoning – it came out on bread you couldn’t cut with the butter knife provided, but oh the flavour! There was plenty of avocado and the seasoning was very generous – lots of sesame and just a hint of spice at the back of the throat. I loved the strips of nori on top too, but what really blew me away was the olive oil. Yep, not your traditional highlight, but the quality and flavour of the oil on that bread was out of this world. Give it a try.

Barrio, 59/30 Londale Street, Braddon ACT                                  http://www.barriocc.com/

Ben & Jerry’s

I recently tried Ben & Jerry’s tub-sized icecream and loved it, so was really excited to stop by their Woden ‘Scoop Shop’ to test out some of their other flavours. The store is part of the Hoyts cinema, and has quite a wide range of flavours, including sorbets! I ordered a single scoop in a cup ($5.50), but was allowed to go half-half with flavours. I picked the Berry Berry Extraordinary sorbet (raspberry and blueberry) and a decadent chocolate flavour called Phish Food, which said it had marshmellow and chocolate fish inside. Curious. The sorbet flavour really reminded me of a Boost Juice berry crush, just with a more solid texture. It was really refreshing, but a bit icy and not quite as smooth as I would have expected. The Phish Food flavour was to die for. The chocolate was so lush and creamy, and whilst I couldn’t pick the marshmellow, the bits of chocolate shaped as fish were good quality and tasty. I ended up blending the two flavours (highly recommended) to get a yummy berry-chocolate mix. Great portion size for the price too. Definitely a new favourite.

Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop, Hoyts Westfield Woden, Bradley Street, Phillip ACT  http://www.benandjerry.com.au/scoop-shops

Patissez

There should be a special category of foodie award for people who get out of bed and manage to successfully leave the house when it’s -6 degrees outside for the sake of food. Just saying. Four brave souls, this one included, met for a 9am breakfast at Patissez on an icy Canberra morning. I started with a soy hot chocolate (probably sits around the middle of the Canberra pack, needed a bit more chocolate flavour) and picked the ‘Porky’ sandwich to eat. I’d heard the portions were big, but I wasn’t prepared for the GIANT BURGER that turned up. The brioche bun was quite crumbly so I ended up eating with cutlery. The overall flavours were great – super morish bacon jam, fried egg, fresh rocket and tomato sauce – but the pulled pork itself was a little disappointing (it didn’t have a lot of flavour). Unfortunately my meal arrived long before the rest, and my friend who got her meal last then had to wait another 5 minutes for a spoon to be able to eat said meal, which dampened the otherwise warm and friendly service experience. With a few tweaks this could be an excellent breakfast destination.

Patissez, Shop 2/21 “The Lawns” Bougainville Street, Manuka ACT, no website

Terrace Cafe

On the hunt for a close by, warm place for lunch, my colleagues and I stopped in at the newly refurbished Terrace Cafe at Old Parliament House. Their menu offers great value, with most items between $10-$15. There are some fabulous new artworks up of the building, including a striking one taken at night, and little terrariums on the indoor tables. I ordered the curry of the day for lunch, which was a lamb Indian curry. Our food came out quite quickly and it looked beautiful – the curry was full of meat in a bowl, and the serve included flatbread wedges, rice and yoghurt, as well as some finely julienned carrot. The lamb was melt-in-your-mouth tender and had clearly been slow-cooked to perfection. I found the curry had just the right amount of heat, although it was a little bit oily for my preference. The sauce had a tomato base but I couldn’t quite pick the type of curry. The flatbread was great for mopping up the sauce and whilst I didn’t eat much of the rice, it was good to have on the plate. I also really enjoyed the fresh carrot and would have liked more! Looking forward to trying more of the menu next time.

Terrace Cafe, Old Parliament House, 18 King George Terrace, Parkes ACT http://moadoph.gov.au/visiting/cafe/

Spicy Ginger Cuisine

So, it turns out Mr Shabu Shabu isn’t open for lunch on weekends, but luckily Spicy Ginger is, beause my friend and I were very hungry by the time I realised my mistake! Unfortunately the staff forgot about us after we were seated, but once they realised our order was taken quickly and we were given complimentary soft drinks with apologies. We started out with the san choy bao, which was utterly delicious – the crispy lettuce was packed with filling and every bite was perfection. I would come back for this alone, and I think it was the dish we both enjoyed most. Next up was the mongolian beef, which was a large serving packed with tender beef in an unctuous, salty sauce. The portion was quite large, but we had also ordered the braised eggplant in hotpot. I have a weakness for eggplant, and this was a really excellent way to serve it. The eggplant was soft and incredibly tasty, with another amazing sauce (hoi sin?). Three dishes definitely stopped us, and the staff kindly gave us takeaway containers so nothing went to waste. Just lovely.

Spicy Ginger Cuisine, 25 Childers Street, Acton ACT                           http://www.spicygingercafe.com/

The Cupping Room

I am a firm believer that we eat with our eyes. As a general rule, I try to avoid eating sweet things for breakfast, especially before going to work (hello food coma!), but on this visit to The Cupping Room, I really couldn’t go past the incredibly beautiful ricotta hotcakes. If a plate looking like that went past you, would you be able to resist it? I didn’t think so. I was blown away by the flavours on this plate. First up, the burnt honeycomb was to die for – it added a sweet but burnt flavour with an almost sticky texture, which helped cut through the sweetness of the rest of the dish. As did the pomegranate seeds scattered atop the hotcake pile. I particularly liked the fresh strawberries and would have liked more to enjoy with each mouthful, but the stewed rhubarb was a nice addition too. Down to business – the hotcakes were incredibly light and fluffy, although surprisingly filling. The creme fraiche was a bit much for me, but I loved the citrus syrup drizzled over the top of everything (more please!). Overall, I would suggest eating this only if very hungry. But eat it. It’s delicious.

The Cupping Room, 1/13 University Ave, Canberra ACT  http://www.thecuppingroom.com.au/