Grease Monkey

Patience is not a strength of mine, so when I saw that Grease Monkey, whose black garage shutter had been teasing all of Braddon for months, had opened, I couldn’t wait to go – so I didn’t. I grabbed my book, joined the (fairly long) queue to order, then took a perch at the stool along the front window to await my burger experience. I chose the ‘Greasy’ – their basic burger, with a beef patty, lettuce, cheese, onion, pickles and Greasy’s sauce plus tomato sauce and mustard. All the burgers come with chips, and whilst I did wait quite a while for my food (they were very busy), the portion was great value for $15. The burger itself was on a soft bun (oh the joy! This is what burger buns should be!), although I was surprised at how thin the patty was – the burger crumpled down a lot for ease of eating. But the flavour – oh yum. I am a huge fan of pickles and there were plenty, and whatever is in that Greasy’s sauce, it was gold. The chips were nice and crispy with a flavoured salt (chicken? peri peri?) on top. I really appreciated the uncomplicated menu and will be back to try the other burgers for sure.

Grease Monkey, 19 Lonsdale Street, Braddon ACT                              http://www.greasys.com.au/

The Dock

On a recent visit to Canberra, I took Mum down to the Kingston foreshore for lunch. We wandered up and down, but both really felt like something a bit naughty – so we indulged in some pub grub at The Dock. Whilst the fish and chips was tempting, we both decided to go for the hot dog on the specials menu. We sat outside looking out towards the water, and after a bit of a wait (we were starting to get pretty hungry by then) our meals came out. The hot dog was a vienna sausage, topped with mustard and tomato sauce, American-style. The roll was sitting on top of a bed of The Dock’s amazing chips, with a side of tomato sauce for dipping (Mum liked the chips so much she said they didn’t need sauce – more for me!). The hot dog was really tasty – plenty of onion underneath – but we both agreed that the roll itself was a bit much considering how much filling there was. Neither of us ate all the bread, but the filling was devoured pretty quickly! We both had a lemon lime and bitters, which was huge and very refreshing. Got to love the great flavours and value at The Dock!

The Dock, 7/81 Giles Street, Kingston ACT 2604                  http://www.thedockkingston.com.au/

Charcoal Restaurant

Arriving at Charcoal felt like stepping back into another decade. I was one of the only women there, and the red leather seats and trolley cart service gave the atmosphere of an old school boy’s club. However, none of this detracted from the dining experience. Charcoal is a steak restaurant, so everyone in the group ordered one cut of steak or another. We ordered the anchovy bread to start, which must have been pan fried in butter is was so good – crispy, salty and morish there was nothing healthy and everything delicious about it. For my main, I picked the cajun fillet – something about meal with a good spice rub is always appealing. Our meals came out at the same time, and I liked the touch of a floret of butter served atop my steak. I’d ordered medium-rare and medium-rare I received, with tender pink hiding inside the charred outer meat. The cajun flavour was spicier than I expected, but I really enjoyed the smokey, vibrant taste. We received salad with our meals which was nice to break up the meat-fest. Charcoal isn’t cheap, but the quality was excellent and the setting is certainly unique.

Charcoal Restaurant, Melbourne Building, 61 London Circuit, Canberra ACT, no website

Mr Papa

Mr Papa has been around for a few years now, appearing at events like The Forage regularly, but this was my first visit to their semi-permanent home at the Hamlet in Braddon. I was also Dad’s first visit to the Hamlet, so we ordered an empanada and a chanchito (pork roll) to share and give us room to try other things. The friendly ladies at Mr Papa happily chatted to Dad in Spanish while they prepared our food, and gave us a sample of the sauces they offer to try – the green one (I can’t remember the name) was to die for and we got a small tub of it for our empanada. The empanada was beautiful and fresh, with pastry that wasn’t too thick and lots of filling. The tangy lime sauce made the dish though – I’d highly recommend getting as much of it as you can because it was so, so good. The chanchito was slightly less exciting – there was a lot of bread, and whilst the pork was tender, I found that the raw onion dominated the flavour. The sweet potato slices were a great textural contrast though. I’d definitely get the empanadas again!

Mr Papa, the Hamlet, 16 Lonsdale Street, Braddon ACT                                           http://www.mrpapa.com.au/

Rama’s

This was my first dine-in lunch at Rama’s – they only open for lunch on request, and we had a big group to catch up with friends visiting from Papua New Guinea. We all had the $30 per person banquet, which included a huge range of delicious dishes. We started with pappadoms and minted yoghurt, which were crispy and a perfect appetizer. Next were the samosas, which were packed full of delicious filling and came with a lovely dipping sauce, as did the bahjia after that. The food was well-paced, giving us plenty of time to chat in between courses but not leaving us hungry. I was very excited when it was curry time – there were so many choices! I started with the chicken korma and found myself coming back to it again and again. The creamy flavour was so rich and complex, without being overly spicy (we’d requested a ‘medium’ level of heat for the curries). The beef vindaloo was, unsurprisngly, quite spicy, but again it had great complexity of flavour that I absolutely loved – I just needed a bit more rice than sauce for that one! We felt so welcome it was almost like dining in someone’s home – Rama’s is a Canberra classic for a reason.

Rama’s Fiji Indian Restaurant, Shop 6, Pearce Shopping Centre, Pearce ACT         http://www.ramas.com.au/

The Brathaus

I bucked the trend at my most recent visit to the Hamlet and ordered a schnitzel from a bratwurst place. Yep. That’s how I roll. It was probably my best decision of the day – the Brathaus is one of the more recent additions to the Hamlet and offers tempting sausages and schnitzel in true German style. I picked the ‘Chicken Schnitty Burger’ – not part of the main menu, but handwritten on a whiteboard out the front (so apologies if it’s not a regular menu item – it should be). The schnitzel is without a doubt the best I’ve had in Australia – plump, tender chicken with a beautifully crispy panko crumb. My friend watched them cook hers and she said the secret is that they pop it into the oven to crisp up after frying. The bun was light and whilst there was plenty of salad, it compressed down nicely and wasn’t too hard to eat. The serving size was just right for me, although you can choose to have it with chips for an extra $3.50. My friend ordered the chips (fries) and we ended up sharing them – the serving was really generous. Definitely stop in to try the schnitzel if you can, it’s a winner.

The Brathaus, 16 Lonsdale Street, Braddon ACT, no website

Brodburger

Brodburger is another Canberra institution, and one that locals either love or hate. Love for the incredibly fresh, filling and flavoursome burgers, or hate for the outlandish wait times, even after it moved from a dodgy caravan by the lake to a proper store at the Glassworks. I’m firmly in the love camp, and Brod is one of the Canberra must-visits I recommend to visitors. The classic Brodburger is a thick beef patty with the most delicious aioli, tomato, lettuce and a choice of blue, brie, swiss or cheddar cheeses. It’s incredible that such simple ingredients can be so tasty! Another favourite is the Brodchicken, which includes a moist chicken breast, bacon, avocado, and of course the aioli – this has become by go-to order, and on this occasion I ordered it with a side of chips. Note, make sure you’re really, really hungry if you plan to eat it all! I would also recommend either planning for around a 40-60 minute wait at peak times, so going when you’re not in a hurry, or pre-ordering by phone about half an hour in advance. Brod is a Canberra favourite for a reason, and most locals agree that the food makes the wait well worthwhile.

Brodburger, Canberra Glassworks, 11 Wentworth Ave, Kingston ACT   http://www.brodburger.com.au