Chuckle Park

I’d wanted to visit Chuckle Park’s lantern-strung alley since I’d wandered past in 2012. It took me a while, but I got there for dinner one fine Melbourne evening – another of my solo dining experiences. I was lucky enough to get a table, and went up to the caravan to order. Sadly they’d run out of the meatball soup I’d wanted to try, but offered to make a meatball wrap instead. I ordered that with a cider, and took my number back to my table. The wrap came out fairly quickly, and it looked hearty and warm. On first bite this was confirmed – the wrap itself was a bit crispy and the filling, whilst a bit oily, was piping hot. The meatballs had a great kick to them and were not stingy on flavour. There was plenty of oozing, melty cheese inside, along with spinach and, of course, the meatball sauce. Each mouthful was delicious and the whole serve was so filling that I couldn’t quite finish it. My only criticism is that Chuckle Park allows smoking, which I felt detracted from my dining experience, otherwise I’d be back in a heartbeat.

Chuckle Park Bar and Cafe, 322 Little Collins Street, Melbourne VIC                http://www.chucklepark.com.au/

Hammer & Tong

Whilst visiting Melbourne I mentioned that I was keen to visit Hammer & Tong – luckily my friends were keen too, so off we went to try their adventurous menu. There is definitely an industrial/Soviet-style feel about the cafe, with plenty of unpolished metal and bare walls, which is also reflected in their communist flag-inspired logo. The menu draws mostly on Asian cuisines, with the unusual option of ‘breakfast ramen’ offered – I was so tempted but it was just too early. Instead, I picked the spanner crab egg crepe served with cucumber ketchup and charocal brioche, and the mango, passionfruit and pineapple juice. The juice menu said fresh but when the juice came out it had none of the hallmarks of a fresh juice (there was no froth and it had a watery texture), but was nonetheless delicious – the passionfruit’s tart flavour was a great wake-up aid! The crepe was heavenly – light and fluffy with plenty of crab inside, each mouthful was delightful with the cucumber ketchup, which tasted more like a cucumber pickle in liquid form. It matched perfectly with the charcoal brioche which was also quite light. The flavours and textures worked together so well – next time maybe I’ll be brave and try the ramen!

Hammer & Tong, 412a Brunswick Street, Fitzroy VIC       http://www.hammerandtong.com.au

Passionflower

Passionflower is responsible for a running joke I have with a friend of mine. They had a pineapple cake icecream last year which sounded like pretty much the best thing ever – we play the ‘PCIC’ (pineapple cake icecream card) when discovering something amazing. I even have an actual laminated card. Anyway, I was pretty disappointed that the flavour to end all flavours wasn’t on offer when I went back to Passionflower, but another unusual flavour caught my eye – wild lime sorbet. Not quite as catchy, but when I tried a sample I was sold. The sorbet has a sour flavour that is incredibly refreshing and tasted very Australian in the way that lemon myrtle does – there was something native about the flavour that was obvious from the first mouthful (I have since learned that there are native Australian wild limes). The flavour remained strong throughout and whilst not particularly sweet, it was a really lovely dessert. In fact, the sorbet had tiny segments of juice-filled pulp inside, which added texture and intense flavour. This is without a doubt one of the best sorbet flavours I’ve ever tried, – worthy of playing a PCIC, even.

Passionflower, Shop 2, 168 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC                                http://www.passionflower.com.au/Home

Supernormal

My friend and I visited Supernormal for a Friday night dinner and waited for about 45 mins for a table – while we waited we devoured the Supernormal Smash cocktail with gin, tonic and seasonal syrup – it was a perfectly balanced cocktail with the right amount of sweet and bitter. We were told that the dishes are best to share, so started with the sesame cucumber (2 pieces included), which had a lovely pickled flavour and came served on a stick, followed by the raw bar tuna dish. As our lobster rolls arrived we asked the kitchen to slow the service down, as the plates were piling up. The roll was a highlight, with tender strips of lobster meat and a sweet brioche bun. My overall favourite, though, was the duck bao – cooked in Peking duck-style, the meat was cooked to perfection with a thin crispy shell, and served with hot, soft bao. So, so good. We finished off with the miso and pink lady soft serve, which had a fascinating flavour combination that just worked. We added the snack petipas given at the start of the meal on top to make it even better. Five hours later, we left full, happy and wishing we had a second stomach for more!

Supernormal, 180 Flinders Lane, Melbourne VIC                   http://www.supernormal.net.au

Green Park

Friends of mine suggested Green Park as a brunch venue and I happily went along – the place was packed on a Sunday mid-morning and for good reason. The decor is, of course, a gorgeous green with plenty of plants and old books on shelves, making it feel welcoming and homely. We ordered a juice to start with, and whilst they’d run out of oranges, they offered us a detox juice. The waiter couldn’t tell us what was in it apart from ‘fruits and vegetables’ (what else is there?) but when it arrived beetroot was the obvious one. It was both mysterious and tasty! For brunch I had the smoked salmon hash, which was nicely presented with the salmon in a rosette, two hash browns and pickled beetroot. The menu had said it came with a poached egg but I didn’t get one, although what was on the plate was more than enough for me. The salmon had a lovely smoky flavour and there was plenty of it. It went well with the horseradish creme fraishe and the delicately shreded hash browns. All in all a tasty brunch in a relaxed but elegant setting.

Green Park, 815 Nicholson Street, Carlton North VIC.              www.greenparkdining.com.au

Nitro Lab

Still in denial – how long until summer again? #icecreamthurs. I am a sucker for anything raspberry-flavoured. Wandering up Bourke Street, I came across Nitro Lab (which also seems to be called The Lab Nitrogen Gelato – confusing!) and was sucked in by the prospect of combining two of my favourite things – raspberry and nutella. The lady behind the counter was really friendly, and when I asked about the dairy-free options she gave me a really comprehensive outline of my choices. Luckily, the raspberry gelato is actually a sorbet – I decided not to go totally dairy-free and had the ‘golden gaytime’ crumb and nutella on top. The shop was fairly quiet so I only waited for a couple of minutes for my sorbet – the novelty of watching them make it with N2 doesn’t seem to wear off! The nutella dollop was massive and I tried to mix it in with the sorbet. The crumb was lovely and crispy, although it didn’t really taste like a golden gaytime crumb. The sorbet itself was the right balance between sweet and tart and there was plenty of it in the cup. Yum.

Nitro Lab, 188 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC, no website

St Ali

Note to self: the South Melbourne markets aren’t open on a Monday. Luckily St Ali is – in fact they’re open 365 days, so you can’t get it wrong (like I did with the markets). Instead of wandering through the markets a friend and I settled in at St Ali for afternoon tea, soaking up the sunshine from their outdoor seating which looks out onto the street. We were both tempted by the cake display and I caved first and ordered the fruit danish and a ‘hydrate’ juice, while my friend picked the lemon and marshmallow tart and a ‘detox’ juice. The juices were served in large, tall glasses and didn’t have much foam – mine had watermelon, apple and mint, although I could still taste the carrot from the detox juice which must have gone through the juicer first. The danish was lovely and crisp, with the pastry flaking off in large pieces to enjoy. The fresh blueberries, apricot and strawberries sat on a bed of custard which brought the whole sweet to life.  I could have happily eaten another if it hadn’t been so filling! Definitely a great place to while away an afternoon.

St Ali Coffee Roasters, 12-18 Yarra Place, South Melbourne VIC  www.stali.com.au