The One

Last time we went to Westside, my friend got a sandwich from The One and I promised myself I would get it on my next visit. So, instead of making a beeline for Miss Van’s, I branched out. The One offers a range of meat-packed sandwiches and tacos, and I was tempted by the promise of pickles on their Cubanos – slow-cooked pork, pickles, onion, leg honey ham, mustard and cheese, toasted. I chose the large size ($12.50), but it ended up being large enough for two lunches (!) so I would probably get the small size ($8.50) next time. This sandwich was to die for. I LOVED IT. Firstly the pork. There was LOTS of it – I’m talking tender, tasty, melt-in-your-mouth – and it went perfectly with the slightly sweet honey ham. There were plenty of bits of pickle throughout, and what really kicked the whole thing into the ‘out of this world good’ category was the mustard. I really loved the buttered American-style bun too. Ok, I loved everything about it, and, bonus, I got to enjoy the second half the next day. Get on it people, this is the real deal.

The One, Westside Acton, 3 Barrine Drive, Acton ACT       https://www.westsideactonpark.com.au/the-one/

Fox and Bow

Oh my. I fell completely in love with this little cafe and can’t wait to go back. The menu is exciting and I couldn’t go past one of their amazing-sounding smoothies to start off. The ‘Ohhh Darla’ (love that movie!) was perfection – watermelon, pear and berries with gelato (maybe blackcurrant flavoured?) – it had great depth and balance, and lasted me nicely over the course of my lunch. The staff kindly reduced the dairy content for me too on request – great service! I went for one of the more lunch-like options and ordered the ‘Road Runner Beep Beep’. Oh my. It was amazing. The Portuguese grilled chicken was wedged between a lightly toasted bun (no crumbles, not too thick to cut! Yay!) and topped with just the right amount of jalapenos to give it a good amount of kick. The chicken itself was perfectly cooked and tender, and the guacamole was really generous, along with plenty of rocket for some crunch. There was also a serve of pickled something (cabbage? onion?) that tasted a bit like coleslaw – yum! Oh, did I mention that the sandwich came with a box of perfectly crisp, thick-cut chips? The seasoning was perfect, with a touch of rosemary. And the atmosphere was fantastic. Love, love, love.

Fox and Box, 4 Farrer Place, Farrer ACT                               http://www.foxandbow.com.au/

Miss Van’s

Oh, hello amazing Vietnamese food within walking distance of work! Yay! I was very excited to have a team lunch at Westside Acton on one of Canberra’s typically cold but sunny winter days. Whilst I was tempted by the pho, I used my friend’s food philosophy and ordered what I felt like, not what I thought I should have, and that was banh mi. For $8 you get a pork banh mi packed full of fresh ingredients. I thought the roll looked a bit small, but it was very full and actually turned out to be the perfect size for lunch. The incredible crispiness of the bread really stood out compared to other banh mi I’ve had – this one was just super crispy and delicious. I also really loved the fresh veggies – carrot, cucumber and pickled onion – plus the rich flavour of the pate. And the coriander. Everything was enhanced by the mix of mayonnaise and chilli sauce which lifted the flavours into something else. The pork itself was flavoured with five-spice, which helped build the layers of flavour. Even though I was full, I would have happily made stomach space for another. This place is seriously good.

Miss Van’s, 3 Barrine Drive, Acton ACT                    http://www.missvans.com.au/

Double Drummer

My colleague wanted to schedule a working lunch and so we went to Double Drummer, snapping up an outdoor table that had plenty of sunshine despite the chill in the air. I usually order something hot, but I decided to be a bit adventurous this time and try the chicken parmigiana roll from the sandwich bar. The staff kindly toasted it for me and brought it out to the table quite quickly, considering how busy they were. The bread was beautiful and crusty, but not teeth-breakingly so, and every bit of the roll was packed with filling (yes!). The chicken parmi hadn’t been warmed from the toasting, but was crispy and golden nonetheless, although not quite as tender in parts as I’d hoped. It went perfectly with the shaved parmesan cheese, thick tomato sugo and – my favourite – the grilled eggplant layered on top. The fresh spinach leaves added some nice crunch and I only just managed to finish the whole roll. Double Drummer’s food is great value in the Parliamentary Triangle – try it for tasty cafeteria-style meals.

Double Drummer, Ground Floor Courtyard, 4 National Circuit, Barton ACT http://thedoubledrummer.com.au/

Mocan & Green Grout

This was my second visit to Mocan & Green Grout, and my first time eating there for lunch. My friend and I popped in on the way to a meeting, and so had just under an hour to chow down. We started with drinks – I ordered a soy hot chocolate and was excited that I could actually taste the chocolate and not just the soy! We both ordered the duck sandwich for lunch, but sadly our order was misplaced. With 20 minutes until our meeting, the waitress realised what had happened and we were brought our very freshly prepared meal (without charge and with apologies). The sandwich is fairly small, but we both felt that the brioche bun was a clever way to make it filling, my friend wishing it was a bao instead. I liked the brioche’s softness and sweetness, which contrasted well with the tang of the pickled cucumber and corriander. There was plenty of duck inside, which was tender and very tasty, well-matched with the hoisin mayonnaise. I particularly liked the contrasting textures of each of the ingredients, and despite the delay I felt it was definitely worth the wait.

Mocan & Green Grout, 1/19 Marcus Clarke Street, New Acton, ACT mocanandgreengrout.com/

Mr Crackles

Normally I’m not really a sandwich/roll kind of person. I’d much rather eat the filling itself as 100% of the meal, rather than 40% filling and 60% bread. However, my Dad was so excited to go to a pork and crackling-themed place when we were in Sydney that even I started to consider how good a roll jam-packed with meat could be. Mr Crackles is a small store that caters largely for takeaway, but which has a couple of seats for dine in. I opted for the ‘chicken katsu’ roll with a cup of crackling. The roll is quite substantial, and yes, the filling-to-roll ratio isn’t quite as good as I’d like, but it was better than 2:3. The filling had a bit of bite with wasabi mayonnaise mixed into the coleslaw. The chicken was lovely and crisp on the outside and tender inside, and in reasonably sized pieces. The cup of crackling was generously sized, although I’d expected it to be served hot and it wasn’t – it was a bit tough to break to share, but was very tasty. I’m not entirely converted to rolls, but food coma aside, I’d definitely come back to try another one.

Mr Crackles, 155 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW     http://www.mrcrackles.com.au/