The year is 2020.
It's been 9 whole years since I started writing this blog while living in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Truth be told, I actually read this blog quite frequently. I still show it to people, mostly in reference to my travels. But to this day, I am still so proud I did this blog. It has become a decade long diary.
I have actually had a few requests to keep the blog going. I am touched. I did not know anyone read nor cared. Thank you.
So back to the food.
The year is 2020. I now live in Southern Tasmania. The Covid virus runs rampant around the world, but here our restrictions have eased and with businesses opening again and my birthday looming I tell Gudge we're going to be having a lovely lunch.
We book in for a set lunch on a cool Saturday in July.
The setting for the restaurant is a historic building which once was home to an Insane Asylum. Most of the surrounding buildings remain unused. I have to wonder how soon they will all be developed into apartments and pigeon holes for sushi franchises and gyms. But for now, it is simply charming.
We make our way in. The room is bright and open, a fireplace along one wall crackles away allowing us to defrost our fingers.
We are introduced to our beautiful waitress Millie, who explains how important the use of local and seasonal produce is, with everything served either being grown on site, or from the local area.
We start with an apricot and elder-flower gin cocktail and for Gudge a Bruny Island Lighthouse Session Ale.
The restaurant no longer provides an a la carte menu but instead offers a set menu which changes weekly based on supply of produce. We sip our drinks and peruse the menu.
I am very excited to try the Burrata as well as the potato cakes.
A note: in Tasmania potato scallops are called potato cakes.
Before too long, Millie delivers our first offerings, home made sourdough with home made butter (maybe I should omit 'home made'- lets just assume everything from here on out is home made), beautiful Burrata with dried peppers and oil and amarillo carrots with albacore pate.
The bread and butter is absolutely sumptuous and I can assure you, I wish they had left the loaf on the table. The Burrata which is a mozzarella cheese with a cream centre is soft yet chewy with such a subtlety which is sensational on the bread with oil.
However my favourite was the albacore pate. We are informed that the albacore tuna is caught off Eaglehawk Neck and is a combination of the flesh of the tuna combined with tuna "sardines" meat that they have salted and preserved. It is absolutely rich and incredible but not fishy just, indulgent.
To add to the spread comes a charcuterie of pickles, prosciutto, salami and terrine. Both of the cold meats were sensational (and made onsite) but the terrine was absolute bliss and on the sourdough with the pickle was just something else all together.
And then, out come the beautiful, golden, crispy pillows that are the potato cakes, they are just as good as you'd imagine a perfect (potato) scallop to be!
We are both incredibly excited for the pasta course. We are told that both the broth and filling of the tortellini are made of rooster which has a bigger flavour than chicken and this is certainly true. This dish is as wholesome and warming as any chicken noodle soup you've ever tried. I could have had a cauldron if it. Oh... and the pasta itself! Why don't I made homemade pasta? There is absolutely nothing like it, nothing.
That reminds me of a story from around ten years ago. See the green in the picture- that's nettle, or stinging nettle as it is known. When living in a Edinburgh I decided to engage in some gardening. I went to the yard and decided to attack some weeds, no gloves of course, I'm not a baby. Minutes later and hands on fire- I discovered what a stinging nettle was.
The main, as if by fate is PORK BELLY my favourite, it is nothing short of perfect. Served with sharp and tangy mustard greens and a beautiful rich green corn polenta served with an egg yolk (under the cheese) and the combination is just incredible. The pork is salty and fatty and lush, the polenta is just unreal, so very indulgent and the greens were just perfect to cut through off of that richness. With the main I have a glass of Rose (of which I did not get the name) and it is a perfect match.
We are then treated to a wedge of herbed goats cheese with crackers. It is salty and not at all overbearing and does a wonderful job of cleaning the palate for dessert.
For dessert we are treated to bread ice cream, yes bread ice cream. The milk is infused with the previous days bread to produce something that is just divine, velvety, not at all savoury and the crunch of the accompanying roasted breadcrumbs are just... yum.
The pavlova is the best I have ever had. I honestly applaud anyone that can make a chewy meringue, it should be in a different league to any other meringue- that texture is heaven. The tropical fruit takes me back to Queensland.
Gudge and I both comment that the dessert is our favourite course. We also note how wonderful it was not to have to rely on overly heavy foods for a mid-winter set menu. Everything was very well balanced but still comforting. This I think is a real feat.
We leave on a cloud- such an enjoyable experience- the food, service and ambiance were all to the highest degree without any trace of stuffiness or snobbery.
This restaurant to me, is Tasmania.
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