The Shed at Derwent Estate

July in Tasmania: Cold, cloudy dreary. But... not this weekend. The first weekend of July this year was quite special for me as it was my 40th birthday. Doubly special as I had my two best girlfriends visiting from Brisbane to celebrate with me.

I had decided to try the newest restaurant in the Derwent Valley, The Shed. A new project from the Winery 'Derwent Estate'. 

We were met with an absolutely perfect day, actually the whole weekend was lovely blue skies, and still days with maximums around 15 deg C.

Grapevines, sheep and lambs with Mt Dromedary in the background

My girls and the sheep and adorable lambs

The menu alone had been my reasoning for selecting The Shed for my birthday lunch. We have wonderful options in the Valley now for dining (see posts on Osteria Vista and Agrarian Kitchen) but I thought with the group of us dining, this menu would provide something for everyone including my slightly less adventurous Gudgeon.

But of course, we selected a bottle of Derwent Estate Sparking to begin with and it was delightful.

The Shed is set back from the cellar door and offers magnificent views of the Derwent River. The setting is casual and perfectly suited to a sunny day. I cant begin to imagine how spectacular it would be to lunch here on a summers day with those bistro blinds up and a breeze wafting across the river.

Stoneground beer bread with nasturtium butter

We order bread for the table. Absolutely beautiful. I'm not sure if it was the bread or the nasturtium butter but the saltiness that came through was gorgeous.

scallop, oyster, croquettte

For entrees we all choose a few bites from the snacks menu. I opted for the Raw scallop with mandarin and chives, the Bruny Island Oyster and the parmesan and leek croquette with lemon butter.

raw scallop, mandarin, chive

What a delight this scallop was. Texture was retained by the curing from the citrus and the sharp sweet and tartness of the mandarin was spectacular. This was one of my highlights of the meal. The croquette was crispy and crunchy and salty and potatoey and cheesey. Just great.

oyster, buttermilk, parsley oil

I love an oyster. I especially love a Tasmanian oyster: smaller but sweeter than many others. This oyster didn't do it for me though. Milk and oyster is not a combination I would recommend... ever. Very pretty though.

butter poached blue eye trevella, oyster and yuzu cream, kohlrabi

Ordering fish as a main.... I've said it before... it's risky business, I've found it will either be mediocre, not bad, but forgettable or it will be the best thing you ever had. I have found as a gambler, that the odds are 5-1 for a truly spectacular fish main, something you'll remember for a very long time, and today I backed a winner.

The texture was velvety smooth and flaked off beautifully. A lovely fresh fish flavour which was almost chicken-like. The oyster and yuzu cream was a gorgeous savoury accompaniment and the kohlrabi was a clean and fresh finish. This may have been THE best fish main I have ever had.

sides

To go with our mains, we ordered the octopus and raw tuna from the small plates menu and the charred cos and pinkeye potatoes from the sides menu.

octopus, black garlic, chimichurri

I first tried octopus in Barcelona and in both that dish and furthermore in Rome I found the octopus to be very strong in flavour. Not this dish however, very fresh and tender. I'm not sure if I would order it again but nonetheless, delicious.

charred cos lettuce, anchovie, prosciutto

This little side packed a punch, and with lettuce going to about $1000/kg at the moment, how could we not. I loved the POW of the anchovy in this dish. Lots of saltiness to contrast with the charred cos.

pinkeyes, creme fraise, saltbush

Oh Tassie, how are you so good at potatoes? These were crispy, beautifully seasoned and a great side.

raw tuna, ponzu, black sesame, wakame

The raw tuna dish was a favourite all round. When tuna can be caught so close, it makes perfect sense to serve it in it's purest form.

chicken breast, cauliflower puree, oyster mushroom, artichoke velute

All three of my guests had the chicken. It's very rare for me to order chicken when dining, it's hard to do magnificently or even 'not boringly', however when I tasted some off their plates I was utterly blown away. I think the photo shows how succulent that breast is, it was more than succulent, it had the texture of triple cream brie- it was mind blowing. The combination of cauliflower and artichoke was a revelation and the mushrooms were jewels in the crown. 

date pudding, kunzea butterscotch caramel, malt cream

We order a bottle of iced Riesling to have with dessert, a beautiful semi sweet chilled white wine and my favourite dessert of all time Sticky Date Pudding. Guest Anna described it as "probably the best sticky date she had tried" and it was certainly up there for me also... I do have to always compare it to the one that made me cry  and I reckon it was a solid second place after that one. Moist with crispy edges a slight almost whisky flavour, lightly whisked but beautifully flavoured cream. My goodness... what an end to a meal.

In conclusion, I am so happy with The Shed; divine outlooks in a charmingly understated setting with beyond friendly staff that make you feel right at home. The food overall was excellent with some crazy high highlights and one or two experiments that I may avoid next time. 

I will happily be adding this to my 'will visit again' list and will be one for our future guests. I would say a definite must-do if venturing north of Hobart to our beautiful Derwent Valley.

photo courtesy of Derwent Estate facebook page

Derwent Estate Winery

Phone: (03) 6263 5802

Address: 329 Lyell Hwy, Granton TAS 7030

https://www.derwentestate.com.au/

The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery Revisited

We drive from my house to our local town of New Norfolk. Snow has dusted the peaks. The main difference is the addition of my best friend Dizzle, who has blessed me with her presence on a visit from Brisbane. Another blessing: she is taking me on a belated birthday lunch to one of my favourite restaurants.

She has let me choose the venue, the wonderful Agrarian Kitchen Eatery. I first visited the year before for my birthday. I promise her it will be a lovely time. I think she trusts me.

The menu, as always is a set lunch menu. All food is locally sourced and/or grown or made on site. 

Dizz selects a local sparkling Rose. I say I am feeling like something tart and refreshing and without ado they make me a gin fizz cocktail.

Before long, our first, beautifully presented morsels arrive: Oyster sandwich, little potato cubes, fresh veg with an umtious mayo and the most pretty Danish you'll ever see.

turnip, kohrabi and burnt onion

Vegetables are garden fresh and the mayonnaise is velvety. 

Danish, broad bean flowers and cured egg

Buttery flaky pastry. Rich cured egg yolk.

potato, lamb salt and thyme | angasi oyster sandwich 

The oyster sandwich has a lovely tempura style oyster, mayo in white bread. There is a Japanese essence and something very comforting about this little mouthful. The potato is layer upon layer of paper-thin potato which I think was confit and was simple and elegant and went beautifully with a smear of mayo.

Next round is burrata, sourdough and cured cold cut made from the pig's head.

burrata and smoked paprika

Beautiful mild mozzarella style cheese with a cream filling.

coppa di testa, blood orange and parsley

The coppa di testa is beautiful, however I thought the dressing of blood orange was slightly too strong for the very delcate flabour of the meat. However the love and respect shown for this animal is clear.

kefir butter

I love when butter is presented as a work of art.

mushrooms, fermented parsnip and egg yolk

Our main plates are brought out one at a time, the mushroom and parsnip, broad beans and asparagus and pork, garlic and corn and initially we question this.
However we realise that each one of these dishes is exceptional. I've heard people express their love for in-season asparagus and thought to myself, how can someone love a vegetable so much. But now I know. Each one of these dishes could have been an amazing main by itself and it they all came out together I don't feel that I could have appreciated the perfection of each individual element on each plate.

broad beans, asparagus and hot sauce

braised pork, green garlic and corn

Rich, tender, juicy pork with an sumtuous fattiness. The corn was a bit surreal. It had been dried and then rehydrated and the texture was something else.

yoghurt and honey tart

Beautiful creamy tart with a sharp honey sauce.

coffee liqueur

elderflower pate de fruit

Jubes!

buttermilk gelato and rhubarb

Creamy, lovely finish to a gorgeous meal.

 

I just love the unpretentiousness of this restaurant, locally sourced, made with love fine dining.

This post is dedicated to my best friend, Carly (Dizzle)

Cutty Sark Teneriffe

Six months B and I have been seeing each other and we decided to celebrate this with a lovely dinner.

photo courtesy of dimmi.com.au

In case you weren't aware, I love boats and I love water. Everything nautical really. I can't remember how I stumbled on reviews for Cutty Sark restaurant, but they were sterling. So with the name of a ship, river views, and excellent reviews, we made a booking for Friday night.

We arrive just as the sun is setting and are shown to the best table: in the corner of the restaurant facing the river. The sliding door are open and the wafting breezes are divine on the balmy Brisbane evening. Fairy lights drape from the ceiling and it has a lovely casual but tasteful ambience.

The menu is a Spanish inspired modern Australian affair and offers almost too many excellent options

We peruse the menu while sipping on one of the best red sangias I've ever tried and take in the view.

Cutty Sark offers a 'chefs selection' as well as full a la carte, the chefs selection offers a starter, entree, main and dessert for $79 and seems like great value, however on this particular night did not offer a couple of the things we were really wanting to try.

I order the Crispy Pork Belly ($17) to start, B orders the Croquettes ($12).

My last post I wrote about my love affair with pork belly, and quite often when you love something as much as I love pork belly, expectations can be set too high, which leads to disappointment. Fortunately, Cutty Sark absolutely smashed it out of the park. This was one of the best pork bellies I had ever tried. Perfectly cooked, perfect crackling, perfect accompaniments of pickled cabbage and celeriac puree, I was so impressed, I posted pictures all over social media and have told just about every person who will listen.

B's croquettes were also really really lovely. Texturally they were perfect, so light and fluffy inside and crisp and golden on the outside with such incredible depth of flavour. The pimenton aioli is also really fantastic.

For mains I was tossing up between the market fish, which was Barramundi that night or the eye fillet. I opted for the Barra as it is one of my favourites. B orders the Ricotta and Spinach Gnudi.

My Barramundi comes to the table with cauliflower puree, grilled asparagus, spinach, and citrus vierge. I have found with fish dishes, fish is either incredible or fine. There was nothing wrong with this main, it was fine, it just didn't blow me away. The fish was cooked really nicely with crispy skin and veggies were wonderful. Maybe I was just too blown away with my starter.

B's gnudi, which is like a gnocci/dumpling hybrid, arrives with forest mushroom, blistered tomato, steamed greens, truffled cream, and THIS was a great dish, everything that was served added a really desirable element to the dish and it was lovely to try different things together.

With our mains we order a side of patatas bravas which are served with tomato salsa, pepper dressing and the beautiful pimenton aioli again. These were so addictive. B and I say we'd both me happy with a table or these, croquettes and pork bellies!

I had to steal this pic from Cutty Sark's website as I didn't get a snap, and they deserve to be seen by all!

I think apart from how perfectly cooked and crispy the potatoes are, the tomato cubes really bring an amazing fresh dimension to this dish, the aioli is also just stunning with a smoky, savoury, garlicky loveliness.

Throughout the evening the hostess and waitress are really lovely and easy to get along with, attentive but never in-our-faces.

We had decided earlier in the evening that we'd like dessert, hoping we'd have room, and fortunately, we did.

I have the Kaffir Lime Pannacotta with pineapple salsa, ginger crisp and coconut ice cream, B goes for the Chocolate Hazelnut Brownie which comes with vanilla ice cream, rhubarb and mixed berries, and chocolate sauce. The desserts were outstanding, up there with the incredible starters. My pannacotta is light, refreshing and a beautiful creamy consistency and nice lime tang. The coconut ice cream is divine and everything on the plate worked perfectly.

B's brownies were rich and delicious, his ice cream also was really really good.

I really really enjoyed this restaurant. The food was fine dining in an unpretentious but beautiful setting. Lovely staff and beautiful menu and outlook. Really cannot recommend enough and I look forward to returning.

Cutty Sark Riverside Bar and Restaurant is located at Goldsborough Place on Vernon Terrace. We are 200m away from the Teneriffe City Cat terminal and Route 60 City Glider bus stop.

39 Vernon Terrace, Teneriffe, QLD 4005.

Tel: (07) 3257 2266

email: hello@cuttysark.com.au

E'cco Bistro

The second of July was this blogger's birthday, and also the one year anniversary of the Supper Club.

We had decided on E'cco Bistro on Boundary Street in Brisbane, and met just prior to 7 for a pre-dinner drink at the lovely Gresham bar for a Whisky Sour.

As per usual, I had perused the menu before we arrived, and all three of us were so excited to get in and make our choices.

We started by ordering drinks: a half carafe of red for Miss A and Miss C to share and I started with a glass of bubbles. The waitress gave us a selection of breads to choose from.

To start, I could not go past the scallops, pork belly and mushroom in duck consomme ($24.50) . It was all of my favourite things in one dish, and it was incredible. The scallops were fresh and sweet, the pork belly was flavoursome, and the consomme was delicately accentuated with Asian inspired flavours, the ginger was divine.

Miss C also went for this option and Miss A had decided to get the gnocchi with prosciutto and clams ($24.50). The gnocchi was absolutely breath-taking. These two entrees were by far, two of the best I have ever tried.

For main I decided on the slow-cooked wagyu short rib ($42.50) served with pumpkin puree, swiss brown mushroom and chestnuts.

The meat was rich, and cooked to perfection, the puree sweet and all of the extras were delectable. This was a great choice for a mid-winter's eve main. I loved every second of it.

Miss C had the eye-fillet of beef with char-grilled vegetables ($42.50) which looked divine, and Miss C looked and sounded very happy with her choice.

We also ordered a side of greens and a side of chips and aioli ($8.50 each). Miss A and I always get the chips, and it always drives Miss C crazy cause we never get close to finishing them.

What can I say? I am really intrigued with chips. I've had great chips and really bad chips in both greasy spoons and top restaurants, you can just never pick what you are going to get.

In this instance they were seasoned immaculately and perfectly crisp, but I do believe they were from a packet.

Miss A was kind enough to let me try a bit of her lamb- porcini crusted with mushrooms and leeks ($42.50). It was very impressive.

I really believe that E'cco has their winter menu perfected.

With my main I also treated myself to the Bindi premium pinot noir ($25 glass). I really enjoyed its lightness (as I am not much of a red drinker), however Miss C, who only drinks red, didn't rate it at all.

The dessert menu was platinum, and we were all certain that we would be happy with out choices.

Miss C chose the affogato ($17.50):

I got the milk sago with passionfruit sorbet and rum bananas ($16.50). When I used to work in a Leagues club years and years ago, the kitchen used to make sago for the oldies, that's where I first fell in love with it, and have loved it ever since, even making it myself. The texture can turn people off though (fish eyeballs).

I loved everything about this dessert, it was fruity and tropical, not too sweet, I loved the varying textures and flavours.

Miss A loves peanut butter and chocolate and this dessert was obviously made with her in mind. She loved every bite. Chocolate brownie, peanut butter mousse and dark chocolate ice cream ($17.50).

Overall, a very enjoyable night.

The restaurant and service is refined but still has a casual air. The menu had something that each of us truly loved.

Would really like to go back in either spring or summer to try a change in the seasonality of the menu.




A great big thank you to Miss C for taking the photos and thus allowing me to enjoy a few birthday drinks.


E'cco Bistro
100 BOUNDARY STREET, (CORNER ADELAIDE STREET), BRISBANE, QLD 4000 (07) 3831 8344 MAIL@ECCOBISTRO.COM