Fromage, Boundary Street Markets, West End

Last Sunday I found myself in West End craving a bacon and egg roll.  I know that German Dog House Sausages have a stall in the Boundary Street Markets that serves a decent bacon and egg roll.  However, on this occasion I could not locate German Dog House Sausages, but was pleased to find that there was a stall, simply called "Fromage" that offered bacon and egg rolls.  As the name would suggest, Fromage deal in cheeses, so them offering bacon and egg rolls is a slightly odd combination, but I'm not complaining at all.  I ordered my bacon and egg roll and had to endure a lengthy wait.  I'm not negatively commenting on the service at Fromage because many people had placed orders before me, and there was only one guy manning the stall.  When my roll arrived I was not dissatisfied at all to discover that it was exactly the sort of bacon and egg roll one would expect to get from a small stall in a market.  That's precisely what I wanted.  There are only a couple of minor comments worth making.  The bun was toasted.  In my experience of eating bacon and egg rolls, this is rarely the case, but it neither added to nor detracted from my enjoyment of the roll.  Second, the roll was of the variety that are dusted with flour.  In terms of taste and texture, this is really neither here nor there, but it can create a little bit of mess when the flour mixes with barbecue sauce and oil.  In conclusion, if you're in West End on a weekend and want a no frills bacon and egg roll, go to the Boundary Street Markets and find either Fromage or German Dog House Sausages.

Punjabi Palace, South Brisbane

The Thursday before last I went to Punjabi Palace for lunch.  For some time now, Punjabi Palace have been offering competitive lunch specials.  One can select a curry with rice and salad for $9.95, with plain naan only being one dollar extra.  Of course the curry selection is limited, and the portion smaller than what the regular menu offers, but it still remains one of the better value lunch options in the West End area.  On this occasion I ordered chicken tikka masala (obviously with rice, naan, and a salad which I had absolutely no intention of eating).  It was certainly good, but not as good as I have recalled it to be in the past.  The main reason for this was the presence of sweetness.  Many Indian places serve their chicken tikka masala on the sweet side, but I cannot recall this being the case at Punjabi Palace.  As far as I can reckon there are three reasons for this.  One is that the lunch special chicken tikka masala varies from the chicken tikka masala on the set menu.  Two is that Punjabi Palace have altered their chicken tikka masala recipe.  Three is that my taste memory is somehow faulty.  Whatever the case, the sweetness was subtle and it really did not sour the experience.  All the other elements I have come to expect from Punjabi Palace where there:  the right balance of spices and flavours, well cooked meat, and so forth.  I have mentioned in this blog in the past that the naans served at Punjabi Palace are large; so much so that on this occasion after starting my meal by soaking up the sauce with the naan, I became full and had to order the bulk of the curry to go.  This was by no means a bad thing as it furnished me with a satisfying dinner that evening.  While I certainly enjoyed this chicken tikka masala, it was perhaps one of the weaker quality curries I have experienced at Punjabi Palace.  Having said that, a curry that is slightly weak by Punjabi Palace standards is better than some other Indian places strongest quality curries.

Roast and Toast, Toowong Village Shopping Centre Foodcourt, Toowong

The Wednesday before last I was in Toowong and in a sort of "take it or leave it" feeling concerning food.  I was walking past the local carvery and perused their offerings.  There was pork sausage, crumbed sausage, and battered sausage.  The latter caught my eye.  I've had crumbed sausages many times before.  The same is true of dagwood dogs.  I found the idea of a regular sausage with the batter of a dagwood dog to be appealing, so I ordered this battered sausage.  Almost immediately I was disappointed.  This was basically just a dagwood dog without the stick.  Now a hot dog, such as those found in dagwood dogs is technically a type of sausage, but when I hear the terms "hot dog" and "sausage", I think of two different things.  So while I was lamenting the fact that I didn't get quite what I was hoping for, this was actually a decent dagwood dog (sans the stick).  However, it must be stated that a dagwood dog can only be so good, and is something you need to be in the mood for to enjoy.  For me, a dagwood dog can be considered good if you don't immediately regret eating it.  So while I felt no such regret, there was a minor flaw.  The batter was a little tough and chewy.  However, I attribute this to the fact that the battered "sausage" was sitting under the hot lights of the bain-marie for who knows how long, and not to the incompetence of the cook.  Another quibble I had (and this is quite a minor one) is that my serving of tomato sauce came in one of those "squeezy" containers, whereas I find that sachets are a much better method of evenly distributing tomato sauce.  So, overall, nomenclature aside, this was almost exactly what one would expect from a foodcourt carvery dagwood dog (again without the stick).  However, the idea of a battered sausage has been planted in my mind, and if such a preparation of sausage is out there, I would love to try it.

Pit Stop Pastries and Pizza, West End

I have been aware of the existence of this pizza place for a while now, but it is only recently that Pit Stop have gone to the effort of creating website.  On Friday I visited this website and thought that Pit Stop might be a nice place for dinner.  I ordered the "Greek" pizza.  This has olives, pepperoni, sausage, garlic, and feta (I guess this is what makes it Greek).  The first thing I noticed is that this was a greasy pizza.  This might sound like a bad thing, but it was not.  It wasn't greasy in a Domino's sense.  It was the kind of grease that packs a lot of flavour, and it's not like the grease was dripping down my hands as I ate it.  The base was of the thin variety, which is normally not my favourite, as it can be either to crispy, or so soft that each slice droops.  I think that the folks at Pit Stop have mastered the art of creating a thin base; soft, but not droopy.  The toppings were all quality and complemented each other nicely.  I would have liked some anchovies though.  Despite containing two types of cheese, this was not a particularly cheesy pizza.  I think that the amount of cheese was just about right.  I don't think I've ever had feta on a pizza, but in my opinion I think that it worked well.  There is really not much more that can be said, other than that this was a good, traditional style pizza, and I'm glad that I have discovered that there is more than one worthwhile pizza option in my neighbourhood.

The Red Brick Hotel, Woolloongabba

Last Thursday I found myself craving a pub style meal.  In particular, I was desiring a hamburger.  I recalled that I used to enjoy the Red Brick Hotel's hamburgers so I went online and found a menu that contained hamburgers that looked appealing.  That cinched it:  I was going to the Red Brick Hotel for lunch for the first time in years.  When I got to the hotel (which is no longer red bricked by the way) I discovered that there was a discrepancy between the online menu I found and the menu that was there on that day.  Unfortunately, the hamburgers on offer were not what I was hoping for, so I settled for fish and chips instead.  The first point about the Red Brick Hotel's fish and chips that I would like to make is that instead of coming with a set salad, one has a choice of salads.  This impressed me.  For the first time I can recall, I had the option of having a Caesar salad with my fish and chips:  Caesar salad being one of few salads that I actually enjoy eating.  So my dish arrived:  Caesar salad, three pieces of battered flathead, some standard-looking chips, and aioli.  The Caesar salad looked to be underseasoned, but when I tasted it, I found that this was not the case.  The salad did not contain any egg, which I usually like, but because the salad was just a side dish, this was only a minor issue.  The chips were fine.  In recent years, many traditional Australian pubs have gone to great lengths in improving the quality of their chips.  Apparently, the Red Brick Hotel has not followed this trend.  Having said that, even standard pub chips are alright in my books.  The flathead was quite good:  nice, crunchy batter, cooked well, and tasty.  The only drawback was the aioli.  It was somewhat lacking in flavour, and left a subtle, yet slightly unpleasant aftertaste.  It was by no means bad, but was not as good an enhancer of flavour as salt alone.  So after the first couple of tastes, I relied solely on salt for seasoning.  In conclusion, I was in the mood for a pub style meal, and that's exactly what I got.

Physiol Eatery and Cafe, University of Queensland, St Lucia

I have recently discovered that Physiol have been offering bacon and egg brioches.  As a fan of bacon and egg rolls, I was interested in trying this dish, so last Monday I did just that.  I got my bacon and egg brioche and as I applied my sachet of barbecue sauce I thought that it looked pretty good.  However, when I bit into it I noticed a familiar, yet completely unwelcome taste:  onion, an overused food that does the opposite of enhancing flavour.  I pulled my brioche apart and to my horror discovered that the bottom bun was coated with what appeared to be some sort of pasta sauce containing onion.  This annoyed me greatly.  I have never heard of a bacon and egg roll, brioche or wrap containing such a sauce and therefore had no way of anticipating such an unpleasant surprise.  This is really one of my pet peeves with eateries in general.  If an establishment's take on a dish differs from the norm, it is something that they should inform their patrons of.  If the bacon and egg brioche was advertised as coming with pasta sauce (or whatever that sauce was), I might have asked if it had contained onion and therefore have avoided this unpleasantness all together.  Frustrated, I did my best at removing all of the onion and tried to salvage the brioche.  This is something that I loathe doing for two reasons.  First, onions are insidious.  You can try to remove them from your dish, but often fail and you discover more onions.  Second, even if you do succeed in removing all of the onion, you can never be sure of that and each bite has you questioning if you're going to get an unpleasant flavour.  This almost ruins the experience.  Onions aside, the brioche was not the greatest quality and neither was the bacon nor the egg.  However, I love proper bacon and egg rolls, and even a lower quality bacon and egg roll is still satisfying.  The main problem, once the onions were removed was that the bacon and egg roll was now seasoned with both barbecue and pasta sauce, which really did not complement each other well.  In conclusion, if this brioche did not have this appalling pasta sauce on it, I could have made Physiol's bacon and egg brioche a usual tea break snack.  More's the pity.

West End Garden, South Brisbane

I am slowly working my way through all of the Vietnamese/Chinese restaurants in the area, and last Friday went to yet another one:  West End Garden.  The first thing I'll say about West End Garden is that it has very nice decor, perhaps the best I've encountered since starting this blog.  One actually gets the feeling of being in a real garden somewhere in the orient.  Decor aside, I ordered satay chicken skewers as an entree, and Szechaun beef (or as their menu calls it "Sichuan" beef) for the main course.  The chicken skewers were perhaps the smallest I've been served, but they were also the cheapest, so I guess it evens out.  I was really quite taken with the satay sauce.  It was smooth and creamy and the right level of bite I want from a satay sauce.  The only real drawback was that the sauce had obviously been refrigerated, whereas the chicken had clearly just come off the grill or hotplate or however it was cooked.  Had the sauce been at room temperature or otherwise heated up I would have been all the more impressed.  Don't let this detract from the fact that this was a particularly good satay sauce however.  As for the Szechuan beef.  I had only sampled Szechuan beef once before and was so happy with that experience that I have made a point of trying the dish at other restaurants that offer it.  Unfortunately, not all Chinese restaurants serve Szechuan beef, and this was my main reason for dining at West End Garden on this occasion.  West End Garden's Szechuan beef is spicy, sweet, and tangy.  Whereas the only other Szechaun beef I have sampled is more savoury.  I prefer the latter.  However, I'm not sure which is more authentic.  Sweetness and tanginess aside, the beef was tender and thinly sliced, much in the manner that I have come to expect from Chinese restaurants.  As someone who considers eating vegetables a chore, there were no vegetables I liked in the dish, but this is also something that I have come to expect from Chinese restaurants, yet I keep going to them based on other strengths.  The dish was only mildly spicy, and this fact disappointed me because as far as I can recall, the Szechuan beef was the only dish on the menu with the caveat of "HOT".  So while my main course was somewhat disappointing, I was not entirely displeased with the meal.  The question now becomes "is Szechuan beef supposed to be sweet and tangy?".  I'm willing to go elsewhere to find out.  However, if the answer to the question is "yes", then I am only ever likely to order Szechuan beef at Trang, which is where I had my first experience with the dish and enjoyed greatly.

KFC, The Myer Centre, Brisbane City

The Thursday before last I went to KFC.  My reason for going there was twofold:  I have been reviewing a number of chicken burgers in this blog, so it was only fitting that I at some stage evaluate the colonel's take on the dish, and KFC have recently been advertising chicken tenders, and having enjoyed tenders on a number of occasions, I wanted to try KFC's.  I'll review the burger first.  I ordered and original fillet burger.  This was because the last couple of times I had eaten KFC burgers, I had ordered zinger burgers and been disappointed both times due to lack of flavour.  Happily, this was not an issue with my original fillet burger.  The colonel's 11 secret herbs and spices were a welcome addition to the traditional chicken burger format.  Furthermore, this is probably the first time in the history of this blog that the chicken burger had an appropriate amount of mayonnaise for my tastes.  The bun was nice and soft, and along with the mayonnaise had a slight sweetness, to which I was rather indifferent.  The chicken fillet was crunchy, which I was not expecting.  For some reason, I had it in my head that zinger fillets were crunchy, and original fillets were soft.  However, I was also rather indifferent to this crunchiness.  Despite all this, the burger did suffer from the usual drawbacks associated with fast food.  That is, although it was quick, relatively tasty, and on the cheap side, the quality of all the ingredients could be considerably better.  So as far as fast-food chicken burgers go, I would rank KFC's original fillet burger somewhere near the top, which is fitting given that KFC's business is chicken.  However, I am still of the opinion that Red Rooster's classic crispy burger is superior.  As for the chicken tenders, the first, most immediate observation that I could make is that the advertisements made the tenders look more large and tender than they really are.  However, such is the nature of fast-food advertising.  Don't let this lead you to assume that the tenders were tiny and devoid of tenderness however.  I would describe the tenders as a larger, crunchier version of a KFC chicken nugget.  This is a compliment as I regard KFC chicken nuggets quite highly as far as chicken nuggets go.  Succulent is too strong a word to describe the tenders; perhaps satisfactorily juicy would be appropriate.  Moreover, the colonel's 11 secret herbs and spices were also hard at work.  The tenders came with what KFC describe as aioli.  I would debate the authenticity of this "aioli", but it was a reasonable, tangy, creamy accompaniment to the tenders.  In conclusion, I am glad KFC have ensured that there are places outside of a supermarket or one's own kitchen where one can get chicken tenders, but at the end of the day, there are far greater dishes to be sampled out there than simple chicken tenders.

Mr Curry, Toowong Village Shopping Centre Foodcourt, Toowong

There are a number of Asian outlets in Toowong Village's foodcourt.  I found myself there last Wednesday and decided to try one.  At the time Mr Curry, a Japanese curry place, looked the most appealing, so I had lunch there.  I had the spicy chicken.  My experience with Japanese foodcourt curry places is that the meals are often high on sauce and rice, and low on meat.  At Mr Curry's however, I think I got just about the right amount of meat for what I payed for, considering the cost of eating out in Brisbane.  If Mr Curry's is any indication, I think that the Japanese have mastered the concept of fast food.  The had all the various meats available ready and pre-cooked.  There was one area for rice, a vat for the curry sauce, and pre-prepared salad (which I declined).  So the time between when I placed my order and when I received it was quite short.  I paid particular notice to the vat of curry sauce.  Apparently, at Mr Curry's all curries have the same sauce and it is ladled out in a similar manner to gravy at carveries and refectories.  The sauce also had the appearance and consistency of gravy.  In terms of taste though, the curry sauce was typically Japanese.  It had the blend of flavours one would expect from a Japanese curry and even a little bit of spiciness.  The flavours and spiciness could have been more pronounced, but given that Mr Curry's is a foodcourt type of establishment, I was not expecting maximum authenticity and flavour.  The chicken was crispy.  It could have been crispier, especially after being smothered with curry sauce, but was still quite palatable.  Overall, if you're looking for a relatively cheap, and super fast Japanese curry, Mr Curry's is more than adequate.

Domino's, Somewhere on the north side of Brisbane

On Saturday I had pizza from Domino's for dinner.  The first thing I'm going to point out about this post is that I'm not sure which Domino's provided my meal as I was hanging out with friend who was house sitting in Wavel Heights who ordered the pizza.  As far as I can tell the pizzas could have come from any number of stores in the area.  With that out of the way I must stress that I don't normally eat Domino's pizza unless it's the only option.  On this occasion, I was with some friends and we were all settled in and didn't feel like going out again that day, so Domino's delivery was just the easiest thing to do.  We ordered three pizzas:  capriciosa, loaded meatlovers, and pepperonni, and some garlic bread.  The capriciosia was bland.  It was mostly just cheese and dough, with very little sauce, and sparse toppings.  The loaded meatlovers is one of what Domino's describe as part of their "chef's best" range.  According to the menu, this should have been full of meat, when in fact, all we got was mostly bacon and ham, with only small amounts of pulled and ground beef.  This would not have been insufferable if it weren't for the fact that there was way too much barbecue sauce on the pizza, which at the best of times, is not my favourite sauce.  The pepperoni pizza was probably the best of a bad bunch.  This is probably due to the fact that it's pretty difficult to mess up something as simple as a pepperoni pizza.  However, there should have been more pepperoni, and the addition of something extra, such as anchovies or olives would have been welcome.  Upon the insistence of one of my friends this pizza came with a cheesy crust, which I felt added nothing to the meal, but at least it was edible.  Finally, the garlic bread was actually pretty good, and possibly the only thing Domino's got right on this occasion, except for prompt delivery.  This experience was regrettable and only confirmed my policy of not eating Domino's (or Pizza Hut or Eagle Boys), unless necessary.

Red Rooster, Brunswick Street Mall, Fortitude Valley

On Saturday I found myself in the Valley, and not having had anything to eat that day, was feeling peckish, but not hungry enough for a proper meal.  Because I also had to be somewhere, I wanted something quick and cheap.  I felt like a chicken burger, so I decided to go the Red Rooster.  I had never had a burger from this chain before, and I'd have to say that out of all the fast-food type establishments I have reviewed in this blog, the Red Rooster chicken burger I sampled on that day is the best.  I ordered the classic crispy burger, which is a coated chicken fillet with lettuce and mayonnaise:  simple enough.  The first thing that I noticed was that it was bigger than a McChicken or chicken royale from Hungry Jacks, so that's one point for Red Rooster.  Second, the chicken fillet coating was probably the crunchiest I have experienced, without being too crunchy, so that's another point for Red Rooster.  Third, the chicken fillet itself was of better quality than any of the other fast-food chicken burgers found in this blog, so that's another point for Red Rooster.  Fourth, there was a lot of lettuce, but that's really neither here nor there.  Despite these positives, this burger did suffer from one of the drawbacks common to the chicken burgers I have reviewed.  There was not enough mayonnaise.  Overall, though, this was a satisfying snack, but it must be stressed that this burger is no substitute for a proper burger from a proper restaurant, bar or cafe, unless price and convenience are a consideration.

Riverwalk Tandoori, Highgate Hill

Last Friday, I felt like trying something new for my regular, end of the week dinner.  So I wandered into Highgate Hill and came upon Riverwalk Tandoori.  The food at Riverwalk Tandoori is a combination of Indian and Malaysian cuisine.  I had never heard of this before.  Is there a significant Indian population in Malaysia?  Are there numerous Malaysians in India?  I don't know.  I looked at the menu, and there were a number of items that looked appetising.  However, at the time I found myself to be in the mood for beef rendang, which is what I ordered.  I have experienced numerous takes on beef rendang; all positive.  So I was curious to sample Riverwalk Tandoori's interpretation.  I was not let down.  First of all, this being a Indian/Malaysian restaurant meant that I could order naan over roti to accompany my meal.  This worked in Riverwalk Tandoori's favour as I find Indian naan to be a better absorber of flavour's than south-east Asian roti.  The naan itself could have been cooked a little longer, but was overall fine.  The beef rendang itself was interesting.  Some restaurants' beef rendang resembles a dry curry, whereas some are more saucy.  This particular beef rendang was somewhere in the middle.  I would have preferred it to saucier, but happily there was enough sauce for me to mop up with the bread, which was certainly a pleasant experience.  The sauce had a nice melange of flavours, some of which reminded me of the other beef rendangs I have sampled.  Others, however were new to me, most notably the presence of sweetness.  With few exceptions, I am generally hesitant when it comes to sweetness in a main meal.  However, this sweetness was noticeable, yet subtle, and very welcome.  Another positive concerning the sauce was its spiciness.  I am of the opinion that dishes, such as beef rendang, should be spicy.  However, many restaurants do not cater to this preference.  On this occasion, I believe Riverwalk Tandoori got the level of spice just right for my tastes.  Finally, the beef itself came in large chunks.  This can sometimes mean that it is not tender enough.  However, this was not the case, and I really enjoyed the beef's texture.  In conclusion, in many ways, this was a quality beef rendang, reminiscent of others I have encountered in the past.  In other ways, there was a welcome uniqueness to the dish.  If I ever go back to Riverwalk Tandoori, I'm hoping that the same can be said about their other dishes.

The Red Room, University of Queensland, St Lucia

Last Thursday I went to The Red Room for chips and gravy.  I think that chips and gravy is an excellent combination.  Unfortunately, most of the places that serve chips and gravy are refectories, cafeterias, and food courts, and therefore suffer from the drawbacks endemic to such eateries.  The Red Room might not qualify as fine dining, but it is a proper bar and grill, which means that their chips and gravy are above average.  The fact that chips and gravy is such a basic dish means that there is not much that can be said on The Red Room's take on it, other than it being good.  The Red Room serves less than excellent beer battered chips.  This might sound like a negative, but the fact of the matter is that I have never had a negative experience with beer battered chips.  They are inherently good.  I just recognise that some are better than others.  The gravy was fairly unremarkable, but tasty enough for my purposes on that day.  Other observations about the dish are more or less common to chips and gravy.  Some chips get more gravy than others, and by the time one gets to the bottom of the bowl, the chips with more gravy become soggy.  In conclusion, could The Red Room's chips and gravy be better?  The answer is yes.  However, the fact that there is a place I can go to get better than usual chips and gravy made this experience a positive one.

Grill'd, West End

The Friday before last I went to Grill'd for dinner.  Grill'd is one of the better burger chains operating in Brisbane.  On this occasion I ordered the Caesar's Palace, which is a chicken burger inspired by a Caesar salad and chips.  I have reviewed a number of chicken burgers in this blog, and I would have to say that Grill'd's Caesar's Palace is the best.  It is not perfect however.  To start with, I think that the Caesar's Palace is a good combination of ingredients for a burger.  There is a chicken fillet, bacon fried egg, cos lettuce, and Caesar salad dressing; all quality.  Sometimes with larger burgers, there is more filling than the bun can reasonably accommodate.  This means that you have filling falling out and it makes the eating process quite messy.  This is not the case at Grill'd (at least in my experience).  The bun to filling ratio is just about right.  I mentioned that all the ingredients in this burger were quality, but there was a slight quantitative issue surrounding the Caesar salad dressing.  There was not enough of it.  Chicken, bacon, and egg are tasty enough on their own, but when Caesar salad dressing is added, it really enhances the flavour.  The fact that this burger was slightly lacking in Caesar salad dressing meant that some bites were tastier than others.  Despite this, it was a generally pleasant burger.  Grill'd's chips are good, but not great.  They come seasoned with sea salt and herbs, which is a plus.  However, the batter is slightly lacking in crunch, but at least it's not soggy.  The potato itself is a little floury for my tastes.  These slight negatives are mitigated by the fact that the herbed mayonnaise that can accompany the chips is big on flavour.  So, if I ever find myself dining on this particular burger again, I will have to ask for extra dressing, but I don't think that there is anything I can do about the chips.