You simply MUST try this!

I have mentioned before that my all time favourite cocktail is made by my friend Theo who is one of the Managers at MUST Wine Bar. Let me refresh your memory. Gosh I would kill for one right now...

Last Saturday night I was all dressed up after hosting one of my Burlesque High Teas and husby had just deposited the offspring at Grandma's so we decided to go out for a nice dinner. We tried calling Pata Negra and Bar One but last minute attempts at these places don't really cut it which I completely understand. At the very least I vowed to get my hands around a lychee martini and we would order from the bar side of MUST.

Happily we scored a table in the restaurant and proceeded to have one of the best dinners I have had in a while. I must at this point apologise for my pictures as it was very dark and the trusty old iPhone can only do so much. BTW I hate flash and will always shoot in available light as first option but I digress.

This is a chorizo sausage that is on the bar menu but we asked if we could do a sneaky and have it in the restaurant. I was so consumed with trying to get a photo of it that the first one ended up on my lap and the floor. Thank God for heavy napkins and staff who swooped in and picked it up before I could blink. They should play cricket for Australia.
I love the way it was cooked, how it was presented and the generous portion.

Now this pasta would rival the one I posted earlier in taste but it is also the second most expensive pasta I have ever bought after the one from the Rockpool (which I unfortunately will never have again now that I have tried this). It's angel hair pasta with blue manna crab, tomato, chili, basil cream and 34' south organic olive oil. This is a main that we shared as entree.
This pasta is heaven on a plate and if I had dropped this I probably would have tried to exercise the 3 second rule. I NEED more.

Not being ashamed of being a self-proclaimed weekend carnivore, my first choice in meaty goodness is always lamb. This is herb and macadamia crusted lamb loin with Paris mash, braised red cabbage and madeira jus. I am in love. The lamb served medium rare just melts in your mouth and the flavours of the cabbage, mash and jus medley are rich and gorgeous. This is a dish that has been well thought out on all levels and I can't think of anything that could improve it.

Last but certainly not least is the warm chocolate brownie with salted caramel icecream and malted anglaise. Simply put it's brownie, icecream and vanilla custard. And it is ALL perfect.
I think the hardest thing about going back to Must will be to not order all the things I ate all over again because I know how much I love them. But I have faith that if I do stray that everything else will be just as delicious.
And do order from the extensive wine menu as well- I had a Coriole red with the lamb and was recommended the perfect sticky to go with dessert. They know their shizz THANK GOD!

A battle of the pasta Gods....

Any of my close friends can tell you that my carbohydrate of choice will always be pasta. It's the healthiest type for me, it tastes freakin fantastic and I never, ever get sick of it.

Every Wednesday evening I teach a lovely corporate Zumba class in Fremantle so hubsy and the offspring come with me for the drive and we have a family dinner afterwards. It's a tradition I love.
Two weeks ago we went to our favourite pasta joint in Freo- Sandrino's. It's been there as long as I can remember and so far has never disappointed. But writing about food means that I need to stray out of my comfort zone and start to make some comparisons. No, I am not going out of my way to eat crappy pasta just to blow smoke up the bum of my faves which is why I have chosen to compare Sandrino's to Spaghi which also has a great name in the Pasta World.

I like to sit outside at Sandrino's- it's great to be able to watch the world go by and I think it has a very different feel to the atmosphere inside the restaurant. The staff are nice but in our case they didn't communicate to each other when we added to our order so Natey had to wait quite a long time for his pizza which they had initially cancelled.

First up we ordered the Pizza Bianca which is pretty hard to get wrong. It's just a basically rock salt, rosemary and garlic on a pizza base. Delicious!

Being a parent has definite advantages when it comes to being able to order off the kiddie menu.
We get to taste things and pay much less for them and pretend that Natey just eats abnormally large
amounts of food.

A pretty looking Hawaiian and one with bacon, olives and mushrooms. I have to tell you that my other half is very,very picky when it comes to pizza. They must be cooked in a woodfired oven and the base must be thin. He doesn't do takeout pizza and the thought of a deep pan or stuffed crust makes him gag.
I am not so picky- sometimes takeout is just more convenient but I do know the difference. Sandrino's do a fabulous job and had I not had more food on the way, I could have happily had one of each type on the kiddie menu- with hubsy's help of course ;)

Next we had mussels and pasta to share:

I like chili mussels that have a flavour that slaps you in the face as if to say "I'm here!" but although these were pleasant, I didn't get that sensation. The flavours didn't seem to harmonise. Sure there was tomato and chili and salt and sauce but it wasn't one that you look forward to slurping up with your bread while the juicy goodness drips off your chin.

Lastly here is a pasta with sausage, chili, olives topped with pesto and ricotta.
The idea looked great but again it just didn't seem to gel. I think there are too many elements in this dish. The chili was intense and I had to pick alot of it out. I loved the sausage and olives but I don't think the ricotta and pesto were completely necessary. Maybe they are there to act as a buffer for the flavours underneath but for my taste, if they had halved the amount of chili and perhaps served the toppings on the side with an option of having shaved parmesan as well, it would have been much better.

I love Sandrino's and just need to go back to the normal things I order. Pizza and bolognese FTW.

Last Wednesday we went to Spaghi which is on our way home from Fremantle. They don't take bookings which is inconvenient on the weekends but if you go after they open (around 5.30/6pm) it's much easier to get a table. They are also BYO. The location is right on Canning Hwy so if you are unsuccessful and have to wait, that's where you do it- in full view of everyone driving by. My cons end there.

OMG the bolognese! Cooked with love, full of flavour and I want one as I type this. The large portion was more than enough for Natey (thank goodness) and if it pleases him, we know we're on a good thing. Honestly I can't fault it. And that sauce is why you have bread in a basket.

This party in my mouth is currently my favourite pasta in all of Perth. It's a house specialty- home made linguine pasta served with chili, garlic, black pepper, evoo and fresh porcini mushrooms in a light cream sauce. My veggie friends so need to try this. Everything works so well together and you don't get the heavy feeling that many get from a creamy sauce.

This is all we ordered along with some fresh bread and butter. The serving sizes are ample and although the price is up there on my pasta scale, the quality is amazing.
I like the fitout in Spaghi too- it's neat with neutral colours and lovely ambient lighting.

There you go Peg- I hope this helps xxx

Hangin round the CNR....

I have been going to the CNR for a little while now and can totally vouch for their coffee, but last weekend I was with my hubby and son and being time to eat, we decided to order something more substantial. It was around 3pm on the Sunday so we took advantage of the "Afternoon" menu.

Hubby and I have varied taste so we tend to order meals and swap them over half way so we don't miss out on tasting something delicious. On this day I wanted to eat both of them!

I ordered the Chicken Korma served on steamed rice with mango chutney and pappadums. I love it when a cafe gives you a choice of an entree or main size- normally I go straight for the biggest serve but the staff told me the entree size was more than enough. And they were right!

Now I'm a sucker for presentation- I believe that food should be served on whatever makes it visually appealing and easier to eat from. My chicken korma came in a deep bowl with a wider top so the curry and rice stayed where they should, and there was ample room for the pappadums to rest without them getting soggy. The chicken itself was moist and

tender with just enough spices to enhance the flavour but not overpower the dish. The rice was perfectly cooked and the pappadums crisp. Even people who don't normally eat curry should try this- it would be an excellent entry level for a first curry experience.

My hubby ordered the Pork Belly served on braised bacon and cabbage with creamy mash and roasted apple. Wow is all I can say. 

The pork was cooked to perfection and the cabbage and bacon together were a marriage made in heaven- smoky flavours with golden sauteed cabbage and the mash was worthy of something a mom would make. Normally I eat pork with apple sauce but to have the apple roasted and to be able to cut into that semi-crunch was the perfect contrast to the mash and cabbage/bacon.

And last but not least, my son's fish and chips. I don't really have much faith that something that has been around for so long can have the capacity to be different in some way but those chips are really something. I think it's the fact that they are hand cut with their skins on and cooked till golden on the outside and fluffy on the inside will make me come back for more. The fish itself was golden and crunchy- the only thing I would pick on is that I found the batter to be a bit thick and I think my son thought so too as he left a good part of it on his plate minus the fish from inside it.

Together with our meals and drinks, there was a good amount of change from $50.00!

I love how the CNR Cafe not only has some of the friendliest staff around, but the owners actually think about their food. It's not just assembled on a plate, every stage of the meal seems to be thought through and then made with love. It looks great, it tastes fantastic and because the owners and their family are always at the CNR, you can be assured that they will listen and put into consideration any suggestions that are made.