Bunny categories

Burgers (5) Cafés (7) Dining (14) Fine dining (6) Fried Stuff (2) Melbourne (5) Pub/Bar (7) Snacks (6)

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Manchester Press

 The Bunnybloggers ventured south during the holidays to the undisputed city of food that is Melbourne. Upon our early morning arrival, we explored the streets; bags and all until we reached the doorstep of Manchester Press (8 Rankins Lane, Melbourne). Located on a typical Melbourne laneway off Little Bourke Street, Manchester Press is renown for their all day bagel breakfasts and after our brief visit we immediately knew why. 

 Make sure you get in at an irregular eating time slot as queues do build up. The waiting list is written on the wall outside with chalk which I thought was pretty neat. Thankfully though, we beat the rush and grabbed a neat little table in the corner.




Piccolo

 We begin with our mandatory piccolo. Hello there.

Fruit & Nut Bagel
with Mixed Berry Mascarpone, Fresh Strawberries
& Crushed Pistachio


 Patty went for this mountain of a looking mascarpone beast. With enough cream to fill a garage and then some, this bagel was stupidly outstanding and I felt like a little kid on top of the strawberries when I stole it off Patty. The mixed berry mascarpone was light and creamy but the real winner was the simply divine bagel. It was full of flavour and had an uncanny soft doughy texture like no other.


Grilled Chorizo Open Bagel
with Tasty Cheese, Sliced Tomato
Roasted Capsicum & Tomato Relish


 Less dramatically, here is the grilled chorizo open bagel. I enjoyed the whole tomato and capsicum combination together with the soft bagel but there was nothing there that made me scream like a little girl, not like the fruit and nut bagel at least =(




 We came back here during the week to see if we could snatch a plain bagel on the go but apparently they don't sell them by itself. Overall a great place for a light meal and in my opinion there's no other food that screams brunch as much as a good old bagel; and boy does Manchester Press make a great bagel.

Bunny Rating-
Categories: Melbourne, Cafes







Manchester Press on Urbanspoon

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Mary's Newtown

 With the undisputed 'burger of all burgers' title wrapped safely around her fat belly, Mary's (6 Mary Street, Newtown) is the place to go for a romantic date with ... well yourself. I'm not going to go and say it's the BEST burger in Sydney, but boy does it satisfy a craving. No other burger does the job so efficiently, so effectively and so spiritually. It just gets down and dirty with your soul. So prepare yourself to slip, slop, slap and get wrecked by juicy, gooey goodness that is Mary's burgers.

Hauntingly Beautiful

Dare to Dream

 The building is not, how shall we say ... aesthetically pleasing but don't let the graffiti or blood stained walls deter you. Just look for the red light on top and enter like you would a brothel. Don't be disappointed when there are no girls inside though, just burgers and fried chicken here. Not that I mind. 



Condiments


 The magic happens downstairs next to the bar area and they also offer table service upstairs. 






Young Henry Newtowner/Reschs

 There's a wide range of bubbly, wine, cocktails and beer to suit all patrons. Also all drinks and food items are written along the walls so don't wait for a menu, just saying haha. I've been here a few times now and fortunately enough I've tried everything on the menu except for their mash + gravy (not that there is much to get through!). I admire that Mary's keeps things simple by offering only 3 varieties of burgers and fried chicken, that's it. Beautiful. Let's begin.


Mary's Burger
Lettuce, Tomato, Beef, Cheese, Tomato Sauce



 Didn't really get a good photo with all the lettuce in the way but here is the Mary's burger. I agree, doesn't really look like anything aye? But under that glistening bun is quite possibly the closest thing to heaven and with that ... a doctor's appointment that will put you well on your way there too. The only difference between this and the Cheese Burger are the veggies, so I'll seductively describe the contents of the burger next.


Cheese Burger
Beef, Cheese, Tomato Sauce
It's talking to me

 If there were ever a time to get intimate with a burger, then this my friends would be the time. I would suggest 'doubling' your burgers for an extra $3 to increase burger satisfaction and waistline. Straight to the point; a soft, almost sweet bun, some do or die melted cheese and the juiciest beef patty ever to slap you in the face. A glorified Maccas cheeseburger, sure. It probably is, but dam it honestly hits the spot over and over again. There's not much more to it to be honest and that's probably one of the best things about it, it's simple and tasty. All burgers also come with a side of chips.


Fried Chicken


 Southern style fried chicken at its finest. Comes in three sizes; half, full & Larry (2) bird(s). A full bird consists of 8 mega pieces which have an amazing crispy coated outside and surprisingly juicy meat on the inside. The outer coating is full of seasoning and spices (I detect ... turmeric I think) and it's definitely worth trying out as it goes great with a burger!


Shroom Burger (Vegetarian)
Creamy Mushroom, Lettuce

 Patty went for the shroom burger second time round. If you're vegetarian, you really shouldn't be all up in Mary's hood, but if for some reason you are, then you really have no choice but to order this. Anyhow, at first the creamy mushroom flavour was so tasty and intense, but as we delved in further it got unbearably salty. Maybe it was just a one off but Patty and I were chugging water like a drain afterwards. Honestly, go for the cheeseburger (but it does get a little rich, the veggies in the Mary burger however helps that out a little bit).


 Summing things up. If grease and gore aren't your forte then you could always go for a typical burger with the lot; a nice toasted brioche bun, a thick juicy beef patty, crisp iceberg lettuce, sauteed onions, bleeding beetroot and aioli that could be drunk by itself. But there is just something about Mary (haha) that keeps me wanting more and more. It keeps that little kid inside all of us satisfied, it relieves that midnight craving we all get on a night out and there just aren't many burgers out there that can accomplish such feats. If I'm being honest here I've thought about the burger many times in my sleep. I'll visit you soon Mary, don't tell Patty though. It's our little secret.


Bunny Rating-
Category: Pub/Bar, Burgers








Mary's on Urbanspoon

Monday, February 17, 2014

Oscillate Wildly, Newtown

 After some fruitful watermelon cake and flakey pastries from Black Star Pastry why not give Oscillate Wildly (275 Australia Street, Newtown) a visit which is located just next door. Oscillate Wildly appeals to the hopeless romantic which is inevitably inside everyone and honestly, it is enough to salivate not only your mouth, but you're heart at the same time. Thanks to Patty for my Birthday dinner! =)

(Chris hopefully this post will help you decide where to take Mum & Dad for their anniversary dinner; and to Josh & Sharon here's what to expect next week! ... it's a baby. Wait what? Don't worry Bernard)  


Jamon with Salted Rice Cracker

 We started off with some thin and airy rice crackers which were generously covered in some velvety cured ham. Yum.

Gin & Tonic
Compressed in Sugarcane

 First of all ... how cool is it! Anyhow this is the most ingenious idea ever. This marvellous creation/invention gives Mr. Edison a run for his money, I would love to light my house with these clever little things. If only. This mouth cleanser is a thick sheet of sugarcane drenched in gin and tonic and served surrounded by ice in a double walled glass. Your teeth become a sugarcane machine as you gradually chew out the liquid absorbed by the sugarcane and boy is it tasty. Delicious!


Butter & Pork Lardo with Chilli/Fennel
Bread Bread Bread
Sea Urchin, Apple, Ponzu
with Heirloom Carrots

 Our first course of the night is this light and refreshing sea urchin dish. The sea urchin is hiding somewhere down the bottom of the pot but above it are truck loads of shaved apple and carrots. Not a dish for haters of raw carrot but since we're bunnybloggers it was our bread and butter ... which we coincidently had  before this (Bernard stop it, seriously) hahaha.

Abalone, Cuttlefish, Coconut
with Palm Heart, Young Coconut & Ginger

 Not the greatest photo unfortunately (I meant the food) but it was pretty awkward fishing into my bowl just to get a snap at the cuttlefish. The broth tasted like green thai curry and the seafood was super fresh.

Polenta, Parmesan
with Chargrilled Corn

 A different take on some corn polenta. Some really creamy and smooth corn sauce with chargrilled corn kernels for texture accompanied with two thick slithers of parmesan. It was an interesting dish but in the end I think they pulled it off pretty well.

Pan Fried Murray Cod, Potato, Almond
with Almond Puree & Chive Olive Oil

 This cod was cooked to perfection and with a seared crust, it was a delight to eat. The almond puree unfortunately didn't have that much flavour but I guess it was to make sure that the cod was the star of the dish!

Boneless Chicken Wing, Carrot
with Cauliflower Puree & Chargrilled Onions

 Here we have the gently cooked boneless chicken wing accompanied with some carrots, cauliflower puree and chargrilled onions. The chicken was moist and tasty and along with the creamy cauliflower puree it was a solid dish.

David Blackmore Wagyu 9+ Beef, Beetroot Puree
with Compressed Cabbage & Mustard Leaves

 These photos really don't justify how good this hunk of beef truly was. Seared like an Aussie at the beach, it was masterfully cooked to perfection and honestly the beef just crumbled and melted in our mouths. Forget the weirdly sour compressed cabbage or the random mustard leaves, chuck us another slab of meat. The beetroot puree went really well with the wagyu as well and I enjoyed it so much that Patty generously gave me half of hers. I didn't thank her for the gesture, I instead thanked David Blackmore for producing such good wagyu.

Cheese on Toast
with Parmesan Ice Cream & Crumbled Brown Bread Praline

 This was the optional cheese course that was sold to us by the waitress and it's definitely a must try! The parmesan ice cream was something so different and when eaten together with the crumbly, toffeed bread it was exactly like cheese and crackers. Yeah, sure you could easily go home and have the same experience but this looks so much cooler.

Cherry Sorbet
with Sorrel Leaves & Parsley Meringue

 The pre-dessert of the night was a palate cleansing cherry sorbet with sorrel leaves and broken bits of parsley meringue. The parsley meringue didn't offer much flavour but the cherry sorbet hit the spot and was a friendly welcome after so many savoury dishes!

Peaches & Cream
 The peaches and cream was made up of some light peach meringue which looked like floating ice shelves in the antarctic and peach ice cream. I sort of forgot what else was on the plate but it was tasty, so I guess that's all that matters.

 There is only a small room full of seating (maybe 20 people) so if you're planning on taking that someone special or even if it's just a friend, make sure you book early! The wait staff were really friendly and the atmosphere was very pleasant. It's kind of awkward however with the whole toilet situation though ... there's only one toilet out the back to share between both males and females. A mini queue may end up forming if you take too long in there and since there's no where to hide inside the restaurant, you may get a few shifty looks later on. Overall though, Oscillate Wildly is value for money when it comes to degustations, at only $100 pp for 10+ quality courses there's no wonder that it's so popular.

 Josh & Sharon: Happy anniversary and hopefully you'll enjoy your dinner just as much as we did! Josh ... let's hope that the night ends better than when we last hung out.

We're lucky to have our girlfriends

Bunny Rating-
Category: Fine Dining



Oscillate Wildly on Urbanspoon