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Chakra, Inglewood

Chakra Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

I’ve been meaning to try Chakra for a while, it’s one of those restaurants that keeps popping up in my newsfeeds, and I was intrigued by their modern take on Indian cuisine.

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It’s an impressive modern restaurant on the corner of Beaufort Street and Seventh Avenue, with tables inside and out, and gas heaters for winter. The fit out is very stylish, with low lighting and candles – lovely for a romantic dinner. We were warmly greeted by the manager who seated us by the window, and it was nice touch to have a place card set up for me.

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We chose a glass of Jim Barry JB Clare Valley Riesling while we perused the electronic tablet style menu, and a very nice drop it was too wit citrus and ginger notes.

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Everything can be ordered by the hand held tablet, or you can order from the wait staff. We found the tablet quite easy to use, but did have to order everything individually rather than building up a menu and just pressing the ‘order’ button once.

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We were also given some crispy nibbles to start with a tamarind dip, and they were quite moreish.

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The manager explained that Chakra make everything fresh and are ‘not like other Indian restaurants’, then he went on to explain the menu and pointed out some of the signature dishes. We chose a signature Pav Bhaji Fondue to start – a spicy vegetable mousse with olives, crispy bread, onion and tomato.

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It was tasty, but a little gimmicky in the fondue format, and we soon ditched the fiddly fondue forks for regular forks.
Next came the main courses, including a chicken biryani which was the star of the meal. I have had a similar biryani before in a pot with a naan style dough topping, but this one was outstanding – really separate grains of rice, great curry flavour, tender melting chicken – just wonderful. When we tapped through the dough crust, the aroma was amazingly good.

It came with a raita dressed with beetroot.

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We also chose a prawn madras which was a good standard curry with lots of sauce to dip our naan.

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Our side dish was bhindi masala – well cooked and tasty.

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All in all it was a good meal and we will definitely return for the great biryani. I like that Chakra are doing something different, and the menu is also very vegan/vegetarian friendly.

Last Visit – November 2019

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Here are some pictures from vegan supper club Sunday:

Cumin infused lemonade (a bit of an acquired taste):

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Vegan onion spinach fritters:

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Butter tofu kulcha:

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Pani puri:

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Aloo Gobi sabzi:

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Vegan vegetable korma

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Okra/bhindi:

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Restaurant review, Vegan/Vegetarian

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The Swan, Lavenham, UK for afternoon tea


The Swan is a hotel in the beautiful mediaeval village of Lavenham in Suffolk. The whole village is quaint and picturesque and the inside of the Swan has a sense of old world charm and splendour. This afternoon tea was a birthday treat for a relative and it certainly did not disappoint.
The Swan offers three types of afternoon tea – traditional, savoury and high tea. The high tea includes a substantial savoury starter such as scotch egg with crushed peas or smoked salmon and chive omelette, followed by two different scones and a selection of cakes. The traditional afternoon tea features finger sandwich slices followed by two different scones and a selection of cakes. The savoury afternoon tea features finger sandwiches, two savoury scones and a selection of savoury pastries such as smoked salmon and crab blinis
and coronation chicken tart. There is also a tea menu, offering a variety of different teas including English breakfast, Earl Grey, fruit teas, lapsang souchong, darjeeling and oolong.

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The finger sandwiches included traditional cucumber, dill and black pepper, maple roast Suffolk ham, egg and light mustard mayonnaise, and smoked salmon with creme fraiche served on a beetroot bread. When we had finished, the waitress asked if we would like a further round of sandwiches for the table, quite a nice touch when other establishments seem to have strict portion control. We were also offered more than one pot of tea, and as much jam and cream for the scones as we liked – it was nice to know that we could really
enjoy the food on offer.

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Two types of scone were offered – walnut and fruit – and they were both delicious. the cream was clotted cream and the jam seemed to be freshly home made, offered in both raspberry and strawberry flavours.

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Because it was Wimbledon fortnight, the cakes had a Wimbledon theme. This included a battenburg that was designed to look like a tennis court, strawberry and cream panacotta, a Pimms jelly cup with a green pistachio tennis ball macaron, and a victoria sponge with a chocolate decoration.


Every item served was beautifully presented and tasty with quality ingredients. We were allowed to take our time, and the setting added to the whole experience. Of all the high teas I have tasted this was definitely one of the best and when I am next in Suffolk, I will definitely return.

Visit Date – July 2016

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Restaurant review

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Candlenut, Tanglin, Singapore

Candlenut Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Up on Dempsey Hill in Singapore, there’s a nice little hub of restaurants and a gourmet grocery store – it’s a really chilled place to spend an evening.
In amongst them is Candlenut, a one Michelin star establishment specialising in Peranakan cuisine. It’s a place that although sophisticated, feels comfortable – not too stuffy like some of the other cheffy restaurants.
We started with a glass of Chilean sauvignon blanc while we perused the menu.

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We were also given some yummy crispy nibbles and dipping sauce:

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It was really hard to choose with lots of tempting options like swimmer crab and chicken balls, crab curry, and beef rib rendang, but we eventually opted for ngoh hiang and pork neck satay to start.
The pork neck satay came first and it was sublime – there was so much flavour in the tender melting pork, and the satay sauce coating was perfect.

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I did wonder how good ngoh hiang could be, but this version was amazingly good. The combination of pork, prawn, shiitake mushroom and water chestnut was just right, and I would have been in heaven with several plates of these and nothing else.

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For mains we chose the chef’s mum’s chicken curry, “four heavenly kings”, and a king prawn gula melaka. Sorry the pictures are not great – the lighting was dim, and I must have been keen to eat!
The curry was lovely, warm, and rich with potato and kaffir lime, very nice with the brown rice that we ordered.

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The four heavenly kings was a combination of eggplant, wing beans, okra and taro, garnished with crispy whitebait. Absolutely wonderful. I could have again eaten several plates of this dish – the perfect vegetable accompaniment.

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The king prawn gula melaka was where curry meets dessert – a sweet coconut based curry with beautiful fresh prawns – again a perfect dish.

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We didn’t have room for dessert, but this meal was every thing we could have wished for. When we are back in Singapore we will definitely return for more goodies in this sophisticated dining room. A great meal, great service and wonderful atmosphere.

Visit Date – April 2019

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Restaurant review

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Chester’s, Henley Brook, Swan Valley

Chesters Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Chester’s is in the heart of the Swan Valley – right here on our doorstep in Perth. The Swan Valley has so many cool things to do – you can wine and dine, there are breweries, you can buy German sausages and deli items, you can go cheese tasting, coffee tasting, nougat tasting, and chocolate tasting, and you can even play crazy golf. I haven’t had any really good wines in the Swan Valley – they all seem a little too acidic for my liking, but I know that they are quite popular, so if anybody can give me some Swan Valley wine recommendations, I would be happy to try them. Chester’s was no exception, we did some wine tasting before dining, and I didn’t find anything that really made me want to buy a bottle.

The occasion was a work Christmas lunch, and there must have been 30 people on
our long table. The rest of the restaurant was full – also with work colleagues from other departments, so there were approximately 80 to 100 people to be served. The measure of a good restaurant is one that can serve all of those people a meal that is hot, cooked well and tasty.
I chose the wasabi seafood salad to start which contained poached prawns, scallops, baby octopus and Shark bay snapper with wasabi mayonnaise, some crispy fried whitebait and lime and vanilla infused extra virgin olive oil. This was delicious – a very good start to the meal, and they didn’t skimp on the good ingredients.

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For main I chose the seared and roasted pork fillet with a chestnut and caramelised onion stuffing, a sage and purple potato rosti and apple and verjuice jus. This was accompanied with perfectly cooked mixed vegetables – broccolini, button squash, mangetout, carrots and cauliflower. The pork was very tasty – my only disappointment was the rosti which didn’t go well with the dish – the flavour of the rosti seemed a bit strange.

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For dessert I chose the sticky date pudding because it had the least amount of dairy ingredients. Sadly I had to give away my sheeps milk yoghurt ice cream, but the pecan toffee sauce was delicious.

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Well I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch, and I think that my colleagues did too. The
coffee afterwards was also good quality, and they had soy milk for my dairy free diet which I found quite pleasing (not everybody caters for this).

Visit Date – December 2012

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The restaurant is now called Abbey

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Restaurant review

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Bombay Talkies, Whitfords

Bombay Talkies Eatery Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Bombay Talkies is a cosy eatery in the recently refurbished Whitfords mall cinema area.
We popped in for a light bite following a film, and we received a warm greeting from the staff. The menu is designed so that you can have as much or as little as you like, and includes Indian street favourites like pani puri, Bombay toasties, kati rolls and sheekh kebabs as well as curries and biryani.
We started with some poppadoms and mint sauce – they were crispy, fresh and good.

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I decided to have a chicken biryani, which was plentiful, and came with a curry sauce. I couldn’t eat all of it and the waiter kindly packed up the leftovers for my work lunch the next day.

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My partner chose a tarka dhal and rice. He loved every mouthful – a nice fresh dhal with plenty of lentils, a nice coriander taste, and a little heat from the chillies. The rice was fluffy and separate – everything you would expect from good rice.

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I was very impressed and would be happy to go back to try another meal. This is definitely one of the best restaurants in the Whitfords strip. They are also on Uber Eats, so if you fancy a curry in a hurry – Bombay Talkies could be your best bet.

Visit Date – November 2018

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Restaurant review, Vegan/Vegetarian

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Rajmoni, Brentwood, Essex UK

Having not had a good old British curry for ages, I carefully read reviews of Indian
restaurants local to Brentwood and plumped for Rajmoni in Warley Hill. It seemed to be a local favourite.

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We were made very welcome and the restaurant was moderately busy for a Monday night. The first thing that made me go ‘ooh’ was the chutney tray. Chutney trays are a rarity in Perth and this made me very nostalgic with its quartet of mango chutney, tomato chutney, mint sauce and onion salad. Perfect with pappadoms.

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I also had a Cobra Beer – such a nice refreshing accompaniment to a curry.

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I chose King Prawn dhansak – which had just the right amount of sweetness, a hint of
lemon sourness, enough lentils to add texture (I really object to dhansaks with just a runny sauce containing a few lentils), and chilli heat. The key to getting the heat correct is to cook all of the spices thoroughly so that they don’t taste raw, and hot curries often benefit from a day in the fridge to mellow the spices. If a curry is gauged correctly it can still be quite hot but comfortably edible, and Rajmoni managed to get the combination just right.

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My companion chose chicken madras which was tasty and nicely spiced. It was also nice to have two curries with very different sauces – with Indian restaurant batch cooking, you can sometimes find that all of the curries end up with the same sauce.

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I asked for Aloo Peas (peas and potato) which wasn’t on the menu, but the staff were happy to prepare it for me. Again a delicious side dish, nicely prepared. (Indian side dishes are a rarity in Australia, so again this is something which I miss about UK curries).

Rajmoni have several vegetable and vegan side dishes available as well as veg stuffed naans and parathas – two or three of these dishes would make a great vegetarian meal.

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Accompaniments were a keema naan (naan stuffed with minced lamb) and fluffy pilau
rice.

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What a nice meal, my UK curry fix was complete and it was everything that I wanted it to
be. I would definitely recommend Rajmoni and will be revisiting next time I am in the UK.

Visit Date – May 2014

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Restaurant review, Vegan/Vegetarian

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Reuben Hills, Surry Hills, Sydney NSW

Reuben Hills Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

I love Sunday brekkie/brunch, and keen to find a good place in Sydney for a Sunday brunch I came across reviews for Reuben Hills. About a 15 minute walk from our hotel to Surry Hills, we found this quirky little place with quite a queue outside. We only had to wait 15-20 minutes for our table.
The waiter was really helpful. I wanted a non dairy based milkshake and he veered me towards the lychee, lime and coconut flavour because it was based on coconut sorbet. I loved the shake. The coffee was also very good quality.
For my brunch I chose soft baked eggs with jamon, spinach, ranchero and rye bread. This was a lovely if little spicy brunch, and it was nice to have the bread to mop up the little bowl of ranchero and egg.

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My companion chose achiote pork n beans with soft fried egg, tortilla chips and chimmichurri. This was mildly spicy, full flavoured, and the textures worked well.

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Yes – Reuben Hills was a great choice for brunch. If I lived in Sydney I could
work my way through their menu.
A quirky cafe with fun wait staff, not your average menu, and great coffee. Yes it works.

Visit Date – April 2014

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Coffee shop review, Restaurant review

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The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay, Glebe, Sydney, NSW

The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

This restaurant is in a lovely location on Blackwattle Bay in Sydney with a view of the Anzac Bridge. We arrived by taxi, but if you want to make a more dramatic entrance, you can arrive by water taxi. Greeted by friendly faces from the moment we walked in, the service was impeccable and the wait staff very knowledgeable about the dishes.
The menu changes daily, and fish/seafood is their speciality.

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I had trouble choosing from the menu as the options all sounded so delicious, but in the end I went for a selection of oysters:

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The selection included (clockwise from the lemon) Hastings River, Merimbula Lake, Port Stephen’s Rock, Wallis Lake, Wapengo River and Blackman Bay. My favourite was the Merimbula Lake, but they were all delicious and perfectly presented.
My companion chose seared Hiramasa kingfish with saffron, red peppers, almonds and chorizo. Again, a delicious, well executed dish. Every flavour in the dish was there for a reason and the freshness of the kingfish was apparent.

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The restaurant’s speciality is snapper pie, and I saw lots of them being served to other tables. The pie looked very tempting, but is a large portion probably better shared. I ended up choosing the Bass Groper and my companion chose the Blue eye Trevalla served with peas, pancetta, spanner crab and lettuce.

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We also had a side of brussels sprouts with a slow cooked egg and bacon cream.

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The main dishes were excellent. My groper was fresh, good quality and tasty, with the beautiful herbs and vegetables complementing the dish perfectly. My companion’s Blue eye Trevalla was equally delicious, and the sprouts were also sumptuous, a very interesting way to serve them.
The restaurant also serves an array of unique cocktails such as this Bourbon and cinnamon based drink.

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I loved the Mescal with spiced pear vodka:

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Dessert for both of us consisted of Pistachio Cannoli with rhubarb ripple ice cream and salted caramel. A beautifully well presented dessert, just the right amount, and a perfect finish to a fabulous meal.

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Coffee was presented with some little chocolate tart petit fours which were very yummy.

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So will I go back to the Boathouse ? Yes absolutely, it is a first class restaurant. I struggled to think of a time when I had been served a better fish dish, and the only comparable meal that I could think of was at Rick Stein’s Seafood restaurant in Padstow. I can’t wait to return – everything was top class- the service, the environment, the ambience and most of all the
quality of ingredients, I had a fabulous evening at the Boathouse.

Visit Date – April 2014

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Restaurant review

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White Salt, Sorrento

White Salt Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

White Salt in Sorrento is a beach cafe in a nice position where you can look out on the ocean. I have been here for evening meals quite a few years ago, but decided to give the cafe a go for breakfast.
The first thing that we noticed was the service, it wasn’t really happening, and despite booking in advance, we stood at the reception area for a good five minutes before anybody acknowledged us. Eventually we were seated by the window at a good table, but slightly let down by the grubby appearance of the window area and the sticky table. Tables need a good clean between guests, not just a cursory wipe, and it wasn’t very comforting to have a sticky table.
Anyway, we ordered drinks. My partner chose a soy decaf in a mug (which we noticed was an extra $1.50 – 50c each for soy, decaf and the mug!), I asked for the peanut butter and banana smoothie with coconut milk, but unfortunately there wasn’t any coconut milk, so I settled for almond milk.

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The smoothie was a little disappointing, not really flavoursome from the banana or the peanut butter, all a bit bland. My partner’s coffee was okay.

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For main I chose the sweet potato and quinoa hash with bacon, spinach and poached egg. This was nice, the bacon was good, the portion of hash was quite small though. The tomatoes add a nice piquant flavour.

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My partner chose the cassoulet with pork and fennel sausages and poached egg. Again this was nice, but quite meat heavy as the cassoulet contained meat.

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So did we like White Salt? It was okay, but nothing special, and it really needs a good clean. I think I preferred the menu options at Voyage Kitchen next door – Voyage was packed out, White Salt had tables to spare – it’s quite obvious why really.

Visit Date – April 2019

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Restaurant review

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Market Eating House, Bunbury

Market Bun 1

This is a restaurant at 9 Victoria Street in Bunbury. The outside is unassuming, and old fashioned building with a purple facade, it just blends in to the row of shops, but make no mistake this is a hidden gem.
Inside the restaurant has a homely but slightly industrial feel with exposed brick walls. The staff are really friendly and knowledgeable – we arrived a little early and sat at the bar for an aperitif. On the advice of the bar waitress we chose a glass of Rieslingfreak no 3 which was a very tasty Riesling and an excellent choice.

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The menu is designed for sharing and has a Middle Eastern feel to it. Market’s philosophy is to use sustainable and ethically sourced local ingredients, and the wood fired oven is the centrepiece of the restaurant.
We chose the ‘Feed me more’ menu where the chef selects a variety of dishes from the menu including dessert – this option is $62 per head.

The first dishes to arrive were a basket of homemade bread, hummus with ground lamb, raisins and ras el hanout (which is a spice mix), smoked and spiced nuts, and olives. Every mouthful was delicious and the bread was lovely and fresh.

The next three dishes were equally tasty:
Turkish lamb sausages with pickled onion and cracked almonds.

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Smoked snapper croquettes with caper leaf mayo:

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Harissa chicken wings with a dill yoghurt dip:

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Every dish was very thoughtfully constructed and the flavours matched well. The chef has clearly thought about texture and flavour when devising the menu and the quality of ingredients shines through. We couldn’t wait for the next dishes!

The next set of dishes were the larger, main course component of the meal. The beef was served with enoki mushrooms, stout, burnt onions and salsa verde,
absolutely divine with the beef melting in the mouth.

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The cypriot grain salad with pomegranate and yoghurt was delicious. Who knew that grains could taste so good !

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The kale salad with onion and garlic crisps was also divine, tasty and filling.

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The slaw with cabbage, radish, sunflower and pepitas was very morish.

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Then barramundi fillet with chermoula (a spice rub), broccoli, capers and mint –
beautifully cooked with a crispy skin and soft fresh flesh, tasted superb on the palate.

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We finished up with sticky date pudding and home made ice cream.

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In summary, a wonderful meal. Everything very carefully constructed and beautifully prepared. The restaurant was packed to the rafters, and even when we were finishing up around 9pm, more diners were coming in. For a little town like Bunbury, this is a diamond of a restaurant, and somewhere that I would be very happy to return to.

Visit Date – September 2017

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Restaurant review

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