Cello Cuisine (@ Shaw Vineyard Estate)

Address: "Olleyville" 34 Isabel Dr, Murrumbateman NSW 2582 (approx. 30 minutes from Canberra, ACT)
Tel: (02) 6227 5144

Coffee & Cake: 10am-4pm, Thurs to Sun
Lunch: 12-3pm, Thurs to Sun
Dinner: 6:30pm-9pm Thurs to Sat
Closed Public Holidays

Website: www.shawvineyards.com.au

Entrees:

1. Bang Bang Chicken Lasagne "A twist on a traditional Chinese bang bang salad with fresh lasagne sheets, sesame flavoured chicken and spicy tomato coulis". This actually sounds a lot better than it actually tastes. Don't let the menu fool you. There was no bang in the chicken, I had to add extra chilli flakes to get any spark. The lasagne sheet was next to no value added and seemed very out of place on this Viet-style salad. It is a very light salad so if you're health conscious and love wagamama this might be for you.


2. Italian flat bread & salt: This actually impressed me. The large salt granules and pungent herb of Rosemary really worked. I could have sworn there was a lashing of butter and possibly some garlic involved with this but it was absolutely delightful.


3. Onion Souffle and baked lamb cutlet: "Twice baked souffle of caramelised onions, accompanied by a smoked lamb cutlet and a green pea foam". I didn't get to try this, but it looked great - when you cut into the lamb it is perfectly pink inside - I was informed it was a magical texture.


Below: Summer Strawberry Salad: "A delicate and light salad of field strawberries, parsnip crisps, fresh basil, sweet crushed peanuts and a hint of chilli, lightly finished with an apple balsamic reduction". One of my friends ordered this as a main and the waitress did forewarn the dressing was very overpowering so perhaps go the entree version...


My Main: Cello's Gnocci - "Fresh homemade potato gnocchi, sauteed mushrooms and baby spinach tossed with a rich tomato and macadamia pesto". After having an entree this was not such a good idea - starchy, potato with an oily pesto compliment. Better suited to colder weather but in the summer, just a touch heavy.

A lot of the dishes look more impressive on the menu than in taste fact, however you cannot deny it is a beautiful location for a gourmet feed. They also serve wood-fired pizza which might be a safer option, but take your loved ones here to one of the nicer parts of Canberra (about 30 mins drive).

Alto Restaurant (Canberra)

Address: Telstra Tower, Black Mountain Drive

Acton Canberra ACT 2601
Reservations 02 6247 5518

Website: http://www.altotower.com.au/

Funny how when you search up "alto" on google this restaurant is about the last thing on the page that correlates. However this was recommended as one of the highlights of Australia’s capital city so it was an excuse for a tourist like me to check it out.

I was a bit disgruntled at paying $7.50 to go up the lift before I could even pay for my dinner, however a short walk through the tower didn’t hurt. The indoor viewing deck (in all its 1960s-70s style deco) was a good 10-minute nutshell Canberra tour. I even got to laugh at the post box located in this tower establishment (who would pay $7.50 + 55c to post a letter?).

OK bullshit aside – now onto the food. Alto is a revolving restaurant, much similar to the revolving restaurant in Centrepoint tower Sydney. However, this is arguably one of top 5 restauarants in Canberra so I was keen to sample what this modern Australia / European fusion restaurant had to offer.

I don’t recall ordering this but I believe we were given a starter which consisted of a petite crusty multi-grain bread roll and a macchiato-sized sweet corn / chive cream-based soup. It was an interesting taste sensation – the intensity of flavours was appropriately controlled via portion size. The bread had a salty ‘tang’ to it which was offset nicely by the sweet corn ‘soup’.

For main I ordered the Duck Duo– “pan roasted breast and confit leg rillette with carrot puree, potato croquette and red wine sauce”. Essentially this was 3 slices of duck breast, skin crisped to perfection, meat cooked to a pink, juicy texture with not too much fat (as sometimes duck can be). Very delicious. The red wine sauce was a light and refreshing compliment to the duck breast, carrot puree and spinach bed. The thing you see on the right is the other half of this dish – made of duck also but a much saltier, rougher version made into a rosti or patty of sorts.

Below you also see the “Tajima Wagyu - aged 9+ marbled strip loin with mustard condiments, fresh horseradish, sauce béarnaise and house cut chips 150g”. I didn’t personally try this but it looked nice.

Everything is very minimalist here – I’m used to being a bargain eater so the mains coming out was a bit of a surprise for me, however by the end of my meal I was ready to keel over and fall asleep (note: never to let your eyes speak for your stomach).

For dessert we had a hot chocolate made with ‘real chocolate chips’. The chocolate was A-grade, but the milky froth a bit disappointing. This was long forgotten after the chef gave us a complimentary serving of the ‘petit four’ (sorry no photos) – consisting of 3 small sweet nibbles. There was a thin slice of shortbread – creamy yet reminiscent of something almondy or brandy-snappish. I also sampled what I call a “chocolate nougat” – like a dry, chewy chocolate brownie cross fruit cake. It was an interesting melding of flavours and textures to say the least! Finally there was what looked like a piece of white marshmellow (very firm) coated in a hard, dark chocolate shell.

Admittedly the staff were professional, courteous and non-disruptive making the whole experience of going to a ‘fine dining’ restaurant much more bearable and less pretentious.

Vasco's Portuguese Charcoal Grill

Address: 46 Giles Street Kingston, ACT 2604
Tel: (02) 6232 7034

Website: http://www.outincanberra.com.au/vascos

Pictured below: A very dark image of the Lamb backstrap (one of their signature dishes). It had a tangy, lemony sauce, served with potato mash on a bed of spinach. A good portion size - not too much meat but a satisfying meal.


Pictured above: Faro pasta - chicken, spinach & pine nuts in a creamy sauce. A very generous serving of pasta.

I've also had the piri piri chicken which is extremely tender, well-priced and fresh. They do run out so get in nice & early for dinner!

Always received courteous and honest service here, they have a great variety of dishes that seem to work and cater for a wide range of tastes.

Madam Woo (Canberra)

Address: 38 Giles St, Kingston (Canberra) ACT 2604
Tel: (02) 6232 6932

Opening Hours
Lunch: Tue-Fri from 12pm noon
Dinner: Tue-Sun from 5pm

I spent my first week of Canberra in Kingston, and it's a shame because it has spoilt me with all the great food they have which is not available to me in my current residence.

One of which is Madam Woo - I was informed this place was great asian fusion, and a 'lighter' option. It did not disappoint, sitting in a restaurant by myself eating this main was worth it.

I'm a sucker for thicker yellow curries like Choo Chee. Pictured below is the Prawn Choo Chee. Prawns were rid of their horrid seawater taste (that some restaurants can't get rid of), cleaned properly and marinated for a tender texture. Choo Chee was a fantastic mild, wholesome curry - I really don't think they used coconut milk so it didn't make you feel bloated and seedy afterwards.

I actually ate the whole thing and had to refrain from licking that plate because it was just so.... nice.

Service was fantastic - my main came in about 5 minutes or about as soon as the waitress turned her back with my order.

Thumbs up and can't wait to go back to try the other dishes...

Pandang Chicken: this consisted of fragrant pieces of breast meat chicken, wrapped in pandan leaves and coasted in a lemongrass-y soya sauce. A nice entrée without feeling like you’ve swallowed a kilo of deep-friedness.


Seafood Green Curry: This was a little heavier than I had anticipated, but still a classic example of a lighter, non-soupy version of a thai green curry. The seafood gave it a blander flavour, but was still very enjoyable with rice and gave it an extra density.



Red Duck Curry: This was one of the sweeter curries, as duck tends to make it. A little lighter than the green curry, but definitely no substitute for flavour there.

Gus' Cafe (Canberra)

Address: Shop 8, Garema Centre, Bunda St, Canberra City ACT 2601
Phone: (02) 6248 8118
Website: http://www.guscafe.com.au/

This was one of the first restaurant/cafes I visited during my short term stay in Canberra - it was recommended to me by a friend who had studied here. It is one of the few places in Canberra which will still serve a hot breakfast (bacon & eggs pictured below) for under $10.


Pictured below: Spicey lentil burger with avocado, tomato relish, carrot, baby spinach, cucumber yoghurt & sweet chilli sauce. The presentation is quite remarkable however ruins the actual experience of eating the meal - the sweet chilli sauce drenched the underside of the bread making it impossible to pick up and eat in a sandwich-style.



Above: Watermelon kiss – watermelon, pineapple, mango & coconut fruit juice - was quite thick and more of a frappe, definately get bang-for-buck trying to get through this drink!

Gus' is busy everytime you look, however I was shocked by the cleanliness and the somewhat slow service. The surfaces of tables felt sticky and this was backed by sightings of pests on the cafe shop floor.

La Rustica Restaurant (Canberra)

Address: 35 Kennedy St, Kingston (Canberra) ACT 2604
Tel: (02) 6295 0152

Website: www.larustica.com.au

Opening hours:

Lunch - Monday to Friday for lunch
Dinner - Monday to Sunday

Great pizza, I had the Ornella Special - tomato base, a selection of grilled vegetables and chilli topped with fresh rocket. The grilled vegetables were mainly zuccini and eggplant, but for a cheese-less pizza it was awesome! I actually didn't believe I enjoyed it as much as I did - thumbs up!