Recipe: Turkish Coffee

This one's a request after I showed off our implements, this recipe makes two demitasse cups full of sweet spicey coffee.




Turkish coffee

2 cardamom pods
1 inch of cinnamon quill
2 teaspoons of vanilla sugar
3 teaspoons finely ground turkish style coffee
2 demi tasse cups of water

Method

This can be done with a milk pot really, but apart from the fact that Ibriks are awesome the wide bottomed design serves to trap some of the grinds and the spices when pouring. To make vanilla sugar take 1 cup of sugar and add 1 vanilla bean pod, blend until the vanilla is distributed.



Crush the cardamom pods and break up the cinnamon quill as shown. Note that there is a distinct taste difference to quilled rather than ground cinnamon and additionally ground cinnamon adds an unfortunate dirt texture to the coffee; spend the extra $3 on the quills for best results.

Add the coffee, vanilla sugar, cardamom and cinnamon to the ibrik then add one cup of the water. Make sure measure the water using the same cups you will drink from.



Stir the ingredients until most of the sugar is dissolved, add the second cup of water and then put on to medium heat, give the coffee a stir once after it has gone on to heat, no more should be required due to the multiple boiling method.



As the coffee boils a thick foam rises to the top of the pot. As it reaches the outer lip take the pot off the heat quickly, if you're not so lucky as me as to have granite benchtops then ensure you prepare a hot tile in easy reach before you start so you don't burn yourself. When the coffee has settled again, return it to the heat, it will boil again rapidly. As the foam rises again to the lip take the pot off the heat again and pour a small amount of the coffee into each cup before returning to the heat.



Let it rise again and take off to pour off another small amount of coffee, return to the heat and repeat the boil and pour process until the cups are full. Ensure you alternate between cups as the texture and strength of the coffee varies at each boil and if you concentrate on one cup first then you will have a very varied quality to your cups of coffee.



With a steady hand and a keen eye you can pour off the brew under the thick "crust" so that less grinds come into your coffee and the spices are left behind; still turkish coffee is best left to rest for a minute while drinking as the fine grind leaves a layer of coffee "mud" at the bottom. If you've reboiled well without stirring this should easily stick to the bottom of the cup and not interfere with the brew above.

Recipe: Quick Mediterranean Risotto

I worked for 21 hours straight yesterday on a major software release, so the last thing I wanted to do when I woke up was go to the shops, so here's a little risotto (though the boy is wrongly convinced that the chorizo makes this Paella) made from items in the cupboard and the fridge.



Quick Mediterranean Risotto

2 chorizo sausage links
2 cup cooked arborio rice
1 brown onion
1 small red capsicum
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup red wine
5 sundried tomatoes
1 clove garlic
oil for frying

Method

• Dice the onion and capscium to 1/2cm square pieces.


• Heat a deep saucepan, non stick for preferance and add a small pool of oil. Add the onion and sweat, then add the capsicum.


• When the capsicum has wilted add the diced garlic and sundried tomatoes and stir well.


• Chop the chorizo into coin sized pieces and add to the pot, when the chorizo is browned add the rice and stir quickly.


• Add the red wine, this should quickly soak into the dry rice, then add the diced tomato and stew.


• If desired you can let this stew for significant amounts of time, just top up with more wine, water or stock to taste.


• The longest thing about this meal is cooking the rice, use to get rid of old rice, put on the rice cooker before hand or cheat and buy microwave rice.

Recipe: Pistachio crusted lamb with fruit and nut cous cous

The preparation time for this dish really makes it a weekend meal unless you're a home duties cook. This recipe was developed by the boy and I bouncing ingredients off each other while playing games this afternoon and being the first attempt I would probably have cooked it a little rarer than this attempt. The crust however was so freakin' good that we both ended up scraping the roasting dish for more; highly recommended.



Crusted lamb

2 lamb sirloins (~400g)
1 cup pistachios
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 tablespoon rosemary
Olive oil to drizzle

Method:

• Shell the pistachos and chop into pieces small enough to coat meat, about twice the size of a sesame seed is perfect, larger pieces than this will simply fall off the meat. Experiments with electronic devices for nut crushing have been unsuccessful, when in doubt wield a hefty chef's knife





• On a board or tray place 40cm of greased paper; place the rosemary, salt and nuts on the paper and roll to mix thoroughly.





• Roll the loins whole in the crust mix, for patchy areas pick up quantities of the nut mix in your hands and press onto the meat until it sticks.





• Place the crusted lamb on alfoil and drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the meat pieces.


• Place the tray into a lidded BBQ or oven set to 180C and let roast for half an hour or until the meat is at your desired temperature.





• Slice the meat taking care not to knock off much of the crust and serve with cous cous as below.

Fruit and nut cous cous

1 cup water
1 cup cous cous
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp pine nuts
3 tbsp sultanas
chopped coriander

Method:

• Cous cous is virtually "instant" and ergo should be cooked only when the meat is 5 minutes from serving


• Toast the pine nuts in the oil in a non stick pan over low heat.





• Put the water on the heat, when it is boiled add the cous cous and stir over low heat.


• When the water is absorbed fluff with a fork to separate the grains and give a lighter texture.


• Add the butter and continue to stir through with the fork until the butter is melted.





• Add the sultanas and toasted pine nuts and stir well.


• Serve with fresh chopped coriander as a garnish.

Review: Essen, Ultimo

Thankfully Daniel has gone home to Brisbane because otherwise I would be putting my fat pants back on and I have a great desire to eat nothing but salad sandwiches and diet coke for a while. *bloat*



One day when travelling for work I took Daniel to Una's and he fell in love. If you like plain hearty "boy" food it's hard to go past Austro-Bavarian feeds. Sometime in the recent past there has been a split of the Una's group and the Broadway location is now Essen (to eat!). To be honest other than the name not much has changed, though I will admit that the owner/manager now looks a lot happier and a little chubbier so I'd say that it's been a good change for all of them.



The menu is traditional Bavarian and heavy on meat, fried foods and starch perfect for the northern climes. It is all pure comfort food though and just excellent when you're feeling down, or cold, or you just have a need for some fried food and a homestyle meal.



Absinthe $6.50

While we're delighted that they have absinthe at all it seems a little strange when it comes out as a shot and we have to flag down the drinks waiter to bring water.



"Gypsy" schnitzel with rosti $21.00

This dish is so good that 3 of our 4 dining table order it; this makes for slightly boring blogging but very high accolades. I order it in veal because wiener schnitzel has been a lifelong favourite, the other diners order chicken. The schnitzel is huge and as always there is a small layer folded on itself that is not sauced. For me this is excellent as I put asside the unsauced sections and eat them last with salt and lemon in the traditional style. After weeks of dieting and several days of heavy eating the Rosti are a bit too buttery for me and I leave much of this behind, but they are rather good especially on a cold winter's day.



Wurst teller $22.00

We are a little disappointed that the old Una's Worst Topf has been replaced by this Wurst Teller; really the difference is nill as it's purely down to presentation but it now comes in a flat bowl rather than a traditional crock pot. The pot used to add a little mystery and excitement when it came out and gave a small unveiling. But still the food is excellent, acidic and sweet sauerkraut is topped with a bread dumpling and strong gravy with 3 types of sausage (Csabai, Bratwurst and Weisswurst). It is a very heavy meal though and the boy cannot finish the entire plate.

After the hearty food there's no room for dessert however I have eaten dessert here in the past and their strudels are worth trying to find the space.

Essen Restaurant and Beer Cafe
http://www.essenrestaurant.com.au
133-135 broadway
2007 ultimo
Ph. 92113805
Fax. 92122955
Email. functions@essenrestaurant.com.au

Mon - Sun: open for Lunch and Dinner
Fully licenced
During the winter months book ahead for dinner

Recipe: Shepherd's Pie

Filling

500g Lean Lamb Mince
1 large carrot
1 large brown onion
1 cup peas
4 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons tomato puree
Fresh oregano/thyme/mint to taste
2 cups stock
Oil to fry

Pie top

5 large potatoes
1 knob of butter
1/4 cup Milk/Soy milk
Chives
1/2 cup of cheese

Cooking the filling

• Heat the oil in a large stock pan.


• Dice and fry the onions on a medium heat until clear.


• Add the mince and fry until brown and any remaining fat has pooled clear in the bottom of the pan. Pour off excess fat if required.


• Peel and dice the carrot into pieces no larger than 1 cm square, add to the meat mixture with the peas. Stir fry until the peas are bright and glossy.


• Put mixture on Low - Med heat, add the herbs and mix well through the meat mixture.


• Add the flour one spoon at a time and mix through the meat until it is well coated. The meat should not form a "dough" and if the mixture is becoming too thick to stir stop adding flour.


• Add the stock and the tomato puree, if desired replace half a cup of stock with red wine to taste. Cook until a thick gravy is formed, if desired add more water and simmer off to stew the meat.

Cooking the mash

• This can be done in parallel with the filling being cooked or just before the pie is put in the oven.


• Peel the potatoes and cut into 2cm cubes


• Boil in a saucepan covered with at least an inch of hot water


• Boil until a fork goes easily into the pototoes


• Drain the hot water and mash with a potato masher.


• Add the butter and mix through, then add the milk and mix again.


• Lastly add the chives and mix through.

Preparing the Pie

• Preheat the oven to 175 celsius.


• Place the filling in a 8 by 16 inch pan, this recipe should form about an inch deep filling. Pyrex or ceramic containers are best for pies without a pastry base.


• Spread the mashed potato across the top of the pie dish over the filling. To achieve crispy potato topping score the potato with a fork to form ridges.


• Place the pie in the oven. If you have prepared the mash and filling immediately 10 minutes should suffice to brown the pie top. If you have prepared your pie dish earlier the day before is often best to let the water settle out of the meat) then cook for 35 minutes.


• Pull the pie out of the oven and sprinkle the pie top with the cheese, place back in the oven for 5 minutes to brown.


• Serve on its own with a big glass of red wine :o)

Review: Ramen Kan, Haymarket

Originally I had planned to go to Menya on the way to the Star Wars Exhibit until I remembered we have to walk straight past Ramen Kan and so our plan altered slightly. After a slightly confused couple of minutes I found the door I was looking for, when reviewing the address I had mistaken the location of Ramen Kan with that of Ajisen which is about 3 doors up.

Many of the Japanese restaurants I go to are squarely aimed at the migrant student population, cheerful, authentic and cheap. Ramen Kan is not that restaurant, with its stylish interior and slightly older clientele I suspect that this is the ramen restaurant that residents rather than visitors attend. Certainly the crockery is a step above most ramen restaurants, though the boy wrangles unhappily with his traditional style ramen spoon and wishes unsuccessfully for a Chinese soup spoon as comes at many ramen places.



The restaurant is bright and airy with pleasant wooden furniture and sheafs of wheat on the walls.



While a pictorial menu is a bee in the bonnet of many a foodie in this case, with some of the party not versed in Asian food it comes in handy for explanations of the various dishes.



Wasabi Tofu $4.90

I'm a sucker for agedashi tofu and I was very interested to see this spin on it on the menu; as I was tossing up between this and the teriyaki pepper tofu the boy cited my endless lust for anything smeared, coated and indeed smothered in wasabi and wondered how this was even a contest. When it arrives it is piping hot and just out of the fryer, the coating is thick and sweet, much heftier than the skin on many fried tofus. Biting through I find a mild sweet wasabi paste and onion covering a smooth and fresh silken tofu all of which is excellent. My only complaint is with the execution in that the majority of the wasabi is piled into the middle of the square of tofu and ergo for best effect I must deconstruct my tofu piece and redistribute however after eating I am somewhat amazed that a tofu this soft has the paste held to it at all.



Tsukemono $1.50

The pickles here are excellent and I suspect made from a local supplier as these are fresh and crunchy and lack the mouth feel of vacuum packed pickles usually served at similar restaurants; while you get pickles with the miso set meal if you're a fan of akakabure-tsuki (the red turnip pickle) you are advised to order separately as it does not appear on the other plates.



Katsu curry gohan $11.50

Though I did not try the katsu I did have a go at the curry sauce which surprised me by containing tomato and ergo has a heftier Western stew feel to it. As with all good Japanese restarants the curry sauce is served in a bowl separately to the katsu to allow for dipping/saucing/mixing to taste with the meat and rice. For those unschooled Japanese curry is very mild and sweet and suitable for children or the unadventurous of palette.



Miso ramen $11.50 (with a set meal of rice, salad, pickles and gyoza $15)

Miso ramen is rarely my favourite, but the boy is obsessed and often orders miso ramen with a side order of miso soup. This miso is so good he is still trying to dig in the bottom of the bowl for one last spoonful of soup as the party is leaving the restaurant, enough said really.



Shio ramen with added sweet corn $12.10 (set meal as shown here $15)

The waitress is a little confused when my friend tries to order corn in her ramen, I suspect they are not used to the myriad of variations the way Ichi Ban Boshi is. Shio ramen is quite plain salted soup which leaves me a little cold but my friend slurps up the meal with a variety of happy making noises that lead me to believe the chef has hit his mark.



Tan tan ramen $11.50

Apart from the fact that it's a minor obsession of mine, having a single dish that I try at every ramen restaurant I come to gives an interesting comparison. This one loses immediate points with me for containing no egg, but thankfully the boy is not a fan and I get his which I'm delighted to find is obviously free range and perfectly soft boiled to soak up the soup. Unusually for tantanmen the vegetable is shaved leeks rather than choy sum or bean sprouts but it adds the same fresh crunch I'm looking for so I'm not bothered. What is strange about this version is the thinness of the meat and the scarcity of the sesame, and I wonder that they haven't instead made just a simple chilli pork ramen soup rather than a traditional tantanmen.

The noodles are a little chewy at first and take a fair few minutes of eating before they're at a consistency I'd like, I wonder how freshly they make their noodles or indeed if they buy in as the texture leads me to believe they're not as fresh as other local ramen vendors. As the meal goes on tantanmen can become a heartier and heartier dish as the fat from the pork dissipates into the soup and this is mostly lost on this version which saddens me a little. If Condor Ramen's tantanmen is too rich then this version is too thin and I will be sating cravings for it at other restaurants.

This is not to say that the food here was not excellent, more that when you have a favourite dish it can be easy to offend the eater. I am very interested to try some of their donburi dishes, and to be honest their tofu is to die for and I want to try every variation on the menu.

Ramen Kan
Level 1
90 Hay Street
Haymarket (Chinatown)
(02) 9211 6677

Lunch Daily
Dinner Mon-Sat (hours unlisted)

Licenced
Bookings unnecessary but turn up early for lunch or expect to wait for a seat

Inferiority complex

I have no small obsession with caffeine and notably with Diet Coke. Accordingly when I go to the movies I like to get a rather silly sized Coke, however this special edition cup from Hoyts takes the cake.

For comparison here it is standing next to a standard 250ml Coca Cola glass, I've yet to attempt to refill it but I would suspect this is a 1.25L glass.

Review: Meat and Wine Co, Darling Harbour

It has to be said that Meat and Wine Co is so far my favourite steak in Sydney, despite having visited a number of more exclusive venues, they understand the grain fed aged fillet that I like so much. Additionally their service is perfect for me, well trained waiters and sommeliers run around attending to your every need, cocktails are shaken with flair (but sadly not Flair) and there's a different alcohol for every stage of the meal. Being steak there's an air of casual dining in the menu that precludes it as a choice special occasions, but this is no family restaurant and is well chosen for celebrations of promotions, visiting friends and the kind of relative you don't want to spend $150 a head on.

Firstly cocktails;



Lychee Martini $15

This is the boy's weakness, followed possibly only by Espresso Martinis. Lychee liquer is mixed with Ketel One vodka and served with glacé cherries and preserved lychee. The glass is chilled and the drink well mixed, hard to find fault, unfortunately they tend to serve his drink to me on the look of the thing, it always makes me laugh.



Brandy Alexander $15

I opt for a more classic Brandy Alexander; brandy, creme de cacao, cream and ice are served sprinkled with spices, its reminiscent of Egg Nog and makes me smile on a rainy night.

From Meat and Wine Co

This is the stairwell I want in my house.

The wine list is well chosen though young, but that's to be expected from restaurant wine lists; there are a number of higher end wines that are older but as the only wine drinker at the table there is a limited range of by the glass numbers and a bottle in addition to apperitifs is a little much even for me.



Molly's Cradle Setti Grade NV $10.50

The last time I had come to Meat and Wine Co I was disappointed to discover a very limited range of sparkling wines, hampered by the fact that I am not a fan of Henkell. Of the two new additions one is a Rosé which hardly inspires, so I order the more budget Molly's Cradle and am rather happy with the choice. It's a very light refreshing lemony wine with a strong acid that's excellent with the breads.

I am served in a rather sweet and petite Taittinger glass, I don't like alcohol being served in the wrong brand glass a strange dischord born of one too many trips to Germany but this glass is a lovely design and I contemplate briefly pocketing it before I am given a stern look.



1/2 Sized bread platter $9

In the past we have ordered an amazing bread basket at Meat and Wine Co filled with freshly baked rolls and grissini with french butter; this time the menu has changed and there is only a bread "platter." The waiter warns us that for 3 we should order a half size and I'm glad that we do as it is 6 slices of heavy breads even at a half order. To be honest we are very disappointed with the bread and I would not order it again. Instead of the warm doughy rolls this is variations on the same Italian style loaf; all laiden with oily toppings. The bruschetta is rather nice, especially as the soft Danish fetta is definitely my style however it has been placed in a pool of overly sweet Balsamic reduction and is losing structural integrity by the time it reaches the table. The other breads are herb and garlic breads that are generic to any cafe or cheap Italian joint and with fatty steaks on the way the last thing I wanted to was oily garlic bread.



Ramos Pinto Duas Quintas - Tempranillo Touriga $11.50

Most of the red wine list is Australian and the strong Shiraz, Cabernets and Merlots on the menu don't lend themselves to the age of restaurant wine so I instead order this Portugese Tempranillo Touriga. This is evidently a bottle that has been opened some time earlier in the evening for another order and I am glad for it as it has had time to breathe and is warm and soft. The colour of the wine is dark and rather hard to photograph, and the taste is warm and fruity with a soft oak brush. Not necessarily something I'd buy for home but I find Spanish, Portugese and South American wines tend to make a safe order in a restaurant with a climate that allows for young drinking wines.



300g Fillet of Angus 120 day grain-fed beef $49 with Blue Cheese Vodka sauce $3

On the way to the restaurant I comment to the boy that I should order another sauce, he laughs, and he's annoyingly right I just can't move past this blue cheese vodka sauce it's heaven and surprisingly not heavy on the stomach. The beef is perfectly aged and melt in your mouth texture, everything I was looking for. I have it with garlic mash rather that tastes excellent but is very heavy and obviously contains hefty amounts of butter and I suspect cream rather than milk.



500g New York Strip of Angus 120 day grain-fed beef $45 with Chilli sauce $3

My friend joins me in the aged beef as he like I is not fond of the fatty wagyu, being a boy who likes his meat (and the call for the meal) he tries to balance the size to price ratio and chooses the New Yorker. He's rather happy with his choice as the New York strip tends to have less fat melted through the meat and be a little dryer which he prefers. When I look up from taking pictures most of the meal is gone and I do not get a chance to taste the steak.



300g Rib Eye of 6+ marbelling score 500 day grain-fed Wagyu $59 with Cheesy Garlic sauce $3

The boy has wet dreams about Wagyu, occasionally he talks with religious fervour about the 9+ steaks he's eaten in his life so this 6+ rib eye is perfectly made for his order, and served rare. He's incapable in fact of waiting long enough for me to take a picture of his food and you can see one corner of the steak has already been gleefully cut off by the time I get this picture. This is definitely not my kind of meat but I can see if nothing else that it is well prepared; served warm rather than hot at this level of cooking I find the sensation rather strange and the fattiness of the meat means that it is almost gelatinous to eat. I look strangely at the boyfriend and leave him to the rest of his steak, a fact he's only too happy with.

I must comment at this stage that there is one thing and one thing only that annoys me about Meat and Wine Co and that's the garnishes. I am a believer that if it's not edible it shouldn't be on my damn plate and the blade of grass placed across my steak only makes me grit my teeth and we enter into a several minute rant on the topic while we eat.

Regardless this is a restaurant we return to several times a year and affords nice views of Darling Harbour making it a great location for out of towners with reliable fair and a strong if not perfect wine list. The bill comes in at $80 a head including the drinks which is the perfect value for occasional not Occasion.

The Meat and Wine Co. - Darling Harbour
http://www.themeatandwineco.com/
L1, 31 Wheat Road
IMAX Theatre Complex, Cockle Bay
Darling Harbour
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia
(02) 9211 9888

Sunday - Thursday 12noon - 10pm
Friday - Saturday 12noon - 11pm

Bookings essential
Fully licenced

Review: Pepper Lunch

This isn't so much a review as a pictorial of my favourite take away in the city; the meals are cheap, quick, healthy and tasty and make a great bite before or after a movie at George St. These are just about everywhere in Japan and always stock high quality Australian and New Zealand meats which is astounding at the price point, there's only one that I'm aware of in Sydney and they still don't have an Australian website but the menu is much the same country to country.



Kim Chi Beef Pepper Rice $10.80 - $1 more for a drink upgrade

For me the whole point of Pepper Lunch is the signature dish of "Pepper Rice," a sizzling grill plate is electro-magnetically super heated and delivered to you with thin slices of meat surrounding a mound of sauce, butter and vegetables. You then get the joy of "cooking" your own food, flipping the meat and stirring through seasonings as you choose.

This order is a large pile of kim chi and buttered corn with white rice and thin fatty slices of meat, what I didn't get this meal is the J-curry special which is so good it makes me weep a little, but I was in the mood for something lighter.



Optional sauces for addition aren't needed with the strong kim chi.



If you're lost the protective paper on the grill plate comes with handy hints!



Stirring through the Pepper Rice.



Hamburger and Egg $10.80 - $2 more will buy you a drink and a bowl of rice

Other meal options on the menu are primarily quite plain combinations of meats and vegetables with a stir fry sauce but are hearty and plain for the fussy eater, or can be dressed up with chilli and sauce for those of us who like a little more spice.

This is a take away establishment so treat the service as such, the only complaint if anything is that being one of the few Western eaters in the establishment they tend to treat you a bit like an idiot who couldn't find chopsticks with both hands and a Einstein's brain.

Highly recommended.

Pepper Lunch
537 George St
Sydney NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9264 3555

No alcohol, no booking necessary
Open till 10:30pm weeknights

Sweet heart

This year for Valentine's Krispy Kreme are making a pink iced donut heart perfect for the nerd chick in your life to get fat on (eg. Me!). My company are selling boxes at work to raise charity money for the bushfire relief fund.

From Seasonal

Krispy Kreme Valentine's seasonal mixed dozen $20

In the side of the picture you can almost see my can of Diet Dr Pepper to really round out the American overly sweet low food content approach to my morning tea; mind you this was somewhat important because I foolishly ate two of them at once and the soft drink was required to eat through the brick of fat and sugar currently sitting in the pit of my stomach.

Damn but it was worth it.

Review: Tuscany, Leichhardt

Living in Leichhardt a lot of the Italian style ristorantes blend into each other with their endless plates of home made tagliatelle and woodfired pizza. One of these however is a little different and that is Tuscany; in the past it fell a little flat for us because we were looking for a light Italian lunch on a warm day, and while the food was excellent it was mostly hearty winter style food and so we vowed to return on a cold and rainy day.



With a Secondi Piatti list full of osso bucco and veal it's amusing that on this day both the boy and I went for beef steak dishes, but sometimes that's just what the body asks for on a wet and weary day.



Bruschetta all'Erbe $3.90

Every good Italian restaurant should start with some form of bread, this is a toasted ciabatta loaf with good quality olive oil and herbs. It was a little too toasted for the boy but definitely up my alley.



Filletto di Manzo con Funghi Porcini della Toscana $32.00

This was everything I was looking for, the fillet was thick and cooked perfectly to order. It had evidently been aged and left to store in the pancetta and the salt from the pork mixed perfectly with the beef. The sauce was a light stock infused with mushrooms (supposedly porcini but my mouth suspects otherwise) that mixed well with the dab of Cafe de Paris butter served on the fillet once it had melted.



Tagliata al Peper Verde $28.90

This was the boy's order and to be honest, it just wasn't as good as mine. The meat could have been a little more tender and the sauce was really just a glazing with peppercorns. The greens really could have been left off or at least selected better, there were pockmarkings as if it had been eaten by something.



Roasted polenta with gorgonzola $7.90

I really like a little carbs with just about everything (even if my waistline disagrees) and so with my main dish a little devoid I ordered the polenta. It's tasty and grilled freshly with a good swathe of strong blue gorgonzola melted on it and goes perfectly with the sauce for my meat.

We didn't order drinks other than soft drinks, and with our house next door we didn't order coffee so I can't comment on that matter. I would suspect based on the service that they were expecting a larger number of orders and diners were put off by the rain as I was asked about drink refills every 5 minutes and plates were cleared as soon as they were finished but they did take my hint when I asked for some time and nor did they query my photography so that works in my favour. As it was cold and raining they were also very attentive with shutters and heaters in a very helpful manner to every table.

Not the cheapest mid week meal but it certainly filled a craving and gave me warmth on a cold day.

Tuscany Ristorante
http://www.tuscanyristorante.com.au/

Open 7 days for Lunch & Dinner
Breakfast Sat & Sun 8 AM - 11.30 AM
No booking required

55 Norton Street ,
Norton Plazza, Leichardt NSW
P. 9568 2220
F. 9568 2766
info@tuscanyitalianristorante.com.au