Exploring South Indian dining in Canberra – First stop Binny’s Kathitto

Hankering for some much missed Kerala cuisine, I was delighted when Elissa from Five Beans Food suggested Binny’s Kathitto for dinner where Majeesh from Kottayam is cooking appams, puttu, idyappam, Kerala parotta, moilee, aviyal, pollichathu and so much more!

It’s been lovely watching Binny take his specialty Indian street food from the Hamlet pop-up to his bricks and mortar home on Lonsdale Street.

The decor echoes Binny’s warm welcome backed up by the rest of the team, Rose and Khush.

Elissa’s been experimenting with Marsala Dosa…

…so we needed to try that for entree..

Masala Dosa $16 – a crepe wrapped around a savory filling of mashed potatoes, onions, crackled mustard seeds, and tempered spices with sambar and coconut and tomato chutneys.

As there were four of us we shared another three dishes with breads, all of which were very delicious!

Erachi Puttu with Chicken Curry $19 – a steamed rice cake layered with meat masala, along with pappadum and served with a gravy (perhaps my favourite as I loved the puttu)

Kanava Roast $23 – squid cooked in traditional Kerala spice with ginger, fried chilles, onions, tomato and squeeze of lemon with a Kerala Parotta – puffed softbread made from flour $4. Loved the tender squid and it went well with the parotta (thanks for the tip Khush).

Tharavu Curry $23 – duck cooked in coconut milk, green chilli, ginger and spices flavoured with curry leaves with an appam – a Kerala style hopper pancake made of fine ground raw rice and grated coconut $3. This was a very generous serve of, fall off the bone, well flavoured duck meat.

Good news for Canberra Entertainment Book holders, Binny’s now offers a 25% discount up to $30.

Binny’s is licensed and also offers BYO wine at $10 corkage a bottle.

This wasn’t my first visit to Binny’s Kathitto but this time I had a much greater appreciation and understanding of what I’d ordered.

So looking forward to trying some more dishes!

Canberra’s best breakfast – Pod Food Pialligo!

I’ve enjoyed the hospitality of Pod Food a couple of lovely times lately, but now, after trying their breakfast, I’m a total fan! It must be the very best spot for breakfast in Canberra!

Even in this chilly weather, the garden setting is gorgeous and beautiful from the cosy verandah.

It was just perfect on a winter Canberra weekend.
To be honest, I’d only ever heard about the $40 four course breakfast degustation which I’d flagged as a special occasion event. But now I know that there’s a whole other a la carte menu with average Canberra prices, but way beyond average dishes……in such a lovely setting, served by Sam’s top class team, I wouldn’t ever want to go anywhere else!
Hard as it was to choose just one dish (hence the allure of the degustation) I was very pleased with my Field mushroom bruschetta with miso, smoked ricotta (so good), baby spinach and sourdough $19.

Every mouthful was a joy!

But the Srambled eggs with Jamon, fennel and herb salad and Three Mills seeded sourdough $19 also looked very good.

Those who chose the Potato and bacon wrapped egg with salt baked potato, pecorino and capsicum relish were delighted, $20.

And for those times that you just want something light, the $12 Three Mills seeded sourdough toast with Pialligo honey, preservatives and whipped butter was perfect.

Even though we were just coming for breakfast, Sam called to check special diet needs and confirm the booking. There’s nothing ordinary about breakfast at Pod!

And, you won’t believe this, if you have the Canberra Entertainment Book, there’s even a 25% discount!
This is fine dining standard at mid range prices!

Red Chilli Sichuan – still one of Canberra’s greats

Red Chilli Sichuan – Alinga street, City does Chinese (Sichuan) cuisine very well!

The popularity of Red Chilli Sichuan, with diners who would know, still testifies to it’s authenticity.

And the reputation is totally justified!

Suggested menu for six

Entree:

91. Stir fried shredded duck in peking sauces that comes with 8 oddly shaped pancakes $26.50, makes a great starter for up to eight people per serve.

71. Stirfried pork in Peking Sauce and Shallots $22.50 (served with 5 pancakes, so you might need an extra)

Main Course (one serve can give up six a taste):

86. Kung pao chicken $19.50 one of my favourites and good value

48. Stir-fried eggplant and prawns in casserole $22

96. Stirfried green beans with pork mince $18 (good but fairly oily) but I think next time I’d get the popular 80. Chef special lamb slices with spicy cumin $25

Steamed rice is generous and only $2.50 per serve.

Corkage is expensive at $10 per bottle, but this is balanced by very generous serves of rice and lots of good value dishes that are well sized.

(I’ve also been told that wine by the glass serves are very generous here.)

Five dishes is a good amount for six mixed appetities and with four rice serves.

25% discount offered with the Canberra Entertainment Book up to $30.

Total cost for food $118.50 ($20) ($88.50 with the discount ($15 per person)

(Discount also applies to corkage.)

Open 7 Days

Lunch:

11:30 am to 2:30 pm

Dinner:

5:00 to 10:00 pm
Novotel Building Shop G1,

75-89 Alinga St , Canberra Australia 2601

P: (02) 6248 6288

Briscola Pizzeria, Canberra City – still as good as ever

It was great to see how popular Briscola Pizzeria has become with Canberra locals.

Even mid-week it was hard to get a table. Well deserving of its fans, Briscola has positioned itself well as a mid-range Italian eatery offering warm hospitality and good food.

Gianni was as helpful as ever as we created a shared menu for seven of us. He was right, the salads are huge, the Pulcinella is still a fabulous pizza choice, and his mum’s ravioli is indeed very good.

We went for maximum variety within our $25 per person budget and chose:

To start:

Antipasto di salumi affettati -antipasto & charcuterie board w/ salami, prosciutto, mortadella, pickled

giardiniera, fresh buffalo mozzarella, stone baked focaccia $25

..with an extra stone baked focaccia with herb + sea salt – $12 for this size

1 x Pulcinella pizza – mascarpone + gorgonzola + pancetta + fresh pear $30 (large)

For mains we ordered:

Casareccia pasta – chicken, pancetta, shallots, brandy cream, macchiato sugo $22

Egg pappardelle, three meat ragu, chianti, basil, grana padano $24

Mum’s roast pumpkin & ricotta ravioli, burnt sage butter, amaretti $26 for five and $5 each for extras

Buffalo mozzarella caprese, tomato, basil, virgin oil, aged balsamic $15

Shaved fennel, baby leaves, blood orange, mint, citronette $16 size

Rocket, grana padano, caramelised walnuts, fresh pear, aged balsamic $16

The real standouts for me were the Pulcinella pizza, Casareccia pasta, Buffalo mozzarella caprese and the soft baked focaccia that came with the antipasto.

Gianni was right, we didn’t need so much salad and next time we would skip the Shaved fennel salad – most of which was still left when we’d finished.

The Linguine, banana prawns, mussels, rock lobster meat, tomato, chilli, white wine $29 looks excellent on the way past too as did the take-away gelato outside.

To help with budgeting Briscola offers a 25% discount for Canberra Entertainment Book holders and BYO – Corkage $4.5per person, Cakeage $2 per person

The Boathouse by the Lake, Canberra – excelling at private functions!

The Boathouse by the Lake may well be Canberra’s best spot for function dining. This is where they really excel. Food and wine is elegant, delicious and well priced. Staff and service is delightful. The setting is perfect. But most of all, they offer a real sense of generosity.

A well set out Private Dining Function Brochure explains the options well.

Choose from three rooms, East End looking more towards Kingston Foreshore…

…Walters, looking more towards Kings Avenue Bridge and Russell…

…or West End, looking straight across the lake and more towards Kings Avenue Bridge.

All have access to lovely decks, although East End and West End are larger.

The minimum spend, particularly at lunch time, is very reasonable – $1,100 for lunch January and April to October, $2,500 in peak times of Nov-Dec and Feb-Mar.

Menu Options start at $77 per person for 3 courses. The beverages packages are particularly good starting at $31 per person for three hours for lovely Canberra wines, draught beer, juice and soft drinks.

Also good value is the Corporate Two Course Luncheon with 2 hours of beverages for $90 per person.

We were there for a Christmas Party dinner for 23 people and after much consideration we chose:

6 savouries $21 per person (3 is $12) to allow for plenty of time to mix and mingle on the deck…

… before being seated at the round tables.

3 courses with alternate entrée and a choice of three options for main and dessert – $87 per person

3 hour silver drinks package – $31 per person

Dan and Lauren took great care of us with drinks and savouries and this set the scene for a wonderful evening.

Savouries

Pea and Haloumi Fritters

Persian Fetta Mousse and Tomato Puffs

Avocado and Cherviche Tarts

Roast Pumpkin, Leek and Cheddar Quiche

Popcorn Prawns with Sriracha Mayo

Marlin Rice Cracker (the highlight)

For entrée we chose two alternates:

Spiced pork belly with avocado, white balsamic, togarashi

Seared prawns, butter milk, chlorophyll juice, charred baby gem

Mains were a choice of three:

Chicken breast, pea puree, baby potatoes, roast, chicken jus

Black angus striploin, burnt onion, asparagus, potato mash

Slow cooked pork, cauliflower puree, currant & fried cauliflower salad, coriander

The brioche bread buns and cured butter was excellent too!

For dessert guests could choose from:

Banana parfait, dark chocolate, peanut brittle, Chantilly cream

Malt ice cream, caramel ganache, honeycomb, dehydrated milk

Mango mousse, coconut sorbet, caramelised white chocolate, passionfruit

Everyone was very impressed with their choices and the evening was a great success.

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Boathouse by the Lake for all the ingredients of a successful event.

Two Sisters Lao Thai Cuisine, Canberra City – an excellent pre-theatre dinner choice

Two Sisters has moved their Kambah restaurant to the old home of Zen Yai and given the decor a nice refresh.

In their new London Circuit location, Two Sisters has some excellent dishes on the menu.

The Lao Sausages $17.90 were so good we had to order another plate.

They make the perfect entree to share.

Second place went to the delicious Roast Duck Red Curry $21.90

My next pick was the Chicken Larb full of fresh herbs $16.90

Other dishes we tried were the tempura vegetables $8.90…

Hor Mok $20.90 – steamed fish fillets favoured with curry paste, coconut milk and herbs and spices

Ginger stir fry vegetables $15.90

Rice is $3 per person and serves are not large so do order one per person.

Rice for 4

Service is warm and excellent, and corkage is reasonable.

Canberra Entertainment Book holders can enjoy a 25% discount making a visit to Two Sisters even better value!

A great pre-theatre dinner idea!

Ethiopia Down Under, Pearce – lovely and family run

Ethiopia Down Under is another gorgeous family run suburban restaurant – welcoming, casual and committed to bringing this lesser known cuisine to Canberrans.

There’s a variety of combination meals available or put together your own meal that may include:
Samosas (2 for $6.90)
ETHIOPIAN BEEF SAMOSAS – spicy beef samosas

ETHIOPIAN CHEESE SAMOSAS – fetta cheese samosas

Mains
ALIT’CHA DORO $19.90 ( my favourite dish)

Strips of chicken breast pieces cooked with carrot, green chilli & onion

ASAR TIBBS $20.90

Nile Perch fish fillet pan-fried fresh with burbere spices, capsicum, onion & tomato

ALIT’CHA “YAYESH” WAT $17.90

Chef’s special beef and coconut cream in mild Ethiopian spices

DUBOU WAT $15.90

Spiced pumpkin cooked in a berbere sauce

RICE/INJERA – served with mains

HOMEMADE ICE CREAMS, GELATO & SORBETS ( thanks to an Italian colonial heritage)

$8.90 No mixed servings available

Ginger, Toasted Coconut & Chocolate Shards

( my favourite although, I do generally like my icecream sweeter and creamier)

Turkish Delight

Ethiopian Sidamo Coffee & Roasted Hazelnut

It’s also great value as there’s a 25% discount for Canberra Entertainment Book holders and….

Free corkage!
Open for dinner every night except Mondays, you’ll find Ethiopia Down Under at the Pearce Shops.

It is in good company with Rama’s and the Pearce Vietnamese nearby, all facing into a courtyard that’s lovely on summer and evenings and great for kids.

Bellucis’s Manuka lunch special- an update on the salads

The $20 weekday lunch special at Bellucis in Manuka is as good as ever.

The two salads on offer as light and fresh, perfect with the glass of wine that’s included.

25% off for Canberra Entertainment Book Holders

INSALATA DI SALMONE – beetroot cured salmon w/ watercress, shaved baby fennel, baby carrots, pickled golden beetroots & chard

INSALATA DI POLLO – poached chicken, baby cos, asparagus, grilled marinated peppers, ‘san daniele’ prosciutto & caraway aioli

Boathouse By the Lake – a first look!

The Boathouse by the Lake, must have one of the best positions in Canberra.

The views are lovely and it’s perfect how they change over the evening with each course.

The four course meal for $90 included a chef’s plate of snacks…

….homemade bread with cured butter, beetroot puree and pickled beetroot on parmesan shortbread, choux pastry with goats cheese and honey

…and a 65 degree egg course, which is surprisingly lovely.

The menu changes, but on the evening we visited we enjoyed:

Cured ocean trout cucumber, labnah, avruga caviar (our favourite)

Pan seared bug baby gem, buttermilk, chlorophyll

Blue eye cod baby spring vegetables, prawn, fumet

Slow cooked lamb rump eggplant, chickpea, puffed rice (our favourite for this course)

Rosemary cheesecake sweet beetroot, blood orange, burnt butter

Mandarin & black pepper sorbet liquorice custard, blueberries, green tea (voted the best dessert)

To finish, we were surprised with lovely petit fours.

BYO corkage is $25 per bottle, but a 25% discount up to $40 is offered for Canberra Entertainment Book holders.

The Boathouse is very well set up for large groups and this is it’s great strength and this could be a little overwhelming for more intimate diners who feel distracted by what’s going on in the rest of the venue.

Little Brother Red Hill – back again already!

I’m not sure why, but I just love the raisin toast at Little Brother Red Hill. On another cold and rainy day, it was just perfect for my brunch.

My fellow diners chose the Sweet potato and beetroot fritter with poached eggs, wilted spinach and horseradish cream $19 which was a lovely dish.

But a big part of why I enjoy heading to Little Brother (besides the great view) is the lovely, warm service!

Highly approachable and accommodating, Little Brother also takes bookings and gives Canberra Entertainment Book holders a 25% discount.

Fine Eating

Hints Hacks and Highlights

Canberra Entertainment Book

Exploring South Indian dining in Canberra – First stop Binny’s Kathitto

Hankering for some much missed Kerala cuisine, I was delighted when Elissa from Five Beans Food suggested Binny’s Kathitto for dinner where Majeesh from Kottayam is cooking appams, puttu, idyappam, Kerala parotta, moilee, aviyal, pollichathu and so much more!

It’s been lovely watching Binny take his specialty Indian street food from the Hamlet pop-up to his bricks and mortar home on Lonsdale Street.

The decor echoes Binny’s warm welcome backed up by the rest of the team, Rose and Khush.

Elissa’s been experimenting with Marsala Dosa…

…so we needed to try that for entree..

Masala Dosa $16 – a crepe wrapped around a savory filling of mashed potatoes, onions, crackled mustard seeds, and tempered spices with sambar and coconut and tomato chutneys.

As there were four of us we shared another three dishes with breads, all of which were very delicious!

Erachi Puttu with Chicken Curry $19 – a steamed rice cake layered with meat masala, along with pappadum and served with a gravy (perhaps my favourite as I loved the puttu)

Kanava Roast $23 – squid cooked in traditional Kerala spice with ginger, fried chilles, onions, tomato and squeeze of lemon with a Kerala Parotta – puffed softbread made from flour $4. Loved the tender squid and it went well with the parotta (thanks for the tip Khush).

Tharavu Curry $23 – duck cooked in coconut milk, green chilli, ginger and spices flavoured with curry leaves with an appam – a Kerala style hopper pancake made of fine ground raw rice and grated coconut $3. This was a very generous serve of, fall off the bone, well flavoured duck meat.

Good news for Canberra Entertainment Book holders, Binny’s now offers a 25% discount up to $30.

Binny’s is licensed and also offers BYO wine at $10 corkage a bottle.

This wasn’t my first visit to Binny’s Kathitto but this time I had a much greater appreciation and understanding of what I’d ordered.

So looking forward to trying some more dishes!

Canberra’s best breakfast – Pod Food Pialligo!

Red Chilli Sichuan – still one of Canberra’s greats

Briscola Pizzeria, Canberra City – still as good as ever

The Boathouse by the Lake, Canberra – excelling at private functions!

Two Sisters Lao Thai Cuisine, Canberra City – an excellent pre-theatre dinner choice

Ethiopia Down Under, Pearce – lovely and family run

Bellucis’s Manuka lunch special- an update on the salads

Boathouse By the Lake – a first look!

Little Brother Red Hill – back again already!

Hankering for some much missed Kerala cuisine, I was delighted when Elissa from Five Beans Food suggested Binny’s Kathitto for dinner where Majeesh from Kottayam is cooking appams, puttu, idyappam, Kerala parotta, moilee, aviyal, pollichathu and so much more!

It’s been lovely watching Binny take his specialty Indian street food from the Hamlet pop-up to his bricks and mortar home on Lonsdale Street.

The decor echoes Binny’s warm welcome backed up by the rest of the team, Rose and Khush.

Elissa’s been experimenting with Marsala Dosa…

…so we needed to try that for entree..

Masala Dosa $16 – a crepe wrapped around a savory filling of mashed potatoes, onions, crackled mustard seeds, and tempered spices with sambar and coconut and tomato chutneys.

As there were four of us we shared another three dishes with breads, all of which were very delicious!

Erachi Puttu with Chicken Curry $19 – a steamed rice cake layered with meat masala, along with pappadum and served with a gravy (perhaps my favourite as I loved the puttu)

Kanava Roast $23 – squid cooked in traditional Kerala spice with ginger, fried chilles, onions, tomato and squeeze of lemon with a Kerala Parotta – puffed softbread made from flour $4. Loved the tender squid and it went well with the parotta (thanks for the tip Khush).

Tharavu Curry $23 – duck cooked in coconut milk, green chilli, ginger and spices flavoured with curry leaves with an appam – a Kerala style hopper pancake made of fine ground raw rice and grated coconut $3. This was a very generous serve of, fall off the bone, well flavoured duck meat.

Good news for Canberra Entertainment Book holders, Binny’s now offers a 25% discount up to $30.

Binny’s is licensed and also offers BYO wine at $10 corkage a bottle.

This wasn’t my first visit to Binny’s Kathitto but this time I had a much greater appreciation and understanding of what I’d ordered.

So looking forward to trying some more dishes!

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