The Cupping Room – Canberra City

The Cupping Room on London Circuit is warm, stylish and busy with couples and groups enjoying a range of interesting dishes. It is particularly good for brunch, with one dish enough to share between two.

The coffee is exceptional, but served at only 60 C.

Huevos Bollo (eggs,bacon, guacamole in Brioche roll) and Benedito (slow roasted tomatoes, spinach, two poached eggs and Guacacassa on toasted sourdough)

The ‘Not So Raisin’ Toast is very generous for $8 and great for sharing. However, some fresh or dried fruit with the ricotta would have enhanced the dish.

The Hogo Botoga looked great to try another time.

Wilburs Cafe Bar

Wilbur’s at the Hackett shops is a good value, easy, family friendly restaurant with a warm open fire and comfortable atmosphere. Wine is well priced with a range of bottles at around $23.

Meals are well sized making sharing easy. A large pizza, salad and mezzo platter offered a good variety of flavours, textures and colours for four adults and a child to share.

Mezze Plate $21.50

Warm lamb salad $20

Capricossa Pizza $20

Jewel of India, Canberra City – truly a Jewel

The Jewel of India in West Row Canberra City is my favourite Canberra restaurant for Indian food. In fact my friend who grew upon Hyderabad tells me this has the best Indian food he has had outside India.

I love the colourful decor, the tree lights on West Row and the soft carpet that absorbs sound, making conversation easy. Everything I’ve tried at Jewel of India has been excellent but I have especially enjoyed the Samosas, Raita, Fish Methi Masala (fish of the day cooked in a delicately spiced cashew and fenugreek sauce), Milani tarkaari (a mélange of vegetables cooked in onion tomato and cashew nut gravy topped with fresh spinach leaves) and Chicken Chettinad (pepper spiced curry from Tamil Nadu, South India).

While the banquets are a delicious and easy option that let groups of at least six, try a range of dishes, like all banquets (starting at $30 per person), you end up with way more food than you might otherwise order (making it hard not to overeat) and you may not try the most delicious options.

An alternative to a banquet, that still allows everyone to try a variety, but to also stay comfortable, is to order specific dishes and share.

Suggested sharing menu for six could include:

Entree:

Paapadams with assorted dips $8

6 x Vegetable samosa (savoury pastry triangles filled with spicy potatoes,green peas ) $10 per 2 ($5 each, $30 for six)

Main:
1x Fish Methi Masala $24

1x Chicken Chettinad $19

1x Milani Tarkaari $18

3x Naan $3 each
3 xRice $4 each
1x Raita $5

Total cost of food $125 ($21 per person)

Add dessert Gulab Jaman with ice-cream (Reduced milk dumplings soaked in cardamom flavoured sugar syrup) for an extra $4 per person ($8 for two dumplings)

Corkage $8 per bottle

Pappadams with assorted dips

Vegetable samosa

Jewel of India - my favourite Indian restaurant in Canberra

Chicken Chettinad, Fish Methi Masala, Naan, Rice, Kachumber Salad

Butter chicken, Lamb Roganjosh, Miloni Tarkaari, Dal Makhni, naan, rice, raita from the banquet

Gulab jaman

An Indian Affair – Phillip

An Indian Affair in Colbee Court Phillip, offers tasty Indian food and warm hospitality in a homely relaxed setting.

The butter chicken and lamb saag were our best picks along with the naan.
We did not try dessert, but the kulfi looked great.
A very generous discount was offered with the Canberra Entertainment card.

Butter chicken, lamb saag, Beef madras, Goan fish curry and Palak Paneer

Ruchi – Belconnen

Ruchi prides itself on highlighting the cuisine of four southern Indian states: Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Their specialities are Dosais and Thalis, making it a great place to satisfy a love for these southern delicacies.

The service is professional and friendly and serves are well sized for sharing.

BYO Corkage is $4 per bottle.

Dosai served with chutneys and pickles

The Dosai served with chutneys and pickles and the Kodi Pulusu; chicken stewed in tamarind gravy with freshly ground spices are especially good.
Lovely soft naan as well.

Unit 4, 17-23 Oatley Court, Belconnen, Canberra 2617

Ph: (02) 6253 2506

Opening Hours

Lunch (buffet)
Tuesday to Friday
12.00pm – 2.00pm

Dinner
7 Days
6.00pm – 10.00pm

Treehouse Canberra City

After enjoying CBRfoodie.org‘s great post on the weekday lunch specials at the Treehouse Bar, I had to try them out. The Chilli Salt Squid Salad ($9) was especially good as was the wine ($3). Serve sizes are ideal for lunch. But once there, I was also keen on the great weekday dinner specials and went back to try the 2 for 1 ($18) Thursday gourmet burgers as well. The Rollers on Wednesday nights ($10 with a beer or cider) are still on my wish list.

The Spiced lamb burger with grilled eggplant, spinach and hummus and the Chicken burger with bacon, avocado, cheddar and ranch dressing were both delicious and I’d like to try the Double beef cheeseburger with caramelised onion, pickles, tomato and mustard and the Lentil burger with tomato, rocket, avocado salsa, alfalfa and peanut sauce. Burgers come with a side of hand cut chips and aioli that were a nice addition. (To be honest, one burger with chips could be enough for two.)

At night the Treehouse is very pretty especially if you sit upstairs and enjoy the lights. Happy Hour drinks at night (5-7pm Wednesday to Friday) are $5 for tap beer, house wine, basic spirits & house sparkling making dinner (as wells lunch) very reasonable.

Interestingly, although parking close can be impossible in the city weekdays, there seem to be plenty of parks in front of the Supreme Court, on London Circuit, around lunchtime as people move around.

Beef and Lager Pie (lunch special)

Treehouse by day

Chicken gourmet burger with chips

Spicy lamb burger

Treehouse by night (upstairs)

Bollywood Dimensions -Braddon

Bollywood Dimensions is a modest, quiet spot in Mort Street, Braddon, serving good Indian dishes at a good price. Not the place for a special night out, but very good for a casual meal with friends.
The samosas are crisp and delicious, the Aromatic Lamb Madras was very good, but the keema naan ( bread stuffed with spicy minced meat) was excellent. Serves are generous and one serve of each fed two of us. BYO welcome and for those who have the Canberra Entertainment Card, also a 25% discount.

Open 7 Nights for dinner.

33 Mort Street, Braddon, ACT 2612

02 62577773

Mocan and Green Grout – New Acton

Mocan and Green Grout, in new Acton, has a great decor, atmosphere and style.
The dining tables and bench bar are all in together with the kitchen area and it’s a fun opportunity to watch the preparation of dishes while you dine, adding to the pleasure.
Service is friendly and efficient. The menu is designed around plates to be shared. Share plates vary from $16-$25. Desserts are $16.
This is helpful, as it’s a chance to sample a range of interesting flavours and textures.
Two dishes between two people was about right. However, dishes are sized in between an entree and a main, so people wanting more to eat might find it starts to get quite expensive.
As food comes quickly, it can work well to start with two dishes and order extra if you need to.
My favourite of the two dishes we had was Eden snapper, celeriac, fregola, salsa agrodolce $25. It had goregous flavours and textures.
Boxgum grazing pork belly, green paw paw, prawn floss $22 was also good, with great flavours and textures, but as you would expect, the pork belly was quite fatty.
Wine is BYO.
Corkage was about $10 per bottle (or $5 per person).
Parking is now easy as there is plenty along Parkes way.
In winter it can be a little chilly inside.
It gets busy and does not take bookings, so going during the week and early can be a good idea.

Eden snapper, celeriac, fregola, salsa agrodolce $25

Boxgum grazing pork belly, green paw paw, prawn floss $22

Punjabi Hut – Manuka

The Punjabi Hut in Manuka has taken over a prime location overlooking Franklin street and has a pleasant, homely but quite stylish atmosphere. Staff are friendly and helpful and dishes are well priced and good value at $16.50 for most mains, desserts $5.50 and $7.50 for two large samosas. I particularly liked the mixed entree platter for two at $20.50 which is enough for four people to sample four different tasty entrees.

Mixed entree platter includes samosas, chicken tikka, rum kebab and some yummy vegetable cutlets

Keema Naan

Chicken Vindaloo

Goan Fish Curry

Flute Bakery – Fyshwick

Flute bakery is sadly only open Monday to Friday (approx 7-3pm). It offers beautiful cakes and pastries, well priced tea $2.50 per pot for one, coffee $3.50 and great bread. An Assiette, a selection of four different treats is available for $8, making it a great way to share and savour a range of smaller portions. The decor is fine, but more ‘bakery’ like than cafe. A great spot for a coffee if weekday shopping in Fyshwick.