Tomahawks – Bright – a top choice in a brilliant town

Tomahawks

Modern Australian/American

15 Camp St Bright VIC 3741
Wed�Thu 5pm�late; Fri�Sun 12pm�late; Mon�Tue closed
(03) 5750 1113

Cauliflower + mozzarella fritters, Moroccan ketchup

Bright is a very nice town. There is an obvious pride that the community has put into many aspects, and the scenery surrounding is beautiful. Walking around and checking out some of the restaurant menus for tonight, we noticed a sophistication above the usual associated with a town over three hours from Melbourne. Having worked out where dinner would be, we enjoyed a drink at the Bright Brewery. I wanted to try several beers but still be fit to drive, so the tasting paddle of six beers was the perfect option. All of them are nice beers, but my favourites were the porter style (Staircase), and the Belgian style wheat (Razor) was quality too. Catherine had the drier style of cider (Alpine) from locally grown apples, and was pleased with the choice. After a nice relax, we made it to Tomahawks for dinner and sat on the bar. One of the staff recognised us from earlier in the day immediately building rapport, and luckily he was right that we didn’t need to book. The small restaurant is set in a long rectangle that has a bar as the main feature. We noticed that while it was relatively busy, the turnover meant that no one was waiting for a table, but during the evening most tables had two sittings. It’s a sign of a strong business, especially given it opened late last year.

Slow roasted lamb shoulder bruschetta, hummus, pickled red cabbage, zucchini, salted ricotta

We were urged towards the twelve hour lamb shoulder bruschetta and given I was already more than halfway there, it became one of our mains, along with a cheeseburger to share. I thought we better have some vegetables, so we started with the cauliflower and mozzarella fritters with Moroccan ketchup. They were not quite the refreshing vegetable dish we were looking for, but they were delicious and indulgent, which is better in our book.

Sevens Creek Wagyu Cheeseburger, habanero mustard, pickles, maple bacon

The chefs helped us out by halving both the lamb shoulder bruschetta and the cheeseburger, and it didn’t impact the presentation. The lamb shoulder is beautifully slow cooked on a grilled piece of light bread. It had us reaching for more, even with the burger in our midst. The burger too was great, but Catherine found the patty to be a bit fatty for her taste. Personally I liked the fattiness, and the fact the bacon was dispersed through the patty, but I can agree that the occasional chewy bit was less pleasant. We were very satisfied from the savories and decided to forgo the ice cream sundae which looked pretty good. Besides, Catherine’s cocktail to begin was a bit desserty with the sherbet surrounding the glass on the Tiki Sour.

Tiki Sour

Tomahawks did a terrific job, making it more than clear why it is so popular in a town adorned with good places to eat. If we were in town a few more days a repeat visit would have been likely, but we’ll have to wait until next time.

Belle’s Hot Chicken – Richmond – Friday 19 February 2016 – Dinner

Belle's Hot Chicken

American / Fried Chicken

150 Gertrude St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
Mon–Tue 12pm–10pm; Wed–Sat 12pm–11pm; Sun 12pm–10pm
(03) 9077 0788
IMG_4762Complete confidence. In the product, in the delivery, and in the aesthetic. I had a feeling there was nothing wrong with going to Belle’s Hot Chicken‘s Richmond branch from the moment it opened. The teething issues you see in other openings were all dealt with in Fitzroy at the widely acclaimed original venue. I would be surprised if I haven’t walked past one hundred times since the announcement that Belle’s was opening in Richmond. In the beginning, besides the attack of local graffiti artists, there was not a lot going on next to the Richmond branch of Meatballs. But once noticeable change started, progress was swift, and all of a sudden it was down to the finishing touches. It is hard to say this, but my particular experience dining around 6.30pm on the first Friday night, was absolutely perfect. This type of perfection is not unattainable. After all, we are talking about quite a defined product and a relatively small restaurant with a good complement of staff. But it was perfect. IMG_4760 Catherine ordered the Southern (no chilli) and I ordered the medium as the last time I tried hot it defeated me! We both did the tenders and chose sides of coleslaw and Old Bay fries. The chicken was cooked to the second; just done and not any more for maximum flavour. The sides were great as usual with no noticeable difference to the Fitzroy original. To wash it down we tried the Belle’s Aperol Spritz and “The Arnaldo” which was my favourite – a Long Island ice tea tasting drink but with an iced tea and lemonade over a tequila only base. Service was superb with an obvious concentration to begin with friendliness and professionalism without an ounce of arrogance that could happen at a successful outpost. It is needless to say that I’ll be back regularly and that I am going to have to exercise more as a result. As the bloke in his seventies next to us polished off his second basket of chicken I realised it was still possible to live a long happy life, especially when fried chicken is involved. Belle's Hot Chicken Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato