British

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Sunday roast at Four In Hand – Paddington – Sunday 5 April 2015 – Dinner

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A few years before Four In Hand became better known for its executive chef, it was better known for honest rustic British food celebrating the nose to tail concept. While it is now better known in broader circles for Colin Fassnidge of the reality television show, My Kitchen Rules, the locals have continued to flock to the warm pub and dining room.

On Sunday’s, a roast is offered for an extremely reasonable $24. Having no idea how long we might have to wait on Easter Sunday for a feed, Catherine and I got to the pub a little after 5pm and had no trouble finding a table in the pub dining room, tucked away from the main bar. There is plenty of atmosphere with standing room only in the main bar, most watching one or both the rugby and AFL on TVs around the venue. At this stage, the main dining room is just being set up for the evening’s more formal punters.

If it wasn’t for the great feeling of the pub, its applauded food, and the opportunity to catch some of the game, this pub in the suburban part of Paddington could be missed by most. Even on the third visit it still feels like you have uncovered a hidden secret. We go up to the bar to order our roast but it has changed from the pork belly (that looked amazing on some other tables) to the beef.

We will never know how the pork belly tasted, but the beef was cooked perfectly for most tastes (medium rare). The rustic plating true to what we experienced in country England for similar meals included huge roasted carrot, pumpkin, onion, and some small potatoes. All of the vegetables were beautifully cooked and seasoned, with a good amount of caramelisation. The gravy was good, but definitely not generous enough given the quantity of the main ingredients, meaning the only critique would be the last few mouthfuls having almost no sauce at all.

Whether washed down with a glass of red wine, or a pint of beer, there is warmth and reassurance about a Sunday roast this good. It’s not rocket science to do a great roast, but how often can you find this type of amazing and honest food at your average pub? If Four In Hand were around the corner, down the road, or within a few suburbs, I would be there more than once a month. The locals here are extremely lucky.

Four in Hand on Urbanspoon

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Duchess of Spotswood – Spotswood – Saturday 13 September 2014 – Breakfast

Duchess of Pork

Duchess of Pork

Traditionally, the British have been known to do a great breakfast – maybe the best. The full English is a celebration of fried meats, eggs, and other foods like beans, tomatoes and mushrooms that get to share the plate with the stars. While there is an excitement in having every breakfast food you can think of available to you on one plate, at times it is too much, and at times the quality of the separate ingredients may not be the best.

A British themed breakfast spot is unusual because aren’t all breakfast spots that serve the traditional classics basically British by definition? At the Duchess of Spotswood the theme is more than appropriate. There is a traditional approach to the great British breakfast, using high quality ingredients, merged with some more modern tastes.

There is the “Breakfast of Champignons” which is one of my favourite names for a great dish of delicious mushrooms on toast with Stilton thrown in for good measure. Today I’m eating the “Duchess of Pork”, which is an interesting dish to start the day. Pork jowl broken down and formed into a rectangle, with crispy pork scattered around the plate, shaved truffle, two fried eggs, Madeira sauce and some toast. Pork jowl is an amazing gamey meat – very strong and rich. It combines beautifully with the Madeira sauce (which could be a little more liberal) and the yolk of the eggs. It’s not for every day, but today it is heavenly.

As you would hope, the bacon at the Duchess is a staple, thick sliced and incredibly good, whether combined in a simple bacon and eggs, or the Full English. Gladly, the Full English includes black pudding, and will be my choice next time I’m here with an appetite. The coffee is excellent, the orange juice is sweet and freshly squeezed, and the Spring weather is coming along nicely.

The Duchess has really sparked this little village in Spotswood into life. There is a terrific bakery, called Candied, and I can vouch for the rye, and the brûlée from the last trip. There is a cafe, serving only coffee, including syphon, and few other places in a relatively small space. Travel wise it is relatively easy, being the first exit just over the West Gate.

The Duchess is one of the best cafes in Melbourne. If it was in Brunswick, Fitzroy or the Inner East it would be an impossible wait, but here in Spotswood it fits perfectly.

Duchess of Spotswood on Urbanspoon