Dandelion & Driftwood

Dandelion  & Driftwood
http://www.dandeliondriftwood.com


Waking up during another cold morning in Brisbane with nothing better to do than go get some breakfast and coffee. Today we decided to head over to the northside of town to Dandelion and Driftwood. I must admit I was a little hesitant due to a having a terrible doppio a year or so ago. I always say I will give anything a try twice.

Dandelion & Driftwood is located in a small set of shops and has very limited seating. The fit out is very quaint in the country sense, but pleasing none the less.The place was packed as per usual and had a short wait of 15 minutes to be seated. I decided to try a espresso tasting of two single origin beans and have the savoury mince. Oh yeah and a scone to go with that.

The espresso's were from Cuba and Guatemala and came with information cards about both beans. To my novice palate where coffee is concerned they had very subtle differences but I preferred the Cuba which was more savoury earthy in flavour with good acidity and balance.  Both coffees were poured very well with a good crème and little bitterness.

The savoury mince was quite tasty as I forgot to take a photo. Well I was just really hungry. I wouldn't say it was the best I have tasted, but it was satisfying.  To describe e the taste it was like a cottage pie filling. If you can make cottage pie, I would bet yours would most likely be tastier. The portion size was on the smaller side as I tend not to eat to much bread as a filler and I would have liked a little more.

The scones were very nice and fluffy and full of buttery goodness. The cream was more like a butter cream than actual cream, and the jam was home made and high quality.

Overall my experience as good and I will go back and try other menu items.

 Recommended +


 

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1991

Moss Wood has long been regarded as one of the leaders in Margaret river for producing wines of stunning quality year in and year out.  1991 was one of the best years in the late 80's early 90's and produced wines of great depth and longevity. This bottle was sourced from the secondary market so I always have my doubts on the cellaring conditions.  Lucky for this one the wine was still flawless.

Deep red/maroon in the glass with a little fading at the edges. The aroma was full of dark fruit, a little chocolate/cocoa,much the same on the palate, the tannins were soft and supple  with a nice long finish.

Score:96pts

This wine is still on the up and up and will do so for the next five years or more. If you can manage to find a bottle, buy it!

Vintaged Bar and Grill - Brisbane Hilton

I've been waiting to dine at this place for a while now. I havent found any mind blowing steaks in Brisbane and thought I should give this a try. The restaurant is located in the main reception area of the Hilton hotel that has received a makeover in the last couple of years. The restaurant is modern and very clean looking with nice wine cellar with glass walls to drool over the wine within.

I ordered the wagyu carpaccio for my entree and the  dry aged rib eye on the bone for my main. My other half ordered the pork belly for the entree and wagyu rump.  The steaks are suggested to be served at medium-rare as all good steak should be served, so we thought we would go with the flow.

The wagyu carpaccio with the truffle dressing and capers was perfectly seasoned. The beef was thinly sliced and the truffle dressing added a earthy layer and the capers add that nice saltiness to the dish. The dish is very light and a great starter but I wish there was a little more. The crispy skinned porkbelly was just that with a very nice hard and crunchy skin, the meat was soft and juicy which matched the apple sauce quite nicely.

Our steaks were brought out about 20mins after the entrees were devoured. Bother were slightly under-done at more the rare spectrum but I was not fussed. They were nicely seasoned with salt and have those beautiful sear marks. The rib eye was soft and tender and very tasty as one would expect from dry aged meat. The wagyu was only a 4-6 marble score which is what one would expect for the market in Brisbane. The wagyu was also soft and juicy with loads of flavour but I would prefer a higher marble score.

We always have dessert. So we had the Vintaged sundae and the chocolate tarte. The desserts were quite large and enough to share especially the tarte. The sundae was deconstructed with vanilla bean icecream, homemade honeycomb and the salted caramel sauce is good enough to eat on its own.  I dont like caramel but this was something else. The tarte was very rich and dense, but went well with my ice-cream.

Overall I enjoyed my experience. Did I find my mind blowing steak? No. Would I come back? Yes but not anytime soon.   I think I've tried every steak place in Brisbane, so I will have to fly to Sydney for my steak fix at Rockpool Bar and Grill

                                                                    Recommended

PJ's Steaks

PJ's Steaks
Boundary st
 West End Brisbane

PJ's Steaks is located on the main strip in West End, that has seen a somewhat of a revitalisation in recent years with new restaurants and cafes openings in the area. PJ's is one of the relative new comers to this area but the funky shop fit out in an American style theme, cheap food and drinks has to be a recipe for success. There signature dish is the Philadelphia cheese steak, that consists of thinly sliced beef, cooked on a hot plate. This is served in a long bun with melted cheese. I must admit I've never had this while in the states so I really dont have anything to measure it up with.

Today we ordered the hot dog with chili sauce, a Philly cheese steak with cheddar cheese and some potato gems (tots as the Americans call them). The Philly cheese steak was a little bland, I suspect it may have been from the cheese. Traditionally they come with provolone cheese which is quite sharp, otherwise the cheese steak was just OK.

The Hot dog with chili sauce was very tasty the chili sauce was which and full of beans and chili without being too hot. The sauce added the right amount of flavour which made this the best hot dog I've had in Australia to date. The gem's were cooked perfectly with a crunchy outside and fluffy inside, who doesnt like gems?

Would I go back? Yes for sure and try the cheese steak with provolone this time

Recommended

UQ Union Pizza Cafe

UQ Union pizza cafe used to be one of the places I frequented when I was a student at UQ St Lucia. Back then It was a little stand a long builing infront of the UQ cinema's and the staff would work in very cramped and hot conditions. Fast forward to today and the pizza cafe is now a modern cafe with more room for the staff and numerous beers on tap. The prices are still good for students and telatively cheap for us now non students. Well we should be able to afford the extra cost now that we are employed.

The menu is pretty much the same from when I remebered it. My old favourates are there D, G, A, U and more. They are all just so damned good.The menu is listed in alphabetical order and when you order just give the letter and not the name.

Tonight we ordered a half  Dand G pizza and  lasagne. The pizza bases are freshly made unlike the pre-made crap from the major pizza joints. The base is thin and usually irregularly shaped but equally yummy.  The  D is DeSica -Shredded ham, pancetta, calabrese, pineapple, olives, capsicum and onion and the G is Giannini - Roast chickem, baby spinach, ricotta and grilled capsicum.  Both toppings are very tasty and hasnt changed over the years, the Lasagne is pre-made but is very tasty but dont expect it to be gourmet its jsut very tasty. If you are expecting a big cheesy greasy pizza this place is not for you. The pizza's are light and fresh and tasty.

Would I go back? For Sure

ggggg







wynyard st dental

Cream Patisserie - Coorparoo

Cream Patisserie
380 Cavendish Rd, Coorparoo
http://www.creamstyle.com.au/



We were feeling like something sweet and close to home on a Friday night so we thought we would go to Cream Patisserie at Coorparoo. They have a windows full of desserts to choose from, all look better than the next. What to choose is the hardest part.   We chose to have the scones and cream with tea, a skinny flat white and a biscotti.

The service was prompt and friendly with our coffee and tea coming within 15 minutes. We had to wait a little longer for the scones as they were being freshly baked. The coffee was well made with no bitterness at all and the english breakfast tea was of good quality. The biscotti was very big and tasty. I'd definitely have another one of these.

Our scones arrived nice and warm. We were disappointed by the lack of color, they should be a nice golden color on top. Not to be distracted we would give them a try, they were tasteless. There was not a hint of butter or even anything creamy used. I suspect they ma have been lemonade scones, which is a lazy way to make a scone. Well it couldn't get any worse I thought but the cream was not fresh cream but mock cream. How hard is it for a place to use fresh cream?

Would I go back again? Not anytime soon. I wont be back for the scones and cream that's for sure!

wynyard st dental

Palmes D'or Champagne 1998

Palmes D'or
Champagne
1998


This has to be one of the must stunning champagne bottles out on the market to date. Forget about that gold and silver stuff from Armand dr Brignac, this is a real bottle. Palmes D'or is the flagship wine by Nicolas Feuillatte, which is a relatively new brand being founded in 1971.  It tends to have a pretty hefty price tag in Australia around the $200 mark. So for a $200 wine you would be expecting something great.

The wine was yellow gold in tthe glass showing some signs of development. The nose was citrus, apple and bready notes. Not to all exciting on the nose, so I was hoping for the palate to deliver something more.   More citrus, apple, almond and finishing a little bitter on the after taste. No pleasant at all. Maybe a bad bottle? Who knows because I wont be being a second.


Points 85

Sourced Grocer

Sourced Grocer
11 Florence St
Teneriffe Brisbane


Now what to do after an early morning PT session? Get breakfast of course and preferably something healthy!  So I headed down to the Sourced Grocer for a quick breakfast and coffee at Tenneriffe. The sourced grocer is a warehouse converted into a organic grocery store and cafe.

The staff are very hip/retro but are very friendly and down to earth. The menu is written on a tiled wall and is very basic due to the lack of cooking facilities. I decided to have the bircher muesli and apple and a double espresso, my partner in crime had the watermelon and yogurt.

The bircher muesli is always my go to when coming to the sourced grocer. The granny smith apple topping is crunchy with sweet strawberries and the yogurt is not overly sweet. The watermelon and yogurt has a type of moroccan spice mixed in which made it interesting. It may have been little overpowering for the watermelon, but I can see it would go well with a very ripe and sweet watermelon.  The double espresso with thick and had a good creme. medium to full bodied and was slightly sweet with no bitterness. A very well made espresso.

Would I go back? Yes I would.

                                                                          Highly Recommended

Dry River Pinot Noir 2009

Dry River
Pinot Noir 2009
Martinborough, New Zealand

 Dry River is regarded as one of New Zealands top Pinot Noir producers and is highly sought after. It's one of those wines the polarise people, some people love and others hate it. Which camp am I in?


 The wine was deep ruby in color. The nose was of some interest dark cherry, olives, mushroom forest floor characters. On the palate the wine was medium to full bodied,  ripe dark fruit with some olive and spice. Long finish.

Score: 88

Was I expecting too much? I think not for a wine that retails above $120, I would be expecting more finesse and complexity. This wine seemed a little fake or manufacturedto suit  a certain market. I have found much cheaper wines from the same region display the terrior is a more profound manner.   It sort of reminds me of those big jammy, candy cane Barossa wines that are made to please a certain market. Maybe I am wrong. I have two bottle left so I'll forget about them for some time and revisit this wine later on.

Charles Heidsieck 2002

Charles Heidsieck 2000
Champagne France



We had this champagne for a lazy afternoon lunch overlooking the Brisbane river. As previously discussed Charles Heidsieck Champagne has undergone a type of evolution by increasing the quality of the wines made under its name. This holds true for this current release under the new label which is quite fashionable compared to the previous design.

The wine has a slightly more developed color for a 2000 vintage than I'm accustomed too. It was more yellow/gold in the glass with a fine bead. The nose was initially full of toast and brioche then opened up to a more roasted nuts and citrus component.  The acid was finely balanced and had a good finish. The wine is typical of the vintage but I've had better from the 2000 vintage but definitely a step in the right direction.


Points: 92