There are three things that I forgot to pack on a trip that I made to Melbourne.
Step 1 - An umbrella
Step 2 - A thick coat
Step 3 - Leggings or stockings
I should have known-silly me. I've visited Melbourne enough times to be warned about the four seasons in one day!
That morning I had managed a sleep in an sadly bade a farewell to the Park Hyatt, my glamorous home for the weekend. I cabbed it over to see my fabulous sponsors at Sigma Lenses to have lunch with them. We go to nearby Pacific Seafood BBQ house for a meal which was wonderful because it was just what I felt like eating. Don't you love it when you are in the mood for something and you get to eat it?
The soup is particularly welcome in this chilly weather and is given depth from pork bones and vegetables.
Now bizarre as it sounds, an as much as I love pork I don't usually go for the suckling pork at Chinese restaurants. It's usually too big a piece and too salty. Here it is different and they slice it more judiciously into thin slices and it is very moreish indeed. Also good is the crispy lacquered skinned roast duck an the char siu. Oh how I love a platter!
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The lobster arrives resplendent in all of its glossy glory. The head is pointed at one end and lovely fat chunks of lobster flesh and claws scattered throughout. It sits on a bed of sauce soaked chow mien noodles which are toothsome and require dexterity I don't have ;). The lobster flesh is sweet and soft and the chilli sauce has a slight bite to it. I could bathe in a big bath of this (hmm except the lobster claws might hurt...)!
The shanghai boy choy is braised with a garlic sauce and needs a touch more seasoning and by the time it arrives I've filled up with lobster (lobster trumps vegetables, sorry!).
We had walked past the Ganache chocolate store and seen the displays and drooled briefly and after lunch where else do we head but to Ganache. Chocolatier Arno Backes, former Head Chocolatier at Koko Black makes all of his chocolates upstairs and has had a career as long as several people. His creations have decked the displays of top end stores like Harrods, The Dorchester and Queen Elizabeth has been a customer ordering a selection of the honey and almond truffles before sending him a note of thanks.
He uses chocolate from five overseas chocolatiers and even has a blend made specially for him by a European chocolate manufacturer although declines to say who with. Apparently the chocolate game isn't all sweets and truffles and he tells us that he abs had competitors fishing through his bins to find out what product they are using!
I select a brownie mousse which is lovely and airy with a rich, dark chocolate flavour to it. On top there is a thin rectangle of chocolate accented with gold leaf. It is lovely but so rich and I can only finish half of it try as I might.
The other reason why I may have had trouble finishing the brownie mousse is the festive hot chocolate. This is also rich and spiced with cinnamon and Christmas spices. It even tastes slightly spicy like it has a touch of chili in it.
And Malcolm asks me "Would you like to try the Queen Elizabeth chocolate?". Music to my ears! It is a distinct two layered chocolate inside with chewiness from an almond nougatty layer and sweetness from the honey. It is made in both a milk and a dark chocolate and the dark suits this very nicely given the sweet filling. What a wonderful way to spend an afternoon, the rain from the previous day is completely forgotten!
So tell me Dear Reader, when you get a food craving, do you have to follow it up with that food?
Pacific Seafood BBQ House
1/210 Toorak Road, South Yarra, Vic
Tel: +61 (03) 9826 3838
Ganache Chocolate
250 Toorak Rd, South Yarra, VIC
Tel: +61 (03) 9804 7485
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