January Eats

I have found myself in the enviable position of having more food reviews to do than time to write them so have popped together a couple of my January eats together in one little post so that the mound of writing does not become too overwhelming.

So here we have CBD burgers, a wine-region pizza and beer experience and an old-school suburban cafe:

Royal Stacks

Dani Zaini (involved in Grand Trailer Park Taverna, Easey’s) has opened Royal Stacks in the CBD, up the corporate end of Collins St. It is pitched very much as a fast food joint, based on the USA’s Shake Shack. There is a small menu of eight burgers featuring pasture fed GMO/antibiotic/hormone free freshly ground beef (except for the vegetarian burger with a homemade chickpea patty). The ‘would you like fries with that’ comes with an additional option of crunchy potato gems. Soft drink is available in a self-serve dispenser that reminded me of my childhood. A range of shakes are also available although weren’t being served on opening night. For dessert, the homemade frozen custard knocks any soft serve sundae out of the park featuring salted caramel, Nutella, Kinder Surprise and Cheesecake flavours.

Of the burgers I tried, The King with a creamy Mac and cheese croquette sandwiched between a juicy meat patty, lashings of American mustard and Royal Stacks’ special sauce was a highlight. The burgers are reasonably priced for the size and quality of ingredients from $8.50 for a classic little single stack  through to $13.50 for the gourmet loaded options.

Morninington Peninsula Brewery

After a morning of intense wine tasting on the Mornington Peninsula a decent carb-load and some refreshing beers is certainly a good lunch option. The Mornington Peninsula Brewery beers were well-known to my group so we pulled up to their home in an industrial area of Mornington around 2pm on Saturday afternoon. it is a functioning brewery so ‘decor’ extends as far as a few umbrella-topped outdoor tables and benches and stools inside, with the bar as the focal point. 

The whole range of beers are available on tap and for those that can’t pick just one, tasting paddles are available. There is also a small but interesting and well-priced wine list.

 

The food menu is limited to pizzas, with 9 options including classics such as Margherita ($14) through to a carnivore-satisfying BBQ meat lovers ($18). The pizzas are reasonably large but the crust is very thin and crispy so we opted for one each. I ordered the Capricciosa with ham, olives, mushrooms and mozzarella on a Napoli base, sans anchovies. The bases are made fresh but are rolled incredibly thin and almost resemble a pita-bread base in texture. Wood firing adds a nice char but there is none of that chewy/crispy texture that can usually be achieved with a wood fired oven. The toppings were fresh and overall the pizza was quite sastisfying without wowing me. My friend’s Prosciutto and Pear topped with parmesan and rocket ($17) was a better bet. The parmesan was melted until crispy and provided a lovely intensity of flavour, matching the salty meat and balanced by sweet pear with a little flash of peppery rocket.

 

 

Reverend Cafe

I actually ate at Reverend Cafe in late November but am only getting around to writing about it now. Reverend Cafe is part of the ever-evolving Union Road cafe strip in Ascot Vale. The vibe is simple but inviting, it rather reminds me of the cafes my mother used to take me to as a child with well-spaced tables and a lack of pretention.

Open for breakfast and lunch, coffee is taken very seriously with espresso, filter, pourover and Aeropress options made with single origin and guest blends supplied by Reverence Coffee. There is also a good range of teas, milkshakes and artisan soft drinks. The menu has a range of creative all-day breakfast options including vegan and gluten free alternatives. Lunch is available from 11am and focuses on sandwiches and burgers with a barley risotto thrown in for good measure.

I dropped in with My Love’s mum for a light lunch. She opted for the Grilled Eggplant with spiced hummus, goats feta and quinoa tabouleh on toasted turkish bread ($11). As a vegetarian there were quite a few options.

 

 

 

I went for Avocado and Chia Smash on wholegrain bread with winter salad, pomegranate molasses and mixed seeds ($16) with an optional extra of goats feta ($3.50). There was plenty of avocado, the puffed grains added some lovely nutty crunch enhanced by the occasional ‘pop’ of a pomegranate seed. The rich and silky goat feta arrived as a glistening 3cm cube and added a lovely sharp flavour which really lifted the dish. However the thick slab of wholegrain was cold, minimally toasted with a dense and chewy texture.  

I found Reverend a little underwhelming. Service was minimal and while the food was quite good, it was overpriced – my meal of avocado on toast studded with a small number of pomegranate seeds and feta came to $19.50.