Paris has always been high on my list of places to go. I’ve watched the Tour de France religiously for the last 15 years. After seeing all the sights on television and watching them charge down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées to the finish line, I’ve always thought “I’d like to go there”. Tick that bucket list box because we made it to beautiful Paris.
The Arc De Triomphe in the middle of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées
After a morning of exploring some of the main sights of Paris, we were all starting to get hungry. Paris has a café or restaurant just about on every corner, so deciding which one can be difficult. In the end, we made our way to Le Saint-Germain Café.
Notre-Dame de Paris, which is not to far from the Le Saint-Germain Cafe.
We are immediately greeted by a very friendly gentleman with a bubbly nature. Ensuring that we were staying for lunch he promptly guides us to a corner table inside next to the bar.
The friendly staff member was happy to pose for a photo for us.
The café has indoor and outdoor seating. Be aware that smoking is allowed in the alfresco dining area. The inside of the restaurant has comfortable seating around the bar area and an upstairs area if it gets busy.
The upstairs dining area, it looks quite comfortable.
The Le Saint-Germain Café has a menu board outside in different languages, so you shouldn’t have any trouble understanding what they have on offer. Make sure you add a Euro to the prices as they are slightly different from the actual menu.
The menu has a decent range of dishes available. Since it was lunch, we ordered a tomato based vegetarian pasta, a ham and cheese toasted sandwich (Croque-Monsieur), some French onion soup and a small Camembert cheese plate.
A large toasted Ham and cheese toasted sandwich or Croque-Monsieur.The French Onion Soup, covered with a layer of bread and melted cheese.
All the meals were simple and well made. The Croque-Monsieur was beautifully made and the French Onion soup was full of flavour with a layer of bread and melted cheese on top. The pasta was simple richly flavoured, whilst the cheese plate was what we expected.
Tomato based vegetarian pasta dishSmall Camembert Cheese Plate
Overall the Le Saint-Germain is a nice, comfortable French café. The food is of decent quality and the service was also good. The price is a little higher than what we’d expect of a café, but we are in France. So, if you happen to be in France, head to the Le Saint-Germain Café for lunch and tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you.
Additional Information for Le Saint Germain Café
62 Rue du Bac, 75007 Paris, France
Ph: +33 1 45 48 99 69
Main Meal Price Range $$
Trading hours:
Monday
11am–1am
Tuesday
11am–1am
Wednesday
11am–1am
Thursday
11am–1am
Friday
11am–1am
Saturday
11am–1am
Sunday
11am–1am
Le Saint-Germain Café rating: 1-10 (1=very poor, 10 = excellent)
Decor =7
Atmosphere =7
Service =7
Price =7
Food =7
Although our time in Norway has been short, we have been inspired by the sheer beauty of this country. After our Norway in a Nutshell tour we spent a few days in historic Bergen. On our day of discovery, we went for a stroll through UNESCO Heritage listed Bryggen. These old Hanseatic commercial building have served the Bryggen docks for centuries. Although fires have consumed the older structures over the years, replica buildings have replaced them to maintain the heritage. We couldn’t resist having lunch at Madam Felle, in one of the prominent buildings along the coastal strip.
Madam Felle restaurant and nightclub
Since it was a balmy 6 degrees Celsius we decided to have our lunch outside in their outdoor seated area. We were greeted by the waiting staff and offered a choice of various tables. If eating outside isn’t your thing, Madam Felle also has nice seating inside.
Outdoor seating at Madam Felle. It was a sunny 6 degrees Celsius so we ate outsideInside dining area in Madam Felle
Madam Felle has a decent sized menu, with good affordable lunch time specials. At night-time, the restaurant becomes a nightclub hosting a range of live music acts. The performance schedule is attached to their main door, so have a look to see who playing over the next few months.
The stage is in the corner of the room. I wonder who’s playing tonight
For lunch we ordered four dishes, a B.L.T, a beef Quesadilla, a Hamburger and a Veggie Caesar Salad with a side of oven baked potatoes.
The girls posing whilst patiently waiting for their lunch
When the Beef Quesadilla arrived, we all looked at it and thought, ‘wow that’s a large serving’. Full of flavour this tortilla contains cheese, beef, special sauce and red onion. The dish is served with a salad, a salsa and sour cream. The tortilla had an unusual crunchiness, but overall excellent.
The lunch time Beef Quesadilla
The Hamburger consisted of a 5.5-ounce hamburger patty in a ciabatta bread roll with lettuce, tomatoes, onion, cucumber, barbecue aioli served with oven baked fries. Once again, this large burger was excellent. The hamburger patty wasn’t dried out from overcooking and the barbecue aioli was pleasant.
A large Hamburger served with oven baked potatoes
The Veggie Caesar Salad topped with a homemade dressing was once again enormous and was lavished with grated Parmesan cheese and served with a half ciabatta bread slice. Cheese glorious cheese, mixed with the homemade dressing was wonderful. They also do a Chicken Caesar much the same. The oven baked potatoes were perfectly cooked through and evenly seasoned.
Veggie Caesar Salad covered in cheeseOven baked potatoes from Madam Felle
Finally, the B.L.T. came and my initial thought was ‘oh, this is a lot smaller than the other dishes. I hope it will be enough?’ This traditional bacon, lettuce and tomato filled ciabatta roll was delicious and may initial fears weren’t warranted. The stacked toppings were more than enough to satisfy my hunger.
B.L.T with chips/crisps
Madam Felle’s was an excellent place to have a meal. Their staff is friendly and their service is efficient. The food quality and presentation is also good. The prices are reasonable in a country known for being expensive and the serving sizes are large. So, when you’re in Bergen, head to Bryggen and have a meal at Madam Felle or watch a band. And remember to tell them, Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
It’s that time of year again in Australia when the cricket season is winding down and the football season is starting to gain momentum. The city of Adelaide has two Australian Football League (AFL) teams, Port Adelaide Power and the Adelaide Crows. Both teams are vying for the ultimate season prize, the premiership cup. Training is well under way and the clubs are currently finishing the pre-seasons JLT series to finalise their game plans. Ourworldinreview decided to head into the Port Club to test the food they produce for their loyal supporters.
The Port Adelaide Football Club is in Alberton situated in Adelaide’s Western Suburbs. The club was founded in 1870 and has been a dominant force in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) with 36 premierships, which happens to be a SANFL record. With the club’s entry into the national competition in 1997 Port Adelaide also known by their other moniker “The Power” have had some success, winning the 2004 premiership against the Brisbane Lions and competing in the 2007 Grand Final against Geelong.
Port Adelaide Football Club Headquarters and training facility.
An extremely proud sporting club, upon entry you are greeted by their 2004 AFL success, the premiership cup. Directly to the left after entering is the Port Club’s store. Here supporters can buy the clubs merchandise for the upcoming season. To the right of the premiership cup is the membership counter to obtain your season or game passes. Walking further into the Port Club it opens into a major dining area to the left and the clubs bar and poker machine area to the right.
The Port Club’s bar area
The club rooms are nicely decorated with club’s history and memorabilia on full display. So there is no doubt you are in the Port Adelaide Football Club.
One of the many display cases showcasing the history of the Port Adelaide Football Club
The main dining area is nicely spaced and the service counter is well attended for that initial greeting and subsequent seating. The menu has a good range of dishes available at a fair price. As the hard working history of Port Adelaide being in the club’s mindset, it makes sure not to alienate its core supporters by overpricing their menu. The welcoming atmosphere and the friendly staff oozes pride in this football club.
The large dining area in the Port Club
Our main meal purchases consisted of the Cajun crusted chicken from the daily specials menu and their vegetarian lasagne. We also opted to try some of their available desserts and selected the banana nut sundae and the cookies and cream cheesecake. All food ordering is done at the main service counter and drinks are bought from the bar area. Any purchased main meals come with access to the Port Club’s well-stocked vegetable and salad bars.
The salad bar, which is consistently turned over to ensure it is always stocked.
As we arrived quite early during the meal service the main meals arrived in a satisfactory timeframe. The first meal to arrive was the Cajun crusted chicken. This spicy chicken is served on a bed of baby spinach and lettuce with fresh salsa and sour cream. The chicken was evenly flavoured and succulent and the combination with the sour cream and balsamic dressing made for a tasty dish.
Cajun crusted chicken
Our next meal was the vegetarian lasagne, and it arrived as a large portion covered with cheese and a serving of chips. Unfortunately, the lasagne lacked flavour. Consisting of eggplant and zucchini layers with a thick layer of ricotta cheese, the lasagne just didn’t impress. The eggplant and zucchini was hard to cut through and the dense layer of ricotta was too much. Ideally other vegetables needs to be added to improve the dish or change the core vegetable groups. As a suggestion, by adding some grated carrot or layering it with some roasted butternut could give it more appeal. Additionally, if they add some herbs or chopped wilted spinach to the ricotta layer it would also change the outcome.
A large portion of a vegetarian lasagne
Once the main meals were cleared away we waited patiently for our desserts to arrive. After a little wait, with more and more patrons starting to roll into the club, the two desserts arrived. The banana nut sundae, was like any other store bought nut sundae, a serving of vanilla ice-cream covered with banana topping, a dollop of cream sprinkled with crusted nuts and a couple of wafers. Nothing to boast about, but it was sweet, tasty, a good size and value. These nut sundaes come in different flavours and would be a real hit with the kids.
The Port Club’s banana nut sundae. Sweet, tasty and a good size.
The cookies and cream cheesecake was once again a nice portion served with vanilla cream and strawberry compote (topping). Although, I suspect it to be supplier made to guarantee a homogenous product, it was still worthwhile.
Cookies and Cream Cheesecake
The Port Club is full of history and tradition, and the club provides honest food at a low-cost for the club and value for its patrons. The staff and service are good and the dining area is well maintained. You’d expect the atmosphere to be buzzing during the football season, therfore bookings will be essential. Although we found the vegetarian lasagne rather plain, the Cajun crusted chicken was excellent. The Port Club’s menu offers a good range of dishes, so patrons should be able to find the right meal for them. So, pop into the Port Club during the season, have a meal and tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
The Wilpena Pound Resort offers an incredible amount of natural beauty. The National Parks amphitheatre and the possibility of having interactions with kangaroos and emus in their natural habitat is heart-warming. Visitors who stay at one of the available accommodations has use of the resorts facilities. During our time, we make sure we fill the car with fuel, shop at the resort store and test the resorts bar and bistro, Poddy Dodger’s.
The dining and bar of Poddy Dodger’s
With a well-maintained bar and dining area, Poddy Dodger’s has a good range of South Australian wine and beers available. The staff is friendly respectful and helpful in choosing that right drink for you. The bar area is comfortable with a lounge area overlooking the swimming pool and a dining area looking out into the front gardens.
Resort Swimming Pool – All visitors welcome
The garden area is where the resort performs its welcome to country presentation nightly. Our recommendation is to make sure you visit the bar between 5pm and 6pm for the resorts happy hour. The resort also has a restaurant called Captain Starlight which is adjacent to Poddy Dodger’s. During our stay the majority of visitors we saw ate at the bistro. A bonus while eating or drinking at the bar is that if you wait long enough you just never know what kinds of animals may visit the garden.
A very thirsty kangaroo drinking from a sprinkler
We initially sit on the lounge and take advantage of the AUD$5 glasses of wine. Honestly, you can’t go wrong. We also grab some menus to see what types of food they have on offer. After some glasses of wine, we move to a table and prepare to order dinner. The bar doesn’t have full table service, so ordering of your meals is done at the main counter.
Resting in the lounge area overlooking the swimming pool
Since we are hungry from a long day of adventuring the Ikara-Flinders National Park we decide to order some garlic bread as a starter. Our mains consist of a Mediterranean salad for MacKenzie, a fish and chips for myself and a chicken schnitzel with pepper sauce for Josie. For dessert, we selected two Pavlova with mixed berries and a Cherry-ripe cheesecake.
Is isn’t too long before the garlic bread is served which disappears from the plate just as quickly. Soon the main meals come out. First to arrive is the chicken schnitzel with pepper sauce. The lightly panko crumbed chicken fillet is a good size, it doesn’t encompass the whole plate and is served with chips and salad. The pepper sauce comes in a small pot and is quite nice. Overall the whole meal is evenly cooked and meets our expectation.
Lightly panko crumbed chicken schnitzel with pepper sauce.
The next meal to arrive is the fish and chips. This mouth-watering beer battered Flathead fillets are golden brown and served once again with chips and salad. The Flathead fillets are small but as the serving comes with three fillets it is enough to satisfy my appetite.
Three small beer battered Flathead fillets served with chips and salad.
Finally, the third dish to be served is the Mediterranean salad. Mac’s Mediterranean salad consists of mixed salad leaves, Spanish onion, feta, artichokes, olives, caper berries, cherry tomatoes, butternut pumpkin, cucumber and bell peppers dressed with a bush tomato balsamic. A chicken addition option is also available, but as Mac’s a vegetarian she eagerly consumes her fresh and tasty salad.
A fresh Mediterranean salad. They also have a chicken option available
Once we finish our main meals, the staff efficiently clear the table and commence bringing out the three desserts. The girls both selected the Pavlova with mixed berries, cream and toffee crumb. The Pavlova was an interesting combination of ingredients with the large dollop of cream and the toffee crumb. Unfortunately, the girls were a little disappointed as the meringue base didn’t have that meringue crunch that you expect from a Pavlova.
The Pavlova with mixed berries, unfortunately the meringue had no crunch.
The Cherry-ripe cheesecake was served with ice cream, a passionfruit sauce and biscuit crumb. Rich and strongly flavoured the large cheesecake slice was a little sickly. It had a creamy smooth texture and looked nice with a bright pink colouring, but it was very sweet.
Cherry-ripe cheesecake with passionfruit sauce and biscuit crumb.
Overall Wilpena Pound Resort’s Poddy Dodger’s was a nice bar and bistro. There is a good selection of dishes on the main and specials menus. The room is clean, the food is good and the adventurous wildlife is a bonus. So, visit the Flinders Ranges, head into Wilpena Pound Resort, have a meal at Poddy Dodger’s and tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
South Australia has a lot of things for visitors or tourists to do. The problem is most of it is a couple of hundred kilometres away. Sure the city of Adelaide has plenty to do around this time of year as the festival season is upon us and the city comes alive. Yet, South Australia offers much, much more. With a few days to spare we pack some gear into the trusty car and just decide to drive and see where the road takes us. We drive out of the city and make our way onto the Yorke Peninsula and head right down to the foot of the peninsula to Marion Bay. Once there we try out the Marion Bay Tavern.
Hello from Marion Bay
Marion Bay is a popular stopover for fisherman and surfers. This is due to some of the beaches providing great surfing conditions and long jetties stretching out into the Great Australian Bight.
The Marion Bay Jetty
As South Australian’s we have been to the Yorke Peninsula before, usually just rushing to the place we need to go. But this time we know, time isn’t an issue and take our time visiting some of the small towns along the way.
The small town of Ardrossan’s coastline
We have a quick lunch at a local tuck shop in Ardrossan, and stop for coffee and hot donuts in Port Vincent before arriving at our final destination of Marion Bay.
Having coffee and donuts at Port Vincent
As we haven’t booked anywhere to stay we locate the Marion Bay Caravan Park and pay for a non powered site for AUD$25. Now I must admit I’m not the best camper around, preferring 5-star camping in big fancy hotels. My wife is the camper in our family, so in the name of being a good sport we quickly erect our two man tent before heading into the town for a meal.
I’m not a good camper, but I was able to erect the tent successfully.
The Marion Bay caravan park is a large spacious family park with playground equipment and an impressive kangaroo jumper (jumping pillow) for the children.
Marion Bay’s caravan park has a range of accommodation options with powered and non powered camping sites available. Don’t worry if you haven’t got a tent or caravan, because the park also has a variety of cabins available.
After my impressive display of erecting the tent (see above) and subsequent victory lap, we took a walk around the township to watch the sunset, take a stroll along the foreshore and find a place to have dinner.
Welcome to the Marion Bay Tavern.
Making our way past the popular fishing jetty we find the Marion Bay Tavern and head in for a meal. Uniquely, it has a pizza shop at the front for takeaway pizzas with a more casual dining area and front bar if you prefer to dine in.
Casual dining area with friendly staff and locals
The tavern has a good sized menu with a variety of dishes available from their popular pizzas to your more traditional pub fare. The wine menu was also impressive with an excellent selection of South Australian and New Zealand wines.
We decided to have a serving of their crusty bread with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and Marion Bay’s local dukkah. The warm crusty bread was fresh and the Marion Bay dukkah was spicy and full of flavour. Unfortunately we ran out of bread and olive oil both before the dukkah was finished.
Beautiful warm crusty bread with Marion Bay Dukkah
Since we were in a fishing town we once again opted for a Seafood Basket. I mean unless you are allergic to shellfish, how can you resist fresh local seafood. The seafood was nicely cooked, but the scallops were tiny.
Marion Bay Tavern’s Seafood Basket, unfortunately the scallops were tiny.
Finally our last food selection was a roasted field mushroom stuffed with baby spinach, caramelised onion and sweet potato. This was served with a dressed rocket and citrus salad. The dish was a perfectly constructed success, full of flavour and wonderfully cooked.
Roasted Field Mushrooms stuffed with spinach, served with a rocket and citrus salad.
For a country pub, the Marion Bay Tavern is a great place to have a meal. The friendly staff and local atmosphere is inviting, I could see myself spending the evening there and watching a band and getting to know the locals better.
Marion Bay Beach
Once dinner was over we took a leisurely stroll along the foreshore to the bluff (Penguin Point) to catch the spectacular sunset.
A spectacular sunset from the bluff lookout at Marion Bay (click the photo for the full effect).
After watching the sun fade away, we headed back to the caravan park to settle in for an early night, ready for our early morning trip into the Innes National Park. Visit Josie Wanders for our experience in Innes National Park.
Additional Information Marion Bay Caravan Park
17 Willyama Drive, Marion Bay SA 5575
Ph: (08) 8854 4094
Website: www.marionbaycp.com.au
For other accommodation options on the Yorke Peninsula click here.
If you head up the South Eastern Free-way away from Adelaide and exit at the Stirling off ramp, then drive another five minutes you will find the peaceful town of Aldgate. During the recent stage 2 of the Santos Tour Down Under, riders rode a lapped course around Stirling and Aldgate. This has been a popular stage as the hills locals are quick to embrace the spirit of the event. After meeting up with some friends we decided to eat at the nicely positioned Aldgate Pump Hotel.
The Main Street of Aldgate is a quiet yet picturesque place to visit
The Aldgate Pump Hotel is located in a prime position to watch the race. Riders fly through the roundabout at the front as they make their way around the course. This historic hotel has two stories and offers reasonable fare for its customers. With a sports bar at the front, a dining area at the back and a gaming room, its patrons have a choice of where they would like to spend their time.
Aldgate Pump Hotel Sports BarFront outdoor drinking and dining area
Because it had been a while since seeing our friends we organised to have lunch with them to catch up on the good old days. The dining room is situated at the back of the hotel, which I found a bit dark and gloomy. There is a selection of seating options, from the comfortable booths, standard table settings or the al fresco dining area through the back doors. Since it was a bit breezy outside we took up a comfortable booth seat.
These booths are quite comfortable, even though the room is a bit gloomyThe al fresco area would be my pick if the day was a little better.
The Aldgate Pump Hotel provides a seasonal menu on top of their standard and specials menus. Additionally, since they are a bar they also have a good range of drinks to accompany your meals. Our choices for the day were the, salt and pepper calamari, a chicken breast schnitzel with Diane sauce, the caramelised tomato, shallot and feta tart and finally the crumbed seafood platter.
The salt and pepper calamari was well cooked, not oily or dry and flavoured evenly.
Salt and Pepper Calamari
Additionally, the chicken breast schnitzel is standard pub food and the Aldgate do a good one.
Chicken Breast Schnitzel
Furthermore, my seafood platter was also good. I did find that the Moreton bay bug parcels had a strong flavour, yet I still enjoyed them.
Seafood Platter
And possible the pick of the meals was the caramelised tomato, shallot and feta tart.
Caramelised Tomato, Shallot and Feta Tart
After a good afternoon, we found the Aldgate Pump Hotel to be quite cosy. The food is good without being exceptional, and the beer is cold. In addition, if you are around the Aldgate area, pop into the Aldgate Pump Hotel and tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
Another early morning saw us driving into the city, where we had to make a drop off to the central bus station. Since we left before breakfast, we made our way to the eastern side of the Adelaide city centre to have a hearty meal. With many fabulous choices available we opted for the family owned and run café restaurant called Milano Cuccina.
Milano Cuccina interior
Milano Cuccina is located on the corner of Hutt Street and Wakefield Street on the bottom floor of the channel 10 building. The cafe restaurant offers diners a traditional casual breakfast or an Italian influenced lunch and dinner service.
Upon entry into the establishment we were warmly greeted by one of the staff and offered multiple tables to sit at. We decided to sit at a comfortable looking booth and started by ordering some smooth creamy and delicious coffees.
Two Lattes and a Cappuccino
The waitresses were friendly and efficient and have some of the nicest Italian accents around. Not what you expect in little old Adelaide. Personally I liked their accents, because I could imagine myself sitting in a cafe in northern Italy ordering a meal from a local. The breakfast menu is fairly traditional with most of the dishes commonly found in most cafés around the city. I didn’t mind this because it was quite easy to come to a decision when choosing what to have.
We ordered the Milano Big Breakfast; the Eggs Benedict without ham for our vegetarian and some plain toast with that all important Vegemite.
Milano Big Breakfast
My Milano Big Breakfast consisted of two poached eggs on a couple of pieces of toast, bacon rashers, a pork sausage, fried tomato, a field mushroom and wilted spinach, served with a hash brown. The serving was quite large and filling, with the majority of the dish nicely cooked. My only concern was that the pork sausage was a little dry, a tad bit overcooked and I was unable to finish it.
Eggs Benedict without ham, served with two hash brownsPlain Toast with Vegemite
The Eggs Benedict arrived at the table and looked rather plain on the plate. Our resident vegetarian was still happy with the dish, but couldn’t complete the whole dish (she’s quite little, and not a big eater). As for the toast, it is what you should expect. Simple, warm and easy to spread.
The interior of Milano Cuccina is quite comfortable. They have a couple of booths, a main seating area and al fresco dining for those perfect Adelaide days. The interior is colour coordinated and decorated nicely with photos and sport memorabilia hanging from the walls. They also show their support of upcoming Adelaide events with promotional material available near the front door.
al fresco dining
Overall Milano Cuccina is a friendly everyday cafe restaurant. Their breakfast is quite common but good. The servicing staff is pleasant and the strong Italian accents are nice to listen too. They are also available in the Entertainment book for a dining discount. For the full Italian dining experience I recommend trying their Italian influenced menu for lunch and dinner. So when you’re in Adelaide pop into Milano Cuccina and tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
Since childhood you would have heard the phase “Don’t judge a book by its cover” and nothing can be truer when describing The Silk & Spice Thai restaurant at Torrensville.
We recently attended this restaurant and I must admit from the outset I was a little wary about what we were getting ourselves into. The first impressions of the restaurant from the outside weren’t good. In fact we nearly missed it while driving past due to the exterior being quite dull. Silk & Spice is located in a re-purposed family home with two signs indicating it as a restaurant. Silk & Spice has approximately 16 off street car parks around the back of the restaurant; otherwise you may need to try finding a park on busy Henley Beach Road.
Once inside the restaurant you can’t help but be a little surprised at how nice the interior is. The owners have segregated the main rooms into small intimate dining areas, so noise from other guests is kept to a minimum.
Entry interior of Silk & Spice Thai Restaurant
The rooms are nicely furnished and have plenty of space to move around without having to bump into other restaurant guests.
Look at the space between these tables. No bumping into other customers here.
Upon entry we were immediately greeted by their friendly staff who quickly guided us to a corner table. The menu presented was quite large with all the usual Thai cuisine dishes available. Likewise the wine list was also well stocked with popular favourites, so finding that accompanying drink won’t be any trouble.
The rooms have been converted into small dining areas
We decided on our food selection and once the waitress arrived we ordered an entrée serve of Chicken Satay. For our main courses we ordered their chef suggested Lemon-grass Lamb and a Thai Crispy Chicken. We accompanied this with a serve of steamed rice to soak up those fragrant spicy flavours. Then for dessert we decided to try their Thai Sticky Rice with Banana and a Coconut Panna Cotta with mixed berries.
After some light conversation and photo taking our food arrived pretty quickly. The chicken satay was the first dish presented and was covered in a thick layer of tasty peanut sauce. The chicken was nicely cooked providing a good appetiser.
Look at all that peanut sauce covering that chicken satay
Our main dishes arrived soon after and the Thai Crispy Chicken was coated with a tangy and spicy sauce that was delicious and gave the dish a little chilli kick. The meal came with a refreshing papaya salad which assisted in quenching the palate.
Thai Crispy Chicken with a Papaya salad
The chef recommended Lemongrass lamb once again was nicely presented with well trimmed lamb slices. The meat was cooked nicely and covered in a spicy curry sauce with quite a lot of bite to it. As a suggestion, try ordering the medium heat dish if mouth burning spice is not your thing.
Hot and spicy, Lemongrass Lamb
Once the mains were polished off we waited for our highly anticipated desserts. My Thai Sticky Rice with Banana came with a side serve of coconut ice cream. The texture and consistency of the rice was smooth, with a mixture of crushed banana. Their coconut ice cream was fantastic, a beautifully presented and delicious dessert.
Sticky rice with banana and Coconut ice cream
Our Coconut Panna Cotta was served in a cocktail glass and topped with fresh berries. The sweet creaminess of the Panna Cotta was sensational and once finished, we definitely thought about ordering another.
Coconut Panna Cotta with mixed berries
Overall the Silk & Spice is an excellent place to eat, their location, outside exterior and advertising exposure needs a lot of work. As a customer, you could easily drive by this restaurant without knowing. Our recommendation is to stop and enjoy their good quality food. The serving staff is excellent, extremely friendly, and happy to have a quick chat with you. So give them a try and tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you.
There are times in my life when I flash back to my childhood. I hear a phase like “Let’s go on a day trip” and I feel like I’m that little kid again, all excited to begin a new adventure for the day. So when the suggestion came that we head to Hahndorf for lunch at the Farm Shed, I was out the door and in the car waiting eagerly for everyone else.
The Historic Main Street of Hahndorf
Hahndorf is a popular historic German township about 28 kilometres from the Adelaide city centre in the spectacular Adelaide Hills. The township offers a variety of things to do for visiting tourists. It’s popular for its wineries, local stores like Udder Delights, the Hahndorf farm barn and Beerenberg store and Strawberry Farm. For some information about our trip to Hahndorf, visit Josie Wanders to find out why Hahndorf is considered a gem of a town.
A wide range of local and international cheeses in Udder Delights
Whilst enjoying the sights and playing tourist for the day we headed into the Farm Shed for a quick meal and to get out of a sudden rainstorm.
The Farm Shed is one of Hahndorf’s premier wine bars and restaurants. It is found inside a heritage listed building on the main street that was once Australia’s first Lutheran school. The Farm Shed contains two table serviced sections, a quaint front bar roadside and a restaurant down the gravel driveway. Head Chef, Brad Perrott has created an interesting menu, with a selection of native and standard meat cuts for his customers.
The Farm Shed Wine Bar and Restaurant
This trip we opted to stay in the front bar area and settle in for a quality lunch. The wine bar area has rustic furnishings that suit the style of the restaurant. Since we were eating in the bar area we decided we’d try out their pizzas, all topped with good local, fresh produce. We choose two of the tempting signature pizza’s, The “Big” Smoke and the vegetarian version of the Mediterranean.
The Farm Shed offer a good range of beers, wines and ciders.Quaint Rustic Furnishings
The “Big” Smoke consisted of delicious smoked chicken, bacon, mushroom, caramelised onion and cheddar cheese on a perfect pastry base covered in BBQ sauce. It was probably one of the best restaurant made pizzas I’ve tried. The flavour and quality of the produce was second to none. A truly exceptional tasting pizza!
The “Big Smoke signature pizza
Our second pizza was the healthier vegetarian option Mediterranean, consisting of roast pumpkin, red onion, mushroom, roasted capsicum, baby spinach, cheddar cheese and crumbled feta. Once again a quality pizza with superb flavour combinations and fabulous local produce.
A Mediterranean Pizza
Hahndorf’s Farm shed offers it customers some excellent food, in the comfort of Australia’s first Lutheran school. Although the price of meals can become expensive, there is no doubt about the quality of the food served and the freshness of the produce. Hahndorf is definitely one of those not to miss towns in South Australia, so spend a couple of days there. Make sure you have a meal at the Farm Shed and tell them, Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
Additional information
64 Main Street, Hahndorf SA 5245
Ph: 0451978848 or 0433155988
Website: www.farmshedonline.com
It’s our last morning in Victor Harbor, the birds are making their morning calls, and there’s a slight chill in the air. Encounter Bay is calm, and George the friendly Pelican is sitting on his rock. He’s patiently waiting for a local fisherman to come along and give him some breakfast. Unfortunately there’s no fisherman today and like us George has to hunt down his own breakfast. He heads off to fish and we make our way to Café Bavaria.
That’s George waiting for breakfast from the local fisherman.
Located in the heart of Victor Harbor, Café Bavaria offers their customers indoor or al fresco dining and from the number of people situated at the tables you can tell it is quite popular. There are some workers in uniforms having breakfast together and some tourists like us looking for a good nourishing start to the day.
Inside Café Bavaria
As it is still a little cold, and I’m a little precious, I convince Josie to sit inside at one of the small tables. As the name of the café suggests Café Bavaria is German influenced and the menu reflects the same, with some German dishes. The interior of the cafe isn’t fancy; there are a few scattered tables, a service counter and a full cake display.
Look at all those fresh cakes! I wonder if I’ll be able to fit a slice in?
As I’m feeling a little hungry we select their “Full Monty” breakfast option, a serve of pancakes and two café lattes for that coffee fix.
The morning coffee fix
The pancakes were served with cream, maple syrup and blueberry compote. The three perfectly round pancakes were light and fluffy and the cream, maple syrup and blueberry compote gave them a sweet delicious finish.
Sweet pancakes with cream, maple syrup and blueberry compote
The aptly named dish the Full Monty comes with eggs of your choice. In this case poached, bacon, knackwurst sausage, grilled tomato, mushrooms, a hash brown and continental toast. The food was good and piled up of each other and we were unable to finish the entire meal. This would definitely be my go to meal if I was suffering from a hangover and in need of a large breakfast.
Now this is the Full Monty
Verdict
Café Bavaria is a good place to have breakfast. The meals are quite large so make sure you bring your appetite. Service is quick and efficient and the coffees are small but very good. In regards to price, the meals do give you value for money. The shop may become busy quickly, so make sure you time your visit carefully. You may have to do some sightseeing around the foreshore before a table becomes free. So if you are looking for a good hearty breakfast in Victor Harbor try Café Bavaria. Enjoy the large meals and remember to tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
Additional information
Café Bavaria 11 Albert Place, Victor Harbor
Ph: (08) 8552 7505
Website: www.cafebavaria.com.au
