Big Boy BBQ #764

My mother gave Dad the best Fathers Day present ever - his first son.  Given that I don't think I could ever top this, I gave Mark nothing for Fathers Day - I think he is used to it.

The whole family did take him out for dinner to "Big Boy BBQ" which cheered him up after the dismal Tigers loss.  Kind of.............

We walk into this American style diner and snag a booth up the back.  Loud blues music trumpets over head and the booths are full of families making a fuss of Dad.  It is a Dad sort of place as the main star are huge meat platters.  Lisa, who is getting close to being a vegetarian is not amused.  Really not amused.

We go for the $99 "Big Boy" platter.  You cannot get any bigger and it claims to feed 1 to 6 people.  Let's see how we go.

The platter includes;

• Saucy beef brisket
• Beef pastrami
• Pulled pork scotch fillet
• Pulled lamb shoulder
• 1/2 rack of Kansas City pork ribs
• 1/2 rack of lamb ribs
• Regular wings
• 3 sides of your choice - we went for crunchy chips, chilli con carne chips and the green salad with fat free dressing (our attempt at being healthy)

I went up to the counter to order and then they brought it to us.  We need to get our own ice, plates and cutlery.

Not recommended

The guy that owns this place went over to research the whole American BBQ thing so apparently this is going to be authentic.  I wonder whether some American chap has come over here and researched our authentic fish and chip shop and has brought it back to suburban America - burgers with the lot, chip oil changed weekly and dim sims on the counter?  Maybe even an old chiko roll poster on the wall?  It would be nice to think so.

The wait isn't too long - just long enough to work out some creative ways to destroy my Blackberry - good times.

So what was good?  The Pastrami was the least favoured (I liked it - I think it would go well in my Don Shaved meat range).  It was smokey and would go really well in sandwiches.  The Chilli con carne chips were a hit.  The Grape fizzy drink tasted like medicine - don't order it.

The chicken was a hit - there was none left for me to try.  The ribs were slow cooked and just amazing.  All of the meat was place on bread which becomes permeated with the BBQ sauce.  Pretty cool.  The napkins are paper towels on rolls and they need to be that heavy duty because it is a messy experience.  Sally was they paper towel operator and her services were in great demand.  Well done Sally.

This is dude food and its finest.  I liked it.  Lisa never wants to walk in here again.  Ever.

Radha #796

We have crossed the road.

Yep, we are now heading west back down Glenhuntly Rd and we are probably half way through our challenge. 



Fine Dining

 To mark the occasion we have invited the kids out.  We are going to another Indian restaurant and like all the Indian Restaurants we have been to so far, there is no one in it.  Yes, all the other restaurants on Glenhuntly Rd rock on a Sunday evening except if they are Indian.  (or that Chinese one from a few Sunday's ago).


Poppadoms on a basket covered in
Aluminium Foil?????

 Well actually, there is one patron in Radha's.  He seems like a homeless man and he is loudly chanting "bloody arsehole".  He then starts talking a whole lot of very loud crap.  We sit at a table by the window and try not to stair, hoping he will GO AWAY.  And he does.  Thank you.

We stare over at "Sapa Rivers" restaurant which is heaving at the seams with people and we recite lines from "The Castle" to amuse ourselves.  No music.  No "9" in front of the phone number painted on the window (how long ago was it when the "9" came in - more than 10 years?), wow, an old paint job.

However, the food is not old.  We order pakoras, lamb biriyani, saag paneer, fish mekhani, chicken marsala and roti.  (well we do have Matt with us).  All hand made, with some kick and nice unconfronting suburban flavours.  The saag paneer is voted the favourite - you really can't go past the creamy spinach dish).  The lamb biryani is voted the poorest dish with the lamb being a bit tough; definitely not slow cooked.

No one enters all night so I would not recommend opening an Indian restaurant in Caulfield Sth or Elsternwick.  It is just not going to fly.  However, we have enjoyed it and Lisa now has enough fuel for her PE lesson tomorrow.  They are doing "Ultimate Frisbee".  What the?

Matsuzaka #809

Remember when the kids were young and you never went out?  If you did, you were so tired you just went to the nearest restaurant and marvelled at being child free for a couple of hours?  Matsuzaka was one of those restaurants we bolted to when we had a few child free hours.  It was a real treat.

Matsuzaka was also the first restaurant we took the kids to for Teppanyaki.  Matt caught the food in his mouth - I can't remember whether Lisa and Sally did.



Parsley?  Really?

 We haven't been back for years as we have found a new favourite Japanese place to go to which will feature on this blog when we get to it.  So, we were wondering whether it was still a decent Japanese restaurant or not.  The first thing we noticed was that there were Japanese dining here which is always a good sign.  The place was busy, humming and trays filled with beers were coming out.

Matt had lost his footy grand final just a couple of hours ago so we were ready for a drink.  Gee, we had to be patient though.  Service was slow and when we finally got glasses they were served to us by a waitress with blue plastic gloves on.  Weird , off putting but definitely germ free.  Another first.

Also another first was the twigs on the roof.  I tried to take a photo of them but it was beyond the Blackberry's camera.  No wonder they have gone broke.

We ordered a main size sashimi to share for an entree.  After a long wait we were served a not particularly dramatic looking sashami plate with 4 types of fish on.  There was tuna, salmon, yellow tail king fish and something else we couldn't work out.  It was delicious anyway.

The kobe steak (eye fillet steak cooked with green garlic and soy sauce) was an absolute highlight.  Just melt in your mouth gorgeousness.  The spinach dish was artistic but rather bland.

All up, this is a good serviceable Japanese restaurant that is relatively cheap enough so that you can bring the kids and introduce them to tepanyaki and food throwing.

Orient #829

Things that were once really popular but have now been taken over by something better;

1.  Blackberry phones
2.  Coffee machines that dripped the coffee through a paper filter
3.  Walkman
4.  Phonecalls
5.  Video rental shops
6.  The macarena
                         7.  Chinese restaurants

So here we are at a Chinese restaurant. The door is really difficult to open.  I don't think it gets much use.   It is dead quiet.  There is no one here and only one couple enter throughout our visit.  Chinese restaurants have been over taken by other cuisines in this neighbourhood and fair enough too.  There is just not enough flavour to these dishes and we have all got a bit more sophisticated over the years.

The kids are with us and we take a seat at a table with a Lazy Susan.  This is the highlight of the night; spinning the Lazy Susan and rehashing the old conversation about why it is called Susan?  Anybody?

Rice paper rolls -deep fried

The ambiance is terrible; bright lights, paint chipped walls and silence except for the Chinese shouting happening in the kitchen.

The food is bland.  We order Chicken with cashews, fried rice, beef with black bean sauce, pork with BBQ sauce (probably the highlight) and fish curry.  The entrees come out murdered by the deep frier - even the rice paper rolls. 

The bowls are chipped and why do we only get the one bowl?  All the sauces get mixed up and the sauce from the last dish you ate imposes on the new dish.  This whole cuisine needs a rethink.

Still, it was nice to go out with the family and spin our food around.  Do go somewhere else.