you know something’s going to taste good when you can smell it from really far away, and it looks equally as tantalising up close.
that’s what i took away from this year’s taste of melbourne.
my three favourite dishes?
1. movida’s chargrilled moorish lamb skewers.
admittedly, this was the last dish my friends and i purchased. movida was the first restaurant we encountered and these kebabs were reminiscent of satay (skewers of meat marinated in asian spices) we get back home. but boy, were these an amazing finish to our meal. frank camorra, owner and executive chef of movida, barbecued these himself – and they were done to perfection. juicy, springy, and bursting with flavour. please don’t make the same mistake i did and leave this till the end!
2. movida’s braised pasta with spring bay mussels and calamari.
this. was. sublime. first, i was amazed that the pasta hadn’t gone all mushy despite spending all that time in a paella pan. second, the seafood flavour came through so nicely in every bite. not to mention the mussels and calamari were extremely fresh. for 12 crowns ($12), i felt it was a generous portion. (: really really good as well.
3. mr hive’s summer berry eton mess
berries are one of my biggest weaknesses. give me a punnet of strawberries and i’ll smile for the entire day. but… most berry desserts are mainly quite acidic – not this eton mess though! the yoghurt cream was silky smooth, the berry coulis wasn’t overpowering, and the meringues provided a great textural touch. favourite dessert, hands down. (:
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the rest of the dishes i tried were great, but nothing stood out as much as the above three dishes.
visually though, the point’s suckling pig caught our attentions immediately.
but… being asian, i was more accustomed to a chinese style suckling pig. (:
a snack/entree dish we also really enjoyed was crispy new zealand regal king salmon wings with chilli salt from the bishop of ostia/pope joan’s sustainable pop up.
these were so, so addictive. i just wish salmon wings were more accessible (and i wish i had a deep fryer) so i can recreate this amazing dish (:
it was a cloudy day that turned into a sunny day, and it’s refreshing that taste of melbourne is now an outdoor event. albert park is a beautiful location – just remember to bring your sunnies if you’re going for lunch!
Diane Leow 