Restaurant: Hotel Victor

Restaurant: Hotel Victor
http://www.victorhotels.com.au/
Victor Harbor


For those who have been to the hotel Victor in the past.... you will be shocked!!

The tacky Vegas carpet is GONE!

The toilets have been moved to the back of the old lounge area, leaving room for side windows opening out to the street to be put in. The place has been transformed into a great-looking modern pub.

I went with a large group from work. Someone was told the Chicken burgers in the cafe were fantastic so we all headed off to give them a try.
Imagine the disappointment when we were told on arrival that the Cafe kitchen was flooded, and we couldn't order from that menu. We decided to stay despite having to order from the dining room menu.




At my end of the table, a couple ordered Caeser salads. One ordered a Chicken Caeser without egg, and the other ordered a plain Caeser with no anchovies. When brought out there was confusion as the plain Chicken Caeser without the egg, did not have chicken on it. As this was being explained, the waitress rudely remarked that "her arm was going to fall off" if she didn't put the plates down. After some time, the chicken for the Caeser was brought out seperately.All three people who ordered the Caeser's remarked that there was way too much bacon in the salad. The eggs looked fantastic, and were runny as you would hope, but were cold.

The prawn rissotto looked very nice but was a huge disappointment. I don't even think that it was finished. The lack of flavour may have been fixed with a bit of garlic.

One of the specials of the night, was stuffed peppers. The chef made a huge mistake with this one! Obviously to hold the peppers intact, toothpicks were put through them prior to cooking. Unfortunately he/she didn't take them out before baking the peppers covered in sauce and cheese! Luckily they were discovered before being swallowed! Not good!

On a positive note, my special of Vietnamese Chicken Salad was fantastic. The flavours were very well balanced. The chicke was lovely and tender. A great dish!

The steak was presented very well, and was cooked as ordered.

Next time, I am going to order the mussels. They looked so good and one of my favourite things is a bowl of mussels and a cold beer! Still wouldn't mind trying that chicken burger one day!

Shopping: Sugar and Spice Cakes
190 Goodwood Rd
Millswood SA

http://www.sugarandspicecakes.com.au/contact.htm



My daughter turned 11 a couple of weeks ago. She is on this hippy chick stage, and when asked what kind of cake she wanted, she said she wanted something colourful with happy faces and peace signs. There was no question that I would get Sugar and Spice to do the cake.



They did such a fantastic job........ as usual! I only gave them that description which my daughter gave me, and this is what they came up with! ($85) They even made a small gluten free cupcake, decorated in the same style for one child that needed a gluten free piece. (no extra charge)

While living in Adelaide, I got them to do a couple of cakes for me, and was never disappointed. Now that we live an hour away, I still use them and will continue to do so. The above cake was for one of my daughter's parties. She wanted a "Cook Island" themed party. It was so much fun and the cake as amazing.

My son's pirate-themed birthday. We added the spiders as he was/is bug obsessed.

My son's Pokemon cake.

The flavour choices for birthday cakes is huge! They include: chocolate mousse , white chocolate mousse, ebony and ivory, hazelnut torte, chocolate truffle cake,strawberry gateaux, carrot and walnut cake, lemon cheesecake, chocolate cheesecake, lemon and poppyseed, mud cakes (various flavours), fudge cakes (various flavours),tira mi su, blackforest,chocolate hedgehog,banana cake and banana caramel pie. YUM!

The staff are very friendly, and the day I picked up the recent cake, there were many people in ordering wedding cakes. Sugar and Spice are an Adelaide institution when it comes to wedding cakes, and the huge display of beautiful and unique cakes in store is great.

Restaurant: The Flying Fish
Horseshoe Bay
Port Elliot
http://www.flyingfishcafe.com.au/



This is by far one of my favourite restaurants. Not just in SA, but of all time. Affectionately known as "The Fish" by locals and foodies, it is the PERFECT place for lunch. Great food and a great location with an amazing view, keeps bringing people back.
The summer brings out huge amounts of people to Horseshoe Bay, for Surf Lifesaving, or just a swim in the beautiful bay. Not to mention a jump off the jetty!


I have eaten here many times, and can honestly say, I have never been disappointed with my meal.
The most recent visit, was a VERY hot day. SA was in a disgusting heat wave.
As always, the wait staff were fantastic. I was seated by my "favourite" waitress. She is so attentive, and fantastic at her job. She recognised me and mentioned that I would probably order two entrees rather than a main, personal attention is always a bonus!

The heat was incredible, and I watched as she checked on every table's comfort, as well as bringing ice periodically to top up water on the table, keeping it cool. Despite the heat, the place was almost full by 1:15, indicating to me that no matter how uncomfortable the weather may be, the food is worth it!
The heat brought out the worse in some people and the table across from me, was a nightmare. The young waitress certainly had her hands full with the rude attitude of those customers. Substituting orders, answering phones constantly, loudly speaking about their last trip to Europe etc etc........ it was truely nauseating and I give that waitress huge points for not letting them get to her. I know as a customer I was surely sick of them, especially their phones ringing!

I did, as expected ordered two entrees. There are so many wonderful things to choose from on this menu, you really HAVE to have two dishes! http://www.flyingfishcafe.com.au/pdf/lunch.pdf




My first course was
Finely sliced raw market fish w a new style sashimi broth & coconut vinaigrette ($15)


On a hot day, the delicate flavours of the raw fish was beautiful. The presentation was beautiful and simple........ very Japanese. I thought the Asian napkin under the broth was a real lovely touch.


I found the terminology of "broth" somewhat confusing. I would think that a broth would be something you drink... like a soup. It is probably my ignorance, but I did not do that, dipping the fish in the broth. The broth had a very strong soy taste, surely not something you would drink, but dip. The fish was incredibly fresh, melting in my mouth. Perfect and very reasonably priced. The only thing I would suggest is less broth and more waikeme!

For my second course I had the Grilled marinated Quail w a Kim Chee salad & sesame lime mayonnaise ($15). A wonderful dish which I have had before. Again a simple, Japanese-style presentation. Just beautiful. The lime mayo perfect with the spices on the quail.

I had a couple glasses of Sauv Blanc with my meal which was fantastic. The wine list at the Fish is really good. In fact, I brought a group of people a few months ago to a set dinner, and a good friend, who is Swiss French with a great appreciation for wine, (and with a substantial cellar), was very impressed. There is a extensive collection of local wines, but they have also made sure to have the best of other regions and countries as well. Italian, French and Portuguese wines are also on offer including a fantastic French bubbly range. http://www.flyingfishcafe.com.au/pdf/winelist.pdf

The music was at a perfect level, playing Norah Jones and Jack Johnson... perfect.

The deck outside is also a great place to eat. Although I was in the restaurant this time, I have had fish and chips outside a number of times, and have always been so happy with our meal. The fish is always so full of flavour and the atmosphere, of sitting on the deck or even on the beach with a cone of amazing fish and hand-cut chips is such a treat!

I didn't order dessert, but have had dessert here before and the presentation of those dishes is like a work of art. Although part of their winter menu, so not available right now we had:
Poached baby pears suspended in a white chocolate custard tart, served ẃ
a hazelnut praline crumble & vanilla syrup
Winter fruit & saffron tarte tatlin ẃ house made butterscotch ice cream & Persian fairy floss
House made green tea ice cream ẃ caramel nori wafers & liquored dark chocolate caviar
Amazing combinations!
Their summer dessert menu looks great. I might just have to indulge next time! http://www.flyingfishcafe.com.au/pdf/dessert.pdf

Courtney and all of her staff should be so proud of the consistency of great food and service.

Winery: Producers of McLaren Vale
126 Branson Road, McLaren Vale
http://www.producers.net.au/index.html
Function: Hallelujah
A Leonard Cohen Pre-Concert Lunch

Prior to the magical concert of Leonard Cohen for A Day on the Green
with Paul Kelly & Augie March at Leconfield Winery, we had a long leisurely lunch at Producers of McLaren Vale.

There were 7 of us in the group including my children.

On arrival, we were greeted with some fantastic Riesling. Three vintages were offered: 2006, 2007, and 2008. The 2006 was by far the best, and complimented beautifully the goat curd on crostini with Producers olive oil drizzled on top.
We were also served a lovely duck liver pate on crostini and olives. They were very generous with the wine, and our group left with a few bottles of the "Wally's Block" Riesling 2006 ($20). "Tori", who organised the function, was very accommodating and friendly with my children which I really appreciated. She made sure they had something to drink and that they were happy.

We were seated at a long table, in a room with a lovely view over the vineyard and the Willunga Hills. The group was smaller than I would have imagined, with less than 30 taking advantage of the close proximity to the concert.

The lunch was served as a cold lunch, which being such an incredibly hot day, was a perfect idea.

Mt Compass Tenderloin served with Horseradish Cream. The cream was perfectly light, with just enough horseradish for a bit of bite. The tenderloin was cooked perfectly. A lovely tender medium rare.

The potatoes were lovely, crunchy and light.

The green beans were presented in the most unique way!! Cooked fantastically, they were then topped with almonds and grated egg. The whites and yolk were grated separately, giving a stunning presentation with the green white and yellow combination.

This was my absolute favourite! I love beetroot and this dish was perfect with goat curd and pistachio nuts. YUM!

The chicken was cooked beautifully and was perfect served cold.

In general the lunch was fantastic. The price of $80 a head was very reasonable considering the wine that we drank. Not only was there never- ending riesling offered with the crostini, we were also offered Cab Sauv and Shiraz during our lunch. I did find the price for the kids at $70 excessive, however I understand that if they were occupying a seat that could have been filled by an adult, they would have to charge that.

The buffet style of serving the food as it seemed to "cheapen" the experience. I think someone serving each person seated, then placing the food on the table, would have been better.

After such a long lunch, and a few glasses of wine, we would have really appreciated a coffee. Especially when they served us decadent mulberries and Alexandrina cream, but it was not offered.

After having lunch here, I visited their web site (as above) and was really excited to see they had wine and cheese making courses and so much more. Take a look at the "Producer's Calender"... so many fantastic things to offer!

Restaurant: Whaler's Inn
Waterside Restaurant
Location: Encounter Bay

I was a little hesitant, having "Whaler's" as my first entry, as I had had a number of bad experiences there, but I pushed on and my kids and ex husband joined me.
The thing that really strikes you about Whaler's Inn, is its beautiful location. It looks over stunning Encounter Bay, and sea birds are always hanging about the rocks and tide pools. I know that is why I have kept coming back, regardless of my disappointments in the past.

The restaurant was very full, (being tourist season, and also a long weekend). The staff greeted us as soon as we walked in, and cleared a table quickly for us. Unfortunately, in a change of hands, the table was re-set before being wiped down. We were asked if we wanted drinks almost immediately, and given the wine list right away.

The wine list was very good. Alot of regional wines, and good prices. There was a lack of a good sparkling however, so for a celebration you may be scrambling to find something festive. We settled on the Bremerton Sauv Blanc fron Langhorne Creek. ($30) The wine was poured without tasting, but a perfect bottle of wine. My ex husband's glass was dirty, a problem that should have been picked up when the glasses were shined up after washing.

The menu was very simple and I settled on the Coffin Bay Oysters that came with Thai dipping sauce ($15), while my ex, had flavoured bread with sundried tomato and relish ($7.50) to start. For our mains I ordered Coconut Battered Flathead served on Panfried Greens topped with coriander, tomato salsa and balsamic glaze ($19) while he ordered the King George Whiting with fresh lemon and preserced lemon ailoli served with garden salad and shoestring fries ($29). The kids ordered the pasta from the very good children's menu.

The oysters were fantastic. Very fresh and tasty. The Thai dipping sauce was very light, pefect for the big taste of the brilliant Coffin Bay Oysters.

I found the bread boring and lacking not only in presentation, but in flavour as well.

The kids' pasta was a very substantial size, but they weren't very impressed with the flavour. Both of them commented that the pasta sauce was very sweet.

My main although reasonably priced was not as good as I hoped it would be.

The batter was very thick, and I could not taste the coconut. There was no corriander as stated on the menu. The vegetables were perfectly cooked however, nice and crunchy and the presentation was really well done.

Our other main was even more of a disappointment. For $10 more than mine, it was definately not worth it. The batter was so thick, you coudn't even tell it was King George Whiting in there. The fries were store bought, which always annoys me in a good restaurant, and the salad was really basic. The preserved lemon aioli was fantastic however, very well done.

We did not have dessert, but the kids had their ice cream from the kid's meal which again as a really good size.

They have done some renovating inside the restaurant, which is looking really so much better. The large blackboard and the open space to the lounge has really made the place look great. It still has that hotel restaurant feel though, and apart from changing the furniture and lowering the ceiling, I don't know that could be fixed.

The music was good, jazz piano, a nice touch while eating but could have been a touch louder.

The menu in general I found to be boring and unimaginative. The seafood platter for two, however, was $95 and includes half a crayfish! Great value!