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| Fancy Socks Socks: Gorman |
Today I had on my new 'Gorman' socks. I am a massive fan of their socks. I own at least half a dozen pairs and get comments on them all the time. How funny, comments on my socks!! They are from the exclusive 'Rhys Lee' collection. Rhys Lee is a Melbourne based artist who has collaborated with 'Gorman' to produce a 21 piece collection. I love the quirky prints, especially 'droplet', the one featured on my socks. It is quite textural using a grainy beige as the background with different shades of pink and a silver sparkly element to give it even more texture. I have my eye on the 'Mr Mysterious' leggings. I have tried them on. They are very unusual but I haven't quite decided if I need them in my life!
I have dined at 'Chiswick' in Woollarha several times now but I feel like I have skipped over giving it a proper review! Unfortunately I did not realise this until after I had left the restaurant so I failed to get any pictures of the decor or the menu, sorry! I am back there for a dinner next month so I will pay more attention to detail then!
First of all, the building is incredible both during the day and at night. 'Chiswick' is located in a big greenhouse type building in the middle of Chiswick Gardens on Ocean Street. During the day you are able to view the lovely park from any of the three glass walls of the restaurant. At night, it looks magnificent all alight and airy.
They do two sittings, 6pm and 8pm and I recommend booking well in advance. You can also walk in and hopefully snag a seat at the long communal bar or the two communal tables at the back of the bar. You are able to order from the full menu so not to worry!
The large dining area is separated from the bar and open kitchen by another glass wall. It features a mixture of lovely large wooden, circular tables and wooden square tables. White bentwood chairs with plush green leather centres surround the tables. Everything feels very fresh, crisp and clean. It has a country-esk vibe.
Everytime I have dined at 'Chiswick' the floor staff have been incredibly friendly and helpful. My latest experience proved this when we ordered fish that came with clams. Both KJ and I are highly allergic to clams and we had to be made certain that the clams came into absolutely no contact with the fish if we were going to eat it. This was no problem at all. Our chirpy waitress said they have requests like this all the time and are more than happy to accommodate.
The menu is fresh and simple and aimed at using seasonal produce. The dishes are designed for sharing and grazing. 'Chiswick' has its own garden out the back, which you are able to view whilst eating. The menu changes seasonally as there is a high focus on using the freshest produce from their garden.
Their 'Spring Menu' comprises nibbles, small plates, mains, mains to share, sides and sweets.
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| Snow Crab Slider $9.5 each |
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| Char Grilled Carrots $11 Red Cabbage Salad $14 Char grilled scallops $24 |
We started with the 'chargrilled carrots with smoked almonds, cumin and lemon' from the nibbles section. It was lovely and light and a very pretty dish to look at. It was also the first time I have ever eaten a red carrot! We also had our favourite dish on the menu the 'snow crab slider with lettuce and kewpie mayonnaise'. Thank goodness these have stayed on the menu. The battered snow crab is lined with delicious mayonnaise and lettuce and sandwiched between a perfectly sweet and crispy brioche bun. Mouth watering!
From the small plates we ordered the 'red cabbage, fennel, cavolo nero and dill salad'. You could taste the freshness of the vegetables. It was like they had just been plucked from the garden. We also had the stunning, juicy 'char grilled scallops with potato skordalia, capsicums and capers. They are amongst the best we have ever had and a real favourite. Shame you don't get more on the plate though!
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| Baby gem, peas, lemon and mint $15 Steamed Broccoli $10 |
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| Dory and Curly Kale To Share $61 |
We have previously shared the lamb shoulder and the roast chicken so tonight KJ and I opted to share the whole 'roasted dory with curly kale and lemon'. It was a lot of fish, defiantly more than the two of us could eat! It was cooked to perfection though. It fell apart with the touch of your fork. The crispy skin was also delicious. I however, found it a little salty. KJ did not, she even added more salt! Each to their own! GJ loved his risotto and apparently 'Chiswick' does a mean risotto. The spring risotto is 'artichoke with broad beans and marjoram'. It wasn't a huge serving but I thought it was enough with the sides that we ordered. GJ felt as though it was only entree size. It was creamy and the artichoke gave it an interesting flavour even though their were only two pieces of artichoke! The rice was cooked well and the flavours of the other vegetables were infused within it.
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| Artichoke Risotto $30 |
They do a lovely, fresh steamed broccoli with garlic and chilli which went well with our fish. We also had a side salad of baby gem, peas, mint and lemon. It was light had been dressed very well although there was really not much to it!
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| EBT $5.50 Bombe Alaska $17 |
Being probably the biggest fans of bombe alaska ever we were excited to see it on the menu. All of us ordered the 'bombe alaska with fresh raspberries'. It was hard to go past the 'chocolate tart' but I have had it before. The 'bombe alaska' was not very big at all. Unfortunately you do not get to see it being lit and flaming, which really is half the fun. The outside was fluffy and the vanilla ice cream with sponge cake in the middle were very nice. There were no fresh raspberries, just raspberry coulee. It did, however, compliment the 'bombe alaska' very well. It was a delicious dessert but it wasn't out of this world.
To accompany our meal I had a glass of '2010 Barlett's Shiraz'. It was hearty and went down well on a cold night. Both KJ and GJ had a 'kafier lime and lemongrass home made soda'. It was refreshing with a hint of sweetness. Both KJ and I had an 'English Breakfast Tea' with our desserts. Unlike our previous experience on Sunday it was nice to see they used loose leaf tea! They also use an array of various English China and grandma's souvenir spoons. On Sunday ours were very pretty.
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| 2010 Bartletts Shirax $11 per glass Kafier and Lemongrass Soda $7.50 each |
My favourite moment of the night was that our doggy bag of fish (or cat bag) came in a calico tote bag with 'Chiswick's' logo on it. It has become my new lunch bag!
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| Doggy Bag! |
Overall, I always enjoy my experience at 'Chiswick'. I love that it incorporates dishes you would cook at home and family recipes such as Matt Moran's 'family lamb'. The food is fresh and light as is the ambiance. I keep going back so I obviously am quite a fan!
Chiswick
65 Ocean Street
Woollahra NSW 2025
Overall: 8.5/10
Ambiance: 8.5/10
Food: 8.5/10
Drink: 8/10
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