So much eatiing...

It's been four weeks since the end of my Easter Staycation and the days have just blitzed by. MP and I celebrated the anniversary of our first date, thirteen years ago, with a delicious dinner at Restaurant Arras. We went on April 10th, the day after the Easter long weekend, and found ourselves the only patrons at the sleek and stylish restaurant. Alon, the Maitre d, informed us that it usually costs $10,000 to book out the restaurant. We felt very special.  

Since Justin North shipped his crew up to the new Westfield, Arras moved into the old Becasse site at 204 Clarence Street. MP and I dined at Becasse on New Years Eve 2009, and the meal was spectacular...

Arras was even better.

From start to finish, the meal was an artistic affair. Ten courses of mouth magic delivered through duck liver parfait, flavour punching clam noodles, tuna nicoise with bean puree, juicy scallops (potato and the seafood kind), tender duck, veal cooked to perfection... and the desserts! Oh, the desserts! Even with the petit fours, we were presented with a smorgasbord of peanut brittle, toasted marshmallow on sticks, jellies, chocolates, meringues and more... and we were free to take whatever we wanted! I was so taken aback by the big platter presented to us, that I completely forgot to take a photo. But you can see in the picture above, the small pink and blue platters which housed our final selections. By this stage of the meal, we were both supporting rolly polly bellies and were ready to be tipped over and rolled home, so we were conservative with our pickings.

I haven't even mentioned the wines which complemented each course perfectly. I must say that you really get your money's worth with the wine course. It was a one to one pairing and we even got a cocktail with our H'orderves!

All in all, we had a fantastic meal. The food, the wine, Alon and Ralph (our waiter) made it a very special night for us.


MP and I have been eating out a lot over the past few weeks. Yes, we're enjoying the DINK lifestyle as much as we can, now that we've seen what bubbies do to free time through all our friends who have had recent new additions to their family. Just yesterday, we had lunch at a new cafe which has opened up in Alexandria called "The Grounds". It was only it's fourth opening weekend and was absolutely packed to the brim. We had to wait 45 minutes for a table, but they had a sweet little herb and vegetable garden outside where queuers could grab take away coffees and wait. I enjoyed a rich hot chocolate and MP, a smooth, velvety cappucino, as we sat amongst aromatic oregano, adolescent aubergines... and chooks. Was the wait worth it?

"Yes" for me.
"Not really" for MP.

I'm a sucker for Ginger Beer and this one came in a rustic jar with a sprig of fresh mint. Lunch was chicken schnitzel complemented with home made coleslaw and mint sauce. The chicken was tender and the mint sauce added a unique touch to the coleslaw. MP had the roast beef salad, which was thrown together with pecorino, capers, roasted tomatoes and rocket. We also ordered a side of their hand-cut fries which came with a delicious chilli-mayo. Lunch came to around $45, including a piccolo coffee. Very reasonable in my opinion.

I really liked The Ground, but MP ducted points due to their bad queueing system. They don't take your phone numbers down. Rather, the maitre d writes down your name and a guestimate time of when he thinks he'll have a table ready for you, and tells you to come back at that time. When you come back at that time, there are other people mulling around who have also been told the same time. Then it's all down to the Maitre d's memory on who arrived on time first, as to who gets seated first. It's all a bit messy and can be unfair. For example, we were welcomed to a table first, even though there was another couple who had been told they were next.

The Grounds is a great place to go if you live in the area. The address is 7A, 2 Huntley St, Alexandria. MP thinks that the queues are just because of their "shiny and new" tag, but I think the rustic environment, the fresh food and the reasonable prices, makes The Grounds a keeper.

So yes, we've spent the last few weekends feasting. Other new places we have tried include Kitchen at Mikes (also in Alexandria) and Restaurant Sixteen in Neutral Bay. Both are highly recommended. Eating aside, life has been pottering along nicely. Our Asia Trip is just three weeks away and I very much look forward to seeing all our family and friends. I've been dreaming about all the amazing food we will be gauging on. 20 days and counting!