Day 7 - Movida

Once again, it is time to bid farewell. Sadly, all good things must come to an end. For May Cy's final day of her visit to Melbourne, I took her to Movida, a Spanish Tapas Bar for dinner. They were booked out as usual so we sat at the bar. We ordered 5 tapas and 3 racions.

We had roasted lamb cutlet encased in Catalan pork & paprika pate, half shell scallop oven baked with jamon and potato foam, cantabrian artisan anchovy on crouton with smoked tomato sorbet, Hunter Valley quail boned, filled with mahon cheese and crumbed, air cured wagyu beef thinly sliced with a truffle foam and poached egg, oven roasted portabello mushrooms finished with sherry vinegar and pan seared marinated cuttlefish with chickpeas, mint & tomato salad. We were so full at the end of the meal that we had no space for dessert. Unfortunately the lighting was very poor so I did not get good photos. Here's what I managed.

Cantabrian artisan anchovy on crouton with smoked tomato sorbet

The award winning air cured wagyu beef thinly sliced with a truffle foam and poached egg.

Roasted lamb cutlet encased in Catalan pork & paprika pate

I drove May Cy to Tullamarine airport for her flight to Perth later in the night. Lucky girl gets to continue her holidays for two more weeks while I go back to work. Hopefully I will survive my day back at work as I am down with sorethroat, cough, flu and fever. Help.

Day 6 - Mt Dandenong & Lygon St

We went to Mount Dandenong and our first stop was at Sassafras where Miss Marples famous scone is. The crowd was so long that we had to wait 45 minutes for a table. We got tired of waiting so left without sampling the scones. Instead we had some Dutch mini pancakes called Poffertjes. It was a welcome delight as it was nice and hot off the pan and we topped it with maple syrup.

Miss Marples Tea Room in Sassafras Mt Dandenong

Roasting a marshmellow

Yummy Dutch mini pancakes

Our next stop was Sky High and the view was quite scenic. We could see Melbourne CBD in the distant horizon. By then, it was getting dark so we made our way to Belgrave where Puffing Billy, (steam train) is. I remember going on it 13 years ago with my brother. This time, there was no Puffing Billy in sight so we left.

Sky High, Mt Dandenong

We headed to Cafe Cavallino on Lygon St for some Italian food. The owner is a big Ferrari F1 fan thus the shop is filled with Ferrari F1 souvenirs and memorabilia. If you are a fan of Michael Schumacher you will find many photos of him. Cafe Cavallino makes good pizzas. The pizza base is good and the dough is nice and chewy. The ingredients used are very fresh and they are quite generous with the toppings. Service is good and the staff are very attentive. We didn't have to wait too long for our food and the price is very reasonable.

Keith at Cafe CavallinoLambrusco wine

Siciliana pasta

Minestrone soup

Prosciutto, rocket, olives, tomato and cheese pizza

Pizza paescano - salami, tomato, potato, mushroom and olives

After dinner we headed to Brunetti cafe for dessert. Keith had a lemon cheesecake which was not overly rich and not too sweet. May Cy had an orange sponge cake which was done to perfection. I had the tiramisu but did not like it. It was slightly bitter and did not contain enough sponge fingers. It had no kick to it, lacking in the liquer/coffee department. I reckon my tiramisu and Keith's beats theirs anytime.

Brunetti cafe on Faraday St, Carlton

Day 5 - Queen Victoria Market and St Kilda

We went to Queen Victoria Market as May Cy wanted to buy some macadamia nuts. We grazed on Spanish doughnuts, American doughnuts and Bratwurst hot dog for lunch. The Spanish doughnuts also known as churros at QVM is my favourite as the dough is very light and not too sweet. Later in the afternoon we went to St Kilda and Middle Reserve Park.

European deli
Bread and pastry shop
Outside Queen Vic Market
Luna Park, St Kilda
One of the cake shops on Acland St, St Kilda
Apple strudle from Acland Cake Shop
Spanish Doughnuts at San Churros
Look! A llama on St Kilda pedestrian walk way.
Even the dogs were curious and puzzled at this strange creature
Dogs sniffing the llama's butt
Keith and I at the Middle Reserve Park
St Kilda's tourist attraction

Day 4 - Rockpool

Keith was not feeling well so we stayed home for most of the day. We arrived in Crown at 6:30pm and wandered around the riverbank and shops. Our booking at Rockpool was for 9pm but we were rather hungry so we asked if we could dine earlier at the bar. Lady luck was smiling at us so we managed to get a table at 7:45pm. We spotted Neil Perry the celebrity chef and owner of Rockpool and got him to sign our copy of his cookbook and took a photo as well. The food was sublime and we had a great time. Service was excellent. Now for photos...

May Cy and I along the riverbank of Crown Casino
Admiring the aged beef that was hanging outside one of the restaurants in Crown Complex
May Cy sitting in the lobby of Crown HotelMay Cy and I at Crown Hotel
Rockpool's logo
The kitchen
A waitress walking past the kitchen.
May Cy May Cy and IKeithMay Cy's starter - Slow Cooked Egg with Bone Marrow on Brioche with Red Wine SauceKeith's starter - King Prawns with Goat’s Cheese Tortellini, Burnt Butter, Raisins and Pine NutsMy starter - Four Raw Tastes of the Sea - from Right to Left - Kingfish, Salmon, Tuna and ScampiKeith's Sirloin on the Bone May Cy's portion of the Rib-Eye on the Bone 750g 36 days for two shared with meSide order of Mac and Cheese
Dessert - Strawberry Salad with Vanilla Pannacotta and Rose Granita Prune and Armagnac Crème Brulee Chocolate and vanilla bean ice cream
Keith with Neil Perry

Rockpool is highly recommended. Do make it a point of dining there at least once if you are in Melbourne. I am getting hungry just by labeling the photos. As usual, we forgot to take photos of our dessert until half way through.