When choosing where to take us this weekend I’m convinced Australian Capital Tourism had me and only me in mind.  When I discovered they had booked Poachers Pantry for Saturday lunch I squealed with delight.  Poachers Pantry is a smokehouse with a cafe. The cafe serves an amazing array of their own hot and cold smoked produce. Smoking just happens to be my new favourite cooking method and this place has given me some great inspiration for new cooking adventures.

There were 50 of us enjoying the food and wine, so we didn’t get to choose what we ate. However, having perused the online menu since our visit I can confirm that we received a great selection of typical menu items.

You name it, Poachers Pantry smoke it.  There was beef and chicken, pork and lamb, in multiple different forms including ham, prosciutto and bresaola. All could be eaten unadulterated but were perfectly matched with some cheese, pickles and tapenade.

And if the meat platter was not enough three main course options followed.  As a large group we got to share the smoked chicken, fish and sticky beef ribs.  The only problem I had was to limit my portion size so that I could sample a little of each dish.

I’m struggling to pick the stand out dish of the day.  The smoked chicken breast was served in the style of Saltimboca.  This was so unusual that it left me wanting more.  You can see that heavenly, tell tale ring of smoke around the edge.

The sticky, slow cooked beef ribs was a classic, dish that fell off the bone. Served with a coriander relish and a rich gravy; it was also difficult to say no to seconds and thirds.

I have included a photo of dessert because it was pretty and the rumblings from around the room suggested it was good. I was so full on smoked meat I couldn’t even find my dessert belly so no fennel flower panacotta passed these lips.

It has been over a year since I completed the Charcutepalooza challenge and made meat at home.  Unfortunately when I started making cheese I had to clean the fridge and turn the shelves over to a different food group.  Having tasted all of the amazing Poachers Pantry produce I have been re-inspired to make meat and smoke it with my new found smoking skills.  Second hand fridge shopping here I come.  Watch this space for more smoked goods.

Poachers Pantry is open for brunch, lunch and dinner at weekends. Check the website for specific opening times.

Nic Cooks dined as a Human Brochure competition winner.

Around 1 1/2 – 2 hours from Sydney it’s the perfect distance for a short trip and the area is a food and wine lovers paradise. There are wineries, fresh produce, cheese… Not on the grand scale of other regions of Australia but certainly enough to keep you happy for a few days.

Biota Dining has been on my wish list because of its fresh food philosophy. If they can’t grow it in their kitchen garden they source it from local producers.

We admired their crop of broad beans growing in the garden and sure enough they appeared on our plate for course four, with some Mulloway, Morcilla, spring peas and gelatinous bone stock. The perfect showcase for seasonal delights.

The amuse bouche certainly lived up to its name. The trout “biltong” was like nothing I have tasted before. It shouldn’t work – a dry piece of fish, a touch on the rubbery side – but it does. It left me wondering a) how I could recreate this smoky goodness at home b) if they can do this with smoked trout what on earth are they going to present me with for the following seven courses.

I like to try the tasting menu at restaurants because I like to be challenged with my eating. If the decision is left to me I always go for the same old things. I avoid pasta as I can do that at home, I love duck and venison and fish is good but I’m afraid to say meat will always trump it. Having said that, I am rarely disappointed with the offerings presented to me by the chef and I am often pleasantly surprised. My surprising course for this meal was the cuttlefish. I don’t dislike squid and cuttlefish but I would always choose something else, as I live in fear of ocean tinged rubber bands.

Of course there was not a hint of elastic, and I chastised myself for allowing the thought to even enter my mind. Paired with the salty Jamon, sticky ink and cucumber, (I was challenged by another food no, no; I’m generally not a fan of cucumber) but it worked, and I’ve been persuaded to cook more Cephalopods.

To pick a favourite course of the seven is nigh on impossible. I was torn between the sheep’s curd and pork neck. The sheep’s curd clearly interests me with my current cheese making project. Unfortunately I can’t get hold of sheep’s milk to recreate this at home, but I was impressed by the balance of texture and flavour. There was sharp, soft curd, paired with a sheet of pasta and a crispy, golden crumb. To top it off, there was a slow cooked egg yolk with a sprinkling of egg white pearls.

Biota Dining isn’t just about the food, the restaurant manages to deliver the complete experience with pleasant, modern surroundings and friendly, knowledgeable staff. I often think the staff groan when I enter a restaurant with my camera and my questions. I like to know exactly how my meal was prepared in case I want to give it a go at home. All of the Biota waiters humoured me and my questions and were even happy to engage in conversation about the local wineries and must visit cellar doors.

The waiter was also keen to explain the intricacies of the slow cooked pork neck with slow cooked and charred leek. He even confessed that in isolation the leek shards would be considered “burnt” but when eaten with everything else on the plate it enhanced the experience providing a crispy edge to the otherwise soft, slow cooked ingredients.

To finish the meal we were served a cheese course of bloomy white with carrot marmalade. No longer is a cheese course just a plate of cheese with some biscuits. You know you are in a good restaurant when they turn the cheese course into a dish in it’s own right.

And finally, if six courses are not enough you can complete the afternoon with a light delight of mandarin, meringue and champagne sorbet. It’s the mandarin scented meringue shards that sets this dish apart form your average Eton Mess type dish.

At $124 for seven exquisite courses it actually feels like good value for money and I would definitely be keen to return to sample the menu at different times of the year to examine how the menu changes with the seasons.

Of course I wanted to support these lovely ladies in their new ventures, but part of me was also intrigued to see whether they could pull it off without the cameras watching.  We arrived for the second sitting and were greeted with a full restaurant of diners who clearly didn’t want to leave.  The girls looked very relaxed so I figured we were in for a good night.

I’m not a huge fan of hot chilli in food so I was a little nervous about how much of dinner I would be able to eat, especially as it was a set menu.  Mindy started off the evening with her version of KFC – AKA 3 pepper crispy chicken with a sweet chilli sauce.  Perfect – the sauce was served separately so I could taste just enough to confirm that it was too hot for me. I opted for a drizzle of lemon and enjoyed the chicken in all it’s crispy goodness, minus the chilli.

Just look at the funky way it was served in paper bag.

Bar H is a great destination for a pop-up restaurant offering a cozy, intimate atmosphere.  I would ordinarily love the low, mood lighting, but I’m afraid it doesn’t make for the best photos.

The second course was Audra’s famous beef short ribs.  I have to confess I’ve always been put off by ordering short ribs in restaurants because of the thought of eating off the bone in public, but little did I know that the meat doesn’t necessarily come attached to the bone.  There is a similar version of this recipe on the MasterChef Website.

Served with Chinese greens, the beef was full of flavour and very tender.  The greens were pretty good too.  Actually, the husband went as far as saying they were the best Chinese greens he’d ever eaten (it’s not something I cook with…)

Between course there were plenty of opportunities to watch the girls at work.  The team work you see on TV was clearly evident in the real world and there wasn’t a whiff of pressure or stress.

There was even time to talk to the diners during service which made for a very happy dining room.

As if beef and greens were not enough to fill you up, along came a third course.  I was reliably informed that this dish was also good but after the first mouthful I couldn’t taste anything beyond the burning of my mouth.  Yes, I’m a wuss when it comes to chilli and the Mapo Tempura Tofu beat me.  I did enjoy picking out the cured sausage though.

Thankfully for my mouth, dessert came to extinguish the fire in the form of Lychee Granita. It was served alongside black sesame ice-cream and tapioca.  In all honesty, and not being a dessert person, I wasn’t a huge fan of the ice-cream and the tapioca was texturally challenging for me.  But as a newbie to the dessert world I think I’m still allowed some food phobias.  The rest of the dining room cleared their plates so I think it was just my peculiarities.

I’m not sure how many of these pop up restaurants are scheduled but if last night is anything to go by there certainly should be more.  I suggest you follow these lovely ladies on Twittter for all the latest news, you will find them @AudraMorrice @MindyWoodsMC and @KylieJMillar

At $70 it wasn’t the cheapest set menu I have ever eaten but I was happy to part with my cash for some quality, home cooked food and the privilege of sampling what the MasterChef ladies had to offer.  And of course, who can resist a groupie photo!  Thank you ladies, I look forward to following your journey from here on in.

The Village offers a set menu on a Saturday and Sunday for groups of girls who want to have fun.  When dining out with a large group of girls, especially if it is a hen do, I sometimes feel that many establishments would rather you not be there, but The Village is welcoming groups of women with open arms. No more feeling like you can’t have a giggle and let your hair down.

I don’t venture down to Potts Point that often, but every time I go I’m never disappointed.  If I lived locally I could image The Village to be a regular hangout.  It is essentially a pub, but unlike the majority of Sydney pubs it does have some cozy corners to hide in as well as the more European feeling courtyard and bistro.

There were around twenty of us eating the Saturday I went and they did a great job of catering for such a large group, which gives me confidence for more intimate gatherings.

Like any good shared meal we started off with a generous antipasto platter.  I made a beeline for the bresaola and prosciutto and made sure I didn’t fill up on bread as I knew there were a number of other courses to come.

The beetroot dip came as a bit of a surprise but it was a welcome surprise and it added an unusual element of colour to the antipasto plate.  I think you’d also be satisfied as a vegetarian, as the eggplant and tomatoes were good.

The meal is designed as a series of sharing plates. Next up, salt and pepper squid…

…swiftly followed by the arancini, served with a tomato sauce, Parmesan and basil.

By this point I was starting to get full, but there was still more to come.  I’m a bit fussy when it comes to pizza, and I only really enjoy the traditional Italian style, but The Village did well with the Margherita.  Although The Village do have a more extensive pizza menu, the Margherita is always a safe choice when feeding a crowd, and actually one of my favourites.  I don’t order pizzas that have too many toppings, so this one was perfect for me.  The pizza was also served with a pumpkin and spinach salad and a tomato and bocconcini salad.

As if all that was not enough, there was also dessert.  There are two choices distributed around the table as alternate drop like a wedding reception.  I was glad I was with a friend who was willing to swap, as I definitely had a preference for the gooey, chocolate pudding. Heaven in a pot, this was definitely the highlight of the meal for me.

The crumble was also good, but I don’t like custard, which is what put me off that one.

So what are you waiting for? The Village is the perfect place for your next girlie get together, and good value at $39 a head for all of the above food plus a jug of Pimms.  This offer is available Saturday and Sunday lunchtime for a minimum of 4 people per booking. Booking is essential.

Nic Cooks dined as a guest of The Village.

Briar Ridge is one of those places.  Admittedly, it doesn’t have the best wine in the Hunter, it is not one of James Haliday’s 5 Star wineries for 2012, but it does, according to the Hunter Valley Visitors Guide (2012) have a “consistent record of excellence… for at least two years, with at least two wines rated at 94 points or above”.

But it’s not the wine that keeps us returning to Briar Ridge; don’t get me wrong the wine is good but the food is even better.  The Briar Grillade, hidden amongst the gum trees in the Mount View area of the Hunter, delivers consistently good, freshly cooked food at a very reasonable price.  Every time we visit the menu is different (a distinct selling point in my book) and each time we find multiple dishes that tempt us from the short and simple menu.

Start your visit with a tasting at the wine bar, a selection of barrels with stools where you can sit and work your way through the tasting list, from the Semillon to the Verdelho, followed by the Shiraz, and finishing off with the Muscat Liqueur, affectionately know as “Christmas pudding in a glass”.

You can also order some nibbles or your lunch while you are tasting your way through the wines. During one visit I enjoyed a trio of dips and Turkish bread sat at the barrels. But not on this occasion it was a full on feast in the cafe. It was a bit chilly for me to sit outside this weekend, but it summer sitting in the bush setting is gorgeous, we even spotted a tawny frogmouth with his chicks on one visit.

So what did we eat at this visit?  Well, I can never go past a pate on a menu, but  there were numerous other options that tickled my taste buds, so I persuaded the husband to share a couple of starters.  The pate was a delightful smooth chicken liver and pear affair served with crispy croutons.

We paired the pate with some stuffed zucchini flowers.  Little zucchini stuffed with goats cheese, battered then fried to leave you with crispy morsels of goodness.  This was accompanied by a rich tomato sauce and pesto.

If I had seen the portions size prior to ordering, lunch would probably have stopped there, but I was seduced by the specials board.  Despite there being a twice cooked pork belly and fillet Mignon on the menu, I fancied trying the pizza; an interesting combination of duck, pumpkin, onion and pine nuts.  I’m usually a bit of a purist when it comes to pizza toppings, preferring the simplicity of the Italian classics, but after a morning of wine tasting anything goes.  And I’m glad I branched out, as it was suitably tasty, if not particularly authentic.

This wasn’t quite the light lunch we’d planned, which meant the husband escaped his evening cooking duties.  But that didn’t matter I enjoyed every mouthful of the smooth chicken liver and pear pate; the zucchini flowers and of course the pizza.

The three generous dishes cost $48, which for lunch for two in the Hunter is a bargain.  We were all wined out by this point, but you can order all the wines from the cellar door by the glass to accompany your lunch if you so desire.

The Briar Grillade is only open from Wednesday to Sunday for Brunch or Lunch, so it is advisable that you plan carefully and book ahead.

When I say one of his restaurants, what I actually mean is a branch of one of the Italian restaurant franchise that Jamie Oliver has put his name to.  Sadly, I don’t think Jamie will ever put in an appearance in the kitchen in Sydney, but you can’t say he hasn’t left his cheeky-chappy mark.

So what did I think? Well, I’m going to get it all out there from the get go.  This is what Jamie’s Italian is not:

1. a fine dining restaurant.
2. a place for a quiet, romantic meal for two.
3. somewhere to enjoy a long, lazy lunch.
4. a place to showcase amazing Italian food.

With that one out of the way, where there aspects that I liked? Of course there were, or I wouldn’t be writing this post. I am not one for writing negative posts for the sake of writing something. If I don’t like somewhere I just don’t write about it.

The highlight? I loved the mozzarella, in fact I might go as far as saying it is the best mozzarella I’ve eaten outside Italy.  It was rich and creamy and actually had flavour, unlike most of the mozzarella I buy here.  We ate the mozzarella as part of the vegetable antipasto plate, but if I went again I would order the mozzarella as a dish in its own right.

We also tried the meat antipasto platter. After my year of making meat, this was the obvious choice for me, so was my suggestion for the shared entree.  I’m sorry to write that I was a little underwhelmed by the cold meats.  Don’t get me wrong, there was nothing wrong with it, I just expect a little more from cured meats these days.

Despite having to wait half an hour for a table (you cannot book unless you have a party of 6 or more) the number of people in the restaurant did not slow the service down.  The food came quickly, in fact, perhaps a little too quickly and the waiter didn’t really have time to stop and answer my questions.  I also know from all the reading I have done that we were meant to receive a complimentary serve of bread, sadly this didn’t arrive, but by the time I remembered the moment had passed.

There were plenty of options on the menu to keep everyone happy for the mains.  There is a large choice of pastas, salads and other dishes.  We sampled the mussel linguine, buffalo ricotta ravioli and the prosciutto, pear and pecorino salad.  The pasta comes in an entree or main size.  I chose the entree size as I normally find restaurant pasta is served in very generous portions and I wanted to save room for dessert. However, the entree sized ravioli was very small and I think I could have had the main portion size and dessert. Thankfully the salad was completely the opposite; an extraordinarily generous portion, especially as the person ordering it was expecting something a little lighter.  I was happy to assist with a small plateful to help them out.

If I’m also going to critique this dinner properly I am also going to have to mention that technically the ravioli was not ravioli but actually agnolotti.  I believe ravioli is usually square or circular filled pasta, whereas this was semi circles of filled pasta, or agnolotti.  I understand why they do it; all the pasta is handmade on the premises so making agnolotti is much faster than ravioli, and I’m sure every second counts when you are feeding this many people on a daily basis.

I’m not usually a dessert girl, but on this occasion I was seduced by the dessert on the next table.  I had to try the chocolate ice cream with honeycomb.  There is  a daily selection of ice cream to choose from and you can choose up to three flavours. I went for chocolate and salted caramel. I passed on the white chocolate and chilli and doubled up on the chocolate instead.  The chocolate was delicious, the salted caramel was subtle.

The rest of the table didn’t need asking twice so we also sampled the Italian Bakewell tart and the creamy panacotta.  Not being a dessert aficionado I’m not sure how an Italian Bakewell tart differs from the traditional English dessert, so I will just have to take Jamie’s word for it on this occasion.

The overall experience made for a pleasant Saturday lunch.  There is a buzz of excitement in the atmosphere, and if you venture to the toilets you can see the chef’s at work on the way to the amenities.  The food is reasonably priced. For the three of us we paid $150 for three courses, including a bottle of wine. If you go with what it’s not in mind, you will probably have a good time.

Would I go back? Maybe if I was shopping in the city and wanted a quick bite to eat in somewhere a little nicer than the numerous shopping centre food halls. I guess price wise it is comparable to pub food, so a pub alternative in the city.  Will it stay this busy? I’m guessing yes. I don’t think there will be many regulars who go back time and time again, but there will be plenty of passing trade, especially from the tourists who want a recognisable, international destination.

If nothing else, Jamie’s Italian has inspired me to make some more ice cream at home. Following the success of my Christmas semifreddo, I decided to give chocolate semifreddo a go.  Again, it isn’t ice cream, because I don’t have an ice cream maker, but I reckon this comes a very close second.  It was so soft and creamy it felt very indulgent especially with the honeycomb that I made from a recipe on Citrus and Candy’s blog.  I also added a little rum to the semifreddo which made it feel a bit more grown up and good enough to serve for dessert at my last dinner party.

Chocolate Semifreddo

6 egg yolks
25ml dark rum
150g caster sugar
600ml pouring cream
200g dark chocolate

Whip the cream until soft peaks form and set aside.

Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and rum, over a pan of hot water until the sugar is dissolved and the the egg yolks start to thicken. Do not allow the water to boil as you don’t want the eggs to scramble.  Transfer to a cold bowl, or set over ice and continue to whisk until cool.

Meanwhile melt the chocolate in a bowl over hot water and allow to cool.

Combine the cooled chocolate with the cooled egg mixture. The mixture is likely to stiffen, so stir in a couple of spoonfuls of the whipped cream to loosen the mixture then fold in the rest of the whipped cream. Put in a container and freeze for a minimum of six hours or overnight.

Serve with honeycomb.

It’s a great place to watch the world go by, read a book, watch the water skiers and generally do as little as possible. That means fancy cooking is off the agenda, so once all the leftovers were eaten we had to take ourselves down the road to the pub.

Being English we crave a good pub. A good pub can be defined as somewhere old, dark, a little dingy, with memorabilia and no pokies. Such a pub exists in the small town of St. Albans, just down the road from Wisemans Ferry. The Settlers Arms, circa 1848, is not only a small, olde worlde pub, but it’s a beautiful sandstone building that makes some claims to being the longest serving inn in the Valley (although not the first, as the Industrious Settler was licensed 11 years prior, but has long since been a private residence).

A little over 80km from Sydney, the Settlers Arms makes for a great lunch location. And despite its relatively isolated location it serves up better than average pub food. In peak tourist season you can forgive them the queue out of the door as you will get your ale eventually, but don’t count on knowing what you are drinking. Today’s ale was an ale from Sydney. Despite the questions, I can’t tell you more than that, other than the bar maid assumes everyone wants the house red from the cask (I insisted on the bottle) and it takes much less effort to pour a lemonade than a lemon lime bitters (you don’t head out there for service with a smile, especially between Christmas and new year).

With the narrow wine list, the baby thought it was a better idea to make a Pimms (before you report me it was just water and cucumber) as the sunshine in the beer garden was reminiscent to an English summers day.

The food on the other hand was surprisingly good. There is a short menu of pub food ranging from pie and mash, to fish and chips, asparagus and poached egg and stuffed zucchini flowers to name but a few. The flowers were described as being stuffed with haloumi, but it tasted more like ricotta to me. Not a reason to complain though as they were rather tasty and more a kin to a trendy Sydney eatery than a small town pub. I think they have to put in a little effort for the city folk that jet in on a helicopter.

The pie was definitely home made. It was not topped precisely enough to have come from a packet. Served with mash and peas it was certainly typical pub fare.

Again the fish and chips were as you would expect, with nothing wildly at fault. Served with good fat chips and an iceberg salad, they certainly know their audience. I can confirm this with the pea sprout salad that was plucked from the kitchen garden to serve with the zucchini flowers. It’s the little things that make a difference.

All in all, it was a wonderful way to spend my “doing as little possible” day, and I think I might venture out here from the ‘burbs on a winters Saturday as I believe they have real log fires.

Whenever there is a lot of hype about a restaurant I always go along with my critical eye, hoping to pick fault. but I have nothing to fault. We called ahead to book a table; we were told they were full, but as there were only two of us it would probably be OK to walk on in, and sure enough, they found us a table. You can’t argue with that, we called at 11:30 for a table at 12 the same day.

The menu consists of single serve Tapas dishes and slightly larger portions to share.  We struggled to choose as there was nothing on the menu that didn’t take our fancy. Between us we managed to sample the following:

Anchovy on crouton with smoked tomato sorbet. This was a tough dish to start with as I wasn’t sure how the others could keep up with the standards.

Preserved tuna with piquillo pepper and brik pastry.

Sardine sandwich with compressed capsicum. So refined it could be served to the queen.

Squid ink croqueta with cuttlefish.

Manchego with quince paste. Simple yet divine. This dish gives me a licence to eat slices of cheese straight from the fridge. Why mess with something to perfect?

And then onto the meat. First we sample the quail. Pressed quail with blood sausage, apple and garlic.

The finale. Slow cooked duck shank with hazelnuts, raisins and onions. We started on a high, and ended on a high, and everything in between wasn’t that low.

I left the restaurant on a high, so the first thing I thought of when I got back to Sydney was how to recreate this experience at home. It is impossible to recreate such refined Tapas, but with the help of Jamie Does… and the inspiration of these dishes I created a feast for two.

Jamie Oliver’s recipe for croquetas is superb. You will never achieve the squid ink version at home but these ones were a pretty good second best. And you can’t cook up a Tapas feast without the obligatory Patatas Bravas.

The highlight of my homemade Tapas feast? Inspired by the smoked anchovies and tomato sorbet and the sardine sandwich, I combined the two to make smoked sardines with tomato sauce served on crispy bread.

I salted and smoked the six sardines as per my recipe for smoked trout, except I dramatically reduced the times for both due to the small size of the sardines.

Once smoked I removed the flesh of the sardines and combined it with three tablespoons of the tomato sauce (from the patatas bravas before I added the paprika), seasoned to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice and served on some crispy French bread.

Movida is open 7 days from noon until late. Tapas dishes start at $3.50

And why wouldn’t you want to sample one of the fifteen courses that are part of the degustation menu. There is no a la carte menu at Momofuku it is all about the set menu that changes according to the produce that’s available. This means that there is no specific theme to the menu. The chefs are from the UK, the States and of course Australia, so there are influences coming from all directions. Including the Korean influence from David Chang himself.

The dish that everyone is raving about is the pork bun. I normally avoid such things at Yum Cha because I’m not too keen on the sweet bread, but this pork bun was nothing of the sort. It was light and fluffy and savoury, with pork that you could cut with a spoon if required. Sadly there was only one on the plate. I’d have happily eaten more, the only thing stopping me were the 13 other course that I had to get through.

Each and every course was unique in its own way. There were some that I favoured more than others but I could see the merit in each. Another stand out dish was the lamb neck. Perfectly cooked, the lamb neck was served with daikon puree and pickled turnips. Despite the claim that this restaurant cooks no particular cuisine, rather it focuses on show casing local produce, you can still see the Korean influence throughout. In this case the pickled turnip.

Now Momofuku has already secured itself a good reputation in the Sydney dining scene for it’s food, but the food is only half the story. Any Sydney foodie worth their salt wants a seat in Momofuku so they can watch the chefs plate up their dishes and chat to the chefs as they present each course. Just be warned though, this a conversation stopper, so probably not the best idea for a first date!

I don’t have a sweet tooth, and I seem to have been scarred by childhood experiences of dessert; so when I was presented with a bowl of rice pudding with miso ice cream and pickled fruit I couldn’t stomach more than a mouthful, but the cheese course prior to this more than made up for it. If I see cheese on a dessert menu I go for it every time. I would gladly eat a slice of cheese on a cracker, but when restaurants put a little more thought into the cheese course I get very excited. This was no exception. I was presented with grated pecorino, accompanied by apple cider jelly and bee pollen. So simple yet so delicious, and minus the bee pollen probably something I could recreate at home.

With fifteen courses on the set menu there was no way I could re-count all of them here and have you still reading by the end so I’ve picked out the courses that were my personal favourite. This doesn’t mean I didn’t like the rest of them but I thought you could make your own mind up about the other courses. But there was one course I just had to write about. As the old saying goes, people often “save the best ’til last” and in my eyes that’s exactly what Momofuku does. But wait a minute, I don’t usually do dessert and I’m actually not talking about the dessert course here, I’m talking about the Petit Four course. Momofuku has really pushed the boundaries and is serving slow cooked shoulder of pork after dessert. And surprisingly it works. I usually have trouble mixing my sweet and savoury courses and I like a plan and things to be just so; so pork shoulder post dessert should be a no no, but the subtle sweetness that has been added to the pork skin while it cooks for twelve hours means you can eat it after wattle seed meringue and not feel like you’re starting all over again. Be warned, this could be appearing on a Nic Cooks dinner party menu soon.

A dish that has already made an appearance at a dinner party is the cheese course. I love trying to recreate dishes I have eaten at restaurants and not feeling quite brave enough to tackle the pork bun the jelly seemed more manageable. I made a cider jelly using the best quality cider I could find in the local bottle shop. The Jelly is very simple. I heated 100ml of the cider with 50g of sugar until the sugar had dissolved then stirred in the rest of the 500ml bottle of cider and 4 platinum sheets of gelatine I had pre-soaked in water.

Allow the jelly to set in a shallow, rectangular baking tray lined with cling film. When you are ready to serve, slice the jelly into small cubes, and grate over the best quality pecorino cheese you can afford. And if, like me, you can’t lay your hands on some bee pollen, you can add a sweet edge with some maple syrup.

Momofuku Seiobo is situated in Sydney’s Star Casino. It is open for dinner only from Monday to Saturday. They serve a set tasting menu that costs $175 with an additional $95 for matching wines.

One of the main draw cards for the return trip was the pigs head. I have never eaten a whole pigs head before and the idea of it really appealed to me (something to do with my pork crackling obsession I think). Thankfully we mentioned this to the waitress as we were pondering the menu and she informed us that they only have two pigs heads each night so she would secure the order while we were deciding on the rest of the order. This is a tip worth noting if you are also keen on pigs head as there is a high probability that the pigs head will sell out.

Our second visit was a Friday night. I’m pretty sure the restaurant was full, so another note worthy tip is to book ahead if you want to eat in the restaurant. Failing that of course there is the bar area downstairs that is serving an equally tempting but slightly different menu to upstairs. Same style of cooking but different options like pork pie, pigeon scotched eggs  or veal cheek. (I can feel a third trip coming on).

The only downside to dining on the Friday was the waiting time to order. The staff were run off their feet which meant after securing our pigs head there was a rather long wait to place the rest of our order. I was hungry. I don’t like to wait. I won’t go back on a Friday night.

So when it came to ordering we ummed and aahed over the menu and once again were seduced by the entrees. We figured as there were three people this time we could probably share two entrees, one main and save some room for dessert. So we plumped for the Montpellier brawn with crisp ears and tails ($18) and the salad of spanner crab, mussel, cos, fennel and dill ($20).

The brawn was more of a terrine than what I know as brawn. I always thought brawn was meat from the pigs head and/or trotters suspended in gelatinous pork jelly. There was no visible jelly, instead it was layers of meltingly tender meat and vegetables.  A delicious dish, which should perhaps be renamed. The ears and tails were better than expected. I thought they might be gelatinous, but they actually had the taste and texture of meat, and who can resist anything that is breaded and fried?

I couldn’t eat the second entrée as I have an allergy to mussels but I was informed it was a lighter alternative to all of the other dishes we have tried. A generous serve of crab, with large juicy mussels (no shells for those that don’t like getting messy) and apparently the dill made the dish.

And then came the centre piece, the pigs head ($48). This may be a little daunting for some but don’t be put off. There was plenty of meat and crispy crackling.  The pigs head is brined before it is cooked, making another dish with super tender meat. So often I go to restaurants and I am disappointed with the roasts, but there is nothing to disappoint here.  There was plenty of crispy crackling, although despite looks, not all of the crackling was edible.  The roasts are served whole so that they can be carved at the table which adds a real sense of occasion.

Served with the pigs had is bubble and squeak, a mixture of mashed potato, cabbage, and carrots. I’m always a sucker for roast potatoes, so if I’d been cooking this at home I would serve with roasties, but I actually enjoyed the mash for a change and it helped to cut through the rich pork meat.

And there we have it, the three of us overindulged on pork, and again were too full for dessert. I hate to say it it, but it’s not over yet…

Until next time, I thought I’d share my brawn recipe

2 pigs trotters
500g pork bones (I used the ribs from my last pork belly)
2 carrots chopped
1 onion roughly chopped
2 sticks of celery roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of rosemary
1 tsp black peppercorns

Put all the ingredients in a large pan, cover with water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 4 hours, remove the meat and veg and boil the stock until it is reduced to about 500ml. Once the trotters and ribs are cool enough to handle, pick the meat from the bones.  Season the stock to taste, layer the meat in a terrine dish then pour over the stock and refrigerate until set. Serve with toast.