March in to Merivale - American Diner at Mad Cow, CBD

Pinch and a Punch for the first day of the Month! And for my fellow Sydney friends, its that time of the year again - March into Merivale! A couple of hooligans couldn't say no to the promise of a bonafide American Diner experience. Star Spangled banners decorated the Mad Cow steakhouse, with (albiet empty) Ketchup and Mustard squeeze bottles - get into the USA spirit!

As I nursed my non-american beer it was clear that these events in each of Merivale's restaurants really pull in the crowds. On an ordinary tuesday night, the entire dining area of Mad Cow was packed out. This $70 event featuring 5 courses which would "showcase and celebrate American diner classics" were one of the events in the program that  had sold out.

Our overly hyperactive and enthusiastic table agree that head chef Christopher Whitehead had a tough crowd specifically in this table alone - with 2 of the diners including myself having fond childhood memories in the US of A and another co-eater back from a long stint of travelling through the country.

It took a while to get the meal started but I suppose such is the case when you are feeding the whole restaurant identical courses. For our amuse(ment), a corn and cheese quesadilla. We figured this was a taste of America in close proximity to the Mexican border.

Our First Entree was a chopped salad with prawns, avocado, cucumber, tomato and onions. A very light and fresh shrimp salad. California-inspired perhaps? I think a side of ranch would have made this dish a bit more American perhaps. I figured that if the American flag was featured in my photo's it would validate the dinner theme.

 Our second entree was a perfectly cooked Salmon filet with crushed peas. Cooked to perfection with a rare middle and crunchy skin, we marked Alaska off the map of the USA - they catch salmon there right?

Tio's Cerveceria, Surry Hills

Im going to start this post with a blurry photo of the bar because I wouldn't be the empty fridger you have grown to love had I been able to hold my camera straight at Tio's - a fun new establishment dedicated to a liquor close to my heart.

Instead of the usual tea and scones Myself; Demos and our ever reliable honorary fridgemagnet The Gooseman found ourselves at Tio's for a casual and lighthearted tequila throwdown. Well casual and lighthearted was the idea but then when we found ourselves at a tequila bar, all bets were off. This was not a time to do things in halves.

I might start of listing beverages in order of alcohol content. Candidate number one is little miss mexico - the little Coronita. The opportunity was not missed to showcase its teeny tiny size next to Demos' face.

As this was on a Sunday afternoon, the bar wasn't at all packed and we had the attention of the tequilla experts behind the counter. Not that I counted but apparently there are over 70 different types of tequilla on the bar shrine. Now where to start?

Dos Senoritas, Gladesville

Oh hey there my neglected friends of the fridge! 

First things first, a very happy holiday season to all of you - please don't be mad about my absenteeism.. here's to more empty fridge action in 2012. Its been a busy fiesta season but lets hit the ground running shall we? And what better way to do it then in typical and true Empty Fridge style with 

DEEP FRIED BURRITOS

For anyone that enjoys a little viva la mexico in their life, then man have I got the place for you! I first came across this little pocket on Victoria road Gladesville while I was stuck in life sucking traffic. There he was, a jolly man - donning a poncho and shaking his hips to the strums of his own guitar. There and then in the life sucking traffic of Victoria Road, I knew I had to visit Dos Senoritas.

What perfect excuse for fiesta time then a burrito throwdown with Demos and our favourite fiesta buddy the Goose Man (long story short..the name came from the numerous sessions we've had emptying bottles of Grey Goose) Since we all lived within a 2km radius from Dos Senoritas, the three of us were keen to engage in some sillyness with the option of stumbling home.

After the complimentary corn chips and salsa are rolled out and line our stomachs we were keen on throwing a couple down. My margarita ($12) was strong, salty and sour..definitely emphasising the strong part and their generosity with the tequilla and thats coming from me! But there were burritos to be had, and I had to limber up. The boys refused to partake in margarita madness and drink from girly glasses settled on some local mexican cerveza - bottles of Pacifico at $8

Dos Senoritas claim to be the only authentic Mexican food in Sydney, pretty heavy call right? But I'm on their side in this one. This restaurant is very casual, colourful and fun..no air of "cool-ness" and just straight up Guadalajara-n heart. The menu covers all the mexican dishes we Sydney-siders have grown to love during this recent mexican cuisine explosion..Taquitos, Quesadillas, Enchilladas, Guacamole..The "specialties" section of the menu however is where the real excitement is.. its where the real mexican dishes like Mole (the green Poblano kind and the Dark Chocolate Oaxaca kind) and Tamales are listed. 

Hello, Guadalajara indeed!

Considering all the choice we had..(there are a whopping 8 varieties of burritos on the menu) we did something never seen in the history of The Empty Fridge. I would go as far as saying that this breaks the main rule of food blogging, but hey - the three of us ordered the same dish despite all the choice. Why?

SuperCheesyGoeyChimichanga

Izakaya Fujiyama, Surry Hills

So friends of the fridgers..we are on the home stretch to the christmas break and if you are like us, you are probably clinging on to every ounce of sanity you have left while yearning for the long holiday break! Forget the fact that its close to mid-december and yet to send out Chrissy cards or do gift shopping - but lets focus on the good things shall we. We are all about the good things here - shittyness goes elsewhere.

I have a strong belief that Japanese food fixes everything. If you are sick, a bowl of ramen cures anything. If you are sad, karage chicken is a great perker up-erer. If you are feeling guilty for indulging, then sashimi gives you "I had something healthy with no carbs for lunch" glow. Excuse my fuzzy logic for just wanting to eat good japanese food all day every day.

I blog alot about how going out for a nice meal is all about celebrating and having fun and getting together. Often, its not about the celebration - its about the comfort. Its finding a nice meal after a tiring day, or taking someone out to cheer them up. Now I cant remember what needed fixing on this particular night but without out doubt Izakaya Fujiyama fixed it. This is how.

El Loco Mexican Cantina, Surry Hills

My fondest memories growing up had to be hot summers in downtown Los Angeles running amuck in Olivera St - A little laneway which was a destination for some yummy authentic mexican food. My family would always take me to this awesome mexican restaurant and little Gianna had tacos to her hearts content, if I finished my meal and managed to behave myself I would get to buy some mexican jumping beans from the street vendors. I was easily amused back then, as I still am now.

For the last couple of years, we Sydney-siders have been deprived of some banging mexicano - sure we've had cafe pacifico, baja cantina and flying fajitas in Glebe, but in just in the last year a number of new places have been jumping up like those little jumping beans. Many stress the point that El Loco isn't authentic..oh really?

What I love about it is that it captures the fun and it the whole "celebratory" feel of mexican food. Cafe Pacifico has done this brilliantly, and without a doubt - Barrio Chino is pretty rad too - but El Loco is a lively and casual place where anyone can grab a quick taco or twenty, some mexican beers other than Corona and get that fiesta vibe.

Xanthi Bar and Restaurant, Westfield Sydney CBD

Xanthi is a city in Thrace, North Eastern Greece. Generally speaking, somewhere down my Greek genetic line there is some ancestry there. Apparently, I come from a line of barbarian warrior Greeks of the North; fitting isn't it? Geography and family olive trees aside, Xanthi is the spectacular new Greek restaurant in the premium dining precinct at Westfield Sydney. It is owned and run by David Tsirekas of the legendary Greek Restaurant Perama. Lucky for the Sydney dining scene; David has forged his blood, sweat and tears in this new project.

You can say that Xanthi is a bigger, badder and better Perrama. It's unfair to draw comparisons between the two but if the restaurants were two rival warring Greek nations Xanthi would definitely be Sparta. Just rest assured it's pretty badass. Like Gerard Butler in 300 badass. Just look at that vertical spit; if that doesn't get you hankering for a mean meal, then stick to your yeeros mate.

So after a long and very strenuous day of shopping (suprisingly; it was me who came out victorious, and not the warrior princess this time around) we could think of nothing better than to go and enjoy Xanthi for ourselves. Now when Greek food comes to mind most people think of big banquet style meals that fill you, just like Sunday lunch at Yia Yia's. However; Xanthi has a menu where you can pick ouzomezedakia, small plates of food to pick on and share whilst sipping on some ouzo or wine. The thought just takes me back to the motherland. Of course we settled on the BBQ Haloumi $10.00, always a standard pick being a favourite Greek dish. Served in a small black bowl and garnished with oregano you can't go wrong. Make it swim in lemon and it's like you are back in Greece. Well not quite but it's nice to think that you are.

Our next small plate was the Fried school prawns $9.00. This was tossed in honey, fish sauce, sesame seeds and almond flakes - the combinations of flavours make it an absolute winner. This was easy to pick at and share; having a more complex flavour than your average salt and pepper school prawn offerings. Ouzo would've made a very nice accompaniment, an idea for next time. 

Feeling drained from the days activity's and the fact that it was still early on, we didn't have any ouzo despite the novel ouzo trolley standing by. It's a nice touch that Xanthi has one of the largest varieties of ouzo, tsipouro (aka lighter fluid) and Greek brandy. One can sit back and pick at some food, shoot back a shot or ten and flick those worry beads whilst going through a pack of Marlboro reds. Sorry, we're not in Greece. It's easy to forget while in Xanthi, so you can do everything except the last part. So instead of having ouzo we had some beautiful Greek wine, a glass of Notios Agiorgitiko for myself and Ramnista Kir Yianni for Gianna. We do love our vino here at the Empty Fridge and both wines were delicious enough for Diyonysus' approval. Another fun little fact is that Xanthi has one of the largest Greek wine lists and is well worth perusing. It's a different style of wine and I personally think that its the flavour that compliments the food which is the key for Greek varieties.

Fried veal sweetbreads $10.50 were one such dish that went well with the wine we were having. Little bundles of sweetbread crumbed and deep fried. Once again that wedge of lemon on the plate was there to drown those little bad boys. Crispy on the outside and full of soft juicy sweetbread goodness on the inside. My only complaint was that there wasn't more lemon, David had a laugh when i told him this and Gianna was quick to remind me that we were not at my grandparents place. There was no need to drown everything in lemon. Its a Greek mentality I think.

Fried Veal Sweetbreads

The kitchen has been designed to be open to view from the dining room so you can see the hustle and bustle going on as David works his magic with his team. He tells us that after working in the tiny Perrama kitchen in Petersham, he has finally gotten his dream kitchen.

The decor inside the restaurant is really nice. With a large Middle Eastern-esque rug taking up the floor space, drapes running the walls and the feature ceiling and gorgeous lamps. It feels like another world from the super bright and modern interiors of Westfield Sydney. You can definitely soak up the exotic atmosphere here.