Chiswick, Woollahra

Well hello there! Pardon my extended absence from this little corner of the internet (again) but rest assured all is well and we can save the stories for another time. Now that the nights are getting colder we empty fridgers are at our element - finding the comfort food that makes you want to hug the person next to you.

Together with our friends Mr&Mrs Macaroni - this evening's double date took us to the leafy suburb of Woollahra to check out Matt Moran and Peter Sullivan's newest Sydney establishment - Chiswick. Unlike most of our spontaneous adventures here, we actually booked a few weeks in advance. It truly is a popular new addition as we had a 3 week wait to secure a 6pm booking on a Wednesday night! But thankfully there was great wine ahead of us in this French-provinical garden style restaurant. With wall length windows looking straight out into the manicured gardens - the scene was set for a very homely and cozy atmosphere sans the feminine vibe.

There were 6 sections of the menu and it was wonderful to see unpretentious and simple dishes on offer. Listed were a selection of nibbles and small plates as well as mains which were all under $39 with share plates under $60. Our waitress advised us that servings were quite generous so we devised a plan to tackle as many dishes as possible. 

Our Small Plates: Steak Tartare $18 and Pulled veal ravioli with soybeans $20

The ravioli was interesting as one would automatically assume that it would be coated in a thick pasta sugo - not in this case. The little parcels of veal were tossed with beans, capers and a light shiso flavour making it very fresh and tangy. Absolutely unexpected but all the more wonderful.

My friend Mrs Macaroni told me that she judges restaurants by the taste of their chips and we were both in our element when the side of Hand Cut chips came out. The black garlic aioli is the stuff my dreams are made out of - no word of a lie here, the creamy garlic goodness nearly led me to the open kitchen where I could steal a bottle. 

Hand cut chips $9 and Shared Dish - Fish and Prawn Pie $58

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?

Buffalo Dining Club, Darlinghurst

If "All I have in the world is my Mozzarella and my Word" then after promising to "write a post tonight" for so long, all I am left with now is just my Mozzarella and there will be cheese aplenty in this post! The faithful trio of myself; Demos and the Gooseman wound up finding ourselves at Buffalo Dining Club, another new addition to the Darlinghurst precinct off the main drag of Victoria Rd

Buffallo Dining Club is a two storey super casual eatery. It's  fun and rowdy, just the way we like it. It was a busy saturday night and although they don't take any bookings we missed the first wave of diners. There are no menus, only a chalkboard and a very reasonably priced wine list. A great bottle of Santa Cristina Sangiovese ($42) was the pick of the bunch and was one of the several bottles listed that was under $50. 

Now for the food. With a name like Buffalo Dining Club, I know I was picturing another new eatery riding the american food wave and serving buffalo hot wings with cowboy hats. No friends; the buffalo in question here is buffalo mozzarella and LOTS of it. Lactose Intolerants need not apply. No seriously, just don't. 

Starting the proceedings was a serving of Burrata, with a side of potato croquettes and chilli brocollini. $15 gets you 125 grams of Burrata (or 100 grams of fresh buffalo mozzarella) and a selection of two sides from the chalkboard menu. Aside from the two we selected they offered other dishes such as balsamic baby carrots, portobello mushrooms, honey roasted fennel almonds and so on and so forth. What about the meat? 

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.

Bootleg Bar and Italian Restaurant, Potts Point

Hello friends. Apologies for the brief absence, no excuses here - just be assured that I have missed you friends of the fridgers. Now lets get back to all things boozy, tasty and ridiculously good and forget about me going M.I.A. and slipping into a black hole of bleagh.

 So here we go...  Let me start with a confession. I dont consider myself as bonafide foodie; I don't fit the description of "Living, Breathing and OBSESSING over food" which is quite odd for a food blogger, no? The focus of this blog has always been about the experience - the good times and the fun times involving food. I've had a thinky thinky moment while I've neglected this blog and realised that although I do love a great meal; I'm more about the experience, the stories, the atmosphere... the fun, getting people together, the memories. Queue segway...

Good food experiences shared with a bunch of friends make for a great night out. Along with our friends Lu and E; Demos and I led the way to our venue for the evening. Bootleg was buzzing with the Potts Point crowd and was pretty busy for a school night - we were able to score a table in the back corner and get acquainted with a medium bodied bottle of Negroamaro. Such a thirst quencher on a balmy night and not too heavy to overpower the meal ahead. The lighly battered calamari ($17) could not be ignored on the menu. Light and crispy; we fought over the last few pieces and drowned them in lemon juice. Simple Pleasures really.

The arancini that came next were not your usual standard Italian fare ($10 2/pc). Topped with a tangy and almost relish like tomato sauce with some bitey provolone - it was a taste sensation; especially as we bit into the crunchy coating through to a treasure trove of more melted provolone.

Once inside and away from the hustle of Kings Cross, once can be forgiven when thinking about Bootleg as an escape. Framed photographs with scenes from a very hip circa 1990 New York era put a smile on my face as did the boomboxes and random religious statues. They could be channeling Harlem or Queens or Compton perhaps - without overdoing the kitsch factor and making it feel like an awkward themed Christmas party venue. Comfortable booths and tables line the walls and the neon lights above the bar give Bootleg a subdued liveliness..save the bright lighting for the Coca Cola sign around the corner.