Brisbane Street Bistro

Evan and I went to Brisbane Street Bistro on a Tuesday evening.  We had dinner at 6:30, and only 2 other groups of people arrived while we were there. It's built into an old home, and the dining area is stuffed with tables. I wouldn't like to be there if it was a busy evening, as navigating around the restaurant with empty tables was difficult enough. It's very comfortable with a lovely atmosphere. The music was also decent.

When we arrived we were greeted by the most over the top and enthusiastic waiter I think I have ever experienced. He may have been a little too keen for some people's tastes, however, I found it to be rather entertaining. Unfortunately, they don't have an established website...yet! This meant that I scanned the reviews before we arrived and it had many fabulous reviews. We ordered out entrees and mains, after listening carefully to the waiters recommendations. He had heaps of information on everything and was very helpful.

Before our entrees arrived, the waiter bought us a complimentary artichoke soup with truffle, with homemade bread and salted butter. I was initially hesitant to try this as I'm not a fan of mushroom (we also weren't sure of how to actually eat this dish??), however, it was so delicious. The soup was lovely, and having the salted butter really bought out the flavour of everything - just as the waiter promised.

For entree I ordered the Onion Taste Plate. As described, this was a light short-crust onion tart topped with goat's cheese, French onion soup, pickled baby onion and shallot salad and fine herbs. I love onions, they're one of my favourite things ever. This entree was very delicious. The base of the tart may have been a little overcooked as I was causing a racket with my knife against the plate - but everything tasted lovely.

Evan ordered the Crisp Pork Belly, which was long cooked pork belly, mandarin pancakes, spring onion, cucumber, chili jam and hoisin sauce. It was served as finger food with all the components wrapped in the crepe - to dip into the hoisin. It was very well presented and Evan said it was very tasty.

For main course, I ordered the Market Fish; Gremolata dusted fresh fish fillet, garlic mash, citrus salsa & lemon buerre blanc. This was very similar to what I ordered at Pierre's, so it was good that I was able to compare the pair. The fish was cooked really well and overall it was an excellent dish. There was just so much of it! As I was trying to save room for dessert - and we'd already had soup and entree, I only ate about half. I also liked how much buerre blanc there was - more than Pierre's, which meant that I didn't have to be scarce when dressing my fish.

Evan ordered the Cassoulet; traditional French braise of duck leg, sausage, white rabbit, ham hock and white beans with sourdough crumbs. Overall, he said that he thoroughly enjoyed his meal - however he said that it was very salty. It also took a very long time for it to cool down before he could eat it. He was also grateful for the waiters recommendation for this dish.

Even though we were very full we were excited for dessert.

I ordered the Classic Vanilla Creme Brulee; Vanilla bean creme brulee, with roasted rhubarb and vanilla ice cream.
With all of the desserts, on the menu they have paired dessert wines with them - which I thought was really helpful.
I thought that it was so delicious and the rhubarb went really well with the sweetness of the ice-cream and creme brulee.

Evan ordered the Chocolate Marquis; A rich Callebaut Belgian chocolate dessert, with pistachio praline, Grand Marnier cream and the ultimate chocolate ice cream. It was presented beautifully & Evan said that it was very tasty.

Overall,  it was a really delicious meal. The service was excellent and we have recommended this dining experience to others. We were there for under two hours and completed four courses. Brisbane Street Bistro is quite dear, I like that all of the food is the same price - which means that cost isn't made a factor in deciding what to choose. All appetisers at $18, Entrees are $19, mains are $36 and all desserts are $16. I think that the prices are worth it, considering the size and quality. Fortunately, Brisbane Street Bistro are in the Tasmanian Entertainment Book with a 25% discount, which was really fantastic.

Brisbane Street Bistro - 24 Brisbane Street, Launceston 7250

6333 0888

Smokey Joe's

I went to Smokey Joe's on a Wednesday with a group of 8. I would like to note that they do not have a website, so if you're curious prior to going - word of mouth or calling the restaurant may be a good idea. When we booked in advance, we enquired about vegetarian options, and they said they would ensure that there was vegetarian menu items available. I have been to Smokey Joe's before and I found it to be reasonably average, however, I have heard great reviews since so I was looking forward to my visit.  When we arrived, the decor was as I remember - very fitting to the 'creole' theme. It is built into a little cottage and there was  a lot of themed number plates, flags and memorabilia over the walls... and somehow in the table tops. It looked as though they'd set some kindergarten children to go crazy on maps and written information with their crayons and then they were placed under the table top.

We arrived and were offered drinks and food. We ordered fairly soon after we arrived. I was really disappointed when I arrived that there were no visible vegetarian options, unless I wanted to eat fries and salad. Which is what I ended up ordering. I'm sure that if I enquired that the waitress would have been able to supply me with some options, however, she was very unapproachable, and where she positioned herself was at the opposite end of the table to me, which meant yelling in order to say anything. The menu seemed to be okay, every item was ribs or meat of some description - but this was expected.
 
We waited an hour for our food, and when it was presented I wasn't sure what everyone had ordered - things along the lines of fajitas, chimichangas and chilli con carne. They all looked the same, some mushy meat, some flat bread, some coleslaw or salad. I'm not entirely sure. 

Shanyne ordered this dish, it had prawns in it, and we weren't sure how it was supposed to work. We assumed that he was meant to put the condiments on his plate in the bread - but the prawns still had tails?

 

Callums dish looked the best out of everyones, he ordered the pulled pork roll - which sounded really great and he said it tasted delicious. Again though, the presenation made it look like something that you'd eat in a high school cafeteria.

 

I ordered the chips and salad. Re and I also asked for some cajuan dijon sauce for our chips which the waitress forgot to bring out. When i enquired about it she snapped saying that it was on it's way - despite the fact that it was more than 5 minutes after she'd bought out the mains and and a second round of drinks for everyone, I struggled to believe her.

It was a long time until our plates were cleared and we weren't asked if we'd like dessert. When we went to pay - the waitress told us that she couldn't split the bill for us, but we could split it. It didn't make sense, but we just had to work out how much we owed and tell her how much we were paying each... if I didn't know any better, i'd call that splitting the bill. Overall i was really disppointed with the service. Re and Cas used an entertainment book voucher which meant that we were able to leave some feedback, which we're sure the waitress read while sorting out our bill as she was giving us awful atitude. Smokey Joe's is reasonably priced for the meal portions, looking at around $25 for a main sized meal. I don't think i'll go there again.

Smokey Joe's Creole Cafe - 20 Lawrence Street, Launceston 7250

6331 0530

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Elaia Cafe

Evan and I went to Elaia on a Tuesday evening.  There was no need to book, as most places are reasonably empty on a Tuesday. I've been to Elaia a few times and I really enjoy the laid back atmosphere it has to offer. There is indoor and outdoor seating, and there is a big fold-back glass partition for when it's warm outside. When we arrived there was a 21st birthday happening at one table, and a couple of other tables filled. Again, we had a look at their website before we arrived, which has so many delicious looking options on it. When we arrived we ordered a bread with olive oil and vinegar for entree, which was some of the best bread I've had in a long time. Unfortunately, I didn't get a photo of this. The waitress was quick to take away our entree -  before Evan had finished eating, and our mains were brought out very quickly.

I ordered the traditional carbonara, but requested it come without bacon, which was no issue to the chef. They offer two sizes with their mains, either and entree size or a main size. I always order the entree size - due to having a small appetite. When my meal was presented to me, it looked tiny. I'm not sure if this was because it was missing the bacon, the bowl was huge or because it was the entree size - the bottom of the bowl was visible. regardless of this, I always find carbonara to be very filling, and this was no exception. I could just feel all the carbs and fats filling in all my stomach space per-mouthful. It was very rich and garlicy, which I like, however the people around me probably not so much. 

Evan ordered a main size of the chicken linguine, which was with spicy pumpkin, spinach, chilli, garlic and cream. He said that the dish was really tasty, I tried some of the pumpkin and  would agree.

Elaia is reasonably priced for the portion sizes and quality of the food, main sized meals are all $20-$25. I would recommend this restaurant, and Evan and I will probably go there again to try another of their menu items.

Elaia Cafe - 240 Charles Street, Launceston 7230

6331 3307

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Pierre's

Evan and I went to Pierre's on a Friday evening.  We had booked in advance, which was lucky as they had a function at 8 and we were informed that we needed to be out by then. This wasn't an issue, it was quite empty when we arrived at 6, when we left around 7:30, it was reasonably full. I would recommend arriving earlier as I feel as thought we received better service than the others there. The decor at Pierre's is lovely. The main area is a corridor, lined with tables on each side. I know from having been there before that there is an area out the back - but you can't see this from the area that we were seated in. The music was average, however I imagine that the middle-aged others that were there were enjoying the smooth easy listening tracks. The menu is massive. I don't mean extensive by any means - it's an A3 piece of paper. Luckily we were placed at a four seat table so accommodate us and out menus. Before we arrived we had a look at their website to make sure that there was something on the menu that I could eat, being a vegetarian and also something that we would both enjoy. For entree we ordered the baked escargot. Evan's brother-in-law is a chef and has prepared escargot for him before, however, I have always been far too apprehensive to put a garden creature in my mouth. When they arrived they were presented beautifully and had a very pungent garlic dressing. Evan said that they were very different and better than snails that he has previously consumed - the texture was also very different. I tried a small amount, and it was no where near as gross as I imagined, but I let Evan have the other five and a half. It was served with bread to mop up the remaining dressing.

For main course, I ordered the baked trevalla, which was served with a soft herb crust, buttered vegetables and a lemon beurre blanc. I don't eat a lot of fish, however, due to my new vegetarian-ism I'm learning to become more creative with my food choices. It was presented beautifully. It was also quite tasty, the soft herb crust tasted similar to a pesto - which is good, if you like pesto. The vegetables were lovely and the beurre blanc was one of the most tasty sauces I've ever tried. Unfortunately, my trevalla was undercooked to the point where I couldn't eat about half of it. I didn't complain, as I'd eaten plenty and I was looking forward to dessert.

Evan ordered the cripsy skinned confit duck leg, which was served with a fig jam tart, broccolini and savoury hazelnut crumb. He said that his meal was very delicious and the duck was cooked perfectly. At the end of dinner, his plate was stripped bare, which is often the sign of a good meal.

 

For dessert we both had the vanilla bean creme brulee which was served with a beetroot and orange sugared shortbread. We both thoroughly enjoyed this dish.

Overall, we thought the service was excellent, we were asked if everything was going well and if we'd like anything at multiple occasions - we had three courses and left in under and hour and a half, which i think is very reasonable.

Pierre's is quite dear, looking at around $20 for an entree, $35 for a main and $15 for dessert, however, if you have the Tasmanian Entertainment Book, there is a 25% discount voucher in there, which we utilised - and ended up being a very reasonable dinner for the two of us. 

Pierre's - 88 George Street, Launceston 7250

6331 6835

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Minh Buu Chinese Restaurant

Evan and I went to Minh Buu Chinese Restaurant on a Thursday evening.  We called to book, and an automated message told us to book online, which we did and they said they would call to confirm. We never recieved a call, but this wasn't an issue. When we arrived, the decor out the front initially seems to be tacky, but once we walked through the doors, we were greeted politely to find a large sized restaurant. There were only two other tables of people there. We were seated at a table for four, next to the door. Personally, I found this to be annoying as it meant we were presented with Tasmanian winter air every time the door was opened. We initially went to Minh Buu as we wanted to try their yum cha - after having had a look at it on their website and facebook it looked really delicious with many vegetarian options. When we arrived however, they apparently only have yum cha on Sunday. We ordered prawn dumplings, pork dim sim, salt and pepper tofu and rice. For a drink we ordered their special China blue cocktail. It was reasonably priced. Looking around $10 for entree and around $25 for a main.

 We asked if they could prepare some chicken or pork dumplings as I love dumplings, but don't enjoy prawns or scallops - however, they were unable to do this for us, which made me wonder how much was pre-prepared, especially on an evening with such few customers. The food arrived and it was beautifully presented, it all appeared to be very fresh. Evan said that the prawn dumplings were very tasty, I tried a little bit, however I didn't enjoy them. purely because I don't enjoy prawn. The pork dim sim were very tasty, I really enjoyed these as did Evan. The stand out for the evening was the salt and pepper tofu. It was fried, so it was crisp on the outside, and the inside was incredibly soft. It was honestly the best tofu I have ever eaten. 

The China blue cocktail was also lovely, it came with two lychees on a swizzle stick, which was a nice garnish. Evan and I were actually very impressed with the cocktail and drinks menu that Minh Buu had to offer. The cocktail list was more extensive than most places we have been, and all at a very reasonable price. We have decided that it was a very enjoyable meal, we will most likely go again on a Sunday to experience their yum cha!

Minh Buu Chinese Restaurant - 63 Brisbane Street, Launceston 7250

6334 5885

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