Wellington on a Plate 2011: DINE Wellington roundup

As I said last time, I haven't gotten as much Wellington on a Plate action this year. I had such high hopes, plotting out which set lunches and dinners I wanted to try on the little calendar I keep at my desk. And then, bam! It was suddenly the last week of Wellington on a Plate and I hadn't made any lunch or dinner reservations as planned, and time was running out.

Luckily I had a couple of lunch dates last week as well as a food bloggers' dinner at Fratelli on Friday night (I have to apologise for the grainy photos, some of which were taken on my phone... I was more focused on eating this time around!):


Burger Wellington: Smith the Grocer


A friend and I ended up at Smith the Grocer after our first Burger Wellington choice for a quick & informal Lambton-area lunch, Astoria, was sold out of their burger* (it wasn't even 1pm!). Some hasty phone research and quick eliminations ("do you think we would've needed a booking?", "hmm, their burger sounds pretty standard") led us to Old Bank Arcade where there was plenty of room for us to sit and burgers were coming out of the kitchen left and right.

Smith the Grocer's offering for Burger Wellington was a Moroccan lamb burger ($17.90): a spiced Wairarapa lamb patty with the usual lettuce, tomato & cheese, in a Pandoro bun. Though there were a few things that could've been better (I wished the cheese was on top of the patty rather than underneath, the patty could've been juicier, the bread was a little on the dry side), it satisfied my burger craving and eased the initial panic that set in after we couldn't get a burger at Astoria ("where else around here does burgers?" "...BK?"). The tzatziki that came on the side good and we both ended up smearing some inside the burger. And although the fries weren't crinkle cut (as per the menu) they were nice and crispy and I was perfectly happy finishing them off (er, almost!).

*my friend went back the next day and said Astoria's burger was worth going back again for. Sadly, I missed out on it this time. But you can read about it on Delaney's burger blog here. 


Smith the Grocer
Old Bank Arcade
233-237 Lambton Quay
Wellington CBD
0800 764 843

Open Mon-Fri 7:30am-5pm; Sat 10am-4pm; Sun 10am-3pm


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Burger Wellington: Bisque on Bolton


A couple days later I was back on the burgers, this time at Bisque on Bolton in the Bolton Hotel, conveniently located across the street from my work (no rushing back down Lambton Quay on a full stomach that day!). Aside from the location, I was really excited to try Bisque's burger: the promise of paua fritter and crayfish mayonnaise was great.

"Pāuā for the People" ($22), a paua fritter with crayfish mayonnaise and salad greens, was good but there were a few things that detracted from its potential awesomeness. The fritter was tasty but was almost drowned out by the bap it arrived in (a bit dry) and the robust salad greens and tomato (a bit slippery). The crayfish mayonnaise was delicious, but most of it seemed to have soaked into the bread. I probably would've been happier deconstructing this one and eating the paua fritter with some of that crayfish mayo slathered on top. In fact, I'd happily pop back over the road if that was ever on offer at lunchtime.

The other thing I'd totally go back for were the kumara fries that came with the burger. Not your all-too-common soggy, greasy kumara fries, these. These were gloriously crispy on the outside and smooth and creamy and kumara-sweet on the inside. Some people don't like kumara fries. I am not one of those people. But I don't think it's just because I have a soft spot for kumara fries that I thought these were fantastic. If only these appeared on Bisque's regular menu... I can keep dreaming, though. 


Bisque on Bolton
Bolton Hotel
Corner of Bolton & Mowbray Streets
Wellington CBD
(04) 462 3770

Open for breakfast: Mon-Fri 6:30-10am / weekends and public holidays 7-11am; lunch: Mon-Fri 12-2pm; dinner: 7 days 6-9:30pm



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DINE Wellington: Fratelli


On Friday evening a lovely group of food bloggers and other food-type people met up for dinner at Fratelli. It was pretty funny seeing this come together: Andrea suggested it on Twitter as she was going to be in town, there was much to-ing and fro-ing on venue choice, lighting, a Twitter hashtag (#woapfbd) was born, and eventually Rosa took charge and booked us in at Fratelli.

I'd never been there before (for reasons perhaps not entirely logical or fair, I always seem to overlook the bars and restaurants on Blair and Allen streets) but was pretty excited about the $70 three-course set menu (with matching wines, of course) they had on offer. Not to mention spending an evening with the likes of these lovely ladies.

For my entree, I chose the Wairarapa beef cheek ravioli in Napolitana sauce with basil & Kapiti parmesan. I don't want to say it tasted predictable, but it tasted exactly as it should: the beef was tender, the pasta perfectly cooked, the tomato sauce just the right thickness and just enough cheese sprinkled on top to add a bit of a nutty bite. Thoroughly enjoyable.

The pan-fried fish* with celeriac puree, sauteed prawns, shaved fennel & cavolo nero was stunning (and a much more manageable portion than poor Andrea's** enormous veal shank!). The fish was perfectly seasoned, perhaps a shade overcooked for my liking but otherwise I couldn't fault the dish; it was gone in no time. I especially loved the contrast of the meaty fish, the robust cavolo nero (by far one of my favourite greens) and the smooth celeriac puree. I'll be cooking something like this at home soon.

For dessert I chose the trio of gelati and completely neglected to photograph it. To be honest, I was far more interested in tasting each of the flavours: pistachio, passionfruit & salted caramel. Each one was beautiful but I'd have to say my favourite was the pistachio, with little bits of nut (salted caramel was a close second, though!). Amazing.

Overall it was a very enjoyable dinner, and the company was just as good as the food (if not better!). The rest of the menu looked good too: I'll definitely be back.


*and here I show my total lack of attention at what fish they were using that day: I was too swept up in the conversation and in how absolutely delicious this was.

**she had come from a full day of the Fisher & Paykel Masterclass... a marathon day of food, to say the least!


Fratelli
15 Blair St
Wellington CBD
(04) 801 6615

Open for dinner Mon-Sat, 5:30pm onward.



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Vivo Enoteca Cucina

As part of my goal to make it to as many Dine 2010 lunches* as possible without taking too many super-long lunch hours (I'm pretty sure an "hour" can be stretched up to 90 minutes, right?) E and I visited the not-usually-open-for-lunch winebar Vivo Enoteca Cucina, tucked away in a little corner of Edward Street. We were seated at a bright and airy windowside table but the interior, chock full of wine bottles and dark wood, felt like the type of place you could squirrel away cosily with a few glasses of wine and a couple of good friends on a rainy day.

With the $25 set menu we had a choice of two courses and a glass of wine. E chose the caprese salad with fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomato, basil and capers. I was a bit apprehensive when he ordered it because I tend to associate caprese salad with summertime, with vine-ripened tomatoes and fresh green basil (it was still August, after all).

I shouldn't have worried: the main focus of the dish was on the cheese, complemented by thin slivers of tomato and dainty basil leaves, just enough variety to create an intermingling of flavours reminiscent of a hot sunny day. The capers provided an added salty, briny dimension that went beautifully with the the otherwise fresh, earnest flavours on the plate.

I had the arancini, little crumbed saffron risotto balls that arrived with a few rocket leaves and parmesan (could have been pecorino, though, now that I think about it) shavings. These were a joy: the outside fried to a perfect crisp, the insides soft and gooey with risotto and melted mozzarella.

They were drizzled with truffle oil and a bit of balsamic vinegar, but I was too fixated on the delight of deep-fried cheesy goodness (really, it must be an instinctive thing) to pay much attention.

I wasn't really sure that they tasted particularly saffron-y, but again, that may have just been me blindsided by the cheese and the crunch. (Mmm, cheese and crunch...) Soon they had disappeared and I found myself wanting more.

But it was time for the next course - and E, never really a dessert person, ordered the fettucine with Italian sausage and capsicum in a vodka pomodoro sauce. This seemed a bit hastily put together, though I guess you could say it was in a rustic fashion, and I thought the sauce may have been on the dry side, but E wolfed it down, especially the meaty chunks of sausage.

Meanwhile I had moved onto dessert, a very fluffy, almost mousse-like lemon cheesecake. I think with cheesecakes I tend to prefer the denser, richer, let-me-just-lay-down-and-die variety but this was probably a much better version for lunchtime seeing as I had to go back to work just a few minutes later (and especially since I had been having veeeeery sleeeeeepy afternoons at the office after my big meals at Pravda and Hippopotamus the week before).

Overall it was an enjoyable lunch - service was friendly and prompt, the food was good (especially those arancini, oh boy!) and although we didn't get to peruse their very extensive wine list (they are a wine bar, after all), that was probably best saved for an after-work drinks and nibbles session anyway.

Aaaaaaand..... I'm so excited for this Sunday (5 December) because they're going to be in the Market Kitchen at the City Market serving up these very same arancini, along with mussel fritters and Italian meatball sandwiches. That's my breakfast sorted!

Vivo Enoteca Cucina
19 Edward St
Wellington

(04) 384 6400

www.vivowinebar.com

Open Mon-Fri 3pm till late, Sat-Sun 5pm till late.


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*(I promise this is the last of the horrendously outdated Wellington on a Plate posts and after this there will be more recent material on the blog.)

Cibo Arte - Food & Art at La Bella Italia

Florence: Last Saturday, Millie and I were generously invited by Antonio of La Bella Italia to the booked out Wellington on a Plate CiboArte – a night of food and art with soprano Julia Booth. We arrived and were seated with an interesting couple, a lady from southern Italy and an English man who had met on the internet before immigrating to New Zealand. Such was the conversation between guests seated among La Bella's shelves laden with artisanal supplies. Antonio and his gorgeous wife along with their attentive staff ensured guests were seated, comfortable and furnished with a glass of red (The Siren Martinborough Merlot Cabernet) or white (Melody Chardonnay).

Millie: We'd been to La Bella Italia before (and to their cafe on the Terrace), but never for this kind of event. I was especially excited because I've been trying to get to as many Wellington on a Plate events as I can (and since I left the planning too late most of my top choices were sold out) and this one sounded fabulous. Anticipation levels were high as guests streamed through the entrance and soon the cavernous warehouse-like space was filled with Italian food and Italian food aficionados alike.

Florence: Antonio introduced the evening's fare and entertainment - his passion for food positively oozing out of his every pore. The entrée was polenta on ragout di costine di maiale e funghi (soft polenta with wild mushrooms and pork ribs ragout).

Florence: The polenta was soft and creamy, the perfect base to mop up the simple but perfectly matched flavours of the melt-in-your-mouth pork and mushroom ragout. Appetite sufficiently whetted, the gorgeous and talented Booth took to the stage accompanied by Mark Dorrell, for her opening piece “O mio babbino” (Puccini), her voice swelling and filling the rafters of La Bella.

Florence: In between courses and the opera, Millie and I were able to nip up through the closely nestled tables to take a few snaps of the well-oiled (no doubt olive) machine of the kitchen. The main course was noce di agnello arrosto con fagioli al fiasco e cavolo nero (roasted lamb rump with borlotti beans and cavolo nero casserole).

Millie: It was fun to see the kitchen staff expertly dishing up the meals, and seeing the finishing touches being added, we took our seats and readied ourselves for the next course. Sure enough, the lamb followed shortly thereafter (in quite generous portions, I may add!) and we dug in.

Florence: The lamb was succulent and cooked perfectly, still pink and juicy in the centre, and was lightly crusted with fragrant dried rosemary. The borlotti beans were tender and the casserole was rustic and simple – perfect with the merlot cabernet and good conversation. I'm partial to cavolo nero when it still has a bit of bite to it, however one can't expect bitey cavolo nero in a casserole, and I am certainly not going to argue with the Italians!

Millie: This dish felt so indulgent, but really was quite simple, hearty, healthy(ish) food (despite - or maybe because of - all the olive oil) - protein and seasonal greens, root vegetables and legumes. I've been really into this rustic style of cooking this winter, so this was definitely a welcome treat.

Florence: Bracket two of Julia Booth's performance was just as sterling as the first, holding the audience in raptures and soon the dessert, zabaglione al marsala con savoiardi (Marsala wine sabayon with ladyfinger biscuits), was being served. The sabayon was light (I wondered if perhaps there were egg whites in it as well as the usual yolks), and not overly sweet with top notes of the marsala wine, all pleasantly scooped up with the sugary crunchy ladyfinger. It was all over too soon.

Millie: As with the previous courses, I was struck by the elegant simplicity of this dish. Nothing too pretentious or out-of-this-world, just a delicate lingering sweetness on the tongue. It was light and indulgent at the same time and was a fitting finale to the evening's meal.

Florence: Julia Booth's final pieces were odes to love - “Song to the Moon” (Dvorak), “The Man I Love” (Gershwin) and a comic and expertly performed piece “Girl in 14G” (Jennifer Tesori) that had the audience giggling into their desserts. Antonio finished off the evening extolling the virtues of art and food, with him an aficionado of both (and warning the attendees that if anyone ordered a cappuccino he would cry).

Millie: I'm no expert on opera, but Julia's performance was superb, and her last set really highlighted the versatility of her vocal talents. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for her name in the future.

Florence: Millie and I happily rounded off the evening with a limoncello, and a browse round the inspiring grocery aisles. The limoncello is a much more brightly coloured and opaque version of the translucent New Zealand limoncello I am used to. The Italian lady from our table enlightened us as to the difference, noting that this limoncello is made using unripe lemons, giving it a much brighter appearance and opacity. The digestif was sour (but not lip puckeringly so) and was much smoother with less of an alcohol burn than the limoncellos I am used to.

Millie: I was really tempted to buy myself a bottle of that limoncello, but managed to talk myself out of it (I'm moving on the weekend!). Overall I was quite impressed with this event; the food was superb, the performance spellbinding and we were in great company. Although this event was organised as part of Wellington on a Plate, La Bella Italia regularly put on various special dinners, cooking classes and other events, which can be found here.

A wonderful evening at a Wellington favourite.

La Bella Italia 

10 Nevis St

Petone

(04) 566 9303

www.labellaitalia.co.nz

Millie and Florence attended CiboArte as guests of La Bella Italia.

Business Bites at La Bella Italia (La Bambina - the Terrace)

With both Florence and I finally back in town, we decided to have a long overdue catch-up over a lunch hour. We opted for La Bella Italia on the Terrace, conveniently placed near Florence's office.

La Bella Italia are pretty big on the Wellington Italian food scene: their warehouse-cum-eatery in Petone is more than worth the train fare, and their imported Italian cheeses and meats can be found in Moore Wilson's and other places that sell gourmet food products. Their shop/deli/cafe on the Terrace, lovingly named La Bambina ('the child' - whereas their original Petone store is called La Mamma) is perfect for an indulgent weekday lunch.

While Florence indulged in a glass of Rose Masseria Altamura ($9), the recommended wine pairing for her main, I had a cappucino ($3.50). It was a treat: just the right amount of foam to balance out the milk & espresso underneath. Plus, La Bella Italia uses L'Affare beans, which is always a thumbs up in my book.

The spaghetti gamberi e rucola ($19.50), spaghetti with prawns and rocket, came tossed in a chilli-garlic-olive oil combination* that's quite typical in Italian cooking. The spaghetti was perfectly al dente, the prawns plump and succulent (though a bit on the small side, the quantity was more than plenty), the chilli providing just enough bite to leave a mild yet lingering heat on the tongue. Delicious. I would have preferred more rocket, though in hindsight I wonder if they got our garnishes mixed up, as it seems like Florence had a heap of rocket on her dish whereas the greens on mine were mostly parsley.

Florence ordered the manicaretti con prosciutto cotto e pesto al basilico ($17.50): crepes made of flat pasta, stuffed with a dreamy mixture of ricotta, cooked prosciutto and basil pesto, baked with a layer of cheese and tomato sauce on top. It was airy yet rich, mild, flavourful.

True to their roots as importers/purveyors of fine Italian products, La Bella Italia's Terrace location also has a deli area selling cheese, cured meats and other Italian products. Not only is it the perfect spot for a business lunch, they have a good selection of gelato, biscotti, slices and the like, making it a great coffee spot too. And I'm sure at some point one of us will check out their breakfast menu!





La Bella Italia Bambina N. 1
101 The Terrace
Wellington
(04) 499 1155

Open Mon-Fri 7am-late. Closed Sat & Sun.

labellaitalia.co.nz


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*I somehow managed to splatter a drop of this oily sauce onto my new silk top, much to my embarrassment. It seems to only happen when I'm wearing something nice, too... whoops!

Simple, authentic pizza at Scopa

Don't get me wrong: I love pizza. It's got to be one of my favourite foods. But often, pizza here (cough cough, major pizza delivery chains) can be so mediocre, the essentials (crust/base, tomato sauce, cheese) being drowned out by a truckload of toppings, swirls of barbecue and/or sweet chilli sauce, so that what you're really eating is a smorgasboard of everything imaginable, doused in sauce and plopped onto a slab of dough. I like toppings, just not to the extent that you lose sight of what you're actually meant to be eating! Hmm, so maybe I'm a purist.

Anyway, I'm always thrilled when I discover a place that has mastered what pizza should taste like, before going nuts with wacko topping combinations. Scopa can definitely count itself in this category. Pizzas are made fresh to order (you can see the guys skillfully tossing the dough behind the counter), cooked thin-crust style in a woodfired oven.

And, on Tuesdays at lunchtime they offer $8 margherita pizzas (normally $14) - a nod to the idea that "simple is best", perhaps? It's an example of how great pizza should be, with the chewy, almost-crispy base, the combination of simple tomato sauce and melted mozzarella cheese, a sprinkling of fresh basil leaves. And it's the foundation for all the Bresolin brothers' other pizzas, which, though they have toppings, never overlook the essentials.

Here's my favourite part. For those looking for a little extra zing on their pizza, tables are topped with Huffman's hot sauce and a bottle of homemade chilli oil... my favourite!! At lunchtime the chilli oil bottles sometimes seem to be in short supply, but don't hesitate to ask for one (or snag one off another table) - the atmosphere is casual enough that this is easily done.

On this particular occasion I still hadn't had breakfast, so while E ordered a margherita pizza for himself, I perused the all day brunch/lunch menu and settled on the warm muesli with amaretti mascarpone and fig molasses ($8.50).

It was stunningly delicious. I didn't really know what to expect from the words "warm muesli" - a crunchy, hot cereal?! - but what arrived was a decadent porridge, complete with plump raisins and little pieces of shaved apple, topped with a generous dollop of amaretti mascarpone (divine) and lashed with a sweet, gooey sauce that must have been the fig molasses. Wow. Perhaps a little too sweet for an everyday breakfast, but what a treat!

I also ordered a side of potato and wild mushroom hash ($3.50). Again, I'm not too sure what I had been expecting, but this is what arrived:

The potatoes were well-cooked, and everything was glistening with the earthy, brown juices of the wild mushrooms. However, it tasted a little bland (generous dashes of salt and chilli oil fixed this), and I found maybe one mushroom in the mix - most of the brown stuff turned out to be onion.

Scopa remains one of my perennial favourites with its good, simple Italianesque cuisine, the casual, friendly atmosphere, the fact that it's open all day, the thick, rich hot chocolates ($2.50-$5.50). Plus, its location on the corner of Cuba & Ghuznee streets (and the floor-to-ceiling windows that open up in the summer) make it an ideal spot for people-watching. Try to grab a table by the window.

If you're going for pizza, one pie is enough for one really hungry person or 2 not-so-hungry people. In the past, a couple of girl friends and I would usually share 2 margherita pizzas between the 3 of us, which worked well. There are some other bargains at lunchtime ($10 lunch specials, $10 paninis with salad), though the option to create your own panini or sandwich from a list of meats, veggies and cheeses has sadly disappeared. If you're going on a Tuesday at lunchtime I'd recommend getting in quick, as the $8 margherita pizza seems to be a popular choice!

RATING: 4.5/5




Scopa Caffe Cucina
Cnr Ghuznee & Cuba Streets
Wellington
(04)384-6020

www.scopa.co.nz

Bellissimo Il Piccolo

Having never been lucky enough to travel to Italy, I cannot vouch for the authenticity of the food at Il Piccolo further than my own taste buds squealing in delight. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that the Italian food experience is as much about people, intimacy, laughter and experience, as it is about the fare. And the ‘Ministry of Pizza & certain other things’ as it self-reflexively known, certainly delivers on the latter. Step inside the tiny trattoria on upper Willis st, and indulge in the intimacy of the quaint surroundings – authentic to the romantic notions of Italy that frequent my travel dreams. Probably not the best place to dine if you are claustrophobic, this eatery is petite to say the least, with only 5 tables that are close enough to overhear the scandal breaking at the next table. Exclusively run by an Italian couple, you will be served by the slightly eccentric but charming proprietor – who will linger for a chat at the slightest encouragement, and inspect the quality of your wine (BYO) as he takes it away to uncork it. The menu is fresh and simple encompassing antipasti, zuppe (soup), insalate (salad), pizza, pasta, and dolci (dessert). M and I started with the Angio Pan Pizza ($6), a crispy golden base smothered in buttered garlic and parsley – simple and warming and plenty enough for two.

We shared a Lasagne al Forno ($15) and a Stromboli Pizza with pepperoni, mushrooms, chilli and olives ($15). The pizza and pastas are uncomplicated and rustic, with quality ingredients and robust flavours that warm the cockles of your heart. Needless to say, we ate every morsel with gusto, and continued to dessert without a thought to increasingly tight waistbands.

The Tiramisu ($6.5) was gorgeously smooth and creamy albeit a little on the smaller side for the purposes of sharing, and it could of done with a touch more coffee/liqueur drenched sponge. Service is consistently prompt and charming, though I am always happy to while away the time supping a warming red and staring out the fogged windows or basking in the eclectic charm of the surroundings and laughter of the patrons. It is always a shame to step out into a biting southerly wind rather than a cobbled terrace in Italy.

Careful not to confuse Il Piccolo on Willis with its counterpart on Vivian st, which is still lovely, but doesn’t quite replicate the romanticism of the original.

Il Piccolo Caffe
248 Willis Street
Wellington
Telefono 385 2645

Temping to award 5 Beehives, but that would be due to my bias - I LOVE this place