Hello, hello, hello! It's good to be back to a relatively more regular basis - at least I'm trying. Working through my backlog, it actually quite satisfying! To celebrate dad's birthday, and not wanting to trek far on an abnormally cold day (winter came early to Australia...), we opted to for a nearby restaurant that we've yet to try - Spago.
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| Photo credit - Spago |
I've been waiting to try out Spago ever since it opened, especially the multicoloured pasta made in-house. Spago doesn't have a large-size menu, but it's not small either. Wanting to try the largest number of dishes possible, we opted for a Set Menu ($39) each - 3 course meal w/coffee or tea. We were all aiming to try their pasta, so we didn't change any of our pasta mains to their one of their daily specials (+$5).
When we ordered, I found it really nice that the waitress asked us if it was to share without me asking for it!
ENTREES
ENTREES
King Oyster Mushroom ($14)
Grilled sliced king oyster mushroom, grana padano cheese, rocket and black truffle oil
The mushroom was sliced really nicely, giving it a very nice mushroom steak feel to it. The natural bitterness of both the mushroom and the rocket was a bit much for me. Also, truffle oil didn't act to much benefit - not much truffle taste, and gave the naturally juicy mushroom a oily taste.
Angus Beef Carpaccio ($15)
Thinly sliced of raw beef tenderloin with horseradish, truffle pecorino and truffle oil
This carpaccio was really good! The beef was melt in your mouth, and the horseradish gave it a nice tangy taste too. However, there probably was an overdose of truffle oil, making it slightly like eating a little block of butter. I'm having trouble identifying the olive coloured flower/fruit (is it a horseradish flower?? I'm so noob at this!)
Garlic Prawn ($12)
King prawns, chorizo, garlic, chilli and butter
This thing is jam packed with flavour! It tasted brilliant, but it was extremely oily - the bowl had a layer of oil floating at the bottom. Although the lemon did help to lighten up the taste a little. However, the bread accompanies the flavours of the prawns and chorizo really well.
Lobster Bisque ($14)
Creamy lobster soup with king prawns
I actually really like this. Compared to the lobster bisque at Blue Angel, this one has less of a lobster taste and more of a tomato-y flavour to it. I would have liked it a lot more if it was served with the bread like the garlic prawns did. Too bad the bread was all eaten by the time the brilliant idea came to me.
PASTA/MAINS
Spaghetti Marinara ($28)
Fresh black mussels, king prawns, calamari, scallops and Napoletana sauce
The flavour combination was brilliant. The seafood was cooked just right, and the sauce good (a little salty for my tastebuds, but the fam loved it). However, the problem was that the sauce didn't stick to the pasta very well, leaving me with a pool of sauce, but relatively dry pasta at the same time.
Lobster Bisque Risotto ($28)
Aborio rice cooked in lobster bisque topped with scallops and king prawns
I ordered this, then started regretting it when I read the description of the King Prawns Fettuccini ($24), which is practically like the risotto, but pasta instead of rice. But the risotto turned out to be a brilliant idea. It ticked all the boxes that the lobster bisque entree left unchecked. The rice soaked up the lobster bisque so well. Whilst I loved the strong flavour, mum found it a bit overpowering for her liking.
King prawns, chorizo, garlic, chilli and butter
This thing is jam packed with flavour! It tasted brilliant, but it was extremely oily - the bowl had a layer of oil floating at the bottom. Although the lemon did help to lighten up the taste a little. However, the bread accompanies the flavours of the prawns and chorizo really well.
Lobster Bisque ($14)
Creamy lobster soup with king prawns
I actually really like this. Compared to the lobster bisque at Blue Angel, this one has less of a lobster taste and more of a tomato-y flavour to it. I would have liked it a lot more if it was served with the bread like the garlic prawns did. Too bad the bread was all eaten by the time the brilliant idea came to me.
PASTA/MAINS
Spaghetti Marinara ($28)
Fresh black mussels, king prawns, calamari, scallops and Napoletana sauce
The flavour combination was brilliant. The seafood was cooked just right, and the sauce good (a little salty for my tastebuds, but the fam loved it). However, the problem was that the sauce didn't stick to the pasta very well, leaving me with a pool of sauce, but relatively dry pasta at the same time.
Lobster Bisque Risotto ($28)
Aborio rice cooked in lobster bisque topped with scallops and king prawns
I ordered this, then started regretting it when I read the description of the King Prawns Fettuccini ($24), which is practically like the risotto, but pasta instead of rice. But the risotto turned out to be a brilliant idea. It ticked all the boxes that the lobster bisque entree left unchecked. The rice soaked up the lobster bisque so well. Whilst I loved the strong flavour, mum found it a bit overpowering for her liking.
Fettuccini Carbonara ($20)
Pan-fried smoked bacon and onion tossed with fresh egg, cream and parmesan cheese
We normally go for red sauce pastas, because they're less heavy and better suited for our tastebuds (other than my dad, the rest of us don't take dairy well in large portions). However, we decided to go for just one cream based sauce (for science!). I was really disappointed for the lack of sauce (as much as I can't take cream sauce), making the pasta very dry. Spago's in-house pasta is naturally on the drier side, so the lack of sauce just made it drier.
Squid Ink Spaghetti Crab Meat ($26)
Squid ink pasta, blue swimmer crab meat, cherry tomato, garlic, white wine, chilli and lime
Eating with me means that we always have to order something novelty. Although squid ink pasta isn't an entire new and funky thing, it's still novelty for me. Squid ink pasta doesn't have a distinctive taste - so the pasta by itself tastes pretty much like the normal spaghetti to me. Looking at the topping, the taste of the chilli and wine was very likeable, the texture of the swimmer crab was a bit mushy for my liking.
After lots of eating and talking (and numerous drinks), we finished with our mains. When dessert and coffee/time was served, I was so content I forgot to take photos (shock horror!). For me, dessert was the best! The bitter and sweet combination of the tiramisu was beautiful. Whilst I'm not a big fan of berry sauces, the smooth consistency of the panna cotta won me over ( I just ended up more or less draining it, as I worked through my dessert cup).
Looking at the meal as a whole, the restaurant is of average quality, but the prices doesn't exactly reflect this. I also remember seeing a certificate framed at the door saying that they were voted as a "Best Cheap Eat" restaurant, which works if you all ordered according to the set menu - however if you ordered everything separately, it's not a cheap eat...at least not in my books.
Looking at the meal as a whole, the restaurant is of average quality, but the prices doesn't exactly reflect this. I also remember seeing a certificate framed at the door saying that they were voted as a "Best Cheap Eat" restaurant, which works if you all ordered according to the set menu - however if you ordered everything separately, it's not a cheap eat...at least not in my books.
So that's all there is from me!
Both you and I need to make the most of this holiday we have now~
Have fun and stay safe!
xoxo
Serena
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