Summer Hill Hotel

There are plenty of pubs around Sydney offering Cheap steaks, and Summer Hill Hotel is no different. They have renovated in the last year or two and now has an outdoor patio area. Since the renovation, I always see more and more people sitting in the outdoor area as my train speeds past. Feeling like steak one day, and being near Summer Hill gave me the perfect excuse to check out the place.

Walking in, there are 3 sections to the hotel. There's the bar and TV area, with plenty of stools for people to sit and watch the footy. Then there's a dining area with more comfortable tables and chairs that can accommodate a family. Lastly, there's the outdoor area. Being an extremely hot day, we opted to sit in the dining area that is partially air conditioned. Partially meaning the air conditioning is on, but the open kitchen is pumping hot smokey air into the dining area, cancelling out much of the cool air.

Steak with mushroom gravy

Steak with peppercorn gravy

There are a choice of gravies available for your $10 steak. I went with mushroom gravy and my friend chose the peppercorn gravy. Cutting into my steak, I found my medium rare steak was closer to medium well if not well done in parts of it. I've always preferred my steak undercooked than overcooked if they can't do it right. In this case, the steak was just way too cooked for my liking. I'm not sure if its the steak or the fact that its not medium rare, but I found the slab of meat tough and too charred for my liking.

I suspect they may have gotten me and my friend's order mixed up, or they really have no idea how to cook a steak. His medium well steak, turned out more like medium. I would've happily swapped with him, but we were both half way through our steaks by that point.

Wedges with sour cream and sweet chilli

Being unsatisfied with my meal, I was craving for something that really hit the spot. So we ordered a bit bowl of wedges to share. The wedges were searingly hot when we got it. But it was also really crispy on the outside, and fluffy on the inside.

I would probably come back again and try other stuff on the menu, just not the steak.

Summer Hill Hotel
1 Lackey Street
Summer Hill NSW 2130
Ph: (02) 9798 3331


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Crocodile Farm Hotel - Ashfield

Crocodile Farm Hotel in Ashfield was renovated about a year ago. Previously it looked more like a local pub serving more beer than food. With a modern look and a revamped dining area, we decided to go give their $10 Rump Steaks ago.

Strangely enough, when we got there, both me and my friend got lured by the Sirloin Steak and paid a little extra for our meal.

Sirloin with mash potato & steamed vegetables - $16

The Sirloin was cooked to perfection, but for the extra money we paid, I didn't really notice a huge difference in quality. I guess I'm not much of a steak eater and really don't know my cuts of meats well. I think next time I'm going to try the $10 rump and compare.

Both us had decided to be "healthy" and ordered steamed vegetables with our steak. Big mistake because we were both secretly craving chips!!! Since the nice was young, we ordered a serve of wedges to snack on whilst we sat and chatted.

Wedges with Sweet Chilli and sour cream - $7

The dining area is very comfortable and relaxing, allowing you to sit back, chillax and catch up with your friends. Certainly a huge improvement since the renovation! And considering its situated right outside Ashfield Mall, a good place to relax after shopping. And if you're lucky, you should get free parking in the shopping centre without much issue.

Crocodile Farm Hotel
262 Liverpool Road
Ashfield NSW 2131
(Ph) 02 9799 6010
http://www.crocodilefarmhotel.com.au

Feasts around Paris

So what does Paris have besides Pastries and expensive restaurants? Generally good food everywhere! Most of the time we ended up having the set menu where you get 2-3 courses of your choice with a drink (sometimes wine) for 5-20 euroes depending on whether its breakfast, lunch or dinner.

My philosophy to eating is very different to my friend. On a set menu, he would also choose something he's had before. This meant a lot of steaks and grilled chicken a majority of the time. For me? If I can't find it in the dictionary, if the waiter can't translate it or tries to mime it out in the worst game of Charades, that is what I will order. Especially if I finally understand what the waiter is saying and it means organs or some unusual animal/body part! This means sometimes I have no idea what I am eating, even when I'm eating it. I also sometimes get things I would never order, but only ordered due to the language barrier. But hey, food should be adventurous!

Free crusty French baguette

OMG...I've never understood why people go on and on about French Baguettes. Its JUST BREAD people! That is...until you try the real French baguette! OMG! The bread has a lovely crunchy chewy crust, but the inside is so fluffy and soft. Some people eat it with butter, but I just eat it on its own. Its that good, I don't want to taint it with butter!

Salad with cheese and anchovies

Duck Terrine

This was really good, but also really rich. By the time I was done eating this, I was getting really full, and its only an entree!

Steak with salad

Another steak with chips

These were perfectly fried chips with a lovely cooked steak. I can't remember what type of steak it was, I think its flank?


When a set menu mentions wine, you usually get half a bottle per person.

My mini bordeux

1/2 a bottle combined with lack of sleep and jetlag meant I was a really REALLY happy person by the end of the meal. I was sooooo "happy" I couldn't eat dessert. Well...I didn't understand what she was trying to say. So I randomly yelled coffee in my "happy" state and ended the meal with that.


Our first day in Paris was exhausting. We arrived at 7am, but couldn't check in til 2pm. We forced ourselves to go roam around Paris and went to the Louvre for the Mona Lisa in our zoned out state. Trying to make sure we adjust to the time zone properly, we had a 3 hr nap and forced ourselves awake. We ended up at some Italian quarter an hour later, and in a very CBF mood, we plonked ourselves down at the nearest restaurant. Opening the menu did we realise we were in an Italian restaurant in France! hehe


My friend decided to be really difficult and ordered a tuna neptune pizza.....without the tuna. I told him to order the magarita or vegetarian pizza instead, but he insisted on a tuna pizza without the tuna. So when we placed our order, the waiter gave us the most disgusted look like we're trying to make trouble. He then places the order with the cook, who then all point and laugh at my friend! hahahaha

I got a Jamon and white asparagus pizza with what appears to be a dollop of creme fraiche.


Some random restaurant we found in the back streets of Paris. We were so tired we didn't care what they were serving. We went with the dish of the day that came in this really cute le creuset pot!

Lids off!

Err....still no idea...

Turns out it was mashed potatoes with some type of fish mashed through it. Really tasty, just wish I knew what it was! haha

Thank god Paris does good coffee!

Another meal, this time at a wine bar/cafe/restaurant near the hotel.

Oh yeah...alcohol!

Why did we choose this place? They serve Snails!

Escargot

Being in France, we just had to try their Escargot. These were nice, but nothing special compared to the others I've tried previously. I would've liked this to be much more garlicky so I can mop up all the sauce with bread.

Andouille sausage

When I ordered this, the waitress actually had to check with me twice that I really wanted to order it. Why?


Its basically a sausage made entirely of pig intestines and stomach. Since I love my offal, I loved this dish!


My friend ordered a grilled chicken steak with creamy white wine sauce.

Our final night in Paris, we decided to wander around the Latin Quarter til we found something we wanted to eat. My friend really wanted to try frogs legs, so we walked and walked until we finally found one restaurant serving it!

Frog legs

These were quite blah. Basically cold poached frog legs topped with a tomato relish. I much prefer the Asian way of either stir fry, salt and pepper or even just cooked in congee. But atleast that's another thing to tick off!

Foie Gras

I went with the Foie Gras, which was incredibly incredibly rich! I could barely get through this even with the salad, bread and relish. I didn't manage to finish it off as it was just to rich, but damn it tasted good!

My friend's steak, frites and white wine sauce

Beef Bourguignon

Even though it was summer, I still wanted to try the beef bourguignon. Not as tasty as I would've liked, but it was summer and I really should've ordered something lighter.

Creme brulee!!!!

ho ho ho!! So good! Nothing else to say. Move along now! :D

Profriteroles

Not just any profriteroles, but profriteroles stuffed with ice cream!

Our absolute last meal in Paris was lunch near our hotel. Since we had to check out on time, but not leave for the airport for a few hours, we grabbed lunch before doing a bit of a wander.


Again, my friend's steak and chips. Done Well Done this time. Me? I went the steak tartare! Again, the waiter had to double confirm and explain to me that this dish was completely, COMPLETELY 100% raw. I guess he's had way too many tourists ask him to cook the steak! When I confirmed that yes, I really REALLY want to order it. He put my order down and shook his head. "You and your friend are opposites. He wants his well done, you want yours completely raw!" hahaha that's soooooooooooo true!

Some of the best frites to go with my steak tartare

My steak tartare

Considering I've never eaten a steak tartare before, I had to ask the waiter what's the best way to eat it. He plonks about 5 sauces infront of me. Tomato, Worcestershire, tobasco, mustard and something else. He said just mix and match whatever you like after you mix everything together.


Doesn't look so pleasant after you've mixed it together...I divided my steak into many smaller bites. Each one flavoured with one sauce. Then I started mixing and matching until I found the combination I want. The first half of the steak was delicious. Half way through the cold raw meat started to sit funny in me. I could feel a cold lump in my stomach floating in a heap of water I was drinking. I really should've had some wine to wash it down.....but I needed to be sober enough to make it to the airport!

La Parrillada - Petersham

I've driven along Parramatta Road so many times in my life, yet I've never really paid attention to La Parrillada. I know there was some restaurant, somewhere along the street that has a lot of flashing lights. Little did I know about the little meat haven inside.



La Parrillada is probably famous for 2 things. Firstly, they're a Peruvian restaurant. How many Peruvian restaurants do I know of? Just 1, La Parrillada. The second thing would be that they serve A LOT of meat. Its a meat fest at La Parrillada! Whether its all the all you can eat special for $19.90, or the 2kg BBQ platter for 2 people, its still A LOT OF MEAT.

On the occassion we went, we weren't exactly hungry enough for all you can eat, so we opted for the 2kg BBQ platter of meat. Not that there's a huge difference between the 2 choices, because I can feel my canines growing longer every minute I am in the restaurant.

Inca Kola

I don't know how to describe this, but its kind of like lemonade, kind of like Mountain Dew.

Complimentary bread

Fresh crunchy chips

Garden salad to cut through the grease

The most amazing dipping sauces!

Pièce de résistance - Parrillada for 2
2kg of meat - $54.90

The 2kg of meat is cooked to order. I knew that it was going to served on a mini bbq, so we ordered all the meat to be cooked rare (Even though I usually eat steak medium rare). This worked quite well, as we started eating the thinner pieces first. By the time we ate our way through the pile of meat, the ones at the bottom were between medium rare to medium. The BBQ came with Beef sirloin steaks, Pork loin, Lamb cutlet, a South American Chorizo and beef and pork spare ribs.

La Parrillada is a no nonsense meat haven. Probably not a place you'll bring a date, unless you both love eating meat and want to gorge infront of each other. Also expect to walk out smelling like a BBQ. I can't wait to go back and try their all you can eat next time!

La Parrillada
470 Parramatta Rd
Petersham, NSW
Ph: (02) 9560 0943
http://www.laparrillada.com.au

Homecook heroine...wannabe

I've been in a bit of a strange mood lately. Either I want to go out and party and spend up, or I want to stay home and mope whilst I think about my career. I've also been moping at friend's place which gives me a chance to whinge and work out what I really want in life right now, which is everything. The upside is, when I don't go out drinking and eating my salary away, I will be cooking up a storm.

SMJ Minestrone - Starring Cavalo nero

This was my "oh my god, I've been drinking 6 days straight" detox healthy soup of carrots, zucchini, potatoes, broccoli and cavalo nero. I have been staking out Woolies for the past 4 months after I found out that they're one of the few retailers that stock cavalo nero. And when I spotted the last packet on the shelves, I grabbed it before I realised what I would use it for. Using it in the soup really let me taste the natural sweetness that you don't always associate with cooked cabbage.

Chunky fried rice

Using leftover home made bbq pork, I added some chunky chicken before stir frying up the biggest wokful of carb loaded comfort food to an asian. Fried rice.

Shepherds pie

What better way to combat the cold, bone chilling weather we've had with a hot bubbling tray of shepherds pie. The filling was a combination of lamb mince and slowly stewed chunky beef, finely grated carrots, onions and peas. The next time I'm going to make this, I'm going to make it extra saucy, but in a deeper dish. A lot of the sauce bubbled over the sided of the tray and dried it out a tad.

Big BIG breakfast

What can I say? Theres nothing better than a big breakfast to cure a hangover. This was more lunch than breakfast, but it was good enough to eat 3 meals a day (If it doesn't kill you). Runny sunnyside up eggs, sausages, bacon, garlic mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, hash browns and baked beans, all served with crunchy hot toast.

Scotch fillet with pommes noisettes and garlic mushrooms

The steak was good, but the star of the show was really the pommes noisettes. I saw the photo of the pommes noisettes on TFP's website, I just KNEW I had to have some. The last time I had these would have been a good 6-10years ago. Damn it was good!!!

Curried sausages and mashed potatoes

I'm a bit obsessive compulsive. Like there was one time I watched "Everybody loves Raymond", and they had a scene where they were eating biscotti. Next thing you know, I'm googling a biscotti recipe and ripping everything out of my pantry to try and find flour to make biscotti at 10:30pm. I couldn't find any flour and was tempted to run to the shops in pouring rain so I could make biscotti. The only thing stopping me? It started thundering and lightening.

So when I was reading one of the forums, I saw a recipe for curries sausages. And ever since then, all I want to do is make curried sausages. Not that I followed the recipe, but its curry and sausages isn't it? Served with a pile of mashed potatoes to mop up the sauce...MmMMmm

Then I wanted to make pizza. Lots of it.

Attempt 1: Ham, cheese, onion and oregano pizza

Attempt 2: Ham, mushrooms, cheese, onion and oregano pizza

Attempt 3: Ham, mushrooms, cheese, onion, oregano and chilli pizza

And this? I didn't cook this. But I ate this with my workmate after a big night out where we both got kicked out of the bar. These are possibly some of the best squid in all of Sydney. They were crunchy and spicy. Lightly dusted with a chicken like salt, served with rocket and aioli. We also ordered a big bowl of chips to share. You can get this at Chicane on Bond St, opposite Australia Square. The BEST squid.