My scheduled lunch yesterday kept being pushed back by silly people ringing me, wanting things and general banter. At around 4:00 PM, I toddled down to Little Collins Street and took a high chair at a communal table at Henry and the Fox. They did not have a time limit on their menu, so I was looking forward to ordering food at this awkward time as I was absolutely famished.
Walking past the comfortable outside dining and smoking area, I thought it would be a great place to hang out when it warms up (again) and looking around the dining room, it reminded me a bit of Bistro Guillaume with the combination of lime green, white and natural wood finishes being used. There were office workers camped out at various tables with their IT, eating and drinking and looking happy. Before the server approached me, which was extremely quick I might add, I was able to inspect the facial expressions of every customer at this place and the staff and everyone just looked remarkably happy. It immediately put me in a better mood.
As my lunch excursion was delayed so long, I ended up turning up just as happy hour started at 4:00 PM, which lasts until 6:00 PM in their aptly called "Bar Aperitivo" so I was able to enjoy a few complementary canapés, along with bread, whilst I waited for my first order of jamon and manchego croquettes and a bottle of Asahi. The croquettes were freshly made and I needed to let them cool down for a few minutes before putting the tasty morsels down my throat. A great way to start my very late lunch.
Service was very friendly and attentive. My water glass was re-filled as quickly as I was drinking the beer and after my Asahi was completely depleted, I decided to order Samuel Adams Boston Lager, which I hadn't drank since I was at the Shady Pines in Sydney last.
In my previous blog post today, I went outside of my comfort zone a bit and ordered a Chicken Parmigiana at the Exchange Hotel and really enjoyed it. Following in the tradition of ordering things I normally don't bother with, I requested a Prawn, Sweetcorn, Red Onion and Coriander Pizza. The restaurant seems to be well known for their pizzas so I was very intrigued and still very hungry. I haven't ordered a pizza from anywhere for over a year.
What was presented to me was a work of art. I did not want eat it as it just looked beautiful and also smelled wonderful. The coriander had a good strong fresh smell, the tomatoes were still very juicy, the prawns were cooked perfectly and the pizza base itself was fantastic. The kitchen certainly knows what they are doing. As chef Michael Fox was the 2011 The Age Young Chef of the year, I expected magic and it was delivered. If you subsribe to my Twitter feed, you would have seen a photo of the pizza, but if not and you are interested, check it out here.
I spent two hours at this place relaxing, eating, drinking, observing and reading the news. There are many other things on the menu that I want to try so I look forward to returning. Sadly they are not open on weekends which is probably the only negative about this place but I suppose since I do not work on the weekends usually, I can't expect everyone else to.
Link to review
525 Little Collins Street Melbourne VIC 3000
My Rating: 15/20
Service: 4/5
Ambiance: 3.5/5
Quality: 4/5
Value For Money: 3.5/5
Comment: Prawn pizza was amazing
Twitter: @epicurean3006
e-mail: epicureanofsouthbank (at) gmail (dot) com
web: www.epicureanofsouthbank.com
When I posted this review, 85% of the reviewers on Urbanspoon agreed with me and like this place.
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