Restaurant Review: The European.

For the last few years my usual coffee place has been the European on Spring Street, I started going there because it was just close to where we l lived and they made a decent coffee. The European is just one of those places you go to if u want good food, service is friendly and the menu changes according to seasonality quite often and everything I’ve tried is tasty.

The food is from all over Europe and sometimes dwindling down to the Mediterranean or Middle East for inspiration, the head chef here is Ian Curly rumored to have a new TV show involving training convicts to cook.
The view and atmosphere is great, just for a coffee or a romantic dinner in the dimly lit dining room which shouts old school bistro. The supper menu also has a killer croque-monsieur which is very indulgent for a snack after 10PM.
The night I went n decided to take a few photos I had a light summery salad, for our starter, which was pretty plain, kinda reminded me of a viet coleslaw



Moreton Bay Bug, Crispy Chicken, Cabbage and Cervil Salad

 The mains were definetly one of the highlights of the night, the pasta was the essence of the sea, with the shaved bottarga like crunchy explosions of seawater which contrasted the silky smooth linguini beautifully, and the added acidity crushed tomatoes cut the richness of the sweet sweet crab.

If your looking for a soul warming dish, this is it. the duck pie is the pinicle of high end comfort food. delicious flakey pastry with confit of duck in a rich orange sauce with earthy mushrooms and a few sprigs of watercress makes the perfect pithvier.

Free Range Duck Pie with Mushrooms and Confit Orange

Our desserts were pretty extrodinary also, with a Salted Caramel Parfait with Peanuts and Sour Cream Ice Cream which makes the one at Fenix taste like a salted rubber band. I could eat this everyday. definetly worth a visit to the European just to try this bad boy out.

Salted Caramel Parfait with Peanuts and Sour Cream Ice Cream

The Apple Creme Brulee was nice and smooth with a sharp crack of burnt sugar which was bitter enough to compliment the underlying tones of calvados. served with a green apple sorbet and old fashioned tea cake that would remind you of your childhood at grandma's

Apple Creme Brulee with Green Apple Sorbet and Old Fasioned Tea Cake.

European is definetly in my top 10 dinning choices in the CBD. Highly recomended whether just for a coffee or a late night snack. Staff is friendly, great views, impressive winelist, and out door dinning area with heaters!.

School Day 32: First Aid 3. QUALIFIED FIRST AIDER.

Ah third week over and after about 20 revisions of the DRABCD and anti-choking procedures, we are finally and officially first aiders. There’s probably 1 or 2 more weeks of school left after this. Clean and maintain and our test for eggs and farinaceous.

Then its full time work for me, for a few months at least. There’s a wine function I volunteered for after school today, I spent a shift on the weekend in the kiosk prepping the lobster dish, which was butter poached crayfish with shitake reduction. Other courses had a taleggio risotto with chopped chives, scampi tails with marinated peppers, basil oil and bisque foam and seared duck breast with kumquat butter.

Reflection 365: Thanks for a great year!

It’s been a year and maybe a little time for reflection. It was 365 days ago on the 18th of November 2009 when the start of my dream and the first step in becoming more than just another Melbourne food fanatic began.


52 weeks ago I set foot in my first job in a commercial kitchen that wasn’t owned by someone in my family. There’s no way I could have imagined that my first job in hospitality would be at a fine establishment such as the iconic Donovans. Here I’ve witnessed the massive staff turnover in hospitality the coming and going of many friends. Even the head chef left.


I experienced first hand the handing over to a new generation, a passing of the torch to the age where technology and science are used in conjunction with passion for a new style of food.


The last year was difficult there were ups and downs, days where I didn’t want to go to work because of the dreaded fear of being the weakest link in a chain of great chefs.


There were days where I couldn’t wait to see, taste and experience new food, days when I would volunteer to come in on my days off just so I could be a part of something new.


I’ve participated in competitions against my peers from all around Victoria and helped out in a 3rd year competition supporting the best of my school. I’ve had some small cuts and some BIG burns and the scars from each to tell a story of my 1st year in the kitchen.


Well a year on and I know my way around my section Larder like it was the back of my hand. Soon to be on the pass for a while I see on the upcoming time tables and hopefully on to bigger and better sections soon after.


This blog has been a great place to share all my experiences, thanks to all those who are following, thanks for all your support and kind words throughout the year, you’ve followed me as the blog ranked as high as 25th of Urbanspoon, and whilst I been too busy to give close to daily posts.


What would u guys like to see more of? Recipes? Restaurants? Photos? Tell me and I'll try make it happen.


You guys rock! All who are following me and all who I currently work with and those who I’ve worked with in the past and present? Thanks for being part of my hopefully long and epic journey!


And finally a very special thanks to my girlfriend who has been so supportive with my job over the year!

Day 223 - 225: A Year In a Blur.. of SQUID INK?

What a first day back, front section trouble again. A quick mend with a swap of chefs and in for a long night of stressing out from a surprise staff meal to letting two new chefs run larder, while I watch in horror.

Tonight was a record finish for me with all of us staying back to prepare our house chips because the potatoes have become extremely sweet and are hard to fry without them turning black before they actually get crispy.

The week actually becomes blurry after that, few shifts on the pass and more training of new chefs, nothing that eventful but as I reach my 1 year mark at Donovans. Congratulations to me!

I actually do remember what happened, remember the squid crackers I was talking about I did get to make them and they did turn out pretty cool. Even though they look like garbage bags and smell like fish they taste like a prawn cracker.

Mysterious Yellow Fruit of My Childhood...

Seriously does anyone know what this fruit is? I used to eat them when i lived in the eastern suburbs but I never knew what they were called, kinda like a wild apricot maybe? PLEASE SOMEONE TELL MEE!

School Day 31: First Aid 2 so..... Second Aid??

This is our 2nd week of our First Aid Course the week where i get to learn how to bandage my own wounds. This is the lesson i need, not all these myths about butter or ice on burns. it seem the correct procedure is just to run it under cold water and apply burn cream and allow the blister to naturally form and dissipate.
We had some more practice on CPR and even managed to have some fun with the faces of the CPR dummies to make a new friend, Hollow Girl a tribute to KEVIN BACON!



Freaky...



Day 220 - 222: Crazyness Begins..

It’s kind of while since I posted but I haven’t really been up to much, I’ve been on the pass recently, it’s kinda kept me busy. Our 2nd sous vide machine has arrived and now we have 2 to play with one at main course and the other at the pass. I’d had a chance to experiment a little as well. Recently I was looking up some interesting techniques that were developed on the blog Ideas in Food. I found a interesting recipe for what they called squid crackling, this basically looked like a recipe for prawn crackers using squid.

Ill try it out maybe after the weekend when it more quiet, there’s trailers in again this weekend, a ex MLC girl and a American guy with a really sexy knife, They were pretty good on their trial both qualified I guess they will start next week, as part of the crazy season shifts which start at 6 AM.

Day 217 - 219: Kitchen Chef Shuffle

Kitchen Reno is in and the new layout is a vast improvement, the kitchen is now completely open and everyone is visible, the calls can be heard from everyone. Although larder is much hotter with a new salamander in and flat top the back corner is now as hot as BBQ.

This week is the last week before the kitchen chef shuffle, two of whom I think are the best chefs in main course and front section are leaving. I guess we’ll all move on at some stage but working with them has been awesome ill be sad to see them go.

School Day 30 : FIRST AID

First Aid week at school! Finally I thought I’d never get to learn how to manage my many wounds from being clumsy. First we learnt theory, then did the practical CPR on the dummies, we were all very tired and some started to fall asleep, but by the end we were all wide awake when we got to handle the defibrillator and epipens. The course goes for 3 weeks and then ill be a FIRST AIDER!@

Day 213 - 216: Hey Hey Hay Baked..

We were supposed to have the kitchen renovation this week but it was postponed to the week after. I was recommended by a friend to take some vitamins which may help with concentration of those days where I just don’t get enough sleep and focus is just hard. Hopefully it helps.

There are new people starting this week two in Larder for the upcoming months of pure Christmas chaos, they are both fresh as I was when I started almost a year ago, I know how they must feel with all the overwhelming information and having 10 people with their own opinions on how to do things.
I’m probably still not the most qualified in larder to teach them properly but I’ve been there the longest so I guess I do hold some responsibility there.
Next week we have someone leaving and another starting and someone back from annual leave, it going to be a very full kitchen.
There’s a new function menu up which consisted of hay baked chicken, crispy ricotta stuffed zucchini flowers, crispy baked lemon potatoes and Caesar salad, a nice change from our more hearty function winter dishes.

School Day 29 : Assesments Time..

Break week at school the assignment is due and its time for the oral presentation about work place diversity and religion. I talked about my experiences in the corporate work force and the difference in a hospitality kitchen. As well as the vegan/vegetarianism of the Buddhist religion and the types of refined foods they serve at temples around the world.

Next week is First Aid the first week of the 3 week accreditation sounds fun, I’ve always wanted to know CPR and how to dress my own burns.