BEST LOCATION IN TOWN - SHAME ABOUT THE FOOD.

We wish it wasn't so but the food at Dockside is not the best. And its very pricy. We only had time to stay for an entree earlier this week and on reflection we are glad that we didn't have time to assault out tastebuds with an equally substandard main.

Our dish was a hotpotch of tastes, the texture was of surimi flavoured cardboard.

Chicken, Chorizo & Crayfish Terrine cauliflower cream, smoked almonds, Manchego, watercress & quince salad ...$25

It sounded interesting but the fact of the matter is we should have seen the culinary disaster coming - waaay too much going on here. And the crayfish must have been but a passing traveller.. At 25 dollars - with no bread - just a smudge of wet slimy caulifower puree and a very odd salad - it was about $5 a mouthful.

A bit much to swallow really.

Sad, because yesterday was one of those outstanding Wellington days, balmy, soft blue sky, that harbour glow thing going down, faces a gentle pink in solar appreciation, and the water greenstone clean after a storm.

The beer was cold, the waitresses good and the company outstanding. But we would really like Dockside to get the food sorted.

Its not an Icon any more - just a con.

JUST DRINKIN AND EATIN ...

The Beaujolais orphans have found a new home.. We are all in heaven. It's little, out of the way ( so the boss will have a bloody hard job finding you, unless you are of course with the boss), a bit smoky, foods better than good and wont break the bank, wine list is great, its warm, stylish and comfy...We have made it ours.

So for all of the out of towners who are missing the " Boj" email us and we will let you know where to go....

We also had occasion to dine at the splendid Foxglove the other nite... We had been invited to the opening but sadly were in the Wairarapa. The guys who own Foxglove also own the Matterhorn and its clear they know what they are doing. They have turned a cold, uninviting, badly run barn of a pub called the Loaded Hog - that was legend for its crap food, into what we think will become a very popular top end restaurant. It is all class and no pretensions.

We had the duck - sticky, salty and delightful moist and melty it was. (gosh that almost sounds rude). We love the decor - a bank of ferns grace the wall at the entrance. The little cosy Window on the Waterfront dining room is fab. It really is a great addition to the Wellington Harbour eateries. We will be back .

We have also heard that the Dockside has undergone a bit of a facelift. We haven't been there for months because we decided that the food was mediocre and didn't match the exorbitant prices. And apparently there has been some sort of change in ownership.

We also note that some of the prices have been reduced.

So we will be off to have a visit soon to see if it has improved.

We are also pleased to report that the Green Parrot food is still pretty damn good. Mind you after a great night of carousing one wonders if it is possible to be a good judge of the quality of the nosh. But the flounder was a stunner - well we think it was.

And the place is always spotless - including the toilets. We like that in a restaurant. Well BustedBlonde did.....

BEREFT

Our favourite watering hole is to close.

15 April 2010

 To All My Dear Customers

 After many months of negotiation with our landlord over a rent increase, it has become clear that we are no longer able to stay at our present site of 11 Woodward Street. A new tenant will be moving into the space sometime in May.

 Our 20^th Anniversary party on April 30^th will certainly still take place but it will be our last day of trading and also a fond farewell from us all at the bar.

 In saying that, there has been some activity regarding new investors and potential new sites in which to relocate, but time constraints and commitments elsewhere exclude me from any involvement for now. I firmly believe a new and enthusiastic team could easily take up the reins again and continue the Beaujolais tradition at another site. Watch the spaces!

 For myself, I would like to thank all of you for your unwavering loyalty and patronage over the twenty years that I have owned and managed the bar. It’s been a hair-raising   and wonderful ride that seems to have finished in an instant and I am left with many fond memories, many, many friends and enormous respect for an industry that really sorts out the ‘men from the boys’. (And as a woman in this racket, I’m amazed that I’ve lasted this long!)

 So for the next two weeks I urge you all to come in for a last drink (or two or three), a last meal, a last gathering of friends in the special ambience that belongs to Beaujolais. I will be at the bar all day and night of the April 30^th with Anton, Casey et al to say my farewells and shed a tear or two with you.

 I sincerely hope to see you there.

 Kindest regards

 Debra McMillen

This is very sad as not only is Beaujolais our wine bar of choice it's also one of our favourite lunching places. 

We have had many, many of a good evening ( and afternoon) in the back cubby  talking crap, plotting to change the state of politics, gossiping, and generally raising our glasses to the  passing  of the day with the best of mates. 

The wine list was great, the food was some of Wellington's best and the series of mien hosts always convivial. 

And where oh where will we celebrate Beaujolais Day now? 

It had the sort of small and intimate bar feel that will be hard to recreate in another location. 

We will keep you posted if there is a reincarnation in another location as suggested above. 

EXPENSIVE ROUTE

We have it on good authority that a young political advisor has dished out a bit in expensive nose bags for - lets call her - media chick A, whom he wants to shag. Seems he told media chick B that he reckoned a decent nose bag would get media chick A between the sheets. However media chick B told media chick A of the Lothario's plan. Media chick A maybe getting fatter but young politico has yet to get his day in the hay.

Boy is learning an expensive lesson in sexual politics.

RUTH PRETTY WE HATE YOU

Damn.

Last year we baked our very amazing Grand Marnier Australian Women's Weekly Xmas Cake . It was eaten to resounding applause of our mates and family. A cobber also baked a whisky Xmas cake - again it was eaten with gusto and received very high praise - well done Blondini. And some other mates bought with them a perfectly formed Ruth Pretty cake - it was left till last as it was sealed in cellophane and came in a very swanky box.

In the last two weeks the Aussie Rock has polished off about 2 kgs of Christmas cake - half the Grand Marnier Cake, the remaining Whisky Cake and the Ruth Pretty cake. Aussies are fine purveyors of Xmas cake. Yip - you guessed it, Ruth Pretty's cake - pictured left, prissy, perfectly round, perfectly formed and perfectly delicious, apparently was declared by the Rock to the best by a country mile. And in Aussie that's a bloody long way.

Thing is - the Rock ate the whole damn thing - every last crumb - all by his gutsy self. So no one else can do the comparisons. All we know is that our guests over Xmas loved ours and Blondinis cakes and declared them very fine examples of spectacularly good cakes.

Now considering that he knew there would be a huge risk in never having Busted Blonde bake him another Xmas cake, the Rock was very very brave and we know that he is honest to a fault. So Ruth Pretty's perfectly formed cake must be something spectacular.

And here's the kicker - the bloody cow has a secret recipe for it. She is onto a winner and she knows it. We hate that.

And will we bake our famous and much loved Gran Marnier Cake next year? Nah the Rock can buy his bloody own from Ruth. Sometimes honesty doesn't pay....

YIP

We have stolen this from Bastable... It has huge resonance as we gnaw our way through a lamb killed two days before Xmas and some venison from the inlaws and some crayfish as well..

This has been the Xmas of good food. We have made a Xmas cake , xmas mince pies, strawberry and mixed berry conserve and the garden has delivered zucchini, spring onions, rhubarb, broccoli, and numerous herbs.. and we will be doing a spot of eeling in the next couple of days in amongst bailing some hay...

A BOIL UP

Well not really. Hosted by the BOIL actually. Yeah it's an in joke.

Today was the stuff of legends. The great long lunch. Started at 1pm - we left at five. Our mates are still going strong and its 6pm. Fuck the recession.

We were at Ortega Fish Shack and Bar.
Great people, great wine and great food.
What more can we say? It was fantastic. We were waited on by Davey who is the son in law of the legendary Mark Limacher of Roxborough Bistro fame. Food at its finest.

The starters were pacific oysters fresh and battered. We normally wouldn't touch them ( for us its Bluff first and last) but they were plump fresh and tasty.

Then it was to entrees - we had a lovely squid and chorizo sausage dish , a hint of chilli and a sweet potato salad. Everything sparkled up everything else. The dish had texture, taste and eye appeal.We also had a taste of the pate. It had an old world feel but there was something fresh about it that we cant remember in the elegant spreads of old.

We had a Hawkes Bay fizz to start - Doldel 2006 then we moved onto a lovely Murdoch James Pinot Gris
We then had a stunning steak and fries with a big salad. Dessert was a lovely posset - sort of a custardy mousse with sherbet overtone topped with fat strawberries Now we didn't take much notice of what the cheese platter was but it was a Camembert and a blue that oozed sexily over the plate. Dam fine they were - dam fine.

We were there with a group of friends who often gather together on a Friday. media, politics, PR and generally good people. Today BOIL's bro was there - the visitor from Papua New Guinea.

So we recommend Ortegas. We will be back. Its good, its kinda out of the way - which is great if you want to be loud and have fun without the Lambton Quay spies lurking. The decor is great the service and the food are up there with the best Wellington offers.

It was a day layered with memories -all good.

WHAT ARE WE?

Today we had a snack with some fishy mates at Beaujolais We sipped a bottle or two of Lonestone Pinot Gris. It was dry , flinty and a hint of pear.. Extraordinarily good.

Now over our lunch time conversation we pondered a very vexing question. What is New Zealands quintessential National dish?

Is it a lamb roast?

Warehou and chips?

Paua fritters

Whitebait fritters?

Pavlova?

Muttonbirds?

Bluff oysters?

or in New Zealand a country of many unique plates?

pescatorial orgasms

This is a tweet pic from Kent Baddeley one of NZ's great food artists.... Now resident here at Parehua in Martinborough...

Dam fine food..... click on the image to get the recipe ...

and we are with Baddeley on this - drop oysters in after you have cooked the soup. Real fresh ones will quiver ever so slightly as they hit the hot liquid....

BOB JONES - GOBSHITE.

Today we ended up having a bite to eat and a sip of wine with a few mates down at Arbitrageur...

We spied Columnist Deborah Coddington - her legal beagle bloke Colin and some old duffer whom we didn't immediately recognise, as he is a bit wizened these days, who turned out to be Bob Jones.

Anyway there was a bit of sunshine when we walked to the restaurant so we put on our favourite Pilgrim sunnies.. Treasures they are, all set about with diamantes... Lovely trailer trash specs.

Anyway we took em off and put them on the table.. In the course of the lunch some people came and went and we shifted from one end of the table for 8 to the other... Realising that forgetting our portholes was a possibility we propped them on our head so we would not lose 'em.

We were just minding our business when Jones passed our table on his way out, stopped and hissed... He had an obsessive glint in his eye.We have seen that glint before in rest homes when Alzheimic old farts get all confused and ratty.

Jones fixed his beady eyes on Busted Blonde and blathered on for a minute or so...

He reminded us of the old priest in Father Ted who used to yell out Feck..
Jones just mumbled and all we heard was mumble mumble Sunglasses! mumble , mumble sunglasses!

Like some ancient tourettes sufferer..

Coddington pushed him on gently as you would an old fart with diminished senses and sensibility.

Ratty he was, like seriously batty and ratty.

Well we find nothing socially unacceptable about propping your sunglasses on your head for safe keeping. However we do find it particularly bad form for a total stranger to stare like a mad thing, froth at the mouth and obsess over trivial issues.. We wondered if he had too much of the glorious snapper pie and got a wee bit of indigestion. Or maybe he had medication issues.

But no its much simpler than that .

Apparently the old coot has a well documented obsession with sunglasses on peoples heads and cellphones.

So all you young lovelies out there if you ever get to bed the old tosser, leave your specs at home and turn your cellphone on silent...

Otherwise he might smack your bottom..

BADDELEY MASTERY

We spied a few comments somewhere that came from a voice from the past - Chef Kent Baddeley. He is one of the countries finest and just a little bit eccentric. Anyway he is blogging here

And he works here and Parehua in Martinborough. Its now on our lists of must do's over the next few months.

His food is always exquisite and artistic - a feast for the palate and to the eyes.

CREDIT CRUNCH LUNCH

We dined at our favourite Auckland restaurant last week with Whale and we were joined by a journalist and an commentator so it was rollicking, piss taking, information sharing, few hours.

Anyway to the food. Euro does good food - it used to do sublime food but its gone back a bit. We started with bubbles - as you do. And then their bread and dips which were good. We had salt and pepper prawns and Whale had the melon and ham. For mains we had Peking Duck. The duck was little greasy for our tastes and the pancakes were on the Tony's Tyres side of tough. Now we have had the best Peking duck ever at a Melbourne restaurant called Flower Drum, which is without a doubt the best purveyor of Peking duck in the Down Unders. So the bar is set fairly high. Euro failed to come close to that memorable meal.

However, Whale had an interesting experience with his steak. He ordered the sirloin - blue.
As you do when you are a militant carnivore like whale. No- says the very chatty waitress, who proceeded to recommend that he get the filet steak as it was much nicer Blue. So he got the free upgrade. Whales had a big grin as the blue steak folded onto his fork, he chewed with his mouth closed and he didn't spill a drop of the Nicolas Feuillatte . He was obviously brought up good and proper. He and the commentator who also enjoyed his filet steak both devoured the blue cheese mash. BB didn't even get a teaspoon full to try.

Then came desserts, they are best described as chemical concoctions. Fascinating, complicated and exquisite. The boys ordered warm chocky pud and we ordered the line of chocolate. It was huge and extravagant and the boys whined that we got the best deal. We did . There were chocolate bubbles that exploded in your mouth, marshmallow with the texture of hokey pokey. It was an Alice in Wonderland plate of cocoa concoctions. Noice.

We liked the fact that the Euro lunch menu is called the Credit Crunch Lunch. Its not the four page bible of old but a concise list of neat treats.

So today we are off to Shed 5. Same company that owns Euro. We will have fish and bubbles.

PURE DINING PLEASURE

There are good restaurants and then there is sublime dining.

This afternoon we feasted at Antoines in Parnell.

We adore offal. Sweetbreads, kidneys, hearts, brains, oxtails and ox tongue are simply gastronomic nirvana to us.

And Tony Astle is not scared of offal. He is the master of turning the exotic parts of fauna, often spurned by an uneducated public, into mouth melting delights.

When we were small and dad killed a "mutton" which was normally a two tooth wether, more often than not the neighbours got the chops and roasts and we got the liver, hearts and sweetbreads (if it was a lamb) So we grew up thinking that they were the prized bits.

The experience of dining at Antoines starts at the door. You knock, and the waiter opens the door and you are seated. At once you feel very special and privileged.

So at todays lunch we started with a Nautilus Sauvignon Blanc and 6 Bluff oysters encased in a feather light tempura.

Our good mate had oysters drenched in a cream champagne sauce.

The next dish was a favourite of ours - tripe in a cream peppercorn sauce and one of the signature dishes of this iconic restaurant.

It was sublime, a gentle whiff of sheep, layered with the aromatic green peppercorns.

Then for main we had an extraordinarily rich ox tongue, with sweetbreads, baby sweet onions encased in a rich buttery fall apart pastry. It was accompanied by a lightly oaked Selaks Founders Sauvignon.

Dessert was a bread and butter pudding dressed up as a flouncy creamy Cinderella with shiny shoes of strawberries . It was matched with a stunning De Bortoli semillon.

Antoines remains one of our favourite restaurants in New Zealand.

It is elegant and a touch arrogant, as it should be. And the waiter was as cute as waiters can be.
And the afternoon was all we hoped it would be.

KOI CLASS ACT

Wellington's newest restaurant Koi has opened quietly in the lovely space once occupied by Copita. It is part of the growing Dermot Murphy empire.

Anyway we dined there with the mustachioed (he not a she) big brown fella prawn for lunch.

He had been there before and was well versed with the menu.

For lunch you start with a range of stunning nibbly bits - We had the squid - which was the softest squid we have had in ages and then had beef tongue which was a bit chewy but tasty and chicken livers - again yum. We then tried some of the octopus sashimi - delicate and juicy!

The big brown fella had the lunch plate with mackerel. It is a lovely plate of fillets and a number of Japanese inspired condiments. You can have a vegetarian, 0r meat option. It looked yum but we opted for more squid. We had a lovely Yealands Sauvignon Blanc which was light and elegant.

We finished the meal off with a cheese board.Served simply with muscatels and figs.

We think that Dermot is on to a winner with Koi. The surroundings are lovely - warm white with touches of eastern decadence. And he has retained the lovely comfy chairs from Copita.
Koi is a little different and there are quiet elements of kiwi fusion layering the offerings. We understand that they have had a Japanese consultant in to assist with the menu.

The other feature of Dermot's foody fiefdom is the staff. They are always attentive, knowledgeable and efficient.

Anyway a mate and client was at the next table and he picked up our tab. You cant get better than that!

SATURDAY ROUND UP

SEVENS
We had a great day at the sevens. It was good to catch up with people we hadn't seen for a while. the crowd heaved with good humour and the lengths that some people go to to dress up is mind boggling.
DOCKSIDE
We had a very average lunch at the Dockside choosing pork belly which should be all sticky and moist and gooey and melty but it was dry and bordering on cold and the potatoes were overcooked as well. However the company was great.
BACK TO THE SEVENS
But Dockside was the place to be to watch the crowds migrate their way to the stadium along the waterfront. Arabs and tutus seemed to dominate. The Loaded Hog was pulsing with hundreds of people enjoying the great weather and the costumes. It is staggering to see the number of normally staid men dress up as women. Sadly, the fun police were out in force at the Stadium removing all helmets and plastic swords, and a few other bits and pieces. We also think that just about every bar and restaurant was surcharge free. That raises a very interesting point - if it was good enough for all bars and restaurants not to charge it why the hell did the Stadium continue to charge it? ? What did happen was the people were tanking up on the way to the stadium so they didn't spend much while they were there.

WAITANGI
John Key showed that one of his finest attributes is his ability to think on his feet and judge the moment. After being jostled by protestors - he then adopts a couple of kids and tells the crowd that the future is all about them. It was a wonderful gesture, from the heart that will be the enduring memory for many at Waitangi.
We have talked to many Maori and everyone is just simply ashamed at what happened. It was also very unexpected. Everyone was very relaxed about this Waitangi day so the protestors came out of left field.

SEAFOOD PORN

Ahh - more oysters ... Bliss. Ecstacy!

HORSE SHOT?

Apparently the town's most expensive dead meat palace is closed due to "technical difficulties".

And Ohakune means " place to be careful" - Seems someone wasn't and consequently fell over. We are not sure of the "technical details" of the incident.


Hat Tip Wellingtonista

DOCKSIDE TAKES A DAY OFF - CAUSES SENSATION AMOUNG WELLINGTONS DINING FRATERNITY

Dining prawn has some observations on Wellingtons Eateries and some rugby gossip.

While you all were sunning on a magic Labour Day, some of us were working
–on the road, so to speak. Firstly there was the essential visit to Wellington’s infamous Dockside Restaurant. Shit, shock, horror, probe! Not openThe country’s leading sunshine eating house was in unoccupied shadow. There have been rumours for weeks, few patrons, fish and chips at $37 and lately the offer of half price wines in the afternoons.
A shock ran through the Wellington restaurant scene after the demise of Copita!
But it was just for one day. But it was a day which in recent years, would have meant a week’s turnover in most capital restaurants.
But not to bother, Shed 5 was open and the whimsical Chicago Bar was bursting with diners.
So too was the eventual destination, the Red Dragon in Tory Street. The tables were over populated with Wellington’s Asian population and the 30 staff were all wired up for sound and response. Must be a dollar or two in noodles!
Talking of noodles the Big Thumb in the Courtenay Place area is also booming. Late
last week they hosted a private luncheon which featured an odd trio. With
Ranfurly Shield was Jamie Joseph and race caller Des Coppins. It appeared
they took their own kai, cray and muscles for the occasion.

UNEMPLOYMENT AND DEATH OF A RESTAURANT

We gave a heads up on the possibility that there were some ugly unemployment stats for Wellington a couple of weeks ago -

And today Stuff carried the bad news - there are a few empty chairs dotted around the office blocks these days - and more are expected.

But this was the really bad news of the day

The prawns have spent many a lingering lunch at Copita being well looked after by owner and expert sommelier Stephen Morris. Award winning chef Janet Grey was one of the best - elegant food with substance.

Our favourite dish was Arancini Balls - little smokey rice balls - that were unequalled anywhere in the Capital.

Janets expertise and passion in the kitchen is only matched by her knowledge and passion for rugby. We regulars are hoping she will pop up somewhere else in the city - we will follow her.

I remember seeing a certain Mr Meurant and a certain TV executive there in the middle of the scampi scandal. And my last evening drinks there was with some of the power brokers in Maoridom.

So Steve and Janet , thanks for the good times and good luck for the future. And yes, when you get back on your feet again we promise to keep the noise down....