Lodge, Lane Cove

Nestled perfectly in the centre of Lane Cove village, open to (often perfect) elements, a great view of neighbouring shops, passersby and children laughing on the green, this restaurant has so much potential that whenever I walk past it I always want to line up to take a seat. But I’m afraid that’s where the appeal ends.

I suppose it says a lot about the atmosphere of a place if, despite more than one average experience, you’re still drawn to it, and perhaps if I were dining alone I would give in to these urges more often. However, being as often chaperoned by my partner in crime (and life) as I am, he is generally present to remind me of the last time, and the time before that…. and the time before that.

In fairness, the first dining experience we had at Lodge was actually not too bad. It was a buzzing sunny day, the service was friendly, and the food we ordered sounded so promising. Being useless as I was back then (read: last year) I ordered a margherita pizza with truffle oil, thinking it an odd yet simple combo, and feeling convinced that truffle oil is always a delicacy.

Turns out, I don’t much like truffle oil, or at least, not in puddles on my pizza. It simply didn’t go, the flavour of the oil was too overpowering,  too much was used (read: wasted) on this dish, and not even the beloved cheese and bread combo could compensate. In truth I’ve not been able to enjoy truffle oil ever since.

Though the quality of the pizza itself was passable, the over-truffling (yes this is an expression, don’t look it up, just trust me) sadly rendered it an unpleasant experience. At the time, my partner had very excitedly ordered fish of the day (orange roughy,) but despite his initial enthusiasm, he didn’t finish the it off, shrugging off the meal as okay, saying “well it’s a hard fish to cook well” - and I consider that a waste of a life.

We left feeling uninspired, and decided it was probably our picky natures that were to blame. Which is why we decided to go a second time. On this occasion, quite keen for a good meal due to my grumbling stomach, I ordered two of their tapas options – the zucchini fries with aioli, and the bruschetta. I was drooling at the thought of the bruschetta, some nice lightly toasted bread, chopped onion and tomato, maybe even some fresh herbs, lightly spritzed with vinegar and oil. My stomach dropped as they brought me what was essentially a poorly chopped, over dressed salad of tomato, onion and croutons. Oh, did I mention I LOATHE croutons? Oh the chagrin.

Personal feelings about pointless high-calorie five-day old bread cubes aside, this was not bruschetta. Again the fault may have been with me; perhaps in my haste I didn’t notice the word “croutons” in the menu. However, as a pretty solid staple, one doesn’t tend to have to read the description, and I was deeply disappointed with whatever you’d call this modification. The zucchini fries were my only solace, but weren’t cut particularly small and so were awkward to handle and somewhat over-seasoned. I felt ill from maybe half the serving, and yet my hunger subsisted, and I spent the rest of the time there mumbling profanities.

My partner ate what was probably a generic sandwich I then stole the rest of in hangry desperation. The fries were at least a decent serving size, so you get some bang for your buck, but when you don’t really want that many, perhaps less bang, and even less buck would’ve been better. As such, I would recommend this as a share plate, rather than flying solo.

The third and last time we visited Lodge, which was a considerable time after the second visit as the gaping bruschetta-inspired wound took time to heal (with only a sensible sprinkling of melodrama) I had a relatively okay experience, but my partner was now the chosen one. Knowing not to expect too much, I kept it simple and ordered a grilled vegetable panini with pesto - a fairly simple and standard dish. The vegetables were a little rich and in too great a number but hey, better too much than too little, so I ate most of it without issue, satisfied at last.

My partner, however, decided to order the margherita pizza (yes we eat way too much pizza). This time it wasn’t offered with truffle oil, and I mentioned the pizza quality was pretty good, and without truffle oil even better. I was sadly incorrect in this assumption. I honestly couldn’t describe what was served to him as anything even remotely worth spending hard earned money on. It was a disgrace to pizza, for which my love is deep and real.  I have in fact tasted pizza bases pre-made by Woolworths that were far better quality. This was some sad thin bread; with perhaps a modicum of bland sauce spread beneath what was flavourless cheese that the menu had promised was fior di latte. If it was anything other than home brand mozzarella, I’ll eat my hat.

Despite these experiences, I still flirt with the idea of dragging my partner down to Lodge on a weeknight to sample their special Mexican Night offerings, to entertain my other deep love for Latin American Cuisine. The restaurant itself is just too inviting, too among the bustle, and too alluring a menu to not be so magnetic. Yet everyone I know that’s been there has agreed that the food is mediocre. Perhaps that’s why the ingredients haven’t quite picked up – it never had to. Who cares when you have such a prime environment to work in?

Having only visited for lunch, I do sometimes wonder if their breakfast or dinner offerings would be an improvement, with pictures on the website undoubtedly alluring. If heading over for an afternoon feed though, don't go out of your way to avoid the pleasant location, but do go prepared. Order only snack foods that can’t be messed with, like wedges or a melt, or simply enjoy a wine or coffee with a book as the world passes you by.

My day with Raymond Blanc

It might seem a little off topic but I wanted to share the story (read: brag) about the time I met famous chef Raymond Blanc, at the gorgeous Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons - his two Michelin star Restaurant and Hotel in Great Milton, Oxfordshire. 

Pretty sure we were just whisking wine for the sake of a photo. Also, ahhhh!

While working as a journalist in London, my editor noticed I had an obvious enthusiasm for writing about the food and beverage industry, and managed to produce some strong supplements on the topic featuring interesting profiles on well-known characters in the culinary arts. I was absolutely thrilled to meet with chefs and chat to like old friends about their careers, the love of food and the culture that surrounds it. To be able to write about their world was such a pleasure, I couldn't believe I was getting paid for it.

The best of these, however, was when my editor acted on that discovery and allowed me to travel to Oxfordshire to meet Mr Blanc, interview him on the value of food to family and community, and the importance of learning how to cook. As I was to meet with him bright and early for an interview, Mr Blanc's reps also offered a free night's stay in his beautiful Manor-style hotel and even do a full-day cooking class with head tutor, the wonderful Mark Peregrine. Oh well, if I must! *cough* omgyesplease.

Peregrine working on some creative desserts.

It was early days for me back then and yet it has been the highlight of my career. I have taken away so much from that day, from simple and effective cooking tips, the honour of having spent time with such a great chef, being given the behind the scenes tour of a bustling two-Michelin star kitchen, but also the incredible way to utilise vegetables, fruits and herbs to create an amazing meal. I witnessed firsthand the grand Le Manoir vegetable gardens being tended to with such love and care, Mr Blanc's passion for fresh and seasonal high quality produce, and the science behind the preparation and cooking of the food - the molecular gastronomy with which he prepares his dishes. 

Growing up in France, Blanc told me his meals were mostly vegetarian, with the occasional meat-based meal as a treat. His mother, or his 'maman', was a great inspiration to him, creating beautiful meals out of vegetables that he has shared with the world today, and thank goodness for Maman Blanc. I definitely encourage any readers to check out Raymond Blanc's BBC series from a while back, How to Cook Well, in which he shares tips on how to master the basics of cooking for a variety of creative and delicious meat and vegetable based dishes. The show is far from vegetarian, but demonstrates the delicacy and often, the simplicity, in his creations. Having sampled, and even created, many of his veggie-based dishes myself, I can safely give it a big thumbs up.  

If you ever find yourself in Britain with a bit of extra cash, definitely splurge on a stay and/or a cooking class at the Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons. In Australia we flock to Heston Blumenthal and The Fat Duck as our token Aussie gastronomy master, and while Blumenthal himself was actually trained at Le Manoir under Raymond Blanc, he aims to dazzle with a sense of high art and exclusivity. This is certainly exciting for the masses, including myself, however I find this approach secondary to the open and colourful environment at Le Manoir. 'Welcome', it seemed to say, 'let us teach you the skills, and share our secrets, so that you may know the joy of food and cooking'. The six-course meal with wine was just an exquisite bonus. This is perhaps highlighted by the fact that Blanc was the only chef willing to take on Blumenthal as a trainee, despite no catering or cooking experience. 

Certainly very little could ever top this experience, and what a privilege it was to have it as part of my job description. 

Fourth Village Providore, Mosman

A gourmet market/restaurant combination, this buzzing spot in Mosman is definitely worth setting aside a couple of hours to explore and indulge.

The family-run, European style market provides a wealth of quality goods ranging from fresh organic bread, chutneys and spreads, fresh fruits and vegetables, a wealth of herbs, spices and oils, and even its own special cheese room. Within was a man that described himself as “the cheese expert” in a suitably authoritative tone, and an accent that said “trust me, I know what I’m talking about”.

After purchasing your new tasty goods and planning several recipes in your head, you reach the restaurant section of the establishment and can prepare for a treat. On this occasion we had just missed breakfast and arrived in time for lunch, so I can’t comment much on the morning offerings but I did see some other patrons polishing off various egg and bean based meals that smelled divine.

The menu, which is classic Italian and apparently changes bi-weekly (!) successfully utilised all the fresh and varied in-house produce, but was not necessarily designed with vegans in mind. A variety of wood-fired pizzas were on offer that could be prepared without cheese or meat, but it would involve modification and thus more hassle than someone like me would necessarily prefer – though it is a shame to miss out on the experience.

Zucchini fries or cheese-free garlic pizza bread could do as a starter (with cheesy versions available for vegos). Most general lunch foods contained one or two kinds of meat, including the pastas alas, which was disappointing as I love a good pasta and they smelled all kinds of amazing. I could have asked for no meat, and there was a delicious sounding caprese or platter option that could be served without cheese, or a fried zucchini flower concoction which, in my experience, can be very hit or miss. On this occasion I opted to share just a simple margherita pizza with a side green salad.

I tend to frown upon vegetarian options being a limited choice between a boring garden salad or an average pizza, but since this was an authentic Italian place, ironically it made a lot of sense to stick to both these options, and thankfully both were delicious.

The pizza was a good size to share with another person, and contained a suitable amount of cheese, fresh basil and sauce. So many places, including Italian restaurants, tend to under-herb and under-sauce, relying too much on the appeal of cheese, but honestly if I wanted Dominoes-calibre pizzas I would’ve just ordered in with Netflix. Fourth Village Providore used delicious fresh fior di latte mozzarella as well as bocconcini, providing a nice variety without going overboard, while also staying true to the menu. I’ve visited many places claiming to use fior di latte which was clearly just a garden-variety shredded mozzarella, tsk tsk.

A small surprise, however, was the ‘side salad’, which was actually quite a considerable bowl of mixed salad leaves with a lovely Napoli dressing of olive oil, chilli and I suspect some lemon juice, which created a simple and powerful flavour to complement the pizza while allowing us to enjoy some greens to pretend it makes the pizza okay because hey, salad was involved.

Perhaps a little pricey being in the heart of the north shore, with a guarantee of all fresh organic ingredients, it was still a reasonable cost for a small day trip, and means you can get your weekly shopping done at the same time to boot. Strolling (or rather, rolling) away from the shop, I had to chuckle as we passed the supercilious fountains (plural) trickling just outside, which seemed very classic Mosman. Yet inside, Fourth Village Providore managed to maintain a humble and somewhat rustic market atmosphere to suit all kinds.

While difficult for vegans in some respects, vegetarians have some options without having to ask for modifications. I’m not sure I’d advise this one for someone on a diet though, as while fresh organic ingredients are always a massive plus, the pizzas are too good to pass up. I can’t wait to return for a cheeky brunch in the near future.