There’s this ongoing debate that a few friends of mine seem to keep having, in regards to movie sequels. The argument goes something along the lines of how movie sequels are never as good as the originals…but then dissipates into discussion about whether there are any exceptions to the rule.

Movida Aqui was, in my mind, Frank Camorra’s sequel. After building up the Movida name and running a highly successful and popular restaurant, Movida Aqui was bigger, bolder and brassier. In comparison to the tiny, dark, cramped quarters of the original, this second opening was huge, brightly lit and spacious.

(Yes, I know that there was Movida Next Door in between these two but that’s more of a bar to me than a proper restaurant so I’m calling that Movida v2.5)

When I saw that Movida Aqui featured on the Mushroom Mania hit list for Melbourne, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to go and visit it and see if this sequel would meet the expectations set by the first – or perhaps even exceed them.

One thing I need to say here is that I still remember the bread that I was served on my first visit to the original Movida. Textured, with a crisp crust and slightly chewy innards, my friends and I raved about how wonderful and homely it was, and a perfect carrier for the intensely fruity olive oil that it was served with. Thankfully, the bread here appeared to be much the same and was devoured with much gusto by my sister and myself.

The first actual dish that we tried from the menu was the spinach, manchego and organic egg Spanish tortilla. Having had Movida tortillas before, I had high expectations of flavour and texture…but unfortunately was let down on both parts. The spinash made the tortilla incredibly soggy and tasted quite bland – and quite frankly I thought that the addition of some salt and more manchego cheese would have done a lot for this dish. As it was, it set a very low bar for the evening and left my stomach feeling uneasy.

Next up were the bombas (Catalan potato bomb filled with chorizo). This was absolutely divine – the crumbed exterior was wonderfully browned and crunchy, the potato incredibly soft and fluffy and the chorizo in the middle was like a kinder surprise – a little bit of tasty delight. The contrast between the crunchiness and softness was a textural wonder in the mouth and the flavours came together well with the sauce. Unfortunately, I can’t remember what the sauce contained, but can still remember the smoky notes that came through to make this dish whole.

Being rather anti-seafood, my sister opted to avoid all fruits de la mer and go more the hoof-and-wing route for her carnivorous needs, so next up were the braised duck leg with corella pear and chestnuts, as well as the slow-cooked lamb neck in red wine and tomato sauce. Between the two, we both declared the duck to be the superior dish here as the corella pear was both sweet and smoky and worked in harmony with the rich, sweetly-marinated duck leg. The lamb was also very nice, but served plain with no other flavours to cut through the intense sauce, it became too much after a few bites and both of us had to surrender defeat to it after a few bites.

Now, when it comes to pork belly, I knew that we definitely had to give this a go. Having grown up with this particular cut as youngsters before it became “en vogue”, we both love to see how others treat this seemingly humble yet versatile cut of meat. Here, the pork belly was served with morcilla (black pudding) and apple puree. While each element in itself was wonderfully done and couldn’t be faulted, I was a bit quizzical about the black pudding in this particular dish. As far as black pudding goes, it was rich without being too heavy and definitely done well, but consuming it alongside the pork belly, salty crackling and sweet apple puree didn’t give me the sort of taste-gasm that I was expecting.

Now I certainly can’t fault the chef for this as it may very well be a regional way to serve black pudding that I’ve just never encountered before, but as far as my uneducated tastebuds were concerned, the dish would not have been any worse off had the black pudding been excluded from this particular marriage.

Last but not least, we have the setas – mushrooms cooked on the plancha and finished with sherry vinegar. This was the dish I had come here for in eager anticipation. I’ve had the mushrooms twice before at Movida and each time they were fat, meaty cuts of portobello mushrooms. Now, portobellos are essentially matured swiss browns and when cooked well are juicy and full of flavour with a texture that makes them equal to the task of being called a vegetarian steak. However, these tiny little button mushrooms had their flavour completely overwhelmed by the seasonings and sherry vinegar to the point where I could hardly taste any of the earthy goodness that I expect in a mushroom dish.

The texture was still wonderful – they had definitely been cooked with care and were chewy and toothsome without any rubberiness, but I really do wish that they had chosen to go with a mushroom variety that had enough flavour to hold it’s own here.

So the end verdict?

Movida Aqui certainly can’t be called a bad restaurant by any stretch of the imagination. The service was almost faultless, the design and feel are vibrant and alive and it’s a great place to have a meal. But as far as I’m concerned, it just can’t surpass Movida as my favourite of the three brothers.

Especially where the mushrooms are concerned.

Now don’t forget folks that July is the month of Mushroom Mania for Australia – so you’ve got just over a week left to experience what other chefs about town are doing with the mighty mushie! And if you’ve had a great mushroom dish while out on the town, make sure to submit it to the Mushroom Mania blog for your chance to win $100!

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My second Mushroom Mania experience was at The Deanery, a fabulous little restaurant to be found down Flinders Lane, hidden at the far end of one of our many alleyways. I’d been eagerly planning a catch up with a dear friend of mine for awhile and unfortunately fate decided to mess with our heads and keep delaying our dinner here.

The first week that we had originally scheduled for fell through due to my working late and being too knackered for dinner.

The second week I was struck down with the dreaded lurgy.

The third week – I made the reservation and forgot to tell my friend, meaning that she made other plans and we had to reschedule…

But last week we finally made it in for a bevvy and a meal and my golly miss molly, wasn’t it just worth the wait?

While I hadn’t visited The Deanery before, it had been on my hit list of restaurants to visit for awhile as I’d heard many fantastic reviews about the place. And from the moment that I walked in, I could see why. A big open bar area in the heart of the city means that it was well populated with the after-work crowd looking to relax after a long week with a drink and a chat. The music is loud enough to make the floor seem lively, though I have to admit that it meant you had to sit rather close to any drinking partners in order to be able to engage in any decent conversation as if you were any further than a metre it would become a game of yelling and lip-reading.

The space itself is quite well designed with quite a few areas to sit and relax, but there’s enough space so that navigating the bar is a breeze and saves you from resorting to using the elbows or other random bodily parts from trying to get from A to B.

Now the reason for my choosing this particular venue was my eager anticipation of the Mushroom Souffle which is currently gracing their menu during July as part of Mushroom Mania. Having only really experienced sweet souffles, with my only savoury souffle experience being a rather mediocre cheese souffle many years ago, I was eager to see what was in store for me here. However, once I cast my eye over the menu I was torn by all the possible choices. To begin with, this month they’re also featuring a wonderful-sounding duck pie with preserved mushrooms and sweet onion puree as well as some other winter warmers like roast chicken ballotine, slow braised veal shank and chargrilled lamb shoulder with spiced winter vegetables.

Rich, hearty winter fare full of comforting flavours to fill you up before you roll your way out the door

Torn as I was, I managed to stick with my decision to try the mushroom souffle as my main. However, before we got there, we had the entree to navigate first

Steamed chicken buns with dipping sauce

We ordered these chicken buns to whet our appetites and start the meal with, and we congratulated ourselves heartily for making such a clever decision once the buns arrived at the table. Piping hot from the steamer, these handmade mantou (Chinese steamed buns) were pillowy soft and filled with a chunks of chicken fragrant with ginger. The dipping sauce was a combination of vinegar, soy and toasted sesame oil and again heady with ginger.

One thing that I’m wary of when ginger is a dominant flavour is biting into a large piece of uncooked ginger (BLEGH) but thankfully that wasn’t an issue here and the flavours came across as well-paired, the freshness of the ginger in particular married nicely with the richness of the toasted sesame oil.

Classic Mushroom Souffle

Then we moved onto our mains, and I finally came face to face with the much anticipated mushroom souffle. Meaty portabello mushrooms roasted to intensify the flavour and combined with a field mushroom duxelle, to call this a mushroom-lovers wet dream would be an understatement. And if that wasn’t enough, the dish is finished with powdered porcini mushrooms and truffle oil.

The souffle itself was much sturdier than, for example, the strawberry souffle encountered at Libertine, but it was still light enough to dissolve on the tongue without any chewing required. The field mushroom duxelle which had been used to flavour the batter were a delight and a promise, leading to the mound of roasted and chopped portabello mushrooms lying at the bottom of the ramekin.

Unfortunately I can’t recall what was in the creamy sauce that accompanied this dish, but I have to say that as a whole it absolutely met my expectations. The rich, creamy flavour was well supported by the more robust texture of the dish, and the portabellos were perfectly roasted without going anywhere near rubber country (the country where overcooked and rubbery mushrooms reside).

Served alongside is a salad of baby endive, apple and walnut which, while it was nothing mind-blowing, was a lovely and flavourful touch.

Incidentally, by the time that we finished our mains, the chef popped his head out to say hello and to also tell us that they had already had seven orders for this dish. Considering that the dining area had only been open for about an hour and is limited in size, I think that’s a good indication as to what a smart choice this was for me

Knickerbocker Glory

For dessert, Nicole decided that she’d be a little conservative and go with the dark chocolate and orange truffles, while I decided to go out with a bang and order the knickerbocker glory. Okay, so I may have ordered it just for the name, and may also have whimpered when our waitress came out brandishing what appeared to be an endless glass of sugar…but I can’t pretend that I regretted it. Even though Nic and I failed to finish the dessert in it’s entirety, the combination of honeycomb, whipped cream drunk on whiskey, jelly and berry puree was the finishing touch on a lovely meal.

While this was only my first visit here, I’ve got to say that I think that The Deanery is a wonderful part of the Melbourne dining scene and a place that you should definitely visit!

Though, if you want to try the mushroom souffle, you’d better get a wriggle on and make sure that you book in before the end of the month

This week marks the halfway point of July as the month of Mushroom Mania for Australia – so you’ve got two weeks to experience what other chefs about town are doing with the mighty mushie! And if you’ve had a great mushroom dish while out on the town, make sure to submit it to the Mushroom Mania blog for your chance to win $100!

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You know that very special feeling you have when two of your favourite things combine? That’s the feeling that warmed my belly this Wednesday when I went to Libertine in North Melbourne. You see, July is the month of Mushroom Mania, when various cafes and restaurants around Australia participate in an event  to increase mushy-wareness by featuring mushrooms on their menus. So when I was invited by the Australian Mushroom Growers Association to go try some of the shroomy dishes on offer at participating restaurants, there was just no way that I could say no!

Now, I’ve proclaimed my love for Libertine before, so when I saw them on the list I had what you could describe as a pre-taste spasm. I hadn’t been in awhile so this gave me a perfect excuse to go back! And then I called them and…well, let’s just say that somewhere along the line there had been some miscommunication and there were no mushrooms to be found on the menu.

Cue the sounds of panic and heartbreak.

Thankfully, Nick Creswick (owner) was on board that evening and volunteered to solve my dilemma with a delicious solution, though I’d have to turn up to see what that was

So when my dining companions and I turned up, we were warmly greeted and ushered to our seats. After being presented with the lovely bread rolls that I adore here, a surprise turned up in the form of little shots of (I think?? My memory fails me…) celeriac, potato and leek soup. Whatever the non-celeriac ingredients were, they had all three of us swooning from first sip – with incredibly concentrated flavour and richness, I could very well have had this as a main and have been incredibly satisfied on such a cold winter’s evening!

However, I had turned up in anticipation of the mushroom surprise which had been promised to me, and my oh my, did they deliver!

Such an unassuming plate of goodness, so understated in appearance – little did I know that when I tasted this dish that the heavens would part and that angels in the form of fluffy ducklings and winged mushrooms would appear before my eyes and frolic on my tastebuds.

This special, off-the-menu offering of Duck foie gras & chestnut mushroom pithivier with port sauce & salad of mache, radish and parsley was just divine. Chestnut mushrooms may somewhat resemble button mushrooms in shape, but their stronger, earthier flavour was perfect alongside the rich duck foie gras. The mushrooms had been diced and cooked down with the duck so that the flavours were beautifully combined, and all encased in a buttery, flakey golden pastry.

And it was aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaall mine!!! *cue delirious squealing*

(P.S. Nick & Andre, if you read this, pleeeeease consider adding this to the specials menu or something. It tasted so goddamn good that it’d be a shame for nobody else to get to taste this wonder!!)

The boys ordered their entrees and seemed as enamoured with theirs as I was with mine…but I still think I got the best one

Smoked pork loin, turtle beans & crackling

See that little pile of what looks like breadcrumbs on the right hand side of this dish? This is how Libertine does their crackling, and it is their gastronomical take on crack cocaine. Pork crackling which is pulverised to a rough sort of powder – the first time I experienced this, I came very close to licking it off my plate. The pork was also quite noteworthy – so succulent and moist, but with a wonderful thin caramelized crust on it.

Moondarra wagyu rump steak, pied et paquet & sauce bordelaise

J ordered the rump steak and marveled at the texture and flavour of the beef, and was positively mystified by the small mysterious-looking parcel that it came with. The ‘pied et paquet’ (otherwise know as tripe and trotters) was unlike anything I’ve had before but is highly recommended as it is absolutely delectable!

Pink snapper, green olive & courgette

I was torn between the pink snapper, green olive & courgette or the roasted duck breast & leg, persimmon Armagnac jus but ended up going with the roasted duck breast so M took the snapper. The flesh was utterly sumptuous and melt in the mouth and much enjoyed. M also commented that while he’s not usually a fan of dill, it’s sparing use in this dish along with possibly the freshness of the herb worked wonderfully and was one of the best uses of dill that he’d ever tasted.

As for me…

Roasted duck breast & leg, persimmon Armagnac jus

I have a bit of a thing for duck, so this was almost a no-brainer for me. Both J and M commented that so many restaurants seem to find it difficult to render out the fat yet ensure that the meat is properly cooked, yet that wasn’t a problem here. The meat was rich and tender, with a crispy skin and the fat almost completely rendered out and leaving just a succulent breast. Those of you who follow my twitter will know that my last duck experience at PM24 left a lot to be desired, so it was heartening to see that places like Libertine treat it with the careful love that it needs.

However, after the entree and two of these moreish bread rolls, I was faced with an unfortunate decision – to finish my main and forego dessert, or to leave the duck to make sure that I had saved a little room for dessert.

So I finished one portion of the duck, fed the other to my friends, and then was left with this…(o_O)

It seems so sad to see that little bit of duck left on the plate, however having skipped dessert here once, I was not about to repeat that mistake as both Nick and Andre rather deftly navigate the territory around the sweet stuff!

First up we have the strawberry souffle. The best description that we could come up with was “strawberry-flavoured clouds” as this is exactly what it is. So incredibly light and soft that it’s barely there, with the summery flavour of strawberries followed by a slight boozy kick. Light and luscious, it was very much the best souffle that any of us had ever had!

Coconut liqueur mousse, hazelnut meringue & passionfruit

This was M’s dessert, yet quite possibly my favourite dessert of the evening. The balance between the fragrant coconut and sweetness and very slight acidity of the passionfruit was a perfect match, making a for a dish that tastes rich without being cloying and a wonderful after-dinner sweet bite.

Crème plombières, rhubarb jus & roll-up

I absolutely love love LOVE rhubarb and believe that it’s one of those things that works beautifully in a dessert due to it’s tartness being able to provide a foil to sweetness or richness. The rhubarb was toned down in this jus so that the tartness wasn’t really discernable, but that wonderful scent was still there and partnered so well to the crème plombières. J and M weren’t as enamoured with this dessert as much as I was, but I think this is the perfect dessert for someone who doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth and is looking for something light and indulgent but with fresh flavours.

Apple tarte tatin

Our final surprise of the evening arrived when Nick whisked this gloriously golden slice of apple tarte tatin to our table, announcing that he’d just pulled it out of the oven.

M grinned.

J’s eyes sparkled.

I whimpered.

Not even having been able to finish my first dessert, I could only manage two small bites of this dish but they took me straight from food-gasm to food-coma. I’ve just about run out of adjectives to describe my meal here so all I can tell you is that it does not disappoint. At all. In any way.

All in all it was an incredible meal and I’m once again reminded why I rate Libertine as being one of my absolute favourite restaurants in Melbourne.

So if you’re thinking of dining out this month, I recommend that you take a look at the Mushroom Mania website and give a few places a call. Whether it’s a place you’ve been to before or one that you’ve not yet experienced, it might lead you on a marvellous gastronomic journey like it did for me

This post is sponsored by the Australian Mushroom Growers Association & Mushroom Mania but all text, photos and views are my own.

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