Best meals had...

[munitalP]

Spending half my eating life in restaurants, I was thinking what is your fav meal at a restaurant?

I can't pinpoint but my top 5 would be...

1. Din Tai Fung Taiwan dumplings
2. Seafood platter, including east coast cray
3. Peking Duck
4. Eggs Benedict in a F lounge
5. Eye fillet steak with red wine jus


I have replecated all of these dishes at home numerous times, cooking is becoming a fav passtime for me, I am I interested in others tastes...

munitalP

 

[Davo70]

3. Peeking Duck

Scary when your food looks back at you.

 

[thewinchester]

4. Eggs Benedict in a F lounge

Yes, F Lounge dining is a real plus. While as yet only having experienced it once, the Braised Wagyu with figs, and creamy mash at the MEL F last month was mouthwatering.

 

[serfty]

Re: Peeking Duck

A couple of years ago, they had another way of presenting Duck in the First Class lounges:

For the record there is a difference between Parfait and Pate in that Parfait is a smoother lighter texture similar to a mousse or spread almost.

Sorry that has been bugging me for a few days.

Cheers, due to ignorance I had avoided it assuming it would be something similar to a dessert style parfait .
[Duck Dessert! :shock:]

It was only when I asked and the table attendant said it was "like a pate" that I gave it a go.

It was mangificent [sic] - I was sorry to see it go.

Here's a pic for posterity:

Qantas First Lounge MEL -
Duck Liver Parfait with Pear Chutney and Sourdough Crisps

​

 

[simongr]

I am an almost obsessive amateur cook so food is a real passion for me. I have been lucky enough to eat in many great places.

My favourite dishes are:

Pork belly
Peking duck
BLT trifle
A great simple thin pizza (it doesn't have to be fancy to be nice)
Baramundi in duck broth

More later when I am not experiencing a power cut

 

[ejb]

I am an almost obsessive amateur cook so food is a real passion for me. I have been lucky enough to eat in many great places.

My favourite dishes are:

Pork belly
Peking duck
BLT trifle
A great simple thin pizza (it doesn't have to be fancy to be nice)
Baramundi in duck broth

More later when I am not experiencing a power cut

And a large power cut you are having, 50000 homes, 60 sets of traffic lights and general chaos all over the place.

O/T: I am also quite the avid home cook and do enjoy trying new things.

Eating out however I would say simple classics are my preferred option. I love a great Chinese meal with Pork Belly and Peking Duck, basic noodle soups. A good pizza (although hard to find) can be just what is needed after a hard day.

The meal I enjoy going out for most would be breakfast, be it simple bacon and eggs or a whole spread at a 5* hotel I love the relaxing start to the day.

ejb

 

[munitalP]

O/T: I am also quite the avid home cook and do enjoy trying new things.

Do you think that it is because we get to get in great restaurants quite often that we do become to really love cooking?

I have always enjoyed cooking - very basic menu and small list of meals, but in the last few years I have started to replicate meals I have had on planes such as a Tuna, red bean and chick pea salad - took a while but finally got there, meals I have really enjoyed in restaurants, "magic mushrooms" being one which again took a while but finally worked out the taste.

I have also forked $$$ for really good pots and pans, think nothing of splashing a couple of hundred for a small swiss diamond frying pan, have chef quality knives etc...

I also find I watch a lot of cooking/travel shows on FOXTEL... lol (yes Masterchef is my fav programme at the moment )

munitalP

 

[ejb]

Yes I do think eating wonderful meals has led to me wanting to cook more.

Lifestyle Food is my fav channel and I record every Masterchef.

Investing in the right tools just adds to the enjoyment of cooking and enjoying great meals with friends is the result.

ejb

 

[munitalP]

Yes I do think eating wonderful meals has led to me wanting to cook more.

Lifestyle Food is my fav channel and I record every Masterchef.

Investing in the right tools just adds to the enjoyment of cooking and enjoying great meals with friends is the result.

ejb

Yes very true

munitalP

 

[Oneworldplus2]

Frenched Lamb rack, gratin potato, spinach, carrot and jus.
Lamb is served medium rare. Mmmmmm........

 

[DrJ]

For dinner, medium rare eye fillet on garlic mash with either bearnaise or red wine jus, washed down with a decent shiraz like St Hallett Old Block

For breakfast, smoked salmon eggs benedict and Veuve Clicquot.

Seriously drooling now!

 

[simongr]

Do you think that it is because we get to get in great restaurants quite often that we do become to really love cooking?

munitalP

For me it is something I can lose myself in and not think about work at all. It is also a creative outlet for me as being an accountant /auditor - I don't exactly get to express myself much in my job

I have a set of Gordon Ramsay Royal Doulton pans which are great and have started my copper pan collection (just the one so far). I am loving my Wusthof Classic Ikon Santuko knives- brilliant to use and hold.

 

[11sjw]

Not in order

1. Squid Ink Pasta (Spaghi's in Sth Perth a couple of years ago, man it was good)
2. Anything lamb...(roast, shank, rack etc)
3. Bangers, Mash and Peas at the Subi hotel
4. Vegetarian breakfast + chipolatas at the John St cafe in Cottesloe (before anyone asks you don't get the home made beans with the non-vege breakfast)
5. HKG (Wan Chai) Hot Pots

 

[Oneworldplus2]

For breakfast, smoked salmon eggs benedict and Veuve Clicquot. Seriously drooling now!

Perfection on a Sunday morning! Your on the money DrJ!

I usually make myself this on a Sunday

I like to take it one step further too.
Eggs benny, Salmon Gravlax (from Tasmania, of course), dill hollandaise + cracked black pepper. Fresh OJ and a Espresso as well.

 

[munitalP]

...

I have a set of Gordon Ramsay Royal Doulton pans which are great and have started my copper pan collection (just the one so far). I am loving my Wusthof Classic Ikon Santuko knives- brilliant to use and hold.

We have a mixture of scanpan and swiss diamond. My aim is to purchase a set of Global chef knives + sashimi knife in KL in Sept - that will finalise my inventory until I decide I need more pots or pans or bowls etc :shock:


munitalP

 

[markis10]

A good topic to post a question on, I too find that travelling a lot just increases the desire to cook when at home but I have had some good meals on the road!

My favorites:

Fresh WA Lobster Mornay with a nice Verdelho wine on the balcony at Observation rise as you watch the sun go down over the Scarborough Beach, sadly no longer possible as Obs rise is now long stay.

20 Course banquet in a private club in Taipei with many bottles of 1966 Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1er Grand Cru and JW Blue on hand, started off with Lobster Sushi, soft shell crab, drunk prawns and it just got better and better, night finished with a bang thanks to an earthquake! Did I mention the cigar lounge

Fresh Snapper Fillet pan fried with a hollandaise sauce cooked within hours of being caught in Moreton Bay, nothing beats freshness when you are the provider as well as the consumer!

 

[bossreggie]

I have also become an fan of cooking over recent years.

I love to try all sorts of food and find myself wandering past the cookware shops with a small amount of drool begining to form at the thought of new kitchen equipment.

My top 5 would be something like this:

1) Rare Duck Breast (Crispy Skin) on Rosemary and Garlic Onions and Shiraz Jus

2) Tuna Carpaccio

3) Rare Steak on a Potato Mash

4) Atlantic Salmon with Asparagus

5) Chicken Breast Stuffed with Basil and Ricotta served with Cherry Tomatos

I make all the above at home and like simongr I find it relaxing and I enjoy the whole "creative" aspect of cooking. I'm also very similar to munitalP in that I like to try and replicate a dish.

I can reccomend Verge restaurant in Melbourne for real foodies. Awesome degustation menu one of the best I ever had!!

 

[drron]

We have a mixture of scanpan and swiss diamond. My aim is to purchase a set of Global chef knives + sashimi knife in KL in Sept - that will finalise my inventory until I decide I need more pots or pans or bowls etc :shock:


munitalP

Now if you really want a good knife Tasmania is the place.see story-
Superman of steel - Epicure - Entertainment - theage.com.au

My favourite foods
Atlantic salmon-sashimi,planked,hot smoked etc,etc
Curries-especially my own.just a pity i never remember the exact ingredients.
Maine lobster
American ribs
scallop pies
Beijing duck-PC

best restaurant meal-La Pergola,Cavalieri,Rome.
Must go to if in town-Le Bernadin,NYC.

 

[Natt]

mm home cooking ... I have been travelling 4 months now, and am sorely missing it

in fact whenever I get access to a kitchen I end up cooking cupcakes!

I don't actually have a top 5 .. but I have had some memorable ones travelling

Roast duck in korea .. snowy night, dark and cold I was lured into a restuarant as it was well lit and the smells were amazing. I don't really like duck, but whatever they did to it made it awesome, it seemed smoked I think. Full of korean businessmen .. really awesome

pizza in sorrento (italy) plastic plates and forks... a stark comparison to many of the tourist resturants in the town. But amazing pizza and cheap wine!

Fresh anchovies!

And I have had some lovely meals in Japan

Actually I have one that might be the best, more because of the circumstances.

Having flown redeye from Cebu Pacific from Kuala Lumpur, husband & I arrived in Manila at 5am. After some cough advice from the info desk we found the Marriott just outside.

Negotaiting the six lanes of traffic (that will not stop!), the bomb detecting dogs, the armed guards and the metal detectors we got inside. Lets just say they must not get many walk ins!

We had breakfast and it was amazing, everything you could think of foodwise ... very impressive.

We declined the taxi back (it was all of 500 metres or so but apparently noone walks), we recrossed the road.

And then waited for our flight to Seoul

We went via manila as it was a 1/4 of the price of a comparable fare. But what a saga.

Still we have a story to tell & breakfast was tasty

 

[anat0l]

Hard to choose the top 5.....but in no particular order and without too much thought.....

1. Salmon tataki, a wonderful cold starter dish prepared skilfully by the chefs at Protea Hotel The Ranch in Mokopane/Polokwane, South Africa.
2. Peking duck - rarely done without too much fault, but I do like it when they give you the whole duck (and not just enough skins for only 2 or 3 per person) and the second dish with the duck meat is left fairly simple
3. QF F degustation, enjoyed in 2009 whilst on the QF A380. Would have been even sweeter had I not thrown up afterwards But it was a most delectable array of dishes.
4. QF F Lounge - what can I say. Most dishes are done very well - can't go wrong with many of the lounge's desserts - but some that I have really taken a shine to are:
   • Wagyu brisket braised in stout
   • Tiramisu with strawberries and cream
   • Spiced quail with pomegranate, quinoa and cream - a recent addition to my likes

I don't think I can choose a #5 (although item #4 has taken quite a bit already). Some things like a really good Italian restaurant in Brisbane (had a pasta with the tastiest fresh tomatoes I have ever tasted in a sauce), a great braai (South African barbeque using wood fire) had last year (two of them, actually), many good steaks (days of ol' now)....

I think some of the best meals are those shared with friends and family

Unlike some of the company in this thread, I am not a skilled cook by any measure or means, so attempting to emulate the creations I've tasted and treasured has been a fear (of failure).