On a rainy Thursday night after a horrendous day at work, the Simple Man and I need two things. One, food. Two, booze. Not neccesarily in that order.
And to my delight, we found both in a relatively new pizzeria in Dickson which I have to declare to be our new favourite spot. Hurrah! The Simple Man and I have found a local eatery we both like, which given our divergent tastes is no mean feat.
We stumbled across Firestone Pizzeria in January when we found our favourite Dickson Asian eatery closed for holidays. Earlier this week we returned to sample a little more off the menu, by default rather than decision. Simple Man agreed to go to Curtain but after three years of living in Canberra, still has no idea where anything is other than our house and his workplace. And so, once he checked the map and realised travelling to Curtain meant waiting an extra 20 minutes for the two predetermined requirements for the evening (booze and food) we returned to Dickson. I acquiesed because a) a Hungry Simple Man is often an Angry Simple Man; and b) we'd had a great meal at Fireside a few weeks earlier.
On the earlier occasion, we'd both opted for pastas. Mine was with lemon, smoked chicken, crisped sage and goats cheese. The Simple Man's penne, from memory, was some kind of unusual combination of chicken and balsamic (if you're surprised he tried it, so am I!). Both were delicious - the creamy goats cheese with a sharp citrusy tang was fantastic, my only minor criticism that I probably wouldn't have bothered with smoked chicken given the combination of other flavours. Simple Man was pleased with his choice too.
This week, we almost missed out on a table and were seated towards the back near the kitchen at a table set for six by a smiling waiter. It was a bit of a strange spot, but we hadn't booked and our waiter was so friendly, that we didn't mind at all. The general atmosphere matched our waiter's attitude - it's fresh and appealing. The decor is modern without trying too hard.
The menu at Firestone has a good combination of slightly more unusual, modern combinations and classics. We didn't see too many children, but between some traditional pasta combinations and the pizzas, there's plenty to please them.
We began with one of the Sharing Plates, a great range of very reasonably priced nibbly bits (I'm definitely trying the blue swimmer crab risotto balls next time). We ordered the persian fetta with ciabatta which was an excellent start. I'm not sure that the bread served was traditional ciabatta but it was delicious nonetheless and served with crisped thyme, a small but welcome touch.
The Simple Man, truer to form than on the last occasion, selected the lasagne while I opted for pizza number 15. Simple Man advised that the lasagne, served with a rocket parmesan salad, was just how he likes it ("not too liquidy" was his comment, meant to be positive - I think that means meaty?) while my pizza was the best I've eaten in Canberra (way better than Pizza Arte in Kingston which I think is overrated). It was a perfect combination of pepperoni, fresh tomato, basil and mozzerella. The base was crisp, the tomato sauce lovely and light, the serving size perfect.
We couldn't come at dessert - I have to admit the sweet pizza's on offer don't really appeal, but we were full to the brim on great food anyway. As Simple Man put it, mouth full of lasagne: "I really like this place".
Service: Friendly and efficient
Crowd: Mostly young, some big groups
Price: $-$$
Firestone Pizzeria
Shop 1 14 Wooley St
Dickson
Ph: 6247 4447
http://www.firestonepizzeria.com.au/
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Kingsleys (not the chicken shop)
Although the Simple Man and I tend to be of the view that Valentine's Day really is a bit of a sham-American-overcorporatised holiday , we are prepared to forgo our moral stance on, well, pretty much anything if it means that we are able to abandon the kitchen for a night in favour of going out.
However. Now that you are getting to know the Simple Man, it may not come as a surprise to you that he is not only a man who loves his Big Food with chips, he is also a man that loves his footy. When I say footy, I do refer generically to the sport and he does watch most varieties of football. Special place is reserved, however, for real football - ie soccer. Not only does it occupy large amounts of his time on the television, he also plays several varieties - indoor, outdoor and summer six a side. Valentines Day happened to fall on the evening of his team's six a side semi final.
So, we went out on Wednesday evening instead which allowed us a little more choice in venue, as I expect a lot of Canberra's better restaurants were booked out on Thursday night. Being a considerate kind of partner, I chose Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse as the venue on the premise that The Simple Man would be pleased by the variety and quality of meats on offer.
Kingsleys is located at the bottom of the Canberra Centre, which is a bit of a weird location, but it kind of works basically because you dont see the shopping centre from inside the restaurant. We sat outside in a little red booth which was quite pleasant.
Simple Man and I shared a crab spring roll starter which was served with plum sauce and was quite delicious. Simple Man had earlier caused some controversy by announcing that he might have the homemade pie for dinner. Given I'd chosen the restaurant on the basis that it is he, rather than me, that has a penchant for steak, I coerced him into having the rib eye instead. When ordering, it took some time for Simple Man to get the concept that when he ordered his steak (which cost $30 - not wagyu either, that came in around $50), he would receive no sides. Not a little green salad, not even a sprig of parsley, just the steak. Once this was understood, he ordered some green beans with caramelised onion, with a bit of a grimace.
I intended to have seafood, however freely admit that I baulked when I discovered that it was pretty much only crab which came in at a price way higher than I was prepared to pay (about $60). I ordered the steak sandwhich which conveniently came with chips which Simple Man offered to share.
The steak arrived, as described, on the middle of the plate, garnshish-less (it does come with a red wine jus). I keenly awaited the testing expecting a reaction along the lines of "ooohhh", or a "it melts in the mouth" comment. Neither came. Although Simple Man declared that it was a good steak, better than the average pub steak, it was not quite up to the high standards that he had expected, particuarly given the price he was paying.
My steak sandwhich was good - the steak was well cooked and nice and tender as you would expect from a steakhouse. It was, at the end of the day however, just a steak sandwhich - it's kind of hard to be out of this world. I thought that it was good value ($20), compared to The Simple Man's steak and beans, which came in at somewhere closer to $40.
The service was mixed - we had one excellent waiter followed by a much younger average one as well as a couple of other waitresses in between, which is fine, but at a better quality of restaurant sometimes its nice to have just one face and it also effects the way I tend to tip - the first guy was great, but the last not so good, so the tip was probably average too.
I've spoken to a friend since this dinner who agreed with my experience but commented he'd had a much better experience at Kingsley's in Sydney. Maybe that's part of it. But I guess at the end of the day, perhaps you can expect too much from a steak.
We skipped dessert. We'd foolishly intended to go to Kokoblack afterwards, not realising that it had shut at 1730. After a couple of rants about how poor Canberra's nightlife is (you'd think we'd be used to it!) we ended up at the Front Cafe in Lyneham for comedy night. We had a peppermint tea (me), a hot chocolate (Simple Man) and a bit of a laugh (both of us) before agreeing there are other places we will try before returning to Kingsleys.
Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse
Ground Floor
North Quarter
Canberra Centre Civic
Ph: 1300546475
Service: Mixed
Crowd: Mostly business
Money: $$$
($ = mains 15 and under; $$ = mains 25 and under, $$$ = mains over 25)
However. Now that you are getting to know the Simple Man, it may not come as a surprise to you that he is not only a man who loves his Big Food with chips, he is also a man that loves his footy. When I say footy, I do refer generically to the sport and he does watch most varieties of football. Special place is reserved, however, for real football - ie soccer. Not only does it occupy large amounts of his time on the television, he also plays several varieties - indoor, outdoor and summer six a side. Valentines Day happened to fall on the evening of his team's six a side semi final.
So, we went out on Wednesday evening instead which allowed us a little more choice in venue, as I expect a lot of Canberra's better restaurants were booked out on Thursday night. Being a considerate kind of partner, I chose Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse as the venue on the premise that The Simple Man would be pleased by the variety and quality of meats on offer.
Kingsleys is located at the bottom of the Canberra Centre, which is a bit of a weird location, but it kind of works basically because you dont see the shopping centre from inside the restaurant. We sat outside in a little red booth which was quite pleasant.
Simple Man and I shared a crab spring roll starter which was served with plum sauce and was quite delicious. Simple Man had earlier caused some controversy by announcing that he might have the homemade pie for dinner. Given I'd chosen the restaurant on the basis that it is he, rather than me, that has a penchant for steak, I coerced him into having the rib eye instead. When ordering, it took some time for Simple Man to get the concept that when he ordered his steak (which cost $30 - not wagyu either, that came in around $50), he would receive no sides. Not a little green salad, not even a sprig of parsley, just the steak. Once this was understood, he ordered some green beans with caramelised onion, with a bit of a grimace.
I intended to have seafood, however freely admit that I baulked when I discovered that it was pretty much only crab which came in at a price way higher than I was prepared to pay (about $60). I ordered the steak sandwhich which conveniently came with chips which Simple Man offered to share.
The steak arrived, as described, on the middle of the plate, garnshish-less (it does come with a red wine jus). I keenly awaited the testing expecting a reaction along the lines of "ooohhh", or a "it melts in the mouth" comment. Neither came. Although Simple Man declared that it was a good steak, better than the average pub steak, it was not quite up to the high standards that he had expected, particuarly given the price he was paying.
My steak sandwhich was good - the steak was well cooked and nice and tender as you would expect from a steakhouse. It was, at the end of the day however, just a steak sandwhich - it's kind of hard to be out of this world. I thought that it was good value ($20), compared to The Simple Man's steak and beans, which came in at somewhere closer to $40.
The service was mixed - we had one excellent waiter followed by a much younger average one as well as a couple of other waitresses in between, which is fine, but at a better quality of restaurant sometimes its nice to have just one face and it also effects the way I tend to tip - the first guy was great, but the last not so good, so the tip was probably average too.
I've spoken to a friend since this dinner who agreed with my experience but commented he'd had a much better experience at Kingsley's in Sydney. Maybe that's part of it. But I guess at the end of the day, perhaps you can expect too much from a steak.
We skipped dessert. We'd foolishly intended to go to Kokoblack afterwards, not realising that it had shut at 1730. After a couple of rants about how poor Canberra's nightlife is (you'd think we'd be used to it!) we ended up at the Front Cafe in Lyneham for comedy night. We had a peppermint tea (me), a hot chocolate (Simple Man) and a bit of a laugh (both of us) before agreeing there are other places we will try before returning to Kingsleys.
Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse
Ground Floor
North Quarter
Canberra Centre Civic
Ph: 1300546475
Service: Mixed
Crowd: Mostly business
Money: $$$
($ = mains 15 and under; $$ = mains 25 and under, $$$ = mains over 25)
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