Don’t worry Dear Reader, you haven’t missed Valentine Day nor have I managed to do some time travel in between meals (although wouldn’t that be fabulous). Nor is this a story from about a year ago from Valentines Day 2010. Mr NQN and I were invited to sample Aperitivo’s Valentines Day menu ahead of the hallowed day of romance this year. At $60 a head it is a Valentines Day menu that won’t have you reaching for your eyes (gouging etc) and they have a six course menu on offer.

Involtini: Mullet involtini filled with asparagus & tomato concassé with vermouth reduction served with 08 Cavalier Pepe Falanghina Campania $10/150ml glass extra

There were two types of the mullet given, one with the skin on and one without the skin on. They’re both good although I preferred the skin off version (which is a change as I usually like skin on fish) but I felt that the skinless version was more delicate and “less fishy” if that makes sense and matched better with the asparagus and tomato concasse. There is a touch of bitterness at the very end from the vermouth reduction. Glasses of wine here come in 75ml, 150ml glasses or 375ml carafes and Mr NQN has asked for a wine by the glass to match it. He falls in love with their recommendation, a 08 Cavalier Pepe Falanghina Campania which is said to be a less floral version of a sauvignon blanc. In fact he asks where it can be purchased he likes it so much.

Apple & honeydew gazpacho

The gazpacho is interesting tasting more of apple than honeydew although I’m not that taken by this cold soup as it reminds me of apple sauce. It is served with spicy croutons which give it a more savoury flavour but they do end up a little wet from where they sit in the soup and I ate my shortly after it was set down while Mr NQN took photos of this.

Pepper tagliatelle served with sardines & cherry tomatoes finished with prosecco

The pepper tagliatelle is wonderfully silky and very well cooked and it is flavoured with sardines, breadcrumbs and small pieces of cooked cherry tomato. It has a strong flavour from the sardines but I do like the little crunch from the breadcrumbs and the lovely pasta texture. Because the sardines aren’t immediately apparent, it makes the strength and saltiness of the topping a bit of a surprise.

Salsicce Pizza (extra course) $22

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Hello lovelies! Yes you’ve read right although no I haven’t suddenly embraced politics and gone over to the “dark side” and become a politician . Although I think there might be some merit to NQN-land where the shops are open late, bakeries and patisseries abound, street signs are represented with “fruit” and there is no tax on designer shoes, clothes or bags. I digress though….  Quebec’s Parliament House contains a restaurant where ordinary people and tourists can come to enjoy a meal. The building is an enormous and beautiful  stone structure and we pass through several very polite and friendly security checkpoints including one where we show them a copy of our passports (as they require photo ID) in order to get to the restaurant.

We reach the restaurant which has two stunning Art Nouveau stained glass windows that are almost worth a special trip to see.  These were made by French native glass maker Henri Perdriau. The room was inaugurated in 1917 and is enormous as it plays host to visiting dignitaries and politicians. In the neoclassical Beaux Arts style of architecture, the room has heavy curtained windows and signature crockery with the signature Fleur de Lys pattern.

We take a look at the menu which is quite reasonably priced and as we aren’t particularly hungry, we share an appetiser and order a main each. There are about six other tables of people in the enormous room so it does feel a little empty although we would imagine that it would be gorgeous for a wedding reception when full.

Bread and butter

Hooray! I miss my sourdough bread

Wild Caribou Pate $9

The pate is served without toast so I use the bread. It has a mild gamey flavour and slightly rough texture and gelatinous mouthfeel. It pairs well with the thinly sliced apple and radish salad and juniper berry compote.

Split Pea Soup

All meals come with a soup and today’s soup is a split pea soup which is thick and rich and warming (and much better than the one at Aux Anciens Canadiens we had the other day).

Fillet of Walleye Almondine $23

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The corners cut into the buildings so a horse and carriage could get past without cutting the corner!

I think that Melbourne has just got to hold the record for quirkiest shop/cafe/restaurant names per capita. Allow me to explain with this list of eatery names:

Naked for Satan, Pope Joan, Dr Jekyll, Coin Laundry, Omar and the Marvellous Coffee Bird, Dead Man Espresso, Friends of Mine, ESC, Mr Tulk, Three  Bags Full, Huxtable, Proud Mary, Hardware Societe and Captains of Industry among many others.

When people in a city offer to show me their city, I am delighted. Especially when they want to take me to somewhere that I’ve been dying to visit for the longest time. Tim @aerohaveno (a travel writer) and his wife Narelle @daggyvamp (a vampire novel writer) offered to show us some of Melbourne’s famous blue stone edged laneways and share brunch at the Hardware Societe in Hardware Lane. We arrive and it is buzzing and full. There is a ten minute wait so we walk around the corner and they show us various laneways and other cafes of note.

More quirky names

Melbourne’s eateries, stores and galleries have quite a collection of quirky names and we particularly like this laneway with galleries to each side and Narelle points out the “cut here” scissors along the centre of the lane. In Melbourne these laneway places are where small but driven shopkeepers, chefs and restaurateurs open up and flourish as the slightly hidden locations allow them a chance to survive paying less rent than a main street location. Before you know it, a place becomes a cult place and as Tim tells us “Melburnians like to discover secret laneway places, the places on the main street are for tourists”.

Cut here street markings

Random street art

Before we know it, the ten minutes is up and we head back to the Hardware Societe where we take a seat at the end of a communal table. We receive our copy of the menu and two words pop out at me: Fried. Brioche. Holy heavens, yes please. My order decided Mr NQN orders the Spanish milk rice and Tim and Narelle order different things. “We order different things, is that how it goes?” Tim asks – words to my ears! Narelle explains that she is used to waiting for him to take photographs so we have lucked out as far as Melbourne guides are concerned. The menu is a mix of French and Spanish influenced dishes and there are displays of Spanish and French sweets on the counter.

Sunzest Orange Juice $4

The Sunzest organic orange juice is gorgeous-pure and sweet and with a small amount of pulp. It is just lovely sweet oranges squeezed like if you would do at home if a) you could be bothered juicing oranges and b) you found yourself really sweet oranges. I saw on their website that they are also stocked at Sydney’s Flemington markets.

Chai tea $4

I love a tea cosy and I’m glad I ordered a tea instead of a coffee or I’d be missing out on this colourful tea cosy. The chai tea is made slightly sweetened and aromatic.

Fried brioche $13 (read about the new flavour)

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