Not Quite Nigella

Cavallino Ristorante, Terrey Hills

cavallino terrey hills sign

Over the past few years my friends have been sprouting up little’uns faster than I can count. And as a consequence of this, I’m asked if I can recommend any places that are kid friendly but also adult friendly. Many places are of course mutually exclusive. the fancier it looks, the less welcoming they are to enfants and normally stylish mums can find themselves sacrificing good cuisine and avoiding scowls from fellow diners and waiters. There was one place that was said to be kid friendly yet with good food too: Giovanni Pilu’s new restaurant in Terrey Hills called Cavallino. And Liss from Frills in the Hills was just the gal to go there with along with her three little girls, Eloise (7), and 5 year old twins Laura and Olivia. They would be the test of kid friendly chic.

cavallino terrey hills lounge

On the former site of Il Piemonte, it’s all very swish outside, with stone work and wooden detailing and a horse emblem of course as Cavallino means Little Horse (a synergy with owner Pilu’s own Ferrari perhaps?). The greeting is very friendly and to the left there is the bar and lounge with more horse themed decorations.

cavallino terrey hills cheese fridge

Cheese fridge

To the right is the large 180 seater dining room which sits in front of the large pizza oven where four pizza makers are constantly throwing dough, sprinkling toppings and placing pizzas inside and taking them out of the large oven. There is a pizza with French fries on it but we think better of it and order more “regular” fare. There’s an all Italian wine list and whilst there are mains which include meat, the big menu is the pizza menu with seventeen varieties of pizza.

cavallino terrey hills trolley

The Produce Trolley

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March 15th, 2010 by Not Quite Nigella

Watermelon, Feta and Mint Salad

watermelon feta salad 1

Oh I know, I may have scared you with the mere idea of this salad but hopefully you’ve already seen it in cookbooks (Nigella has a version using olives) and at restaurants. A friend of mine Nic tried Nigella’s version and pronounced it unpalatable so I was put off eating it for the longest time although I had never tried it myself. Until one blisteringly hot night we had this at Perama in Petersham and it seemed the answer to all of our culinary prayers.

watermelon feta salad 3

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March 14th, 2010 by Not Quite Nigella

Win 1 of 5 Double Passes to See My One & Only!

MOAO Poster

Ladies and Gents, you know I do love retro and things that hark back to yesteryear. The new movie My One & Only is set in the 1950′s (how Mad Men!) and is directed by Richard Loncraine (My House in Umbria)and stars Renee Zellweger, Renee Zellweger, Logan Lerman, Kevin Bacon, Eric McCormack & Chris Noth.

MyOneAndOnlyPic2

“My One & Only is inspired by the incidents in the life of actor and Hollywood icon George Hamilton. This breezy 1950s journey follows the refined and enchanting Ann Deveraux (Renee Zellweger), who packs up her life, including two teenage sons, buys a Cadillac convertible and embarks on a cross-country trip to get away from philandering, society bandleader Dan (Kevin Bacon.) Anns goal: to find herself a new husband. Yet what this unconventional family discover is something altogether more wonderful.”

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March 13th, 2010 by Not Quite Nigella

Taste of Sydney Festival, 2010

taste of sydney cloudy sky

The skies are looking ominous…

I look up at the sky and one moment it’s sunny and five minutes later it looks grey. Not the most ideal weather for an outdoor food festival but I’m hoping the gods of fashion look after me and ensure that I don’t get wet. For tonight is the opening night of the Taste of Sydney Festival held in nearby Centennial Park!

taste of sydney kemp north turnbull

From left to right: Matthew Kemp, Justin North and Warren Turnbull

I get there at 4:30pm to see the preparations backstage. I’m expecting the first hour before opening to be frantic much like the final hour before the guests arrive at a dinner party where activity is fraught with panic. Instead, everyone looks casual and relaxed. Justin North from Becasse, Matthew Kemp from Restaurant Balzac and Warren Turnbull from Assiette stand casually chatting before the guests arrive. This year’s Taste of Sydney is 20% bigger than last years and thankfully we see some more places to eat with stand up astroturfed bar tables as well as places to sit and eat. The VIP stand where we’re headed once we have something to eat is full too and closer to the centre of the event. Savoury dishes range from 8-12 crowns and desserts are mostly 8 crowns.

taste of sydney jonah pannacotta

George Francisco unmolds the pannacotta

We head towards the Jonah’s stand where George Francisco shows us how he puts together the famous “wobbly booby” pannacotta. Even after making it for 8 years it still gets a reaction from diners. He shows us the mold, a simple plastic martini glass, slightly higher and taller than a regular one to produce the desired effect. He tells us of how he used to make these using the traditional wide champagne glasses which also appeared like women’s breasts.

taste of sydney george francisco

At the last Taste of Sydney he sold 2,400 plates of these and it features all year round on the Jonah’s menu at Whale Beach. This means that each week the kitchen has to adjust the recipe slightly to accommodate the differences in temperature. During Summer it melts quicker so it needs slightly more gelatine than in Winter.

taste of sydney jonah pannacotta

Jonah’s: Vanilla Pannacotta with Lavender Honey and Fresh pomegranate 12 crowns

He asks us if we would like a taste and we eagerly dig in. It’s as good as we remembered with just the right amount of crunch from the pomegranates, yielding softness from the wobbly pannacotta and the sweetness from the honey against the tartness of the pomegranates. True to form, later that evening when we see someone else walk past with one, heads turn “What the hell…” someone asks and they all take turns shaking the pannacotta and ogling at the vanilla bean nipple. And they were all girls!

taste of sydney becasse souffle

We go to the Becasse stand to check out how they’re doing. They’re making a chocolate souffle for dessert. A souffle? At an outdoor event I ask Justin? “Absolutely confident (fingers crossed) it is a fail safe, twice cooked souffle recipe. We use a very, very unique and amazing local chocolate in the base called Zokoko – it is the best souffle ever!” and invites us to come by later and take a look in the kitchen when they’re busy.

taste of sydney matt moran aria

Matt Moran from Aria

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March 12th, 2010 by Not Quite Nigella

La Piadina, Bondi & What is a Piadina?

la piadina bondi beach dinosaur

The Missing Brontosaurus

“What number is it? Mr NQN asks and I had forgotten to write down the street number for La Piadina. I know that it’s somewhere in the hundreds. It’s not a glorious sunny day the Sunday that we visit La Piadina. The rain has settled in and we’re driving up and down Glenayr Avenue in Bondi Beach looking for what was described to us as “a little hole in the wall”. We drive up and down and up and down before I google it on my phone. Ahh 106. We drive past number 106 and there it is, it was there all the time but like Platform 9 3/4 at Kings cross station in Harry Potter we just didn’t see it. Subtly signposted and with a open glass and wooden frontage it’s a small restaurant and one that sells piadinas. “What are piadinas” you may ask? They’re flat, unleavened soft bread rounds that originally hail from Emilia-Romagna in Northern Italy. Reportedly the poet Pascoli described it in one of his poems as “Simple, holy bread of the poor” and “Nothing speaks more of Romagna than this bread of ours… it is a symbol that speaks of devotion to our land”. M’s friend Hans described it to us as “a flat bread that has been folded over”. “Do you mean a calzone?” “No not quite” he says. We were intrigued by the concept and this is the only place doing piadinas here in Sydney.