Ole Restaurant

Tapas is fast becoming the new dining preference in Brisbane and why not I say? It's a great way to try more items on the menu and this sort of dining sets a very relaxed and extended meal for your company. I find in big groups, even if a restaurant's menu isn't set in a tapas style, it's easier and more fun to get multiple dishes to share.

Ole Restaurant is in Southbank towards the Piazza end. Like all Southbank restaurants, it has great outside seating where you can enjoy a leisurely lunch or dinner (and I hear they serve breakfast too?). The menu has a great selection of tapas and raciones (more substantial plates to share) and wine and cocktail menus as well.

Red Sangria - Red wine punch

You can't have Spanish tapas without a jug of sangria. I was surprised that they offered white and red wine sangria. I've never tried white sangria but I'm not a fan of white wine so Cora and I opted for red. The amount of wine was only slight, so I definitely recommend this for those non red drinkers as well. It was fruity, refreshing and ice cold. Best one I've had to date. The jug works out to be about 4-5 glasses so for us two it was a bit of a struggle to finish.

(Tapas) Pulpo Con Chorizo - Grilled octopus, chorizo, fresh lime, parsley and tomato

Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup - Pho Recipe

Pho has to be the quintessential Vietnamese dish. Every household has it's own version and of course everyone claims their mums' is the best. But why is it that there's so much variation in the quality of pho? Well, there are many 'secrets' to making the ultimate pho broth and each restuarant has their own little extra something. I've heard some interesting stories about the pho in Vietnam. My parents claim the top restaurants use a special type of dried seafood which can only be found in Vietnam waters. They're not sure what this seafood is, and even then, it's only a rumour. How well guarded! If I ever go back to Vietnam, I'll definitely try to weed this information out.

What makes this particular pho recipe so good is because of the quality of the ingredients, quantities and grilling of the stock vegetables and spices. When I make this at home, I don't skimp out on the amount of bones and I also buy the soup bones from Woolworths. I find the bones have more meat than from your butchers and the bones are well trimmed of excess fat. As for the spices, I don't buy the premade bouquet garnis but instead buy each spice individually so I can control the amount of each spice.

This may seem like a daunting recipe with so many ingredients but it's actually dead easy to make and tastes much better than restaurant ones (and minus the msg too). This recipe was adapted partly from my parents recipe and from Luke Nguyen. 

Little Lamb - Charcoal BBQ and Hot Pot Buffet

Little Lamb is a combined hot pot and charcoal grill buffet situated in a small shopping complex in Eight Mile Plains. It is in the older complex opposite Warrigal Square. As to how new this place is, I'm not certain. The staff speak mainly Chinese so there was a language barrier. I let my friend Peter do most of the talking here.

This place was big, loud and very busy. Customers are constantly getting up to grab food from the buffet area so it can get a bit overwhelming. This is a place you go to with a large group of friends and spend all night there cooking and eating. Bookings are a must otherwise you will find yourself waiting for a table.

Each table has an inbuilt grill box which they top with hot coal when your table is seated. Beside the grill is an induction cooktop for the hot pot. They offer spicy soup and normal soup and they have a split soup bowl so the table can order both types.  

Charcoal Skewers - (from the far right - sweet potato, taro balls, chicken wing, lamb)

 

Beastie Burgers: Brisbane's Best Burgers - Stop 4

Beastie Burgers is a small licensed restaurant on Little Stanley Street in South Bank. This place has few seating and most of it is outdoor, like the other restaurants on Little Stanley St. We've tried the burgers here in the past and from memory, they were good and worth trying again. I remember really enjoying the flame grilled patties which they specialise in. Think hungry jacks flamed grilled but not as oily and with real, wholesome beef mince patties.

Like most burger joints, the burgers had fun and creative names. I was tossing up between Cicciolina and Spice route. The Cicciolina had roast eggplant, capsicum, haloumi, rocket, pesto and aioli. To keep my burger choices more streamlined, I chose the Spice Route, which is similar to the Clacker Cracker from Just Poppy's and After Burner from FaB.

Spice Route - Flame grilled beef burger, roast sweet potato, haloumi, chilli jam, hummus and tomato relish

Kale Chips Recipe

If you're ever craving potato chips or want something crunchy to go with your sandwich, try having kale chips as a healthy alternative. Ever since making them for the first time a month ago, I've made a batch every week. Everyone who has tried these think they're deep fried because of how insanely crispy they are, but the crispyness comes from dehydrating the kale. In its raw form, it is very stiff so instead of wilting under heat like most green vegetables, it crispens up. And for those of you on a low carb diet? Here is your mid afternoon fix!

Have a go at these and if you don't like them, I'd like to hear from you because I'm yet to find someone who doesn't like it.

Popolo Italian Kitchen and Bar

The strip of restaurants at the new River Quay precinct at South Bank are the trendiest new places to have lunch. It's located just under the Goodwill Bridge with riverfront views.

What I love about Popolo is the relaxed ambience, outdoor seating and tapas style dining. Most of their dishes can be accommodated to the number of people at your table which makes sharing much easier. Cora (her review here) and I were seated at the very edge of the restaurant so we were literally a footstep off the pavement. It was so bright we had our sunnies on the entire meal. The view was fantastic, the Brisbane skyline and river was in front of us, the sun on our faces and a glass of wine in hand. Everything was promising of a good meal.

View from our seats