Where: Shop 10, 530 Collins St (enter via Little Collins St)

When: Mon-Fri Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Weekends: Private Functions

Credit Cards avail.

Dine-in

Vego :/ somewhat friendly

Contact: (03) 9614 4500

Mr. Mason, a new restaurant in the Collins Street Stock Exchange Building strives to give the Business Lunchers something ritzier than food court take-away. However one need not traipse any further than the Little Collins St Food court to get a hearty hot meal and wine to match. Mr. Mason seems as equally passionate about their wine and champagne as their food, and perhaps their label of “French Inspired” makes more sense when you read the drinks list than the menu. Dishes available are more Modern Australian than anything else; classic meat and veg and standard salad and chips available as sides as well as some interesting smaller plates to start.

While Mr. Mason is surely at an advantage in terms of accessibility to its business punters, it does have to make do with a fairly unsophisticated front at the entrance to the mall. While they do well to create a cosy hide-away from the bright lights of the food court, their clientele are constantly reminded of their location when they’re forced to exit the restaurant to use the public toilets across the corridor. Nevertheless the venue has pitched its market well, and will no doubt experience a good turnover with business lunches and after-work drinks.

Semolina Crusted Calamari with lemon and aioli ($12)

With a menu changing weekly, there’s always something new to try. We sampled the Semolina Crusted Calamari with lemon and aioli ($12), Charcuterie- homemade pate, terrine, rillets, bresaola, pickles, charred toast ($28) and the Roasted Lamb Rump, bacon lardons, braised lettuce, broad beans, potato dumplings ($32). The staff was very friendly, absent of any stuffiness and knowledgeable enough that I’d happily leave them to order for me. It was also a nice touch how our sparkling water kept flowing, rather than having to purchase a bottle to sit on the table.

While waiting for the food to arrive I took in the interiors which were dark and woody, with a very 70’s pebbled wall as a centre piece in the lounge area. While the carpet in the dining area wasn’t very sexy it did help to absorb the noise, something which the architecture seemed to consider with three segmented areas amongst the venue.

When the calamari arrived we were shocked by the generous portion of the “small plate”. The semolina batter was a nice barely-crunchy casing for the creamy meat, which was accompanied by a mild aioli and fresh watercress. The Charcuterie wasn’t as impressive as its predecessor, hampered by the quality of the bread, a bland pate and dried-out pickles. The terrine had a summery minty infusion and the caramelised onions were delicious but still not enough to redeem this dish for me.

Charcuterie- homemade pate, terrine, rillets, bresaola, pickles, charred toast ($28)

Our final installment was the lamb rump which while was a little rare for my tastes (I ordered it ‘medium’) was very satisfactory. A rich beef reduction generously enveloped the meat and tender baby vegetables. Perhaps most stunning were the potato dumplings; a little Eastern European influence done very well, the doughy discs slightly charred and crispy on the outside.

While the cuisine at Mr. Mason wasn’t particularly innovative, its hearty meat dishes are done nicely and would please many. It would be good to see an improvement in the quality of the cold meat dishes, perhaps a signature Chef dish to sample on the Charcuterie as well. I would definitely try a cocktail upon returning, with names like Grilled Pineapple Daiquiri and Daft Punk, it’s hard to say no.

Roasted Lamb Rump, bacon lardons, braised lettuce, broad beans, potato dumplings ($32)

Food: 3.5

Service: 4/5

Ambiance: 2/5

Lunchosaurus dined courtesy of Mr.Mason

Where: 318 Sydney Rd Brunswick

When: Mon-Thurs 7.15-5.30, Fri & Sat 7.15-6, Sun 7.15-4.30

Contact: (03) 9380 8680

Pricing: Under $15 mains

Vego :)

Cash only

Brownie ($3)

Chouk-ette

Noun, plural –s

1. A delicious French pastry
2. A delicious French Bakery in Brunswick

If you’re looking for a take-away option on Sydney Rd that isn’t a bland, overpriced focaccia then Choukette is your deal. Flavours are big and authentic in this tiny French find. They have quiches, pastry rolls, sandwiches and pies as well as a full range of croissants, sweet pastries and some serious cakes. 

I stopped in for a beef and vegetable pie, which I had dine-in with a side salad (7.50). I couldn’t have been more pleased that I had opted for the salad as it was as punchy and rich as the lovely pie itself. Nearly overdoing its role as a side, the salad was composed of chopped lettuce with walnuts and blue cheese and drizzled with a thick balsamic dressing. The pie too was impressive, perhaps the pastry being the biggest triumph. Beneath its golden flaked shell was a rich filling with high quality mince and chunks of tomato. There wasn’t much gravy to speak of; it was more like a pastitso than a pie, but definitely delicious. With my meal I had a cappuccino ($3.20) which was a let-down; tasting of withered-away beans swathed in milk.

Apart from the coffee, Choukette’s interior is its main flaw. Tacky brown tiling and gaudy plastic light fittings on the wall make the place resemble a themed family diner, and the harsh glow of the drinks fridge and sandwich cabinet are hard to avoid. The radio was the only sort of musical presence on when I visited, so I didn’t stay long. Yet the food was enough to make me return over and over again. I’m still kicking myself that I didn’t bring my camera, but I did take a brownie home where I was able to get a snap for this review. Said brownie was alright for $3, but it could have been richer. Someone later told me this was my own fault for ordering a brownie in a French Bakery, I can see their point.

Food: 3.5/5

Service: 4/5

Ambience: 1/5

Where: 552 Lonsdale St CBD

Contact: (03) 9670 0039

When: Monday-Friday: 7am-6pm

Dine-in and Take-away

Licensed

Vego :)

Mustard-rubbed roast beef, gruyere cheese and caperberries baguette $11*

Gourmet take-away for the discerning CBD worker is a relatively new but fast-growing market. People want more than bad fast-food or eerily sterile food-court options. Le Traiteur is targeting this deographic with it’s fancy-come-casual food experience. Part of the Libertine franchise, the cafe has sprouted from its formal dining roots in North Melbourne and become Le Traiter in the CBD; a casual bakery café offering to take care of your breakfast, your lunch and even something take-away for dinner. They specialise in baguettes for eating-in or to snatch on the way back to the office, but they’re a far cry from franchises like Delafrance. There is not a “build-your-own” sandwich situation here at all. Trust me though, you really wouldn’t be able to come up with anything much better than the ones they have available. Things like ‘pork, sage and orange terrine, cherry tomatoes and grain mustard’ or ‘roast duck, baked pear and caramelised onion’ for example. Yet what really gives Le Traiteur an edge is that they bake their bread on premises, twice a day so it tastes incredible. Their servings are also generous and well priced ($10 takeaway/$11 dine-in).

When a friend and I visited during the week we decided to dine-in and were pleased with restaurant quality service we received, slightly exciting for the humble café-setting. We ordered the ‘Mustard-rubbed roast beef, Gruyere cheese and caperberries baguette’ and the ‘Fresh tomato and basil consommé with stilton agnolloti’. The baguette alone was immediately perfect, easily doing justice to the high quality filling. The sweet pickled caperberries were a wonderful contrast to the creamy egg mayonnaise. Next along, the soup was what you’d expect of anything French; strong and complex, yet it possessed almost an Asian twist with a zingy sour twinges. The cherry tomatoes bobbing around in the broth were tender and the agnollotti had a rich blue cheese filling. It was good to see some unusual vegetarian options like these available.

The atmosphere of Le Traiteur cannot really compare to luxurious, big sister Libertine. The little wooden tables and chairs aren’t comfortable for long and the music was probably stretching the casual” vibe too far (we were subjected to Jack Johnson). It is probably a place designed for fast-moving traffic, but if it had been a little cosier I would’ve stayed for coffee. Next time I might drop by for a lunch box (Baguette, drink and sweet for $15) with my keep-cup, restaurant on the run!

Fresh tomato and basil consommé, stilton agnolloti ($10)*

x Lunchosaurus

* Apologies for the poor quality photos, I didn’t have my camera handy.

Location: 500 Victoria Street North Melbourne

Contact: (03) 9329 5228

When: Tues-Sat Lunch 12-3pm, dinner 6-10pm 

Licensed

Dine-in

Pricing: Mains under $40, entrées under $20

Payment: Cash and CC

Vego barely-friendly :/

French restaurant Libertine in North Melbourne likes to squeeze as much old fashioned glamour as it can into it’s petite single-fronted fit-out. A large chandelier is hung from the ceiling, it’s light bouncing off ornate gold-framed mirrors. The little wooden tables sat snugly in rows, done up in white tablecloths and wine glasses for weekday luncheon. However the experience of being at Libertine during the day was less forgiving than on an evening, as the tiredness of the building showed more easily. Something was making a rattling noise, a dishwasher or an air-conditioner, our table had a precarious wobble and the whole building just felt as though it needed some maintenance. Nevertheless Libertine is still the sort of place where you need to use your manners; despite old jazz softly playing in background it feels as though you could give away most of your conversation unintentionally.  

So what’s for lunch then? We were saddened to find that the previous lunch and wine special no longer exists. Since the  $95 Degustation option was a little grandiose for the occasion we decided to go a la carte. All entrées were $19 and Mains were $36, with different prices again for cheese, dessert and side dishes. Every day there is a ‘changing dish for two’, which unfortunately for us cheap skates is not a two-for-one deal. We went ahead with it anyway and ordered the Pork neck, confit belly with fig sauce and roast vegetables as well as an entrée of chicken liver parfait, onion brioche and pickled carrot. 

Chicken liver parfait, onion brioche and pickled carrot $19

Our entree arrived with a generous scoop of parfait and an adorable two tone brioche adorned with a half fig, fresh garnishes and puddle of what tasted like fig jam. The sweet and gamey flavours worked really well together and the pickled carrot was a zingy finish. Shortly afterwards arrived the pork, sauce on the side with sunset-coloured autumn vegetables including baby beets and roasted chestnuts. Expecting the sauce to be sweet, I was disappointed to find that it tasted mostly of chicken stock and butter, the only hint of fig evident in its shade of burgundy. The pork was cooked perfectly but the butter in the sauce proved too rich a combination for the fatty pork belly. The vegetables, though excitingly coloured were bland and even bitter in some cases. A successful touch was the roasted chestnuts which added a smooth sweetness and texture to the vegetables. 

Pork neck and confit belly with roasted vegetables and fig sauce for two

As you would expect at a fine-dining establishment, the service was good with no hesitation to top up our water and bread rolls. We felt well looked after. If you were to stay for a drink after lunch you’d find excellent coffee by someone called Joshua Bailey. It smelled delicious but that’s as far as my experience stretches. If bring ing company to Libertine, don’t be put off by the small room, there is another one upstairs big enough for a function or large group. The uniform prices would also make it easier to decipher the group bill. If French food, particularly meat and wine is your thing then it is worth your time to visit Libertine. If not and for me personally, then their food doesn’t really justify the money handed over. Coffee and dessert however is a different story, I’m still very much interested:)

As a side note there is a handy book-online feature, exciting no?

Food: 3.5/5

Service: 4/5

Ambience: 3.5/5