The Cove Hotel - Patterson Lakes

Hanging over the water of the Patterson Lakes marina is The Cove Hotel. There is an extensive decking area and on a sunny day you can look out over the marina, catch a few rays and wine and dine the day away. In winter clear plastic walls go up and the heating goes on. The Cove is a massive and open hotel complex. If you wish you can snuggle up on a couch in front of the gas fire or just get a table for two for a romantic dinner. Out on the decking, in winter, the heating is provided by overhead gas heaters. Your head will be hot while your feet are cold. Small criticism.

The games room is off to one side and a large bar centres the complex. And like most modern hotels there are boring large TV panels installed. I go out to get away from TV. The beer on tap is very limited with the usual Carlton Draught, VB, Cascade light etc. So no really good beer is offered on tap. There is plenty of variety in the fridge but then most pubs can offer this. The wine is list sufficient without being extensive. The Cove does cater well for large groups but always book in advance.

The service is friendly. If you do go with a large party you may have to wait a long time for meals to come out. A small group may not have this wait. Food quality is fair and not great. I ate with a dozen or so and only a few of us thought the meal excellent. Most left some parts of the meal. Proportions are ample. If you are a big eater and like VB of Carlton Draught you have found your home. The finer dinner will be fussier. But this is a pub, though a nice one. Pricing is about right for venue and place. Drop in if in the Patterson Lakes area. Try it for yourself. It may suit you.

On-Im-Aloy Thai - Carrum Downs

There are restaurants and then there are restaurants. By that I mean there are quality places to eat and enjoy dining out then there are lower quality eateries. Sometimes it gets down to just how much you want to pay this time or an establishment which is close by. On-Im-Aloy Thai slips into that second category. Food quality is matched to a price and location.

The food does have Thai flavours. If you are like a number of friends of mine you enjoy the fresh lime, spice and other herbs, famous for Thai food, you will get it here. But I got the feeling the food has been westernised or the quality of those flavours and foods was low. But for $53 dollars (for two including corkage), we shared a fish cakes entree and two mains. The service was good and the staff are in Thai dress. BYO is supported here. Now there's a big plus!

The restaurant is small and on a Friday night, well packed. It has a Thai feel with bamboo and Buddha decorations. It was noisy without being offensive. The take-away section has some excellent reviews on the Internet and appeared very busy. I'm not saying don't go but I am saying keep expectation low. Go because you want a cheap meal and you can't be bothered heating the pies in the microwave or don't want pizza again. Eat out cheap? Your call.

Woodford Reserve - Kentucky Bourborn

This is a very serious Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. At the first sip you will be stunned by the sourness of this spirited sipper. Not bitter but sour. Woodford Reserve is based on a sour mash which incorporates rye. Bitter and sour are quite different and this AU$70 a bottle small batch bourbon will gladly show you the difference. So why drink something that at the very first taste has you questioning your selection? Because hidden deep in this very complex spirit is almost sublime flavours and aromatics that only come to life once they wash over your pallet.

You could drink a good scotch for the rest of your life and die a happy man. But there is adventure to be had. Why play it safe when for little more than a good scotch a knockout bourbon can enrich your life. As with most good spirits a center meter or two in a big wide whiskey glass (chilled) and a single ice cube (from filtered water) is the way to go. You do not want to freeze the delicate flavours and aromas out. Cool is what is required.

Each small sip will reveal a complexity and depth rarely found in good scotches. The sourness just sharpens the pallet preparing it for what is to come. As the aromas are release the head and nose fills with a breath from another place, far away, where a few select distillers are practicing their craft. I believe they work with a smile on their face knowing that some one some where is saying "thank you". Those amongst us who enjoy the richness and surprises of this life are willing to try new things, enjoy the endeavours of others and know there is more awaiting. Wait no longer.

A Rose by any other name - Rosebud

Venturing down deep into the Peninsula, south of Mornington, you come to Rosebud. This very pretty seaside outer-suburb is extremely popular, over the Christmas break, with caravan and tent dwellers-Victorian gypsies. Rosebud TRIPLES its population at this time of the year. Stay away over the peak period and venture here any other time, winter or early spring, when it is quiet. Parking and crowds can be a problem over the Christmas hols. Santa will not gift you free parking.

Go for a Sunday (or Saturday) drive to a smart looking restaurant/hotel called ROSEgpo. This was, sometime back, the GPO for Rosebud. I know because while a Telstra employee I collected my wages here. Thank God they changed the look of the place. In fact this big cafe has had a few incarnations. The current owners have it looking good. Their music taste requires a freshen-up though. Moldy pop from the 70s, 80s, and 90s is very yesterday. The music was older than the wine I was drinking. Speaking of wine there is good selections to be had. Choose carefully to get what you want. A goodly glass is served at a reasonable price.

The surrounds are excellent and there are a number of indulgence areas. Out on the street, inside upfront or down the back or for drinks and nibbles-upstairs. For me it was the Calamari. Big, thick, lightly crumbed strips. No sign of deep frying or out of a box frozen surprises. An excellent quantity for a big eater like me. The squid proudly sits atop a layer of big fat chips from real potatoes and some rabbit food to the side. Rabbits though would have called the chef and complained. Too much oil over the greens. I'm an oil aficionado from way-back but too heavy is too much. The Tomatoes were almost transparent but now I'm getting picky.

The Calamari was excellent. These were big strips and they were tender and moreish. The SA Riesling which accompanied the sea creature was tangy and worked well with the dish. Service was fast (midweek lunch) but just a little cold. I didn't need a cuddle over lunch but " g'day" would have been nice.

Pluck up the courage and venture into the deep south of Victoria's Peninsula region. Pick the rosebud of restaurants which blooms with ambiance, good wines and ample well priced eatables from an establishment which has a real history. But your experience will be new, enjoyable and sweet smelling. A rose by any other name would be ROSEgpo. Pluck it!

Spice Temple - South Bank Melbourne

In a world of maybe just too many restaurants it is refreshing to find one that is truly different. Not only in the way it looks and "feels" but in the type and quality of the food served. Somewhere you go and you just have to tell your dining buddies about it. A place where description almost fails to define the experience. Where visuals flash before your eyes. An experience that lives on in your head long after the bill has been paid. A rare culinary experience that just want leave you.

Of all the restaurants on South Bank Melbourne Spice Temple is different. It is very dark and mysterious. It gives little away as you enter. Sweet Thai smells of lime and coriander tantalise your senses the minute you are seated. Your hart quickens and you look around as you anticipate your evening ahead. The surroundings are simple if not a little understated. You have your own little seating area with a small dim lamp above. Holding the menu to the lamp you attempt to read the lists of dishes. Service is efficient and friendly, the music modern and appropriate.

I would describe the food as "gorgeous". Rich spice without the burn but just enough heat to herald its arrival. Complex flavours which enhance and intertwine with one another. No one spice competing with the other. A marriage of flavours and textures all happening in your mouth. You yearn for more and each dish brings its own signature and leaves its mark on the total experience.

I selected the whole baby snapper and my wife prawns. We never share our meals but this time we had to try what the other had selected. Both dishes were a perfect "10". The quantity was ample, the presentation excellent. As the food descended the experience ascended to bookmark the moment. Wine selection was good and prices reasonable. Once more the bill said "South Bank" but the experience was heavenly. Spice served with food to celebrate its own existence, to flag its part of the meal and to never let you forget: "you were there".

Spice Temple is a shrine to flavoursome food, rare dining experience and the celebration of good eating. It is alive with the desire to impress and impart good times, joy and life. live there.

Bowmore and Grouse - Whisky

I love me whisky but 'tend to drink what I can afford. In the past I have had a dram or two of the Tullamore Dew and Bushmills Black Bush. But for everyday sipping The Famous Grouse at $38 a bottle suites my taste and budget. Occasionally Ballantines drops to closer to the $30 mark and though I prefere the Grouse, it is another whisky I can enjoy. With Tullamore Dew and Bushmills I find a bit too much spirit though they are both an excellent whisk(e)y.

Then we have Bowmore Single Malt Scotch. The Grouse has a light bouquet and is not heavy on spirit and more gentle on the stomach than spirited single malt Irish etc. Bowmore is all about nose. Open the bottle in a room and most people and within a few minutes will all identify the "smell". But when Bowmore's hits the lip you know why many go for the single malts. They are distinct and heavy. Bowmore use an Islay (eye-la) malt which I think gives this whisky its nose and rich taste. According to the Web site the Islay malts are renowned for their peaty/smokey flavour. This is a very serious whisky but not at a very serious price. About $65 should get you a dram or two or even 700ml.

Laphroaig at $90 a 700ml bottle was the first whisky I had enjoyed which yielded this heavy bouquet. Again Laphroaig comes from the Islay region (Scotland) and uses the local malts. At $90 and a little hard to get, give me the Bowmore's. Very similar in overall tastes and a big difference in price. But for day-2-day "whisky after work" the Grouse for me is a no brainer. If you drink enough whisky no brainers come easy. Get drunk in moderation.

Giuseppe Arnaldo & Sons - South Bank Melbourne

Not often I have a chance to dine then jump the notebook and post a review. Staying at the Crown Promenade gave my wife and my good self a chance to try somewhere and something new. Giuseppe Arnaldo & Sons is quite different. When you first enter you get the impression it is all very dark and mysterious. In fact finding a spot to park the butt where there is enough light to read the menu is almost a challenge.

Some one has taken early Italian restaurant style eating and brought it to Melbourne. The bar and floor staff are clad in white lab coats and the maitre'de in a morning (funeral) coat. The interior is yellow stained marble (Giallo Siena), geometric patterned ceramic tiles, extremely tall stools and dark timber. There is a lot to like about this chunk of Italy which has been transported to Australi. Wine pours from taps in a marble wall into a huge marble trough. Carafe and half carafes are poured this way. Mine was a Crittendon's light red (Ross0 - chilled).

Your knife and folk are held at your table in a dispenser with dipping oil. A good helping of sliced bread, dipped in the oil at you table gets the juices flowing. The oil was good but not great. I chose the pork sausage in pasta, Mezzi Rigatoni, with a chili source and my lady wife the Arancini. My wife said her meal was fine but for me I found the pork sausage over cooked and hard. The pasta was firm and the source just spicy enough. Good source. My meal was pleasant without being stunning. The pork "bits" just had no taste or texture to them. Sad really.

This place would seat huge crowds, it is a massive establishment which stretches on forever and offers a few different seating arrangements. Great place for a celebration, birthday or anniversary. Service is good, staff are young and friendly the bar well stocked with every beer, wine or spirit you could imagine. Price is "South Bank" but you are getting something different. I'm sure the next time I "chow-down" in this slice of early Italian "cucinain" my dish will be "molto bello"! If you do nothing else, while in South Bank Melbourne, look in the door. It is well worth it.