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Spaghetti and Meatballs
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Traditional Italian dish, with meatballs made of minced pork and beef, herbs and minced onion and garlic, and served in a rich thick tomato based ragu sauce. Can be served sometimes with shredded fresh basil or oregano and shavings of parmesan. As with carbonara, it tends to be served with garlic bread and side salad.
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Italian
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Rib-Eye Steak
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The rib eye is served just plain grilled, or with an accompaniment of sauces such as peppercorn, garlic butter, or pizzaiola (tomato, herbs, onions). Many steak houses have an open grill where you can see your steaks being cooked.
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Steak
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Fillet Steak
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One of the most expensive steaks, but a good one is well worth it. Restaurants will recommend that you never have it ‘well done’ and at the most, medium rare, to enjoy the real soft texture and flavour of the meat. Frequently served with simply butter and herbs, either pan fried or grilled, you can still choose from a selection of sauce which are charged extra. Peppercorn or ‘Diane’ sauce (mushrooms, finely diced shallots and wine) are the most popular sauces. Served with chips and grilled tomatoes, mushrooms and occasionally onions.
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Steak
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Wagyu Beef
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Served in top restaurants, this unique cut and reared piece of beef is the supreme of fillet steak. Tender to cut, it melts in the mouth due to the marbling effect in the meat. Generally not served with any sauce, as this is felt to impose upon the flavour of the beef. Almost always served rare.
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Steak
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Grilled Chicken
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Not in the mood for steak? Chicken is another good option. Normally marinated before cooked with herbs and spices and served with veggies or salad and chips.
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Barbeque
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Lamb cutlets with garlic and rosemary
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Usually on every Italian menu, small trimmed lamb chops or cutlets are served steeped in fresh rosemary and garlic and pan fried or grilled. Served with sauté potatoes and vegetables, it is a hearty plate of food and delicious flavours. Tender pink lamb is enhanced by the earthy rosemary and garlic.
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Italian
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Minestrone Soup
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The classic and renowned Italian soup, comprising small pasta shapes, a rich chicken stock and finely diced vegetables such as celery, onions, tomatoes, carrots beans and herbs. Created in Ancient Roman times this soup is now served in many different ways, some finely and others much more chunky and hearty. A sprinkling of parmesan and a good basket of bread makes this really filling.
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Italian
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BBQ Ribs
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Delicious lip smacking pork ribs, marinated in barbecue sauce or sometimes a chipotle or chilli sauces. The ribs are usually marinated for a few hours and either slow oven roasted in more sauce, or flame-grilled to give that lovely smokey flavour. Can be served in American style restaurants or steak houses. Frequently served with coleslaw, fries and side salad.
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Barbeque
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Steaks
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How can you go wrong with a delicious chargrilled steak? Australian beef has a rich and intense flavour to delight and invigorate your taste buds. Normally served with veggies or a salad and chips.
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Barbeque
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Vegetable Kebabs
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Most barbecue restaurants will offer a vegetarian option such as veggie kebabs, or chargrilled stuffed capsicums, all cooked on the barbecue with lashings of garlic and herbs, lemon or lime and usually with a kick of spice. Combinations of vegetables such as baby potatoes, courgettes, peppers, onions, mushrooms and baby corn are favourites on the kebabs.
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Barbeque
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Corn on the Cob
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Whole cobs or smaller ones are always served from the grill in barbecue restaurants, presented covered in chopped fresh herbs and butter. Usually comes with a jacket potato and plenty of dips such as barbecue, sweet chilli or honey and soy. Delicious either eaten as a main course or as an accompaniment to a juicy steak.
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Barbeque
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Napoletana pasta sauce
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An amazing vegetarian italian option. Crushed tomato, onion, garlic, basil and parmesan. Sounds simple but bursting with lots of flavour.
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Italian
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Osso Buco
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A dish invented in Ancient Roman Times and perfected over the years to a more sophisticated Italian meal, consisting of cross-cut veal shanks, braised in red wine, onions, celery and carrots and served with a gremolata on the top (optional).
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Italian
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Bruschetta
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Delicious slices of bread, rubbed with garlic and tomato and seasoned before grilling. Various toppings are served, the most popular being diced tomatoes and red onion with finely chopped garlic and basil. Can also be served with a pesto topping, and sometimes with roasted aubergine and mushrooms. Usually a starter, but can be purchased as a main course.
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Italian
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Sirloin
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Look for the Angus Sirloins, they are packed with flavour and when hung and cooked well they are utterly delicious. Look for the great side dishes to go with a sirloin. Duck fat chips or potato gratin work well or a juicy tomato salad.
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Steak
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Rump Steak
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Rump steak is the most versatile of the steak cuts and can be found in most Steak houses in the country. Usually devoured by hungry men, the rump steak should be aged and never over cooked as it will toughen up and go chewy. Most restaurants will serve the eye of the rump which is the most ideal for char grilling, pan frying and barbecuing. It's an outstanding piece of meat.
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Steak
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Venison
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Venison Steak meat is tender with a velvet like texture and subtle flavour. Cooked simply but with amazing flavours, venison is a memorable dish. Look out for it on menus and you will find such parings as liquorice, cherry, raspberries and blueberries.
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Steak
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Bottled Beers
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A huge selection of bottled beers are always available in barbecue restaurants, and generally tend to be the American kind. Beer is also available on tap, served ice cold in frosted glasses, even in wintertime!
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Barbeque
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Bottomless Drinks
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Mose barbecue restaurants serve bottomless soft drinks. Be careful not to drink too much so you don't ruin your appetite for your yummy meal.
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Barbeque
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Chianti
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In rustic Italian restaurants, you can still see empty bottles of Chianti grouped together and hanging around the bar or ceiling! Old Chianti bottles used to be covered in a basket weave, and often used to house a candle on your table, so that the wax dripped down the outside of the bottle! The wine itself is red and relatively light in comparison to heavier Italian wines such as Barolo. Chianti is produced primarily in the beautiful region of Tuscany, and is eminently drinkable!
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Italian
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Soave
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Another popular wine, this white wine is produced in the Veneto region of Italy, around the city of Verona, home to many Shakespeare plays! It is comparatively dry and was once the ‘in’ drink in the 1970’s but was overtaken by Pinot Grigiot towards the 1980’s
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Italian
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Peroni
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The most popular of beers served in Italian restaurants, it is not the cheapest one around but still sells more than any other. 5% alcohol, a slightly ‘hoppy’ taste but very refreshing when served in iced cold frosted glasses.
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Italian
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Red Wine
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Any steak dish deserves a full flavoured red wine, and choices with a good steak would probably be a Rioja or a deep and crisp Cabernet Sauvignon. The more flavour in the steak, the more the tannin in the wine is affected and lessened, so a wine strong in tannin can become more palatable with a juicy marbled steak.
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Steak
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English Ale
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A very good English ale can be drunk with steak and in fact is very popular. ‘Real Ales’ in the UK are known throughout the world for the smoothness and flavour and are a great accompaniment for any beef dishes if you do not happen to enjoy wine. A limited amount off ‘froth’ on the top of the ale will signify a good ‘pour’.
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Steak
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