Breakfast Series - Jak + Hill

http://jakandhill.com.au/

Always on the lookout for funky new cafes that serve breakfast, I'd heard some whispers about a new cafe that was underneath a new hotel in Spring Hill.  With that tiny bit of information, I started to dig around in the interweb to see if I could track down any new dining spots in the area.  Luckily, it didn't take me long to find out that Jak and Hill was the new cafe sitting underneath the Punthill Apartments & Hotel, a chain that I'd stayed in while visiting Melbourne before, but was completely surprised had opened up in Brisbane.

There was double reason to head out for breakfast, it was Sunday and it was Australia Day, not that we ever need any reason to go out for breakfast!  Jak and Hill is located in Spring Hill but is actually right on the city fringe in Astor Street and is a very short walk from our apartment.  I always get excited about new dining spots that are within walking distance and it's fair to say that there are not a lot of weekend breakfast spots that we can get to on foot, so it was even more reason to get excited.

It has been years since either of us had walked down Astor Terrace and as we walked towards the cafe, we saw that there was another dining spot that we'd been meaning to check out for dinner.  We initially thought that the O Bar was our targeted destination but as we walked closer it became clear that there was another spot close to home that was open for breakfast (a fact stored away for next weekend).  We were running out of street when we finally stumbled across the Punthill Apartments and found Jak and Hill.

Pop Up Series - Howzat Burger

https://www.facebook.com/HowzatBurger

A funny thing happened during the week, one of Brisbane's best known and well loved chefs tried his hand at something a little different, and pulled off one of the successes of the decade. You could expect Philip Johnson of E'cco fame to be a little gun shy after the unfortunate end to Bistro One Eleven but it seems as if the opposite is true.  After an extremely well crafted social media campaign that was eagerly picked up by foodies and online magazines around town, Howzat Burger was on the tip of almost everyone's lips in Brisbane.

I think everyone understands the concept of a 'Pop-up' - you find a space and for a short period of time, a restaurant or cafe takes over and you have an instant restaurant.  I first saw a little banner for Howzat Burger a couple of weeks ago and was instantly on alert, I love burgers and since my trip to New York, have been on a mission to replicate some of the tastes and flavours of genuine USA burgers.  As the social media campaign picked up and more information was 'set free', I found myself caught up in the hype, so much so that I couldn't help 'like' and 'share' and 'repost' all that I could see.

As the information and details emerged, it became clear that Howzat Burger would only be around for a short time, open on the last two Thursdays and Fridays in January.   Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get along on the first Thursday and could only watch the day unfold on Twitter and Instagram, all the time wishing I was there, enjoying a burger.  I did learn some valuable tips by looking on from the social sphere.  Firstly, the day had been incredibly successful, with over 235 burgers on the first day of trading.  To put that in context, thats over 58 burgers an hour, or just under one burger a minute!  (it would end up being over 600 for both days - even more amazing). Secondly, I had to plan carefully to avoid waiting in a queue for over an hour to get a burger, which many patient and happy campers did on the opening day.

Kingsley's Crab and Steakhouse - Lunchtime by the riverside

http://www.kingsleys.com.au

A new year means its time to work on my relationships both personal and professional, and in some cases both at the same time.  I have a buddy that I met through work and we've become pretty good friends and we like to try to catch up for lunch fairly regularly, especially during tennis season.  You see, I'm a big Roger Federer fan and my mate, being Scottish (won't hold that against him) is a big Andy Murray fan.  Yeah, I know, it must be pretty hard for EC, watching so many close - but not close enough encounters with the worlds top tennis players :)

A little while ago, we'd arranged to catch up for lunch during the week and as luck would have it, the day we met up for lunch was the day of the Australian Open quarter finals which just happened to feature our boys. Yep, could not have been better timing.

I'd arranged for us to have lunch at an old favourite of mine that I hadn't been to for ages.  Kingsley's Crab and Steakhouse is just across the street from me, as part of Riperian Plaza.  I remember the days when Riperian Plaza was being built and wondering what wonderful restaurant would open it's doors in the brand new building.  That a restaurant might not have gone into the plaza never crossed my mind, it was after all Eagle Street and for me it was a given.  Completed in 2006 and at a cost of approximately $1.5 million, Kingsley's was designed by peckvonhartel (PVH) to integrate the inside with outside and and fully embrace Brisbane's climate and river views.  A task PVH has been extremely successful with.

Dell'Ugo New Farm - Ristorante Italiano

http://www.dellugo.com.au/

I've been feasting on plenty of Italian cuisine lately.  It's been pretty easy really, I quite like Italian food and the philosophy that the Italians have of using simple fresh ingredients to extract maximum flavour.  There's also the share aspect and while many cultures centre their lifestyle around food, the Italians seem to do it with just an extra little bit of flair.  We've been to check out many of the newer Italian dining destinations lately, so I thought it was time to check out Brisbane's long standing 'Ristorante Italiano'.

Dell'Ugo is the passion of Giuseppe and Gloria Robertiello who saw an opportunity to fulfil a dream of providing the people of Brisbane with a restaurant that delivered authentic Italian cuisine.  One day in 2000, Giuseppe was in the New Farm area and noticed that a beautiful old restaurants was available for sale.  Such was his passion and drive, Giuseppe had made the purchase and within a month had opened Cafe Dell'Ugo Ristorante Italiano. It was only a few short years later that Giuseppe and Gloria teamed up with friend Soula to open up Dell'Ugo at Southbank and at around the same time shortened the ristorante's name to Dell'Ugo New Farm.

In all the years I've lived in Brisbane, I'd never been to Dell'Ugo at New Farm.  I'm sure I couldn't count the number of times I've driven or walked up and down Brunswick Street and thought to myself I need to get along and check it out.  I've even been to most of the restaurants in the little strip that Dell'Ugo is located along and checked out the sister restaurant over at Southbank.  Yep, it sure was time to check out one of Brisbane's most respected traditional Italian diners.