Budapest Restaurant and Palinka Bar

We recently went to a Hungarian restaurant in Elsternwick called Budapest Restaurant and Palinka Bar with Bearabbit and co. We had never tried Hungarian cuisine prior to this so it was a first for us which got us very excited!

To ensure we experienced the best of their dishes, we decided to order the Budapest Banquet which consisted of three courses. At $42 per head, it did not sound like a bad idea at all!

Before the food arrived, we ordered one of their Palinka Sampler Flights. We learnt that Palinka is the protected Hungarian name for pure fruit spirits. We ended up ordering the Palinka Premium Honey Selection which consisted of 3 x 15ml shots of honey infused Palinka. It sure warmed us up!

We started the first course with Grandma’s Homestyle Chicken Soup and Chopped Liver with Pickled Onion and Farmers Rye. The chicken soup was so good and it really felt like we were eating grandma’s soup because it gave us such a warm and homey feeling. Davin loved it so much and slurped it all up in a flash! The chopped liver was like a lovely chunky pate and was really flavoured. I generously lathered my bread slices with it!

The second course was huge and included the Hungarian Goulash with Nokedii Dumplings, Chicken Schnitzel on Peasant Potatoes, Cevapici Balkan Sausages with braised red cabbage, and Crumbed Mushrooms stuffed with Dilled Goat’s Cheese and Csiki Sauce. Oh. My. Gosh. What a feast it was! Everything was so scoffable and flavoured really well. The goulash was delicious and the chicken schnitzel was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside.

The peasant potatoes were amazing! Now I am a big fan of all things potato and I don’t want to toot my horn but I think I make a pretty good mashed potato. These mashed potatoes were exceptional, so flavoured with the addition of herbs mashed throughout. I could not stop eating it!

The sausages were super flavoured and also went well with the mash. We also loved the stuffed crumbed mushrooms. I like all things cheese but this goat cheese with dill was a match made in heaven.

The third and final course was the strudel of the day which they are well known for and did not disappoint. The pastry was lovely and crumbly, and overall it was not too sweet.

As you can tell, we thoroughly enjoyed the food and nothing really disappointed us! We will definitely be back when we’re in the mood for some Hungarian!

 

Budapest Restaurant and Palinka Bar
Approx $50 AUD per person
Address: 273 Glen Huntly Rd, Elsternwick VIC 3185
Phone: +61 3 9530 0859
Website: budapest.com.au

Budapest Restaurant and Palinka Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Tataki

We seem to be having my favourite cuisine Japanese a lot lately. Sometimes I don’t realise these things until I look at our photos inventory and then reality hits… not that I’m complaining though! Maybe we should go to a French restaurant soon to keep Helen happy. Well anyway… enough self reflection, let’s get on with this review! Tataki is a Japanese restaurant located in Elsternwick. The street was relatively quiet at night, and we were able to get parking right outside the restaurant. There’s a glass section at the front of the restaurant which displayed faux Japanese food, I thought this was kinda cool as it reminded me of Japan.

The interior of Tataki felt clean and comfortable. The sushi chef station is right at the front, again a very traditional Japanese setup. My only two minor criticisms were the chairs and the loud slamming of the door. The chairs just had a total lack of back support, and I was lucky I didn’t sit here for hours as that would most likely kill my back. Their door also slammed very loudly each time the Uber Eats delivery people picked up an order. It was loud enough to make the customers jolt every time! The waiting staff did constantly come out to check the door but I don’t think there was anything they could do, I think the door gas strut might need to be replaced as it clearly wasn’t doing it’s job properly.

Food wise, we ordered the beef tataki, salmon belly nigiri and kingfish belly nigiri for entrees. For mains, I got a grilled miso salmon & vegetables, and Helen got the lobster and salmon special roll. The beef tataki was ok…. I wouldn’t go out of my way for it. Whilst the beef was fresh, and the sauce was good, the beef itself was overcooked. I would have preferred it a lot rarer. My salmon on the other hand suffered a worst fate, it was extremely overcooked and was tough, rough and once was enough. I felt like this salmon died in vain.

On the flip side, the quality of all the fishes which didn’t require cooking were at a very high standard. The salmon belly nigiri and kingfish belly nigiri were some of the freshest and tastiest sushi I’ve had in Australia. Helen’s lobster and salmon roll was flavoured well and the grilled salmon was soft with a hint of char. One thing I did notice was that the sushi and sashimi was priced really high, and was comparable to other high class Japanese restaurants. Even the lobster and salmon roll was priced at $25 for 8 pieces. I’m shocked and confused with the price at the same time. Was the fish high quality? Yes. Was it expensive for this restaurant setting? Also yes. So therefore I’m conflicted as to whether or not I think it’s worth the price.

Tataki felt like a mixed bag of lollies. They’ve hit the wide spectrum of bad, ok, good and great. The inconsistencies shines through and was reflected in their dishes. The price discrepancies are also confusing. It’s hard to see how the lobster and salmon roll can be priced at $25 for 8 pieces. It seems as though their true strengths lie in their sushi and sashimi, but be prepared to pay dearly for these dishes also. All in all, I respect the freshness of their produce, but I cannot say that this is a big enough draw for us to come back.

Tataki
Approx $50 AUD per person
Address: 470 Glen Huntly Road, Elsternwick, VIC 3185
Phone: +61 3 9523 5275
Website: tataki.com.au

Tataki Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato