One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well. -Virginia Woolf

Just found this new little hot spot, near the beach, in Casuarina which is just past Kingscliff on the Tweed Coast.


It's called Cafe Sandbar and Grill! It has the al fresco outdoor area which is great for families and outside dining OR there is this inside gem of a restaurant with eclectic wooden decor, chandeliers,  a wine room and a huge bar. The well stocked bar is the centre of the action and serves up a good range of local beers including the Burliegh Heads Brewery, My Wifes Bitter and the excellent  Stone & Wood range of hand crafted ales. Cocktails, spirits and wine also feature on the menu. Meanwhile next door they have a general store selling some of their produce and making great fast food as well.


They have this inventive set lunch for menu if you're interested. Its a four course meal that changes all the time and prides itself on being seasonal and fresh, so fresh some of it comes from the back yard. It also can be accompanied with matching wines.



We however ordered off the menu. Next time perhaps the degustation?








I had the crispy skinned duck maryland sitting atop a grape, hazelnut, red onion and orange salad with lashings of home made mayonnaise. Exactly what it said on the menu came out and I enjoyed each mouthful. 

Particularly as on the side it came with kipfler potatoes fried in duck fat- very naughty but nice. Maybe because I am so impartial to carbohydrates!!!!

The husband ordered a carnivorous feast that came out on a plank of wood: roasted juicy lamb ribs sitting on a fresh salad with artichoke chips on the side. He too enjoyed his, though he did keep swiping some of my potatoes!!

Great prices and fantastic warm  friendly service make this a little unpretentious hot spot with the locals and the tourists staying in the area. If you're staying close by be sure to not miss this bistro!

Food in my belly on a Sunday Arv.....GC food authority

Barefooting at the Barista

Another hot coffee hot spot has popped up in Palm Beach.
BAREFOOT BARISTA
Just follow the people to the door or those hanging out the front with their dogs, waiting for a take away or to just breathe in the coffee aroma permeating the cafe. It's popular so there might be a small wait on weekends for this little trend setter.
Rustic chairs, wooden benches and tables out the front provide a relaxing atmosphere for people watching, or you can head out to the courtyard out the back and gather around with your mates. It's all self serve so grab your own menu and order at the till.
They make great homemade fresh juices brought out in a jar. They have a variety of 10 dollar sourdough combinations with a twist- mushrooms, boston beans or avocado and salsa... and you can add an egg to that. There are also breakfast rolls or wraps available with bacon and chorizo or omelettes. Or you can choose from their behind the glass counter options of toasted sandwiches, savoury and sweet muffins or sweet slices. Some great frittatas and salads too! You'll just want to come back so that you can try something else the next time. Not a good spot if you hate making decisions- too much variety.

Probably not a great spot if windy and rainy as there isn't much shelter but if you have a healthy obsession with coffee then make this trip!

Sourdough with sicilian anchovies, tomato, lemon, oil and parsley- perfect Spanish combination.

Chorizo, egg, salsa verde and tomato wrap

Homemade muesli with yoghurt and apple

"if food be the music of love, eat on"

ca·fé also ca·fe  

n.

A coffeehouse, restaurant, or bar.

n

If you're looking for an unpretentious spot for a casual lunch then you can't beat Little St Kilda in Palm Beach. It's right near the beach so its a relaxed atmosphere filled with beach goers after a swim or a surf, or locals just lazing on a chair reading the newspaper in the sun. You can sit outside and people watch on the bench like seats, under striped colourful umbrellas, or sit inside at the bar. It's a tiny, retro quaint little cafe filled with 80's memorabilias and posters, even using jam jars for cocktails and water. It's very reminiscent of something you'd find at Bondi Beach or Coogee, or even ironically, St Kilda.
The food is finger-lickin good, satisfying all those naughty cravings. There's your wraps and salads, burgers and souvlaki, all day breakfast options and apparently they make a good coffee. Thus it scores on the popularity card with the locals.


Today, after my 10km Gold Coast marathon run, I felt like carbs. So I wasn't going to go past the BLT on Turkish bread with fries option. Crisp bacon with lashings of aioli on a bed of rocket accompanied with crunchy shoe string fries for no extra cost? And just $ 12? Yes please. 

BLT and Chicken Burger

Thumbs up for this new eclectic establishment. Cannot wait to eat at their other new restaurant- The office! The Gold Coast has always needed some trendy cafes to counter the fast food franchise industry with wholesome tasty food, and this little cafe fills its little niche quite snuggly. 


Watch this space for more food taste tests as I will definitely be eating here again! Till next time.....

                                                                                                            GC food authority signing out

I'll give this ark a miss

Redbull consumption = 0  Food blog= 1   Weight= the same  Marking= 0  Exercise= none :(

This girl can eat. This girl loves to eat. So the food journey once again led us to the doorstep of Nobby's Arc beach bar cafe, which just popped up two weeks ago at Nobby's beach.

 It's name is exactly what you will receive. Think  pizzas (we had the pork belly), chicken souvlaki skewers, meatballs with yoghurt dressing, pork belly and haloumi- it's DUDE food! You're not going to get fancy schmancy meals here, just unpretentious home cooking. No surprise that there were so many groups of men sharing a meal together and a few drinks (great spot if you're single). Coming in two by two perhaps?
The wide variety of beers may have had something to do with this as the range is quite broad (Coopers range, Burleigh local beers, Boutiques such as Stone n Wood), as well as their wines, as they even having matching Pizza wines.
It was a food mecca for those wanting simple flavoured, easy comfort food with some acoustic music playing in the background, without the hefty price tag. A funky casual spot that would be good for a Sunday session to relax with friends and share some food and beverages!

Staff were extremely friendly and prompt. No shortage of waitresses around or smiles. We were surrounded by candles, though the lighting was so low it was hard to read the menu at times and I'm not sure I like sitting my curves on a small metallic stool. It's a "pubby" feel so it is quite loud at times with people at the bar and large groups seated. Yet, it's close to home and flexible with its options, though I still feel it's trying to grasp its identity and figure out where it is heading. It's a little mis matched for me. Yet it seems to be quite popular already with the boys, the young and the baby boomers.

Sitting in the dark at the back of the restaurant!

Not my cup of tea! This girl likes lots of flavour and pretty dishes in a nice romantic surrounding. I mean if I'm going to go out I don't want to eat what I can make at home!

Go check it out and let me know what you think!

GC food authority signing out!

Black Coffee Lyrics

Another GC foodie review coming at you....


There's this little spot I like in Surfers, tucked away down a little arcade, a flight of steps and hugging a corner you have Black Coffee Lyrics. It has an old red door and little windows with Victorian chaises inside and out, vintage decor and ecclectic paintings and posters and customers alike. Very quaint with card games while you are waiting and a licensed bar, with nooks and cranny's you can sit amongst. It's small and cosy and a local hot spot. I love the ambience! Apparently they do a pretty mean breakfast, though I've never had it and they have some great Vegetarian/Vegan  options. My husband swears by their coffee.


The last time we went we had this "pork belly" special pizza and shared some nachos. Savoured every mouthful and it was ridiculously great for a spot of lunch, washed down with some wine. Fairly decently priced in this economic crisis too! We went this weekend and the menu had changed (seasonal) and this time I was a little disappointed with the options on offer. There were some nice looking salads with duck, goat's cheese, figs and other yum yums...but after a night with friends I felt like something a little more wholesome. We had the panini's with rosemary fries- ordered two different ones and shared (best of both worlds). They were nice and had flavour but I couldn't help but feel disappointed that we had driven all that way to have something I could have made at home. I wanted something that excited me a little, something I didn't have all the time. Doh- just when I thought I had found a little niche cafe.....I hope they bring it back to what it was!


I still recommend you give it a go- even just to sit with the girls on a "Sex in the City" expedition or to read the paper and  have a winter warmer. I just hope that when the menu changes they 'spruce' it up a little and bring back some of those great weekend lunch ideas that they had. I'll be sure to re-post my experience the next time I go.
Leave feedback about what you think if you've been!