The Woodcroft Hotel

- Alex Prichard Leave a comment
Southern Fried Chicken with Ranch Dressing and Chips
Southern Fried Chicken with Ranch

date of visit: Saturday 5 November 2016

Earlier this year I attended the launch (or is that re-launch?) party for the Woodcroft Hotel. I was sufficiently impressed by the standard of food served at that party that we’ve actually been making a conscious effort to return ever since. As you can see – it’s taken a while … ahem. To be fair, we actually tried to go quite soon after that party only to discover it was booking out very quickly – and this is still very much the case. When I made our last minute 5:30pm booking we were told we would only be able to have the table until 7pm. Good thing we eat with a 5 year old and that wasn’t a problem!

At the launch party, the food had been impressive. It was a large event and the food that came out was all based on menu dishes but cut down to canapé size. I’ve been to a lot of events where smaller versions of dishes have been presented and it’s not uncommon for this change of size to cause problems either in the kitchen on or on the plate. So the fact it didn’t buoyed me with great, and perhaps excessive, confidence and hope.

Finally we made it. Seriously, I have spent MONTHS raving about the fried chicken at the Woodcroft so there was nothing for it but to commit myself and order it. It’s an entrée, so in case it wasn’t enough, I also ordered the pulled pork quesadillas. Andy ordered the chicken tacos. Because I’d ordered two entrées I wasn’t eligible for the salad bar (I could have paid an extra $4 but wasn’t sufficiently bothered) but Andy made a small selection from it. Master 5 opted for the children’s fish and chips. The children’s meals do come with some sliced apple but it is a shame the hotel doesn’t go the extra mile and offer a choice of salad.

The food came out quickly and was all well presented. My first few mouthfuls of the crispy chicken were great – crispy and chicken-y. But at some point, things started to slide downhill. The chicken pieces were relatively large – not in and of itself much of a problem – but in several places, the batter hadn’t been properly drained away and I was left with big doughy chunks of uncooked batter wedged in folds of chicken. It wasn’t great. The batter itself isn’t hugely imbued with seasoning and flavour (it is a buttermilk and spice batter apparently) so the accompanying ranch dressing got a good work out. But the more doughy bits I encountered, the more disappointed I was.

Pulled Pork Quesadillas with Salsa Fresca
Pulled Pork Quesadillas with Salsa Fresca

The pulled pork quesadillas were better and I did enjoy them, although they didn’t really step beyond the boundaries of what we relatively often cook at home. The salsa fresca was a bit ho-hum – a touch sweet for me – but it also wasn’t a necessary part of the dish.

Andy was similarly underwhelmed by his chicken tacos.

Chicken Tacos
Chicken Tacos

I think this experience amply demonstrates the problem with expectations. I’m sure over time that crispy chicken has got better and better and it was possibly always going to struggle to live up to my memory of it – but I do believe the doughy clumps of batter to be an error in cooking (and not just my imagination!).

The service was great – not just friendly and efficient but genuinely warm. The bistro area is lovely and the small garden area is gorgeous – so if you do go, get organised, book early and request a spot there! And the bistro is obviously immensely popular. On the Saturday night we were there there were at least two birthday parties booked and, after we sat down at 5:30pm, only one walk-in got a table. Everyone else was turned away.

It’s clear that the Woodcroft has hit its straps with locals and that is no doubt indicative of the fact that the southern suburbs have the capacity to host more venues offering more diverse menus. For me, though, the food just didn’t live up to expectations.

Woodcroft Tavern Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Woodcroft Hotel
Bains and Panalatinga Roads
Woodcroft SA 5162
08 8325 1555

Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Tart

- Alex Prichard Leave a comment

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I suspect that the year might be reaching its end when it comes to pastry making. The weather is slowly but surely actually warming up and we’re getting more than one day of blue sky and sunshine in a row.

Dealing with pastry in hot weather is a bit of a nightmare – not to mention that you then need to turn on your oven – so I’m going to have to get some baking out of my system sooner rather than later.

Thanks to having some hot-smoked salmon and some asparagus very fortuitously hanging around in the fridge (the salmon had been marked down and I’d forgotten to put the asparagus in something else) this tart (or quiche) was an easy dinner option. Thanks to having a trusty food processor, I even put in the effort to make my pastry. And thanks to having a new and as yet unused tin I even put in the effort to blind-bake. Something I frequently neglect.

You can’t really go wrong with tarts – bung in some kind of filling you like, top with eggs and cream and the job’s done. You’re going to like it (they’re like omelettes or frittatas but with a bit more faff on account of the pastry). With this recipe, do not look at the inclusion of the mozzarella, think it’s a bit weird and be tempted to omit it (or was that just me?) – it definitely adds to the richness of the finished product. And load up with as much dill as you can handle … because, well, it’s just delicious!

For us, this served three. We ate half and then shared a third quarter, leaving the final quarter for Master 5’s dinner the following day.

Print
Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Tart

Ingredients

    Pastry
  • 150g plain flour
  • 75g unsalted butter
  • 1 egg yolk
    • Tart
  • Bunch of asparagus, chopped into chunks and steamed
  • hot-smoked salmon - as much as you can afford or have left over
  • 4 spring onions, finely sliced
  • 2 tbsp (or even more) finely chopped dill
  • 100g mozzarella, shredded/grated
  • 6 eggs (yes, really)
  • ¼ cup cream
  • pepper to season

Instructions

  1. To make the pastry, process the flour, butter and a pinch of salt together until crumbs form. Add the egg yolk and process again, before adding a little cold water so that it comes together. Wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for about half an hour.
  2. Preheat oven to 170°C fan.
  3. To blind bake, grease a 23 cm tart tin, roll out the pastry and line the tin then prick the base with a fork. Cover with a piece of baking paper and fill with baking beans. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the baking paper and beans and bake for another 5-10 so that the bottom is golden too.
  4. Allow to cool.
  5. When you're ready for dinner, flake the hot-smoked salmon over the base of the tart, follow it with the asparagus, dill, spring onions and mozzarella.
  6. Beat together the eggs and cream and season with pepper. Pour into the tart and then bake for 25-35 minutes until just set.
  7. Serve with a salad and feel virtuous, as you'll be getting tons of your 5-a-day.
https://eatingadelaide.com/smoked-salmon-asparagus-tart/

Maximus Wines Cellar Door

- Alex Prichard Leave a comment
view from Maximus cellar door
Our view while eating lunch

date of visit: Saturday 20 August 2016

Following our successful visit to Tilbrook Estate, I’ve been keeping an eye out for more group buying deals to wineries. That probably puts me right up there when it comes to be tight-fisted but we’ve found that they are a great way to get us out of the house for a morning, as well as being a good way to check out some new cellar doors.

Our deal for McLaren Vale’s Maximus Wines included the usual wine offerings as well as a gourmet pie lunch. We’d met some people a little while back who had said good things about their experience at Maximus so we were looking forward to it. Also – PIE!

I’d made the mistake of not double-checking what food was available for Master 5. Even though we usually travel with food for him, extra options are always good. It turned out that gourmet pie was available which he decided he didn’t want. Only to turn around 10 minutes later and decide he did want it after all. That was a relief! We’re lucky he eats a lot and he’s not a picky eater – though Maximus Wines’ Shelley did say that if they have notice they can rustle up a cheese toastie for smaller guests.

While waiting for our pies, we tasted through the wines with our favourites ranging from the Grenache Tempranillo Rosé, the very savoury Mourvèdre, a juicy Graciano and the Cabernet Sauvignon. This is definitely red wine territory – when we were there there was just the one white at the cellar door, a Pinot Gris.

Gourmet Chicken Pie
Partly demolished chicken pie … oops!

Then it was pie time! I had chicken and white wine, Andy had beef and red wine. You can see I tucked in very enthusiastically before realising I should have taken a photo … ooops!

The pies were lovely, and thanks to our deal, came with a glass of wine so we were able to enjoy an almost leisurely lunch while all three of us munched away. The cellar door has floor to ceiling windows so you can look out at McLaren Vale while you eat. It would be perfect in miserable weather!

After lunch we picked out a few wines and also bought a bottle of gin, as Maximus is also home to Settlers Spirits. If you’re so inclined you can do a spirits tasting while you’re there and they have just released the G and Tea Breakfast Gin, for something different.

Another successful day out and Maximus is a stop I’d recommend for anyone who loves their reds.

Maximus Wines (& Settlers Spirits)
197 Foggo Road
McLaren Vale
phone: 8323 8777