Say Cheese... The Cheese Barrel in the Swan Valley

The Cheese Barrel was a chance discovery for us, which is surprising because we live in Perth and we LOVE cheese. 

 

We were on our way to Upper Reach Winery, where we had booked the cottage for the weekend, and spotted the sign on Great Northern Highway. No further discussion was required about where we would be having lunch the next day.

The Cheese Barrel sits alongside Olive Farm Wines and has as extensive a list of cheeses as the Olive Farm does wines.

They don't make the cheese they serve, which they tell you as you walk in the door. I got the vibe that some people obviously think they do and hat has caused them grief in the past. They do, however, import some amazing cheeses from all over the world.

Dinner before a show - The Aviary

The Aviary is a short walk from the state theatre center, straight across the railway line. We made a nice early booking online so we could be in and out in time for the start of Other Desert Cities.

The online booking was fine as far as it went, but there was then a follow up phone call the next day to confrim, which I always find a bit odd. Of course it ended up going to voicemail, and the number they left for us to call back on went to a recorded message saying there was no one to take the call...

Using a little ingenuity we managed to get in touch and confirmed the booking, after which everything went beautifully.

The restaurant is decked out in black white and green, with bookish wallpaper that strikes me as a bit messy, but others would no doubt find whimsical.  The lighting was low, keeping with its bar themes, but we could read our menus without engaging the flash light function on our iphones so apprently that's a step up on Rockpool.

The service was lovely and perky, friendly, engaged without being hovering or overly formal.

The menu is designed to be shared, and having eaten there once and getting a feel for how this might work I'd take that approach if eating there again.  As it was, each of us ordered a dish of our own and that worked out fine too.

The sweet and sour pork belly was a hit as was the salt and pepper soft shell crab.  The duck was a bit more on the so-so front, but I think we all have very high expectations of duck these days.

Desserts were very generous in size, and they served us the nicest coffee I've had in a long time. We were in and out in good time without feeling rushed or anxious or needing to clock watch at any stage.  I do believe we'll be back, and this time I'll be saving room for a dessert myself.

Blogging about a bistro - Bistro Guillaume

You know the foodie world is mainstream when the waitress needs to warn you that the pork belly isn't crispy when you order it.

We dined at Bistro Guillaume on Saturday night, courtesy of a gift voucher from someone for some favour done sometime. If I'm honest, without the voucher I probably wouldn't have ventured over to the Crown Casino Complex, so it's lucky really as it was a tasty meal.

Not being regular visitors to the Casino we had to do a lap or two to find the restaurant.  Many of them were signposted, but we didn't see a sign for this one.  The entry reminded me a bit of an airport lounge for some reason, thought the crockery chandelier probably wouldn't be prominent in the QANTAS frequent flyer lounge.

We were booking at fairly short notice, and knew there were restaurants there we just weren't going to get into.  We had a good vibe about Bistro Guillaume as they had kindly donated a recipe book to a fund raiser we were involved with last year.

I'm not late night party folk. I turn into a pumpkin at the stroke of midnight.  Not being able to get a dinner booking until 8 o'clock because they structure them around show times (EMPIRE - the sexed up version of Circ de Soleil in this case) was a little off putting for me, but I'm sure it is very convenient for those going to a show. I know - I wouldn't survive long in Spain.

The black and white decor was very french, as was our lovely waitress. You don't eat out in Perth anymore without expecting to pay $40 for a steak so the pricing was on par with what I might expect from a place like this.

As it was a latish sitting for us we skipped entree and went straight for mains;  Pork Belly (not crispy) for me and the steak for him. They were both delicious. Melt in the mouth, soft, perfectly cooked and flavorsome. The apple flavours were perfect with the pork and the watercress salad served with the steak was a standout. As was the fresh bread, served with unsalted butter and salt on the side.

We shared a dessert, a chocolate and salted caramel tart, which was nice. $22 for a dessert felt a little over the top for mine, but I'm sure they used all the very best ingredients.

We didn't linger after dessert, and certainly didn't venture back into the Casino.

While looking for the restaurant we had passed through the gaming area, filled with seemingly sad and disinterested people sitting alone in front of machines with their grumpy faces on.  The only people smiling seemed to be those that probably shouldn't have been allowed in the doors under the responsible service of alcohol laws. We waited at one of the bars for a drink for about 15 minutes without being served before giving up and trying somewhere else.

We did get a nice pre-dinner cocktail from the lobby bar, served to us by a young man who looked like he would have preferred to be anywhere else doing anything else. The drink itself, a mango martini, was fruity and nicely dressed despite this, though a glass shaker was harmed in its manufacture.

 The Western Force was having a function on the night we were there, so we got to do some great people watching as a stack of guys and dolls dressed up in gown and suits wended their way through the bar. They were an interesting contrast against the dressed-down hotel guests who seemed to be coming back form the beach.  Which was odd as it was the middle of winter, and rainy outside.

Over all, if this restaurant wasn't in the Casino complex I'd go back with friends. If we were going to a show I'd pop in then. Over all the complex itself was the turn off for me, which is not the fault of the staff, nor a judgement on the high quality of the food, It says more about me than it does about either of them.