April 26, 2008: Bluecorn II

Update 18/06/2023: Blue Corn is now closed.

The Eels' rather strange combination of autobiographical documentary and rock 'n' roll show lured us (and some friends) across the river to St Kilda to The Palais* on a chilly Saturday night. While St Kilda is no doubt chock full of exciting new restaurants for us to visit, we get there so rarely (and we loved it so much last time) that we couldn't resist a return visit to Blue Corn. Part of the appeal of our previous visit had been the sunny, open courtyard, so I wasn't sure whether it would be quite as wondrous with the temperature in single figures.

I was even more apprehensive when we were ushered through to the courtyard. Fortunately, Blue Corn enclose their courtyard in the winter and we didn't even need our coats. We started things off with cocktails - a sour apple margarita ($15) for Cindy and a raspberry mule ($16) for me. Cindy's margarita didn't taste much different to regular apple juice but by the time she was half way through she was feeling its effects, so it can't have been alcohol-free. My mule was a bit more noticeably alcoholic, with the lime and ginger beer providing some sweetness.

Cindy and I both decided to order something different to our previous trip. I went for the roast vegie tacos, with achiote tomato rice and black beans. The tacos were full of juicy vegetables, and rich with delicious cheese. The accompanying sour cream and lime added a bit of pizazz, and the whole thing hit the spot.

Cindy went to the specials board and opted for the vegan tostadas, with roast vegies, cashews, salsa and guacamole. (You'll have to excuse the dodgy photo - I'm still figuring out our new camera.) The guacamole was the star of the show - fresh and flavoursome, and the thin eggplant layer was tender and delicious. Cindy was hoping for a bit more crispy tortilla though and, by the end of the evening, she was happily raiding a friend's plate of nachos.

I'm not sure if it was just the weather, but Blue Corn didn't quite live up to our memories - the food was really quite good, but our first visit was so wonderful that we wanted everything to be outstanding. Still, I don't mean to be too critical - we really did enjoy the food, the drinks and the atmosphere - it's still the only rival to Los Amates for delicious Melbourne Mexican.

Read about our previous trip to Blue Corn here.

*The dome pictured at the top is of course part of the Palais, and not the adjustable roof of Blue Corn's courtyard.