Joanne's Pizzeria

April 14, 2024

   

The neon sign out front of Joanne's Pizzeria attracted Michael's interest during his work commute - it took us a while to drop in, but we lined it up for dinner after a comedy show. This is an omnivorous establishment, yet they'll offer a vegan variation on any pizza for $2 extra and a gluten-free variation for $4.

   

We started with a dairy-heavy burrata served with focaccia ($15). It was super-creamy in taste and texture, with a pool of grassy olive oil and some salt and pepper providing a subtle seasoning; the focaccia was plenty soft with a light crust.

   

We went half-way with a vegetarian conversion on our shared pizza and gave the hot honey trend a go, ordering the 'sweet thing' ($26 + $2). This bubbly, wood-fired crust was layered with tomato, mozzarella, stracciatella, mock salami, basil, and Mike's hot honey. It was a fun medley of sweet and savoury, freshness and heat and a little spice.

   

I can almost never consider a pizza dessert after a pizza dinner, so the nutella pizza and pistachio calzone probably aren't for me. But there are so many more savoury options to return for before we even get back to these excellent dishes: a few classic appetisers (garlic bread, salad, fries), and over a dozen veg-adaptable pizzas.

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Joanne's Pizzeria

639 Rathdowne St, Carlton North

9813 3437

menu

https://www.joannespizzeria.com.au/

Accessibility: There are four steps up on entry. Furniture inside is quite densely packed with a reasonably wide path through the middle. We ordered at our table and paid at a high counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

Sesame noodles with charred broccoli & chilli oil

April 13, 2024 

   

Cindy stumbled onto a packet of fresh wide noodles at our local Korean grocer and had us scanning through To Asia with Love to find a way to use them. In the end we couldn't resist this pretty basic option: sesame rice noodles with charred broccoli. Hetty's version leans heavily on a serve of her excellent 'everything oil', but we made do with a store bought alternative. The use of tahini as the bulk of the noodle sauce feels a bit unusual, but it just gives things a really rich sesame flavour, which the chilli cuts through perfectly. Without the spice hit, this is a bit plain, so it's really one for the chilli heads.

Sesame noodles with charred broccoli & chilli oil

(slightly adapted from a recipe in Hetty Lui McKinnon's To Asia with Love,

which has already appeared online at Unpeeled Journal)

300g thick noodles

2 teaspoons sesame oil

1/2 cup tahini

1 garlic clove, crushed

750g broccoli, cut into florets

2-3 tablespoons of chilli oil (to taste)

salt and pepper

olive oil

fried shallots, to garnish (optional)

Cook the noodles as per packet instructions - about 6 or 7 minutes in boiling water for ours. Drain and rinse with cold water a few times to refresh and stop them clumping - toss the sesame oil through to coat them.

Whisk the tahini, garlic and 1/2 cup of water together until it's a smooth paste. Season with salt and pepper. 

Heat a cast iron pan over high heat and drizzle with olive oil. Cook the broccoli florets in batches, generously seasoned with salt and pepper. You want them to get charred and tender - about 5-10 minutes per batch, turning regularly. 

Combine all the ingredients (noodles, tahini sauce, broccoli) in a big bowl and toss with more salt, pepper and olive oil. Serve in small bowls, topped with chilli oil and some crunchy fried shallots if you've got them. 

Pickles Milk Bar II

April 12, 2024

   

I've become a regular visitor to Pickles Milk Bar, often cycling down to pick up a sandwich on a work-from-home lunch break. On my most recent trip I had a flexible day on my own and decided to eat in and try a not-so-cycle-friendly shake. The soy milk-based miso caramel shake ($10) was thick, cold and super sweet - I didn't pick up on any miso nuance. Meanwhile, the sausage roll ($7) was a sturdy fellow filled with well-seasoned mock meat, and accompanied by a lovely relish. It carves its own space alongside my homemade fave, and the cheaper La Panella roll.

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You can read about our first visit to Pickles here.

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Pickles Milk Bar 

1008 Lygon St, Carlton North 

menu 

instagram account 

Accessibility: There is a small lip on the door and a relatively spacious interior with a low counter. There is a line of bench seating along the wall, with small low tables and low backless stools. We ordered and paid at the counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

True North IV

April 1, 2024

   

True North up in Coburg seems to be just beyond the boundaries of our neighbourhood and our recall, but we always enjoy it when we do visit. It's that rare gem of a non-veg cafe that has vegetarian and vegan adaptations available on almost every dish, and the same goes for gluten-free.

When we stopped in for a public holiday breakfast recently, they graciously handled some extra temporary dietary restrictions I had around grains and seeds. Lucky for me, the Black Maple Society ($22) was compliant: the twice-baked French toast is actually a compressed pastry brick in the style of a bread-and-butter pudding! It's crowned with whipped ricotta, macerated strawberries and flaked almonds, with concentric moats of strawberry syrup and black maple tahini.

   

Michael was just as satisfied with the Bean Caught Stealing ($19), a butter bean and apple cider cassoulet served with haloumi, spicy oil and charred sourdough toast. He's always happy for a chance to sample from True North's extensive hot sauce collection.

True North has offered night time foods and events of various kinds over the years, and it looks like they've got a variety on the go at the moment - hopefully we'll manage to report back on one or more of them this year!

   

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You can also read about one, two, three of our previous visits to True North.

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True North

2A Munro St, Coburg

9917 2262

menu

https://truenorth3058.com/

Accessibility: There's a small step on entry and a pretty crowded interior (especially on the weekends when the stools at the bar are in use). We ordered at the table and paid at a high counter. The toilet is a narrow non-gendered cubicle.