Roti Road

April 29, 2024

   

Michael subbed into a friend's netball game in Footscray on a Monday night. I wouldn't usually follow along, but he had the idea of grabbing some dinner in the neighbourhood afterwards and I checked our prospects for finding something good after 8pm on a Monday. I was excited to find out that Roti Road would likely serve us - I've had them bookmarked for a decade! Indeed, they were not only open but positively buzzing, and we had no worries of them packing up chairs and mopping floors around us as we ate.

   

In waiting so long to visit Roti Road, we've allowed them time to work up to a dedicated two-page vegan menu! There's a variety of noodles (mostly fried but also in soup), rice-based dishes, vegetable-centred dishes, mock meats and sides. Michael's curry lamb ($25.90) arrived long before the rest of our meal - he liked its spiciness, less so its (accurate) chewiness.

   

True to its Malaysian roots, Roti Road has an extensive non-alcoholic drinks menu. My Traditional 3 Color Milk Tea ($5.90) was just barely triple-toned and not as intensely flavoured as I'd hoped for. Michael needed to rehydrate with an orange-apple juice ($4).

   

Our roti made it eventually, scrunched up and crispy-edged. Michael just had plain one ($7.50) while I went for Roti Canai ($9.50), knowing that the sambal wouldn't be veg-friendly (big points for the clear labelling here!). I loved the dhal but the curry was too spicy for me (again, I was fairly warned by the menu labels!) and most of it was soaked up by Michael.

Service was fast and capable and really, we were just so happy that they were offering full service at the later end of a Monday night. I'd absolutely stop in for another roti, and would be curious to try some of their other dishes (CKT, nasi goreng, plum mock-duck) when I'm able to take my time over a larger meal.

____________

There are blog reviews of Roti Road stretching across a decade! Positive accounts can be found on Footscray Food Blog, Spoonfuls of Wanderlust, Melbourne Food Baby, grazing panda, Eat & Be Merry, Purple Bowl, halal culinary adventures (twice) and Mamma Knows West. Views on Consider the Sauce diminished over time, and The Tall and Short of It were entirely unimpressed.

____________

Roti Road

189/193 Barkly St, Footscray

9078 8878 

roti, vegan p1, vegan p2, drinks p1, drinks p2, desserts

https://www.rotiroad.com.au/

Accessibility: Roti Road has a wide, flat entry and wide walkways through its dining area. Furniture is densely arranged, mostly low height with booths and backed chairs (the tall tables have backed stools too). We ordered at our table and paid at a high counter.

Cafe Lalibela III

January 27, 2024

   

My last post about Cafe Lalibela, published in 2016, ended with the words: "We really need to go back before 2023 rolls around". Welp. It seems our visits are destined to be rare but they are always relished. This summer we stopped in after dropping some food to COVID-afflicted friends and doing a loop around Footscray Savers.

My past photographs are evidence that the walls have been repainted, but Lalibela maintains the same cosy, family-run atmosphere. We returned to the Beyainetu ($20; up from $14 in 2016 and $12 in 2008) to sample across the vegetarian menu, sopping up misir wot (lentil stew), shiro wot (pea flour stew), yeatakilt (turmeric-stained potato and carrot stew), ater kik wot (split pea stew), and defin misir wot (more lentils) with two huge rounds of injera.

In another blast from the past, Cafe Lalibela was sporting a 'cash only' sign! We and another table were caught short, noticing this only part-way through our meals, but the staff kindly figured out a means of bank transfer. We'll pack our proper wallets next time, whatever year that might be.  

____________

You can read about one, two of our previous visits to Cafe Lalibela.

____________

Cafe Lalibela

91 Irving St, Footscray

9687 0300

menu

https://www.lalibela.com.au/

Accessibility: The entry is flat but has a little rail and turn that is probably awkward for prams and wheelchairs to pass. There's a clear path through the middle of the restaurant; furniture is densely spaced sturdy tables and chairs of standard height. We paid at a high counter and didn't visit the toilets. 

Small Graces

August 28, 2022

   

The weather was glorious on Sunday, so we lined up a westside lunch with our friends formally known as the Moody Noodles (... then added time to deliver a few of Michael's calendars by bike, and refill the pannier with groceries from Vincent Vegetarian Food). They suggested Small Graces, a café with plenty of outdoor seating in the heart of Footscray. It has the polished concrete, varnished wood and pastel accents common to so many Melbourne cafés, but the menu sets it apart. That menu starts with a long list of build-your-own elements: toast, eggs, bacon and avocado to be sure but also hummus with hazelnut dukkah, arepas, wilted greens in shiro miso, relish, and almond feta - all made in-house.

There are composed plates as well, with plenty of well-marked vegan and gluten-free options. In spite of all this variety, three of us made the same order! We just couldn't get past the arepas con frijoles ($20) and each added potato hash ($4.50) on the side. None of us were disappointed: the stout little arepas were so pillowy, and I piled mine with the accompanying avocado. The slow-cooked beans were thick savoury comfort topped with crumbled almond feta, and and all this creaminess was cut through by the jalapeno-spiced escabeche pickles. The potato hash swung back to rich comfort food, smeared with a vegan-friendly aioli and rosemary salt. Few things can persuade me away from sourdough waffles (with apple crumble and cashew icecream, no less!) but this meal did it and I felt no regret. 

   

I usually like to order an iced chai when I see it on offer, but the agua de panela (described as Colombian 'lemonade'; $5.50) was a better match for beans and arepas. Even Michael ordered one to follow his coffee.

Small Graces' staff were friendly and attentive, and there's so much more on the menu that I'd like to try. It's an instant addition to my mental list of Footscray favourites.

____________

Small Graces has already won fans on Mamma Knows West, TOT: HOT OR NOT, and Consider the Sauce.

____________

Small Graces

57 Byron St, Footscray

9912 6429

food, drinks

https://www.smallgraces.com.au/

Accessibility: There's a narrow, flat entry. Indoor and outdoor furniture is densely arranged and regular height with a mixture of backed chairs and backless stools. We ordered at our table and paid at a low counter. Toilets require swipe card access on request from the staff; the loos are located around the corner, through a heavy door and down a hallway. I noticed gendered narrow cubicles and one ungendered, labelled-accessible cubicle with a baby change station.

Cà-Rem Gelato

 January 24, 2021

   

We had a long overdue day of Footscray fun with friends in January. We started out with Savers and browsing an Indian grocery, hit up Huong Viet for lunch, and stocked up on treats from Pie Thief and Vincent Vegetarian Food Mart. Phil Lees recommended Cà-Rem Gelato for dessert, and it was an easy skip across the street from lunch. 

Cà-Rem is run by two friendly Vietnamese-Australians, who proudly make their gelato from fresh ingredients with a rotation of bright and imaginative flavours. We encountered abundant fruity, tropical options like avocado, durian, taro and coconut, Thai mango, and Vietnamese banana. While I almost always focus on the richer, creamier (and yes, chocolate-ier) flavours, this was exactly what our mid-day, 33-degree visit called for.

   

I was charmed by their salted kumquat sorbet, with each mouthful transforming from tangy to sweet and salty (top photo). I didn't need but certainly didn't waste my less daring insurance scoop of lychee and mint sorbet (the two scoops together came in at $6.80). Michael took one scoop ($4.80) of the remarkable Coco Black, a creamy and very high cocoa-content, vegan-friendly option. I wondered if they might use coconut charcoal to achieve its melting-tar look. 

Located on Leeds St, Cà-Rem is right in the middle of Footscray's action; it'll be easy to browse the cabinet for what's new any time we're in the neighbourhood.

   

____________

Cà-Rem Gelato

45 Leeds St, Footscray

https://www.caremgelato.com/

Accessibility: There's a small lip on the door on entry. We ordered and paid at a high counter. There are moderately spaced tables with low stools inside.

Huong Viet Vegetarian & Vegan

June 11, 2018

After a morning wander around Point Cook, we took advantage of this rare westside excursion to lunch with Lisa and the Moody Noodles. To our delight, Huong Viet was open on this public holiday and happy to hold a table for us. We piled in and keenly scanned the menu - by my reckoning it's all vegan with the exception of their potato wedges with mayonnaise. Unfortunately there's not a lot for coeliacs, with mock meat abounding. K was limited to a plate of tofu-stuffed rice paper rolls, and the staff were very understanding about avoiding soy sauce and what dipping condiments would work for her.

The rest of us took to the Vietnamese menu with gusto, starting with some pleasantly peppery spring rolls ($8). I rehydrated with a coconut juice ($3.50), which wasn't bobbing with sweet coconut flesh as I'd secretly hoped it would be.

The Hainan chicken rice ($15, pictured above left) was very popular around the table - the chicken was juicy, the rice oily, and the dipping sauce brightly flavoured. The claypot of saute pork chops ($15, above right) was Lisa's pick of the table.

Meanwhile, I was more devoted to the saute duck ($15, above left), with its tender texture and layer of 'skin'. The deep-fried mackerel ($15, above right) had the pungency of its namesake and a terrific ginger sauce.

Three of our dishes ended up looking a bit samey, but we all found different things to enjoy among them, eagerly shifting the options from one end of the table to the other and soaking up the sauces in our rice bowls.

The staff were welcoming, helpful with ordering, and didn't rush us out. I wouldn't hesitate to come back and do it all again.

____________

Huong Viet has already received positive coverage on Veganopoulous.

____________

Huong Viet Vegetarian & Vegan
36A Leeds St, Footscray
9041 3922
menu page 1, menu page 2, specials
facebook page

Accessibility: There's a step up on entry. The interior furniture is moderately crowded. We ordered at the table and paid at a high counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

The Reverence Hotel III

Edit 07/03/2020: The Reverenece Hotel is now closed.

February 4, 2017

We're thrilled to see the AFLW burst onto the sporting calendar, and made our way west for the Bulldogs-Dockers game with some friends. It was a great excuse to stop by the Rev for dinner. We really haven't made it here as often as this veg-friendly pub deserves - and with a big for-sale sign visible out front, our days to make the most of it might be numbered.

The menu is four pages of deep-fried snacks, Mexican-style mains, burgers and pizzas, with a couple of desserts snuck at the end. While it's an omni spread, almost every item has a vegan option on it using mock meat and dairy; there are a respectable range of gluten-free versions too.

We were in the mood for burgers! Michael took on the Big Rev Burger ($18) and was impressed by mock-beef patty. It was further layered up with vegan cheese and bacon, beetroot relish, jalapeno mustard, chipotle lime mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, onion and a pickle garnish. It comes with a hefty serve of spicy fries, too.

I tested out the Reverence Chicken Burger ($18), after dredging half of my chips through the chipotle aioli. It's an enormous, fatty mock fillet with a crunchy coating, stacked with mock bacon, the requisite salad, and a smear of guacamole. It was my kinda flavour combination, but I just couldn't get more than half-way through this thick, junky burger.

Our intended popcorn chicken appetiser ($9) arrived long after our mains. The Rev mean the descriptor literally, tossing popcorn kernels through the fried mock-nuggets. The lime-flecked sauce was the highest point of our meal, and revived our appetites for a bit of snacking mid-main.

The vegan burgers, pizzas and grungy atmosphere of the Rev remind me of the closer-to-home Cornish Arms, right down to the jumbo serving sizes. But the Cornish doesn't have such an extensive Mexican menu, or the chocolate nachos that stretch 'Mexican' to its culinary limits (confession: I'd eat 'em). It's unfortunate that we probably have limited days to explore these parts of the menu!

____________

You can also read about one, two of our previous visits to the Rev. Since that last post it's had positive reviews on veg blogs Chef John Smith, Fire & Tea and The Rose & Bean. There are also complimentary reviews on Consider the Sauce, Foodcrazy, Not My Bread and Butter (twice), and Eat Like Ushi.

____________

The Reverence Hotel
28 Napier St, Footscray
9687 2111
snacks, Mexican mains, burgers, pizza, dessert
http://www.reverencehotel.com

Accessibility: There's a small step at the (narrowish) front door, but the side door is flat and wide. Inside things are fairly spread out, with at most small steps between the bar, side-room and courtyard. We ordered and paid at the bar, and didn't visit the toilets.

Cafe Lalibela II

Cheap Eats 2006, a decade on

January 11, 2016

Cindy's family wanted to meet us for dinner in Footscray and, with our enthusiasm for our new Cheap Eats 2006 project still high, we decided it was a good opportunity to revisit Cafe Lalibela. It's been more than seven years since we last visited, and not much seems to have changed. The staff are friendly, the service casual, the menu has a good range of vego options and there's a steady stream of people coming through the door.

We made the same move as last time and ordered the beyainetu (the platter below serves 3), a combination of different veggie dishes on an injera platter ($14 per head - up from $12 seven years ago, which is pretty good going).

The dishes are heavy on the protein: lentils and beans cooked in various sauces, along with a potato and carrot dish. The injera is the star of the show - the fermentation adds a citruss-y kick to the chewy, spongy bread, which soaks up the relatively mild flavours of all the stews. It's fun and messy to tear at the injera and scoop up the stews - it's a rare treat to eat with your hands. Added bonus: the delicious Ethiopian beers are a ridiculously affordable $5 a pop.

Cafe Lalibela feels timeless - almost nothing has changed since we visited nearly eight years ago - great, cheap food in a cheerful, casual setting. We really need to go back before 2023 rolls around.

____________

Since our visit in 2008, Lalibela has been positively written up by vegos In the Mood for Noodles and omni-bloggers Footscray Food Blog, Howie's Melbourne Food Blog, Gosstronomy, Apples Under My Bed, Eurasian Sensation and Eat and Be Merry for Tomorrow We Die(t).

____________

Cafe Lalibela

91 Irving Street, Footscray 
9687 0300
vegetarian menu

Accessibility: The entry is flat and there's a reasonably clear path up the middle of the restaurant, although the tables themselves are all wedged in pretty close together. We paid at a high counter and didn't visit the toilets. 

Krishna Indian Restaurant

May 31, 2015

The Moody Noodles invited me and some other friends across to West Footscray to share a meal at Krishna Indian Restaurant. Although this family business has been established for 20 years, it has only recently become 100% vegetarian. They've really gone all out, often skipping the ghee and using ingredients like tofu and soy nuggets to bring a diverse selection of vegan-friendly, as well as traditionally vegetarian, dishes. Vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free options are well marked throughout the menu. The staff know what's what can will happily lend advice on request too. If you call ahead, they can even prepare gluten-free naan!

We started out with some complimentary chips and a jammy tamarind sauce with a surprise little slow burn. Onion bhaji ($6.50) and mushroom pakora ($8.95) had a lovely besan batter and a vegan-friendly minty-creamy dipping sauce.

It was tough picking from the multidude of mains! The vegetable korma ($10.95, bottom left) and soy nugget masala ($10.95, top right) were pleasant but turned out a little samey. We were more taken with a saag mushroom curry ($12.90, bottom right) and their unusually vegan-friendly malai kofta ($12.95).

The vegan garlic naans ($2.95) were still crispy-edged and buttery. Their gluten-free analogue reminded me of an arepa and it was roundly enjoyed by K, the table's coeliac.

Krishna's most exciting innovation might be their dairy-free desserts - so often vegans have to skip this last menu section! K shared a small bowl of carrot halva ($4.95) with little S while the rest of us ordered a gulab jamun ($2.00 each). The little doughballs were gorgeous, one of the loveliest, fudgiest versions of this dish that I've ever eaten.

We had many more hits than misses at Krishna Indian Restaurant. It's wonderful to see a family Indian restaurant catering imaginatively to a range of dietary requirements. Their prices are reasonable and the service is very accommodating. We hope the local community will embrace their newly meat-free menu.

____________

Krishna Indian Restaurant
Shop 3, 578 Barkly St, West Footscray
9687 5531
menu front page, thalis & entrees, entrees & mains, mains 2, bread & rice, accompaniments & desserts
facebook page

Accessibility: There's a step up on entry and the tables are well spaced. We ordered at our table and paid at a high counter. I didn't visit the toilets.

Bo De Trai III

May 3, 2015

We spent a lovely weekend down at Ocean Grove with a gang of friends and the drive back through Melbourne seemed like a good excuse to stop by Bo De Trai for some lunch. It's a cosy little Buddhist vego place in Footscray, and one that we visit far too infrequently. On this visit we stumbled across their special monthly full moon menu, which offers a narrower range, presumably for religious reasons.

Cindy ordered the Com Ga Sa Ot, imitation chicken in lemongrass and chilli on rice ($10). It was just what Cindy was after, tender and nutty with a mild curry powder flavour. A watery sauce tipped over the rice brought it all together well.

I ordered off the specials board - a mock duck noodle soup with greens, mushrooms, some little berries (maybe goji berries?) and a few other bits and pieces ($10). It was rich and warm, with a powerful kick from the birds-eye chilli pieces I sprinkled through.

Bo De Trai is a decent vego option in Footscray - the staff are friendly (although not always particularly efficient - the place is run by volunteers!), the food is cheap and everything we've had has been good. It's not a place for a fancy meal or somewhere that exudes ambience, but it's worth stopping in if you're after a quick, tasty meal.

____________

Read about our previous visits to Be De Trai here and here. Since our last visit, MEL: HOT OR NOT has given it the thumbs up, but Chef John Smith was very unimpressed.

____________

Bo De Trai

94 Hopkins Street, Footscray

9689 9909

full moon menu

Accessibility: There's a small step at the door, and fairly close-packed tables but a clear wide passage through the middle. Ordering is at the table with payment at a low counter. The toilets are out the back past the kitchen via a slightly narrow passageway. They're unisex, but not particularly designed with accessibility in mind.

Eat Pizza III

October 27, 2013

Our recent house move has taken us out of the delivery catchment of Madame K's Vegetarian and, much to our disappointment, not quite within delivery distance of Eat Pizza Maribyrnong. We envy west-siders like The Moody Noodles, who've become regular customers of the Footscray outlet. They shared their good fortune with us, ordering ahead while we travelled to their home.

Eat Pizza does the standard string of margheritas, capricciosas, meat lovers and supremes, but with the added options of vegan cheese, mock meat and gluten-free bases. I tried the gluten-free base with their garlic toppings (garlic with olive oil, cheese and parsley, $8 + $3 gluten-free + $3 vegan cheese) and was impressed - while it's not quite as puffy as the standard dough there's a real breadiness to it, and no alterna-flour aftertaste.

(Note that the garlic pizza is not usually garnished with $20 notes - it's just our preferred serving style when splitting with friends.)

Toby, Michael and I went the full gluten treatment, sharing large vegetarian-with-salami ($13 + $4 vegan cheese + $4 vegan salami) and Hawaiian ($13 + $4 vegan cheese + $4 vegan ham) pizzas. This pairing was highly satisfying, and bridged the emotive "does pineapple belong on pizza?" divide among us.

While Eat Pizza is best suited to westside vegos, we're willing to travel for the odd nostalgic indulgence. We'll have to check out their city store too.

____________

We've written about the Maribynong Eat Pizza before here and here. Since then it's also received a write-up from The Good Hearted.

____________

Eat Pizza
7/203 Ballarat Rd, Footscray
9317 3177
veg pizzas $9-28
Eat Pizza's website has been 'under construction' for up to a year

Accessibility: delivered to selected suburbs (though sadly not ours).

Bo De Trai II

April 1, 2013

When it comes to Melbourne's west we're basically noobs - we've made the occasional trip to Footscray but we've barely begun to sample the amazing range of goodies on offer. With the Moody Noodles now residing in that general direction, we're getting a few more opportunities to hang out over there. On the Easter weekend we made a return to Bo De Trai, Footscray's only vegetarian restaurant (which we'd managed not to visit in nearly five years).

Cindy's lemon juice, heavily laced with sugar

Bo De Trai is a Vietnamese place, providing faux-meat alternatives to the carnivorous offerings at most of the neighbourhoods other nearby places. The three of us (Cindy and I brought along Toby Noodles) decided to split food, to give us the widest range of dishes.

First up: rice paper rolls stuffed with imitation shredded pork skin and veggies, served with imitation fish sauce ($6.50).

These were pretty great - fresh fillings, light wrappings and some sort of soy-based 'pork' dust. The 'fish' sauce had a nice tang as well.

We were pretty intrigued by imitation deep-fried mud fish ($12), but it turned out to just be battered eggplant discs.

I say 'just', but I'm not really complaining - these were crispy and soft in all the right places and excellent vessels for either the 'fish' sauce or the quite delicious sambal-style chilli that's provided at every table.

We took a break from mock-meat (but not from deep frying) with the bean curd and lemon grass ($12).

These tofu cubes truly represent the magic of a deep-fryer - crispy on the outside and meltingly soft inside, they're sprinkled with a lemongrass/chill/salt seasoning and are very, very moreish.

Finally, I was swayed by the nearly ten-year-old review from The Age stuck on the wall and ordered the imitation clay pot lam ($15) (exactly as I had been on our last visit!).

You can see why it's their signature dish - it's a hearty stew of mushrooms, mock-meat and vegetables in an excellent broth. Perfect for winter.

The service at Bo De Trai is friendly but slow - we were pretty ravenous, so we lacked a bit of patience waiting for the food to come. Still, it was worth the wait - Bo De Trai is an excellent and affordable option for inner-west vegos.

____________

Read about our first visit to Bo De Trai here. Since then it has had positive reviews from easy as (vegan) pie (three times), Footscray Food Blog, The Hungry Grub, Fat Duck, Vicki Vegan, Vegan travelling adventures, Ask Me Tomorrow, NOM and half-eaten, with just FoodsCrazy unimpressed by its mock-meat goodness.

____________

Bo De Trai

94 Hopkins Street, Footscray

9689 9909

veg dishes $5.50-$15

Accessibility: There's a small step at the door, and fairly close-packed tables but a clear wide passage through the middle. Ordering is at the table with payment at a low counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

Reverence Hotel II

Edit 07/03/2020: The Reverenece Hotel is now closed.

January 26, 2013

We were hanging out with the Moody Noodles in the inner-west again and, after weighing up our options, we decided to head back to The Reverence Hotel to check our their newly expanded menu. Since our earlier visit they've greatly expanded their range. The menu is Mexican-themed and is super veg-friendly, with tacos, a tofo burrito and veggie chimichangas, plus four veggie pizzas and a veggie torta.

Having sampled their tacos last time (although the vegan pulled pork option is new!), we branched out a bit, splitting the chimichanga (deep-fried flour tortilla filled with pinto beans and cheese, served on spinach and rice, topped with guacamole, salsa and sour cream, $15 - vegan option) and the vegan smoky chicken torta (housemade chickpea cutlet, black beans, spinach, tomato, avocado, fried onions, salsa, jalapenos, lime chipotle mayo and spicy bbq sauce in a toasted roll, $15).

The chimichanga was kind of junky and ridiculous - deep-fried Mexican is overkill really. Still, the crispy tortilla stuffed fully of melty cheese and beans was not without its charms, particularly to accompany a few beers. It's a pretty massive meal - there'll be no dessert for you if you make your way through one of these.

The torta was a more balanced meal - it's basically a chickpea burger turned up to 11. The patty is smoky and delicious - nothing like the mock-chicken of its name, but excellent nonetheless. It's loaded up with salad, condiments and jalapenos, and comes with a side of excellent chips. This is a rival to the Gaso's southern-fried chicken burger for vegan pubby goodness.

Speaking of the Gasometer, The Reverence is treading a pretty similar path - providing interesting, junky and vegan-friendly (and gf-friendly for that matter) pub food to a crowd of tattooed hipsters and assorted hangers-on. It's going gangbusters too, with loads of people there both times we visited. It's great to see - we'll be back to explore more of the menu soon.

____________

Read about our first visit the The Reverence here. Nobody else seems to have blogged it since we last visited.

____________

The Reverence Hotel

28 Napier Street, Footscray 

9687 2111

veggie pizzas $9 - $11, tacos $3 

http://www.reverencehotel.com 

Accessibility: There's a small step at the (narrowish) front door, but the side door is flat and wide. Inside things are fairly spread out, with at most small steps between the bar, side-room and courtyard. We ordered and paid at the bar, and didn't visit the toilets.

The Reverence Hotel

Edit 07/03/2020: The Reverenece Hotel is now closed.

December 26, 2012

We'd been hearing a few rumours about the vegan-friendly Mexican-inspired menu that had popped up at The Reverence Hotel in Footscray, so when The Moody Noodles invited us over to the west to check it out we trekked on over. The Reverence is the new(ish) home of the peeps who used to run The Arthouse in North Melbourne, and along with live music and decent beer, they've got a veg-friendly menu going. And they've clearly struck a chord - they were doing a roaring trade on Boxing Day, with a mix of hipsters, veg*ns and a handful of more old-school Footscray peeps filling every available space.

Thursday through Sunday they offer pizzas, empanadas and a few other nibblies, with plenty of vegan and gluten-free action (including an intriguing-sounding 'ham' and 'cheese' option). They also have a cheap taco night to coincide with their Tuesday trivia. For obvious reasons, they postponed the scheduled Tuesday trivia to Wednesday, meaning we could dive into some cheap Boxing Day tacos We didn't stick around for trivia, at least partly because it was crammed with people, leaving us out the back in the courtyard.

The tacos come in two veg and two meaty varieties. We gave the veggie options (both vegan and gluten free) a good going over, with seven tacos ($3 each) proving enough to satisfy the two of us. I was most enthused by the tofu tacos - pan fried tofu, with smoky paprika, crunchy coleslaw and coriander, served with chipotle lime mayo. They were generous with the paprika, which gave the mashed up tofu a lovely smoky flavour, which went brilliantly with the acidic coleslaw and creamy mayo. As with all tacos, they were improved even further with a generous shake of hot sauce.

Cindy was more enamoured by the bean tacos: black and pinto bean mush, with spinach, corn, avo and pumpkin salad, served with the same chipotle lime mayo. While I preferred the tofu, these were still pretty good - a nice hefty bean filling and some fresh salad - I just had the feeling that we could probably churn these out at home. 

The staff were efficient and friendly, even while slammed with the taco desires of seemingly every hipster in Footscray. Throw in $3 Tecates for the evening, and The Reverence cheap taco night seems like a pretty great reason to cross the Maribyrnong.

____________

The Moody Noodles have already got their review of our visit up, while The Good Hearted beat us both to the punch.

____________

The Reverence Hotel

28 Napier Street, Footscray 

9687 2111

veggie pizzas $9 - $11, tacos $3 

http://www.reverencehotel.com 

Accessibility: There's a small step at the (narrowish) front door, but the side door is flat and wide. Inside things are fairly spread out, with at most small steps between the bar, side-room and courtyard. We ordered and paid at the bar, and didn't visit the toilets.

March 30, 2011: Ebi Fine Foods

Some last minute work chaos had delayed the start time of our Footscray tour, so our initial plan to split a roll at Tan Truc Giang had been derailed by our ravenous 2pm lunch-hungers. So, with a roll each under our belts, even an hour or so browsing Savers, a few other op-shops and a shopping spree at Vincent Veg wasn't enough time for us to get hungry enough for our initial plan of a big meal at Aangan or Dosa Hut. Instead, we decided to check out the curious-sounding Japanese-inspired fish and chip shop that our Cheap Eats guide promised us would provide fine vegie takoyaki and other snack-sized treats.

The decor is a strange combination of neighbourhood chippy and cute sushi place, and the menu offers up a similar mix: beer-battered fish and chips, but also sushi, bento boxes and tempura options, along with a range of Japanese-inspired snacks. We were intrigued by the vegan friendly veg-bento box ($15), but could only face a couple of snacks: a vegie croquette each ($2 a pop) and some of the veg takoyaki ($5, inspired by octopus balls, which are apparently a common Kyoto street-food).

The croquettes were pretty good - a potato heavy vegie filling, crumbed with panko and drizzled with a delicious sweet Japanese bbq sauce. But the real stars were the takoyaki, which apprently started life as festival food cooked up by Ebi proprietor John Byrne. They've got a crispy outer and a gloriously squishy texture, presumably dominated by tofu (although we didn't actually ask) and are served with a splash of light soy sauce and a smothering of Japanese mayo. Amazing - and a steal at $5 a serve.

The dessert menu includes donuts, fudge and home-made ice cream, but be warned - the tofu cheesecake contains both eggs and gelatine, so it's not as vegan-friendly as it sounds. Still, I'm pretty sure vegans would be well rewarded by the bento box - we're definitely going to check it out next time we're in the west.

All in all, our afternoon in Footscray was a winner - delicious and reasonably priced food, decent coffee at the Dancing Dog Cafe, a haul of books and shirts from Savers, and a freezer-load of Vincent's mock meats. We really need to explore more widely - our previous Footscray dining has been fairly limited but with help from Footscray Food Blog and commenters on our previous post we're already building up a massive list of places to sample. Any more hot tips for wonderful veg-friendly places would be appreciated.

____________

Despite the Cheap Eats love and a rave in Epicure, Ebi hasn't exactly been overwhelmed by blog reviews. Still, what's there is positive - Ms Baklover at Footscray Food Blog has given it the thumbs up (twice!), Fill Up on Bread is a fan, as are Charles Whyte and I dream of a brewery.

____________

Ebi Fine Foods
18A Essex St, Footscray
9689 3300
Snacks: $2.5 - $5, bento box: $15

Accessibility: Ebi has a tiny step as you enter and is a little cramped (outdoor seating is more spacious). Ordering and payment happen at a high counter.