The Johnslingtons

Hey, we like food. In a past life, I was an honest-to-goodness food blogger. That’s done, but I still love to find great things and chow down, so… here’s a list of the great things we had in Australia.

• Mary’s Burger, Sydney. Good enough for its own post!
• Pizza, pasta, and salad at Next Door CBD Sydney. Funky spot, fantastic food, and a staff that made us parent-types feel welcome in a room full of cool kids. Get the lasagna!
• Breakfast at Cafe Portico, Sydney. It’s in the lower floor of a Presbyterian Church, the coffee is fantastic, and the brekkie dishes are flat-out inspired. I’m still dreaming of the things they did with ricotta and greens. No website, but it’s at 2 York St, Sydney NSW.
• Pizza at Jill and Graeme’s place in Wollongong. Sorry, you can’t go there unless you know ’em.
• Fish and chips, The Cooked Goose in Hyams Bay. Just about perfect fish n’ chips – crispy, light beer batter, good sauce, killer location. Also I was grumpy at everyone that morning and then ate these and felt better.
• Cheese plate at Ringer Reef Wines, Porepunkah (near Bright). After a hot, dusty bike ride, this wiped it all away. Three cheeses and various other things, as good or better than anything I’ve gotten in San Francisco or Sonoma.
• Lunch at Dal Zotto wines. We basically stayed in Whitfield to go here, and it did not disappoint. Perfect Italian on a perfect day. Tomato/burrata salad that comes from dreams, amazing pizza, fantastic wine (prosecco, nebbiolo, and sangiovese were our faves). Thank goodness we could walk home after lunch.
• Adobo pork and potato bites at Moon Dog Brewing, Preston, Victoria. It’s really hard to describe Moon Dog – a massive warehouse space that’s been turned into a brewery, playground, and huge water feature. I wish we had places this kid-friendly in the States.
• Turkish gozleme from the Turkish gozleme guys at Preston Market, Melbourne. My friend Anna recommended them, and they did not disappoint. Apparently most gozleme is thick and doughy – these were thin, more like a quesadilla with spinach, spiced ground beef, and cheese. Yummy.
• Roast leg of lamb at Anna and Sim’s place, Melbourne. Yeah, you can’t get this either unless you know ’em!
• Avocados. Specifically, Shepard avocados, which were in season while were around. Every single one we had was flawless and delicious.
• Pasta and sauce from the Otway Pasta Company. I saw it for sale at the FoodWorks in Apollo Bay, and WOW! Best low-effort dinner of the trip. We made it twice in four days.
• Bluenose fish from the Apollo Bay Fisherman’s Co-op, caught that morning. I salted them and grilled them, and it was the best fish I’ve had in this country. Divine.
• Homemade burgers on a Weber grill in Halls Gap.
• The mezze platter at Down the Rabbit Hole winery, McLaren Vale.
• Burgers, again, at Bread & Bone in Adelaide. Not quite as good as Mary’s in Sydney, but darned good!
• Every single flat white we that we had was incredible, but I’d say my favorite was probably at Portico in Sydney. Those guys are wizards.