22 January 2011

Eating out - West Belconnen area?

| joingler
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Hey all,

I’m looking for a nice restaurant in the West Belconnen area for dinner. I live at Spence and don’t want to travel too far. Kippax or Belconnen is fine. Gungahlin is fine as well. Cost is not much of an issue but obviously cheaper is better. I have never really eaten out before so have no clue what to look for.

Seafood is out of the question due to one of the people I’m eating with having allergies.

Any help would be much appreciated

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Gday guys,
We ended up not going until last night (Wednesday 2/2). We ended up eating at Da Nunzio in Gungahlin. Overall it was great, the Lasagne my friend ordered was fantastic (I hate Lasagne so I can’t comment for myself). I had the Fish of the day which was great although the mashed potato left a lot to be desired. My other friend had veal which she liked. I tried a bit and it was was beautifully cooked. My friends loved their deserts (Chocolate Mousse) although my Lemon Custard Tart left a lot to be desired.

Negative things to point out: The rain from outside somehow leaked into the building and was trickling under our table, eventually making a large puddle under my friends chair. We weren’t the only table affected.

The only other complaint I can make is that the water they gave us when we went into the building was warm – not chilled. I was in too nice a mood to make a big deal out of it.

It was a bit pricy but not drastically so – $120 for the 3 of us. This included meals, deserts and a juice each.

Top of your list should be Morks Thai restaurant in Florey. Amazing food. Lao Thai in Kippax is also pretty good. Having eaten at most places in West Belco those are the only two places I would really recommend to anyone.

Of course there’s also the clubs – Labor Club Charnwood, Magpies and Raiders clubs at Kippax.

Tried Master So’s last night.

I was initially reluctant to say it’s the worst Chinese restaurant I’ve eaten at but, on reflection, I think it was.

We didn’t finish any of the dishes.

Once we’d given up on getting our order taken (having made a point of piling up the menus so that it’d be obvious) we called the woman over – she asked us if we were ready to order. I was tempted to say “no, I just called you over for a pleasant chat.” There were two people waiting on tables and the smallish place was far from full. Once our order was taken the service was acceptable.

The duck pancakes were remarkabl for their ordinariness. The duck was limp and chewy instead of crisp and tender; the pancakes and the slivers of cucumber and spring onion were ok – there’s not a lot that you can do to stuff those up. They were by far the high point of the meal.

The salt and pepper squid was awful. The squid had the consistency of of a radial ply tyre but with less flavour. The pieces were covered in a tempura batter which, by itself, was ok, but the squid spoiled it.

The mee goreng, specifically ordered to be mild for the kids, was loaded with chilli – not a problem for me, but they couldn’t eat it. The few lonely prawns were surprising – I’ve never had tough prawns before, so it was a first.

I didn’t try the vegetable dish that my wife ordered, and I can’t remember what the other dish was, only that it was, like the mee goreng, 99% noodles with a couple of sad slivers of some unidentifiable animal-derived substance.

The only saving grace was that it was cheap.

Short report: avoid at all costs.

Thanks guys. I like the sound of Da Nunzio (I’m not too fussed on Chinese so that limits the options a lot).

I’ll ask my dinner companions on their thoughts. We are eating Tuesday. I’ll let you know where we eat and what it is like.

Keep the suggestions coming

koalathebear11:02 pm 22 Jan 11

We went to Da Nunzio tonight because of this post and enjoyed it. The menu’s a little limited but the food was lovely and the location is also very nice.

We also like Master So’s – the yum cha on the weekends is very good and the So So Crispy desserts are unusual but delicious.

We also like Dumpling Inn in Jamison for yum cha and normal meals, King Fook in Florey, too.

+1 for 2Yummy in Belco. Their super tasty duck really is super tasty.

I also recommend Sanur’s Balinese Restaurant (if it’s still there), which is right near 2Yummy.

Master so does excellent Mongolian lamb, and if you need gluten free they have lots of options.

Just make sure she says yes first. yukyukyukyuk

Master So’s is, indeed, great. If you want something a little closer to home, Fortune Cookie at Melba shops also do excellent modern Chinese.

neanderthalsis said :

2Yummy in Belco is great also and rather cheap, try the Beef brisket hot pot.

+1 Excellent food, inexpensive, and unbelievable service. Also Prince Palace next door – a little more upmarket, but well worth it.

I second the Jasmine House recommendation, great Asian and a good variety of dishes.

+1 for Master So in Kippax. The duck pancakes are devine…

Try Master so’s at Kippax in Buiding next to The magpies club. Really nice chinese food with excellent service. You can get Banquets for 4 or more people and they are very good for the price.

I live in Gungahlin so for this area I can recommend a new Italian restaurant near Yarrabi Pond called Da Nunzio. They are reasonably priced and the staff are both friendly and attentive and the food is served quickly. I love the wood fired pizza (which they also do take away orders). Atmosphere is great and it is in a nice location looking onto the lake. Unfortunately I have only dined there once but have recommended it to friends who have all raved about it. Their website doesn’t have anything on it yet but here is the location:

http://maps.google.com.au/maps/place?cid=4318698927396682139&q=da+nunzio+gungahlin&hl=en&gl=au

I can also recommend Mirci Indian Cuisine in Ngunnawal. Indian isn’t everyones cup of tea but I love it. I have been to plenty of Indian restaurants in my time and this one is head and shoulders above any other (although I hear Delhi 6 is good but haven’t been there yet). Once again, both the staff and atmosphere is great. Quick service and plenty of food to choose from which is all great quality. Here is their website:

http://www.mirchi.net.au/Mirchi/Welcome.html

Jasmine House in Gungahlin is also very good and a guarunteed winner every time. Never had a bad meal from any of these restaurants.

neanderthalsis11:02 am 22 Jan 11

Try Bella Vista down by the lake in Belconnen, good food, reasonably priced and friendly service.

2Yummy in Belco is great also and rather cheap, try the Beef brisket hot pot.

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