What’s On My Plate – March…

Okay, here are March’s foodie adventures so if you haven’t yet eaten or are on some sort of restrictive eating plan, look away now…

Bocca Italian, Bokarina

From the same stable as Rice Boi, Giddy Geisha, Piggyback, Market Bistro comes Bocca…and if you’re ever on the Sunshine Coast it’s a must-book.

We ate here for my birthday.

First up we shared burrata, salami and vitello tonnato. To follow Sarah had seafood pasta, Grant a pizza and I had a carbonara the way it should be – pancetta, egg yolk, parmesan, no cream. Afterwards we shared a plate of cannoli.

Nuoc Cham, Mooloolaba

Located down near the fish markets on The Spit at Mooloolaba, this is Vietnamese food with a bit of an edge. Great decor, good vibe, fabulous food. You’ll find them here.

We shared some small plates – grilled sate calamari, and soft-shell crab rice paper rolls – a green papaya salad, and ‘Xá Xíu’ Char Siu Pork Neck DIY Wraps.

Odyssey, Scarness (Hervey Bay)

Odyssey is a casual fine diner (fine dining without the pretension or need to get too glammed up) that is all about local produce – from Caloundra on the Sunny Coast, through the Hinterland, and up to Bundaberg. The key staff takes turns doing the produce run each Monday, from what they bring back the menus for the week are written and tested on Tuesday and served from Wednesday.

Once drinks have been ordered, we’re each handed a menu sealed with wax and told about the process and the produce we’ll be eating. It reminded me a little of the restaurant I invented for Escape To Curlew Cottage, Lily James. It’s also what Grant was most concerned about – while I love this concept, he likes to take his time going over (and over) a menu and checking out what everyone else is eating. He did, however, under threat of Sarah’s wrath, put his judgements aside and enjoyed the experience.

It’s not cheap – $105 per person for 5 courses – but it was Sarah’s birthday so a special occasion.

We began with a few oysters and a plate of veg and beetroot hommus which was served with amazing bread and (wait for it) chicken fat butter (oh my giddy aunt). The sharing starters were also brought out – a Thai-style octopus on betel leaves, mini spanakopita with sheep’s milk cheese on top, and little lamb meatballs with goat’s cheese and a green olive in the centre.

Next out was an amuse bouche of char-grilled pineapple, coconut, chilli and mint. Next were the share entrees – a confit mushroom dish with XO sauce (my dish of the night), and rockfish crudo (Grant and Sarah’s dish of the night). The pics don’t do these justice.

Then came the shared mains – an amazing roast chicken and a nannygai (fish) dish that was my only slight-miss of the night – and finally dessert, a not-too-sweet panna cotta.

For more info or to book, you’ll find them here.

Linking up with Donna from Retirement Reflections and her co-host Deb The Widow Badass Blog in their #whatsonyourplateblogchallenge.