Oculus Café x Kitchen by Mike opens, MasterChef’s Casper Kenworthy pops up at Lazy SU, and Mountain Creek Wholefoods Kitchen returns.
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Seasonal dining, organic ingredients and local favourites are just some of the things that you can find in this edition of Foodie News.
From shiny new kitchens to long-awaited returns, here is what’s fresh in Canberra’s food scene right now.
DISCOVERIES, OPENINGS, CLOSINGS AND MOVES
The National Gallery welcomes Oculus Café
With seasonal dining and takeaway now available on the ground floor, there’s never been a better excuse to revisit the National Gallery. Brought to life by experienced restaurateur Mike McEnearney, Oculus Café is now open for breakfast and lunch from 8 am daily.
In the mornings, the à la carte menu showcases fresh and seasonal produce with options like sourdough pancakes with lemon curd and avocado and enokido chickpea miso on Mike’s sourdough toast, available for breakfast, while lunch offers a canteen-style selection.
Including seasonal salads, roasted meats and fresh sourdough, everything is prepared using locally sourced ingredients from Canberra and the surrounding region. Overlooking the Gallery’s Australian Garden, it’s the perfect combination of art, architecture and good food.
Mountain Creek Wholefoods Kitchen returns
Fresh, healthy, ready-made meals are now available in Griffith with the reopening of the Wholefoods Kitchen at Mountain Creek Wholefoods.
Bringing colourful, satisfying and freshly prepared meals to Canberra’s south, the menu uses wholefood ingredients wherever possible (with organic ingredients chosen when available), with a focus on proper, satisfying meals that bring together vegetables, protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates. And yes, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan and vegetarian choices are available.
Find out more here.
Jerrabomberra’s only local finally opens a bistro
Those who live across the border southeast of the city don’t have to travel far for a pub feed with the opening of a new bistro at The Jerra.
Serving up hearty food that suits any occasion – from a family dinner to footy night – the menu includes schnitty (a 1/2kg chicken breast served with chips and salad) pizza, pasta and meat from the butcher’s block. Craving dessert? Don’t worry – with the choice of caramelised vanilla cheesecake or a chocolate brownie served with rum ganache and Chantilly cream, you won’t be leaving here hungry.
Noi Noi Vietnamese is now in Weston
Weston is now home to local favourite Noi Noi Vietnamese, who are known for their delicious bánh mì.
Now open on Brierly Street seven days a week, you’ll not only be able to order their famous crispy pork bánh mì, but also rich pho, fresh rice paper rolls, rice dishes, vermicelli bowls and more.
Thai Street Chicken crosses the road to London Circuit
A new chicken joint has entered the chat. Opening on London Circuit in early September, the team behind Fav Cup Café have opened Fav Bowls – a Thai street food spot specialising in chicken dishes.
From Thai chilli basil minced chicken with a fried egg to clear noodle soup with homemade crispy spicy chicken, you’d be clucking mad not to try it.
Smash burgers, share plates, and boozy milkshakes await
The space formerly home to Bada Bing Dining Club has been transformed into a 200-capacity ground-floor extension of Fun Time Pony, and it has a fresh menu to match.
Pony Up, the brand-new ground-floor extension of Fun Time Pony in the Sydney Building, is now bringing smash burgers, share plates, boozy milkshakes and cold beers to the heart of the city. They’re also serving up jalapeño poppers, mozzarella sticks, sticky wings, and deep-fried pickles served with ranch.
If you’re hungry for more, you can read all about it here.
Griffith’s beloved local gets a glow-up
For almost two years, the evolution of Gryphons at the Griffith shops has been happening in plain sight – chair by chair, table by table, menu by menu. Now, owner Spiro Tsiros is ready for the final piece of the transformation – a new name.
Say hello to Barker Street Social – a brighter, more polished version of the neighbourhood venue locals have known for years, sitting in the heart of Griffith’s leafy shopping precinct at 16 Barker Street. Read all about it here.
Hecho en Mexico had us at $5 tacos and $15 margs
Hecho en Mexico has finally opened its second Canberra location in the city! Serving up their signature tacos, bold margaritas and handcrafted salsas, to celebrate the grand opening they have a deal almost too delicious to refuse: $5 tacos and $15 classic margs.
It’s available only until Wednesday 7 October, so channel your inner Speedy Gonzales and get there ASAP.
FEASTS, FESTIVALS AND MORE: DELICIOUS FOODIE EXPERIENCES
Casper’s coming home to Lazy Su
Nearly a decade after starting his hospitality career behind the bar at Lazy Su, MasterChef top five contestant Casper Kenworthy is returning to where it all began – only this time, he’ll be behind the pass.
On Monday 2 November, Casper will team up with Lazy Su for SOUR GRAPES, a one-night-only, grape-focused menu inspired by a little unfinished business from a particularly infamous MasterChef challenge.
Expect seven dishes, including dessert, for $79 per person. Book online.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at The Marion
Is that Christmas carols I hear in the air? The Marion is launching the silly season extra early this year with their Santa High Tea.
Available from Thursday 1 October, you’ll be able to indulge in a Christmas-inspired menu of delicate pastries, freshly baked scones and sugar-dusted delights, all served in the grandeur of the main dining room. And of course, it’s not Christmas without a visit from Santa and Mrs Claus!
Find out more here.
Tokyo’s viral cream sandwiches have landed in Canberra
Run, don’t walk. Bunny Beans Night Café is now serving up these sweet Japanese-inspired slices, and we already predict that there will be lines.
Made with deep-fried honey butter toast, the sandwiches come in three flavours: original, strawberry and matcha crème brûlée. Crispy on the outside, fluffy inside and loaded with cream, they’re a sweet new reason to travel to Holt.
Taste your way through spring at Tintino
The warmer weather is here, and Tintino is celebrating with a free spring wine tasting on Saturday 3 October.
From 3 pm to 5 pm, head to 4/11 Kennedy Street to taste your way through a selection of approachable drops, with the option to order your favourites by the glass or bottle afterwards. And if you find yourself peckish, ask the team for a food pairing to finish off the experience.
Walk-ins are welcome, although bookings are recommended.
These Floriade-inspired menus are serving up a slice of spring
Highlighting fresh regional produce and the flavour of flowers, this list promises the perfect bite of spring. Boasting everything from floral cocktails to beetroot and Belgian chocolate ice cream and sweet seasonal matchas, you’d better hurry – you only have until Sunday 11 October to try it all.
How much is too much? Cookie Pies have entered the chat
Get ready for your next sugar coma, because Munchies has just launched what might be the most decadent dessert we’ve seen yet: Cookie Pies.
Big, gooey and loaded, they made their debut at Dickson’s Highroad earlier in September. Launching two flavours – the Strawberry Oreo Freddo and Biscotela Brownie – keep an eye out to see when and where they’re dropping next.
This event is proof the best conversations happen around the dinner table
Incredible food, meaningful stories and unexpected connections are exactly what you can expect from TEDxCanberra Adventure: Around the table on Thursday 1 October.
Hosted by TEDxCanberra and Café Stepping Stone, the evening will include an all-inclusive shared dining experience featuring a menu inspired by the cultures, traditions and personal stories of Café Stepping Stone’s chefs and team.
Along with sharing the stories behind the dishes – including the cultures they come from, and the people who brought them to life – throughout the evening, TEDxCanberra will also weave in conversation starters, interactive table activations and thought-provoking moments. Designed to spark meaningful discussion and help you connect with the people around you, book your ticket here.
What’s better than a long weekend? Bottomless margs on a long weekend
For those staying in Canberra for the October long weekend, Paloma’s has partnered with Hopscotch to serve up bottomless margs for six hours. What else could you want?
Available from 12 pm until 6 pm, for $85 per person you can book a 90-minute seating and sit back as the rounds keep coming.
Monster Kitchen and Bar roars back to life
If you haven’t visited Monster Kitchen and Bar for a while, this is the perfect excuse to pop in. Making waves for putting meat back on the menu in 2024, the restaurant has launched several new offerings that make finding a park in NewActon very worthwhile.
Mondays see a burger night with $25 double smash patties on the menu and the option to add a selected beer, wine or soft drink for $5, while Tuesdays offer a rotating selection of pasta dishes for $22-$30.
Craving a drink? Pop Wine-Day Wednesday into the calendar to enjoy $14 drops while Thursdays should be set aside for spritz and gin drinks priced from $16 – best enjoyed listening to the live DJ. Finally, Friday night is steak night with 250g Wagyu MBS 6–7 steak frites with bottomless fries for just $49 per person.
If that doesn’t entice you, they’re also offering $35 express lunches Monday to Friday and apéro hour daily from 4.30 pm. With two selected drinks and a snack for just $30, we see it becoming a weekly tradition.
Spend the evening with Australia’s first female Sake Samurai
We bet that got your attention. On Wednesday 21 October, KOTO is holding a rare evening where attendees will celebrate Japanese sake.
Hosted by Yukino Ochiai – the Director of Deja Vu Sake Company and Australia’s first female Sake Samurai – for $215 per person, you’ll enjoy a bespoke seven-course menu by Executive Chef Shinya Nakano, paired with eight premium Japanese sakes. Sharing the stories, regions and traditions behind each pour, you’ll be transported straight to Japan.
Your next dinner plans can be found at Sunday
Sunday in Canberra that is. From Thursday 8 October, the Gungahlin café is extending their opening hours and their menu to introduce Sunday After Dark.
With more details to be announced soon, it looks like buffalo wings, hot honey cauliflower, creamy chicken pasta, and sirloin steak are just some of the things that will be on the dinnertime menu.
