The location: Ca de Vin @ GPO/Bourke Street Mall, Melbourne
The occasion: solo lunch while Fiona went swimming at the gym - I was starving! (in between friend's wedding ceremony at the Botanical Gardens in the morning, and reception in Bulleen in the evening last Sunday)
The dish: Roast Pork with apple and sage sauce, with roast pumpkin, sweet potato and cauliflower gratin
But I asked for other vegetables to replace pumpkin and sweet potato (which I generally dislike) and was given steamed / roast zucchini and corn cobs.
The food: The roast pork was very yum - succulent, weighty, with a bit of crackle (and fat with I cut off). The apple had an interesting texture - it appeared to be Granny Smith, but reminded me of semi-dried apple slices - very sweet. The sauce, because of the apple, was also sweet and complemented the pork well - perhaps slightly too watery though. The crackle (a beautiful dark red and brown) was perfect - slightly crunchy, but slightly sticky and chewy (others may have prefered otherwise). The cauliflower, with a bit of cracked pepper and sicilian sea salt added by me - was nice but slightly soggy. It didn't have flavour of its own and gave me the impression it had been steamed/drenched in water for a tad too long. Eating corn cob with fork and knife presented a bit of a challenge, but I didn't feel up to getting my fingers sticky in the middle of Bourke Street Mall, with pedestrians walking past and watching me eat - in my party dress and best coat.
The place: This brings me to ambience - I really like the outdoor cafe set-up, with random music from buskers further down the mall. I love sitting on the very edge of the area - just next to the tram tracks/walkway - and just daydream or journal in privacy (eventhough people walk past me continuously, I usually zone out when I start journalling). Generally, I think it's a great place to have a coffee and perhaps a snack/light meal - great spot to people watch (or be watched by passers-by - I don't mind too much). The only downside is the passive-smoking since lots of patrons like to smoke in the outdoor cafe part. I haven't dined indoors at Ca de Vin so cannot comment on the decor and ambience inside.
The people: Service is good once you manage to get their attention, but lacks promptness to serve when you first sit down - on several occasions I have found it takes quite a while just to get a menu and see what's available.
Value for money: $22.50 for the roast, which is not too bad, considering that it left me very full. The menu has a variety of small dish offerings (lamb skewers, calamari, etc) for approx $15-20. Otherwise, a pasta dish is approx $20 up.
The verdict:
Food: 6.5/10
Ambience: 7/10
Service: 6/10
Total: 19.5/30
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