The Dandenong Ranges

The Independent Gembrook

~ danib@eatmystreet.net

The Independent Gembrook

Tonight we took a beautiful drive through the Yarra Ranges to the visit The Independent restaurant in Gembrook. You can read about my previous visit here, but I thought a little update was in order.

The Independent Gembrook

Set in a former hardware store in the main street of Gembrook, The Independent is co-owned by Chef Mauro Callegari and the family behind Robert Gordon pottery. They serve Argentinian food in a large, open dining hall with exposed timber beams and a sweet little view out onto the street.

view onto street The Independent Gembrook

To find it you have to take a sweeping drive through the surrounding hills, to end up in the tiny little town of Gembrook, home to the iconic Puffing Billy railway. Consider the drive through rolling green pastures a part of the overall experience and you might just have yourself a refreshing mini- break in the country. There are a lot of good things to do out this way, most of which will leave you feeling recharged and reconnected.

Shared plates at the Independent Gembrook

The menu is based around shared plates and tapas style food. The wine list has a few local offerings as well as their Argentinian counterparts. Service was prompt, enthusiastic and solicitous this time around. We ordered the shoulder of lamb to share ($59) which was served with a Beetroot dish with smoked yoghurt & pine nuts. We had to allow half an hour for he lamb to be cooked, but when it arrived it was smoky, sweet and falling off the bone. Well worth the wait.

lamb at the Independent Gembrook

The half hour wait was also a great excuse to order some of the smaller dishes to share.

Twice smoked crumbed pork belly log, $18

Pork Belly at the Independent Gembrook

Grilled chorizo with capsicum, prunes & chimmichurri $12

Chorizo The Independent Gembrook

Roasted potatoes with onion, garlic & thyme  $11

Roast potatoes the Independent Gembrook

Baked mozzarella with Chilli.

The Independent Gembrook

Overall the food was interesting and full of salty, spicy flavours. The restaurant was busy and was run by a team who seemed to know how to manage the bustling space without trouble. Casual yet stylish Argentinian-Australian dining at its best.

Click here to see their website and menu.

Happy Eating.

Dani xx

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The Friday Phone In| Top picks for the weekend

~ eatmystreet ~ 4 Comments

So we have manned the phones, checked the town noticeboard and scanned the Parish Newsletter. The votes are in for our Friday Favourites and top tips for the weekend.

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It is a little cold in Melbourne right now, but as my gorgeous French waiter at the Piggery Cafe in Sherbrooke said to me yesterday “brisk, not cold.” So yes, I am looking on the bright side. Brisk it is (imagine it with a French accent, nice yes?). Plus, school holidays have arrived! No more early morning starts in the cold for 2 weeks. 🙂

Here are my top picks for the weekend.

1. Dinner at O.My.

Mr eatmystreet & I at O.my restaurant.
Mr eatmystreet & I at O.my restaurant.

I was lucky enough to eat at O.my again last week and due to a late cancellation we found ourselves dining in the gorgeous private dining room out the back. It was so beautiful and cosy and the service was fantastic as always. We had the 6 course degustation and my companions ordered the matching wine so we even had our own sommelier. You can read more about O.My here. If you are not in the market for fine dining then maybe jump in the car and check out Iv’s Burritos Food Truck in Upwey. Or for my current food crush, try the best Korean food in Melbourne at Kimchi Hut Glen Waverley.

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Dandenong Ranges

2. Inspire. Stop looking at Facebook photos of all your gorgeous friends on holiday in Bali (or is that just me?)  and instead get in your car and head to somewhere beautiful close by. For me that would be Sassafras in the Dandenong Ranges.  Chojo Bonsai Gallery, Cafe de Beaumarchais, a wander through the mist and a peek in a few gift shops. Don’t forget your beanie, your camera and a few dollars for the Sweet Shop (I’ll have a bag of Pear drops please. How kind of you to ask).

3. Buy. Casey-Berwick Farmers Market at the Old Cheese Factory. 8am to 12.30.  or the Yallourn North Winter Market. The Yallourn North Winter Market launches tomorrow and I have never been there but it looks great. Let me know what you think if you manage a visit. The Casey-Berwick Farmers Market is run by the local RSL and generally has a good smattering of gorgeous food all within the beautiful grounds of The Old Cheese Factory.

4. Bake.  The browneyedbaker.com is the winner of this weeks #Sharethecakeau. She shared a beautiful Snickers Cake with her family and the instructions for chocolate-183543_1280making it can be found here. It looks absolutely amazing and far too complicated for this simple cook. Ever more importantly, there is a very special and very beautiful story behind why she made her Snickers Cake so do please give her a visit and read about it. I recommend you bring tissues. To find out more about #sharethecakeau head here. Or head on over to my Instagram account.

5. Make. Get Crafty with Pip from Meetmeatmikes. Pip Pip is a writer, crafter and author from Melbourne. She loves a crochet square and a craft project and the school holidays may just be the right time for you to check out her blog. It is very beautiful and it will make you smile. It also may inspire you to crochet a blanket or decorate a shadow box. You’ve been warned.

Plus, eatmystreet has embarked on an exciting new project. As well as my mission to get more people connecting together over the sweetness of cake #sharethecakeau, I am also about to launch a series profiling local, inspiring folk of note and their favourite cafes. How awesome is that. I am très excité (oops, the French waiter is haunting me).  So sign up to my blog here or head over to Facebook to “like” me (blush, I am touched) to keep up to date.

Happy Eating.

Dani B