Wednesday night ribs @ Legends in Manuka, Canberra

Have you got 20 bucks to spend for dinner? Do you like ribs? If you answered yes to both questions, then you need to do yourself a favour and get yourself to Legends for their Wednesday night ribs. It will be the best $20 you’ve ever spent on a meal in Canberra. I’m not even kidding. But don’t forget to book and let them know you’ll be ordering ribs when you book. They only make a limited amount.

When the wait staff came round to take our orders, I ordered ribs and was horrified when she told me she’d have to check if there were any left. It wasn’t even 7:30pm and the place was half empty! I would have gone home and cried if they’d said they were out. Luckily, the person who had booked our table had also pre-booked our ribs. Huzzah!!!

They say ribs are best eaten without cutlery. After tonight’s experience, I beg to differ. The meat was so succulent and tender that it was IMPOSSIBLE to eat it without cutlery! I didn’t even need to use a steak knife – a slight jab with the fork and the meat literally fell off the bone.

Right, onto the hero of the dish – the sauce. After one bite, a friend proclaimed matter-of-factly, “This sauce is my new happy place”. Someone else said this was a way of eating sauce. I agreed with everyone’s assessment of the sauce; it was spectacularly well-balanced between sweet, sour, tangy, smokey flavours. The meat was simply a (delicious) vehicle for the perfect barbeque sauce.

To be honest, I was a bit too caught up having a magical moment with the delicious ribs to care much about what else was on the plate. Legends was very generous with the amount of chips and salad. I know this because every time I moved anything on my plate, a bit more salad fell onto the table.

My one critique in an otherwise superb dinner was that the amount of ribs per plate was not the same for each person. In a party of 7, most people (like me) received a decent portion of ribs, however, not all of us were as fortunate. Also, it was a bit tricky to make eye contact with wait staff as it was a fairly busy night for a Wednesday (the tables had filled up by then); however, we never had to ask for our bottles of water to be replaced, which was a pleasant surprise.

I hate to tantalise and leave you hanging but unfortunately, Legends does not do their weeknight specials in the month of December, which means I only just sneaked in for the last ribs night for 2012. Luckily for you, they open again first thing in the new year on 2 January 2013!

Food Avenue rating: 9/10

For my review on other dishes at Legends (including their tapas and paella), click here.

Smoque (Southern American BBQ) - Civic

 

Smoque has only just recently opened in Canberra and is pulling the crowds that its predecessors (Antigo’s and Pelagic) never did. Loyal repeat customers have been raving about the food like it’s the best thing since sliced bread.

Red Chilli Sichuan Restaurant - Civic, Canberra

I was very disappointed when La Pasa Singaporean closed down as it had been one of my favourite haunts in Civic. So I eagerly awaited the opening of this restaurant which has taken up the space instead. The Red Chilli Sichuan Restaurant is part of the Red Chilli Group which has restaurants in Sydney and Brisbane. The Canberra restaurant is so new that it hasn't even been included on their website nor do they have business cards yet.

Stepping into the restaurant, I thought the renovations were impressive, with majestic Chinese architectural wooden arches greeting you as you walked into the restaurant. The interior looked much fresher and brighter after the installation of more ceiling lights.

Playground Martini and Tapas Bar - Garema Place, Civic

I had a good first impression of this place - there was a definite cute, playful vibe and I really liked the canopy of ropes across the ceiling. The AV projector created the effect of flying birds fluttering about the tree on the wall, which was unexpectedly quirky. The use of the black walls as a blackboard was effective, especially with the coloured chalk.

Chong Co Thai Bar and Restaurant - Belconnen

And so begins the battle of the north-side Thai restaurants. In my last post, I reviewed Morks restaurant (located in Florey), which has been my all-time favourite restaurant in Canberra. There's a contender on the scene, and that's the relatively new Chong Co Thai Bar and Restaurant located on the outskirts of Westfield Belconnen. As soon as I walked in to the restaurant, I noticed the classy interior. It was a great balance between traditional Thai features and modern elegance. The open kitchen connected to a bar that serves a range of cocktails. I thought the centrepiece of the restaurant - the water fountains - was a lovely touch.

Morks

I think it's time I reveal the restaurant that has been my favourite restaurant in Canberra for the past four years. I was going to say it is the hidden secret of Canberra, but then discovered it was the number 1 rated restaurant in Canberra on Trip Advisor.com.au. So I guess it's not as unknown as I first thought!

Morks is a family-run Thai restaurant located in Florey and the hospitality is always warm and welcoming. It's the restaurant I always think of when there's a special occasion to celebrate or interstate visitors to entertain. I recommended Morks to my family when they visited me for a weekend. We went there on the first night and they loved it so much, they immediately booked again to come back the following night!

The menu selection is quite limited, but the trade off is you get high quality inventive dishes, which you know have been given that extra amount of care and precision.

Saigon rolls (Bánh mì) @ Saigon Fresh

Saigon rolls are back in town!!

My love of Saigon rolls (bánh mì) began when Hub Asian supermarket opened right next to my apartment complex in Belconnen. It was my weekend ritual to pop downstairs and grab a fresh, made-to-order Saigon roll for lunch. So when Hub grocers closed a couple of years ago, I was devastated. I searched everywhere in Canberra for bánh mì but couldn't find it anywhere! :(

When I heard that a Vietnamese place in Gungahlin was selling them, I immediately made plans with a friend to check it out!!

Any Saigon roll (pork, chicken, meatball, vegetarian) costs $5.50. A combo deal costs $8, which includes a soft drink from the fridge. For an extra $1, you can upgrade to the drinks on the menu - juice, smoothie or Vietnamese ice coffee.