The latest addition to Lonsdale Street in Braddon, Mood Food & Co, opened its doors yesterday. My friend and I arrived for dinner and were greeted warmly by our waiter and shown to a table. Tap water was immediately provided and poured into our glasses.
The indoor area is smallish inside with a huge long open kitchen. There are two big leather couches towards the front for those wanting a relaxed drink (though the liquor license hasn’t yet come through). A fit out of industrial, with granite-like slab walls, wooden panelling and decor is used throughout. A stand out feature are the hanging rows of electric candles placed above normal height. I thought they were very unique and added a certain cosiness to the place, not to mention a good source of mood lighting. Perhaps to match their name?
Love the vertical herb garden against the wall.
The menus are gorgeous and imprinted on thin wooden sheets.
There were a few things that grabbed my attention for dinner, but I decided on the braised kilo ham hocks ($30) with jerk sauce served with fennel and potato dauphinoise, and a honey orange reduction. This was HUGE, bigger than two of my fists. There was quite a lot of meat, much more than I’m used to eating so I didn’t finish it all. Tender juicy ham that fell off the bone. Cooked to perfection! The potatoes were really tasty – kind of like potato bake but lighter. The honey and orange reduction was very subtle. The only very minor complaint would be it was too meaty for me and I would have liked some greens or something else on the plate, not just meat and potato. But it is a very minor concern.
My friend ordered the lamb loin set on Irish champ ($26) with crispy poached duck egg finished with sage butter. She wasn’t asked how she’d like it cooked, luckily it came out just right for her – medium to medium rare. There was quite a lot of oil that pooled at the bottom of the plate but other than that, the lamb was so tender and really easy to cut through. The duck egg was crispy and neither of us knew how that could be done to a poached egg. The mash was a favourite with fresh herbs mixed through it.
There was no way I was leaving without trying at least one dessert. It was very hard to choose. My friend wasn’t that hungry, otherwise I would’ve chosen the dessert platter ($30) with a selection of desserts. I was tossing up between the peanut butter brittle bar, sweet dessert gnocchi and secret dessert nachos. I decided on the secret dessert nachos ($16) which are quite random and I was very curious to see what they were like. The owner told us it was something he’d just made up one day and the fillings with the nachos will often change. The nachos are sweet and slightly sugary tortilla chips sitting on vanilla Chantilly cream with peppered strawberries and blueberries compote, and fresh mint on top. This was a very light and considerably healthy dessert. I thought it was similar to a deconstructed millefeuille. A genius idea and great to hear they will be changing up the flavours.
I thought the waitstaff were extremely friendly and happy to have a chat with you. Service was great and I was happy with the quality and portion of food. Prices for entrees are around the $18 mark, mains $26-$32, desserts $16. I glanced at the brunch menu and knew I had to head back to try it out (breakfast from 7am on weekdays).
I think prices for brunch are a little on the expensive side with the most expensive item being the ‘Bulking Breakfast’ at $25.
Drinks include fresh fruit frappes ($8), liqueur coffee ($6.50), regular coffees ($3.50 for a cup) and for chocolate lovers, you can get a double dose hot chocolate for $4. I got my regular soy mocha which I was happy with but not the best I’ve had. There is strong competition for coffee in the area with Lonsdale Street Roasters, Four Buds, Autolyse and other cafes close by.
I ordered the ‘One Pan Remedy’ ($23) consisting of chorizo, potatoes, cherry tomatoes, two poached eggs, salsa verde and char grilled Italian bread. I broke the poached eggs and mixed it through with everything else. I thought there was a good mix of tasty items in this dish and it was well balanced. The portion was large and I couldn’t finish it all.
My friend ordered the fruit salad bowl ($14) served with minted yoghurt and pomegranate granita. This seemed to be the only gluten-free brunch item on the menu, however I think my one pan remedy minus the bread could be gluten-free. I noticed a few more gluten-free and vegetarian items on the dinner menu. Presentation of the fruit salad was cute – served in a scooped out orange which was used as the bowl.
Again, I was happy with the quality of food (though slightly pricey for brunch) and the atmosphere is laid-back and casual. I’d love to go back for dinner again and try out more desserts 🙂
One thing to note is that all credit card and eftpos payments are charged with a 2% fee.
Located in the Mode 3 building, Mood Food & Co are open 7 days a week for breakfast and lunch. Dinner Wednesday to Saturday. All day breakfast on Sundays. There are plenty of tables outside too, great for summer.
Foodgasm 7.5/10
