Bedford Soda and Liquor

I've been meaning to write this post up for quite a while, and by now half of Auckland seems to have already visited Bedford Soda and Liquor. But - for those of you who haven't made it there, let me tell you all about it.

Nestled in Ponsonby Central, on the Richmond Road side, Bedford Soda and Liquor is an American style meatball and cocktail haven.

Hannah and I visited Bedford for a drink one afternoon, but I naturally I couldn't resist trying the food. But, first things first- the cocktail I tried from the 'Bedford Daisies' menu was a delicious concoction of Tanqueray gin, rhubarb, ginger, pink grapefruit and soda. It was a perfectly balanced (and very pretty) drink that went down dangerously fast.

The drinks menu is enormous, and features re-worked American classics like Tanquery Iced Tea, Bourbon Shakes, Mint Juleps and dozens more. It is a very impressive list, executed by skillful bartenders.

But it's the food menu that's one of the best parts about Bedford- you are given a menu and a non-permanent pen to tick your choice. Very simple, very cool.

We only ordered a few sliders, but the menu is pretty limited so that told us enough. The first slider was the 'special' beef and bacon meatball covered in a naughty hollandaise sauce, cooked to a beautiful pink in the middle. Next up was the pork meatball with a spicy tomato sauce. This one was delicious, although the pork was a bit overdosed on fennel for my liking. The last slider was the delicious beef and gravy- which was definitely my favourite.

The sliders were all pretty good, but competition around here for sliders is tough, and I don't know if these guys would hold up against the likes of Depot or The Roaming Dive. But- the meatballs are great, the cocktails are fantastic, and there is no other meatball joint like this around. You go get 'em Bedford.

Golden Dawn

Golden Dawn is a place I have been to on many a night, where I have been mesmerised by artful hipster types and the blaring music. At night time it's easy to spot on the corner of Richmond and Ponsonby Roads, where outside you'll find a steady line of hopeful hipsters, waiting their turn to enter the hidden bar.

Despite only ever sampling the liquid menu at Golden Dawn, I had been told that the food there was incredibly good. So, doing the good samaritan thing we do by testing out food for you hungry readers, Alice and I strolled to Golden Dawn on Sunday afternoon to see if the food lived up to it's reputation.

We walked past heaving Chapel Bar, Mexico, and the ever busy Blue Breeze Inn to arrive at the corner of Richmond Road outside Golden Dawn, where on so many nights we had stood. But all that appeared in front of us was a derelict brick facade and a bit of graffiti. The only thing giving it away being a dark, tucked away entrance and and a tiny sign. It was quite a novelty having more trouble finding something when you're sober!

Once we had made our way through the dark interior we emerged into the gorgeous sun drenched courtyard. It might have been the calming music playing, or maybe the few quiet groups of patrons, but whatever it was, Alice and I felt like we were at some kind of fantastic eating and drinking relaxation retreat.

We started with cocktails, of course, with Alice choosing the 'Fleeting Glimpse' (gin, elderflower, lime, raspberries and cucumber) while I went for a simple Mint Julep. The beers on tap at Golden Dawn are a selection from Hallertau (remember my trip to the Hallertau Brewery?).

Not particularly hungry, but feeling we couldn't bypass the opportunity to ruin any chance of a summer diet, we ordered a couple of plates to share. First was the Casaro Burratta mozzarella, Heirloom tomatoes, chilli and fresh herbs with crusty sourdough. This doesn't sound particularly exciting- nothing more than a caprese salad on paper, but it was outstanding. The mozzarella was the best I have ever had, and I have never known tomatoes to be so good. A very, very good start.

Next up were the prawn buns with preserved lemon, Japanese mayo and chilli. The bread was hot and fluffy, and the taste of the filling was somewhere between the freshness of ceviche, and the creaminess of a prawn cocktail. This dish blew my socks off.

I think it's fairly safe to say we were impressed with the food. I had never thought of Golden Dawn as a daytime destination, let alone a food destination, but it is one of Ponsonby's rare spots that catches the sun, and is the perfect place for a relaxing afternoon drink and a delicious bite to eat. I can't wait to go back to try the rest of the menu!

Keep an eye on their website here as they often have gigs and events on- like this Sunday coming where they're having a Gypsy Fair from 1pm and Jazz from 5pm. Phwoar!

Summer BBQ - Recipe

After recently moving into a new house we invited some friends around for a BBQ on Saturday afternoon. While the boys went and bought a big pile of pre-cooked sausages and a ready-made salad, I decided the girls and I could do slightly better...

But first things first, we started off with some cocktails made up with gin, lime, cucumber, mint and ginger beer. This is a fantastic and refreshing cocktail that is dangerously easy to drink.

After a few drinks in the sun (note the sunburn lines), we were ready to cook up some Argentinian inspired BBQ food. First up I made some flatbreads using Jamie Oliver's recipe for Navajo Flatbead. As far as bread goes, this recipe is super easy; no yeast, no rising, and not a lot of technique to be honest! But they are very delicious, especially when cooked on a BBQ.

Next up was the salsa verde, the perfect accompaniment to this dish.

Salsa Verde

• A few handfuls of flat leaf parsley
• A couple of mint sprigs
• 1 small garlic clove
• 1 teaspoon capers
• 1 anchovy fillet (or half of one if you're not so keen on them)
• A few good glugs of olive oil, or as much as needed

Either put all of the above ingredients in a food processor, and drizzle in olive oil until it reaches the desired consistency (like pesto), or chop everything up with a small amount of olive oil until very fine, then add to your serving dish with the remaining oil.

For the steak, I used rump, which I gave a little punch up to tenderise. However, for this kind of dish I would actually usually use a cut like skirt or hanger steak- a little tougher, but when tenderised, cooked to rare, then sliced up, it is very delicious. 

Either way, make sure you punch down the steak to tenderise, season very well, then cook on a smoking hot BBQ or stove for only a few minutes on each side. Leave to rest for about 5 minutes, and slice up to serve.

I like putting a dollop of salsa verde on a flatbread, along with a few slices of steak, to make little wraps. That, washed down with a beer or a cocktail in the warm summer sun and you have your afternoon BBQ sorted. 

Britomart Country Club

I'm writing this at the end of the weekend, warm from a few days in the sun, and very happy after a lot of good eating and drinking.

The whole weekend would be one very long blog post, so I'll take you through Saturday afternoon when James and I decided to head down to Britomart. Apart from the odd Saturday night where my camera is best left at home, I hadn't had a proper look around Britomart in a long time, and was pretty amazed at the change it has undergone. Bursting with some awesome shops like Karen Walker, Black Box, Lululemon, Kate Sylvester, and Nike to name a few, Britomart is very cool, and very dangerous territory straight after pay day...

After a mosey around the shops and a rest in the sun, a cold drink was calling (screaming) our names. There are a whole lot of amazing bars down there, but my watering hole of choice is Britomart Country Club, known to most of us as BCC. The bar is covered, but has a great indoor-outdoor feel, and is the perfect place to whittle away a summer afternoon. You can even have a game of minigolf or petanque while you sip on your cocktail.

In the name of summer, I chose cocktails while James stuck it out with beer. I managed to make my way through a fair chunk of the menu (hey, we were there for at least a few hours), and in the end my favourite was the Victorian Mojito: an amazingly refreshing mixture of Bombay Sapphire, lime, apple juice, soda and mint. The best mojito I've ever had, no bull.

After a few more cocktails it was time to eat, and we chose our dishes from the tapas menu. The dishes were small, but well priced, and all very tasty. We had the rich and creamy Spanish croquettes, sticky BBQ spare ribs, and my favourite: the crispy fried chicken.

With full bellies, and a bit of a fuzzy head, it was time to catch the last of the afternoon sun and head home.

Britomart, you have re-captured my heart, and I will be back for more sun and more cocktails very, very soon.