I found that there were so many 'regular' restaurants that had 'safe' meals for me to eat, that it wasn't really necessary for me to go out of my way to visit places specifically advertised as allergy-friendly, although there were several I found in my internet searches - I will detail these in a later post. My experience is that many high-quality restaurants tend to do simple, pared-down meals very well. The ingredients and care taken with them is such that the flavours shine without too many complex sauces or layers that may hide foods I shouldn't eat.
With this in mind, one of the first delicious meals I had was at Republica restaurant at St Kilda beach. Firstly, what a setting! My appetite was already stimulated by a swim in the seawater pool at St Kilda Baths, an indoor 'resort style' pool with huge windows overlooking the beach. After an hour or so of alternating between laps in the 25m pool and lolling in the heated hydrotherapy pool (basically an oversized spa) I was very ready for some lunch.
The restaurant was conveniently housed in the same building as the Baths. After deciding on a suitable spot (a fun hanging egg-shaped wicker chair) I put in my order at the outdoor bar window. On a sunny day, with a light sea breeze blowing and the picture perfect setting, I felt that only seafood and a crisp, cold beer would do - despite not being much of a beer drinker. As I waited for my tuna salad to arrive, I sipped on an entirely appropriate Corona:
This was fairly quickly followed by my freshly grilled tuna salad (which wasn't listed as containing onion - thankfully it was quite easy to pick this out and didn't alter the enjoyment and flavour at all). Light on the promised ginger dressing, it was still very tasty, light and perfect beachside food.
A beautifully tender, charred piece of tuna, rare in the middle as it should be, sat atop thin curls and small chunks of cucumber combined with slivers of chilli (not very hot), coriander and sesame. The little yellow adornments were listed as fried whitebait on the menu, though I could detect little fishiness - they could just as easily have been fried noodles. Despite this, they added a pleasant crunch.
Being pretty hungry after the swim, I quickly finished the salad, then sipped on my beer, enjoying the view. I confess that I was also plotting where to go for my next course (that salad was pretty light!). Hmmm...didn't take too much pondering, being within 5 minutes walk of Acland Street, also known by some as 'Cakeland Street'!
A short wander down and across the road and I found myself perusing the alluring displays in the multitude of cake stores that lined the street. Many of these stores have relatively long and rich histories, with a predominance of older European specialties, along with more modern additions.
It didn't take long for me to find Monarch Cakes, who provided several gluten free options. Having eaten there on a previous Melbourne visit, I knew that anything I ordered would be super fresh and incredibly good quality, so there was no fear of a sad, dried-out, second rate cake as the 'special' choice.
Of course, the white chocolate, hazelnut and orange flourless cake I ordered (with a soy hot choc on the side) was absolutely divine:
Sitting at a small table on the footpath, I enjoyed every mouthful, along with the people-watching and snippets of overheard conversations between fellow cafe-goers. It is always so interesting to get an insight into the lives of others in these contexts! :)
One thing I have forgotten to mention so far is the little detour I took on the way to Acland Street. You see, on my last visit I discovered a little hidden haven from the hustle and bustle, known as St Kilda Community Garden.
Full of flourishing plants grown for both decorative and edible purposes, this place is truly inspirational. Coming from Canberra, gardens are taken for granted with the relative abundance of land we have here. Houses with decent backyards are the norm here rather than the exception, whereas Melburnians need to be much more persistent and innovative when it comes to gardening with all but the outer suburban dwellers finding space and soil at a premium.
The Community Gardens contain not only plots of land full to the brim with veggies, fruit and flowers, but also a chicken run, dedicated composting area, artworks/sculpture and a basic kitchen/dining setup which is open to all users.
I got the feeling during my short visit to Melbourne that this was not an isolated example. Brochures on an upcoming Sustainability Festival, along with a demonstration kitchen garden area complete with astroturf, were readily accessible in the middle of Melbourne Central shopping mall, of all places:
Overall, the impression I had was of a vibrant, adaptable and passionate movement within Melbourne to embrace sustainability in an enjoyable and inclusive way. A way in which people's lives can feel enriched, not deprived, by a change to different methods of production and consumption. Pretty amazing stuff!
St Kilda 'Veg Out' Community Gardens
Cnr Shakespeare Grove and Chaucer Street, St Kilda
(behind Acland Street, near Luna Park)
hello@vegout.asn.au
Melbourne/Victoria Sustainable Living Festival
February 9-24 2013
info@slf.org.au
(03) 9249 1888
Republica Restaurant
St Kilda Sea Baths,
10-18 Jacka Boulevard
St Kilda, VIC
(03) 8598 9055
Monarch Cakes
103 Acland Street
St Kilda, VIC
(03) 9534 2972
St Kilda Sea Baths (owned by South Pacific Health Club)
10-18 Jacka Boulevard
St Kilda, VIC
(03) 9525 4888
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