Flinders Hotel
Cnr Cook & Wood Streets
Flinders VIC 3929
Ph: (03) 5989-0201
Website
Seeing the name "Flinders Hotel" on the itinerary of our trip to the Mornington Peninsula, I had been expecting and looking forward to a casual pub lunch. However, when we arrived, we were whisked into Terminus, the more formal dining area for a four course lunch. What a lovely surprise! (And at this point, I was thankful I'd only had a tiny breakfast!)
The Flinders Hotel has a bit of history, dating back to 1889. However, it has recently been revamped, and now includes the more formal Terminus restaurant, The Deck (a casual pub), and a function area, as well as a 40-room boutique hotel (scheduled to open in September). I'm also told that there are plans in the works to turn the site across the street into a cooking school - all of which I'm sure will make Flinders quite the destination!
Lunch started with some warm and fluffy bread rolls, studded with nigella seeds. I particularly liked the olive tapenade butter that came as an accompaniment.
Clockwise from left: Butter, Olive Tapenade Butter; Olive Oil; Warm bread roll with nigella seeds |
Amuse bouche: butternut soup with aniseed foam and a mushroom borek |
The menu has a distinct north-African vibe, influenced by the Algerian heritage of Chef Pierre, who kindly arranged to have a series of dishes brought out so that we could try a good selection of the menu. I haven't listed prices in the captions below, as I wasn't sure if some of the portions were downsized for tasting purposes. However, to give an indication of price, entrées range from $24 - $27; mains are $34 - $39; sides are $9.50 and desserts are $14 - $17 ($26 for cheese).
For our first course, we were each given the stuffed quail leg.
stuffed quail, cinnamon gnocchi, dried grape juice |
For the next two courses, we were each given a different dish.
roasted rabbit, foie gras, raisin jus |
seared scallops, black pudding, pork belly |
lamb rack, braised shoulder, merguez sausage, raisin and capsicum |
local snapper, shrimp borek and chermoula |
roast kipfler potatoes; roasted carrots with cumin and honey |
Looking back over this meal, I see it was quite meat-heavy. Based on the quality of the food we ate, cooking with meat is obviously one of Pierre's strengths, and in fact, the current menu online only lists two vegetarian entrées and one vegetarian main. Not that this bothers me at all (of course not!), but I just mention it as it's something you might want to keep in mind if you're visiting with a vegetarian or someone who doesn't eat a lot of meat.
Needless to say, we were very full after that generous meal, but just had to order a dessert to share - for research purposes, you understand.
dark chocolate fondant, white chocolate mousse, butternut sorbet |
Chef Pierre Khodja, tagines, spices |
Sarah and Sandra ate lunch as guests of the Flinders Hotel and Mornington Peninsula Tourism.
This is the fifth and final post from my 2012 Mornington Peninsula Trip series. Other posts include: Mornington Peninsula; Montalto; Tussie Mussie Vineyard Retreat; and Stillwater at Crittenden.
7 comments
Meat + Chocolate = Decadence overload. Hehe.
ReplyDeleteI never had nigella seeds before. I wonder how it will taste like.
ahhh yes... I often have dessert for research purposes ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm kinda imagining the olive tapenade butter melting over the roasted kipfler potatoes and it's kinda making my imaginary world happy.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice menu cover. When I hear "Flinders Hotel" I think pub food too so it must have been a nice surprise to see all the lovely food and presentation!
ReplyDeleteMichelle - Yup, we were SO full after that meal! Nigella seeds are also called kalonji or Indian cumin... and they kinda taste like cumin, an earthy spice. :)
ReplyDeleteMichele - Food blogging is a tough life, isn't it! ;)
Hannah - Ooh... that sounds like a fab idea!
April - It's pretty, isn't it? They had it specially designed for the revamp of the hotel. The restaurant was quite a bit more upmarket than I expected! I'll have to try the pub side next time, I'm sure it would be nice too. :)
xox Sarah
AMAZING! I have a soft spot for restaurants with a history... I REALLY want that quail dish now. Absolutely perfect in every way!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this beautiful post! The wines and cuisines which you have talked about are really wonderful and people who will visit Mornington Peninsula will enjoy these dishes.
ReplyDelete