Scrumdiferous

(cue TV voice over here) Previously on my blog…

HR and I are away for the weekend, staying in Albury, but the main event – dinner – is to be at Miss Amelie which is in Wodonga (go read the blogs). We've had the obligatory domestic, played tourist and now it is time for the finest dining experience one could wish for……….

However, before I move on I must admit to being a bit of an ignoramus…I have been saying Miss Amelie with a long e sound in the Amelie sort of Ameelie, turns out it is pronounced Amelie, like Emily but with an A (Thanks Christian)

Scrumdiferous is the best word to describe the food at  Miss Amelie. Grandificent is the word to describe the whole experience. I'm not sure how to get flippercanorious in but all three words meant 'wonderful' a century ago. Uniquely splendid words for a uniquely splendid establishment and experience!

HR and I took a taxi to the restaurant so we could both enjoy a drink and not have to worry bout the booze bus.
The last time we were here it was winter and quite dark at 6:30 pm. This time it is spring and the light fills the space.
The dining room was beautifully set up and we were shown to our table where Christian looked after us for the evening.
I started with the Miss Amelie cocktail, again, still have no idea what is in it, and frankly if you want to know go to the restaurant and order one!!! It is a delightfully refreshing drink and a perfect accompaniment to perusing the menu (updated since our last visit) HR had a beer.

I started with the- green asparagus, organic duck egg, beurre noisette crumb, salted ricotta- what a riot of beautiful flavours and textures. The gorgeous greens of the asparagus highlighted by the bright yellow of the duck egg a gorgeous feast for the eyes. The crisp vegetable, the creamy yolk, the buerre noisette crumb all combined into a delicious whole. I paired this dish with a glass of – cooper burns riesling ~ eden valley sa -a nice combination.
HR chose the – spanner crab, compressed green apple, daikon, shisho, cucumber jelly- and pronounced himself very happy with his choice. HR had beer with his entrée. No I didn't sample this dish 🙂 I was to engrossed with my own food.

HR and I ,having overcome the earlier contretemps, discussed the relative merits of retiring to the region so it would be easier to dine regularly at Miss Amelie…..

Main course and I have chosen the – confit lamb scotch, spring peas, beetroot, radish, pickled raspberries – what a crime to actually cut into this picturesque dish!!!! However I overcame my qualms and tucked in…..what a delight!!! The lamb was tender and cooked to perfection the vegetables divine the flavours blending perfectly. This Kapay boy knows how to construct a dish to appeal to all the senses!!!
Now I am not a red wine drinker and indeed am fairly ignorant on the subject so I asked Christian to serve my something a little fruity and not too dry – he excelled in fulfilling the brief!! I have no idea what he served but it was lovely and perfectly matched to the meal! (Thank you again Christian).
HR chose – baked potato + parmesan gnocchi, tuscan cabbage, taleggio + fontina – and again declared himself well pleased with his choice.Again he had beer and again I did not taste the dish – seriously it would have messed with my experience AND he would have expected to have a taste of mine and quite frankly that was NEVER going to happen!!!!
Not a lot of chat happening at this stage as we were fully immersed in enjoying our chosen repast. Heaven.
Now those of you who read my blogs (thank you, thank you, thank you) would know that while I know of David Kapay and his recent chef history,we share a passion for the same footy team (the Mighty Brisbane Lions), I have never had the pleasure of actually meeting him. That changed this evening. I asked Christian to mention to David that I was surprised he did not have a maroon, blue and gold (Brisbane Lion's colours) dish on the menu and David laughed and promptly came over to the table and we introduced ourselves. Mindful of the busy dining room we didn't hold David up for long but it was nice that we could have that moment – Thank you.

HR and I consulted the dessert menu…
I can never resist the – lemon soufflé, poppy seed sablé, french meringue, cheesecake ice cream – honestly it is the most awesome experience eating this soufflé like eating lemon flavoured clouds. I chose t have a lovely glass of – montevecchio moscato ~ heathcote vic – the lemon of the soufflé working with the sweetness of the wine. Hey, I'm no epicure, gastronome or whatever,it worked for me!!!
HR had – chocolate + hazelnut praline 'cannelloni', salted honeycomb, orange curd – and while I am not one for chocolate dessert thingies, this thing looked awesome and smelled like jaffas!!! HR was very well pleased. There's a really good write up about this particular dessert in the 'Essentials' magazine . Someone who is way more articulate than I am describes this dessert beautifully and you get some nice back story on our host – David Kapay.

 We've just spent the last two hours wining and dining, we've hardly noticed that the dining room is actually full.

Of the three words I used at the beginning of this blog 'Scrumdiferous' is the one that most suits how I feel about Miss Amelie and that is why I used it as the title.

 It's been a pleasure as always and we have made plans to return in February 2017.