Perth is a fabulous city for restaurants and cafes, some appear on the main streets, some along the riverside and others are tucked away in interesting laneways. We began and ended our Western Australian adventure in Perth, staying at the Mantra on Murray in the centre of the CBD.
After a long first day in Perth we decided to have our first meal at our hotel. It is a small intimate restaurant with a covered outdoor area overlooking Murray Street, that would be nice on a warm evening. The steak and chicken were both delicious.
While exploring the city the next day I found a restaurant tucked away in a corner of a lane, just around the corner from our hotel. The Painted Bird had a Middle Eastern touch to its menu and the food was beautifully presented. We started with sourdough with oil, followed by wonderfully tender Lamb Shanks, and decadent dessert!
Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant is a roaring success in Perth, again it was situated very close to our hotel. It was crowded and noisy but looked lots of fun, and by a stroke of luck there was a vacant table for us (we weren’t so lucky when we went there on our return to Perth and would have had to wait about two hours for a table to become available – we didn’t wait!). Our dinner was Prawn Linguine and Panna Cotta for me, and Lamb Ravioli and Affogato for Pete. We started off with a complementary serving of a variety of breads (left).
During that day we had been to Rottnest Island and while having lunch at Dome Restaurant we were visited by two curious locals..but there were no crumbs available!
When we later returned to Perth after a long drive from Wagin, and then joining in the closing festivities of WA Day, we were a tad tired, so decided again to dine at the Mantra. My Chicken Breast with White Beans, Bacon and Spinach, and Pete’s Lamb Loin with Sweet Potato Cake and Vegetables was all delicious and a suitable feast for our return to the capital city.
The following evening we again chose to dine at the Mantra, tender steak for Pete and Barramundi for me, again with some decadent desserts!
We were looking forward to our drive north of Perth to the Swan Valley, renowned for its vineyards and gourmet food outlets We started out with breakfast at Guildford, the centre of the Swan Valley, then made our way along the highway to see the rows of vines, and whatever outlet we chose to visit. The Cheese Barrel was our first stop but they stocked mainly imported cheese and there was no cheese tasting, so we moved next door to Olive Farm Wines, one of the oldest vineyards in the Swan Valley.
Having a sweet tooth we called in to Morish Nuts, and next door to Mondo Nougat. We were able to see how the nutty sweets were made, and amazed at the range of nougat available – but we were very strong and kept our money in our pockets!
We had arranged to meet my cousin and his wife, John and Penny, later at Hilarys Boat Harbour, a beautiful holiday spot north of Perth. We tried the fish and chips for lunch (yummy) but then could not resist tasting some mouth watering ice creams (while shooing off the visiting seagulls).
That evening we found an interesting restaurant, Halcyon Tapas Bar, again tucked away in one of the many laneways in Perth. We were new to tapas, however the waiter was very helpful in suggesting some very tasty and interesting dishes, and it was a delicious and casual meal, with about 6 or 7 different dishes, finishing off with churros with one dip of Nutella and another of Honey & Lime (left).
The following morning we had arranged to meet John and Penny at Northbridge for Yum Cha at a busy Chinese restaurant. Lots of different dishes for us to try, Pete and John really tucking in, John is trying a chicken’s foot!
After our fabulous Chinese Yum Cha we went for a walk to see the sights of trendy Northbridge and came across the most decadent Spanish Chocolate shop, Chocolateria San Churro – chocolates, chocolate cakes, chocolate drinks – we were in heaven!
That night was to be our last in Perth before heading home so we decided to spoil ourselves with a special meal at Halo on the Swan River. It was a pleasant evening, and it was wonderful to watch the lights coming on in the city and around the harbour, and to remember the wonderful holiday we had experienced on our Western Australian adventure. Peter enjoyed Fillet Steak and Coconut Mousse and I loved the Duck Confit and Summer Fruits for dessert.
