Aussie expats have cause to rejoice: Vegemite has come to town. We were at the new restaurant and bar Australian Open for a late night dinner this week when we spotted Vegemite on the breakfast menu, so we decided to return the next morning.
Until now, London has been the nearest place to find Australia's most beloved foodstuff, a black yeasty spread that most non-Australians consider repulsive. Vegemite's inclusion on the menu inspired high hopes that Australian Open would prove to be an authentic Aussie pub and eatery and a worthy successor to Sydney 2000 (now closed for renovations). But, although we generally liked the place, we discovered that it's not really "fair dinkum."
The interior is nicely laid out, with plenty of televisions for transmitting sporting events, and the atmosphere is suitably laid-back. There's a bar downstairs and two upstairs dining areas, and plenty of Australiana including old beer ads, Aboriginal-style art and a huge wooden crocodile on the wall.
But the menu wasn't quite right, although it included Vegemite, kangaroo and Pavlova, a creamy, fruity dessert created by an Antipodean chef in honor of the great Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova's visit to Australia back in the 1930s.
For starters, the inclusion of totally un-Australian stuffed jalapeno peppers and chicken wings convinced us that this place is probably really targeting Americans -- an impression reinforced by the fact that prawns were referred to on the English-language menu as shrimps. Another un-Australian touch was the fact that the bread came without butter: Aussies don't eat dry bread.
The ingredients listed for the burgers also looked wrong, since any real Aussie burger should include tinned beetroot (that's canned beets to you Americans). And the "real" Aussie kangaroo burger seemed odd, since roo isn't usually served in a burger.
"Are these prices in Australian dollars?" joked an American in our group. Good point. The prices, which are listed in U.S. dollars, were too high -- but to compensate, the servings were American-sized, or twice as big as what you'd get in Australia.
We started with the Grange Salad ($7.50), a huge serving of lettuce, feta, bacon, avocado, egg, olives and orange -- a strange but enjoyable combination.
Apart from the burger, there were two other kangaroo dishes on the menu: kangaroo ragout with Foster's beer, and grilled kangaroo with sweet chili. A Russian dining companion, who was trying kangaroo for the first time, described the ragout as "an unsuccessful combination of flavors that drowns out the kangaroo," adding that she could've made a better stew herself. The kangaroo with sweet chili ($18), on the other hand, was flavorsome, tender, lean and delicious -- and could actually pass for authentic Australian cuisine. The meat, rare enough to be pink inside, was complemented by sweet chili paste and a red hot chili pepper, which didn't overwhelm the kangaroo flavor. Not realizing it would come with generous servings of grilled vegetables and potato wedges, I ordered extra garnishes: wild rice ($1.95) and coleslaw ($1.95), which for some reason was smothered in poppy seeds.
Meanwhile, my Australian dining companion was satisfied with the New Zealand lamb chops with mint sauce ($15). He also ordered steamed broccoli and never received it, but it was nevertheless included on the bill.
Sadly, the only Aussie beers on offer were Fosters draught ($3.90 for a half-liter) and bottled Foster's Ice ($2.95 for 0.33L).
We were too full for dessert, but we'd already ordered Pavlova ($6.95) and Gold Coast fruit salad ($6.50). The giant-sized Pavlova was fairly good -- the cream and fruit was fresh and basically correct, but the meringue base wasn't quite right and one diner's serving lacked the customary passion fruit. Likewise, the fruit salad was decent, but with its Gold Coast name it really should have included pineapple.
We were in for a real shock when we returned the next morning to try the Vegemite toast ($2.50) on the breakfast menu. We should have known something was wrong when we finished our cappuccinos ($4) long before the Vege toast appeared. The second clue was that the waitress, wearing a suspiciously American-style cowgirl getup, brought us knives and forks. All we wanted was a simple slice of buttered toast with Vegemite -- but what we got was a baffling double-decker sandwich consisting of three layers of toast, Vegemite, lettuce, avocado and sliced orange, plus two fried eggs on the side. Tasty, but not "dinky-di."
Upon calling the restaurant a few days later to ask about the Vegemite creation and whether the ostrich on the menu is really ostrich or a mistranslation of emu, I was told the following: The food is supposed to be international; the Vegemite sandwich is designed to appeal to Russians who expect more than just a piece of toast with butter and Vegemite; the chef will prepare plain Vegemite toast if customers request it; the restaurant previously serves real Australian emu but now serve ostrich due to supply problems; and, as of Monday, the menu has been changed. On the new menu, the unsuccessful roo ragout has been replaced by kangaroo saute, the roo with chili now costs $16 instead of $18 and several new items have been added, including Mexican and seafood dishes.
10 Leningradsky Prospekt, Bldg. 1. Metro Belorusskaya. Tel. 214-1749. 10 a.m. to midnight.
Until now, London has been the nearest place to find Australia's most beloved foodstuff, a black yeasty spread that most non-Australians consider repulsive. Vegemite's inclusion on the menu inspired high hopes that Australian Open would prove to be an authentic Aussie pub and eatery and a worthy successor to Sydney 2000 (now closed for renovations). But, although we generally liked the place, we discovered that it's not really "fair dinkum."
The interior is nicely laid out, with plenty of televisions for transmitting sporting events, and the atmosphere is suitably laid-back. There's a bar downstairs and two upstairs dining areas, and plenty of Australiana including old beer ads, Aboriginal-style art and a huge wooden crocodile on the wall.
But the menu wasn't quite right, although it included Vegemite, kangaroo and Pavlova, a creamy, fruity dessert created by an Antipodean chef in honor of the great Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova's visit to Australia back in the 1930s.
For starters, the inclusion of totally un-Australian stuffed jalapeno peppers and chicken wings convinced us that this place is probably really targeting Americans -- an impression reinforced by the fact that prawns were referred to on the English-language menu as shrimps. Another un-Australian touch was the fact that the bread came without butter: Aussies don't eat dry bread.
The ingredients listed for the burgers also looked wrong, since any real Aussie burger should include tinned beetroot (that's canned beets to you Americans). And the "real" Aussie kangaroo burger seemed odd, since roo isn't usually served in a burger.
"Are these prices in Australian dollars?" joked an American in our group. Good point. The prices, which are listed in U.S. dollars, were too high -- but to compensate, the servings were American-sized, or twice as big as what you'd get in Australia.
We started with the Grange Salad ($7.50), a huge serving of lettuce, feta, bacon, avocado, egg, olives and orange -- a strange but enjoyable combination.
Apart from the burger, there were two other kangaroo dishes on the menu: kangaroo ragout with Foster's beer, and grilled kangaroo with sweet chili. A Russian dining companion, who was trying kangaroo for the first time, described the ragout as "an unsuccessful combination of flavors that drowns out the kangaroo," adding that she could've made a better stew herself. The kangaroo with sweet chili ($18), on the other hand, was flavorsome, tender, lean and delicious -- and could actually pass for authentic Australian cuisine. The meat, rare enough to be pink inside, was complemented by sweet chili paste and a red hot chili pepper, which didn't overwhelm the kangaroo flavor. Not realizing it would come with generous servings of grilled vegetables and potato wedges, I ordered extra garnishes: wild rice ($1.95) and coleslaw ($1.95), which for some reason was smothered in poppy seeds.
Meanwhile, my Australian dining companion was satisfied with the New Zealand lamb chops with mint sauce ($15). He also ordered steamed broccoli and never received it, but it was nevertheless included on the bill.
Sadly, the only Aussie beers on offer were Fosters draught ($3.90 for a half-liter) and bottled Foster's Ice ($2.95 for 0.33L).
We were too full for dessert, but we'd already ordered Pavlova ($6.95) and Gold Coast fruit salad ($6.50). The giant-sized Pavlova was fairly good -- the cream and fruit was fresh and basically correct, but the meringue base wasn't quite right and one diner's serving lacked the customary passion fruit. Likewise, the fruit salad was decent, but with its Gold Coast name it really should have included pineapple.
We were in for a real shock when we returned the next morning to try the Vegemite toast ($2.50) on the breakfast menu. We should have known something was wrong when we finished our cappuccinos ($4) long before the Vege toast appeared. The second clue was that the waitress, wearing a suspiciously American-style cowgirl getup, brought us knives and forks. All we wanted was a simple slice of buttered toast with Vegemite -- but what we got was a baffling double-decker sandwich consisting of three layers of toast, Vegemite, lettuce, avocado and sliced orange, plus two fried eggs on the side. Tasty, but not "dinky-di."
Upon calling the restaurant a few days later to ask about the Vegemite creation and whether the ostrich on the menu is really ostrich or a mistranslation of emu, I was told the following: The food is supposed to be international; the Vegemite sandwich is designed to appeal to Russians who expect more than just a piece of toast with butter and Vegemite; the chef will prepare plain Vegemite toast if customers request it; the restaurant previously serves real Australian emu but now serve ostrich due to supply problems; and, as of Monday, the menu has been changed. On the new menu, the unsuccessful roo ragout has been replaced by kangaroo saute, the roo with chili now costs $16 instead of $18 and several new items have been added, including Mexican and seafood dishes.
10 Leningradsky Prospekt, Bldg. 1. Metro Belorusskaya. Tel. 214-1749. 10 a.m. to midnight.
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