Blue Edge Bakery (breakfast)

Overall score: 59/100 

Restaurant:

Breaking the gastronomical drought in the mornings is one of life's simple pleasures; whether it's a piece of toast with coffee or a full blown all day brekkie,  you want to get it as right as possible. A bakery for instance, should allow you to do this, but on this particularly wonderful morning, The Chameleon was met with a slight drizzle of rain, rather than a full tzunami which he was expecting. 

THE EXPERIENCE

Blue Edge Bakery is smack bang in the middle of Bicheno, a small sleepy 'weekend holiday' town on the east coast of that wonderful state, Tasmania. It presents very well, welcoming, clean and neat, well spaced out, although a distinct lack of seating. This is a small hindrance to the experience, as bakeries are not typically eat-in places, but in Bicheno, it was virtually the only place open. 

The staff were friendly overall; there was a slight feeling of "let's get this order over and done with" but on this busy morning, it was understandable. And busy they were. During The Chameleon's time there, what seemed like at least a hundred people filed in and out, some staying for a meal, some picking up bread; the atmosphere on this morning was one of pleasant rush. 

THE FOOD

The Chameleon ordered one of the breakfast based menu items, the name escapes him. After a somewhat longish wait (although bearable), a well presented plate arrived. This initially pleased The Chameleon; a lot of bakeries simple throw food at the plate, but here, it presented nicely. 

The taste that followed was unfortunately unpleasant. Again, spinach, which The Chameleon loves soooo much, had absolutely no flavour! This is not the first time this has happened; spinach NEEDS something else. It needs an edge to match that wonderful wilted texture. Alas, not today.

The mushrooms too, looked great. As The Chameleon brought it up to his mouth and began to chew, an unpleasant sliminess emerged. It was rather strange; it wasn't entirely from the mushrooms; it came in the form of a lemon dressing which made the acidity over-bearing to the point that I wanted to call out the owner, but, The Chameleon does not complain (until the review of course). The whole meal in-fact was very soggy, including the cardinal sin of placing the toast in a way that it pre-soaked into a gooey mess. LEss than happy Chameleon. 

The highlight at The Chameleon's table was a sausage roll. It was a stock standard bakery style, there were the usual hints of seasoning that made it stand out from your typical take away offering. It was well executed and a total contrast to the main meal. 

Finally, the coffee was passable, but by no means outstanding. The cost was slightly on the expensive side for a bakery and, considering The Chameleon's plate, there was no congruence between the quality and the prices.

    

OVERALL

Blue Edge Bakery is exactly that; a bakery. The attempt at making a cafe style breakfast backfired on this occasion. Stick to what you know best Blue Edge: pastry. 59/100   

Highfields Tavern (lunch)

Overall score: 51/100

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Highfields. The ever-growing utopian suburbia spreading it's wings, the symbol of 'modern living' in the Toowoomba region, the epitome of high brow. But in the centre of all this modern residential growth lies a very un-modern and unassuming shopping center, anchored by Woolies, with the only noticeable dining seemingly belonging to Macdonald's and recently, the addition of a few take away joints hoping for flow on from the multinational. Across the road is a pub. The Highfields Tavern. No surprises there. What was a surprise it that it rated a mention on urbanspoon and hence The Chameleon slinked his way into the car park ready to quench his hunger (and thirst) at the attached bistro.     

THE EXPERIENCE

As the Chameleon exited his car, the unfortunate experience of stepping onto broken glass initially curbed his enthusiasm for the experience that was about to follow. No doubt a lively evening before may have been the catalyst for this unpleasantry; surely a blower in the morning would have taken care of such annoyances to the daytime customers, but alas, beware with kids. 

Upon entering, Highfields Tavern appeared very much like any suburban tavern, with a welcoming pub and a vast eating area at the back. Having visited Crazy Galagher's in Wilsonton not long ago, it was easy to make comparisons to what is basically a very similar venue, with a very similar target market and, surprisingly  an almost identical menu. It dawned on The Chameleon that perhaps these establishments are  in fact linked, possibly even managed, by the same entity. He did notice that the pie ordered at Galagher's was on the menu here as well, so this time round, it was time to see if they can deliver on a decent 'lunch special'. 

In all honesty, Galagher's was way better; the kids area was ten times as good and the spread-out spacious nature of the large room left it with no atmosphere to speak of. A lonely television was playing a lackluster daytime TV drama from the 70s; not exactly augmenting the mood. None-the-less, it was what it was and, for a suburban bistro, satisfactorily acceptable.   

The food ordered was delivered very quickly. Almost too quickly. Freshness questioningly quick.

THE FOOD
The Chameleon ordered the lunch steak (slightly cheaper than the standard steak), and he was also able to sample a steak sandwich and children's menu nuggets from within the group of lizards that the Chameleon was with on this occasion.    

Keeping in mind that The Chameleon is a food critic, sampling some very fine steak in the past, keeping in mind that this was a suburban bistro, AND, keeping in mind that this was a 'lunch steak', it was no surprise that it was barely on par with the steak he sampled at the atypical country pub that was the Pioneer Hotel. The mind boggles when you consider that, in Highfields of all places, the bistro plated up this very, very ordinary piece of flesh. It was overdone, above even the 'well-done' level. Let The Chameleon be clear, he loves well-done steak (charcoal-ed in fact is one of his favourites), he really does, but it is not his preference, and when a bistro goes to the unfulfillable effort of asking how you want it cooked, you expect medium-rare; it's like asking for a cappuccino with two sugars and getting a short black with no sugar. A message for virtually all bistros: please do not ask a customer how he/she/it wants his/her/its steak. You and The Chameleon know that it will be well-done every time. Not that there is anything wrong with well-done, but for the love of god, do not ask!

So, a less than satisfactory steak. The chips too, pub standard, uninspiring. However, there was a very surprising highlight on The Chameleon's plate! The salad dressing that was poured over a very fresh salad was brilliant. The Chameleon is not sure whether it was just the right amount, or whether it was some special in-house sauce or whether it was out of a No-Frills bottle, but whatever it was, it worked well. 

The Diane sauce, as it is in many places, was passable, but definitely not from scratch and did not differ from the atypical lackluster average offerings elsewhere.  

Upon sampling the steak sandwich, The Chameleon approved. It was of a nice consistency, the steak was soft, the overall package was in-fact moreish. The children's nuggets too were 'real' and cooked well. So the Highfields Tavern did some of the food well, but where it counted the most (on The Chameleon's plate), it fell quite short.

OVERALL
The Highfields Tavern had so much potential. New-ish establishment, plenty of space to do something interesting, plenty of time to get the meals right on this slow lunch afternoon. Yet the overall feeling when walking away reiterated to The Chameleon exactly what he was thinking when he saw that lunch time steak; we came, we ate, we will eat somewhere else next time. 51/100

Carousel

Overall score: 59/100

Restaurant:

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Restaurants come in many guises and Carousel is, in a typical way for many regional restaurants, one of those that is semi-detached to a motel. Carousel is simply a rather small dining room, fitted with very simple decor and a number of separate dining areas allowing reconfiguration for groups large or small, for casual dining or even for those who are interested in hiding a little bit in a corner somewhere and not draw attention. A bit like The Chameleon. 

THE EXPERIENCE

First impressions were not positive. While The Chameleon is sure the motel is a very nice place to stay overnight, the Carousel restaurant is small and appears 'intimate', but it just doesn't work. There is hardly any parking, yet the Chameleon has never had trouble finding a spot to park his ride (this was approximately his fourth visit), confirming that Carousel is the type of restaurant where you probably don't need to make reservations. 

The staff were excellent. 'Chirpy' is the only way The Chameleon can describe the overall vibe from the waitresses, and the waitress who served The Chameleon did a very good job recommending dishes. Carousel presents as simple and uncomplicated, and although this can be an advantage for some venues, the small size of this restaurant required further thought into the decor. While there were some things to look at around the room,  and the chandeliers added a touch of class, the lighting was just all wrong and the overall feel suffered as a consequence of this simple approach.  

THE FOOD
It pains The Chameleon to say that once again, a Toowoomba based restaurant has delivered uninspiring and discordant food. 

Things started well; the entrees were presented briskly, getting The Chameleon's hopes up that he may finally give away his third 80-90 score for Toowoomba. And they tasted good, very good in fact. While simple and 'no frills', The Chameleon's taste buds soared when he sampled the very well made bruschetta; it was fresh, the right acidity, the right amount. If the meal had finished then and there, The Chameleon would have walked away a very happy camper. Unfortunately, some disappointments followed.  

The Chameleon ordered the special, which on this particular day was the salmon. The Chameleon often orders this, as it's a great litmus test for most restaurants. It was somewhat pricey on the menu, but then again, so is everything else at Carousel. When it did come to the table, the waitress remembered where I sat (and obviously what I ordered) and kudos again to the friendly staff. The salmon was actually quite good in places. The skin was crispy and 'just right', but the flesh of the fish was cooked inconsistently. Some parts were nice and juicy, while some of it was way overcooked. The sides were minimalist and when you see a small piece of fish, you expect some fill; The Chameleon did not get his money's worth on this night. Unfortunately there was very little and regrettably nothing outstanding on the plate.   

When the dessert was sampled, The Chameleon's heart sunk, as he knew the final score would not equate to that wonderful bruschetta at the start of the evening. The dessert, which The Chameleon won't name (because he has forgotten what it was called), was very poor. Dry was the only way to describe the biscuit portion and there was not much of the ice cream to balance it out. In retrospect, had he covered the biscuits with the ice cream and waited slightly longer, it may have worked, but seriously, The Chameleon does not go to restaurants to cook, that's the Chef's job!

OVERALL

Carousel started promising little, rose to great heights early on, but unfortunately faded somewhat dismally by the end of the evening. The food was barely passable and hence very much overpriced for what The Chameleon consumed over the evening. Another case of an expensive 'once visit' motel restaurant in regional Queensland. 59/100

Milano (breakfast)

Overall score: 49/100 
Restaurant:

Once in a while The Chameleon is spoiled for choice and on this particular morning in Brisbane's CBD, he was lurking to try to find a place with a decent coffee and a hearty breakfast to fuel his day. After seeking the advice of urbanspoon, and coming up short on a few venues, time was getting to be an issue so he sat down at Milano, right in Queens Street Mall. Having only ever eaten once in the Mall, he thought it may be time to 'risk' the experience again and, not heeding the advice of the lowly 53% like rating on urbanspoon, he asked for a seat.       

THE EXPERIENCE

Of course the location is top notch, that is why it was initially chosen. Queen Street Mall is centrally positioned, handy to everything and smack bang right there, a bar-like semi-open eatery with stool type seating, as well as proper swanky tables. At first all was well. Initial impressions were very good, the place was neat, the Mall was relatively empty and the staff were somewhat helpful. Showing The Chameleon to one of the stool-seat tables was however, the start of a downward spiral that indeed confirmed Milano's low urbanspoon score was deserved. 

The waitress could have offered either type of seating; it doesn't take much to ensure the customer is happy, but alas, The Chameleon was directed to a high chair. She must have been having a miserable day as, although smiling on a few occasions, like when The Chameleon paid his bill, she moped around the entire time with such a distasteful look on her face, The Chameleon was definitely put off, though, as is usual, he was able to disguise his true feelings and weathered the negative charade. 

It is often the small things such as this that can turn a meal and The Chameleon hopes that the owner of Milano isn't stuck for waitress choice, because this girl definitely had to go. She rushed about like the world was on fire totally unnecessarily and, as should be the norm in the competitive dining of the CBD, never asked how his meal was. Small things Milano.

THE FOOD
Milano does itself very little favours with its food. Admittedly, the presentation was quite nice, the rectangular plate presented well and apart from hiding one of the pieces of bread under almost all of the other ingredients, The Chameleon was ready to dive in; it looked quite appetising.

From the first bite, the issues began. The bread was, unfortunately very hard. Typically this is not a problem IF there is something to soak up, but to digest two large thick pieces of fancy toast made the Chameleon feel like this meal was going to be a chore. Thankfully, the second 'hidden' piece did absorb some of the moisture from the mushrooms, so about one quarter of it was at least digestible towards the end. The mushrooms were also passable. Everything else on the plate was unfortunately a disappointment. The eggs came out with an inconsistent texture; some parts were great, but overall it was a bit mish-mash. The tomato was a tomato, the bacon underdone. But the worst part of the meal was the coffee. Now, The Chameleon doesn't pretend to be a coffee expert, in fact he can't really tell the difference between milk first then water and the other way around. He drinks it with sugar; and lots of it. But even he can tell when a coffee tastes watered down. This is a significant mistake for a breakfast; a coffee served in the morning should be robust and sharp, you know, give you a kick. The coffee at Milano's may have flied as a soft afternoon cuppa, but not in the morning. 

To round out the experience nicely, when presented with the bill, The Chameleon noticed it was a $20 breakfast! Sure, the location may warrant a larger increase, but to put it on the specials board (without the cost) and then charge $20 was very rude. $15 would have been pushing it and realistically, considering the quality, it was a $13 meal.           

OVERALL

CBD dining can be a bit hit and miss and unfortunately Milano is a miss, by quite a margin. The combination of poor coffee, inconsistent food and a waitress on speed who woke up on the wrong side of the bed (but managed to smile now and again) added up to a breakfast The Chameleon will only remember to try to forget. 49/100   

Crazy Galagher's

Overall score: 57/100 
(score to be confirmed with another visit soon)

Restaurant:

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Sometimes a lizard just has to go and eat. Sometimes, a lizard has to meet up with other lizards for an after work drink. Sometimes, a lizard has to take his family out of the lizard hole to 'eat somewhere else' so Mrs Chameleon won't have to do the dishes afterwards. The Chameleon does not do dishes. It is thus likely that in any of the above situations, one might visit Crazy Galagher's, a large restaurant attached to a very well positioned pub in Toowoomba. The Chameleon uses the term 'restaurant' very loosely.  

THE EXPERIENCE

The venue is actually quite nice. Plenty of parking, heaps of space and the size of the dining room was more than adequate. Good thing too, as the place was full of customers on this busy afternoon. The tables were neat, the place was clean and the staff were very friendly, so a lot of kudos for the establishment. A special mention for ones with kids; this place has a very well designed kids area, with built in game consoles (must have been at least 8), a TV room and a McDonald's style playground (but on steroids) also attached. The Chameleon highly recommends Crazy's for those with kids. It came as a bit of a shock then, that the food was barely passable.  

THE FOOD

As is The Chameleon's style, he ordered what appeared to be the pub specialty, which was the beef steak and mushroom pie. Furthermore, The Chameleon was lucky to have an accomplice who ordered a gnocchi with chorizos, which he was also able to sample. 

The pie was....a pie. While the taste was as it should be, it was slightly on the drier side, and the pastry was very crumbly. Some people may prefer this, but The Chameleon always looks for the crumbly/soft combination in pie pastry. It should be thick, with the outside slightly crumbly and the inside soft and melt-in-your-mouth. Unfortunately this pie was not. The mushrooms in the surrounding gravy were somewhat above the overall dish, but not enough to save the experience. The steak was OK, it simply had nothing special about it and was akin to a steak and mushroom pie you can find in any decent pie shop. 

The gnocchi serve was very large which was a welcomed surprise. It was presentable and looked much better than the simple way The Chameleon's meal was presented. The taste was a mixture; the gnocchi texture was actually well executed, albeit it was evident they weren't freshly made, but The Chameleon did not have this expectation to begin with, considering that after all, Crazy's IS a pub restaurant which would do quite a few meals that evening. The taste was somewhat of a let down. It was presented very salty and the acidic edge in the sauce was just off the right balance, it bit into The Chameleon's palate as it entered his mouth and swirled over his long and skinny tongue. The Chameleon suspects the 'chorizo' was actually a spicy kabana. To be fair, it was a 'just passable' meal.

The real downer of Crazy Gallagher's however, was the cost. The menu was very expensive and considering the average meals received, it was over-priced across all of the selections. The Chameleon doesn't mind paying prices such as these, but the food has to be equivalent and unfortunately that was not the case here.    

OVERALL

Crazy Galagher's is a pub bistro, not a pub 'restaurant', yet you pay restaurant prices. The meals were average to poor and hence it was overly expensive. If you were to visit Crazy's, it would be to give your kids a chance to have a play while you get a chance to eat/drink/talk/play pokies, or, you may use the tables to have a round of drinks with your mates, rather than actually eat there. The fish and chip shop literally across the road has better fare. 57/100    

PIONEER ARMS HOTEL (lunch)

Overall score: 43/100

Restaurant:

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Country pubs are wonderfully diverse places, some full of character and characters, while others are plain and drab with little on offer to draw back potential customers. The Pioneer Arms Hotel is somewhere in between; a country pub that has the character, but unfortunately not the food to match.  

THE EXPERIENCE

Situated not far from Toowoomba, the Chameleon recently stopped over at this picturesque hotel to have a bite for lunch. The long, inviting verendah which spans the entire length of the hotel was the first indication that this should be the stereotypical country pub with that dated decor which the Chameleon has come to expect from a lot of sub-par pubs. What greets a visitor inside though is positively different; the dinning benches are solid timber tables and the bistro eating area is surrounded by antiques and relics, taking the dinner back to a bygone era not too long ago. 

As it was lunchtime, the Chameleon would have thought there'd be a few patrons, but on this occasion there was one gentleman in the bar, sipping his XXXX Gold, letting the world drift by. The publican was friendly and took the order, making the experience of a lunch all the better.

THE FOOD

It's very difficult to comment on 'pub grub', especially during a lunch. Typically the main chef isn't on until dinner; the Chameleon had to wonder as to the mastery of the person behind the grillers. 

The food was bought out quite quickly which was a pleasant surprise. The Chameleon was very hungry indeed on this day and to see the dish appear so quickly was a welcome experience. Some pubs take excessively long to serve up dishes, perhaps to do with the defrosting first, but at the Pioneer Arms, the waiting time was very reasonable. 

The Chameleon had steak. He ordered it medium-rare and of course, it came out inconsistently medium to well-done.  This is a common issue with pubs and one that was replicated here. Although the steak was passable in terms of taste, it was simply overdone and some of the textures that the Chameleon expects with a piece of meat was unfortunately found wanting. The meal overall was passable, but definitely nothing spectacular. The sauce was of a nice consistency (are you reading Federal Hotel/Motel?)  but too salty and was not a good example of the particular sauce ordered. 

OVERALL

The Pioneer Arms Hotel in Goombungee delivers what many country pubs do; reasonably prices meals that you would return in a real restaurant, but is acceptable in this setting. Overall, a typical pub gastronomy experience where nothing went really wrong, but also nothing really went right. 43/100