Wharf Hotel

I was lucky enough to get invited by the Wharf Hotel to try their menu. Hate to admit it, but prior to the invitation, I had never heard of Wharf Hotel, so I wasn't sure what to expect. So D and I decided to make a date night out of this outing, and it was a good thing that we did. Wharf Hotel is located along the Yarra opposite the Melbourne Exhibition Centre. It is a beautiful and Melbourne scenic location on a day/night with lovely weather. It is a casual pub style setting, so it's a perfect venue to kick back for a few lazy drinks and nibbles.

To start with, we got the southern fried chicken and the beer battered prawns. The chicken was served with a rich blue cheese sauce and some celery sticks (to help you feel less guilty). The chicken was crisp and juicy and if you like blue cheese, the sauce won't disappoint.

The beer battered prawns were well coated, with the hero of the dish being the miso mayo that it came with. D and I had a difference of opinion here. He thought this dish was very ordinary but I didn't mind it and would order it again.

For main, D went with classic pub style food getting the chicken parma. This came with a generous side serve of chips and salad. The chicken was tender and there was just the right amount of Napoli sauce without the parma getting too soggy. After a long day's work, I would happily demolish this.

I went with the market steak. It was served with a red wine jus on a bed of baked cauliflower and sweet potato. There was a lot happening on this plate and I just didn't know where to start. All the elements were great on their own, but once it was all put together on the plate, I just couldn't finish it and found it very heavy. I would recommend this to a big eater or someone very hungry.

For dessert D and I shared the salted creme caramel. I loved how this was served with gingerbread and walnuts. I really liked the twist on a traditional creme caramel. Only downfall was the creme caramel was too eggy for my liking and the crumbed gingerbread should have been served in a finer portion rather than large chunks.

Overall 14/20 I think Wharf Hotel does a great job in making your usual pub dishes in a more refined manner. The staff were friendly and attentive, it wasn't just because I was invited and the knew I was a food blogger. I noticed they were attentive to all the tables and knowledgeable with their menu.