A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to try out Mockingbird, a trendy little tapas and cocktail bar on Fitzroy street, next to the George cinema. It's been open for a few years now, but I actually hadn't heard about it until I was invited down. The answer was, of course, yes. Y'all know I love cocktails, and I very rarely head out to St. Kilda, unless it's for a show or concert (recently saw [title of show]). Or some wicked cheesecake and Gugelhupf!
Mockingbird Bar
129 Fitzroy St
St Kilda, Vic 3182
Ph: (03) 9534-0000
Website
We arrived at about 7pm last Friday, together with Thanh and Ling, and took some pictures out on Fitzroy St before heading in. Have a look at more of Sandra's fabulous shots on her Flickr!
The owner George took over the site a couple of years ago, and renamed it Mockingbird, in honour of his late mother, whose favourite novel was To Kill A Mockingbird.
These shots of Atticus Finch were brought over from the USA by a regular customer.
Red velvet curtains and soft lighting create a warm and welcoming atmosphere, which is enhanced by the use of scented candles. A nice touch.
They have a good cocktail list, including some classics and some signature cocktails, and the food is a mixture of small plates and main meals.
We started off with a round of cocktails... (and I must stress I didn't have these all to myself; we shared them between the 4 of us!)
Espresso martini - Vodka, tia maria, frangelico, shot of espresso
I thought the espresso martini was fabulous! It simply tasted like strong, sweet brewed coffee, with a fabulous creamy foam on top. I'm quite sure it was a lot more alchoholic than it tasted, hehe.
Back: Caramel Martini
Front: Manhattan Cosmopolitan - Vodka, cointreau, chambord, cranberry juice, fresh lime juice
Not pictured: Atticus Finch - Dark rum, sloe gin, peach schnapps, fresh lime juice
The caramel martini tasted a bit like Baileys - a good choice for those of us who like creamy cocktails.T he Atticus Finch looked quite similar to a Cosmo, with a lovely peach flavour (like Japanese peach water - momo no tennensui).
For food, we started with a Mockingbird tasting plate, which included a range of different charcuterie and other treats. FYI, for all the items we tried, I got the prices from the menu - however, George may have altered the quantities from standard-size to serve our group of 4.
Mockingbird tasting plate - Antico Rosso chicken parfait, hand-pressed sopressa, mussels in strawberry (an unusual combo, but it worked!), wagyu bresoala, taramasalata, pancetta, cornichons and olives - $24
I particularly liked the taramasalata, finding it fresh, rich and creamy. The chicken parfait was also a highlight. (Must learn to make my own!) The tasting plate came with a serving of warm pita bread, which was very soft and had a delectable charred taste from the pan.
Warm pita bread
In my opinion, cocktails are best accompanied by deep-fried morsels...
Mozzarella and herb arancini with beetroot sauce - $6
Beer battered Moreton Bay bugs tails with caper mayonnaise - $24
The moreton bay bugs were extremely fresh, and crispily fried, topped with a classic tartare-style sauce, and little fish eggs, capers and red onions scattered about. Mmm.. I could have eaten a whole plate of those to myself!
We had a couple more drinks in between courses.. (well, it was a Friday night!)
The below drink, the Lychee and Passionfruit martini, is what we would describe as a "typical Sarah drink", combining 2 of my favourite ingredients.
Lychee and Passionfruit Martini
George generously provided the recipe for the cocktail, which I will share with you now, in the hope that someone will make it for me. *Hint hint*
Mockingbird's Lychee and Passion fruit Martini
1 oz lychee vodka
1/2 oz lychee liquor
1/2 oz passionfruit liquor
two barspoons passionfruit pulp
Mix ingredients (except the pulp) in a Boston glass, shake and double strain on a cocktail glass. Add the two barspoons of passion fruit pulp.
Another Mockingbird special is their "twisted mojito" - like a regular mojito, but with vanilla vodka. I think the warmth of the vanilla worked really well against the freshness of the mint and the lime.
We shared the following main, which looked deceptively simple - just chicken and polenta - but was absolutely amazing! My favourite of the night.
Half-roasted chicken on truffled polenta with jus deglaze - $28
The chicken was juicy and had crispy skin. I don't normally like polenta, but this version was delicious. It was decadently smooth and creamy, and I think it had more than a touch of butter!
And to finish off... a couple of creme brûlées.
Creme brûlée with espresso ice-cream and burnt orange ice-cream - $11
Who doesn't love the tap-tap-crack of a creme brûlée? Mockingbird's version had a thin and crackly sugar top, and a smooth custard. No little vanilla-bean flecks, but it was a good version nonetheless. The ice-creams were both very grown-up flavours - a strong espresso, and a slightly bitter burnt orange.
From the outside, Mockingbird looks like a standard cocktail bar, and whilst they certainly do have great cocktails, I was just as impressed by the food they serve. A lovely spot for a quiet drink, a snack or something more substantial.
Sarah and Sandra dined as guests of Mockingbird, with thanks to George Lentzos.
3 comments
Nice! Can't wait till I try it as well. Hmmm... caramel cocktail will suit me, I think. :)
ReplyDeleteYou didn't have ALL the cocktails, just most of them haha.
ReplyDeleteI love cracking the tops of creme brulee every since watching Amelie. It's such a pleasure.
Good description of all the food despite all those cocktails. It was definitely a nice place to have a drink on the weekends.
Great photos Sandra and Sarah! Love the close up photo especially of the coffee machine.
ReplyDeleteI loved the espresso martini too, it was pretty strong stuff for me haha, I remember taking 5 sips in one go hehe. Food was ultra tasty too :-)
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