Ole’s opening week couldn’t be timelier – smack bang in the middle of Brisbane Festival 2011 where the crowds around Southbank are at a peak, on top of the fact it’s also school holidays.  Pretty smart! 

MM and his siblings decided there was no better way to spend a sunny spring Saturday than over a few cool beers and progressive tasty tapas, so off to Ole we went.

The waiter had me picked before I even took a seat – with a quick exchange of knowing glances he promptly bought me a glass of the Ole red sangria, while the boys went with the authentic Spanish beer Estrella, uncannily pronounced ‘a-stray-ya’…

We decided to select a heap of items from both the Tapas and Racione (slightly more substantial than tapas) menus – there were plenty to choose from, all sounding equally as delightful as each other, making the decision somewhat tricky.

The chilli and garlic prawns were exceptional – not too hot, and not too garlicky – just right.

The chorizo and squid with cherry tomatoes – I love it when the chorizo is elegantly sliced like this and the squid was cooked to perfection, although the little creature’s suckers kept sticking to my tongue….eek!

The jamon was melt-in-your-mouth delicious, although the portion was tiny compared to the price – watch out for this one, it really was the only one I was a little taken back with on price and portion.

The ‘patatas’ were thick and chunky and drizzled on top was a tasty, mildly spicy sauce.

Also around the table was chicken skewers with fragrant safron rice;

Battered chickpea balls with spicy dipping sauce

Chorizo and beef meatballs

A little too wrapped up in my sangrias and the conversation, my attention to detail on the menu item names and prices fell mostly by the way side.  I guess all you really need to know is that the prices are fairly standard as far as tapas goes – you know, kind of pricey at first glance for small morsels (anywhere from $8 – $16), but worth it for the flavour sensations, relaxing atmosphere, friendly staff and authentic tapas experience.

• Ole Restaurant, Shop B12 Little Stanley St, Southbank +61 7 3846 1201

Thanks to Brisbane Marketing, I was given the opportunity to explore and grow the very under developed artist within me, by attending Surrealism Up Late – a lively combination of art and entertainment – held Friday evenings from 5.30 – 10pm.

When JA and I rocked up we weren’t really sure what to expect; there was a mixed bag of punters walking through the doors – some dressed to impress and hell bent on heading straight to the bar, others swanning in casually yet making a prompt move for the exhibition rooms.

We decided to kick things off casually with a glass of sparkling wine each ($7) and took up some prime real estate in elegantly mood-lit main lounge/bar area which overlooks the river and the lovely lights of the Kurilpa Bridge.  Catching up on the week’s festivities at work and home, JA and I were feeling less and less inclined to do the tour of the exhibition hall as each glass of bubbles peeled another layer of coherency away….

We soon enough snapped out of our bubble-induced coma however and headed to the exhibition rooms to start our trek through the years of surrealism (the 1920’s) and what could be only interpreted by the uneducated eye (mine, that is) as a period of indulgence in mind altering drugs – refer to previous squishy eyeballs comment.  Whilst the rooms were magnificently decorated and pieces elegantly hung under lights to show them off in all their quirky glory, it just really didn’t float my arty boat.

Several Google searches later however and now a newfound understanding of what the Surrealism period in the world of art represented, I guess it all makes a little more sense and those ‘what the…?!’ pieces have gained a little more respect and admiration.  Perhaps a little less champagne next time may help my cause….!

Towards the conclusion of our exploration into Surrealism, the evening’s scheduled entertainment was getting well and truly into their set and had the crowd in the bar area toe tapping and head nodding; the mood had lifted somewhat and the venue more resembled a classy but relaxed nightclub and so we settled in for another round of bubbles…

Although we hadn’t been too moved by the artwork (nobody’s problem but our own), the Up Late experience had relaxed and impressed us both and really was a rather pleasant thing to partake in on a Friday night in our beautiful city – and definitely worth it for those who have an appreciation for this type of art, or any affiliation with the arts at all really.   Surrealism:  The Poetry of Dreams runs until 2^nd October 2011, with the Up Late sessions occurring every Friday evening from 5.30 to 10pm until 30^th September, tickets will set you back about $20.  For more information see www.visitbrisbane.com.au

• Surrealism Up Late – Gallery of Modern Art, South Brisbane.

The Burrito Bar Southbank adds a pretty funky and fresh vibe to what is essentially a Subway-style fast food venue with, of course, a Mexican twist including slushy thirst quenching alcoholic beverages.

The graffiti clad walls and Mexican lingo on the menu were a little distracting so I had trouble getting my head around the options and the ordering process.  Afterall, I prefer to spend time contemplating what to fill my belly with, as opposed to being pressured to make a decision…..the bane of my colleagues’ existence.

Once I finally had the process straight in my head, I opted for the small Cancun burrito with rice, refried beans, sour cream, cheese, guacamole and lettuce with a Fajita chicken filling and salsa ($9.90).  Although a little pricier than what I like to spend for a sandwhich style lunch, the serving was generous, really fresh and pretty much hit the mark on taste.

The boys had the same, but in man sizes, with extra spicy things and other additional fillings.  We washed it all down with some tasty imported fizzy drinks called Jarritos.

The contents of The Burrito Bar burritos were super fresh and pretty tasty; although they could do with more meat and less refried beans.  One thing I know about burritos – they’re hard to photograph – there’s just no real way of making them look glamorous.

My accommodating colleagues are quite happy for me to take ‘before’ shots of their meals, but getting them to strike a mid-meal pose is just impossible…so you’ll have to take my word for it that inside these floury parcels were some pretty good tasting Mexican concoctions.

• The Burrito Bar (Southbank) – 5/167 Grey St, South Brisbane +61 7 3847 5352

Albeit a little understated, Piaf takes up some pretty good real estate on the popular Grey St promenade and all day has a constant stream of coffee and tea goers from the surrounding businesses.  The indoor-outdoor dining area is a great people watching spot and has a casual, cosy feel to it.

For me, Piaf holds fond memories of the BEST breakfast omelette I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating (well before my HOT or NOT days and unfortunately no longer on the brekkie menu).  My dinner experience wasn’t as impressive as the infamous omelette, but it was pretty darn good.

The dinner menu is succinct in both options and pricing – all the entrees have the one price and the same is so for the mains, sides and dessert.  All the meals sound mouth watering with just the right amount of fanciness and intrigue.

We started with a serve of the sour dough and balsamic ($8) which was ample in portions yet fairly standard as far as bread starters go.  For a main, MM chose the steak, a tender and generous side of sirloin with mushroom gravy and sliced kipfler potatoes ($22).  The steak was medium rare as ordered, a little on the fatty side, but delightfully juicy with a perfect gravy.

I chose the fennel and roasted pumpkin cannelloni in white wine sauce ($22).  The cannelloni was baked and served in its own dish, which was a nice touch for presentation.  The fennel and pumpkin flavours were only subtle but perfectly complimented with a rich cheesy white wine sauce.

Both meals were ample in size however there was a distinct lack of token sides or garnish to pick through and for me, a little greenery is always nice so you don’t feel obliged to spend up on over priced side dishes that you’re not likely to finish.  Never the less, we both enjoyed our meals and complimented the chef.

We were a little pushed for time due to our impending movie, which I think un-nerved our waiter a little but regardless, the service at Piaf was prompt and friendly and the night time ambience romantic and relaxed.  It was the perfect start to our mid-week date and we’d return again to do the same.

• Piaf – 182 Grey St, South Brisbane, +61 7 3846 5026

CC’s HOT Gig List – Top 3 HOT gigs for the next 3 months

April 2010

1) Yves Klein Blue – 17th April, Old Museum Concert Hall, Fortitude Valley

Four guys from Brisbane, recently supporting Franz Ferdinand on tour.  Debut album ‘Ragged & Ecstatic’ was recorded in a 2-room flat in North Hollywood with Kevin Augunas (Cold War Kids), with influences of Elvis Costello, The Replacements, Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Weezer.  Be interesting to check them out.  With Cloud Control and Last Dinosaurs.

2) Crayon Fields – 11th April, The Zoo, Fortitude Valley (with Mountain Goats)
Indie pop band from Melbourne – sweet songs reminding me of innocent days…think indie geek and glasses.

3) The Jamfest 2010 – 17th April, RNA Showgrounds, Fortitude Valley
For R&B fans or those just wanting a break for all that indie music, this urban pop tour coming featuring Akon, Kelly Rowland, Pitbull, Keri Hilson, Nino Brown and Chris Sorbello should get you poppin’ and lockin’.

Also check out:

Deep Purple – 27th April, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane
Stereophonics – 19th April, The Hi-Fi, West End
Eddy Current Suppresion Ring (I went see this band years ago back in Melbourne!) – 8th The Zoo, Fortitude Valley

May 2010

1) Vampire Weekend – 11th May, The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley
This band is HOT, and their second album Contra is HOT! The direction of the new album is less ‘try hard afro-pop’ (or whatever it was in their first album), and now has a lot more pop with a hint of the 80’s in it.  Favourites are ‘Giving Up The Gun’, ‘Horchata’ and ‘I Think UR a Contra’.

Vampire Weekend has just released the video for ‘Giving Up the Gun’ (which can be seen on their MySpace page) – I’ve been trying to figure out the meaning of this track…the lyrics are very ‘Japanese Shogun’. But after the watching the video (there’s even a samurai in there!), my take on the meaning of this song is that you are own worst enemy, and no matter how good you are, you often lose sight of this and beat yourself up over things.  But the force is within you, don’t give up and just go on, go on, go on.  Something like that anyway!

The video shows a tennis match, with a variety of different players (including HOT Jake Gyllenhaal, who rips his pants off and gets drunk while playing tennis).  There’s even pyrotechnics and milk involved. HOT video for a HOT song. Check it out.

2) Tegan and Sara – 3rd & 4th May, The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley
These two sisters have been recording music since their high school days. I saw them at Koko here in London, HOT gig (although there were a lot of butch-looking girls in flannel shirts there who kept looking at me in a slightly uncomfortable way…). Great hairstyles, catchy tunes and very apt lyrics over the spectrum of relationship issues. Emo? No, not quite. But they did have Hunter from AFI play with them in The Con.  Favourite songs: Hell (..when you get up, over it, and over them) and The Con (….a million hours left, i think of you, i think of that). Tegan and Sara lyrics, always gets to me.

3) Creamfields 2010 – 3rd May, Eagle Farm Racecourse, Ascot
Ok dance music fans, this one is for you. Creamfields, an international dance festival, is coming to Australia for the first time. So get your camping gear and don’t forget to bring the glow sticks. Line up so far:

The Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77 (6 piece band)
Steve Angello
MSTRKRFT
Ferry Corsten
LMFAO (6 piece band)
Dave Clarke
Marco V
Green Velvet
Dirty South
Kid Sister (4 piece band)
Joris Voorn
Lifelike
Riva Starr
Tommie Sunshine
Bingo Players
Zoo Brazil
Filo & Peri
Oh Snap!!

June 2010:

Gig listings are currently a bit sparse for June.  I will provide an update for June gigs once I get more info.  So watch this space…

Looking tickets for gigs in Brisbane? Check out the BrisbaneTix Posse store.

CC’s HOT Mixtape

1. Sweet Disposition – The Temper Trap
2. Giving Up The Gun – Vampire Weekend
3. Hollywood – Marina and the Diamonds
4. If – Janet Jackson
5. Photographs – Rihanna (featuring Will.i.am)
6. Telephone – Lady GaGa (featuring Beyonce)
7. Walking On A Dream – Empire of the Sun
8. Wide Eyes – Local Natives
9. Hero – Regina Spektor
10. Hopelessly Wasted – Shrag

Sometimes the binary rating system of HOT or NOT really puts me in a pickle; there’s no half way mark which really does my head in… but if there was, I’d probably put Jost 154 in the kinda-hot bucket.  These guys still have their training wheels on, so I need the Kinda prefix to this otherwise HOT establishment.

MM and I were invited to attend a friend’s surprise 35^th Birthday party on a Saturday evening to be held at Jost 154.  We had never seen or heard of the place, but being in West End we assumed it would be a funky, pokey little bar.  Oops.  Good thing we wore our fancy shoes!  Jost 154 is located below one of the new office blocks in Melbourne Street, teetering between South Brisbane and West End.  The floor to ceiling glass frontage makes for an impressive entry way and from there you are confronted by a very long L-shaped timber and stainless steel bar with funky pod chairs and bar stools.  Towards the rear of the venue is an elevated platform area which on this occasion housed the dining tables.  I suspect our private function threw their usual dining layout into disarray, but nonetheless the décor worked well.

The bar staff were friendly, however, a little clumsy with their service.  They didn’t have a good grasp of their wine list and were a little slow – I’m certain that once they have a few runs under their belts and tweak their processes a little this will change for the better.  The canapés were ample and flavoursome and delivered with a smile. I don’t know how the chefs cram so much flavour into such tiny little shells of pastry, but they did it and they did it well.  The tasty canapes included caramelized onion with warm goats cheese, beef bourguignon, smoked salmon and crème fraiche and mushroom risotto arancini balls.

Jost 154 is located in a perfect position to cater for the corporate types that flood this area for lunch, so I suspect they’ll do well.  They also do breakfast and takeaway coffee and pastries for the morning rush.  The décor is modern and funky and it provides a fresh vibe as soon as you walk in.  I can’t comment on their dining menus or prices, but if you’re looking for a venue to hold a private party I would recommend Jost 154, it’s kinda-hot.

• Jost 154 , 154 Melbourne St South Brisbane +61 7 3846 1154

Bamboo Basket is new addition to the increasingly vibrant and unapologetically modern South Bank precinct. Located at the eastern end of Grey St, there was always the danger that when this Chinese restaurant opened a few months ago it would be a little far from the action. But it hasn’t taken long for it to create its own.

It is a restaurant that oozes confidence even from the outside, making a feature of their steamy kitchen, filled with professional chefs and (you guessed it) lots of bamboo baskets. The interior is sleek, full of striking reds and blacks, but maybe a little showy.

The stand-out performer at Bamboo Basket is definitely the noodles. They are made fresh, very fresh – practically right in front of you – making for some delicious noodle soups and awesome dumplings. We tried two of their very reasonably priced lunch specials ($10.90). The wonton noodle soup was delicious and the BBQ pork disappeared very quickly. Definitely worth fighting over! They are certainly not complicated meals, just simple and good.

Chinese restaurants in Brisbane have really had to improve since the dingy suburban takeaways of the 90s. Sweet and sour pork and black bean beef just doesn’t cut it any more. Bamboo Basket is certainly a cut above those greasy memories of my childhood, and well worth a visit.

[Editor: Bamboo Basket is so popular that the Jetsetting Parents also visited recently. Here's their take on the restaurant.]

There was a continuous stream of onlookers on the foot-path, peering through a big glass window into the open kitchen of Bamboo Basket Chinese Restaurant. They were watching with interest (and probably salivating at the same time) at the dexterous skills demonstrated by the chefs inside who were busy rolling out dough, filling and pinching up dumplings, making noodles by repeated “pull, loop, pull” action, etc.

Inside the restaurant, all tables were either filled up or reserved by 12 noon, half-an-hour after opening , with the staff moving briskly around taking orders and delivering dishes. A small queue was always waiting at the entrance despite the fairly quick turnover of the tables. This set the tone for the lunch for Jetsetting Dad and myself.

The decor of the restaurant is simple yet stylish with a touch of red for a Chinese flair. From its extensive menu, we chose a few which we thought would be indicative of the skills of the dumplings and noodle chefs.

The four xiao lung bao (steamed pork dumplings, S7.90) arrived at our table in a bamboo basket. They were outstanding. The abundant soup/juice simply burst out in our mouth when we bit into it. It’s amazing how the delicate skin could hold up the weight of the soup and meat without breaking even when the dumpling was lifted out of the basket by chopsticks. I reckon the recipe for the dough and the rolling technique must have to be perfect.

Next we had pan-fried pork dumplings (6 for $11.90). From our experience, a good one has to have a juicy meat filling with a nice crispy bottom while the rest of the skin is thin and soft. So these were the qualities we were looking for in our order and happily, we were not disappointed, though I would still prefer a crisper base.

The hot and sour soup ($ 8.90) was a thickened soup with strips of pork, woody fungus, tofu, bamboo shoots and eggs. It was authentic but quite ordinary in taste – I even found it a bit too vinegary.

A big bowl of Langzhou pull-noodles in soup with beef ($17.90) was another outstanding dish. The fresh noodles were thick and al-dente (borrowing the Italian description). Again, it demands a good dough as well as some well-practiced pull and loop skills from the chef. The soup was tasty, too, without being greasy.

When we complimented on the food at the end of our meal, we were told that the chefs are mostly recruited from Shanghai.  Bamboo Basket is the restaurant we have been waiting for and I hope that the chefs will stick to their successful recipes and continue to offer us authentic and good-quality dumplings and noodles.

• Bamboo Basket, 189 Grey St, South Brisbane

Chances are most of us are always looking for ways to improve our health and fitness – but if you’re anything like me, this isn’t going to be achieved by spending hours on the machines in a pretty, image driven, look-at-me-I-go-to-the-gym gym, or by spending hundreds with a personal trainer.  I do a lot of free-of-charge running and riding through the streets of Brisbane to balance out my love for food and beer, but this can get monotonous too.

Every now and then it’s nice to mix it up with a bit of hardcore, intense, vein-bulging, weight lifting activity with someone yelling a bit of healthy banter across a sweaty room at you.  So if you are like me and don’t rate the fancy gyms around town, I’d recommend giving CrossFit Arena in South Brisbane a go.

CrossFit is the principal strength and conditioning program used by many police academies, martial artists, and elite/professional athletes worldwide.  The CrossFit program delivers fitness that is broad, general, scalable and inclusive and the specialty is in fact not specialising. Many sports and life in general reward this kind of fitness and on average, punish the specialists!

CrossFit is the true representation of the age-old term ‘Cross Training’ and for someone who’s been involved in the fitness industry for a long time for both work and pleasure, I have to say I like what I see.

There are several CrossFit programs/centres in Brisbane, but CrossFit Arena, a little sweat-box in South Brisbane, has been my home away from home over the last seven years and I’ve seen it go through some creative transitions, the latest of which I’m really impressed with.

Jarrod Bowe is the owner/trainer of CrossFit Arena and cut his teeth in Bushikai Muay Thai Kick Boxing. Jarrod is possibly the leanest, fittest guy I’ve ever met and easy on the eye as well (sorry boys).  When I first met him, he was leading a circuit class for the masters (read: oldies) swimmers and playing personal trainer to kick-boxing wannabes.

His little cement box gym has never been glamorous, it has minimal air flow, smells of sweat and doesn’t have fancy equipment – it’s very raw and real, but it’s always drawn a crowd.  These days, while kick boxing is still close to his heart, he’s jumped head first into the CrossFit philosophy and converted his gym into a new-look, new-feel arena for his underlings to sweat it out in a bit more style, but without losing that raw, unsophisticated feeling that keeps the patrons down to earth and realistic when it comes to keeping fit.

The CrossFit Arena is a great place to meet like-minded people, work hard and have fun. CrossFit sessions are of 1 hour duration, run twice daily in the CrossFit Arena and are attended by everyday, no frills men and women who are all in this to sweat hard and keep fit while encouraging their fellow compatriots to reach their goals and never give up.

• CrossFit Arena, Somerville Sports & Aquatic Centre, 4 Stephens Rd, South Brisbane +61 414 371 986