Grossi Florentino

80 Bourke Street, Melbourne, Victoria

Cue the theme music to The God Father.

Chef Guy Grossi’s Florentino Restaurant has such a good reputation in Melbourne and right across the rest of Australia, and well deserving it is too.  The main restaurant is upstairs from the Florentino Grill and Spaghetti Cellar Bar on the ground floor.  The décor in the Grill is classic dark wood and mirrors with lighting that creates a wonderfully warm Italian mood.  Yes I said Italian because on the walls, the old photos of the 1930’s Florentino café and staff in Italy, along with the liveried waiters wearing aprons and the smell of garlic and herbs transports you there.  Mama Mia!  Looking around Florentino Grill, I almost expected to see the cast of Wise Guys or the God Father 1, 2 & 3.  And believe me, there were a few people enjoying the food who looked like they could have auditioned for a part in a mob movie.  (I mean no disrespect.)

 

We ate in the Grill and not up stairs for several reasons.  For a start, the place looks expensive, the Rolls Royce and Mercedes Sports parked in front is a bit intimidating.  Not only that, but it was only lunch time and we didn’t want to blow our budget just yet. 

We felt a bit out of place when we walked in but the staff was really friendly and did every thing they could to make us feel at home.  The table was immaculately set with linen so starched I was scared I might cut myself on the serviette.  No sooner had we sat down when an oil, salt and bread board appeared, along with fresh baked bread sticks.  A big bottle of ice cold Italian mineral water soon followed, and then we were ready to order.  Man that bread and bread sticks dipped in oil and salt, washed down with the sparkling mineral water was so good, I would have been happy with that for lunch, but I think that would have been bad form and might have gotten me rubbed out.

It was a hard choice to make, but we settled on the whole fish and scallops.  It was everything you would expect from such a classy restaurant.  The seafood was perfectly cooked and subtly seasoned.  To tell the truth, I was expecting heavy on the garlic and herbs to push the Italian theme, but the fish was the hero flavour.  The chef displayed total respect for the produce.  And oh boy it was good.  Badda boom badda bing.

The place was a buzz of conversations and the tables all go quiet when their food arrives.  I watched as other patrons slurped up their pasta and cut into their scaloppini with a look of total ecstasy on their faces.  There was laughter and joy in the room.  This is what eating out is about.  Eating great food cooked just right, fellowship of good friends and loved ones, and having fun.  We were having a great time.  That’s what this place does, it makes people happy and it was infectious.  We both had smiles ear to ear.

Unfortunately we didn’t get to meet Chef Guy Grossi this time around, maybe next time.  He has created something special with his Florentino restaurant and we’re looking forward to discovering other amazing dishes and being carried away by the charming atmosphere when we hit Melbourne for another fantastic Food Trek.  What a great experience.
Bon Appetito
Karl

My Favourite Chef

My wife is into cooking.  Not the same way that Julia Child was but she still has a pretty fair love of the art.  She watches many of the popular cooking shows, has a nice collection of cook books, and even collects recipes that she tears out from magazines (from doctors waiting rooms).
She’s not one of those cooks who use a pinch of this and a handful of that.  She’s a lot more scientific about it.  Specific measuring devices are used for every ingredient, thermometers, scales and timers to ensure exact precision.

And to her credit, she has created and re-created many fabulous dishes.  Like most successful house wives these days, she also holds down a job.  Yes, it’s in one of those fancy schmancy kitchen supply stores you see in nice shopping centres around the country.  So, she is also an expert on the latest and greatest pots, pans, appliances and gadgets that will make your cooking life more efficient, delicious and fashionable.

She loves it and I am one lucky son of a gun because of her devotion to food.  But that doesn’t mean I have a live-in chef who caters to my every whim.  On the contrary, she’s only human and the pressures of life get to us all from time to time.  That’s when we hear the immortal words “slack tea” shouted as she staggers in the door from a hard day of peddling Faberge egg timers and diamond coated frying pans.

Slack Tea means every man for himself at dinner time and it’s very rare for us to buy take away food because we would rather spend our money at a good restaurant than at Maca’s or World of pizza.  Slack tea is fine for my son and me as we both enjoy cooking occasionally.  Something elegant and simple like microwave meat pies or baked beans on toast.

Of course there are those days when she isn’t feeling well but still feels the responsibility and need to put something on the dinner plate for us.  Last time this happened she had a cold and felt miserable.  On her way out of the shopping centre after work she stopped at the fresh chicken shop and bought dinner in a bag.  It was a sealed foil bag containing Spanish style chicken and rice.  Just throw it in the oven and in 40 minutes or so voila, gourmet cuisine for the whole family.

She was exhausted and sick but wouldn’t leave the kitchen until the bloody thing was finished.  She tore open the bag and there were some raw chunks of chicken surrounded by savoury rice floating in under-cooked chicken juice.  Oh the devastation.  I shuffled her off before the tears started to flow, to have a nice hot shower and get into her PJ’s and to relax on the lay-z-boy until I came up with something.  Out came the frying pans.  One pan was for the chicken, and one pan for the rice.  I got both sizzling along nicely and then I hit the chicken with a liberal shake of Kentucky fried chicken seasoning, my secret weapon.  It had been sitting in a can in the pantry for months.  I stopped stirring the rice once I thought it was cooked through and just left it there to get a bit of a crust on the bottom.
 
The old fry up never fails and we all enjoyed my rescued fried chicken and rice.  It doesn’t really matter how well I come to the rescue, it’s always a delight when my talented wife puts the apron back on and serves up something fabulous for dinner from her Jamie Oliver cook book, or something from Margaret Fulton, Julie Goodwyn, Gordon Ramsay, George Colombaris, Heston, or any other of her beloved food idols.

When it comes to cooking technique, I think she is a celebrity chef impersonator.  And that’s probably the best compliment any of them can ever get.  Maybe I should send them all the good news and let them know how lucky I am that their recipes are being cooked by Kelly, my very own celebrity chef.
Karl