Bondi Curmudgeon's review of the Rum Diaries

I was really excited about going to the Rum Diaries on Bondi Road tonight and I was even going to write a review.

However, Bondi Curmudgeon changed our plans at the last minute and said since we've been there hundreds of times, he would write the review.

And here it is: 

Rum Diaries Review

The Rum Diaries is a great place to drink many different types of rum, have a hearty stew and generally pretend you’re a pirate.

The Rum Diaries is not a great place if you need to answer your phone because you’ve locked your husband out of the house and he can’t find you.

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The End.

From Bondi to Broadbeach with a side trip to Bazaar at QT in Surfers

A few hours after seeing in the bonny New Year, we flew to the Gold Coast for a four day mini-break at Broadbeach (978 km from Bondi Pavilion). “Why aren’t you going to Byron Bay?” asked a friend from the UK. “Schoolies Week is over,” quipped another friend.

Don’t they know the Gold Coast is the hot new destination? Besides, there were a group of us going, and they have kids, which provided a good excuse to go to Wet ‘n’ Wild. And thanks to our trusty Accor card, we got a free night at the Sofitel Broadbeach with an upgrade and 50% off our meals! What’s not to like about that?

The Sofitel was in walking distance to the beach, surf clubs, restaurants and bars of Broadbeach and the beds were so comfortable it was like sleeping on clouds, making it the perfect place to wind down after the hectic lead up to Christmas. On our first afternoon we headed to the very chilled-out Kurrawa Surf Club, which has beautiful views overlooking the beach and were entertained by a local singer who played four of my favourite songs in the first set. The biggest surprise was that Curmudgeon got into the spirit of the place so much that he even changed out of his summer uniform of jeans and long shirt for shorts and t’shirt and agreed to walk on the beach.

News that the restaurant, Bazaar, at the revamped Gold Coast QT in Surfers, had upped the ante on the local dining scene had travelled from Broadbeach to Bondi and I was keen to try it out. So, on Tuesday, while I was busy testing my boundaries at Wet n’ Wild, taking guidance from a 12-year-old on what rides were too scary (the Black Hole is awesome!!) and dodging the kids in the wave pool, Bondi Curmudgeon managed to get us the very last booking they were taking. It was our fifth wedding anniversary so we needed a special destination for ourselves and two friends.

Curmudgeon made us get there half an hour early (at 6pm) to show them we were serious and this is when we met Sam the bartender, who looked after us all night, first at the bar and then at our table. Our cocktails were made to order depending on the flavours we prefer: throughout the night I had a mango Bellini with sorbet, a Cosmopolitan with a twist, and passionate Mojitos. At one stage I noticed Bondi Curmudgeon drinking a glass of ginger flavoured rum with a chaser of Absinthe. When I warned Sam that it would send him crazy, I was assured the evil green stuff was well-diluted.

Although Bazaar is strictly speaking a hotel buffet, it’s not exactly your standard buffet offering, but more like a gourmet extravaganza. Apparently they were going to offer a la carte as well, but the buffet proved such a hit they kept it. At $65 per person (or $21 for kids under 12), it was great value and easy to see why the place was buzzing with every seat taken. Modeled on the traditional marketplaces of Asia, the cooking action is all out in the open and the food is part of the décor with a mix of ready-made meals interspersed with cooking stations where chefs cooks to order. There’s a cool room with hams, salamis, garlic and sun dried tomatoes dangling from the ceiling, glass doored refrigerators, bowls of pumpkins and an Asian wok station dishing up fresh stir frys. Click here for a gallery of images.

Executive chef is American George Francisco, who headed to Australia after marrying an Australian girl. He started out in Sydney, opening Wildfire at Circular Quay, Dish on the Northern Beaches, The Chelsea Tea House before becoming head chef at Jonah’s at Whale Beach. (His favourite Sydney cheap eats is Pompeii’s pizza in Bondi, so he’s clearly got good taste.)

He believes in fresh seasonal ingredients sourced locally and creates the menu each day around the available produce. Some of the things I ate included fresh seafood – crab, mussels, scallops, prawns – a mix of stir frys, figs with Persian feta, lamb ribs on creamy mashed potato, pieces of prosciutto and cheese, a mix of salads. Other dishes that made their way to our table: oysters, pork belly, rabbit, osso bucco and soft shell crab.

Luckily, most of the desserts are bite-sized, from white chocolate and cranberry macaroons to Francisco’s signature Vanilla Panna Cotta of fresh pomegranate and lavender honey and chocolate covered strawberries.

We left after four hours full and happy. From the design of the hotel, to the quality of the food and the exceptional service, it’s worth flying to the Gold Coast just to eat here again.

Bondi is sejuiced by The Bucket List

The weather was so crap during most of December I barely made it to Bondi all month. So, when the sun finally came out on December 30, I convinced Bondi Curmudgeon to go to the Trat for lunch before the sky swallowed the sun again.

We were working our way through tapas – chorizo, meatballs, and a salad of figs, prosciutto and Buffalo milk mozzarella  – when we got the call for an impromptu afternoon drink with a group of Bondi’ites (half of whom now live in Rose Bay) to celebrate pre-New Year’s Eve before Snoop Dogg took over the beach. 

We were to meet at 4pm a pop-up bar called The Bucket List, which had replaced Nick’s Seafood. With a few hours to kill, I headed to the Icebergs to do laps and Bondi Curmudgeon headed home to drop off the car and sit in a dark room for a while.

Last time I was at Nick’s they’d mentioned it had been quiet, but I didn’t realise it had been so quiet they were on the verge of packing it in after what must have been a ten year run.  (I googled Nick’s Bondi for an explanation, but as far as the Internet is concerned it still exists and is a good place for a wedding.)

The Bucket List opened just before Christmas after well-known local, Andy Ruwald, founder of the neighbouring juice bar, Sejuiced, took over the lease. Advertised as a ‘pop-up bar’, Andy originally wanted to call it ‘The Pavilion’ but thinks he’ll keep ‘The Bucket List’. It makes sense considering the bar looks like it has become an instant hit. Dressed in a pink striped shirt and oversized sunnies, he was manning the floor, greeting half the people who came in the door by name, and trying to keep everyone happy. 

We managed to get a prime position outside and asked him a few questions. The first was why we had to stay seated, despite the risk of splinters from the wooden crates that doubled as seats. Licensing laws, apparently. Why The Bucket List? Well, most of the food including the prawns and oysters, and some of the drinks are served in cute yellow buckets. 

The drinks err on the expensive ($120 for a bottle of the cheapest champagne at a time when French champagne is selling like hotcakes for $50 in most bottle shops), which could explain the popularity of the bucket of four Asian beers selling for $20. They were served in ice to make them cold as the demand was so high it almost went from a pop-up bar to the pub with no beer.

If the décor looks temporary that's because it is. Wooden crates, ink drawings on walls, buckets hanging from the ceiling, and French-style deck chairs, will be replaced with the furniture that has been made to order but wasn't ready in time for the holiday rush. They’ll even be palm trees. 

While Nick’s often drew the tourist crowd, the Bucket List has been well and truly embraced by the locals. On the night we were there Bondi royalty included Sneaky Sound System’s Angus McDonald and Channel Nine’s David Gyngell. 

There’s something about The Bucket List that makes it seem like it has always been there. Or maybe it was a case of Bondi had been desperately waiting for someone like Andy to take over the space, and turn it into a funky bar with summer tunes. It reminds me of Potato Head in Bali (without the pool) but don’t ask me to explain why.

It’s in a prime position smack bang in the middle of the beach, which means it can get both the die-hard South Bondi and North Bondi crowds without all the usual posturing that ‘my end of Bondi is better/bigger/more glamorous than your end’. 

Now we can meet in the middle and all have a good time for the rest of summer. Or at least until the furniture and the 'attitude' arrives.


<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/70/1644423/restaurant/Sydney/Bondi-Bondi-Beach/The-Bucket-List-Bondi-Beach"><img alt="The Bucket List on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/logo/1644423/biglogo.gif" style="border:none;width:104px;height:34px" /></a>

Sculpture by the Sea 2011

Sculpture by the Sea is on again, that time of year when about 500,000 people descend on the cliff walk between Bondi and Bronte to view the artworks. It's one of the biggest outdoor art exhibitions in the world and I love seeing how the sculptures transform the environment. Some of the artworks blend in so well that you have to do a double-take as it feels like they have always been there. Highlights of this year's event include sea slugs, a gigantic set of taps, a smiling skeleton perching on a ladder and when you need a break halfway through there's even a set of lounge chairs made out of hessian sandbags.

If you get a chance, go check them out - even better if you can go through the week or at sunset or sunrise. They are on from November 3-20 and the endless weekend crowds can test even the most dedicated Bondiphiles, but it's nothing that can't be soothed by the glimpse of the ocean through the artworks. When you're done, you can always drop into the Bondi Icebergs Dining Room and Bar and down a soothing champagne bellini while you feel smug about how cultured you are.

Off The Beaten Track: Chasing the Waves in Portugal’s Tipi Valley

OK, Portugal is a long way from Bondi Beach, but this week's post comes courtesy of a guest post I wrote for the delightful travel blog, Novel Adventures, which is all about travel, food, and books, which are of course, some of my favourite things. Yes, that is me, and as you can see from the look on my face and my elegant form, I'm clearly only a few weeks away from becoming a professional surfer!

“Look upstairs and paddle,” instructs one of the ridiculously good-looking Portuguese surf instructors, both of whom are named Ricardo. I paddle furiously, and I’m up on my bright blue foam board, arms stretched out in the warrior pose before falling headfirst into the whitewash.

I lived across the road from Bondi Beach for over a decade but it took a trip to Portugal to get me on a surfboard for the first time. When I first booked into the Algarve Surf & Yoga Retreat – better known as Tipi Valley – in the Western Algarve, the southern most region of Portugal, at the bequest of my friend Selina, a keen surfer from the UK, I was more interested in the yoga. I agreed to give surfing a go, since it was part of the package, and had so much fun that I wish I’d tried it years earlier.

The ecologically sustainable company was started by Australian surfer/sailing instructor, Laurie Quirk and built with the help of WWOOFers (Willing Workers on Organic Farms). It’s in a stunning valley on the Costa Vicentina Natural Park, the largest protected natural park in Europe, which has 74,000 hectares of rolling hills, cliffs, rocky coves and beaches.

While the Algarve has a reputation for being overrun by tourists, the fact that we are a one-hour drive from the nearest international airport, Faro, and the lack of five-star resorts means the area retains its charm. We share the beach, which is framed by volcanic cliffs, with a handful of Portuguese and Spanish families.

There is a Tipi onsite. Built from 12-foot eucalyptus poles cut from the property, it sleeps six, has a floating wooden floor and is furnished with single beds, rugs, a lounge, and Moroccan lamps. Selina and I are in the breakaway tent, which has twin beds with pink chenille bedspreads, and mosquito nets. The camp sleeps a maximum of 10 with a smaller Tipi and two canvass tents.

There are seven other guests who have come from Ireland, the UK, Portugal, and the United States. We do an hour and a half of yoga each morning before breakfast and then head to the beach for the surf lessons. Our yoga teacher is Cherie, who teaches aKundalini-based Hatha yoga.

The surfing lessons are outsourced to the Odeceixe Surf School (pronounced O-de-shaish), which is run by David who has lived in the area all of his life. Since both our instructors are called Ricardo, David tells us we can call one Ricardo uno (one) and the other Ricardo dos (two). The first is a former body-boarding champion for Portugal and the second is a lifeguard and volunteer fireman.

A couple of hours in the surf has us feeling ravenous. Lunch is at a café overlooking the beach where we have fresh seafood, Portuguese custard tarts (pastel de natas) and glasses of Vinho Verde, a sparkling green wine native to Portugal.

Dinner is delicious meals prepared from organic vegetables grown on the property but after a few nights in, we organise a group outing in nearby Aljezur with Laurie, David, and Ricardo uno. Pont’A Pe is a charming restaurant by the river with blue-chequered tablecloths.

We tell Milton, the restaurant manager and our waiter for the night, that we want a typical Portuguese meal and he serves up a feast: clams steamed in garlic, fresh sardines, barnacles, roasted chicken in piri-piri sauce, sweet potato, sea bass I was asked to pick from the restaurant’s aquarium. Mussels in garlic and white wine sauce, and carne de porco à alentejana, a Portuguese twist on surf and turf – fried pork, potatoes and clams. For dessert Milton brings out a tray of pastries and crème caramel and shots of Medronho, which is also known as Portuguese firewater.

After dinner we visit a 10^th century Moorish castle, now in ruins, climbing the steep cobblestone path by the light of the full moon to admire the sleeping village of Aljezur with its whitewashed houses and red tiled roofs.

Another memorable meal is our farewell dinner. In Australia, BYO – or bring your own – usually refers to a bottle of wine, but David brings his own barnacles to the Taberna do Gabio in Odeceixe. We have creamy sheep’s cheese, anchovy paste, olives, fresh bread, and carne de porco à alentejana. Barnacles are not my favourite Portuguese delicacy – they kind of taste like a chewy squid – but considering David got up at dawn to scrape them from rocky cliffs washed by treacherous waves, I eat as many as I can.

At the end of the meal, Selina and I have a final glass of Portuguese firewater, and promise to return to this beautiful part of Portugal with its delicious food, gorgeous beaches, and warm and hospitable people, as soon as we can.

Photos courtesy of by Cherie Bousfield

The Winter Festival: ice-skating at Bondi Beach

I haven’t ice-skated since I was about 15 when we used to spend Friday nights alternating between ice-skating and the local Blue Light Disco, so I was a bit shaky on my feet as I headed for the rink at the Bondi Winter Festival,  an ice-skating rink set up on the sand at the south end of the beach.

After a few laps in my bright orange hired skates, gravitating to the edge for dear life, I realised the ice had melted slightly around the edges and it was harder to skate there, so I counted to 10, let go and ventured out with the big kids. It all came back to me and soon I felt like Jane Torville of Torville & Dean (remember that dynamic duo?) until I fell straight on my arse. Jane never fell over, but today it was a free-for-all as people fell, laughed, got up and fell again.

Luckily I only had the one stack in what was a fun afternoon as some latent muscle memory kicked in and I kept my balance. Its $26 to skate for 45 minutes (including skate-hire) and $19 for kids. I booked online a few hours before heading down for the 4pm session. 

There was something rather magical about ice-skating while looking out over Bondi Beach as the sun set and watching the huge waves crash against the shore. 

It’s a great set-up and family friendly, especially with the addition of Bobby the seal for kids under 12, who could either grab on to the tail for balance or sit on his back and get pushed by a parent. My friend said her husband skated too fast and her daughter fell off as he took a sharp corner and had to be coaxed back on. There’s only 12 per session, so I’d recommend booking one in advance – in fact, I wouldn’t have minded one myself to help my balance!

If ice-skating’s not your thing you can just head down for some wintery treats such as mulled wine, chai, hot chocolate, pancakes, goulash, hamburgers and chestnuts. The Alpine Lodge – Sydney’s latest pop-up bar – has a log fire, creating a cosy ambience, or you can go outside under the heaters and watch the action on the ice. 

At 5.50pm we were treated to a professional ice-skating performance with the super-skaters gracefully dancing on the ice and generally showing us amateurs how it was done.

There’s only a week left at Bondi, but from July 22, it moves to St Mary’s Cathedral, and I might just return for a second go at re-living my Torville & Dean fantasies.  

AquaBar: for mascarpone pancakes with a view

I love mascarpone, but considering its base ingredient is triple cream cheese, I’ve had to wean myself off it, one day at a time.

So, when I saw that Aquabar, a cute café in North Bondi, had leek and potato pancakes topped with mascarpone, smoked salmon and rocket on the menu, I reluctantly turned the other cheek.

Bondi Curmudgeon, though, who regularly eats sausage rolls for breakfast, ordered it for himself and swore he wasn’t taunting me as he gushed over every mouthful.

I begged for a tiny teeny taste – although Joey doesn’t share food – and it was so good that my tastebuds went into an instant sulk and refused to eat any more of the baked eggs with spinach I’d ordered in the name of being ‘healthy’.

 So, we returned a week later, sitting in the empty spare room of the café, while everyone was crammed into the main dining room or bracing the cold and wind outside.

The cheery waiter took our coffee orders and warned us there had been changes to the menu.

“It’d better not be the mascarpone pancakes,” I said, in a tone harsher than I’d intended. 

Luckily it wasn’t - he can completely change the rest of the menu if he wants as I’ve found my dish and I’m sticking to it.

Unless it’s lunchtime and then I’ll be forced to have the smoked-salmon angel hair pasta with caramelised lemon which is my other Aquabar favourite.