The ‘Mawson Mega’, as the locals have christened it, is apparently a pretty big deal. When I mentioned matter-of-factly to one such local that I was going to try the Mawson Lakes Hotel, his eyes lit up. “Gonna give the Mawson Mega a go?” he asked. “Yeh, thought I might,” was my response, “Is it any good?” I was informed that it was quite sizeable, comparable to an alehouse schnitty, although inferior in quality. So I rocked up to the hotel the next day, expecting to at least get my fill if nothing else. The pleasant surprise of a salad bar was followed by the disappointment when my meal arrived. It was not one massive schnitzel, but simply two moderately large schnitzels. Very thin though. And, as I was to discover, the taste was a bit of a let-down. Very little flavour, and quite a low meat-to-crumb ratio. On my left, Ben – quite a schnitzel lover himself – ate the first of his two schnitzels and declared that he didn’t want to finish it, it was so bad. Four people ordered the mega, and I was the only one to finish mine. It was only pride that made me eat the whole thing, and yet I felt ashamed as I finished the last mouthful. I felt filthy, and not in a good way. No, this was the worst kind of filthy – the bad kind.
I cannot remember ever eating at a restaurant where every single person at the table rated the quality of the food so low. And at $21.90 for a chicken schnitzel with gravy, even the presence of a salad bar could not ensure that good value for money was given. The chips were exactly like you would get from KFC, which I was quite satisfied with. However, since the schnitzel had been placed on top of the chips, they were soggy upon arrival. The restaurant was quiet when we arrived, but had quickly filled up with bogans as time passed (we made a mistake coming during a Port game). Overall, not an experience to be repeated. We were obliged to rate it though, since it’s clearly got a pretty high profile as Adelaide schnitzels go.
Funnily enough, mates of ours went to the Mawson the week after we did, and raved about it. So maybe we just got the chef on a bad day? Maybe the chickens had just been fed the wrong stuff that week? Who knows? But we can only rate based on what we see with our eyes and taste with our tongues, and today we were let down.
The Verdict: A pretty low quality schnitzel – the clearest case so far of quality being sacrificed by quantity. I never thought I’d say this, but the thought of schnitzel right now actually makes me sick.
Taste: 2/5, Size: 4.5/5, Value: 2.5/5, Sides: 3.5/5, Dining Experience: 2.5/5
Overall: 60%
