Located on North Terrace just opposite the train station, the Strathmore has a bit of everything – fancy dining rooms, outdoor seating, casual dining and a slightly seedy beer garden. We got a table to ourselves right in front of a big screen tv showing replays of world series cricket. Definitely a winner. Nothing like sitting down to a chicken schnitzel while watching Paul Reiffel knocking Hansie Cronje’s off stump out of the ground.
I wasn’t blown away by what I saw on my plate, though. The schnitzel itself was quite nice – very moist, and of reasonable thickness – but the chips were a bit of a let-down. A bit too thin, and a bit stingy quantity-wise. And they put mayo on the salad. I hate mayo. I’m marking them down for that. A bit unfair, you ask? Come on, who puts mayonnaise on a garden salad? The gravy, it must be said, was pretty nice. And the advantage of a smaller-than-average portion size is that you don’t feel too weighed down afterwards. Overall, not too bad for $16.50, although it’s certainly not one that I’ll rave about.
Incidentally, my mate ordered the chicken and kangaroo sizzler, which was something to behold. It gets served up as raw meat on a hot stone, so the meat literally cooks on your plate in front of you. Pretty cool, I thought. Kind of like cold rock ice cream, except that it’s meat instead of ice cream... and hot instead of cold. Pretty different to cold rock ice cream, come to think of it.
The Verdict: Not amazing, but a nice meal - even nicer if you like mayo.
Taste 4/5, Size 3/5, Value 3/5, Sides 3/5, Experience 4/5
Total 66%
