Tamworth (Boxing Day)

I wasn't expecting to get one more review in before the end of the year, but I did. I received a phone call and an invite a few weeks ago from my brother to visit his family, who is well-entrenched in the country city of Tamworth, my home for nearly a quarter of a century. I don't often get the chance to get up there, and when one presents itself well, I generally take it.
I also got an opportunity to catch up with a mate from my old gaming group in town, as well as to get a good look at the city on two lengthy drives around it, surprised as to how much it has grown in certain areas, whilst others haven't changed at all. Back in 2012, when my brother's family had moved to their new home in the outlying suburb of Moore Creek, there were very few houses in the area. Now there's not just one, but three established estates there, with more established in other fringe areas of the town.

The local council's goal is for a population of 100,000 by 2040. The way and speed with which the city is expanding it's quite possible to achieve that, though there are sceptics. One thing I noticed that was missing from the expanded areas were bus stops – a necessity if you're aiming for a six-figure population. Then there's water supply, which is vital for an area which is regularly plagued by droughts, with water restrictions still enforced ahead of the annual Country Music Festival in January. Finally – shopping centres. Not all of the suburbs have one close to their locale – Moore Creek residents are still waiting for theirs to be built so they have lengthy drives into town to fetch supplies.
So, on Boxing Day, with the temperature in the mid-20s, I got to have lunch with my fellow gamer at Burger Bulls, a cosy burger joint in the centre of town on Kable Avenue, which faces Bicentennial Park. The building it occupies was previously different ethnicities of restaurants which had come and gone, but whilst I was living there 25 years ago it was an accountants. The park itself, with its large duck pond and being quite close to the Peel River that divides the city, could be used to walk off your meal or as a location to dine.

BB's menu is quite expansive, which even caters for those keen on having plant and vegetarian options. We arrived just as the place was opening up and grabbed a spot near the window, hardly having to wait for our meals which were delivered to our table. I went for something different and opted for a meat, cheese and bacon burger, which, for an extra $7.90, could be turned into meal with chips and a drink. With that addition you're looking at a burger meal ranging between $20 and $31.
I'm pleased to say though that they haven't skimped on the size of the burgers like a lot of other places I've dined at have. The juicy beefy offering was on par with the best burger I've eaten all year at Pearl Beach. I struggled to get it all down and was regrettably unable to finish the crispy fries. I honestly hope that the owners realize their goal of creating a chain across regional NSW so I don't have as far to go for a quality burger. I really don't want to wait another year before I have one like that again. lol
I must say, finishing the trip with such a quality burger capped off my short holiday rather nicely.

Pictures taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2017.

Links correct at time of posting.

Gosford - Second Helping (December 7)

After dining with my local mental health support group yesterday (Dec 7) at the Central Coast League Club, I felt the need to update it. Twenty of us rocked up to our annual Xmas lunch/meeting to dine at the recently revamped dining/bar area in the club, and to be honest, hardly any of us left satisfied.

The southern side of the CCLC from the neighboring park.

Before Covid, the leagues club had a very popular all-you-can-eat buffet, which was bringing in plenty of regular customers, including myself, who was living in East Gosford at the time and was dining there at least once a week. There was a large variety of choice, from roasts to Asian dishes, seafood to more iconic western offerings. For those who didn't want to gorge themselves there was always the bistro, which had a smaller menu but overall, the quality of food was better. Covid practically killed off the AYCE buffets, so the club renovated the Baker Street (eastern) side to make the bistro more appealing. Renovations were carried out in other areas of the club, namely the poker machine rooms as well as the sports bar and a lounge area on the western (stadium) side.
Then, for some reason, this year they decided to renovate again and shift the restaurant to the western side, create a separate cafe and a larger sports bar, which is what we have now. One can guess where all the money has come from, which has now turned the dining area (with a kid's playroom) into something akin to a 4-star restaurant. However, as I joked to friends, it doesn't help if your average client is a 2-star customer at best. 

I don't know whether to class it as a boon or a hindrance, but there are currently four menus on offer in that area. You have the restaurant, the cafe, a small pizza selection and the actual bar itself which provides snacks. Now for the uninitiated, this could well be confusing. The first time I ate there after the renovations (lunchtime on Nov 12) I opted for the cheeseburger from the bar menu, failing to notice that it didn't come with any fries, unlike its predecessor all those times before. Like a lot of burger places, it appeared to have shrunk in size, making the $14 (members) price tag appear somewhat excessive. To be honest it wasn't very filling and as for the taste, well I had honestly eaten better offerings at a certain world-wide fast-food restaurant who used to offer free burgers on Mondays if the locals won their home match that weekend. At the time it settled my stomach, but during and after the double-header I needed something else to eat, settling for quick and easy fries on both occasions. I had also brought in friends for a bite to eat after the game, who were turned off by the prices of the steaks and other meals, settling for cheaper burger and pasta options instead.

The calm before the storm. Brisbane Water on the evening of Dec 8. 

Now wind the clock forward to yesterday with a large group in attendance, occupying two large tables with easy access to the bar. Naturally, we ordered a variety of meals, with the popular choice being the chicken schnitzel, which is what I had. Other dishes included steaks, salmon, the wagyu beef burger, a rather large stuffed eggplant (Pacman would've had trouble eating it on the run) and salads.
The problem began there. I would be willing to forgive a restaurant for stuffing up so many orders if they had been busy, but they weren't. The dining area was roughly half full. Take us away and staff would've been bored. Having eaten and drunk there on numerous occasions, I recognized quite a few members of the regular staff which had dealt, with ease I should add, with large crowds before, such as the home semi-final night with Adelaide back in May. Why then, were some people's meals forgotten completely, even deleted off the list, with others getting something completely different? If you order a steak, you expect a steak, not a brisket with a suggestion that you should take it or wait another twenty minutes for your original order. By the time one member of the group had received her salmon, I had already finished off my entire meal. She had purloined the slice of lemon from my plate (seeing I never use it) and just as well – it didn't come with lemon. The salmon, BTW, in her words wasn't any better than what she usually had at home.
For the schnitzel, well, when someone asked about it, I said I was slightly disappointed. The last schnitzel I had had there (on the other side of the building) was better and larger than this burger patty sized offering and the chip serving would've been lucky to half cover a tea saucer. The salad was nothing special, almost their standard side dish with shaved carrot, some chopped up lettuce and a single cherry tomato covered in dressing. I had finished the meal off completely and was contemplating desert, but politely holding back until other people had finished. In the end I had two small scoops of ice-cream and left it at that.
Plates were not cleared in a timely fashion either, with the people who had made the booking been compelled to lodge a complaint with the duty supervisor who offered to remonstrate with staff afterwards. Kind of hard to enjoy your coffee with dirty plates stacked around you.
So, in conclusion, the service got a thumbs down with the meals ranging from good to average. I compared the fare with my hosts on the return trip, with us both agreeing that the food at the smaller Everglades Club in Woy Woy was better than the revamped leagues club. In all honesty, for pretty much the same price, if you're going to a game across the road, you'd be better off buying a meal there when you go in. There's not as much choice, but the meals, on the whole, are prepared quicker. Those with a member's discount though are better off having a drink or two at the club before attending, which is what I'll be limiting myself to from now on.
Perhaps I should have something different at the stadium (other than chips) and review that as well, eh?

Links correct at time of posting.

Picture provided by Geoff G Turner (c) 2023.