Funding for the hospitality industry

If you have been in business at least 12 months, and have sales of more than $5,000 per month and you are looking for an unsecured business loan, I highly recommend Merchant Cash.

Merchant Cash specialise in providing finance to the restaurant industry. They can provide up to $250,000 in unsecured funding in to your bank account in less than 3 days, with approval in under 24 hours. Restaurants, Cafes, Pubs, Bars, Hotels and Motels are able to take advantage of this financing opportunity because of the steady cash flows they generate. They have helped hundreds of businesses in the hospitality industry over the last four years.

Some of the things that you could use the finance for

• Marketing and Advertising
• Buying Kitchen Equipment
• Opening a Second Location
• Loan to Pay Taxes to ATO
• Refurbishing and Renovating
• General Cash Flow and Working Capital Finance

Borrow from these guys

Great for small businesses

I used these guys: www.merchantcash.com.au

They were able to give me $50,000 in only 3 days. I dont have fixed payments - I will just be paying back when I receive payments throught credit cards. Highly recommended

Review :: Brucie

This casual Italian restaurant cum gourmet grocery store is sure to give visitors to Carroll Gardens plenty of reasons to return. Authentic and adventurous, the daily updated menu brings homely Italian-American favorites to life with well executed contemporary twists. Crostini with house made goat’s milk ricotta, botarga and walnuts is designed to be shared but you will be forgiven for not wanting to. The spaghetti, the only pasta not to be made at the restaurants focal point pasta bar, arrives with meatballs infused with an irresistible lavender and lemon zest. However the tagliatelle with perfectly crispy Brussells sprouts and house made creamy burrata proves to be the standout dish of the night. After dinner, if you can endure the backless stools at the communal tables for just a little longer, don’t leave without trying a piece of the ricotta cheesecake with apricot marmalade.

3.5/5

234 Court St, Brooklyn, NY

Review:: Rouge et Blanc

Follow the waitress in her French maid uniform past the bar with silk draped ceiling and transport yourself back to 1940’s French Colonial Saigon. Sit at your table with mismatch of lamps overhead and shielded from other diners with oriental screens and get ready to explore Oriental-Parisian cuisine from chef Matt Rojas matched with an exclusively French wine list from owner and sommelier Thomas Cregan. Vietnamese flavors dominate the starters of imposing whole rouget (mullet) standing in a pool of robust lime and chili sauce and tower of whole prawns over fragrant papaya salad. The entrees are decidedly fusion, lamb lovers will salivate at the fatty mustard marinated ribs served with Malaysian inspired roti. The rich foie gras dessert with poached pear and Chinese peach might not be for everyone but chocolate lovers will not be disappointed with the refined chocolate gateau with roasted cashew ice-cream encircled in a drizzle of sage oil.

4/5

48 MacDougal St, New York, NY

Review:: Frankies Spuntino 457

Frankie’s Spuntino is an Italian restaurant that focuses on the lighter side of Italian cooking. The restaurant gets its name from the two chef owners Frank Falcinelli and Frank Castronovo. Coincidentally my father’s name is Frank and I couldn’t help but wonder what he would think of a dinner restaurant that did not have any traditional mains beyond very light servings of pasta. My father is a strong believer in a traditional dinner meal – two of his favorite dinner related catchphrases are: “Eggs don’t constitute a dinner.” and “Soup is not a meal.”

This is a restaurant where the dishes come on small plates and with small price tags - the idea is to order lots and share. There is a wide selection of bite sized Crostini, we tasted the Cannellini, Caper, Lemon & Anchovy also - Cremini Mushroom & Truffle Oil. Both were fresh and a delightful mix of flavours.

Followed an antipasto plate and the crisp brussels sprouts salad which was delicately balanced with a lemon and light olive oil dressing and sprinkled with a mild castelrosso cheese – certainly the standout dish of the night.

The closest we came to a main was the small plate of gnocchi we shared. Whilst the gnocchi was by no means the best I have eaten – it was a warm & soft antidote to the snow storm brewing outside and the generous dollop of fresh ricotta added an extra blanket of comfort to the dish.

The whole meal was washed down with a few very palatable 0.5L carafes of the house red, at $12 each - cheaper than most of the glasses on the menu.

While we may have broken the spirit of my father’s dinner commandments the meal was delicious and filling and I think he could have enjoyed it. Most importantly we abode by some of his other favourite meal related wisdom: “Never go into an empty restaurant.” and “Tea should never be consumed from a paper cup”*

3.5/5

457 Court Street Brooklyn, NY

* I remember cringing at the tender age of nine when my father reluctantly took me and a friend to McDonald's after a cricket match only to produce his own china cup to the staff at McDonald's. Needless to say, I never asked him to take me to McDonald's again.

Review :: Casellula Wine and Cheese Bar

Arriving at 9pm as a group of 2 at this small wine and cheese bar we were advised of a 20 minute wait - but were pleased to be given seats at the bar after only 10 minutes.

There is a small but well selected choice of wines on offer by the glass. The wine, at $12-$16 a glass is certainly not cheap so if you know what you like it is certainly worth buying a bottle to share. The wait staff were knowledgeable on all the wines and were very helpful in choosing wines to our taste and that helped complement the food we ordered.

Speaking of food - forget everything you have ever known about the humble grilled cheese. This is not your familiar greasy diner grilled cheese. Coming toasted on a soft sour dough, the three cheeses - two varieties of cheddar and a cream cheese offset and complement each other to create what I am happy to describe the perfect grilled cheese. Whilst nearly looking past this sandwich to other more exotic sounding fillings such as the Goose Breast Reuben* - I am happy that I didn't. I have written here before about how restaurants and bars should focus on doing the simple things well - and these guys nailed it for me with their grilled cheese.

* Kosher issues aside, it was certainly not so hard to turn down the Pig's Ass Sandwich.

4/5

401 West 52nd Street, New York, New York.

Review :: Athenian Greek Restaurant

Is it racist if you refuse to eat in a Greek restaurant because you do not see any Greek people working there? I have always been sceptical about dining at Italian restaurants staffed by Japanese people, and everyone knows that you don't eat at Chinese restaurants in country towns staffed exclusively by Anglo-Saxons.

The Athenian, at 11 Barrack St in Sydney's CBD employs a multicultural front of house staff - but none of them Greek. We were served by a combination of Nepalese and Chinese waiters, all very skilled at their craft. The service was prompt attentive and knowledgeable. Yet there was some doubt lingering at the back of our minds as to how authentic an experience we could have.

These doubts were quickly put to bay when the entrees arrived. A delicious assortment of haloumi, rice balls wrapped in vine leaves, taramasalata and white bait completed with a warm soft pita that sent my taste buds into overdrive.

Then engine room of this CBD institution is staffed by Greeks, and at the end of the day this is all that matters. The mains backed up the solid performance of the entrees - generous portions of delicious hearty food. The lamb comes served by the shoulder with mounds of sides - make no mistake, this is a place where the food is there to fill you up - not just to look pretty on the plate. The lack of choice in vegetarian options was disappointing - with only one vegetarian main if you do not eat fish. Speaking of fish, the silver dory fillets were soft and juicy - cooked perfectly for a white fish - a stark contrast to the dismal performance of the chef at Fish Face a few weeks ago.

To answer the question I posed at the outset - it might not be racist to want your Greek restaurant to be staffed exclusively by Greeks, but in this case your prejudice would result in you missing a great restaurant experience.

4/5

Melbourne Shopping :: Captains of Industry

Captains of Industry, at Level 1, 2 Somerset Place (in a laneway off Little Bourke St) in Melbourne's CBD sets the bar high for what a concept store can and should be. Many brands claim to have flagship "concept" stores but fall short. A concept store is meant to be about expressing the virtues of the brand more than purely selling it. Admittedly Captains of Industry is not a brand, but rather a space for a small group of artisans to show off their skills, yet they certainly have the art of not selling down to a tee.

When we arrived the the cordovan* JS Roberts greeted us and showed us into a side room where there were pieces of leather of all colours lying on the ground. The table was littered with strange looking shoe making tools that gave me the eerie feeling that this could be turned into a sadistic torture chamber at any moment. He genuinely wanted to show me around his workshop without any attempts to sell me anything and from the sounds of things they are busy enough anyway. When I asked JS Roberts whether he made many shoes, he answered that "There is a 3 month waiting list for my shoes."

The shoes are truly works of art, mostly one off pieces for gentlemen that want something beautifully made and unique. Below is a photo of one of the pairs he had recently finished. In another side room was the tailor’s workshop, who sadly was not there to show us his work.

Dark Brown Single Eyelet Derby

The main room is sparsely adorned with smoking pipes, and antique machinery. There are vintage ties and sports jackets for sale. A filing cabinet in the corner has old Hendricks Gin bottles that are used as water bottles to be drunk out of white enamelled tin mugs. This space is more a homage to the virtues that the artisans extol, a serene place for them to work rather than a place to agressively sell their wares.

Other than just a space for the artisans to work and show off their talents, there is a bona fide cafe with delicious cakes and coffee made by the same people that make the shoes and clothes. The hot chocolate I ordered was thick rich and dark, the perfect antidote to the brisk Melbourne weather outside. Perched by the window with hot chocolate in hand in the perfect vantage point to do a spot of people watching at all the passers by on Elizabeth St below.

Go here if you value the quality and attention to detail that men used to take in their appearance - even if you only want to admire - you will certainly not be pressured to buy anything.

*For those not in the know, a cordovan is a bespoke shoe maker

Review :: Pellegrini's Espresso Bar

"Beauty in Simplicity"

Many restaurants fail to impress because they can't do the simple things well. They spend too much time devising extravagant menus and impressive decor yet forget to properly cook their food or give prompt service. Pellegrini's is not one of these restaurants. In fact, Pellegrini's only does the simple things. They only serve pasta and coffees and the layout hasn't been updated since the 1950s but what they do serve is delicious and the service is prompt, friendly and unpretentious.

The long narrow layout at the top of Bourke St in Melbourne's CBD doesn't leave room for many tables, so most diners sit at a long narrow table facing the side wall or at the espresso bar. If there is room in this bustling restaurant I would definitely recommend sitting at the bar. This will give you a chance to talk to the barista, who unobtrusively joined our conversation and offered his advice on love, life and women.

Gnocchi is the dish that sets a true Italian restaurant from the pretenders - there are so many things that can go wrong, and often do. Pellegrini's handmade gnocchi was delightfully soft and creamy yet firm enough to hold its own in the rich napolitana sauce - a balance that is rarely achieved and was a testament to the experience of the cooking staff. All the pasta's are cooked by 'grandpa' in the small kitchen out the back that you walk through to access the bathroom.

The pricing is simple and great value - all pastas are $15 and all drinks hot or cold are $3. All pastas are served with a slice of pre-buttered bread to soak up the remaining pasta sauce from the plate - which you will definitely want to do. Their coffee is faultless, but I don't think you can go past the blood orange granita - a perfect complement to any of the pastas.

Pellegrino's, established in the 1950s - found the winning formula a long time ago. So long as they don't change - I will keep returning.

4.5/5

66 Bourke St Melbourne CBD

Review :: Grasshopper

As far as small bars go, the owners of Grasshopper seem to be following rather than leading when it comes to concept. Whilst Grasshopper does nothing to offend - it also does nothing to excite or inspire. We have seen it all before, it is as if the owners have read "the complete idiots guide to setting up a small bar". The bar steals Shady Pine's basement down a laneway and Pocket Bar's seating, bar and wall art. It lacks any defining characteristics to set itself apart from what is becoming a crowded market of small bars in and around the city.

The combination of low ceilings and lots of concrete created for some deafening acoustics once the corporate set filled out the small place which put me off staying for dinner, which I hear is pretty good. The drinks list was short but satisfactory, a handful of wines clumsily measuerd with a beaker that wont break the bank but if you are a beer drinker I hope you like Peroni, since this is the only beer they serve! The cocktails are numbered rather than named - and the recipes seem to have as much imagination as the names. The cocktails come served in old jam jars with vinyl records for drink coasters, which to Grasshoppers credit is the one unique feature they do have.

Nestled down the back of the unremarkable Temperance Lane off George St, this bar/restaurant only just scores a pass - so you will need to make up your own mind whether to go in or simply pass it by in favour of another bar.

2.5/5

Temperance Lane, Sydney (off George St between King and Market, Next to RM Williams)

Review :: Fish Face

"Much a hype about nothing"

I have always been highly sceptical / cynical about anything that attracts a lot of hype - from Hollywood blockbusters to books, to bars and restaurants - I have often found this hype to be unwarranted. I should have taken my own advice and avoided the hype surrounding Fish Face, because here is one example where a restaurant fell well short of the expectations.

The menu has a painting of a Blue Trevalla on it, and so I took this to mean that it was the restaurants signature dish. Big mistake. Blue Trevalla, when cooked well, is juicy, succulent and requires minimal effort with the fork to break it apart. The piece of fish I was served, was undercooked and tough - requiring considerable effort to break it up into cold chewy mouthfuls.

I enjoy a slightly raw piece of salmon or tuna that melts in your mouth, but this is a white fish - and should not have been served like that. The fish came on a bed of spinach and pickled lemon, and was topped with a crackling of shaved potatoes which was delicious but not substantive, so you would certainly need to order some sides on top. At $40 for the main - even if it was prepared well - it would not have represented good value.

The restaurant had a nice atmosphere, and a good selection of wines - I had the Pino Gritio at $12 a glass - but none of this made up for the poor performance of their signature dish. With "The Sardine Room" just around the corner in Potts Point offering much better value and infinitely better food - I will certainly not be returning anytime soon.

Not the worst, but very far from the best, especially considering the prices.

1.5/5

132 Darlinghurst Road, Darlinghurst NSW, 2010