Movida - Melbourne

[Taubear]

I just spent the weekend in Melbourne discovering its culinary delights. One of the highlights of my weekend was lunch at the Spanish restaurant Movida which is hidden away in a colourful laneway in the CBD @ 1 Hosier Lane, Melbourne. What can I say but WOW, what a meal. The food menu offers you the choice of both Tapa and Racion. Tapa are small individual pieces, Racion are plates to share amongst two or more people, or a larger dish for one.

We had the following Tapas

Roasted lamb cutlet encased in a Catalan pork & paprika pate

Half shell scallop oven baked with jamon and potato foam

Fried silky croquette flavoured with mushrooms

Followed by the Racion

Pan seared marinated cuttlefish with chickpeas, mint & tomato salad

South Australian prawns wrapped in pastry with pork belly and chick pea shoots

Marinated roast capsicum and tomato salad, in moorish spices

This was combined with drinks

Alhambra 1925 Lager Spain

2006 Escarpment Chardonnay Martinborough NZ

And Last but not least dessert

Rich drinking chocolate and Spanish doughnuts

Sherry Romate Amontillado 90ml

The service was fantastic and it will go down as one of my most memorable dining experience. If you live in Melbourne all I can say is lucky you  If your visiting make sure you book ahead to avoid disappointment.

They have a cook book titled Movida: Spanish Culinary Adventures which looks like a must have for the collection and a website

http://www.movida.com.au/index.htm

[Pat Churchill]

One of my regular haunts. They do an excellent set menu for about $50 a head, too, if you're happy to let them put together a selection for you.

Our favourite is the little white anchovy tapa with lovely smoked tomato sorbet on a crispy wafer. Ole!!

I also like Bar Lourinha at the top of Little Collins Street. Both are very consistent. The latter doesn't take bookings but it's worth chancing it.

[Amarantha]

Two of the absolute top restaurants in Melbourne, in our opinion. We've been to Movida twice and Lourinha only once, but every time we had plenty of those take-one-bite-and-omg-i-never-want-this-dish-to-end moments.