Thursday, February 21, 2013

Morena, Surry Hills

Managed to score a deal for high tea at Morena for $23 per person so of course I dragged the sister with me :)


We managed to get service all to ourselves today. Thursday lunches are apparently not very busy!


It definitely felt like one of the nicer places to dine at when we entered. First time trying Peruvian cuisine! Service was very friendly and helpful. I guess it does help that we were the only ones there ;)

Coco leaf tea
I think I prefer Chinese green tea - it delivers a much stronger flavour.

Savouries board



I am going to be honest here and say that I wasn't quite sure what this was :( They were fritters of some sort but I am unfamiliar with the flavour. I think it was cassava and there were dried olives on top. I enjoyed it nonetheless though.

Mushroom frittata with avocado cream and sun-dried tomatoes
This was a really good frittata! I really do love my egg. The avocado cream had a good douse of lemon which gave it the frittata element of tartness when combined with the sundried tomatoes.

Alpaca burgers and pork crackling
Mm, pork crackling... So crispy! One of the best pork cracklings I've had :D Onto the alpaca meat - who has actually eaten alpaca meat? It was reminiscent of camel and beef, but definitely juicier than camel meat. The buns were soft and slightly sweet, balancing the gerkin-like sauce and roasted onion. Good burger!

Dessert board
Hello sweets!

Chocolate cups with rice pudding and kirsch cherries
Chocolate is chocolate which is always good :) The rice pudding made these bite-sized morsels super creamy!

Tres leches cake with nutmeg roasted pineapple and a dusting of chocolate powder
I have been wanting to try tres leches cake for the longest of times and this was a damned good one! Super dense, sticky, and amazingly sweet from the cake soaked in three types of milks (evaporated, condensed and whole) - it was very decadent indeed. The texture was not what I was expecting at all! I wonder if all tres leches cakes have this texture?

Peruvian caramel with gooseberry compote, mini meringues and crumble
I would have to say that this is my favourite out of the three though. Not the prettiest of desserts, but we've learnt by now not to judge a book by it's cover right? The caramel was almost like an intensely soft yet thick custard which wasn't as sweet as I thought it'd be and when eaten with the buttery crumble and tart gooseberry compote, it just went together so well! I absolutely loved how the caramel seemed to melt/dissolve in my mouth. It was very therapeutic.

Have any of you tried Peruvian cuisine? If so, do tell me about your experiences!

Morena
425 Bourke St
Surry Hills, NSW, 2010
0405 902 896

Opening Hours

Lunch
Friday-Sunday: 12:00-3:00pm

Dinner
Tuesday-Sunday: 6:00pm until late

Morena on Urbanspoon

13 comments:

  1. I really like the cuisine at Morena, it's so interesting and yep that's where I've had alpaca! The tres leches cake is amazing! A great deal too :)

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    1. I love trying out new cuisines :) Never thought I'd end up eating alpaca in my life, but I definitely enjoyed it :D Looooved the tres leches cake!

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  2. Oh the food does look wonderful!
    I am sure to try this next time I am in Surry Hills :)
    Pop over to my blog and say hi :)

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    1. Do try Morena out! The chefs and waiter were so friendly too :)
      I will definitely be saying a little hello over at your blog :D

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  3. I do like Korean food - I'll be sure to check it out :)

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  4. The peruvian sure know how to cook their meat from my experience! And man, look at that crackling with all the bubbles in it! Also love the presentation of the dishes, very artistic!

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    1. That crackling was so beautifulll. I felt slightly bad when I thought about eating the alpaca - they are so fluffy looking! How good was the presentation? :D

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  5. I have been to Misky Cravings at Fairfield Heights as they do authentic Peruvian food at reasonable prices then watched a food safari episode on Peruvian food, it expanded my love of this cuisine even more, your sister must be very lucky to always have you to dine on delicious food with!

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    1. I haven't heard of that restaurant so thanks for the heads up! I definitely want to expand my knowledge of this cuisine and try more of what they have to offer :) Hehe my sister and I both love food so all we ever do is eat :D

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  6. wow that pork crackling! i want it i need it!

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    1. That pork crackling was amazeballs! It was gone too fast :(

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  7. Mmmm this place looks so wicked but amazing. That pork crackling... and those sliders. Yum! Shame I'm on a low GI diet right now :'(

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    1. It was fantastic pork crackling :D Oh no! Save it for a cheat meal some time in the future ;)

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