Upmarket or traditional - How can you have both?

Wow. You got a gourmet sausage rather than a standard one. If these are the problems that you must deal with, try going overseas to see how the less fortunate than us live.

I reckon I had gravy on my last chicken schnitzel. Sorry, I didn't know about that rule. What do you put on chicken schnitzel?

Phil, it must have been a great trip if the pub food was the only thing to complain about. I seldom enter a out of the way eatery expecting good food, although I am often pleasantly surprised.

"Traditional" may be used a bit liberally on occasions.... I suppose you could ask for details before ordering. I don't mind cooks experimenting a bit as I like things to be different. The negative is that sometimes it aint what you expect.... ah well.... that's part of the adventure of eating out.

BTW - I would be miffed if a cook/chef to put milk in mashed spuds..... lots of butter and no milk makes a creamy but fluffy mash (as it is supposed to be).

Cheer up Phil..... at least there wasn't a Maccas close by.

Bill

I understand where Phil is coming from. Going out bush some tend to expect things the the old fashioned (traditional) way. Might not have used the best example to get his point across though.

However as the world moves forward, things will and do change. The remoteness that was 20 years ago is nowhere near as remote now.

Phil, just wondering, on the menu, did it actually say 'traditional'?

Become a Vegetarian Phil , and eat fresh Veggies - at least when vegies are old they look it.

Hi Phil,

It is not hard to be disapointed when you eat out, I think my experience would be 75 percent of the time. Meals are overpriced, badly cooked and a lot of the times the ingredients are stale. My remedy,cook at home.

Had one meal out a few years ago, on Pittwater in Sydney, at a fairly upmarket seafood restuarant, food was crap, but the response from the staff when we complained was unbelievable, straight out of Faullty Towers, turned out a good night we laughed so much, they had no idea what we were laughing at. I think they thought we were crazy.

All the best Phil Warren

Maybe you should have tried the seven course meal at the Birdsville Pub..............a pie and a sixpack!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Happy travels
Adrian

Know where ya comin from Phil. Six of us did an eight night stay around the top-end. Kakadu,Pine Ck, Katherine, Daly Waters, Kunnunurra and Batchelor.
Evry where we had breakfast we had to deliberatley ask for crispy bacon. It was annoying seinga limp sad looking piece of greasy bacon sittin on ya plate. Cant people cook bacon anymore?? I,m payin so I reckon I have the right to have it how I like it.
Not a whinger, just like my bacon cooked properly.
Cheers

I think if I paid what they were probably charging I'd want a bit of something extra like chives in the potato and a gourmet sausage. These days all the words traditional mean in a restaurant is that you'll get sausages, you'll get mash and you will recognise them. No promises about what either are made of.
We had the worst meal of our lives at the two storey in Tibooburra. Can still remember the name: Kev's Famous Rissoles. Tasted like Kev had emptied every spice jar in the rack into the mix. Slathered in horrible Gravox. Totally inedible. But that's travelling. You take the good with the bad.

Bloody hell! Never before have I seen such a whinge and moan about the most simplest thing. vk1dx, if the meal didnt come as you ordered it, send it back or dont pay for it. I bet your the type that moans about the flies and kids that play too loudly in the morning at camp. Shame to hear about your cancer, I wouldnt wish it on anyone, but you cant use that as an excuse to whinge and moan about everything that is not excactly how you want it. Do you travel into the bush for "traditional" meals or to see and experience the country? Lighten up or have a spoon of concrete handy. Thats how it is now.

LOL Thanks

Most of the people travelling in the bush are from the cities and expect the same type of meals as they buy there .I am sure most of the cooks will not cook plain meals these days because nearly all of the people complain there isn't any taste , so the food is loaded up with spices and herbs . There is nothing wrong with pommy food , it might be plain but you do not starve . I was brought up on plain home cooked meals , mutton , pork , bacon that mum cured or sausages , mashed spuds with home made butter , milk and pepper , living on the farm also bread and dripping , and still like home cooked plain meals . I also like indian , thia , viet , chinese , greek , italian , german and turkish foods . I understand where Phil is coming from as some cannot have spicy food for health reasons . I am lucky that I like and can still eat spicy food as my gangerous gallbladder was taken out 8 years ago , most people without a gallbladder cannot eat spicy meals . I also like juice from a lemon on my schnitzels . We are all different with food choices . Have many more great trips .

Trendsetters

The 10 minutes I just spent/wasted reading the above diatribe makes feel like poisoning a monk.

Robin Miller

Could you be so good as to give me the weight of Mung beans and Chic Peas so that I can factor them into a CSR trip planning exercise.

DD

Stop sooking, and take your own stuff, if you are such a picky person.

Some people got nothing better to do.

Cheers
Bucky

WOW...things must've really changed at the Innaminka Pub since I was last there in Aug 2009. Went along one night to try out the fare and it was so bloody good we went back the next night and again outstanding. Reckon I would've gone the next night too if I didn't have to move on to the next place........ From memory the chef was a guy from the UK and the staff were mostly Irish backpackers.....but great food, great service, great beer and excellent company as well.

Well Phil - I'm with you! Would it surprise you that the Innamincka and Birdsville Pubs are linked? I'm surprised you didn't mention the COST? Would it surprise you when I say there is no difference in price or menu for locals?
There should not be gravy on Chicken Schnitzel (anymore then there should be bloody tomato sauce).
It has been my experience when cooking in Birdsville (I had such long days that cooking at night became impossible for me) that when I had Corned Silverside and Vegetable on the Menu or Roast Anything with all the Vegetables and Puddings (not Desserts) like Baked Custard or Sliced Bananas with Real Egg Custard (in a double boiler - not out of a packet) - I couldn't make enough.
Soon became aware that people were happy to try out the Gourmet but really wanted old fashioned cooking (call it comfort food whatever), In winter I always had a pot of Pea and Ham Soup in the cold room - nothing added in but green slpit peas and ham bone or Chicken and Vegetable Soup made with the carcasses of the chickens (used for the sandwiches) and fresh vegetables (my freight bill for that stuff was enormous). If I put a pot of stew (with flavour not spice) on the Menu in winter - the biggest pot was never big enough - and the best part of all this was all those people hiding in their caravans watching TV all the time, came out, brought their glass of wine and we all sat around and had some good conversations - for not much cost.
That's what I like about camping - meeting people, seeing the sites and having great conversations.
As someone who travels a fair bit and has to eat 'gourmet' - Friday nights it's usually mashed potato, sweet potato and 'punkin' , fresh green beans and a nice steak. I can't live without fresh green beans - even in Birdsville (and that was a logistical nightmare).
Oh yes, Savoury Mince was bit hit on the Breakfast Menu - mince, onion, carrot,
gracy, black and red sauces! Simple fare. Sometimes, if you were nice people (and lucky) there was fresh yellow belly as well!
Bring back the simple fare I say!
Happy travels everyone no matter what you eat!

The first sentence in the whinge says it all " I,m not one for the new European influenced meals " , so go and ask what the meal actually consists of instead of your whinging , Totally BLAND 'traditional ' bangers and mash alah pommy land ? Or propper 'traditional' bangers and mash as served in other parts of the world ? If you really want 'traditional ' Australian bangers you would be eating a mixture of the butcher shop floor scrapings and sawdust.