Review #15 - Zeps Cafe

Sunday April 11, 2010
Zeps Cafe
Campbell Town, Tasmania

We've been to the north of Tasmania, and we've had plenty of meals in the south, but this time we stopped in the middle to enjoy a lunch at Zeps in Campbell Town. I ordered a steak sandwich, while Julianne ordered...wait for it...a Caesar Salad.

I did manage to snap a pic of the Caesar Salad in question, so here it is:


How did it taste? As Julianne put it, "the egg and the bacon were really good. The rest of it...was of a bit...meh." So she gave it 2 out of 4.

The ingredients were a standard affair: no chicken, anchovies or croutons. The lettuce was a little old, and the cheese was cheap. Julianne had a nasty suspicion the "home-made" dressing had a lot of cream in it, leaving Julianne feeling a bit "blurgh". 1½ out of 3.

Presentation was "a little ho hum". It wasn't the most appealing of Caesar Salads, but we have seen worse. ½ out of 1.

So we've got "meh", "blurgh", and "ho hum" so far. Let's see if things can improve with our last two categories.

Julianne did give 1 out of 1 mark for service, so there's a plus. This despite the waitress, when asked if the dressing was gluten free, replying "No - it has egg in it."

At $13, it wasn't the best value for money ever, but it was still in the realm of decent, so 1 out of 1 for value.

That, unfortunately, leaves the Caesar Salad at Zeps tied for last on our score list with a score of 6 out of 10.

So a little disappointing there, but Campbell Town is still worth a stop over on your way north or south across Tasmania, especially for the lolly and ice cream shop that is quite accurately named A Little Piece of Heaven.

Score Summary

Taste:
Ingredients:
Presentation:
Service:
Value for Money:
Total:		6/10

Review #14 - The Stables

Sunday April 4, 2010
The Stables
Oatlands, Tasmania

'Twas Easter Sunday, and Julianne and I travelled to Oatlands for a family gathering. While we were there, we had lunch at The Stables.

No photo this time, so we'll get straight into the scoring for the Chicken Caesar Salad consumed by Julianne.

Firstly, as is traditional in these reviews, is taste.

Julianne: "My impressions were that it was very, very nice. It looked fantastic and it tasted fantastic. It was extremely tangy which, while it tasted nice, did strip some of the skin off my gum."

Despite the gum issues, Julianne did rate this as one of the top three tasting Caesar Salads she's had. A big call, and it would have been awarded full marks had it not been for the tang (which, we should point out, is entirely down to Julianne's well documented food issues, and not a reflection of the quality of the tang itself). 3½ out of 4.

Ingredients wise, this was a regular Chicken Caesar, without croutons. Once again, one small issue prevented full points here: the salad was advertised on the menu as having anchovies, yet there was no sign of the little critters in the dish. 2½ out of 3.

With the four chicken strips perched at the major compass points, the dish was well presented; the service was very friendly and accommodating to Julianne's "issues"; and at $10.50, the salad was great value for money. Top marks for each of these.

That gives us a total of 9 out of 10, and places the Chicken Caesar Salad at The Stables in a thoroughly deserved top four spot on our review score list.

Score Summary

Taste:
Ingredients:
Presentation:
Service:
Value for Money:
Total:		9/10

 

Review #13 - The Boulevard

Tuesday February 17, 2009
The Boulevard
Oxford Terrace, Christchurch, New Zealand

This review could quite easily be titled "From the vault" because, having done a couple of reviews in recent days (postings to follow), Julianne remembered that while we were holidaying in New Zealand in February last year she reviewed a Caesar Salad at The Boulevard, one of a number of restaurants along the Oxford Terrace strip beside the Avon River.

A search of Julianne's computer found the recording we made at the restaurant, as well as a couple of photos, so here, more than 12 months after the fact, is that review.

Firstly, the menu offered a gluten free Caesar Salad, meaning Julianne did not have to ask for the usual regular Caesar with the croutons left off - they were left off "automatically". A promising start.

The promise didn't last too long. I'll jump to the presentation score first. Here's how it looked:


Not particularly well presented one might say. I felt a bit sorry for the poor saggy egg. Julianne agreed with that assessment, awarding her first ever 0 (out of 1) for presentation.

Presentation isn't everything, though. We do give up to 4 points for taste. Julianne commented that the lettuce was a little watery but the rest was OK. Nothing special. 3 out of 4.

As for the ingredients, other than the lettuce (pictured below), everything was good so only half a mark was deducted, giving a score of 2½ out of 3.


On the value for money side of things, the meal faltered once again. It cost $5 extra to make the regular Caesar into a Chicken Caesar just for a couple of extra mouthfuls. That made the meal $22 all up, and with Julianne left feeling hungry afterwards, value for money scores a disappointing 0 out of 1.

On the up side, the service at The Boulevard was good, so Julianne awarded a full 1 point for that.

The final score of 6½ out of 10 reflects how disappointing the meal was, and unfortunately ranks this salad down at the lower end of our score list.

As an aside, I will say that Julianne and I did enjoy one of the best meals we have ever had while on our New Zealand trip. We both highly recommend The Kiln in Invercargill. Great food and great beer. Oh, and if you feel like pizza, Hell Pizza is fantastic, and they also make gluten free bases!

Score Summary

Taste:
Ingredients:
Presentation:
Service:
Value for Money:
Total:		6½/10