The Original plan was to go to the bar on the hill but there were some complications. So we went to The Kent
http://www.thekenthotel.com.au/
Gman
First let me set the scene.
It is pouring down rain at 7:30pm. To misquote Morpheus from the Matrix, “Unfortunately, no one can be told where the Bar on the Hill is. You have to see it for yourself.”
In short, there are next to no signs of how to get there. I know where it is, but as for parking in front of it, I am still at a loss. For this, the Bar on the Hill loses a mark. Secondly, the music was too loud, another mark lost. Thirdly, the kitchen was closed, there it loses its remaining possible marks.
0/5
The decision was then made to………..something………….go near Hamilton? No…. Darby St? No……. Beaumont St? There wasn’t really a decision made apart from following Scott’s Failcon…..
So we arrived at Oasis on Beaumont St after driving km’s to find parks. Scott covertly found us a table in the Kent.
The Kent
The Kent has a smallish pub/bar area up front and beergarden type restaurant out the back. It is not very inspiring due to the cream, cream and more cream colour scheme, or lack thereof.
Everyone chose the Parmigina (their spelling) style schnitty as that was just about all there was to choose from. This was quite a big schnitzel and had a layer of ham, tomato sauce and cheese. I also got the chips and salad.
The schnitty was not dried out enough for me and parts of the batter were also a soggy mess. The chips were only lukewarm and the schnitty was like a fireball it was that hot. The salad was passable.
From my point of view it felt rushed. The meals didn’t take long to come out and that showed. I didn’t bother finishing it. I will go back to the Kent but probably for the pub area and upstairs, not the grub.
Remember, if you have a leaking roof, poke it with a broom and forget about that whole “water & electricity combination” thing.
2.5/5
Kroony
Chicken Schnitzel With ‘Parmigina’ topping
Chips and salad – $14.90
Drinks - FireEngine and rum i call it a burning fireengine… unless someone can tell me there is a real name for it and im wrong?
Staff - The staff were a little worrieing. It was raining quite badly and the roof was leaking water from a light. So they decided to poke at it with a broom before turning the light off. I was a little concerning.
Company – Small group of 6 braved the weather on the great quest. Good mates, all you could ask for in regard to schnitty.
Side – Chips and salad. OK. chips were normal chips good but not awesome.
Topping -Parmigina. This was there spelling not mine. IT was fairly average. The cheese on top was nicely cooked under the grill but there was possibly a bit too much sauce on it.
Schnitzel - Chicken. Decently sized heart shaped chicken breast. The meat had a good tough quality about it, not chewy or dry but less falling apart like i have seen. The batter got a little soggy on the bottom. I think the issue here is the traditional chips served under the schnitty. This is not a good thing please everyone stop doing it. steam from the chips condensates on the underside of the schnitty and it goes soggy. The batter was also a little thick, not such a bad thing just that it kept comming off.
Well rounded schnitty, not a bad price, i gave it 3.5 schnittys out of 5
Ben
If I were to review the entire night, including the terrible weather, the planned destination not serving food that night, and the trouble taken to finally find a parking spot near The Kent; then I would have a grim score for schnitty that night.
But The Kent didn’t have anything to do with any of those factors, so I will ignore them for the sake of fairs-fair. The atmosphere in The Kent was everything you could expect from a little pub. There was music playing but not peeling the skin off of the patrons, who were kept very warm thanks to the superb heating installed around the place. The layout of the pub makes you wonder what’s behind that door or up that flight of stairs or around that corner, but I was there for the food and didn’t go exploring.
Pricing was fair; less than $15 for a large schnitty parmigiana, with choice of chips + salad, or mash potato + vegetables, and by that point in the night I was ready to eat it burnt off the counter.
The food came out in a near-perfect time, not enough to have me complaining but just long enough to make my mouth start to water. Presentation was good, schnitty on top of chips (of which the opposite I would have preferred) with a decent serving of salad on the side. The schnitty itself was delightful, with melted cheese, a parmigiana sauce and some ham underneath to top it all off. Plus it was enjoyed with good company, in a busy (but not crowded) setting, where it was warm and (until a leak in the cieiling nearby caused some lights to go off) well lit.
The entire experience left me even more reluctant to wish to leave for a raining walk back to the car and a wet drive home.
4.5/5 - only lost half a point for the fact that nothing can be truly perfect. Thanks to the staff at The Kent for having us, I will definitely look forward to a return visit.
Scott
The Kent = Win. What a soggy night it was, but all that running and driving in the rain, getting drenched etc doesnt count towards their score so we will leave it there.
The Kent was busy, but willing to accommodate us at such short notice and had a big enough table right under a heater for us. Ordering was quick and painless, although there could have been a bigger selection instead of plain schnitzel or parmigiana. I got the parmigiana and chips with vegetables. $14ish, very moderate pricing and well worth it. The schnitzel came after 15 minutes and looked great. The vegetables were ok, standard carrot, beans and cauliflower. The chips were nice, not the best but good either way. The schnitzel itself was brilliant, searing hot and perfect crumbing and size. The schnitzel itself was probably a 5/5 but the overall score will be a 4.5 due to limited menu choices and because on the way back to the car I walked into a puddle of water 30cm deep and my car failed on the way home and has been broken for the 4 days since.
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Nice work! I’ll have to do a cross post on this one
Great article. Good news on heaters. Keep it up.
omgg! i want to get this page copied into my ipod so i can show my cousin, but i cannot find a way.. could teach me how please??
to copy it to your ipod, just stare intensely at the computer screen for about 37 days without blinking and hope the image is burned permanently into your retina. Then, simply look at your ipod and retype what you see.