Tuesday, May 10, 2011

MOUNTAIN VIEW HOTEL

186 Springvale Rd
Glen Waverley, 3150

http://www.mountainviewhotel.com.au/

A family birthday and Mothers Day saw the whole family at the bistro of the Mountain View Hotel on the corner of Springvale Road and High Street Road for Saturday lunch. Anyone who grew up in the area in the 1980’s would remember this as the site of the former Billabong Family Bistro...ah the memories! Who can forget the playroom complete with giant bus and out of focus video screen? 25 years and several renovations later and the bistro is now a bright airy room with floor to ceiling windows with table service (except for drinks).

For some reason I wasn’t expecting much but I was pleasantly surprised. Our waitress was very friendly and accommodating, bringing our three year old a colouring book and crayons which was a real bonus...mobile phones can only keep toddlers occupied for so long! Everyone enjoyed their meals but we skipped dessert as there was cake to be eaten at home.

WE ORDERED
E had Chicken Boscaiola – a chicken breast served with chips and salad and a creamy mushroom sauce with garlic and bacon.


J had the Beef Lasagne – which looked a lot like a Parmagiana...even the waitress got confused!


Together we shared the entree Asian Food Platter – a basket containing chips, mini dim sims, samosas, spring rolls and wontons.


Other dishes ordered were the Oysters Kilpatrick, Prawn Linguine, Mediterranean Pie, the Mountain Burger and from the kids menu Nuggets & Chips.  From all accounts everyone was pretty happy with their dishes.  My partner thought the Prawn Linguine was under-seasoned and one of the chicken nuggets that I stole was burnt and dried out inside.


WE THOUGHT
The Chicken Boscaiola was tasty...the sauce was creamy with just the right amount of garlic and lots of bacon.  A really nice dish!

The Beef Lasagne was nice and crispy on top and cheesy and meaty in the middle. The serving size was generous. A good lasagne!

The Asian Platter was surprisingly good. From previous experience ordering Asian tasting plates, I half expected everything to be dry and overcooked but this was not the case.  The dim sim filling was moist and flavoursome and you could really taste the samosa filling, it wasn't overpowered by the oil.  The chips were crunchy and seasoned well.

WE LIKED
The table service...so much easier than having to queue like at most pub bistros.  Tables were spaced at a nice distance so no-one was on top of anyone else so to speak. The room was light-filled and spacious...it was a pleasant environment to eat in.

WE DISLIKED
Nothing really. The view over the carpark isn’t all that inspiring but you can’t really complain about that.

WILL WE RETURN?
Yes. Like most suburban pubs, there’s nothing groundbreaking on the menu but if a good pub meal with friendly service in a pleasant environment is what you’re after then this is the place. Good place to take kids but unlike many other pubs there is no play area. Above average for a pub.

7/10

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