Eating my way around ... Fountain Gate
VIDEO: Don’t mistake Fountain Gate for that fictional town in Kath and Kim. Narre Warren’s shopping mecca is full of delights, there’s even a place serving fried chicken with beer.
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IF you’re not from Melbourne’s southeast, you may confuse Fountain Gate with Fountain Lakes — the fictional suburb where Kath and Kim lived in the cult TV series.
But booming suburb has come a long way since our foxy ladies shopped up a storm at the popular centre ten years ago.
A food lovers haven has blossomed at Fountain Gate’s entertainment precinct and there’s many venues that scream “look at moi”.
There’s high-end fish and chips, Korean-style fried chicken paired with a special craft brew and left of field cocktails with cheeky names from a Fountain Gate stalwart.
If you’re exploring the depths of the shopping mecca, you can treat yourself to fresh cupcakes, inspired by the famous Magnolia Bakery in New York City.
A lot has changed at Fountain Gate, but it’s “different, unusual, noice” in a good way.
CUPCAKE CENTRAL
Sheryl Thai’s burning passion for baking was unearthed when she visited New York City.
The IT consultant visiting the Big Apple when she first sunk her teeth into a sweet vanilla cupcake at the famous Magnolia Bakery (think Sex and the City, the Devil Wears Prada).
“I thought these people were crazy who were lining up for a cupcake,” she said.
“But when I had my first one, I really had this obsession to do something.”
As fate would have it, Ms Thai lost her IT job in the Global Financial Crisis, forcing her to chase her cupcake dream.
“I started baking, for friends and family at first, then I had so many orders and the business picked up,” she said.
By 2010 she’d opened the first Cupcake Central store. Now the entrepreneur has five to her name, including Fountain Gate.
“We bake on site daily. We don’t use packet mix and use good, quality ingredients,” she said.
“We don’t sell day old cupcakes. All of our old stock is donated to Eat Up, which gives food to schools for kids who don’t have lunch or morning tea.”
Cupcake Central has its staple flavours and introduces special flavours to keep things exciting.
“We’ve gone a bit crazy with some flavours, it’s like fashion, we have our seasonal collection,” she said.
For winter the Miso Cherry cupcake, with a miso paste filling with a cherry compote flavour, is a must try.
As is the Maple Bacon, with a sticky syrup and salty crunch.
“Everyone loves peanut butter and hazelnut flavours, and now they’re big on red velvet. We sell fives times as much of that flavour than any other,” she said.
MUST TRY:
— Maple Bacon and any vanilla flavoured cupcake with that butter frosting.
Ph: 9077 4542
GAMI CHICKEN AND BEER
BEFORE Korean Fried Chicken became a Melbourne foodie phenomenon — the boys behind Gami were hard at work.
The four university friends, who loved fried chicken and beer, wanted to launch their own business.
How could they go wrong with crispy battered chicken, dusted with herbs, drenched in your choice of sauce and washed down with an ice cold beer?
Rio Yoon coined the idea (aptly so over a few beers) with his mate Jun Lee.
Inspired by Yoon’s mother’s home style recipe, the pair launched their first Gami store in Healeys Lane in Melbourne’s CBD in 2006.
“Back in that time, Melbourne didn’t have Korean Style Fried Chicken,” Lee said.
Despite the passion for the business, it was a slow start for customers to walk through the door.
“For the first week we were drinking there ourselves because nobody came in,” he said.
One surprising newspaper review later and the doors burst open with customers.
A second city store followed, with the brand opening in Hawthorn, Knox and Fountain Gate.
The boys even asked Thunder Road Brewery Company to craft a beer that would compliment their fried chicken recipe.
A Gum Bae (meaning cheers in Korean) Pale Ale and Gum Bae Lager are on tap in each store, with other Thunder Road options by the bottle.
“The one thing we agreed on was having a lager and pale ale on tap,” Lee said.
“The IPA was too strong for our chicken and the Pilsner was a bit vague, too soft.”
“The lager matches well with our sweet chilli sauce.”
MUST TRY:
— The boneless fried chicken plain or drenched in sweet chilli. But the honey soy is also worthy of a bite. Best to pair each type of chicken with a Thunder Road brewery beer, it’s only fair.
Ph: 8774 3986
STEVE COSTI’S FAMOUS FISH
Whatever you do, don’t liken Steve Costi’s Famous Fish to your typical tuck shop.
“It’s not a fish and chip shop, it’s a seafood restaurant,” Fountain Gate manager Nayeem Abdul said.
After almost six decades selling fresh seafood owner Steve Costi — son of seafood king Con Costi — transformed the retail arm of business into a restaurant chain in 2015.
Now there’s eateries in Geelong, Bendigo and Melbourne, the first opening in Fountain Gate.
General Manager Sal El-Houli said the Costi name goes a long way in the seafood game.
“He’s got a level of buying power from the places he secures stock from,” he said.
“He has a relationship with the fishermen, it’s not sustainable for us to go to the fish market.”
“We use fish that’s caught responsibly by sustainable fisheries.”
Mr El-Houli said there was a lot more to the menu than the traditional fish and chips.
“We have prawns, mussels, octopus, scallops, salmon, barramundi, flake, New Zealand King Dory, Whiting and Blue Grenadier,” he said.
The independent fish and chippery plans to open two more stores in Melbourne and one in New South Wales.
MUST TRY:
— The tender crumbed calamari or mixed seafood grill (complete with grilled prawns, octopus, salt and pepper calamari and fish). You can’t go past a serve of hot chips. It’s your childhood by the sea, served on a hotplate.
Ph: 8790 3783
SWITCH BAR AND LIFESTYLE
There’s a cocktail bar that’s making bartenders blush at Fountain Gate.
With names like ‘Spank my Strawberry’, ‘Sour Puss’ and ‘Sexy Thyme’, it’s no wonder some poker faced waiters are nervous serving drinks at Switch Lifestyle.
“It’s always a bit of a laugh,” area manager Nebojsa Vuji said.
The longstanding, ‘all-rounder’ restaurant is still going strong — one decade after it opened at the Narre Warren shopping centre.
“Fountain Gate and Casey is a booming area,” Mr Vuji said.
“People come from Gippsland and venture into the suburbs for dinner.”
“We have that atmosphere and offer excellent customer service that keeps people coming back,” he said.
Mr Vuji said the restaurant, which also has a venue at Watergardens in Melbourne’s west, prides itself on making delicious cocktails.
“Off with the Fairies is our signature cocktail — it’s been on the menu since we opened,” he said.
The florescent green slushie, with peach schnapps, Midori, wine syrup and topped with fairy floss is eye-catching.
The cheeky Spank my Strawberry is also a favourite, made with pineapple vodka, Malibu, strawberry liquor, fresh pineapple and strawberry.
MUST TRY:
— Spank my Strawberry to satisfy your sweet tooth. And for the giggle factor when ordering.
Ph: 9704 4333
Twitter: @Kara_Irving
Instagram: Kara_Irving
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