Cafe` Style at Miramare

"café - small coffee-house or restaurant"

There's no doubt that Glenelg(or "The Bay" as it's know to locals) is Adelaides most popular seaside tourist precinct. And why not, after all the beach is great, there's the jetty for those romantic walks, the "bay" has just about everything on Jetty Road for the shopper, it's a short tram trip from the city and then there are those fabulous restaurants and cafe`s. Theres been a quiet revolution going on down at the "bay" when it comes to dining out especially at Moseley Square where most visitors and locals flock to enjoy the fine food , wine, coffees in a vibrant atmosphere amongst the throng of pedestrians and the clanging our historic trams. During the summer season everyone wants to dine outside and enjoy the ever changing scene that passes by. One of the most popular spots at the square is Cafe` Miramare, this months Lifestyle feature review. As a regular to the "Bay" I've had plenty of opportunities to witness first hand most of the changes the area has undergone in recent years. Every saturday after competing in cycle races as Regency Park the Norwood Combine riders would gather in a pack of up to 60-80 riders and head off for the bay. At the end of around 25km depending on the route we took there would be twenty plus left to have the obligatory pasta dish

or coffee and cake after racing. Cafe` Miramare has, over the last two years developed its own truly distinct style of food. From its fabulous wood oven pizza, seafood, steaks and home made gelati it offers quality, service and style that rivals most cosmopolitan restaurants. There is a huge emphisis on the old adage that "fresh is best" as mine host Gorhan was quick to point out on my latest visit. I chose mid-week thinking it may not be real busy but Miramare was three parts full inside the cafe` with a few seated undercover in the outside dining area. Thanks to an innovative council and the jetty road traders the outside area has expanded in recent times from a few tables and chairs to defined areas for each participating food source with dining for their customers only. But back to dining at Miramare. The menu is not complicated nor overbearing and it didn't take long before we had decided on our food. Our starter would be shared and the wood oven pizza was first up. Feeling a bit adventurous we chose the Capricciosa that certainly sounded pretty good. A combination of tomato, goats cheese, real leg ham, roasted capsicum and after its cooked a slight sprinkling of fresh basil. Sounds great and tastes just as good. By the way, forget that nagging feeling that goats cheese is smelly. To the nose the Capricciosa is a real delight. Next on the hit list would be Tortellini Alla Pana one dish that I've had on other visits to Miramare. One thing I love about the pasta at Miramare is they don't drown the pasta with thick and gooey sauces that have flour fillers. Here its all done delicately and it really works well. The pasta came as

it should, al dente`. As always it was a generous serving that tasted as rich as it looked. Next up was to be the Grilled Baby Calamari. This would be a real test of their skills as calamari is one of those seafood dishes I really, really do love. It's also one that many a time has been served to me as what can only be described as expensive rubber. This time though I was in for a treat. It was fabulous. It was like chewing through fairy floss, tender, sweet with not a hint

of toughness in any of the pieces of white flesh. The baby calamari comes atop a filling bed of rice with its tangy dressing of olive oil, fresh herbs, a hint of garlic and chilli is an option. All these combined to ensure this would be one of the best calamari meals I've had in a long time. Last but not least would be to tackle something for dessert. There are plenty of goodies to choose from here ranging from sliced cakes, pastries and of course their own home made gelatis.

How could we go past the gelati. We left it to Gorhan to choose the flavours but I had two favourites I wanted to see in my "Coppa Gelati". Both are top of the tree as far as my taste buds are concerned. First is the "Baci", created in the traditional style of those Baci Chocolates. The second is pastachio which has an appeal all of its own. There are 14 flavours to try and limited quantities being produced ensure that they are always crisp and flavoursome as gelati should be. It certainly proved to be the right choice for the finale` to an excellent dining experience that I would recommend to anyone. Cafe` Miramare located western end of Jetty Road Glenelg.