Visit the South Coast : Part 9: Shoalhaven - Flavours of Shoalhaven and Queen St Eatery

I've had such a blast checking out the Shoalhaven area with my foodie friends and friends from Destination NSW. Have you checked out Part 1-8? It's a great area to have a road trip. There's also the South Coast Food and Wine Festival coming up at Berry Showgrounds from 14-15 Sept 2019.

It's the last day of my road trip to Berry and the Shoalhaven area. Although I've walked around the main strip of Berry, it's on the last day that I discover the little store in Berry called Flavours of Shoalhaven. It's here we meet a very passionate owner named John and his wife Linley. John is a passionate food lover who lives and breathes gourmet food. 



Our group starts off with a chat with the owner John. This turns into a  conversation with samples of various balsamic vinegar and our little travel group is asking lots of questions and is fueling his passion. His passion fuels an impromptu foodie talk. 

This is where I get completely immersed into the world of gourmet foods as John talks through what recipes he uses for the food and what are his highest selling products. Matt and I eye off this particular Black Garlic balsamic vinegar and onion paste. 

We also get into this special reserve vinegar. The foodie group is drooling from the delicious sample and before you know it - I realise John's been speaking to us for about 20 minutes. He's such a friendly local and we have found a mutual love of gourmet ingredients. He doesn't have to really do any hard sells as I happily purchase some of my favourites that I've sampled to take home. Linley, his wife is also quite knowledgeable and also talks to us about how you can use some of the products but stands back as John's the extrovert.  I highly recommend you stop by and have a chat!

My final stop of the trip is at the Queen St Eatery and Wine Bar.  This is a cute little Modern Australian / French Bistro that is located on the main strip in Berry.

We also start the meal with some Sydney Rock Oysters (6 for $26). The Oysters from the South Coast have been the best I've ever had in my life. The quality is simply sublime. I take a sip of wine and let the flavours wash over me.

For entree, I share the scallops ($19) with Svet. The scallops are baked with garlic butter and herb crumb. You can see the thinly herb crust on the top of the scallop which infuses the flavours within. The scallops are delicious. I take a sip of my wine and enjoy this moment.

 My photo on the iphone is much brighter than the photo Matt takes on the Camera

Photo taken from iphone

I also share the twice baked cheese souffle ($18) with my hubby, this looks absolutely decadent. The cheese souffle is also served with a petite salad which provides refreshment from the super rich but delicious cheese souffle. I recommend you share this dish as it's very rich.

For mains, I choose the mussels ($26) which are cooked in a white wine sauce with leek and is also served with a side of french fries. I eagerly get into the pot of mussels, enjoying the natural salty flavours with a mild white wine fragrant aftertaste. The french fries adds further salt to my palette.

Photo taken from iphone

Photo taken from iphone

Svet goes for the gnocchi ($26) which is cooked Parisian style with pistou, seasonal mushrooms and toasted pine nuts. I look over with jealousy and steal a gnocchi for a taste. It's light, fluffy and has soaked in those mushroom flavours. Delicious.

Fellow foodie Sarah has the Steak Frites ($32) which is minute steak with cafe de paris butter. The butter looks quite thick so I imagine it to taste quite rich.

Foodie Kurt goes for the prawns ($38). I negotiate a deal where I share some of the mussels for a prawn. The grilled king prawns are served with a flambe sauce au pernod (which is a french alcohol with a mild licorice taste). I can't taste much of the licorice and mostly taste the prawn flavours (which is good as I don't like licorice).

In an attempt to be healthy, we also share some salad and balance this out with some french fries.

What a lovely meal overall. Hubby orders a random green beer to try something different. It's called a Brasserie Du Mont Blanc La Verte. I'm quite content and stay away from this beer. We also get some delicious profiteroles for the road as we travel back to Sydney.

Overall, I really enjoyed my last day in the Shoalhaven region. The Flavours of Shoalhaven was a pleasant surprise, just off the main strip of Berry and I also really enjoyed my french bistro lunch at Queen St Eatery. 

A huge thank you to Destination NSW for showing me all the amazing things in the Shoalhaven region. It's an absolute gem of a region to travel and dine in. Amazing.

Weekend Food Escapes dined as guests of the venue or their representatives. All photos, opinions and words are my own.