I had a work lunch at Little Jimmy in Epsom with some office staff and our web dev guys. Though I was eyeing a fish starter and a veggie side, I ended up with their Wagyu Beef Short Rib fillet with celeriac puree and some bokchoy. It was the size of my fist- and I have a small fist.

Luckily, one of the guys offered to share his curly fries. It needed a side, just saying ( and I was really hungry that day). It was labelled as a large plate too which was not accurate. To compare, Sarah from work ordered a small plate of trevally ceviche, and the ‘small plate’ was actually a condiment bowl. I know that the restaurant industry is struggling but…

Dinner/ Blue Ox Babe BBQ
Continuing our fortnight eating-out runs, we put aside Korean for a change and tried out this Texas barbecue joint in Pukekohe with the strange name of Blue Ox Babe. If you’re not sure of how much meat you’re supposed to order you can ask them to make that decision for you. We ordered the brisket, pork belly, sausages and the ribs and skipped the chicken. With four adults (Matt was still at work), they recommended doubling the ribs to a full stack.

For sides, we had two curly fries (there’s a loaded one slathered with pulled pork), slaw and the pickled cucumber (the total bill was just under our magic number of $200).

They were spot on with the quantity though I would be happy with just the brisket and the ribs. The ribs were great- firm with a nice even layer of fat on top (I loathe ribs with the meat falling off) and unslathered with sickly sweet sauce which I also hate. I would’ve wanted rice for a side- or something plain, like maybe corn on the cob or even bread buns. The curly fries were a disappointment; they were under-seasoned and hard.

The hero side was the obviously home-made pickles - actually crinkle sliced Lebanese cucumbers with just the right combination of tang, crunch and acidity to freshen your palate for another forkful of meat (and no forks!).

We were in agreement that next time, we would do takeaway and eat it at home with rice.