PUBLIC, Franklin Street

I have walked past Public on numerous events but the thought of walking in never flicked my mind. Possibly because I am on "mission mode" as I breeze past or because I am just too shy to actually dine anywhere alone (although, this character is slowly fading with age). So when the opportunity arises, I quickly put in my two cents opinion to head here.

We arrived a little too late for breakfast and settled for their lunch menu. Service was efficient and friendly, much to my satisfaction:)

Croissant ~ there were still quite a good selection of pastries available at the front counter which prompted us to place an order for them to test the waters. Croissants were pretty good aka countless of buttery layers that crumbles oh so easily.

Croissant with chocolate piped into it ~ as what I would call this. Still pretty yums and more suited for the chocoholics in us.

Public tasting plate ~ much to our delight, Public offered a tasting platter which covered about 40% of the snack menu. We had arancini balls, rosemary and roasted garlic flatbread, olives, house cured atlantic salmon, cured meat and pate. The arancini balls were composed of mushrooms, parmesan and gorgonzola. They were fried to perfection whilst still retaining a moist and flavoursome centre. Would love to have another go at them!

We ate the cured meat wrapped with the flatbread which tasted good together. Personally, I am not a big fan of pate but if you are, Public did give us a generous amount of it so you're in luck!

House cured atlantic salmon with dill mustard dressing, sour cream, mustard leaf and olive oil croutons. This is a shout out to all the healthy foodies out there. A very simple dish done well aka no fussing around with fancy ingredients. Light and yummy gets the thumbs up from me.

Parsnip soup with bread ~ I didn't get the try this out myself but from first impressions, the soup looks fully bodied and would suffice for a semi-full lunch meal. Can't go wrong without some bread served with it too. Oh and a bit of crunchy bits of ham wouldn't hurt at all.

Mixed mushroom ravioli ~ All the pasta dishes served at Public are freshly made so you won't be disappointed with store bought variations. The mushrooms on the plate were plump, juicy and have soaked up all the lovely goodness that they were cooked in. The ravioli was thin enough for my liking and had a decent sized stuffed center. A few dollops of cream and shaved parmesan for added lightness and saltiness. Yums!

Gnocchi with braised chicken, hamlet speck, capsicum, cherry tomatoes, basil and confit garlic ~ I love lvoe gnocchi and find it extremely rare to find one that has meat in it as it is usually a vegetarian option. I would have liked a bit more seasoning but overall, I was still a happy gnocchi filled customer. The cherry tomatoes were cooked until they blistered slightly and there is not one item on the plate that overpowers the dish. Would not mind having this again!

I thoroughly enjoyed my experience here and although dinner is not an option as they don't open then (except for fridays), I am looking forward to popping by for a good brekkie:) Till next time!