Mambo Italiano at Five Dock

After a long, satisfying and indulgent day, I secretly decided I should organise our future tours to include a decent walk.... reduces guilt factor by 15%. Maybe.

Previously we have had our Italian-themed DDT (Haberfield). For a very long time before the DDT experience, Haberfield had set the bench mark for what I considered the best tiramisu and wood-fired pizza (both at the same place - Napoli in Bocca). And then we found the best biscuits (S&P Sulfaro's), best pistachio gelato (Pasticceria Papa) and the best lemon gelato (Dolcissimo's).

Can Five Dock beat Haberfield?

We started at Pasticceria Tamborrino. And an espresso is in desperate need for yours-truly as I karaoke'd with a bunch of labrats until wee hours of the morning ... where was I, oh Tamborrino's - showcasing a wall-length cabinet of biscuits, pastries and cakes.

Clockwise from top left: Pistachio shortbread, sfogliatalle (don't ask me to spell or pronounce this word!!), almond biscotti and ricotta canoli

There were so many choices, and many of them in little bite-size portions, it was hard not to sample as many as the first DDT stop could handle. I had 5. I loved the melt-in-your-mouth shortbread. I loved the sfogliatalle (ricotta, spices and citrus peel filled pastry - crunchy on the outside with creamy centre). I loved the canoli (but I'm partial to canolis). Almond biscotti was quite ordinary in comparison, maybe it should have been consumed without comparison?

There were several different fillings for profiteroles - ricotta was creamy but very light, not overly sweet which was great; pastry was light and fluffy. Chocolate custard was somewhat lack-luster - not saying it's undesirable but it just didn't stand out.

KT - Almond croissant!! But take it easy on the icing sugar please. Almond paste was a bit much for me, but it's a personal preference. EXCELLENT donut - great tangy strawberry jam, possibly homemade, with fluffy and not overly sweet donut. What simple pleasure this one was! [KT: I wouldn't have gone for it coz it's not FRENCH... okay, I'm just jealous that I can't have ANY of these... *drool*] {CS: Dear CEO, this was a Mambo Italiano DDT, and you are nit-picking that the donut ain't French?? You MUST be jealous!}

Apple crumble - a breakfast item by Charisma, filled with fruity goodness. I just wonder how they sliced it soooo smoothly??!!

To make a comparison with Pasticceria Papa's phenomenal pistachio gelato, I had to have it when I saw it. Look at the size of this thing - a monstrous scoop for just $3. In terms of price it'd won me over. Flavour? Rich pistachio, not the fake green-coloured essence you get at cheap ice creameries. Smooth, with slight gritty texture. Only dislike was it was too sweet - pity.

Tamborrino served really good coffee with excellent aroma, not the $3 cup of milk we sometimes get at mediocre cafes. I was hoping that the next few stops won't be as rich and flavoursome as Tamborrino's ... so that I don't have to roll myself back into my car.

Marineve was our next stop but as it only did take-away, some of us decided to skip this sampling opportunity. The biscuit and cake counter looked reasonably impressive, but somehow I'm still immersed in the Tamborrino afterglow .....

La Delizioza also featured an extensive cabinet of food, many of which similar to that of Tamborrino and Marineve. But what was very different was the varying quality - Lemon tart did not taste fresh,  friands dry and stale, and choc-hazelnut torte was bland. What was also most unacceptable was the forgetful barista - missing 2 coffee orders after it had been paid for. Something the staff should learn would be that getting the order wrong is nowhere near as bad as forgetting the order. This should never happen.

What was interesting and enjoyable was the banana caramel tart, moist and fragrant. Though I think I prefer eating my banana fresh ... it did taste a bit like an over ripe banana mixed with some caramel.

Here's another apple crumble - it was moist but nothing out of the ordinary. The torte was very ordinary - really disappointed to see shortening based cream sandwich in bland sponge cake. Where's the aroma of hazelnut?!

What could have redeemed Delizioza was their florentine - chewy, tasty, nutty, syrupy. Also very cute was the mini tart with grapes on custard. It was fine, but didn't dance on my tastebuds though.

Was I being unfair on Delizioza? I think not, but it certainly would have tasted better if it were the first stop. But the dry friand, poor lemon tart and forgotten coffee were certainly real, while the other orders were not tantalizing nor interesting. 

Not a bad idea having a walk at this time of day - our sugar high was affecting our level of judgment for sure! It's about a km to the next stop - so a slow relaxing stroll helped with digestion and increased the appetite - again, yes!

I like the look of Dolcetti's desserts cabinet - they look interesting and fresh. Even the lemon tarts didn't look like the standard lemon tart of flat and tough custard. However it was still a little hit and miss, as the tart pastry was not always satisfactory. The pear and custard tart, excellent filling in a shell that's barely cooked. But the strawberry tart had a chocolate coated shell with a lovely short brown shell.

 For a comparison with Tamborrino's excellent jam donut, it was ordered here again. Good dough, but jam was not as generous nor home made.

Another interesting item was an unattractive looking bread and butter pudding which gained varying opinions. I liked that it was moist and had generous custard, but it was not as appreciated by others though.

How we managed 8 dessert places in Surry Hills before is beyond me. [KT: um... 9, you omitted Sparkles which we chanced upon :P] Our bloodstreams now contained more sugar than it can process, after 3 or 4 modest sittings. But with our final stop just around the corner, we soldiered on... as best we could. Trovatino, here we come!

There's a gelato counter that I could only look at and sense despair. Lucky (?) their dessert counter was not extensive, so only a lemon and lime curd tart was requested. Others sheepishly asked permission for a savoury snack, and given they behaved so well earlier in the day, permission granted (hehe will this happen if KT is around? [KT: maybe... I'm getting soft in my old age...]) Must say, the white bait fritter looked fantastic, and sitting next to a rich red aromatic penne napolitana was more tempting than I anticipated. The lemon lime tart? It would have been excellent had it been searingly sour... in fact it was sickeningly sweet. So sweet I thought I could feel the crunch of crystalised sugar ... not right!!!

Thankfully I've parked where the first stop was, so I could walk off the excess sugar. 

So glad I finally got to sample Five Dock, the other Italian village. Funny Leichhardt was never on DDT agenda ... but with places like Haberfield or Five Dock, we didn't need to fight with the crowds who don't really know better (SMUG!!!)

Thanks to everyone who attended - long time absentee Stephanie, Ewa, Patricia and Justin (and bub Evelyn!!), and new devotees Phillip, Hoe Yin et al! Thanks for coming back!! 

CS

KT: *still green from jealousy* There will be no DDT for April so stay tuned for a double dose of sugar high in May!