The Fat Goose – Killcare, Central Coast, NSW
Clockwise L to R: pink bottlebrush blooms at the restaurant; the fat goose sign outside the restaurant; the view to Mooney Mooney bridge from Hardys Bay, the front entrance on the slope
Sometimes I am a little skeptical about going to a restaurant with mockery name just to lure customers in. Possibly not intentional, the fat goose in Killcare is rather ballsy to have its name almost as close to the famous three Michelin stars restaurant, The Fat Duck runs by Heston Blumenthal, the culinary alchemist. Duck, Goose; same poultry, different sizes. There is nothing theatrical about the fat goose, no mock turtle soup, no dry ice mist, even if they do have hot and cold tea, they probably wouldn’t suggest you to drink it together in one sip either. However, one thing they do have is consistency, and the food served at the restaurant surpassed my expectations during my first visit and I have been back to the restaurant for many occasions since. It is now one of my favourite restaurants for breakfast and lunch in Central Coast.
The fat goose is on the steep slope, a stone throw away from the ferry wharf of Hardys Bay. Usually we will bring our dog Amelie to go for a walk at the shore front on the weekend, before settling down for breakfast at one of the cafes in the area. The restaurant has outdoor seating which is always a bonus for dog owners like us.
The beached whale - 22.00
The first time we were at The Fat Goose for brunch. They already switched over to the lunch menu which includes an “All Day Breakfast” section. I don’t always judge the book by the cover, but I do have a habit and like to compare the “big breakfast” at every cafes that I’ve been to, usually is a good guideline to review a cafe whether it lives up to my expectation. At a hefty price tag of $22.00, the beached whale (funny name too) is definitely not for the faint hearted.
The massive breakfast is served on a long square platter plate. Seriously where to start? The whole platter is fully covered to the edges with strips of bacon, two fried eggs, roasted roma tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms, white bean cassoulet, Toulouse sausage, spinach, and the house-made freshly baked toasts. I particularly like the Toulouse sausage which is nicely seasoned with herbs and garlic. One hell of a beached whale indeed.
Butter puff pastry gourmet pie with truffled chicken - 18.50
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There are three different variety of gourmet pies on the lunch menu to choose from. The word “truffle” has definitely got my attention and decided to go for the gourmet pie with truffled chicken. The gourmet pie is beautifully folded into a crown with butter puff pastry then baked to a nice golden brown. The puff pastry is buttery soft and flakey, it didn’t take long before my plate is covered in crumbs. There is a generous amount of tender chicken breast pieces inside the pie, mixed with leek and cooked in a creamy white truffle sauce. The creamy sauce is rich and thick, but unfortunately the flavour of white truffle seemingly to be absence in the pie.
The lifesavers - 13.50
One of the billion rules to be a food blogger – you never order the same dish twice on consecutive visits, and make sure to try as many different dishes from the menu as possibly can. The lifesavers will definitely cheers one up with the morning blues. The Canadian style french toast are buttery soft, topped with prime cut bacon and drizzled with sweet maple syrup even though I would have preferred the maple syrup comes as a side in a jug. The more the better.
Egg Cocotte - 14.50
The egg cocotte can easily be one of my favourite dishes here at The Fat Goose. There is a 15-20mins preparation time for this dish clearly stated in the menu, but it is well worth the wait and you will be rewarded with a delightful dish. The deep ramekin is filled with wild mushrooms and eggs then nicely baked in cream and cheese. I find it extremely comforting dipping the house-made toasted bread fingers into the dish and catching all the hot molten cheese sauce. Bliss.
Grilled lamb fry - 21.50
While Brad (LadyIronChef) was in town recently, I managed to kidnap him for a getaway to the Central Coast and also had our lunch here at The Fat Goose. I was intrigued by the grilled lamb fry on the menu since my first visit and finally decided to give it a try. I always thought that the lamb fry is the brain, but turns out it is actually the liver. There is a generous amount of livers on the plate, stacked neatly on a bed of creamy mashed potatoes with caramelised onions and crispy bacon. The lamb liver is very creamy and gamey, takes me a while to get used to. But the flavour is nicely balanced with the sweet caramelised onions and crispy bacon.
The Wharfie - 16.50
Brad ordered The Wharfie, a simple breakfast dish with Toulouse sausage served on a seed mustard hash and topped with poached eggs and wild rocket. Unfortunately the seed mustard hash had run out and Brad was offered to replace it with a fritter instead.
Chocolate Tart
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There is no dessert menu at the restaurant per se, but their little selection of house-baked pastries will keep those with a sweet tooth happy. Brad and I decided to share a chocolate tart which is heavenly rich and smooth.
During a previous visit, we also bought mixed berries tart and strawberry vanilla tart to take away. They are beautiful and lighter than the chocolate variety, perfect afternoon snack over a cup of coffee.
The food at this restaurant is excellent and consistence, despite they charge a little more but the generous portion size make up for it. The Fat Goose has charmed me over without any magic tricks. Make The Fat Goose a must visit on your next visit to Central Coast.
The Fat Goose Shop 3, Killcare Road Hardys Bay NSW 2257 Tel: 02 4360 1888 Opening Hours: Cafe Mon-Wed 8:00am - 2:30pm, Thurs-Sun 8:00am - 4:30pm Restaurant Fri - Sat 6:00 - 8:30pm Pizza (takeaway only) Fri-Sat 5:00-8:30pm
A Table For Two (ATFT) is Billy Law's food blog that features best eats in Sydney and around the world with drool-worthy food photography to salivate your appetite. I also throw in a smidgen of my food and travel photography for good measure. Billy Law also happened to be a contestant on MasterChef Australia 2011. 
Very nice, food looks like good old comfort cafe food. Is this near where you live ? Looks like you have a few good spots to eat on the coast.
This place looks fantastic Billy…that “beached whale” brekky is my kind of plate! If I’m up that way will def have to check it out.
Yep I immediately thought of the Fat Duck when I saw the name, very ballsy indeed. I would totally order the egg cocotte, egg and melted cheese? Yes please! (oops I didn’t mean to rhyme…)
That gourmet pie looks fantastic; what a shame about the white truffle.
The Fat Goose sounds delicious! I would love to try it one day, especially the Eggs Cocotte!
That food looks delicious!
I think I might have to try The Fat Goose one day for breakfast.
Ahhh pity I dont have a car or else I would def go here for a lunch! That egg cocotte and lamb fry is calling out to me and hee hee at beached whale… im beeched as bruuu
thanks for bringing me here billy! i was wondering when you are going to post abt this!
.-= ladyironchef´s last blog ..Boathouse Fullerton: Best New Restaurant =-.
omg! the beached whale looks so awesome. I can’t believe you guys ate all that! If I do go to the central coast, can you take me there? =D
Based on this post we went for lunch today. No chicken pie unfortunately however we had the meat pie and it was very, very good. I was disappointed with the beached whale. The portion size was good but the sausage, I’m sorry to say, was pretty bad. It just didn’t taste good at all. Others ordered the Lambs Fry (I can’t be objective as I’ve never liked it) and the Frittata (which lacked salt). Latte was OK (but the coffee and deserts were better next door at the place on the corner).
My growing girth is proof that their pastries are amazing. Great detailed review. Thnak you.