[info]
When? - 30th of June, 2011
Where? - George’s Hamburgers, Fish & Chips. 325 Keilor Rd, Essendon
Price? – $9.90 Barry? - No Website? - None
Reviewers – Lee, Nikki[/info]
Followers of the Parma Daze Twitter may be a tad confused, as I had posted earlier in the week that we were hitting up a pub that offered a triple parma, Alas (this week at least) it was not meant to be, we had a few regulars who couldn’t make it so our regular parma review squad dropped to two.
For this reason I figured we would forego the triple parma attempt in Thomastown and focus on a parma that was recommended to me on the PD Facebook that I have been meaning to try for awhile - The take away ‘parma pack’ at Georges Hamburgers, Fish & Chips, in Essendon. The reason it worked the best with a small group is that there isn’t really anywhere to eat at the fish & chip shop, sure there were a couple of tables outside, but on a freezing cold Melbourne night eating outside isn’t really an option, and the logistics of getting a large review team to get a take-away parma and eat it elsewhere would be a bit of a headache, thus small review team = easy take away review!
Okay, that was a long intro about nothingness, I’ll get to the parma. The take away parma has always been an elusive beast - We’ve all had that drunken conversation while standing at a kebab window at 3am saying “I wish I could get a take away parma right now… that would be the best” then dearly regretted buying said kebab the following morning.
Like bigfoot himself, the good take away parma has always been a myth, hoping we would be able to put the search to rest, we arrived at Georges and I scanned the menu, I was a little worried that we had the wrong place to begin with as I couldn’t see parmigiana listed anywhere, it wasn’t till I got to the very end of the menu board that I spotted it - Chicken parma pack - $9.90
We placed our order and waited around for them to cook it up, Normally this is the part of the review where I would discuss the establishment itself, but at a fish and chip shop I really don’t have much to report!
Its a small room divided by a counter, fryers on one side, waiting customers on the other, The chairs were comfy and the copies of ‘Womans Day’ seemed pretty current, so I guess thats something. As I was appreciating the possible copyright infringing artwork on the wall, our order was up.
Remember the days when all fish & chip shops had arcade machines to kill time? they should totally bring that back, that was awesome. We picked up our styrofoam containers of food, hopped in the car and headed home, as much as I enjoy the ambiance of Keilor Road, The comfort of my own place seemed the best option, and I’ve gotta say I enjoyed being able to watch Family Guy while I ate a parma sitting on my couch. On to the parma… 
I’ve gotta say I had zero expectations when I went into this parma, which is why when I cracked open the container I was pleasantly surprised, I cut into the schnitzel and it seemed thick enough, there was plenty of cheese, a little light on the napoli but the obligatory slice of ham was nowhere to be found.
The parma itself was okay - The crumbs tasted a little bit on the processed side and the lack of ham/little napoli was a bit of a let down, But when the only other option we have for a take away parma is the McCain’s offering, this chicken is like manna from heaven.
Underneath the parma were the chips, If you’ve ever had fish & chip shop chips before you know what they taste like, plentiful in number and fresh from the fryer with each parma, other than needing a bit of salt they were great, I had trouble getting through them all.
The salad was indeed a star, even though it was a take away parma it was one of the better salads we have ever had on one side we had a greek salad with lettuce, onion, cucumber, olives and fetta with a light french dressing.
On the other side there was a healthy dollop of creamy coleslaw, a most welcome addition that complimented the meal perfectly If you live in the area and feel like you could smash a quick parma then this is definitely one for you, call in advance and pick it up on the way past if you have a craving only parma can satisfy - you won’t be disappointed.
The parma itself was a slight let down, coming off a little too processed for my liking, but they definitely make up for it with the chips and salad, Neither myself nor Reviewer Nikki finished our containers (probably due to the huge amount of chips supplied). For only $9.90 its hard to go wrong.
Parma - 5.0
Chips - 5.25
Salad - 7.75
Value - 8.00
Total - 6.20
The search continues…
