Hippo Creek - Hillary's Boat Harbour

If I remember, I like to peruse the menu before I go to a restaurant I have never been before. The selection of Angus and MSA graded steaks caught my eye and I drove hastedly to the popular seaside harbour. This edition of Hippo Creek was founded on the immense popularity of its original Scarborough eatery, where one would need to book in advance to get a seat for dinner. Luckily for me, my significant other had booked for us a few weeks in advance. At the time of writing it is summer in Perth and days with temperatures hovering in the thirties are not uncommon. The cool breeze that met us was a welcome relief as we disembarked from the car.

Hippo Creek is located next to the water where one will see boats moored next to the boardwalk the restaurant is located. Hippo Creek is a two storey restaurant with tables outside to enjoy the above mentioned breeze. We were seated on the second storey with an overhanging view of the floor below. Hippo Creek is sparsely decorated with an tribal African theme with the show piece being a huge zebra skin splayed on the wall over the main entrance. Upon arrival, the restaurant was already quite busy which is not surprising with Christmas being less than a week away.

A waitress soon arrived and we placed out order. Usually I would order an entree but the main I ordered seem more than enough. I ordered certified Angus rib-eye steak on the bone with a side pork ribs. Mushroom sauce and chips rounded off the dish. The meal came in good time and at this time I noticed we were not served our complimentary bottle of water (tap vintage). Luckily I had a coke to wet my mouth. I had asked for the steak to be medium rare and it was on the edges of the steak. As I got closer to the bone it was evident the steak was rare. Luckily I do like rare steak too but be warned and do not forget to take up Hippo Creek's steak guarantee for steaks cooked no more than medium. The mushroom sauce was a great compliment and the steak was tender. A bit more seasoning could have done it more justice but no real complaints. Chips go well with mushroom sauce too but I took it easy on the potato fingers as I had the pork ribs to tuck into. The pork ribs had a nice basting but the meat was quite dry and was more of an afterthought. That coupled with the size of the rib-eye will recommend to you that the steak is more than enough.
Breaking with tradition again we skipped dessert to have an ice cream at one of the local ice cream shops.

All in all the meal was quite good. For the money I paid for the steak, it could have been a better grade but I would eat it again no problem. I probably recommend a cheaper steak, maybe a hunter's assaggai which is steak suspended on a hot skewer, novel and fun way to eat. Although the waitstaff missed the fact that we did not receive a bottle of water, they were very attentive and available.

Ratings:
Food: 6 - Good food, a cheaper steak will give you a better value form of satisfaction.
Value: 1.2 - Would be higher if high grade steaks were better. Hunters assaggai is good value.

Final Rating: 72%

Finer Details:


Open:
Breakfast is from 8:00 to 11:00 (Saturday and Sundays only)
Lunch is from 12:00 to 15:00
Dinner is from 18:00 to Late (Kitchen closes at 21:30)