MUMU GRILL

Sydney’s only 100% grass-fed steakhouse was always going to have to be on the list for this challenge. However, just because they label themselves as one thing, does it mean they deliver the goods? Lets see…

Nutrition- 9
Taste – 9
Service – 3
Ambience – 5.5
Extra mile- 8
Budget – Medium

*Scores are out of 10

MUMU Grill: Overall rating – 36.5/50 on a low budget

Nards

Before even entering the restaurant I knew what I was going to order. Chicken. Yep, I had looked at the menu beforehand to make sure that there was chicken on the menu. After last week’s Pub debacle I was determined to get some meat of the non-red kind. It was ironic really considering the restaurant we had picked, MUMU Grill, is renowned for having some of THE best quality grass feed beef around. In fact the steaks are their specialty.

Admittedly I did feel a slight pang of regret not ordering any steak, but this was going to be a good opportunity to see if a ‘steak restaurant’ could serve up other dish options equally as well.

After a slow start, (note this restaurant is very popular and may take a while to get food), the food arrived at the table. Bear in mind, our dinner booking wasn’t until 8 pm and by the time we had ordered it was already 8.30pm, so eating wasn’t going to happen until well after 9pm.

Now for some an 8pm booking is the norm, but for us, eating that late at night is a rarity. Since we both start at stupid o’clock most mornings, 8.30 is ‘getting ready for bed time’, not ‘fill our belly time’.

Ordinarily we try to eat around 7 at the latest, and in an ideal world I would try and eat a little earlier (growing up dinner was always at 6pm). This early dinner rule is one of my personal firm and fast rules for maintaining a favourable body fat percentage.

For me personally, eating close to my bedtime results in poor quality and broken sleep, which negatively affects the following day. I have found that eating at least a minimum of 2 hours before bed is optimal; this provides me with adequate nutrition and ties me over to the next day, without getting hungry through the night.

When any of my clients are looking to increase their fat loss, or wants to fine-tune their nutrition, this pre-bed meal is an area I focus on.

Clearly, everyone responds differently to food, but it is important to know what you can personally tolerate as far as pre-bed meal timing and type is concerned (I’ll let MC explain this).

As we were waiting, I was calculating how many digestive enzymes I would need to take to ensure a good night sleep! (MC- and you call me a geek!)

When the meal arrived the roast chicken was presented on a bed of spinach and vegetables. Perfect!

The chicken was simple but super delicious, and hit the mark for me. It also came with some potatoes, but given that it was waaayy past my bedtime they remained untouched.

It is often recommended to have starchy carbs at night so as to help increase the quality of sleep because it helps release melatonin, but in my case potatoes that late at night severely affect me- the point here is get to know your body! Become aware of how it reacts to foods so that you are always in a position to make the best food decision for your body!

I was left feeling very satisfied, full and impressed (with both the food and my ability to keep my eyes open!).

Over to you MC:

Mike

Right, well I think we all know what I’m going to say….

It’s a steakhouse, of course I loved it!

Well, perhaps I should be more honest- there was a bloody good chance. However, as we know, just because a place calls itself something, doesn’t mean it fits the bill.

In this case it’s true- MUMU Grill is an awesome steakhouse. Not purely because the steak is delicious, but because it is all 100% grass-fed (for the unwise- this is a must have with red meat. Do not accept anything else), and all their ingredients are either organic or sustainable.

That automatically gets a massive tick in my book….

Although, this night was a slightly different one. I had the scotch fillet with Blue cheese & mushroom pate, and loved it.

NN’s chicken was tasty too. The things that made this one different were some of our other orders… I’m putting it down to an off night with the waitress, but we ordered olives to start, and greens which both didn’t come. The poor girl also dropped two empty wine glasses into Nards, who managed to act fast and catch one while the other smashed next to us (she thinks she’s a ninja, so this didn’t help me hearing about it).

The reason I point this stuff out is because I think the food at MUMU is awesome. However, this stuff happened which made the dining experience a bit crap (this time). So, just like it’s great for me to (perhaps intentionally) screw up once in a blue moon so NN knows I am in fact human, it’s nice to know MUMU can also be off its game at times. Perfection is boring anyway…

Right, so the meal rocked. Now as NN alluded to, meal timing and content are important. As you can see from the picture below, we largely left our heavy carb options of varying spuds and bread on the table. NN had her reasons, and I had mine- I had not trained that day, so this was essentially a low carb day for me.

Otherwise I am a big advocate for eating your carbs at night (on training days) as this will help to stimulate the production of melatonin, which will in turn encourage a good and restful sleep. Something everyone needs. Well, except maybe me at university- I probably had sleep covered during those years…

Of course an important consideration here is what carb options you have. This is another post on it’s own, but in our example this week, white potato isn’t a great choice. Sweet potato (kumara) most definitely, as well as other root vegetables, quinoa, black and wild rice and a tub of ice cream. Oh wait… one of these things doesn’t belong, much like…

 

 

 

 

 

As NN stated, the timing of this food can be important. If you’re a guy looking to put on size, then eating closer to bed isn’t such an issue, however, if you’re looking to drop or maintain body fat then following the 2 hour rule is a smart starting point. If you struggle with dropping off to a restful sleep, then amongst many other strategies (again- another post for another time), on training days try having your carbs at this last meal.

So, grass-fed meat is good. Kumara at night is good. Sleep is good. MUMU is good. The waitress, well I’m sure she is, just not so much this time…

If you have any questions about meal timings, content, eating carbs at night, the benefits of grass-fed meat and sustainable food, or anything else discussed here, then please, leave a comment below and we’ll help out.

Go on…

NN & MC