Hoegaarden!

Wat the?: Tried Belgium wit beer!
Where: The Local/Belgium Beer Cafe/Terminus, Melbourne
When: Every now and then...

If you are in the mood to try foreign beers, let me recommend you the Belgian Wit beer Hoegaarden. Its not bitter and it tastes really smooth and nice. What's even cuter is that you can order in a large glass (500ml) and it dwarfs all other beer glasses in the bar! Heheh... In a bottle, it still tastes ok but you got to get the ones on tap. Another beer to try is the Edinberg German beer found in The Local pub. Really smooth, what all beers should be! Cheers!

Oh ya, just incase you are wondering how big the 500ml glass is, check out the picture above. It is compared to my colleague's handphone and a regular "pot" glass you get for local beers.

Indo mee Jakarta special anyone?

Wat the?: Interesting instant noodles flavour

When: June 2008

Where: Indo food mart, Glenferrie Road.

I was shopping for some good-ol asian supplies and came accross this rather interesting instant noodle flavour at the asian grocer. While its common to hear of oxtail soup or flavour, it was not really common to hear the translation in Bahasa. In Bahasa Malaysia, Sop Buntut will litterally mean "Butt" or "Buttock" Soup!! What it should have said was, "Sop Ekor" or "Tail Soup" which I think fits the bill here! Oh well...

Dinner at Ezard!

Wat the?: Fine dining
Where: Ezard, 187 Flinders Ln, Melbourne CBD (below Adelphi hotel)
When: May 2008

The Oyster Shooter! Slurp up the oyster in 1 gulp! :)

Sashimi!

5-star Wahyu Beef steak..oh man you got taste this once in your life!

Comes highly recommended by my project manager and I in return recommend it as well! Go for the 8 course tasting menu, it will not dissappoint you. The staff will explain each meal and also how best to enjoy it. Great service and food. Well worth the price you pay. Do forgive the poor imagery from the mobile phone..hehe.

Big OZ Breakky!

Wat the?: Breakfast OZ style

Where: Rathdowne Street Food Store, 617 Rathdowne St, Carlton North 3054

When: May 2008

Hot Chocolate with marshmallows (thats your sugar :))

Sausage, Sauteed mushrooms, poached eggs, spinach, hashbrowns with toasts

If you are looking to feed yourself with a fantastic OZ style brekky, try the breakfast menu at this place! They got it all, sausages, bacons, sauteed mushrooms, poached/scrambled eggs, toast....ooohhh yea! Wash it down with your favourite latte or hot chocolate. Promise you won't be hungry until dinner!

Soda Rock!

Name: Soda Rock diner

Where: Corner of Toorak Rd and Chapel St, Melbourne
When: Feb 2008

In a mood for good-ol american burgers and milkshakes? Head on down to Soda Rock diner at the corner of a very happening Chapel St and Toorak Rd. Its got all the looks of a 1950s/1960s american diner. The food is great although may be abit pricey. Excellent milkshake!

What's with the Menu dude?

Where: Greasy mamak joint in Msia
When: December 2007

Ok, no prizes for guessing what's wrong here. I loooove Msia man...priceless... Now lets eat!

More Malaysian Food!!

When: Nov 2007
Where: The Palm Food Court, 213 Blackburn Rd, Glen Waverly, Melbourne.




Now what do 3 msian blokes do with a brand new car just collected from the dealer? Head from some msian food of course! Where else to find msian but in one of the msian stronghold in Glen Waverly? Hehehe, located along the very long Blackburn Rd, this establishment has been around for about 10 years judging form some newspaper cuttings posted on the notice board.


All kinds of msian food can be found here, from Satay to Roti canai, kuey teow to tom yam and my personal favourite here, the belacan spinach. Although not the best belacan meal I've had, it still quite decent. As with most asian food here, most are watered down to cater for caucasion taste buds. But the keuy teow has "extra spicy" setting which im keen to try the next round!




What we ordered (clockwise from bottom): Mee goreng, keuy teow, chicken satay, tom yum soup and belacan spinach!

Breakfast at 35th floor!

When: Nov 2007

Where: 35th floor, Cafe La, Sofitel, 25 Collins St Melbourne CBD.

Buffet and seating area.

View from the window. Fed square and St Kilda Rd in the background.

View from the window. Yarra river in the background and train tracks to Richmond station.

Atrium at 35th floor! impressive.

Thanks to a very bottomless pit of credit, my project manager treated us to a fabulous buffet breakfast at Cafe La on the 35th floor of Sofitel in Melbourne. Wow! Not only does this place has a superb view of Melbourne's skyline, but superb food as well. They have a selection of sausages, eggs, bacon, hash browns, grilled mushrooms, baked beans, bread, cereals and wide selection of juices and desserts. Ahhh...nothing like the good ol English style breakfast to start your day!...nyumms


Weblink: http://www.sofitelmelbourne.com.au/cpa/htm/htm_bar_dining.asp?page_id=16

Arrivederci!!!

When: Nov 2007
Where: 191 Nicholson St, Carlton, Melbourne

The name means farewell, but I will definitely not bid farewell for this fabulous place to dine! Located along Nicholson St, its the perfect place to dine after work or on special occassions. Bruce, the head honcho will hook you up in no time with great food and excellent wine recomendations.

I had the pleasure to try a nice selection of fried rice balls, fried calamari, grilled pork sausages and duck meat balls for entrees. Delicious! With a healthy dose of Menabrea Italian Beer and white wine to go with the upcoming seafood, i really can't wait for the main course!

When Bruce brought it over, I made a big "WooooW, wat the heck is that?!". The main course was called Morton Bay Bugs and it comes highly recommended. Its somewhat like a lobster, only that it's head is flat. Looks prehistoric if you asked me. Anyway, you eat the white juicy sweet meat located below the shell, very much the same as a lobster's. I find this was way better than the lobsters I had in Malaysia. But then, I haven't been eating much lobsters anyway to tell the diferrence! Served grilled, we had about 5-6 pieces each and was enough to satisfy the hungriest bloke that night.

Bravo Bruce!!! (forgive the low res pics from my phone cam...not enough light ler..)

More mamak in Melbourne

Where: Near the corner of Elizabeth and La Trobe St, Melbourne CBD (opposite Melbourne Central)
When: Oct 2007






The quest for more Malaysian food has led me to Bismi's restaurant branch in the city. Quite famous amongst the student community here. They serve excellent Briyanni and recently as I've found out, not too bad Maggi Goreng as well!



Aaahh...here is the maggi goreng with lamb and teh tarik on the side. Bear in mind that there are at least 2 maggi packs in there and heck loads of mince lamb bits. Wooa...I couldn't finish it and had to pack some home.

Mamak quest leads to Rich Maha!

When: Sept 2007
Where: A lane on Little Collins and Elizabeth St, Melbourne CBD


My quest to find an authentic mamak in Melbourne has met with great success this time by locating this quaint little branch of Rich Maha's right in middle of Melbourne town. For those who don't own a car to drive to the "mother" branch on Burwood Highway, you can take a train to the city and walk down Little Collin's St to find this place.



Here are some pics:The entrance just off Little Collins St. If you are not careful you would just miss it. I know I did the first time! hehee...


Since I was running out of time and still full from the Briyani lunch at Clayton, I just ordered a Teh Tani (Teh Tarik ) and quietly observe the shop.

Thats the odering counter where you will find heaps of familiar Malaysian mamak shop cuisine :P sold at a premium if you convert to RM...hehe So don't convert and its still affordable!! hehe. They dish out rice, briyani, curries, rotis, satays, vadais and Mee goreng. Almost all you need is there! hehe..I'm gonna take my time with this place and slowy explore the menu. So I may update this post from time to time...hehe

oooh yea! That a nice cuppa of Teh Tani alright!! The posters in the background are Visit Malaysia Yr 2007...Malaysia Boleh!!! Don't ask me why the shop was deserted on a Saturday afternoon. Doesn't matter as long I get that tea in!!

Assault on Kampung Cina

Where: Kampung China, Setiawan, Perak
When: July 2007

Wooaaa...can't help but blog about this mouth watering experience when we stopped over at Setiawan on the way to Penang. Located at Kampung Cina (Chinese Village) hehehe,...this seafood restaurant threw up some local delicacies thats reallllllllly pleasing to both the eye and stomach. Let me introduce you to some of them:


From left: Claypot curry prawns in coconut milk, Stir fried calamari in kung-pao spicy sauce.

From left, clockwise: A bit out of the pic is delicious fried meehoon, Fried Fu-yong Egg, Boiled water snail thingy and Steamed fish with Assam sauce

Being near to the sea and a fisherman area, the price is cheap and it's big on taste. If you're in the vicinity of Lumut or Setiawan, you know where to get cheap and great chinese food ;)

Dinner at Rahsia Restaurant

Date: 8th June 2007
Time: 7.30 PM
Why ar? : Company dinner and farewell

Now this place was called Rahsia (secret) really because it is a secret! Not many knew about it's existence, not even me until recently. I attended a company dinner there and it was quite a good experience actually. The ambience was ok, and food was not too bad. Although some of the drinking glasses were not very clean ( i suspect coz there was so many of us they had to bring out the wares from storage to serve us). I guess the price was kinda pricey but then again you pay for good service, ambience and privacy right in the middle of KL city.

Located just behind Empire Tower near Ampang Park shopping mall, a 10 minute walk will take you to this place. Its actually a big bungalow that was converted into a restaurant. Here is a pic of the frontage:
Dinner tables are arranged inside and outside the house, so its up to your fancy where to eat. Beware of mosquitoes though if you're sitting outside. Your date in a hot/short dress might not take it too nicely...heheh. Ok on to the food!!

I went for the lamb shank, which in my opinion fulfilled the basic "shank" requirements. It's sauce is tasty, the meat soft and tender, slides off the bone with ease. However it didnt make me go "Wow!", I think i've had better shanks...hehe Don't take me wrong though, its quite good! Here is a shank shot, forgive the low quality camera phone pics!
Some of my friends attacked the beef tenderloin pictured below. It was a medium rare event but glad to note that it wasnt so bloody this time. However the cow did won in the end as some could not finish the portion and was "chewed out of breath"..hehe. Oh yea it was good they say ;) To call it a night, I settled for the Tira-mitsu which was alcoholic. I think it one of the best tira-mitsu I've had so far, not bad indeed. Here is a pic:
So, would I pay Rahsia a visit again? Hmmm, not in the very near future due to wallet constraints but I do recommend it if you want a private and cosy place to eat espeacially if you're in the KLCC or Ampang area and don't want to put up with traffic or parking woes. Cheers!

Secret Recipe's Mud Cake

Warning: Chocolate overdose ahead! If your doctor has cleared you for the next sugar rush...please read on

What to do with your chocolate crave? Head on down to the nearest Secret Recipe outlet and order yourself a mud cake. Its big on...what else...CHOCOLATEY goodness! Its thick and ber-goods! Here take a pic:

Mee Goreng Special!

This is the lowdown. you have not ate Mee Goreng (fried noodles) if you have not tried the Mee Goreng at Pulau Tikus, Penang. Its in a corner chinese restaurant in Bangkok Lane and manned by Mr Mahbub (who used to have extreme afro hair style in the 80s...hehe). My favorite would be the Mee Goreng special (noodles with special peanut sauce, potatoes, fried beancurd, beansprouts, cuttle fish) and cool ice barley or ice tea. Here is a pic...

Of course, don't forget the famous resident cat of this restaurant. Caught napping in a carton box!