To Melbourne and back...

Last week I was in Melbourne for work, and had to chance to check out some places there.  (And yes, I realised I not only have a eatability list for Sydney, but now, I think I have gathered one for Melb) 


1. Movinda 
1 Hosier Ln
Melbourne VIC 3000


Well, I did have hesitations about dinner here.  Not because I was worried about having Spanish tapas, but I was wondering whether there would be awkwardness! 
You see, I went to Melbourne for work, and thank God, another girl around my age went down as well.  So the conversation around dinner, and with the help that we needed to leave before the 2nd seating of the night, the night didn't turn out that bad.  
I read some reviews on eatability and the reviews on Grab your fork before heading there, except due to my bad memory, forgot what they recommended, so just decided to chose whatever I felt like.  

Special for the night: Oysters 

Viera: Roasted Spring Bay scallop with jamon and potato foam

Pulpo: char-grilled octopus with paprika potatoes

These are only some of the dishes that my table ate, but the lighting in the restaurant wasn't fantastic, so these are probably the only viewable pics available.  

I love tapas, so I loved this place.  The dishes were fantastic.  Scallop was cooked perfectly.  The octopus was good, flavours nice and subtle I guess.  

We did have the braised pork neck as well, and that was great.  Tasted like the Chinese style braised lamb with sweet plum sauce.  I liked it, not sure whether the Aussie counterparts did.  

Service was fantastic.  The guy was very friendly and nice, except we only received our spinach at the very end of the meal, which had to be eaten along.  But, it was worth the wait.  The flavours of the spinach was strong and flavoursome.  

My rating: 8.5  

Can't wait to go again.  It ended up being around $35/head with a jug of sangria, so decently priced meal.

2. Caffe e cucina 

581 Chapel Street
South Yarra VIC 3141

OMG.. I don't know whether its because I haven't had good italian for a long time, but this has to be one of the best pastas I've had.  

This place was recommended by a friend, who randomly stubbled in here after a long walk from shopping.  But, since I was here for work, and melb stupidly has their last night shopping nights on a Friday instead of a more sensible night of a Thursday.  But, we headed here after work on Thursday night.  

Started with a glass of wine at the bar, where the bar tender, and everyone else in the restaurant speaking to you in Italian, you really feel like you just stepped into Rome.  

Smoked yellow fin tuna carpaccio, with baby capers, lemon oil and fennel salad

Signature dish: Linguine with pipis, prawns, mussels and scallops, garlic, chilli and tomato baked in parchment paper

I was able to try a bit of this dish.  Pasta was great, but didn't try any of the seafood.  Not sure whether I would like all those thing baked.  But, I'm sure it would have been good.

Paccheri with spicy pork sausages, chilli, fennel and tomato ragu

Picture does not look appealing at all, given that it is smothered in parmesan cheese. But it was SO good that I finished the entire dish.  I guess it was a simple dish, and not unique.  But it was worth it.  

The bill came to $75 / head, one entree, 2 mains and one dessert with glasses of wine.  It was expensive.. which I didn't expect. 

I really enjoyed the food.  Was very authentic and fresh, but given, it wasn't a restaurant that I've heard of, and don't think I was warned about the prices.  I'm just not too sure whether the prices were justified.  So, would have been a 8.5, but the prices pulled it down a little, given that it was not exactly the value for money meal. 

Rating: 8

That's all for Melbourne this time around ... I think it will be Adelaide next.

xoxo michelle 

(decided to use my name, given my blog name says my name... bahhh.. haha) 

What's in my stomach today

1. March into Merivale 


In March, all the Merivale restaurants have a special where mains + a glass of wine is $33.  Since I am asian, and I love eating, I'm definitely there.


First stop: Ucello 

i think it was fried veal chops 

My bad... I can't remember what exactly this dish was.  But it was fantastic! 

Its chops of some kind, and it was definitely not lamb, don't think it was pork, so i'm taking a guess that it was veal. 

Nice, moist and tender.  The salad that came with it was average, but I wasn't expecting anything spectacular from it anyway.  So good, wish there was more! 

Platter of desserts

The platter was SO good! I don't think I've had a good variety of well made desserts in a long time (other than my own home made ones... haha), but the platter had... 

Tiramisu: the coffee was a little too strong, so that was the only fault I saw in the dish 

Chocolate fondant: Beautiful! runny warm chocolate with a nice crisp and thin topping 

Must admit... i cannot remember the others, but trust me, it was SO good! 

My rating: 9/10 

Stop No 2: Est. 

I've been wanting to try Est. for a long time, and finally got a chance for Ethan's farewell lunch, and a final lunch before the March into Merivale deal finishes. 

Fillet of veal, mushrooms, garlic and tarragon

Veal was cooked medium rare! Was soft, tender and really really good! 

And at the end... petite fours as a good bye. 

My rating: 8.5/10

Beautiful interiors inside the restaurant, very classy.  Would love to go again for dinner. 

2. Cafe Mint 

I've been here a few times already.  My friend loves the Turkish breakfast, and since I've never actually tried it before, I'll give it a go. 

But, I actually don't think its anything that special. 

Everything is quite bland, not much flavour and I guess not too appetising. 

Turkish breakfast: Olives, Spinach, hard boiled eggs, grilled haloumi and turkish toast. 

Maybe its just not really my thing, but at least we got some free goodies! 

We were the last table there, as they closed early since it was Easter Saturday.  So, the waiter chased us down when we walked out the cafe.  He gave a box of brownies and baklava.

3. Bourke Street Bakery

Always loved BSB.  Fresh bread, and has great coffee. 

And, OMG... the best, ever EVER tarts I've ever had! 

Strawberry and vanilla creme brulee tart 

Best combination for a tart... creme brulee in a tart, what could anyone else want? I was so full from the food from the Surry Hills Festival already.  But, OMG, I had to fit this tart in my stomach. 

Creme brulee was smooth and not overly sickening.  Not a huge fan of having strawberry there, but i guess it gives the tart a little variety.  But, cannot emphasise how good this tart is. 

Rating: 9.5 / 10 

Not exactly sure what deserves a 10.  But this is very close.  I guess the only limitations for BSB is that its only a cafe, and therefore only baked good available.  But, I would say its very high up to my favourites! 

... shall brunching tomorrow.  Will update on my progress! 

xoxo love.bites

High Tea at Michelle's Patisserie

Happy Easter everyone! 
I'm sure everyone is enjoying the 4 day weekday! Woohoo to that! 


So, since I had made no plans over the break, and did stay in Sydney.  I was baking my lemon tarts when I came up with the idea to hold my own High Tea! 


So, this was the result

This was a lot of effort.  I guess I bought it on myself, because I wanted to bake this weekend.  But, the amount of baking was crazy ! I think about 6 hours on Sunday, then about 4 hours on Monday.

The chocolate macaroons were a success! I was so happy, they turned out perfect.  Perfectly smooth on the surface with the little feet that makes them so special! 

All the other goodies were made with recipes that I've already tried and tested, which makes it easier.  But, I guess it didn't let me try out new things.  

Well, technically it was the first time making scones, but then again, they are not too difficult to make.  

But, I just hope everyone enjoyed the High Tea! 

Happy Easter everyone! =) 

xoxo 

love.bites

My plans

Since the point of the blog is to document what I eat.. involving what I eat at restaurants, and what I bake myself. 

So.. given those are my goals for my blog, I thought I should some of the things I want to bake, and gradually cross them off

1. Lemon Tart (given there's 10,000 lemons left at home, after A's lemon detox attempt) 

2. Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta

3. Nigella Lawson's Torta Alla Gianduia 

4. Coffee or Mocha Sponge 

5. Good chocolate cupcakes 

6. Perfecting pistachio and hazelnut macaroons 

7. Easter styled cupcakes 

8. Raspberry Tart with Creme Patisserie

9. Triple chocolate praline tart

10. Honey Semifreddo

11. Pear tart 

That's all I can think of at the moment.. and I will gradually keep adding to the list and also cross them off.  

AND... in the process of making these if anyone has a spare $649, and would like to donate so I can get my dream, then feel free to !!! 

xoxo love.bites

Baffi & Mo

The "My Stomach Adventure" continues ...


1. Baffi & Mo 
94 Redfern St, Redfern


Today, we went to have brunch (my second favourite menu other than dessert), at Baffi & Mo.  


The cafe is situated on a fairly quiet street (quiet for a Sunday), given my presumptions that it would be busy and crowded.  The wait wasn't too long for a table, which is always a good start to the day.  


And according to other reviews and pictures of the cafe, we order the famous Potato Hash. 

Potato hash with poached egg, smoked ham, tomato, avocado and asparagus on a bed of rocket

From the photo, it does look impressive.  But, I must say, I was quite disappointed.  Don't get me wrong, I usually love any form of potato that is fried, especially the one on the dish, but I thought the overall package of the dish didn't really deliver.  The hash tasted like the Smith "French Fries" packets that you get from the supermarket.  And when I say there's a bed of rocket, I should use the term mountain instead.  And given there's so much of it, and its been drizzled with some type of dressing (vinegar-ish type), it makes the hash soggy.  


The poached eggs wasn't as runny as I was expecting, but if it was, the yolk could have given the whole dish a bit more flavour, and a bit more bite.  


I don't want to criticise each aspect of the dish.  I must say, the dish seemed very light and healthy.  It wasn't heavy at all, and did make room for dessert in my stomach.  But, I would have preferred a hollandaise sauce, or something to give the whole plate more flavour.  


As I said, the dish did leave a lot of room for dessert, and that I did have! 

Hot cakes with ricotta, lemon curd topped with strawberries and passionfruit

And... from the looks of the hotcakes, I once again, had high hopes.  
But, the hot cakes were too thick (and a bit too flour-y). I usually don't mind thick pancakes, but, these just wasn't teamed with the right things.  
The lemon curd (I know I shouldn't be complaining), but was too lemony.  The whole combination of all the things with the hotcakes, did not mesh well in my mouth.  It just resulted in a really awkward taste in my mouth, that I must say, I didn't enjoy. 


Good thing was.. the coffee was great.  Cannot fault the coffee, so to me, it had 1 plus. 


Overall rating: 5
Either I was having a bad day and my mouth just didn't want to taste foods right, but, I just didn't think the cafe was that good.  The hash is something different to your average cafe, but everything else on the plate with it, didn't complement it, and didn't let the hash stand out.  




2. Deus Cafe
98-104 Parramatta Rd, Camperdown


I've been wanting to try this cafe for a while, after driving past it a number of times.  This cafe is attached to a bike shop.  And I'm assuming its quite a famous bike brand?! 


From driving past, the place doesn't look very big, but actually its huge.  Lots of small and large common tables to share, even with a big tv for the kids to watch movies.  


We came to brunch / lunch here on Saturday after a few hours checking out apartments and homes.  So, even though we had breakfast at home, it was round 2 ! 

Poached egg with asparagus, proscuitto, roasted tomatoes and rocket on broiche, drizzled with truffle oil

 I guess, like the dish from Baffi & Mo, this dish tasted very healthy.  Nothing really oily on the dish.  BUT... the poached egg was hard boiled!!!! 
FAIL right there!! 
But, even with this flaw, the dish was great! The truffle oil (which I usually hate, because I hate mushrooms), was light and did make it more aromatic.  The asparagus was sweet and juicy, with heaps of flavour.  The rocket was not over indulging, and I think I did finish this plate, except with heaps of proscuitto remaining.  And, lovely touch of using broiche, rather than normal toasted bread.  


A had eggs benedict (both were runny eggs).  He said it was good, not great.  But, as I said, nothing can really go all that wrong with the dish. So, just take that as a thumbs up! 


Overall rating: 7
I'm no biker, but the location of this cafe is convenient, with heaps of seats available.  There was a lunch menu which I didn't get to try, which I definitely would like to.  Only fault (which is usually a big one) was that the eggs on my dish wasn't runny, but I guess they have the potential to be runny (per eggs benedict dish).  


And that concludes 1 weekend of eating! 


xoxo love.bites

My Stomach Adventures - March 2010

Given how much i love to eat.. 
i think i should also document all my stomach adventures (i.e. where I go eat, what I eat, what i think, and whether I would go back)


This will show food from March (which reminds me.. I should show some pics of the food I ate in Bali.. but I might do that another day) 


1. The French Room 
Location: Danks Street (opp Danks St Depot) 

How pretty is this mango tart.. I want to learn how to make it.. 


The pastries here are SO pretty, and I LOVE the interiors / ambience and feel of this cafe.  As it suggests, the cafe has french-y decor, with armchairs and paintings hanging, and chandeliers.  


I'm yet to actually eat at the cafe, but this was take-awayed, as I had brunch at Dank St Depot beforehand.  


FYI.. i LOVE danks street depot too.. the bacon hash is to die for, but after having it 2 weeks in the row, I need a break from it for a while. 


2. Bang Bang Espresso
Address: Reservoir St, Surry Hills 

Poached eggs on corn fritters with crispy bacon slices 

The cafe is on the quiet end of Reservoir Street.  Apparently, it is owned by a Ministry of Sound DJ.  So the cafe is fitted out with drum stools as chairs and has a funky kinda feel with it.  


I thought the breakfast and coffee was good.  My eggs were nice and runny, with the corn fritters moist and soft which is a nice change in texture against the crispy bacon slices.  


A had eggs benedict, he said it was nice.. but nothing special.  Given that he eats eggs benedict places at all the places he goes to, I'm not too sure how different or how great / bad a place could really get. So, that's a bad example.. hahah 


Otherwise, I think my overall rating for the place was 7.5 


3. Bodega 
Address: 216 Commonwealth St, Surry Hills


Finally went for my spanish date!! .. i usually love spanish, or maybe its the sangria that i love, but having meal made up of all small dishes is my kinda thing.   

I didn't manage to take a lot of photos at this place... because it was just too dark.  This photo was only achieved with the assistance of the flash from a blackberry.  


So, this dish was the scallops with some creamy stuff at the top.  It was good but i have to admit.. it was nothing great.  


The dish that stood out the most that night were the "fish fingers".  These were SOO good.  But, other dishes did not live up to my expectations.  
I guess, since i was trying to find an excuse to go to this restaurant for so long, I just expected it to be good. 
Another negative... its a spanish place with no sangria!!! 


Apparently the spanish wines there are good, except, since I don't know how to order wine, and .. i'm not a wine connoisseur, kinda makes it a little hard to figure out what to order. 


And to the most important part of the meal.. Desserts

Creme caramel slice with chocolate yogo 

I was so excited when this dessert had chocolate yogo. I haven't had a yogo since I was in primary school.. and that was a long time ago. I actually checked in Coles the other day, they still sell them!!! 
But, it just tasted like chocolate ice cream. 
The popcorn at the top tasted a little stale, which was disappointing.  Was thinking that it would give the dessert a little crunch.   


The other dessert of the night, was apparently really good, according to reviews that I've read. 

Banana Split

Not the banana split i was expecting.  The banana is actually a small blob on the side of the plate, which you can barely just see in the photo.  
I'm not usually a fan of banana (out of its original fruit form), so the the amount of banana was fine with me.. I know the others were complaining that it was not your traditional banana split, which they were expecting. 
The ice cream was nice and light.  Can't exactly remember what flavour it was.  
The creme caramel thing (not too sure whether it is exactly what is it... ) but it was not entirely flavourless, but it wasn't rich in flavour.  it was .. a little boring .. and had no special spark to it.


My rating: 6.5 
Some dishes were great, but overall including the not-so-good dishes, and the over-hyped-ness of the place... Had to bring it down to a 6.5 


I have a few more piccies from other restaurants.. but it will wait for another post.  
Enjoy .. and i shall see you next time ! 


xoxo love.bites

it's been a while...

wow... 
so officially I'm quite bad at this. 
I haven't written a post in a month.. and since I have a new laptop, i don't have an excuse! 
so... here are some pics of things i've made in the month i've been away. 


1. Hazelnut macaroons

another lie.. these are the pics of my chocolate macaroons, and since my hazelnut ones didn't turn out as pretty.  I thought I'll show you the potential of what the macaroons could look like.. hahah
I was quite proud that these little fellows, had the infamous "feet" at the bottom.  
The hazelnut ones turned out cracked, and also a little too chewy.  Apparently chewy-ness is from overwhipping my mixture... so i'll remember that next time. 


2. Tango's mangoes

Tehehe.. i love the name of these little ones 


According to the reviews I got from these cupcakes, I should have incorporated some mango flavour into the cream.  
But otherwise, the cupcakes were moist, and the mangoes were sweet, and the presentation did't last that long... the walk from the office to the clients ruined the whole look!! =( 


The cream was made of mascarpone, so this was suppose to be part of the "mango-tiramsu" recipe, hence the using the mascarpone.  It definitely makes it, less creamy and fatty feeling. 


3. Apple and pear upside cake 

Must say, presentation wise... didn't turn out as good as i hoped. 


It was a good change from my usual chocolate and/or cream induced desserts.  The apple and pear made it sweet, but a more natural sweetness.  
The reviewers said that they didn't like the cake part too much.  The thicker cake sections were less moist from the fruit... but the ones i tasted, seemed moist enough.. so next time.. just have to make sure the cake section isn't too thick. 


4. Chocolate mousse cake

So... from the picture, you can't really tell, but its made of chocolate sponge, mousse, sponge and then more mousse...
This was to make some variety in the whole thing.  I'm not usually a fan of chocolate mousse, but it was specially requested, I decided to make it .. 


No real comments around the mousse, was extremely rich, but still tasted quite nice. 


5. M-cubed (Michelle's Melting Moments... MMM) 

These were my favourites.. already made a second batch of them already.  
The biscuits are SO soft, they just melt in your mouth, and crumble everywhere. 
The recipe for the cream instead was apparently too lemon-y.. so in my second batch, I made it with less lemon juice, but I thought it just made the whole melting moment too sweet. 


Edit: Changed the name of these to M-cubed.. per the suggestion of J and I.  So, next time I make them, they will be cubed in shaped. Ahh.. the creativity! 


6. Pistachio Macaroons 
So my other macaroon experience.  These turned out quite well, quite intense pistachio in flavour, but similar thing with the hazelnut ones... they were too chewy and were cracked at the top.. so need to make them again for a photo worthy performance. 


And ... I would say.. that would conclude what I have been doing in the past month, so the month was not in vain.. 
it was all recorded!!! 


Now.. just have to find more recipes and think of what else to make for this coming month! =)


xoxo love.bites