Asian

Suga Korean Restaurant

Tofu Canape

(pan fried homemade tofu topped with Suga’s seasoned rice balls and fried lotus chips, served with wasabi mayo)

★★★☆☆

Side Dishes

★★★★☆

Seafood Pajeon

★★★☆☆

Original Fried Chicken

Sadly dry.

★★☆☆☆

Handmade Kal-Gook-Soo

(knife-cut wheat noodles boiled with egg in fish broth, flavoured with seasoning, onions, garlic, topped with carrots and dried seaweed)

★★★★☆

Spicy Soft Tofu Stew

(soft tofu stew with seafood, mushrooms, zucchini, spring onions and onions in spicy hot soup topped with a cracked egg)

★★★★☆

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Soondae

(Korean style sausages stuffed with pork blood, sweet potato glass noodles, carrots, onions, spring onions, seasoned with ginger, salt, garlic and pepper)

With so many other ingredients mixed in, these didn’t taste like your typical blood sausage (ie. they didn’t have that livery iron-rich blood taste)

★★★☆☆

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Cold Noodles

(thin buckwheat noodles served icy cold in beef broth topped with cucumber, beef slices, half a boiled egg, served with vinegar and mustard)

★★☆☆☆

Tofu donuts with vanilla custard and ice cream

There was tofu mixed throughout the batter which made these donuts extra soft on the inside.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

You will find a huge range of traditional and contemporary Korean dishes at Suga, many of which I have not seen served anywhere else. The must try item however is their delicious home-made tofu which is prepared daily on site! Staff were friendly but service was slow. I just have to make sure that I’m hungry but not ravenously hungry the next time I come here.

Suga Korean Restaurant

269 Huntingdale Rd, Chadstone, VIC

(03) 9888 1001

http://www.sugarestaurant.com/

Ms. G’s

Burrata, “strange flavour style” sesame sauce, chilli oil, spinach, peanuts

It was the “strange flavour style” description that drew in our attention, but it didn’t taste strange at all. The Asian flavours nicely complemented the creamy burrata, and this was quite an enjoyable dish.

★★★☆☆

Kingfish, aged ponzu, konbu, chives

Fresh and delicious.

★★★★☆

Cheeseburger spring rolls

I loved how these tasted exactly like cheeseburgers, although $6 per spring roll was a bit steep.

★★★★☆

Warm salad of calamari and pork belly, soft egg, caramelised shallot dressing, “bibim style”

A delightful Asian salad that had a good variety of flavours and textures.

★★★☆☆

Homemade fettuccine, octopus cooked with kimchi, spicy marinara sauce

An interesting fusion dish that was spicier than expected.

★★★☆☆

Stoner’s Delight Part 3

(doughnut ice cream, peanut dulce de leche, peanut and pretzel brittle, crispy bacon, mars bar brownie, raspberry curd, potato chips, deep fried Nutella)

So wrong yet so right.

★★★★☆

Raj Mirage #2

(pandan, calpis, lime, fresh mint, soda)

★★★★★

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Pash a Panda

(yuzu, passionfruit, cranberry, soda)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Brilliant experience at a place where the menu is quirky and interesting, the atmosphere buzzing, and the service quite speedy considering how busy this place is.

Ms. G’s

155 Victoria St, Potts Point, NSW

(02) 9240 3000

http://merivale.com.au/msgs

Kyoto Cafe

Grilled Salmon

Heavy on the sauce and mayonnaise.

★★☆☆☆

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Grilled Salmon Crepe

Poached egg was overcooked and I wasn’t a fan of the rice and crepe combo.

★★☆☆☆

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Tuna Sashimi Fry

★★☆☆☆

Prawn Tempura

★★★☆☆

Matcha Beer

★★★☆☆

Overall:

The plan was to try the matcha and/or the black sesame custard puffs but after ordering way too much food, we sadly could not fit in dessert. The food and service were generally okay, and there’s a decent variety of matcha drinks that range from the typical matcha lattes to the not-so-typical matcha juices and beers. If I were to return, I’d probably stick to the drinks and the desserts.

Kyoto Cafe

Eastland Shopping Centre, Level 3

175 Maroondah Hwy, Ringwood, VIC

(03) 8820 8003

ABC Chicken

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Original Fried Crispy Chicken

★★★☆☆

Sweet Chilli Chicken

★★★★☆

Soy Garlic Chicken

★★★☆☆

Seafood Pancake

★★★☆☆

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Corn Cheese

★★★★☆

Overall:

A large group of us ventured here for chicken and beer, and we were not disappointed. ABC Chicken offers a decent variety of boned and boneless chicken, the usual Korean sides, and reasonably priced beer. Service was prompt and the food was satisfying. Note that you get 5% off the bill if you pay in cash.

ABC Chicken

361 Queen St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9670 8881

http://www.abcchicken.com.au/

Bibimfresh

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Bibimfresh Signature Bowl

(kale, oak leaf, onion, pear, red cabbage, carrots and sashimi served with chojang sauce)

Fresh and healthy!

★★★☆☆

Kim Mari

(deep fried seaweed rolls filled with glass noodles)

I had never come across anything like this before so was curious to try these out. These little parcels of deep fried goodness had great crunch but needed the dipping sauce as they were quite bland.

★★★☆☆

Ddokbokki Carbonara

(rice cakes served with Korean style carbonara sauce, mushroom, prawns and bacon)

Small portion aside, I really enjoyed this carbonara dish! And the combination with the ddokbokki wasn’t anything extreme so this dish worked well for me.

★★★★☆

Spicy Seafood and Tofu Soup

(spicy soup with soft tofu, vegetables, and seafood served with white rice)

Mildly spicy with lots of tofu.

★★★☆☆

Kimchi Fried Rice

(kimchi fried rice, pork, fried egg)

The runny yolk mixed with the spicy fried rice made this really tasty.

★★★☆☆

Matcha Cake

This delicate sponge cake wasn’t overly sweet (which was nice), and had a distinctive matcha taste.

★★★★☆

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I loved all the awesome air plants that they had on each table.

Overall:

Bibimfresh isn’t your typical Korean joint. This place is bright and spacious, and offers a unique menu of delicious fusion food. From customised quinoa bibimbap and green juice to fried chicken and poutine fries, there is definitely something here for everyone.

Bibimfresh

Shop 9, 108 Bourke Street, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9654 2371

https://bibimfresh.com/

Mugen Ramen & Bar

Wafu Ramen

(soy sauce and dashi broth, house made thin noodles, slow cooked pork, bamboo shoots, seaweed)

★★★☆☆

Tori Soba

(chicken broth with Himalayan pink salt, house made special wavy noodles, chicken meatballs, slow cooked chicken breast slices, bamboo shoots, spring onion)

★★★★☆

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Goma Tsukemen

(sesame soy sauce broth, house made thick noodles, slow cooked pork, bamboo shoots, seaweed)

★★★☆☆

Matcha Creme Brulee with Hot Green Tea

Although there was a good amount of matcha flavour, this creme brulee was lumpy and still needed more time to set properly.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

We sat at some bar seats on the ground floor, which gave us perfect views of the kitchen and the chefs in action. I can’t say that this was the best ramen I’ve ever had but I can say that the service was quick and that the ambience was more sophisticated than most typical ramen bars.

Note that this place is closed on Sundays.

Mugen Ramen & Bar

11 Bligh Place, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9620 3647

http://www.mensousaimugen.com/

Roti & Roti

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Chicken Satay Skewers

Tender, flavoursome, fabulous!

★★★★★

Seafood Curry Laksa

(noodles in a spicy coconut curry gravy with prawns, fish cake, squid, eggplant, tofu puffs, beancurd skin, bean sprouts)

One of the best laksas I’ve had in a while. Smooth curry that wasn’t too oily, plentiful ingredients and a decent serving size.

★★★★☆

Roti Canai with Curry Chicken

I couldn’t leave a place called Roti & Roti without trying their roti. Good thing I did because it was delicious.

★★★★☆

Overall:

A no frills kind of place where the food is amazing and everything is self service (ie. you order at the counter, and you get your own cutlery and drinks). This is the place I’m heading to from now on to satisfy my Malaysian food cravings.

Roti & Roti

1139 Glen Huntly Rd, Glen Huntly, VIC

(03) 9077 1495

Red Spice Road

Chiang Mai pork relish with cassava crackers

This relish had such fantastic punch! A harmonious blend of sour, sweet, salty and spicy flavours made this pork relish very Thai and very delicious.

★★★★☆

Tamarind chilli chicken with red peppers and green onion

Sweet, sticky, spicy, standard.

★★☆☆☆

Pork belly, chilli caramel, apple slaw, black vinegar

Just as amazing as everyone says it is! The pork was melt-in-your-mouth tender and had a marvellous crispy skin, while the vinegar balanced out the sweetness of the chilli caramel sauce.

★★★★★

Barramundi, watermelon, cucumber, hot mint, chilli and coriander salad

I liked this salad except for all the soggy pieces of fried fish. If only the fish had been served on top of the salad rather than tossed into it.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

We ordered the $29.50 per person Express Lunch Banquet which included an appetiser, 3 mains and steamed rice. The servings were surprisingly generous making this banquet option fantastic value for money. Although I’m not the biggest fan of their circular communal tables, I do like the atmosphere and I would definitely come back for the pork belly!

Red Spice Road

27 McKillop St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9603 1601

http://redspiceroad.com/

Chickilia

Soy Garlic Chicken Wings

Crispy and well flavoured.

★★★★☆

Kimchi Jjigae with Ramen

(kimchi, onion, spring onion, tofu, garlic)

Comforting and mildly spicy.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

This tiny bright orange place offers a variety of typical Korean fare, but the fried chicken is what you should order. I was a bit disappointed that they didn’t have any original fried chicken on the menu, but the soy garlic was quite enjoyable so it wasn’t a big deal in the end.

Chickilia

259 Springvale Rd, Glen Waverley, VIC

(03) 9886 3851

http://chickilia.com/

Thai Tamarind

Gaeng Phed Ped Yang

(red duck curry with vegetables, pineapple and lychee)

Lots of colourful vegetables, generous amount of duck, while the pineapple and lychee added some nice sweetness.

★★★☆☆

Pad Bah Mee

(stir-fried rice noodles with carrot, egg, onion, cabbage and bean sprouts)

★★☆☆☆

Tom Yum

(clear spicy and sour soup with chicken, lemongrass, tomato, onion and mushroom)

Fragrant and mildly spicy.

★★☆☆☆

Mixed Entree

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

One of the few Asian restaurants in Margaret River, this place offered prompt service but average Thai fare. The ventilation here could also be improved as we left smelling strongly of stir fry.

Thai Tamarind

Shop 1/97 Bussell Highway, Margaret River, WA

(08) 9757 9041

http://www.thaitamarindmargaretriver.com/