Asian

Sabai

Wok tossed tofu, herbs, salted chilli, fried shallots and poached prawns served on prawn crackers

House made vegetarian spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce

Soft shell crab sliders with apple slaw

Slow cooked pork baby back ribs with red curry glaze

Slow braised lamb shank massaman, potato and cashews

Somtum – green papaya, carrots, snake beans, cirspy shrimps, Thai chilli, garlic, cashews, cherry tomatoes, lime and tamarind dressing

Tom Yum – spicy and sour soup with squid, mushrooms, prawns, tomatoes, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves

Crispy barramundi, fresh herbs and apple salad, chilli, lemongrass and sweet sour dressing

Steamed pandan, coconut and palm sugar puddings

Affagato – mini magnum, kahlua, espresso, toasted coconut

Thai tea panna cotta with coconut crumble and berries

Thai milk tea

Overall:

The word ‘sabai’ means comfortable or relaxed in Thai, and this restaurant is certainly a place where you can kick back, relax and enjoy lots of great contemporary Thai food. Authentic Thai cuisine is based on the fusion of five primary flavours: sweet, salty, sour, spicy and bitter. These flavours are combined to produce dishes of amazing intensity, and this was definitely the case for many of the dishes we sampled. The somtum in particular was like a flavour punch in the face! (but in a good way.) A place worth visiting for well balanced Thai food and friendly service.

Sabai

460 Church St, Richmond, VIC

(03) 8528 6884

http://sabairichmond.com.au/

*Disclaimer: I dined as a guest of Sabai.

GJ’s Grill

Lechon

Crispy roast pork served with delicious garlic rice, atchara (pickled papaya) and lechon sauce (a sweet and sour sauce made from liver).

★★★★☆

Crispy Pata

This famous Filipino dish was cooked twice (simmered and then deep fried) which meant that the pork was wonderfully tender while the skin was INCREDIBLY crispy. I wasn’t a fan of the soy-vinegar sauce so I was happy eating the pork by itself.

★★★★☆

Pork Skewer

Firm pork covered in a tasty marinade with a smoky chargrilled flavour.

★★★★☆

Halo-Halo

This colourful dessert comprised of shaved ice, evaporated milk, jelly, corn, coconut and purple yam. Refreshing and not overly sweet.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

This was my first taste of Filipino food so I had no idea what to expect and had nothing to compare it to. What I found out about GJ’s Grill is that not only are the staff Filipino, but so were most of their customers during our visit. If that doesn’t say authentic, then I don’t what does! There isn’t a lot of seating here and when we got there at 7pm on a Monday night, we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table to become available. The staff were very warm and welcoming, and service was relatively quick. The menu is predominantly meat based so don’t expect to find any salads or vegetables here. Instead, expect to find generous servings of well cooked meat that will lead to you rolling happily out the door.

GJ’s Grill

Shop 2, 243 Franklin St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9328 8242

Darac Grill & Bar

Seafood Sausage Stew

This hearty stew compromised of a great selection of ingredients and was cooked right in front of us which was nice.

★★★☆☆

Ramen

I give this ramen one star because it costed $3. Ridiculous.

★☆☆☆☆

Gyoza

These prawn dumplings had an extremely soft filling and were not as crispy as I would have liked.

★★☆☆☆

Cheese Fire Chicken

Spicy Korean stir fried chicken with melted mozzarella cheese. Yum!

★★★☆☆

Seafood Spring Onion Pancake

Bland and underwhelming.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Good service, wide menu selection, relaxed atmosphere, sticky floors. I think my expectations were a bit too high so I was a little disappointed that nothing in particular stood out.

Darac Grill & Bar

51 A’Beckett St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9662 2441

12’s Cafe & Co

Gold Sticker

(pan fried dumplings with crispy flake)

These light and crispy dumplings were tasty on their own so I didn’t even need the chilli dipping sauce.

★★★☆☆

Potato Pocket

(crispy potato croquette filled with crab, corn and creamy sauce)

Predominantly potato.

★★☆☆☆

Chicken Ribs

(crunchy panko crumbed chicken spare ribs)

Fantastically crispy and well flavoured.

★★★★☆

Crackling Crackle

(roast pork crackling chips)

Lightly salted, non greasy and satisfyingly crunchy.

★★★☆☆

Char Siu So

(BBQ pork in puff pastry)

Delicious yum cha fusion.

★★★☆☆

PC 007

(potato chips with 7 herbs and spices)

Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, nicely seasoned.

★★★☆☆

Peking Duck

(12’s Peking duck with salad greens, pickles, cucumber, served in a twister roll with plum sauce)

A fresh take on the classic Peking Duck Pancakes. The succulent duck and the crispy skin was simply moreish.

★★★★☆

Crispy Hainanese Chicken Salad

(steamed chicken with crispy skin served on cold soba and salad with 12’s soy and sesame dressing)

★★★☆☆

Tempura Soft Shell Crab

(soft shell crab served with cold soba and salad with 12’s soy and sesame dressing)

★★★☆☆

Pork

(slow cooked pork belly in master stock served on rice cake with Thai green apple salad)

This pork belly was seriously amazing! Cooked in an 80% steam oven, the fat is rendered out allowing the stock to completely infuse leading to incredible melt in your mouth pork minus the grease! I wasn’t a fan of the rice cake however which was very chewy and sticky, and would have preferred regular rice.

★★★★☆

Chicken

(grilled chicken fillet braised with house blended sweet soy sauce, served with shiitake mushroom rice and wafu salad)

Tender chicken that was full of flavour.

★★★☆☆

Green Tea Latte

A tad grainy with too much foam for my liking.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Opening a cafe has always been the dream for owner Jack Kwan. After venturing to Hong Kong to learn all the techniques associated with Hong Kong barbecuing, Jack decided to open up 12’s Cafe & Co, which fuses Chinese barbecue together with Modern Australian cuisine.

Although the place appears small and unassuming at the front…

the beer garden out the back was quite spacious and certainly impressive!

They even have a ping pong table which also functions as a dining table that seats up to 16 people. 12’s Cafe & Co is a great addition to the Camberwell area however opening hours are somewhat limited with the place being closed on Sundays and between 3-5pm on all the other days.

12’s Cafe & Co

207 Camberwell Rd, Hawthorn East, VIC

(03) 9042 3986

http://12s.com.au/index.html

*Disclaimer: I dined as a guest of 12’s Cafe & Co.

Khanom Chan

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cans coconut milk (800mL)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup rice flour
2 cups tapioca starch
1/2 tsp jasmine extract
1/2 tsp pandan extract

Method:

Place sugar, coconut milk and water into a saucepan. Stir on medium heat until the sugar completely dissolves. Set aside to cool.
Prepare your steamer. Place an oiled tray into your steamer so that the tray heats up.
Combine rice flour and tapioca starch in a bowl.
Gradually add in the cooled coconut milk mixture (approximately half a cup at a time) and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon or by hand (I prefer using my hand as I am able to feel for lumps a lot better).
Once the mixture is smooth, pour the mixture through a strainer.
Stir the mixture and divide into two portions. Place jasmine extract into one portion and pandan extract into the other portion. Mix each portion well.
Place a layer of jasmine mixture onto the tray in the steamer (The amount you place onto the tray will depend on your tray size, but you are aiming for a thickness of 2-3mm). Steam for 5 minutes.
Place a layer of pandan mixture onto tray. Steam for 5 minutes. Repeat this process using alternating mixtures until there is no mixture left. (Remember to give each mixture a good stir before pouring it onto the tray). Steam the final top layer for 8 minutes.
Allow the contents of the tray to cool.
Remove from tray and cut into small portions.

Overall:

This sweet, sticky, chewy dessert is one of my all time favourites and I am thrilled to have a perfect recipe for it.

Oree Korean Duck Restaurant

Duck and Beef Set

Bean paste, Salt and Pepper in Oil, Bean Powder, Chili Paste

200g Fresh Duck

As soon as the duck cools it becomes tough and chewy, so it’s best eaten straight off the grill.

★★★☆☆

100g Angus Beef Rib

★★★☆☆

Beef gal-bi

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

One of the most unique Korean barbecue experiences I’ve had due to their specialisation in duck. (In fact this is Australia’s first Korean duck barbecue restaurant) The set menus were reasonably priced while service was very attentive. A good option for those who feel like Korean barbecue, but don’t feel like red meat.

Oree Korean Duck Restaurant

179 Queen St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9642 1270

http://www.oree.com.au/

Famous Hotpot

When the weather gets cold, I get hotpot cravings. I absolutely love hotpot! It’s fun, it’s social (as everyone cooks their food in the same pot), and it’s something that even the pickiest of eaters can enjoy as the ingredients are so flexible.

We decided to go with the mixed mushroom soup base. The other options available were clear soup and hot & spicy soup.

Assortment of meats, noodles, seafood and sauces

This was the first of MANY orders. Throughout the night we had thinly sliced beef, drunken chicken, chicken liver, fish balls, lobster balls, hand-made beef balls, prawn, fish fillet, Chinese white cabbage, garland chrysanthemum, black fungus, green bean vermicelli, fried tofu, and udon noodles. In terms of sauces, each person was able to select two so we chose to sample the special sauce, sesame paste, satay sauce and the mince garlic with sesame oil.

Nothing beats hotpot on a cold windy night.

Overall:

We initially had a bit of trouble finding this place as the name was written on the window and all of their windows had majorly fogged up. Famous Hotpot offered a decent variety of hotpot menu items, while the service was surprisingly great as the staff were really friendly and attentive. I totally recommend the $29 pp all you can eat option. Just be prepared to waddle out the door once you finish.

Famous Hotpot

150 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9654 6668

Royal Custard Puff

If you are after a cheap and tasty dessert snack, then this is for you!

These custard puffs are freshly made on order so expect a waiting time.

But once you bite into the light crispy pastry and encounter the silky smooth custard, you’ll know that the wait was worth it. Plus these are a bargain at $1 for 3 or $5 for 18 custard puffs. These morsels were quite addictive and definitely worth a try!

Royal Custard Puff

Midcity Arcade, 208-210 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, VIC

ShanDong MaMa

Chicken Fried Dumplings

(chicken mince, ginger, black fungus, shepherd’s purse herb, dry shrimps, sesame oil)

★★★☆☆

DARYL noodles with prawn, potato, mushroom, pork, black fungus and egg

★★★☆☆

Shandong Mama

Noodles with prawns, pork, shredded cucumber and coriander in bean paste

★★☆☆☆

Beef Fried Dumplings

(beef mince, onions, dry shrimps, black pepper sauce)

★★☆☆☆

DILL-icious Pork Boiled Dumplings

(pork mince, fresh dill, spring onion, ginger, dried shrimps, sesame oil)

★★★☆☆

Overall:

A decent place for noodles and dumplings. The fried dumplings had incredibly crispy skins but were too salty for my liking, whereas the boiled dumplings had thick chewy skins but had tasty fillings. Not the first place I would go to if I had a dumpling craving, but also not the last.

ShanDong MaMa

Midcity Arcade, 208-210 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9650 3818

Tina’s Noodle Kitchen

Rice Noodles with Chicken Stock Soup

(rice noodles, tomato, spam, quail egg, bean curd skin, bok choy, spring onion, tofu, mushrooms, bean sprouts, fungus, deep fried pork)

★★★★☆

Rice Noodles with Pork Liver and Pickles

(rice noodles, black fungus, bean curd skin, bok choy, mushroom, spring onion, bean sprouts)

★★★★☆

Japanese Matcha Frappe

★★★☆☆

Overall:

When Tina’s Noodle Kitchen first opened, what caught my attention was the retractable belt barrier positioned in front of the place to control the crowds. I’ve eaten here a few times since then and this is what I know:

This place only serves noodles but the noodles are consistently good and very filling.
The 150°C bowls mean that the noodles arrive burning hot and remain that way for a quite while, so take your time eating otherwise you will leave with a burnt tongue.
Orders need to be made at the counter before you sit down.
Service is variable.
If you look Asian or anything slightly Asian, expect to be spoken to in mandarin.

In any case, Tina’s Noodle Kitchen is a good place to head to the next time you are in the mood for a satisfying bowl of noodles.

Tina’s Noodle Kitchen

231 Swanston St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9041 6382