Tapas

Mr Bond

Spaghetti alle vongole

Light and full of flavour.

★★★★☆

Curly pasta, slow cooked duck ragu, porcini, shaved pecorino

Rich and comforting, this dish was incredible from the first bite to the very last.

★★★★★

Overall:

We originally had set our sights on Thirty Eight Chairs, but after discovering that they weren’t open for lunch that day, we decided to try Mr Bond which is their sister restaurant and right next door. We were seated in the courtyard which was fine except some fans would have been nice as it was such a hot day that I became stuck to my chair in no time. Service was friendly and the food authentically Italian. A great experience but I’m still keen on trying Thirty Eight Chairs one day.

Mr Bond

2 Bond St, South Yarra, VIC

(03) 9827 5553

Rumi

Crispy fried whiting, tahini sauce, dukka

★★★☆☆

Sigara boregi with haloumi, feta and kasseri

★★★★☆

King prawns, olive oil, lemon myrtle salt

★★★★☆

Fried cauliflower, sweet onions, currants, pine nuts

★★★★★

Fish of the day

★★★★☆

Macadamia baklava ice cream sandwich

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Modern Middle Eastern fare at its best. The food was fantastic as was the quick friendly service. We had no idea what to order and our waitress was extremely helpful with her recommendations. I am certainly returning and am also looking forward to visiting the owners’ other restaurant The Moor’s Head.

Rumi

116 Lygon Street, Brunswick, VIC

(03) 9388 8255

http://rumirestaurant.com.au/

Shimbashi Soba & Sake Bar

Kamo Nan Soba

(noodles with sliced seasoned duck meat and mushrooms in a warm soup)

Aside from the tough chewy duck that was in the soup, everything was really good.

★★★★☆

Salmon Salad Soba

(chilled noodles with salmon sashimi and green salad topped with basil sauce)

A refreshing salad with nicely seared salmon.

★★★★☆

Agedashi Tofu

(deep fried tofu in a soy based broth)

★★★☆☆

Complimentary potato salad

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Look no further for fresh authentic soba noodles! Using Tasmanian buckwheat, an in-house Japanese stone mill produces buckwheat flour daily which is then used to make their hand-kneaded noodles. Service was friendly however the arrival of our food was very staggered. Note that this place only accepts lunch reservations, so arrive early for dinner or expect a bit of a wait.

Shimbashi Soba & Sake Bar

17 Liverpool St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9654 6727

http://www.shimbashisobamelbourne.net/

The Garden of Good & Evil

Baked scallops with garlic and chilli butter

Well cooked but tasted purely of butter.

★★★☆☆

Street Corn

★★☆☆☆

Twice cooked pork belly with Asian slaw and micro herbs

Great flavours except the pork belly skin was extremely chewy and difficult to cut/bite through.

★★★☆☆

Soft shell crab tacos with smashed avocado, salsa fresca and chipotle aioli

Crispy crab with a delicious combination of ingredients.

★★★★☆

Beef brisket sliders with smoked hickory BBQ sauce

★★★☆☆

Seafood paella with tiger prawns, calamari, mussels, barramundi and saffron rice

This was in the ‘something bigger’ section of the menu so I was expecting something well…bigger. This dish was a little salt heavy otherwise the flavours were good and the seafood plentiful.

★★★☆☆

Trio of vegetable crisps

An interesting mix of sweet potato, potato and red cabbage.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

The inside dining area was poorly lit so we decided to grab a table in the lovely back courtyard. Service was friendly and the food enjoyable. Note that the $10 paellas are only available 12-4pm on Sundays.

The Garden of Good & Evil

13 Station Rd, Cheltenham, VIC

(03) 9585 6067

http://www.thegardenchelt.com.au/

Bomba Downstairs

Natural Oysters

★★☆☆☆

Sourdough and Olive Oil

★★★☆☆

Charcuterie

★★☆☆☆

Smoked Eel Croqueta

★★★★☆

Pumpkin Soup with Candied Pistachio

★★★★☆

Moorish Spiced Lamb Cutlet

★★☆☆☆

Charcoal Grilled Corn with Dried Maize

★★★★☆

Quail with Pistachio and Buckwheat

★★★☆☆

Pedro Ximenez Braised Pork Jowl with Celeriac

★★★☆☆

Freekah Salad with Cauliflower, Almonds, Barberries, Sumac and Mint

★★☆☆☆

Chargrilled Bay Bug with Lime Pil Pil

★★★★☆

Overall:

The 9 course set menu was amazing! The courses came out at a perfect pace, the food was delicious and it was also great value for money. Service was friendly and efficient, and the atmosphere lively. I look forward to returning to this place.

Bomba Downstairs

103 Lonsdale St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9077 0451

http://bombabar.com.au/

Gyoza Gyoza

Salmon Tataki

Tuna Tataki

Soba Noodle Soup

Yaki Hotate

(baked Japanese scollops with creamy miso sauce)

Lobster Mini Burgers

Panfried Miso Eggplant and Duck Gyoza

Kinoko Hoiru-yaki

(foil baked mix mushrooms with ponzu butter sauce)

Overall:

What makes Gyoza Gyoza such an appealing place is that all their dishes are $6.50. With more than 80 Japanese tapas style dishes to choose from, we spent a fair amount of time deliberating over the menu. We had high expectations with the gyoza (due to the restaurant name) but they turned out to be rather ordinary and also smaller than expected. In fact most of the dishes we sampled turned out to be quite ordinary, with the only stand out dish being the baked scallops. Service was average and the small tables meant that it became a tetris challenge trying to fit all our dishes onto the table. Gyoza Gyoza may not offer the best Japanese food, but they do offer a wide variety for a decent price.

Gyoza Gyoza

115-117 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, CBD

(03) 9663 0801

http://www.gyozagyoza.com.au/

Salt House

Korean Style Beef Carpaccio with soy gel, pickled ginger and kimchi

★★★★☆

Beetroot and Belvedere cured Salmon with kohlrabi and horseradish slaw and watermelon radish

★★★☆☆

Vegan Cottage Pie with beetroot salsa and mint salad

★★☆☆☆

Peruvian Style Quinoa and Borlotti Bean Salad

(quinoa, borlotti beans, coriander, mint, roasted red peppers, blistered tomato, chilli and lime dressing)

★★☆☆☆

Sticky Sesame Soy Beef with cold soba noodles and pickled ginger salad

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Located at Marina Point, Salt House offers stunning views of the ocean, marina and surrounding mountains. Add to that professional service, elegant atmosphere and a $28 lunch set menu, this place makes for a pleasant dining experience.

Salt House

6/2 Pier Point Rd, Cairns, QLD

(07) 4041 7733

Home

Rice Paper Scissors

Crispy Barramundi ‘Yam Pla Foo’

(tapioca dusted barramundi with a green apple and roast cashew salad and nahm jim dressing)

= ★★★

Betel Leaf ‘Miang Kham’

(topped with a tiger prawn, banana blossom and toasted coconut salad)

= ★★★

Crying Tiger ‘Seua Rong Hai’

(chargrilled beef with a spicy citrus dipping sauce)

= ★★

Balinese Roast Duck ‘Bebek Betutu’

(baked in banana leaf and spices served with coconut sambal and betel leaves)

= ★★★

Crispy Coconut Wafer ‘Banh Xeo’

(filled with pork, prawn, bean shoots and fresh herbs)

= ★★

Banana Roti

(sugar banana, Nutella and peanut filled roti served with condensed milk)

= ★★

Kaffir Lime Splice

(kaffir lime and Thai basil granita with homemade coconut ice cream)

= ★★★

Overall:

Fresh colourful dishes that are designed to be shared, bustling atmosphere and efficient service. Rock Paper Scissors is another one of those places that don’t take bookings for dinner so unless you get there at 6pm, expect a wait. We went on a Wednesday night and waited for more than an hour to get a table. Was it worth the wait? Nah, not really.

Rice Paper Scissors

19 Liverpool St, Melbourne

9663 9890

http://www.ricepaperscissors.com.au

K-Tarng

How many places do you know have HAND WRITTEN menus? Respect.

Green Tea Rice Punch

A sweet punch with whole rice grains and a strong green tea flavour.

★★★☆☆

Kimchi Pancake

Everything a great kimchi pancake should be: crispy, smoky, spicy, flavoursome. Extra points for it being shaped into a star.

★★★★☆

Corn Cheese

The added sugar made this too sweet for my liking.

★★☆☆☆

Pork Ramen

Instant ramen noodles with a generous amount of tender pork and crispy vegetables. The broth was deliciously smoky and the aroma reminded me of a Chinese stir fry.

★★★☆☆

Original Fried Chicken and Oriental Chicken (honey, garlic and soy)

The original fried chicken lacked a bit of flavour but was so incredibly CRISPY. You could probably hear someone taking a bite of this chicken from the other side of the room! Whereas the Oriental Chicken was less crispy due to the sauce but was nicely flavoured.

★★★★☆

Overall:

Warm cosy interior, friendly service, satisfying Korean fare. Note that this place is closed on Mondays and that they are cash only.

K-Tarng

45 Koornang Rd, Carnegie

9972 9197

Lorem Ipsum

Tomato and mozzarella macaron

Crab, corn, yogurt and yuzu sake canapés

Scallops, black pudding, triple-cream mash

Sticky pork pancake, sweet pickle, togarashi mayo

Beef brisket, sauerkraut and secret sauce on brioche

Braised lamb, caramelised shallot puree, pickled onion, salt bush

Passionfruit tartlet

Hidden at the far end of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, this impressive pop-up gala event space is the first of its kind in Melbourne and aims to create an experience unlike any other. Lorem Ipsum is a space that captures Melbourne’s creativity, design and culinary culture. The space features stunning chandeliers, spectacular floor-to-ceiling gold pressed panelling, state-of-the-art audio and visual as well as the single largest outdoor area of a function venue in Melbourne. In fact Lorem Ipsum has the capacity to host gala dinners or lunches for 500 to 1200 people and cocktail functions for up to 2000 people. This unique space is available for end of year gala events from Thursday 3 December to Tuesday 22 December inclusive. For bookings or more details visit http://www.loremipsummelb.com.au.

Lorem Ipsum

*Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Lorem Ipsum.