The Grounds, Alexandria (Another Post)

Another visit to The Grounds! My 4th time now, this time I brought my Highschool teacher for a brunch date with Bebski and Mr.P.. I'm a bit hesitant at first to visit this place on a Saturday, but surprisingly the queue was not too bad and we also got a parking spot on the roof!

So glad that I can experienced The Ground's atmosphere on the weekend, it was tots different from The Grounds in weekdays. There are more food carts in the area, from donut cart, waffles, various nuts, and hotdogs.

While waiting for the table, we went around and I bought us a Banoffee Waffle. The texture of the waffle is more like a pancake/crepes than a waffle, it was warm, soft and moist, with sliced banana, caramel and strawberry jam, I really couldn't ask for any other toppings <3

Banoffee Waffle $9

Another cart that caught our attention, ehem, I mean, bebski's attention! He loves high dawgs, so we got the Classic Beef with smoky onion, cheddar and brown sauce. It was nothing special, the sausage was tasty but that was nothing spectacular about it and we thought it's a bit pricey.

Classic Beef $12

Free Olives Dips anyonee. . .

Or Chocolate coated nuts?

Not too long after walking and nibbling around, we finally got ourselves a table at around 1:30pm, a bit late for lunch but oh well. I feel like something refreshing so I ordered the Apple Cider Crush. It tasted like appletizer with a bit of alcoholic flavour. The cider crush was a non-alcoholic btw..

Apple Cider Crush $5

This was my second time ordering the Beef Ragu Pasta. As I mentioned in my previous post, the pasta for me was cooked inconsistently, some were al dente but some were undercooked and stick together.. The sauce was light and and the ragu was juicy! It needs a bit more salt to me to bring out the flavour of the sauce.

Beef ragu pasta $19

We also got the Barramundi with zucchini flower, kipfler potato and sprouts. I'm not a fan of fish usually, but I like the barra here. Crispy skin and perfectly cooked fish.  

Barramundi $21

Mr.P got The Grounds Burger which he thought was average but we loves the chips and sauce!

I forgot to take picture of Bebski's food, he ordered a lamb with couscous, mint and rocket. He was expecting like a lamb shank with jus and couscous salad on the side, it turned out to be a Lamb Salad! A giant plate full of rocket, mint leaves, shredded lamb, couscous and a creamy dressings. Haha, he was starving and he got himself a salad. I can only laugh ;p

Now is time for dessert! We decided to buy the dessert from the cart outside and enjoy the view outdoor. Additionally, there was a deal of 3 tarts and 1 muffin for $20. They run out of muffins so they give us a chocolate croissant instead, which is waaaay better than muffin ^^

So we chose the Strawberry tart, The fruit tart and Caramel tart. My favourite should be the fruit tart! I'm not a fan of the chocolate caramel, Ms.S (My highschool teacher) loves the caramel.

Lastly, I also got the pink lemonade which was infused with rose. So there is a slight floral note in it which I don't mind and it was really refreshing for a sunny day like last Saturday ;p

That pretty much concludes my trip to The Grounds again.. :)

Phamish, Darlinghurst

Tuesday night dinner with friends in Phamish .. :) Never heard of the place before, but Ms.S said she wanted to try it out before she's going back for good.. So we went with 5 otherr friends.. Even on a tuesday night the place was sooo crowded with people. The place itself is quite unique, it has an outdoor tent set up ;p

We were seated just nicely near the entrance. It was a bit windy that night, now that I remembered, it was the night when Sydney got hit by a massive thunderstorm and we have to run back to the city to reach our car :(

That aside, because there were a lot of us dining, we can order heaps of foods, making me and Ms.S so happy! To start with, we got the Phamish roll. It usually come 4 pcs but they can suit the portion for all of us.. Spring roll was fresh and a very good appetizer! The dipping sauce complemented the spring roll really well. Really can't get enough of the dipping sauce!

Phamish Roll 6pcs $18

The second entrée to come was the Crab Dumpling. We got told that that was the last 4pcs they have in store! Lucky we get to try it out! This time, there wasn't a need to dip it in the sauce. The crab filling was generous and I'm loving the mushroom inside as well :)

Crab Dumpling 4pcs $12

The first main to come was the Beef Ragu, the soup was warming and it was soo rich! It reminded me of Rawon (beef black soup) back in indo. The beef was tender and juicy, I would highly recommend this dish! The down side for me is jsut the raw bean sprout.. Not a fan hehe.

Beef Ragu $18.50

An up close look at the juicy beef :)

Another must order dish if you visit Phamish! The Sesame Lamb, the lamb was thinly sliced and very well seasoned, the sauce was tangy and flavoursome at the same time, with the fresh cucumber and capsicum, making the dish a protein-fibre meal :)

Sesame Lamb $20.50

To accompany all the dishes, we tried the Coconut fried rice. A lot of diced veggies inside too making Mr.S unable to enjoy it as much as the rest of us do cause he didn't eat any kind of veggie ;p Poor him, but that means more for us! For me it was just like any other fried rice topped with shredded coconut :) The rest of the dishes are highly spiced so I would suggest to get plain rice instead ^^

Coconut Fried rice $18

The winner dish of the night, The Crispy Soft Shell Crab was the favourite among my friends. It was gone in minutes! No need to describe any further about how awesome this crispy soft shell crab was! just go and try it :)

Soft Shell Crab $21

Next is the Lemongrass chicken, it tasted almost like Thai chicken stir fry.. The lemongrass was strong for me and the dish wasn't my favourite.. But my friends like it :)

Lemongrass chicken $18.50

The last dish to come is the Crispy pork belly with chinese broccoli, ginger and garlic. Another dish that has a similarity to Thai's  Kana moo krob.. Flavour wise, thai kana moo krob is so much better. the dish is pretty dry for me and I thought the amount of pork belly would be much more than the greens ;p
The name of the dish should be Chinese brocolli with pork, not the other way around hehe ;p

Crispy pork belly $19,50

Overall, I am quite satisfied with the taste of the foods. It's a good place to try and make sure you do come with a group of people so you can try a lot of dishes! Do get the beef ragu, sesame lamb and soft shell crab, you won't regret it : Service is pretty much self-serve, you order and pay at the counter.

Manpuku, Kingsford

The only legit Ramen spot in Kingsford area! :) It was a big hit when it first opened.. I remembered the queue that I had to go through back then...  Manpuku is not as crowded as before but there will always be customer who needs a bowl of ramen every now and then, just like me and Bebski.. Getting sick of those Chinese and Indo foods around Kingsford, we decided to give Manpuku another visit along with Mr.V and his gf, Ms.S :)

Ordering system is easy. Pick a table, they will bring the menus to you and when you're ready to order, just make your way to the counter :) I was so hungry that day after a tremendously busy day at work so I ordered another extra treat for me-self, the Chicken Karage sides. Lovely chicken karage which is always a perfect match with Kewpie <3

Chicken Karage $5.50

Bebski and his love for Garlic Ramen! He got the Manpuku Black- Garlic flavour Soy based pork soup

Manpuku Black $13.90

And me.. As usual, my love for chilli and spicy foods brought me to Manpuku Red - Hot Chilli Flavour Soy based pork soup. I also changed the noodle to wavy instead of regular straight one. What made me love this Red ramen so much is the Dried Shrimp powder that adds nicely to the soup. I also pick the extreme hot level, but it wasn't extreme at all for me.. hehe..

Manpuku Red $13.90

Overall, Manpuku is a good place to fix your ramen craving in Kingsford area. The pork belly wasn't the best but it wasn't bad either.. Have it a go when u're in the area especially in a cold day like today!^^

Rivareno, Darlinghurst (Mini Post)

After our meal in Danjee, we decided to try out this new Gelato place in Darlinghurst. We walked from George st up to Crown st to digest all the foods we had eaten..
The place is generally new and it has a couple of sofas in the middle of the space and also a line of table bar near the window.

The queue was quite long and it may take some time for you to be serve because they are still trying to introduce a lot of flavours to customers and some of their gelato offerings are hard to predict on the taste like for example the 'Morena' or 'Contessa', so we struggle a bit in reading the description at the bottom of the name while tasting some samples too ;p

I ended up ordering 2 scoops of the Amarenata Croccante - Whole Amareno Cherries, crushed amaretti and hazelnut crumb & Ricotta E fichi - Sheep's milk Ricotta with caramelised figs
I don't like the Amarenatha, it tasted like the cherry cough syrup mom used to give me when I was a kid T.T But the Ricotta E fichi was divine! Smooth gelato, not too sweet and yet the flavour delivers!

Mr.P got the New york New york - Organic Canadian maple syrup and pecan. Another yummy combo of flavours in a scoop. Highly recommended!

A short trip to Rivareno, but I'll definitely be back with Bebski to try out other flavours! :)

Danjee, Sydney

A new korean eating spot in the city! Danjee is located in Albion place, a small lane next to the entrance of Event Cinemas in the City. The place has a very warm and welcoming atmosphere, almost like a classy version of the usual Korean restaurant in the city.

The place is pretty spacious and they also have outdoor seating. The staff greeted us with a smile and when we visited the place on Saturday it was full of people but worries not, they still have plenty of tables available :)

Not long after ordering, the Banchan came. And as usual, my favourite is the fish cake slices! ^^

The first to come is the Kimchi Jigae, as any other kimchi jigae, the soup is not spicy but it is packed with flavour from the kimchi juice, they also have pork belly, dokbukki slices and also tofu.

Kimchi Jigae $15

We also ordered the Haemul Japchae - Potato starch noodle with seafood in it. It was delish! Top notch for a japchae dish! But I wish the portion could be bigger for the price ;p Everything was gone in minutes between 4 of us ...

Haemul Japchae $16

The first main to come is the Bossam - Boiled pork belly served with radish and oyster kimchi, lettuce and perilla leaves. The pork was sliced thinly making it easier for us to eat and it was complemented perfectly by the tangy radish and oyster kimchi wrapped in a leaf. But again the portion was quite small for the price hehe..

Bossam $35

Lastly, the dish that I have been waiting for!! Danjee Fried Chicken... Tasty tasty tasty.  It came with 2 sauces, Chilli sauce and garlic sauce. But we loveeeeee the chilli sauce way more than the other one. The chicken may not be as wow as in Naruone or Arisun, but it is definitely up there :)

Danjee Fried chicken $35

Another thing that I love dining here is the healthy rice that they serve instead of a plain white rice. And also the service is no doubt top notch. The waiter was very attentive in filling water in our cups and quickly ask whether we would like to add more banchan :)
The place may be a tad pricey than the rest in the city but definitely worth a try ^^

Mylan, Wollongong

Mylan received the highest voting rate in Urbanspoon for Wollonggong restaurant of 94% and so I was so curious to try this place out. Fortunately after bebski's Ielts test, we got the chance to have lunch here before going back to Sydney. The interior is nothing fancy, a simple and clean looking place. We were seated immediately and the lunch menu were given to us.

To start with, we got the Vietnamese Iced Coffee, a bitter coffee with sweetened condensed milk at the bottom. A perfect refreshment for a hot day and the drink itself has the perfect sweetness level :)

Vietnamese Ice Coffee $4.50

I can never missed out on ordering Vietnamese Spring roll! My favourite spring roll so far is in Flemington. But this Spring roll sits at the same level as the one in Flemington! The taste is exactly like Ms.N's mom used to make ~~ Really miss her spring roll. The fillings are perfectly seasoned, so tasty! The let down maybe is the Nuoc Cham sauce which taste quite watery :)

Vietnamese Spring Roll $7

 Bebski ordered the Wet Thick rice noodle with Beef or in Indo we called it 'Kwetiau Sapi Siram', the thick gravy needs a bit more seasoning in my opinion and but it's quite tasty for a dish. I just need to add chopped chilli and soy sauce and within minutes, it'll be gone ;p

Wet thick rice noodle with beef $12

 I read a lot of reviews about Mylan and the recommended dish to try is their Satay! So I got the Combination Satay which includes fish balls, fish cakes, beef and chicken. Stir fry with red capsicum, onion, and carrot with the famous satay sauce. I agreeee that the satay sauce was sooo delish! I am not a satay sauce person but yet in my 2 days trip to the Gong, I have eaten 2 satay sauce dishes ;p

Combiantion Satay with Rice $13

Next time I visit this place, I will order the Vermicelli salad, it seems popular as almost every table ordered it! I also recommend to come here for lunch instead of dinner cause the foods can be quite pricey during dinner :) And yes, do try the satay here ^^

Fuku, Wollongong

After a hearty lunch in His Boy Elroy, Bebski and I thought we were just gonna have a simple take away dinner and sleep in early for his test tomorrow morning. On our way back to the hotel, we passed this Japanese restaurant called Fuku and looking at the menu in the front door we thought we could get like a curry rice on something to go..

But when we got into the place and seated, we were quite surprised to learn that they serve Chinese foods too and most of their speciality is from the chinese foods menu ;p So scrap Jap food and we went straight to chinese! hehe

We got the Pork belly hotpot in Ginger sauce. Yes you heard me, we weren't that hungry but pork belly never missed out eyes! It came in a big portion and very generous in the amount of pork as well! The pork belly was thinly slices and cut into small pieces and the sauce was warming, so good for the windy day in the Gong, and the ginger note was a tad strong for me. But it was a tasty dish!

Pork Belly Hotpot in Ginger Sauce $13

Second main that we ordered was the Deep fried spicy fish fillet. I had a bit of a time google-ing the restaurant before ordering and this dish came up to be one of the popular dish and it turned out to be my favourite!! The fish was deep fried with a light sweet batter, then dry fried with coriander, Szechuan peppercorn and dried chilli. I did enjoy the dish very much, I love fish fillet and I love coriander and I love spicy!! Highly recommended...

Deep Fried Spicy Fish Fillet $19

This small place really know how to please the crowd! I highly recommend this place to everyone visiting the Gong! I also just found out that their other popular dish is the Pork in peking sauce. Will definitely be back with more friends and order more foods here!