Tuesday 10 July 2018

Eating Out: Netherworld

The cool kid in Brisbane is undoubtedly Netherworld, a arcade and bar where the menu is vegan by default. Though people can add animal products if they must, they often have to pay extra for this. As well as food and beverages, there is also a huge library of board and card games, and a room full of fun arcade games. I had been meaning to go for ages, but never quite got around to it. Until suddenly I went twice in one week, both times for birthdays. This was at the end of last year, I am finally all done with my 2017 eating outs! Anyway, the menu has changed a bit since then... more than once... so I have made notes on what is still available.

The first time was for my friend Tracee's birthday. It was a lot of fun! As well as food, we also had a great time playing pinball, and then I reconnected with my youth with some Mortal Kombat II. I am pleased to see my technique of just mashing all the buttons together still seems to work. I enjoyed smashing the patriachy a little, until my character finally succumbed to another woman.

I have an acquaintance who seems to be here several times a week, and they highly recommended the Burgatory as the best burger ever in the world, so I had to get that. It is a cheeseburger, but also has onion rings on it. And it was very nice, a very good burger. Didn't quite live up to the hype, but I would recommend it as a solid cheeseburger option. This is still on the current menu, and it looks like they have a double version as well!

Burgatory at Netherworld


Tracee's partner had the Tanuki Tofu Burger, which had tofu, slaw, and BBQ sauce on it. He said it was good. This isn't on the current menu.

Tanuki Tofu Burger at Netherworld


Tracee had her favourite mac and cheese. They actually use udon noodles, so it is a slurpy cheesy experience. I tried a little bit, but their cheese sauce has sriracha in it and was too spicy for me. One of the downsides for my sensitive self is that the menu has a lot of spicy in it. This is still on the menu, though they have moved it from the bites to bowls section. I doubt they'll ever that this off!

Mac and Cheese at Netherworld


We also shared some Tofu Critters, lightly spiced fried tofu with sriracha mayo. The mayo was a bit spicy, but the critters were OK. They were good! These are still on the menu as Popcorn Critters, but with chipotle mayo.

Tofu Critters at Netherworld


Three days later, I was back for another friend's birthday! This time, there were a lot more people, so we ended up playing a card game. It was like CAH Against Humanity (which I have never played) but with memes, targeted at young millenials and I hated it so much. I confiscated some of the cards for being in too poor taste, because apparently that is who I am now. Oh well.

We shared some food between us so we could try some more things. First up, the Loaded Fries. These had BBQ jackfruit, cheese, and BBQ sauce on. Also a pineapple and jalapeno salsa, which we had on the side. However, what ever was in the seasoning on the jackfruit was really very spicy for me! They seem to still have a version of these on the menu, but with chili beans instead of jackfruit.

Loaded Fries at Netherworld


We also shared the Mushroom Tempura with Wasabi Mayo. This was outstanding! While I have issues with chilli, I have no issues with Wasabi. I love it! And while I am not a fan of too much deep fried, these little nuggets managed to stay crisp and crunchy and not too oily for a prolonged snacking session. These are still on the menu as Munchkin Mushies (I hate that name!), and I highly recommend!

Mushroom Tempura at Netherworld


Finally, the Gwisin Bowl. This was a chilled salad of soba noodles, vegetables, and peanut sauce, surrounded by warm Tofu Critters. It was light, refreshing, and not spicy. This isn't on the menu anymore.

Gwisin Bowl at Netherworld


I have been meaning to get back to Netherworld since then, but it is now six and a half months later, and they have been through several menu changes. Some of the burgers I had wanted to get are now gone. Their new menu has a couple of bowls I wouldn't mind trying (the Wampus Waffle and The Rodan), but we'll see how I go!

A final bonus food photo, for my friend Ashleigh I made a birthday cake. It is a double layer cake, using a few different recipes. The cake itself is the Vanilla Birthday Cake from Chloe's Kitchen, and it was filled with a layer of the Salted Caramel Icing from Chloe's Vegan Desserts. Then the whole thing was covered and decorated with Peanut Butter Cream from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. It got a little smooshed in transit to Netherworld, and is far from a professional job, but I was pretty chuffed.

Ashleigh's birthday cake


On a personal note, it has been a while between posts. My dad has been in hospital for the last week and a half, so I try and visit him on days when I am not working all day, and by the time I get home I tend to just watch Netflix and go to bed. But I am still here, and will be slowly continuing to get through my hilariously huge backlog of places I have been eating and cookbooks I have been cooking from!

Cute Kitty Photo of the Post

Gizmo and Sahara


I had a dream a couple of nights ago where I came home from holidays and had to pick up Sahara and Gizmo from the clinic, they both had UTIs. But they were easily treatable. And I was going to be able to take them home and hug them. I miss them always.

13 comments:

  1. That burger with the onion ring looks amazing! I've never had a burger with an onion ring! I love the sound of the cold noodle salad with the warm tofu nuggets. I'm a huge fan of warm and cold.
    I'm so sorry to hear about your dad. I hope he'll be all right?
    I have those dreams a lot too, and I always have this deep sadness when I wake up.
    Sending hugs!

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    1. I am not the biggest onion ring fan, I wouldn't want to eat them on their own, but in a burger they are fun.
      Thank you for the hugs, my Dad is still in hospital, stable, but a slow process to recovery.

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  2. All of that looks so good, but I especially want the tofus!! And I also happen to be quite excellent at Mortal Kombat, and I also use the mashing the buttons together strategy. :-)

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  3. Hi Susan, I'm sorry to hear about your Dad. Sending love to you both....
    I used to have dreams about a dog I lost years ago - very bittersweet! My poor old girl has a UTI right now. Easy enough to treat, although it's harder to get medication into her now than it used to be!

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    1. Your poor little one. <3 I wish they could understand that the medications are to help them feel better!

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  4. Best wishes to you and your Dad.

    I'm so glad to see you review this place, it's on my Brisbane wish-list! And your piped peanut butter cream on that cake looks so fancy.

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    1. Thank you. <3
      Next time you make your way to Brisbane, let me know and we can go and eat a lot of play games!

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  5. Everything looks amazing, but the spicy mac & cheese sounds particularly good to me, and the loaded fries, too!
    Thinking good thoughts for you and your dad!

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  6. I hope your father is doing well. Staying in a hospital isn't fun.

    This place looks amazing. I think my best friend and her boyfriend would always been up with us at this place if it was in New Jersey. He boyfriend loves board games, and my best friend likes to try and eat as much vegan as she can. So many yummy options. The udon spicy mac looks so yummy.

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    1. It is such a fun place! Lots for everyone.

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  7. Wasabi mayo > spicy mayo! That cake you made looks amazing too, I'd definitely take a slice!

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