Melbourne 2016 (Part 3)

After all that lunch, we spent several hours catching up with our friend until it was time for him to head home and for us to go to dinner. We headed back to Yong Green Food. I was still fighting a bit of a cold, so I started with the Immune Booster Juice (orange, apple, carrot, ginger). I asked for extra ginger, but it really wasn't gingery enough.



Leigh ordered the Yin and Yang Charger with a side of picked vegetables and kimchi, as well as her favourite kim chi dumplings. I had a couple of the dumplings, and I like that they are not too spicy.







I ordered the Fried Noodles in Black Bean Sauce, which I'm sad to say was disappointing. The sauce was just a bit oily and didn't have much flavour. The noodles themselves were nice, but needed to have more veggies and tofu. I needed some freshness, so I also ordered my favourite Seaweed Salad, which thankfully was delicious as always.





The next morning we headed to Smith & Daughters for brunch, where we proceeded to order everything to share. Well, not really everything. Of course, I enjoyed some of the best chai ever, made on cashew milk. So yum!



As mentioned, we got several things to share. We go the Papas Espanolas (hot chips with aioli), Guacamole de Lujo (guac with apple and fennel, served with corn chips and raw veggies), Japaleno Mac and Cheese, Mexican Corn Fritters (corn and cheese fritters with aioli), and Butternut and Black Bean Tostadas. The clear winner was the tostadas, which were delectable! Unfortunately the corn fritters were far more deep fried than we anticipated, which neither of us really enjoyed. The chips were good, but very fried and such a huge serving for two people! I enjoyed the mac, which was not at all spicy, and the guac was good (except that they put raw onion in it, please never do this) and the fresh veggies were welcome. We were very full!











Leigh also came up with the idea of making some loaded fries, and of course I had to do it as well. We are classy like that. I loaded my fries with mac and cheese, guac and aioli.



Smith & Daughters has an amazing collection of salt and pepper shakers. In the past, Leigh and I have had great fun with our friends the ninja salt and pepper shakers. Tragically, they are no longer. So we had some fun with our new friends.



We caught a cab to Southern Cross Station to store our luggage, and then hopped on a train out to Preston so I could finally visit La Panella to buy amazing vegan bakery goodies. While the bakery at Smith & Deli is very fancy, this is the sort of cheap and cheerful bakery from your corner store, and of my youth. I got a bunch of stuff to take home to Brisbane and share with my family. Clockwise from top in the photo below there was an apple scroll, custard tart, lemon tart, custard doughnut, chocolate croissant, jam tart, apple slice and vanilla slice. This photo was taken once I got them home to Brisbane, and they are a bit tumbled because when they went through security they just shoved the back in (I had them in a tupperware inside a cooler bag) and the whole thing ended up upside down!



We had plans to visit Supercharger for a late lunch, but we were both still very full from brunch. Instead we headed out to the airport and picked up some sushi (though I didn't even end up eating mine until after I was home in Brisbane), before flying home.

A final bonus photo of the cheese and bacon roll I got from Smith & Deli! I brought it home with me, and enjoyed it for lunch the next day. It was so yummy!



It was a super fun trip! Lots of great food! I was happy that I had a lot of variety during this visit, it wasn't just beige beige beige! There was definitely some greens involved. And only once was I so full that I was actually uncomfortable (that was after we shared the three sandwiches for lunch on the Friday). So I think I am definitely evolving, considering that I was so full I was uncomfortable for most of my last Melbourne trip... ooops! I will be headed back to Melbourne in November with my friend Ashleigh for my birthday, and I can't wait to show her all of my favourites and explore some new ones together!

Cute Kitty Photo of the Post







A trio of photos of my duo of kitties, having a lovely nap in the sun during my absence.

Melbourne 2016 (Part 2)

The reason for the trip to Melbourne was to go and see RuPaul's Battle Of the Seasons, which featured my very favourite and most beloved queen, the incomparable Jinkx Monsoon. In case you don't know, Jinkx is the prettiest, funniest, most talented queen ever ever ever. I am besotted.

Although they were coming to Sydney and Brisbane, Leigh and I went to Melbourne to see the show with some Melbourne friends (and because any excuse to eat food in Melbourne is worth it). We went for a pre-show dinner at Yong Green Food, one of my favourite places in Melbourne.

I was excited to try the new ramen on the menu, made with locally handmade noodles. You could pick between a spicy broth or a shoyu broth, I picked the shoyu. This was very yummy, though I would have liked a few more vegetables!



Elyce got the new Yin and Yang Charger, which is a set meal with several small components. It looked pretty great! And Leigh went for salads - a mix of the Soba Noodle Salad (with a delicious creamy wasabi dressing) and the Vietnamese coleslaw. Michelle went for the towering chicken burger, and Elyce's partner had the Mock Chicken Wrap.









After dinner, it was on with the show! Michelle's GPS tried to have us axe murdered by going through a fairly deserted rail depot, but we got there safe and sound. And the show was magical! Sharon Needle's had us in tears with a moving tribute to David Bowie and her former kitty. Detox did an amazing performance to the song from Mannequin (one of my favourite songs ever), and Jinkx.... well, Jinkx was EVERYTHING and more. She is the best!! After the show, we had a hysterical drive to drop us back at our hotel, then we all tweeted at each other in very high and silly spirits for awhile. It was an amazing evening.

The next morning, Leigh and I decided to try yet another new place for breakfast. We had passed by Something More the previous day, and thought it would be fun to try as they had a few vegan things on their menu. Sadly, their chai was honey-based, so instead I kick-started my morning with the Elixer of Life - Ginger, lemon, turmeric and orange. It was bracing! For breakfast I had 'The One Before Ten', which had sauteed mushrooms, pickled beets and shredded vegetables with a sesame horseradish dressing on buckwheat tortillas, and some avocado on the side. I did have to pick out some capsicum and chili, but once they were gone it was delicious! I really liked it. Leigh had coffee and the Something Green made vegan. Kale, spinach, chili, pickled apple, walnuts, avocado, grains and a red pepper dressing. Normally it has an egg on it, but they left it off.







After breakfast, we popped down the street to Smith & Deli so I could get a chai and we could check out their treats. They have croissants on Saturdays, and when we got there they had all sorts - including chocolate and raspberry and a Reuben-stuffed croissant. Previously their croissants have been too full of coconut oil for me, so I didn't get any. But I found out the next day that they don't use coconut oil any more! Next time I am getting all the croissants. I did pick up a Raspberry Crumble Slice and another one of the Strawberry Hibiscus curd cookies!



Afterwards, Leigh had a nap while I went for a walk in Carlton Gardens before lunch. Behold some gardens!







For lunch, we went back to Smith & Deli to meet up with our friend Taylor for more sandwiches. Oh, I forgot to mention in my last post that during our first visit to Smith & Deli they had loaded hot chocolates. I had a peanut butter hot chocolate and it was amazing!! They didn't them at this visit, though. Taylor got The Club Sandwiches Not Seals, which is his favourite. I am keen to try it at a future visit! Leigh and I shared The Wiggum (BBQ grilled tofu, maple BBQ sauce, slaw, pickles & chipotle aioli) and the Foghorn Legless (Chicken schnitzel, bacon, lettuce, tomato, ranch & celery salt). The chicken schnitzel was tempeh-based, which I loved! They were both great sandwiches!









I also got a Chocolate Mousse Tart with Poached Pears and Rhubarb. This was one of the only baked goods from the Deli that I didn't enjoy, the mousse was strange and greasy. At least it looked pretty.



Cute Kitty Photo of the Post





More photos sent from home!

Melbourne 2016 (Part 1)

Hello! I am back from Melbourne, and straight into work. But the good news is that I had a super fun time in Melbourne. The food was great, company was excellent and activities were exciting! I flew down from Brisbane on Thursday morning. Even though I was flying Virgin, I decided I would not get a Doughnut Time doughnut pre-flight, as I was expecting to eat a lot of doughnuts in Melbourne (actually, I did not... but that was OK... I ate many other delicious things). Leigh and I had timed our flights to arrive close to each other, and due to some delays they actually arrived at the same time! We got in at about 2.30, and caught the Skybus to Southern Cross Station. We were absolutely ravenous, plus it was cold and raining, so we decided to pick up some Lord of the Fries to snack on at the station before heading to our hotel.

I had the mini chicken burger (which was OK), and the French Canadian Chunky Fries aka poutine (no photo of that because they were all blurry).



Then we headed to our hotel. It was cold and raining, I was cold and sad. But then we warmed up and I was able to put on all my Melbourne layers before we went out for dinner. And when we went out, I was actually quite snug! Bringing my super warm Tasmania jacket was definitely a good move. I normally try and get to Melbourne on a Thursday to go to the Cornish Arms for trivia and ridiculous food. We did both! We started with some Spicy Wings to share with the table. I just had a few little bits, because of the spicy, but the dill mayo was delicious and really toned down any heat.



The vegan special for the night was chicken and waffles with bacon and hashbrowns, though none of us got it. I had the Krautrock Pizza, which had Tofurkey, potatoes, onion, cheese and gravy. Unfortunately no saurkraut, which I had thought there would be from the name. It was good, though I tend to find they are often a bit uneven with their toppings. It definitely needed a little something extra as well. Leigh had the Chimmi Dog, which was Tofurkey, peppers, onions, Gardein beefless tips and cheese in a roll with chimichurri sauce and dill dijonaise, with onion rings and slaw. She reported that it was very salty, and unfortunately the chimichurri sauce was really just a small drizzle. Our other friends for the Vegan Ribwich (which was quite yummy, I tried a bit), and the Souvlaki (which is a favourite among regulars).









On Friday morning we decided to try somewhere new, and after a short bus ride ended up at Admiral Cheng Ho. I started with a Chai Latte (it was OK), and Leigh had a coffee that she loved (she got a second one). While the vegan sweet potato pancakes sounded delicious (though I would skip the coconut ice cream), there was one dish that really spoke to my heart... avocado toast. I know, I know! But it wasn't just any avocado toast. It had white bean puree, kraut, herbs (including dill, my favourite) and avocado feta. It was delicious! The feta was more like a yummy, salty spread than a traditional feta. Overall, it was a delicious avocado toast. We both had it. Oh, also some pickled cucumber on the side! We also split a freshly baked vegan berry muffin, which was a fabulous muffin.







Then we headed to the Jurassic World exhibit at Melbourne Museum to see some dinosaurs. The whole thing is set up as if you were going to Jurassic World itself, so it is problematic in that it is set up as a zoo completely with petting area and breeding lab. But it had the most amazing animatronic dinosaurs! Including a t-rex that actually walked! Unfortunately, to create the Jurassic World drama, they sometimes had the dinosaurs acting distressed, with flashing red lights. I know they were robots, but the amount of expression they had in their eyes was amazing. My favourite part was the Stegosaurus, because they are my favourite dinosaurs!





For lunch, we headed to the beloved Smith & Deli to pick up a sandwich picnic to take back to the hotel! Leigh was starving, so ordered a Kimchi and Cheese scroll to eat while we were waiting.



We got three sandwiches to take back and share. The Reubenwich (Pastrami, sauerkraut, pickles, russian dressing on rye), The Little Havana (A traditional pressed Cuban: Ham, roast turkey, mozzarella, pickles, cheddar & mojo dressing) and The Tim Curried Egg Salad (I can’t believe it’s not curried egg-salad with shredded iceberg).







Unfortunately, The Tim Curried just tasted overwhelmingly of curry powder and not much else. I couldn't finish my half of it. The Reubenstein was yummy, though needed to be a little more vinegary. But good! However, the standout was definitely The Little Havana. It was so yummy! This sandwich comes very highly recommended by everyone who has ever had it. Here is a photo of a sandwich stack.



Then I had one of the most beautiful food experiences of my life. I had picked up a sweet for myself, and had settled on the Strawberry and Hibiscus Curd Chocolate Sandwich Cookie. Little did I know that the curd contained within is one of the most magical and delicious substances ever invented. Poor Leigh was trying to have a nap, while I was exclaiming in rapture with every nibble. So. Damn. Good. I need a tub of that curd to eat forever. Oh my goodness. I need them to make that every time I come to Melbourne. So good. Cannot explain enough how good it was. Do you believe me that it was good? However good you think it might be, it is infinity times better.





Cute Kitty Photo of the Post





Whenever I am away, my mum always sends me lots of photos of the girls. She sent me these ones before I even got to the airport!