The Moody Chef, St Leonards

I was introduced to the Moody Chef cafe by various family members, and I've always been pleased by its fresh ingredients and comforting breakfast/ brunch menu items. More recently, I took a friend there for a long-awaited catchup, and, once again, we weren't disappointed.

It was a little hard to catch the attention of the waitstaff, but once we did, service was friendly and without problems.

Menus

I decided to pass on a coffee and have a fruit drink with my breakfast - their breakfast menu is happily available all day on Saturdays.

The "fruit-o-licious" is a little on the pricey side, but is indeed packed with fruit. If not for the crushed ice, it would probably have been too thick to drink! Think of nudie juice, frappe-style, with hints of banana and honey - it was hard to pick out what else was inside that amalgamation of sucrose!

Fruit-o-licious ($7.00)

I took the opportunity of ordering a breakfast item that was on special - the crab cakes. As you can see from the background, my friend copied me and did the same =.=

Each plate contained 3 crab cakes with 2 poached eggs on top, accompanied by a spiced, herby tomato salsa. The poached eggs were runny in the centre, so it was fun bursting the albumen and spreading the yolk all over the crab cakes. The lightly crumbed crab cakes weren't too fishy, even though there was plenty of meat to be had. When accompanied by the salsa, it made for a light, mouthwatering meal. And although they looked deceptively small on the plate, I was quite comfortably full towards the end.

Crab cakes ($17.90)

Ozeki Sushi, Chatswood

When Ozeki Sushi first opened, I thought it was another one of those over-priced sushi trains (like a certain one on Victoria Avenue that I won't name). And thus, it was only when I obtained a 25% Entertainment Book voucher earlier this year that I decided to pay a lunch visit one weekend. All the prices below are pre-voucher. I can't remember how many plates we ended up getting, but I think the two of us ordered around 12 plates together (we ordered a few repeats of the sashimi and scallops). This sounds like a pretty pathetic effort, but the portions were bigger than expected :/

Once seated, I spotted the grilled scallops come by and snatched a plate. Initially, I thought $5.50 was incredibly steep, considering Sagunja charges $2.80 a plate (and is holding a $2.50 special at the moment!), but Sagunja plates contain only 2 scallops while Ozeki Sushi uses 4 (and yes, I know I sound incredibly calculative haha). But how's the quality, you ask? The scallops were fresh and cooked just the way I like it - so they had a smokey flavour and had a great level of firmness.  Needless to say I pigged out on these...

Half-grilled scallops ($5.50)

One of my sushi pet peeves is dry rice, and thankfully there was none of that during our visit.

Shark's fin and jellyfish sushi ($3.20)

Avocado, crab meat, egg sushi ($3.50)

Seaweed sushi ($2.80)

Possibly crab. ($4.50)

Oyster sushi ($5.50)

This was my first time having sushi filled with salmon roe. It was enjoyable because it was so moist and I liked the feeling of the little eggs bursting in my mouth (kind of like those fruity pearl toppings that go with frozen yoghurt).

Salmon roe + salmon sushi ($5.50)

It was also my first time having sea urchin. I don't think it's my thing because it was pretty fishy (and a quick Google search suggests that a lot of people find it offensive - acquired taste I guess).

Sea urchin (5.50)

Some sorta vegetarian thing ($3.20)

 

Salmon and kingfish sashimi ($6.50)

Overall, a positive experience. There was a wide selection and it's a little pricey, but the portions are fair and it's fresh - given the poor reviews about the freshness during dinner time, perhaps it all comes down to the time of your visit...

La Lupita, Circular Quay

Ever since my first visit to London last year, I've been on the hunt for a non-Tex-Mex restaurant in Sydney that is similar to the likes of Wahaca. La Lupita isn't quite up at that level, but with the right combination of dishes, makes for a satisfying meal. On a sidenote, I don't think 4 pound plates of 3 tacos ($7 - 8 AUD) will be the norm in Australia any time soon :(

La Lupita is situated in The Basement, a music club that mainly hosts Jazz musicians. For the Jazz-haters, not to worry! The dining area is quite separate from the live music - except it might be a disappointment for those who want a dinner/ show experience. Having said that, the salsa bar looked very makeshift, with salad bowls to contain each different salsa type - so perhaps this particular arrangement was just for the one night?

Ordering consists of the following steps:

1. You are provided with a slip of paper (see below) and a coloured pencil.
2. Using the pencil, circle the quantity of each menu item that you wish to order.
3. Hand the paper to either a waitress/ waiter or the bartender.

We asked for one of everything, except for the special taco. This turned out to be a fatal mistake because we ended up with two tortilla chip baskets - albeit with different toppings.

Tortilla chip basket 1: Troelotes

If I were to return, I would pick this tortilla basket over the other one. The spiced corn didn't taste very spiced but provided a bit more texture and juiciness that the other basket lacked. The lime was quite dry, so there wasn't much juice to squeeze over the top, but the cheese, salsa and crema mexicana (as well as the corn) made up for it in moisture.

Troelotes ($10.00)

Spit Roast Hot Wings - with spiced chipotle, lime and garlic crema

Once again, not spicy. They were still tasty though - the meat on the bones was moist and the combination of the sauce and the charred, smoky flavour provided a bit more complexity.

Spiced chicken wings ($10.00)

At $6.00 each, the tacos seem a little steep. They are a little bit bigger than some others I've seen, which somewhat made up for it. One was pork, one was beef and one was chicken. Aside from bearing their respectively different meaty textures, I couldn't distinguish between their accompanying marinades. Slathered with salsas and toppings of our choice, though, we were pretty happy.

Tacos ($6.00 each)

Tortilla basket 2: Frijoles with salsa roja, crema mexicana, chiltepin (chili pepper) , queso de oaxaca (Mexican cheese)

As much as I adore frijoles, there was a bit too much starch and not enough of a spicy kick. It's still worth a try if you're into your legumes - there just isn't that much to say about it :/

Would I return? One day, yes. Although the menu is limited, the food isn't bad, and I really ought to sample their drinks.

Kirribilli Markets

I'd been nagging some of my friends to visit Kirribilli markets for the past 6 months, but due to the General Markets only being available once a month, we had difficulties making ourselves all available for a visit. We used the Ennis Road exit of Milsons Pt Station and followed the signs. Greeted by the dismal selection of stalls in the tunnel, we muttered, "What, is that all?".

Gladly there's actually a lot more to the markets than the below picture - and my favourite stalls were actually to be found in that tunnel! There was a stall with multi-coloured hand-painted ceramics at excellent prices, one with cute toddler-sized knits, and others with pretty summery frocks and $2 earrings.

 Beyond the tunnel lay a number of food stalls, which greeted us with an array of poffertjes, banh mi, chorizos, potatoes-on-a-stick and freshly-squeezed-lemonade. The crooning musicians and warm, sunny weather, made for a lazy Saturday of selecting pretty trinkets and rifling through racks of vintage clothes. There was one arm of the markets selling fresh produce, which added to the community vibe.

 

Come lunch time, food was easily accessible:

Chorizo roll ($8)

The good ol' gaytime attracted me for its throwback to a favourite classic. Don't expect too much, and you'll be content enough with it. It was covered by a layer of tim tam and mixed with gaytime ice cream and crumbled cookie. 

Good Ol' Gaytime ($5)

Freshly squeezed lemonade (<$5)

Once we tired of navigating the markets, we made our way to the water, where we sat and talked until the sun went down.

Bao Dao Taiwanese Kitchen, Chatswood

Bao Dao's fairly new to Chatswood, having been around for a little less than a year. Since it first opened, I've heard many good things about it. Indeed, it's one of the more affordable sit-down restaurants around the area, the service is fast, and the food is tasty - even according to my dinner buddy that night and one of my fussier friends when it comes to Shanghainese and Taiwanese cuisines.

Said friend duly noted that the lanterns as depicted in the photo below are pretty accurate replicas of the ones that those in mainland China use during lantern festivals. During these festivals, people write riddles on the lanterns for others to solve throughout the night in return for small prizes.

Service is semi-self-serve. You are led to your table and provided your food, but ordering and immediate payment occurs at the counter. The food didn't all come at once, so the order in which the dishes arrived was at random.

First was the fried basil chicken, which was surprisingly not too dry and bore a pleasant crunch from the light batter.

Fried chicken ($7.20)

 We ordered soup as a winter-warmer. Chicken and mushroom soup is usually standard chicken broth, but the herbs here gave it an extra punch of flavour.

Shiitake mushroom & chicken in master stock ($6.60)

The highlight for me were the pork wontons, the skin of which could have been fairly dry, if they had not been served in their 'house spicy sauce'. The sauce was more peppery than spicy, which is great for those who can't eat anything too hot.

Pork wonton x 8 pieces ($7.70)

We each had one braised pork belly bun. Garnished with chopped peanut and coriander, this was mouthwateringly good - though I think they're sold for less at their stall during the Chatswood markets.

Pork belly bun ($4.50)

I'm not a pork knuckle fan - biting into the fat was too overwhelming for me, but the sauce went well with it. Probably for the more traditional Chinese palate.

Pork knuckle ($7.70)

Bao Dao is definitely a welcome addition to the food scene in Chatswood. Next time, I'll be back to try their noodles and more of their wontons!

Baroque Bistro, The Rocks

Last week, I headed to the Aroma Festival in Circular Quay/ The Rocks. I naively hoped to grab a cup of coffee and a lardy hot dog and didn't take some things into account:

1. It was lunch time (albeit a bit late)
2. The lines were insane; and
3. Gourmet sausages always rapidly deplete.

And so, our 'quick and cheap' lunch turned into a couple of not-as-cheap-as-I-wanted open sandwiches at Baroque Bistro. How did this happen?

Well... We were meandering along George Street and turned onto the pedestrian street in-between Guylian and Orient Hotel, where all the food stalls were located. Stomach was rumbling and the crowds made our walking speed a torturous amble. Eventually we made our way along Playfair Street, where the crowd was a little thinner. It was then that we spotted only a petite line at Baroque. We joined it and thankfully only had to wait a few minutes to receive a table (as there were only two of us, we ended up taking priority!). And thus ends my long-winded explanation.

Service was brisk and efficient, providing us with a reprieve.

We decided to go halves with 2 tartines. Both were too soggy to eat without the aid of cutlery, but the flavours were simplistic and pleasant. It was a shame that these were the only two meaty tartines available to choose from, as two pork dishes made me crave for a bit more variety.

The sausage was accompanied with a couple of cherry tomatoes and a lot of onion, which had been sauteed lightly.

Grilled Toulouse sausage tartine ($14.00)

They were more generous with the pulled pork, which was once again surrounded by onion - this time of the less pungent red variety.

Pulled pork shoulder tartine ($14.00)

Overall verdict? Indifferent. The lunch wasn't particularly filling, but it was the early afternoon and we were planning on having dinner in a couple of hours, anyway. Most people probably order dessert after this (there was plenty of stomach room for that!), but we only had a few hours left to do some shopping and decided to leave.

I Love Pho, Crows Nest

Proposing to eat Vietnamese on the North Shore usually attracts gasps of horror from pho enthusiasts. Alas, I'm not a pho enthusiast and I just wanted something soupy for dinner. Having said that, I Love Pho appears to be distinctly more authentic than the other Vietnamese eateries situated in Chatswood - their egg rolls are made with rice paper, pho comes with hoisin sauce, that sort of thing.

We visited I Love Pho without a booking around 7pm on a weeknight, and it was absolutely packed. We were fortunate enough that someone was finishing up at the time, but some people entering a few minutes later had to stand around for quite a while.

 The crispy Vietnamese pancake was labelled under the chef's recommendations, and no wonder! I loved the crunch of the batter and how it was chock-full of prawns, pork and beansprouts. And though it costs about as much as a bowl of pho, it's pretty big and I could probably have eaten one plate of pancake as a meal.

Banh Xeo ($12.60)

This meant that by the time the pho arrived, there was little of the noodles that I could stomach. I ordered the pho chin, or pho with well-done beef flank. The beef was a little tough and they were overly generous with the rice noodles, but the soup was quite tasty.

Hoisin/ chilli sauce with garnishing

(Pho Chin - approx. $12.50)

My conclusion? Yummy pancakes, generous portions, reasonable price for Crows Nest. After this experience, I'm keen to come back and taste some of their banquet-style dishes.