We celebrated our 8th Anniversary viewing at the top of Melbourne CBD. It was beautiful, clear skies and relaxing overlooking the city movements on a typical Friday night.

Sofitel No 35

OK, short and sweet, I’d return, why? It’s a la carte menu meaning you don’t have to spend a banquet amount of money and stuffing yourself full to admire this beautiful view. I’d have to say this could be my little hideout – one of the best views of Melbourne. [better than Eureka 89 – stay tuned for this review].

He had the Virgin Mojito and I had the Lychee, Apple and Lemongrass. Mojito was superbly fresh with the mint kick and my lychee, Apple and Lemongrass felt slightly diluted. Although… The lychee that came in the drink was nice and sweet!  It had a lemony taste with some sparkling.

Sofitel No 35

Then came our bread, it wasn’t amazing bread but it was nice and soft. the crusts were hard to chew. (we loved the butter).

Kingfish Ceviche ($26) & Salt and pepper prawns with chilli aioli (on Special $25) were our entrees.

Then came our mains; Aged grass-fed Gippsland porterhouse steak 250g ($59) Served with homemade butter, smoked bone marrow, parsley, caper and shallot salad. The Shallot was so moist and soft that it formed part of the sauce for the porterhouse. It added the kick with the homemade butter. But the better main was the Snapper…

Sofitel No 35

Snapper ($49) came by with various punches of flavour that you could not imagine. It felt Asian inspired.. The only critique is bones… I would have indulged the snapper so quickly had there not been any small bones that surprised you every time you wanted to enjoy the flavours.

The night ended with a surprise of “Happy 8th Anniversary” on each of our sweet plates. It’s nice to be greeted with something that it personal to each customer – good job No35!

He had the Go Nuts and I had the Bush Tucker. Go Nuts was so nutty! Peanuts, salted caramel, praline…  we both liked the burnt caramel that sat above the ice cream. it balances all the sweetness going on. And of course, he loved his choice of dessert that night being a “nutty”.

I’m not as big of a fan as he is with nuts, so I was very happy with my choice of dessert. It was Lemon myrtle with vanilla bean ice cream. The clear jellies added so much burst of acidity – it was just right. There were berries and crunches in the dish and all were amazing. loved dessert!

I believe they have the Spring menu now so only a few of the above dishes will be made available. But I’d love to go there again for a Summer indulgence!

Website: http://no35.com.au/menu/
Location: Sofitel Melbourne On Collins, Level 35, 25 Collins Street, CBD, Melbourne

Taste delicious Rating:
Service: 5/5
Ambience: 5/5
Entree: 4/5
Mains: 3.5/5
Dessert: 5/5
Beverage: 4/5
Overall: 26.5/30
★★★★

The post Sofitel No 35 appeared first on NowongFood.

Their flat white was weaker than the other coffees I’ve had. I probably needed two of their coffees to start the morning!

It took me a while to figure out their menu but the left side is French and the right side is English! Before I realized it, I was reading similar dishes and thought “Gee they have a huge variety of the same thing!”

My friend ordered Scrambled Eggs – chorizo, smoked paprika roasted cauliflower, onion jam, spinach, and reypensar cheese. Huge serving worth your money! Scrambled eggs are just under the Chorizo.

Another friend ordered vegetarian baked eggs. It looked like Peter when it came out. But my friend, V said it filled him all the way passed lunchtime! It was pretty but I didn’t take a photo – sorry!

I ordered the Croque Madame and it was beautiful. My favorite Croque madame. I used to love Chez Dre’s one but since they have changed management – their croque madame disappointed me. So I’m glad I found a new place for a good Croque Madame! Fried egg served on two thick and soft brioche breads. Melted cheese and ham of course! Just the right amount of sauce as well. Fennel and mandarin salad as the accompaniment.

When we left, the place was quite busy – not full house but enough at 8:30 am on a working day. I can’t imagine how busy the weekends are! Their dining area isn’t very big. For first-timers, I recommend going early! Or on a weekday like me

You probably know my rating now.. but I’d revisit it!!

Location: 120-123 Hardware Lane, Melbourne

Website: N/A

Taste delicious Rating
Service: 4/5
Ambiance: 4/5
Beverage: 2.5/5
Entree: N/A
Mains: 5/5
Dessert: N/A
Overall: 15.5/20
★★★★

The post Hardware Societe appeared first on NowongFood.

Lunch was good (4/5) but Dinner topped it (5/5)! If it wasn’t because of our driver who recommended Still Water to us again for dinner, we would have left Still Water with 4/5 from our lunch experience. Read more to see why…

Located slightly off Launceston City, but is walkable distance – very close to the Cataract Gorge Reserve. We arrived for lunch at 12pm and were excited to try as we heard good things about it.

We ordered Launceston’s Kombucha – Avocado Moon Lemon Myrtle & Lemon Grass. The waitresses were so tentative that they served us two glasses with ice to share.

J ordered Tasmanian salmon, cauliflower, vadouvan, labia, and toasted seeds, for $36. Although their portions looked small at first sight, but it was enough for us in the end. The salmon was cooked very well – crispy skin on top and the cauliflower was roasted to soft. The taste of it was delicious with the smoked flavour from the roast.I ordered a rather Asian-inspired dish – Clams, green tea soba noodles, XO butter, and wakame, for $28. Clams cooked in XO butter were beautiful. It was strong in flavours and the wakame brought back the sea origin to the dish. I liked how it added the crispiness after searching through meat from the hard shell clams.

The soba noodles were mild but a bit too soft for my liking. I usually have al dente soba noodles so I felt it was a bit overcooked. J found the texture of the soba noodles fine.

From the above, I was going to rate them 4/5. Just because the soba noodles weren’t as al dente and they charged us for $2.50 each for bread. The waiter asked if we would like bread and J said yes assuming it was complimentary.

Unfortunately, we only realised this upon settling the bill. $5 was quite dear for us knowing that the butter was not anything extravagant. The sourdough crust was also very hard.

The below is about our dinner experience…

It was a Saturday night when we arrived with no bookings – everywhere else was fully booked until after 7 pm. We were lucky to secure a table for two. We were dressed in hiking gear and as we were walking in, I was afraid we would have been judged by our horrible dress code. I thought wrong, the attitude of the staff was friendly.

Consistent with lunch! Upon arrival, they asked us if we had been to Still Water before, and we said – only for lunch. It turns out dinner is slightly different, so she explained the menu and what they do/don’t have. Loved it. 5 stars to service.

Funny enough bread was complimentary for dinner. It was warmed up with a thicker slice and better butter compared with lunch. I felt like I was at a different restaurant!

We ordered two small dishes to share:

Torched white fish, fermented apple & dill, garlic cream, $24 – we were advised that the white fish was kingfish, so we had to pick it because we love kingfish. Lightly torched and the fennel and apple jus was light but citrussy.

The garlic cream was dropped on each slice of fish. It was the right amount when we put it in our mouth. I had a taste of the jus and felt that they added white wine. We both gravitated towards the Southern calamari, squid ink angel hair, shellfish bisque, $26. It was divine… calamari was soft and thinly sliced, I didn’t need to chew it because it was so soft… We tossed the squid ink angel hair with the bisque and it created a creamy texture coating on the pasta.

It was delicious and I could have more of it! A little sad that it’s only their small plate menu and not part of their mains.

Entree was superb and I thought Main wouldn’t be able to top what we have tasted so far, but I was wrong again! Free-range Nichols chicken (1⁄2 bird) twice cooked, garlic & black sesame dressing, pickled cucumber & Korean chilli sauce, $60.

The twice-cooked chicken was delicious… skin was crispy, and the breast was very moist and fell off the bone. The garlic and black sesame dressing was the star to make this dish ‘divine”. I tasted a bit of ginger in the sauce. J and I still talk about this chicken. The pickled cucumber had thin shreds of ginger, it was a good side dish to freshen the taste of the hearty meal.

The chicken dipped in the Korean chilli sauce brought out the sweetness and tanginess to each bite.  Both bring out different flavours. The chilli sauce was not chilli for me. So I am 100% happy!

Our side was Potato & celeriac galette, burnt butter, sage, lemon sauce, $11. Another great side dish was delicate because of the galette. We basted the sage & burnt butter into the gaps of the potato to warm it up and maintain its flavour. Be quick to finish this, you don’t want the burnt butter and potato to get cold! It won’t be as delicious if you wait…

The waitress then came back with two petits made by the chef – his interpretation of ferrero rocher – nutty but with dark chocolate. Yum.

Overall, the staff at Stillwater were wonderful. Although lunch wasn’t perfect, dinner certainly exceeded our expectations – flawless. I’d go back again and take our friends there when we visit Launceston. Their dinner menu is to die for…

Their sister restaurant is Black Cow – which we just missed because we didn’t book in advance… We’ll be back…

Location: 2 Bridge Rd, Launceston TAS 7250

Website: https://www.stillwater.com.au

Tasteelicious Rating: Service: 5/5 Ambience: 5/5 Entree/Small: 5/5 Mains: 4.5/5 Dessert: N/A Beverage: 3/5 (average – not made by Still Water) Overall: 22.5/25

★★★★★

The post Stillwater appeared first on NowongFood.

Located in the heart of Healesville shops, the staff was friendly and delivered unlimited tap water for the 6 of us. Although the dining area is huge, I recommend booking if you have a large group. You never know if they are catering to another large group. I have to mention that their bathrooms are unisex, just in case anyone is surprised. Individual cubicles of course with plenty to pick from haha…

The paella was hearty with several seafood ingredients. The pizzas were perfect, I love a thin crispy base from the wood-fired oven. The sizes were good to share between two people. Others who have a bigger appetite could do one for themselves.

My foodie experience was superb. I’d recommend a visit if you have some time to kill at Healesville. Their Moscato is one of my favorite Moscato. The service was great with delicious pizza. The price for the pizzas & paella was a little higher than expected – but you are at a winery! A 4-star experience overall balanced with great service.

On a scorching day that reached 37 degrees, it was prudent to have some complimentary wines and delicious cuisine before beginning a climb. Indulge in some carbs before heading outside with the variety buffet that includes tasty pizza and substantial paella.

To ensure a seamless experience devoid of unanticipated disruptions, it is crucial to make reservations, especially for bigger groups, regardless of the dining room’s size. The unisex restroom stands out due to its unique design, which incorporates quirky touches and features individual cubicles.

The paella showcased Innocent Bystander’s exceptional cooking skills, as it was packed with a variety of seafood delicacies. The thin and crispy foundation of the pizzas made in the wood-fired oven was a beautiful culinary highlight, and they were perfect for sharing or satisfying bigger appetites.

The staff’s friendliness and the group’s unrestricted access to the tap water both added to the pleasant dining experience. Paella and pizza may be on the pricier side, but they complement the sophisticated vineyard setting and fill you up with excellent service.

No wine connoisseur worth their salt would depart without sampling the famed Moscato, a specialty of Innocent Bystander. A must-visit spot in Healesville is Innocent Bystander, which has a stellar reputation for both service and cuisine, earning it four stars.

Website: https://www.innocentbystander.com.au

Location: 316-334 Maroondah Hwy, Healesville VIC 3777, Australia

Taste delicious Rating:
Service: 5/5
Ambiance: 4/5
Beverage: N/A
Entree: N/A
Mains: 4/5
Dessert: N/A
Overall: 13/15
★★★★

I hope you like the part where we talked about Innocent Bystander. For more content like this, visit our website Nowongfood.com.

The post Innocent Bystander appeared first on NowongFood.

The dining area was dim but had enough natural light to shine throughout the evening from the front doors. We all had a $45pp set menu, excl drinks. A total of 7 items, which equates to $6.43 per item, it’s not a bad deal once you’ve broken it down.

Calamari, Flat Head, Lamb Cutlets, Mediterranean Salad, Chicken Skewers, Papas Brava, and Churros.

The Calamari and Flat Head came together in one dish. Both were nice and hot, lightly battered. The fish was fried perfectly, it was accompanied well by the sauce. Then came the chicken skewers and lamb cutlets. These were the highlights of the set menu! The below photo doesn’t do it justice.

The lamb was cooked well. The meat was tender and the juice was still within every bite. The skewers were also not dry with strong flavors of marinade, I couldn’t tell what kind of marinade it was, but there was garlic and something sour like vinegar. The Mediterranean salad was fresh and had a good amount of dressing. I’m glad they had some kind of veggies or salad as the first few dishes had a fair bit of meat!

The other side was described as Papas Brava, the Spanish potatoes. At the time I looked at the menu, I had no idea it meant roast potatoes. But boy, these potatoes are amazing! So crispy and the right size for easy eating. I could have this non-stop.

Last came Churros, we were so excited about these when they came out, my first impression was that it was a little thinner than expected. It was a delight to have (not oily) with lots of sugar dusted on top, the disappointing part was we wished there was more… as it turned out to be 1 churro per person.

It is evident how popular Las Tapas is as the text explains how tough it is to secure a reservation for the hen’s night. The author emphasizes the importance of making reservations in advance due to the strong demand and lively atmosphere of the restaurant on Saturday nights.

Ambience in the Dining Room:

The article states that the eating area is softly lit and filled with enough natural light to make one feel at home. The high rate of table turnover during the reservation period is indicative of the restaurant’s popularity.

The Road to a Career in the Kitchen:

The meat of the piece is an analysis of the $45/person set meal, which comes with seven items hand-picked by the author. By itemizing the prices, the author emphasizes how affordable the food is.

Delicious Delights:

The first stop on the gastronomic adventure is a description of the Flat Head and Calamari, with an emphasis on its perfectly cooked and slightly fried form. The next course, lamb cutlets, and chicken skewers, are the show-stoppers. Succulent, tender, and expertly marinated, the lamb is highly praised.

Balancing Flavors:

The Mediterranean salad is a welcome change of pace after the heavier portions of meat. While appreciating the salad’s freshness and dressing, the author emphasizes Las Tapas’ commitment to offering a diverse and thorough gastronomic experience.

Spanish Potatoes: A Pleasant Surprise:

A pleasant surprise is the Spanish potatoes, often known as papas brava. The author wishes she could eat these roast potatoes every day because the text captures their crisp deliciousness.

Delightful Churros for the Finale:

The sweet flavors of churros conclude the culinary journey. Despite her eminently slender figure, the sugar-dusted pleasure is attractive. No one had any complaints other than a desire for more of these mouth-watering treats.

Recommended Restaurant:

Because of the outstanding Lamb Cutlets, Chicken Skewers, and Papas Bravos on the menu, the author expresses a desire to return to Las Tapas. Every customer at Las Tapas should order the Lamb Cutlet; it’s delicious.

I’d love to take J here for their Lamb Cutlet, Chicken Skewers, and Papas Bravos. The best was Lamb Cutlet. So I’d recommend the same for anyone who wants to try Las Tapas

Location: 100 Chapel St, St Kilda

Website: http://www.lastapas.com.au/

NoWongFood Rating:
Service: 5/5
Ambiance: 4/5
Entree: 4/5
Mains: 5/5
Dessert: N/A
Beverage: N/A
Overall: 18/20

I hope you like the part where we talked about Las Tapas. For more content like this, visit our website Nowongfood.com.

The post Las Tapas appeared first on NowongFood.

Identified by my friend H, we decided to venture Koornang Road, Carnegie. It was both our first experience at Huff Bagelry. The area is tidy and cosy with cushions on the seats against the wall. The internal furniture are all made of medium toned wood.

We arrived at 9.30am around then were several tables available but the cafe was still busy. There were many takeaway orders of coffee and bagels. The service was to order at the counter with a given table number stand and find a table yourself.

I ordered a Hot Mocha, and it wasn’t the best Mocha I’ve tried. It tasted more like chocolate than 50% Chocolate & 50% Coffee.

Mocha – Huff Bagelry

The bagels are so fresh – it was definitely freshly baked.

The order at Huff Bagelry

Chicken Aoili was the bagel I picked in onion and poppy seeds. It was very filling, it had so much chicken and avocado in it. I loved it. The only flaw on my bagel, is that for Brunch, I’d prefer to not have such a strong taste of onion and aoili. If I were to pick the bagel again, I’d pick the same – Chicken Aoili but try with a difference bagel to avoid the strong smell of onion breath afterwards!!

The size of the bagel was perfect! I don’t think I could eat anymore at 9.30am in the morning. If it was 11-2pm, I’d probably be able to eat more than just 1 bagel.

Chicken Aoili, Lettuce and Avocado with Poppyseeds and onion bagel

My friend H ordered the Salmon bagel and was toasted. I can tell that there is a big difference in size compared with the Chicken Aoili bagel. Now this one looked petite.

Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese and Capers

Overall, i love their bagels hands down, but their mocha could be improved – some reviews state that their coffee is the best. I guess it’s up to personal preference. Maybe it’s just their Mocha…

Trading Hours: Open 7 days a week from 6am – 4.30pm

Tasteelicious Rating:
Service: 3/5 Ambience: 4/5 Mains: 4.5/5 Beverages: 2.5/5 Overall: 13.5/20

★★★

The post Huff Bagelry appeared first on NowongFood.

When you search “Nakamura Tokichi” on google, there will be various stores within Uji. But we particularly made sure we went to the restaurant off the main street on the way to Byodoin Temple. We were 110% match’d out! You’ll know what I mean when you see the photos!

We arrived super early at 10am (before they opened) because we heard that there’s always a line and the most popular dishes sell out quick! It was the best decision we made… Because we were the first ones to arrive, we were seated by the window looking over the canal. We were given the Nakamura tea, it was quite light and refreshing.

I ordered their matcha float. A bit pricey, but it’s perfect for a 25 degree day and sizeable. Although they say it’s sweetened, but it’s actually not very sweet.

Cold Sweetened Matcha Float, 650 Yen

J ordered the Koicha [Uji no Mukashi], it’s the thickest matcha that I’ve ever seen. We tried flipping the bowl upside down and it slowly runs down to the rims. You’re meant to drink it like a bowl and it comes with two small pieces of firm jelly. They were a delight and the Koicha was a little bitter for me. J enjoyed it. We were given english instructions about how to drink it. As the Koicha cools, the consistency thickens. Once the Koicha becomes super thick, we can ask the staff to add some hot water to the Koicha so that the drink becomes easier to finish. We found it quite fun to drink…

Koicha, 950 Yen

I picked the Kitsune Matcha Buckwheat Noodles as my main. It had two peices of tofu skin with a couple of radish on the side. The soup base was a little peppery with the spring onion taste. But the broth was light enough to taste the matcha buckwheat noodles. After finishing this main, I was very full.

Kitsune Matcha Buckwheat Noodles (single), 900 Yen Kitsune Matcha Buckwheat Noodles (single), 900 Yen

J ordered Nishin Matcha Buckwheat Noodles set which is only available between October to March (Autumn and Winter only) – perhaps it’s because of the salmon? The salmon was marinated giving the soup extra flavour. No bones were found. It came with rice, radish and a small serve of the matcha jelly. Both the Buckwheat noodles were cooked in medium to hard texture which is exactly how I like my noodles. Perfect.

Nishin Matcha Buckwheat Noodles set, 1,600

This Bracken Starch Mochi is the best out of all the dishes we tried at Nakamura Tokichi. Limited availability served with matcha and black sugar syrup. The mochi was so soft that I felt like I was going to tear the mochi apart when picking it up with chopsticks. Heavily dusted with matcha, we dipped it with black sugar syrup first. Matcha flavours weren’t bitter at all, and the mochi simply melts in my mouth… the black sugar syrup was good for those who aren’t a sweet tooth, it brings a little bitterness to the dish. Whereas the matcha syrup was sweet and we found it enhanced the matcha flavours very well with the mochi. I’d dip it with matcha syrup.

It’s delicious… no wonder there’s limited availability…

Bracken Starch Mochi, 900 Yen

Tea Jelly Matcha is a dish I’ve seen in Melbourne so it wasn’t too foreign to us. The matcha jelly had a bit of bitterness to it whereas the other components of the dish were sweeter. I really like their combination. The photo in the menu looked like it came with two mochis, but it turns out to be two scoops of matcha ice-creams, oh well, it’s no loss to me :). On the side is azuki (red bean) and glutinous balls. Another refreshing dessert.

Tea Jelly Matcha, 900 Yen

Here’s a photo of the dessert and drinks ordered!

We actually got our mains, before the entree, dessert and drinks, so if you want to have your meals in a specific order, you might want to tell the staff at the time of order. We didn’t really care too much because the dishes weren’t too sweet to have a sweet dish for breakfast

As you can tell, i’m a big fan of this restaurant but the only thing I have to say is to make sure you don’t get carried away and order more than you wish to pay for… Our bill totalled to $70 AUD for the two of us. To be fair, we planned for a brunch session full of matcha so it was our breakfast + lunch.

I got a matcha-coma afterwards …

Location: Nakamura Tokichi Byodo-in, Renge-5-1 Uji, Kyoto 611-0021, Japan

Website: https://www.tokichi.jp/tea/index.html

NoWongFood Rating:Service: 5/5Ambience: 4/5Beverage: 5/5Entree: 5/5 Mains: 5/5Dessert: N/AOverall: 24/25

★★★★★

The post Nakamura Tokichi Byodo-in appeared first on NowongFood.

You can see how busy it was when we visited for dinner from 6.15pm on a Tuesday.

And the usual we ordered non-alcoholic cocktails, I had the better pick this time, it was a faux pinot, strong depth in flavour (pomegranate and spice from star anise and brewed earl grey). J ordered the Italian Orange Spritz.

• Italian Orange Spritz, $14
• Faux Pinot, $10

Complimentary dish as a appetiser, lightly fried tomato based crackers with delicious salsa.

Bread also came as complimentary, they came out warm, and as we tore the bread apart in quarters, we saw the steam come out. The bread was delicious with the umami butter, the other salted butter was a little too salty for me. I enjoyed the umami butter, it had a sweet aftertaste. Cutler & Co was so generous with bread and butter, when they offered us seconds they gave us new quenelle butter.

We ordered the Yellowfin tuna crudo, Tasmanian wasabi, finger lime & celery, $34, it was very fresh with very little flavouring. The dish looks small below, but that’s because they plated in two for our convenience. Love it when restaurants do this for us. Not only is it prettier than us grabbing off each other’s plates, but it’s not as messy. J could taste the wasabi flavour from his dish, but I couldn’t. I could taste the celery more in the dish. J preferred this entree, whereas I enjoyed the Asparagus and Pistachio Entree.

Jonella farm asparagus, pistachio, egg yolk, black garlic & rye $32

A vegetarian dish, but I enjoyed the black garlic addition bringing a stronger tastes than just veggies. The finely sliced asparagus were crunchy, never had asparagus like this before. Crispy pistachio in fine bits and pistachio puree were really good to dip the asparagus with. The egg yolk was thick and I just mixed it with the puree.

For mains we ordered the O’Conner Rib Eye of 1.1 kg, with house made mustard, shaved cabbage and fennel salad, $180. We were advised upon ordering that it would take 1 hour to prepare and checked if that was OK with us. We thought we were fine, we were very hungry at 6.30pm and could take our time… but I think we had a lot of bread and two entrees got us half full…

My first bite of the rib eye was quite chewy. But after my next piece it was fine. I think it depends on which part I pick. Lightly grilled on the outer and blue to medium rare inside. It’s not very common we eat blue. We weren’t asked how we want our meat cooked, so if you can’t take blue meat, i’d suggest to speak with the waiter first.

My favourite sauce to dip was the yellow mustard. Sour enough to keep me going with the enormous amount of meat we ordered. Shaved cabbage and fennel salad were great, I couldn’t have any more of the meat, but I could continue bit by bit with the salad. Finely shaved and easy to eat.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t make it to dessert. There were two other desserts we wanted to try but just didn’t have any more room for it. The waiter mentioned we can have dessert next time at the front of restaurant if we don’t want to have the full dining experience.

Service was brilliant, ambience was very warming, both of us had a great time. I’m still longing for the desserts I couldn’t get to try. So I’ll definitely revisit just to be completely content.

Location: 55-57 Gertrude St, Fitzroy

Website: https://www.cutlerandco.com.au

NoWongFood Rating:Service: 5/5Ambience: 5/5Entree: 4/5 Mains: 4/5Dessert: N/ABeverage: 4/5Overall: 22/25

★★★★

The post Cutler & Co appeared first on NowongFood.

Highly rated (been on good food reviews), so I really needed to find out how good it is over a girls night out. We all ordered a mocktail of spiced plum, when I heard the description from the waitress, it didn’t feel like a refreshing drink, but after ordering it, yes it was refreshing – and not much spice. So I was happy but wish it had more flavour? I could taste quite a bit of lime – a palette cleanser for each dish.

We were then served with some bread and feta drizzled with extra virgin olive oil (complimentary). This was so fluffy and light. My friend doesn’t like cheese but she could keep eating it with the bread.

We then ordered the special which was quail with lentils and cubed apple. The quail was nice and soft – juicy with the bone. The girls liked it, but I wish the meat could be cooked a little bit more so that the tender pieces of the quail would fall off the bone.

Now comes the favourite dish of the night! My long awaited aka Tagliolini al nero – squid ink tagliolini, squid & bottarga aka squid ink pasta. The squid was so tenderly soft that it was not chewy! But watch out for the kick at the end of each bite from the sauce. It doesn’t look chilli hey? The roe was amazing! I don’t usually like roe – i’ll eat it if it’s there, but these are big and so so juicy when you bite into them. The burst was very pleasant – not fishy at all. Of course the squid ink pasta was al dente to my liking!

Next main was Casarecce – pork sausage, white wine & radicchio, it was a complete change in taste – creamy and a bit heavy from the pork sausage. But I was happy with our selection. The flavour wasn’t as punchy as the squid ink, but was thick, sauced around the short pasta. Small portion of radicchio which I prefer.

1st side is Insalata di radicchio – rocket, pear & balsamic. We love, love loved their balsamic dressing, you never go wrong with rocket, pear and balsamic. But the red cabbage was a bit too bitter for me. Although colourful, I prefer it being just rocket, pear and balsamic!

2nd side i polenta chips – Polenta fritta – crunchy rosemary chips. Didn’t realise at the time of eating, but now that I see it was suppose to be rosemary – I couldn’t taste any rosemary. This was our least favourite dish of the night. Dry dish, and serving it with parmesan makes it more dry. Wish we could have had aoili or mayo to help moisten this side dish.

Lastly, our dessert was Fragole – strawberry, vincotto & sfogliatina, beautiful raspberry coolie coating each strawberry, and the pastry (sfogliatina) balanced out the sweetness of the dessert. It wasn’t a super sweet dessert – the cream with vincotta bedded underneath had a hint of sweetness. I can keep having more of the vincotta with fresh strawberries. The raspberry crumbs added the texture in each mouthful

Overall, the ambience is dim and romantic, but what impressed me is the table lighting. I was able to take great photos from my phone to share here! A lot of restaurants have dim lighting and therefore I can’t take a decent photo of the food.

Our waitress was amazing. Accidentally spilled the whole mocktail on the table and she was helping us wipe it down – yes it’s their job, but she gave us abundant napkins to ensure we were dried up! To add to it, she ordered us another mocktail, as N started to get disappointed that she had wasted her drink.

Location: 361 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne 3000.
Website: https://www.tipo00.com.au/

Tasteelicious Rating: Service: 5/5 Ambience: 5/5 Entree: 4/5 Mains: 4.5/5 Sides: 4/5 Dessert: 5/5 Beverage: 3.5/5 Overall: 31/35

★★★★★

The post Tipo 00 appeared first on NowongFood.

We didn’t need to wait on a Saturday at 12PM.

The Flat White was nice but not the creaminess I look for in my coffees. Cute cup with the dots. Abacus inspired?

I ordered the Bacon & egg roll, $14. Thick-cut bacon, fried egg, wattleseed & wild thyme roll, our brown sauce, werribee leaves. Bacon was nicely grilled. I usually don’t like thick cut, but they have it thinner than others I’ve tried. The werribee leaves are very fresh and crunchy. The bread was very good and soft.

J ordered Cape clear rasher. $23 for thick-cut bacon, blonde sausage, merguez meatballs, ratatouille, charred shallots, pancetta crisps, poached egg, sourdough J agrees that the bacon was cooked perfectly. The capsicum was also just right bringing the spice and softness to the dish. The blonde sausage hidden underneath the bacon was good too but just like any sausage to me… It was a delicious dish but would have been a bit too much for me.

We enjoyed our brunch at Abacus all day. They do a different menu for the evening and It looks like they turn it into a bar like environment. If I’m around Eastland for the evening, I’d definitely try their dinner menu!

Location: Eastland Shopping Centre, Level 3, 175 Maroondah Hwy, Ringwood, Melbourne, VIC

Website: http://www.abacusallday.com.au

Tasteelicious Rating Service: 4/5 Ambience: 5/5 Beverage: 3/5 Entree: N/A Mains: 4/5 Dessert: N/A Overall: 16/20

★★★★

The post Abacus All Day appeared first on NowongFood.