Mini Shitszu @ Dockside, Sydney CBD

Attended the wedding of Mr Shitszu's childhood play date and new wife at Dockside on the weekend. We arrived just in time for canapes on the balcony, with magnificent views overlooking the Cockle Bay Wharf. Canape offerings included curry puffs, spring rolls & flaky puffs. While the flavour and quality were barely above food court standards, it did line our stomachs adequately enough to justify a bubbly top up. We strategically positioned ourselves closest to the doors and was given more than our fair share of the deep fried goodies.

Bread basket

We were quickly ushered to move inwards as the wedding was about to start. The couple opted for a red and gold theme, quite fitting of their Chinese heritage. As we scrimmaged to find our allocated seating, my eyes were fixated on the antipasto platter and bread basket already present on each table.

Assorted antipasto platter

There was a good selection of white and brown bread rolls. I opted for a slice of the olive bread, as it was most exotic. The focus was definitely still on the antipasto, and it did not disappoint. The grilled eggplant was juicy and perfectly oiled as were the mushrooms and artichokes, although the standout was definitely the cheese which was crumbly, dense and creamy and I shamelessly helped myself to second and third nibbles.

King prawn, scallops and crabmeat tossed with peking noodles, sesame dressing and oak leaves

Starters were quickly followed by entrees and it was an alternating option of seafood noodle and salad of lamb. The fluffy noodles were well complicated by springy scallops and blanched enoki mushrooms, but overpowered by the sesame dressing.

Seared salad of lamb with sesame oil, red curry, thai mint, bitter greens and coriander chutney

The lamb salad was surprisingly refreshing and to our delight, not 'lamby' as we expected. The capsicum and bean sprouts added a crunchy texture and spicy zing, while the addictive, tangy coriander chutney tied the elements together.

Poached chicken breast on truffle infused pumpkin mash, creamed forest mushrooms, baby carrots & snow peas with chive infused chicken jus

Onto the main: the poached chicken breast was stacked on top a tower of pumpkin mash and sauted vegetables. Chicken of the poached variety is normally not my main of choice, and this dish really validated my loathing. The breast piece was very lean and dry, and the absence of a crispy outer skin really added to the struggle. Mr Shitszu is very PC so when he takes a few bites and pushes the plate away, I empathise with him completely; action really does speak louder than words. We are normally not the sort to waste food but barely finished half the dish between the two of us.

Roasted barramundi fillet on garlic and vegetale risotto with rockfish essence and coriander pesto

The barramundi was accompanied by a generous portion of mashed potatoes and creamy white sauce. The crispy skin was perfectly seasoned. I hesitated passing half the dish to Mr Shitszu as could have easily devoured the entire thing. Between the two mains, this was the obvious standout and we made no effort to hide our preferences in hope of securing rights to clean the plate.

Chocolate terrine with candied almonds, orange sorbet and chocolate sauce

Finally, dessert is served and the options look amazing. The chocolate terrine is rich and dense but the sweetness is perfectly balanced off by the dollop of cream with sprinkles of flaked nuts. The orange sorbet adds a citrusy punch and extra points go to the waffle cup for remaining crispy.  

Steamed banana pudding with butter scotch sauce with vanilla bean ice cream

The banana pudding was floury and the flavour was similar to Allens' Candy Bananas; artificial. The vanilla bean ice cream was smooth and creamy but did not hold its form so well. Overall a disappointing dish.

The location is hard to beat as a wedding venue, right in the centre of Sydney CBD perched on the third floor above Nick's seafood and overlooking all the Darling Harbour actions. As we peep outside, the glittering night lights of Cockle Bay Wharf is magical.

Poong Nab Dong, Eastwood

Last week, I met up with several friends over dinner and decided to check out one of the (relatively) new restaurants on Rowe Street, Eastwood - Poong Nab Dong:

As with all good Korean restaurants, it's packed by 7pm. Once we'd been seated and ordered our food, we waited patiently for our serving of free Korean side dishes - having seen our neighbouring tables being served with 10+ side dishes placed on a masssiiivvveee tray, we were all excited.... but left feeling jipped when we were only presented with only 6 side. Even a nearby table with a middle-aged couple got served with the full load of sides! This is the third time it's happened to me - once even in Seoul... :(

I didn't take pics of the sides but from memory there was:

• Kim chi,
• Pickled seaweed, 
• Sliced oyster mushroom (we initially thought it was slivers of chicken - lols), 
• Mashed sweet potato, 
• Peanuts in sweet soy sauce, and 
• Pickled radish (which no one touched).

After that let-down, we were served with our actual food. We started with a Korean staple - the seafood pancake:

Seafood Pancake ($15-16?)

Once the dish arrived, the top layer of bonito flakes continuously entertained us with its flipping and flailing but failed to hide the fact that the pancake was rather small in size. At least there was a sufficient amount of seafood in the pancake to live up to its name, along with the usual large dose of spring onion stalks to hold the whole thing together in one piece.

Next on our menu was the Korean glass noodle with beef bulgogi:

Glass Noodle ($25) with Beef Bulgogi (+$3)

The noodles were well-seasoned - cooked with onion, capsicum, spinach, and then topped with beef bulgogi and sesame. It initially didn't look like much but was definitely filling.

The highlight of the meal was undoubtedly the KFC (Korean fried chicken) - pieces of juicy chicken coated in batter, (doubled) fried to create its crunchy exterior:

Original KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) ($15 on Wed; otherwise $30)

This is only the second Korean place where I've had KFC (the other being Beschico, Epping, which is highly rated for its KFC) but I think this one wins. You can also choose to get the KFC coated in chilli or teriyaki garlic sauce ($1 extra). The best thing about the dish was that it's half price on Wednesdays, along with all other KFC!

By the end of dinner, all of my friends enjoyed the food and were willing to eat at the restaurant again. Personally, the (discounted) KFC was by far the redeeming factor, otherwise I would be hesitant on returning (still disappointed over the side dishes). My advise would be to go on Wednesdays just for their half price fried chicken.

However, just to be fair, I might go back in the near future to try out their BBQ and/or hotpot (since it is their specialty) and give them one more go.

Mini Baked Cheesecakes by Aunt T & Ms. Strawberry

It's strawberry season! So cheap!! What to do with all these strawberries? Bake of course! My good friend Ms. Strawberry and I have had a couple of rewarding baking adventures in the past (below), so I've decided to share this time.

[Left] Cookies & Cream Layer Cake; 
[Top right] Fresh cream Taro cake; 
[Bottom right] Marzipan decorated chocolate cupcakes

Ms. Strawberry is a veteran of baking (more so than me), so credit goes to her and the recipes adapted from Taste.com and BakedbyRachel. 

Mixing, beating, filling mini cake tins, baking, prep-ing decorations:

Four and a half hours later, time for decorating! 

 

 

 

And finally, after 6 hours, the finished products! 

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Vanilla Baked Cheesecakes

Ingredients.
Filling:

• 250 g cream cheese, room temperature (easier to work with when its softer)
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or extract)
• 1 tbs fresh lemon juice (or substitute for your favourite liquor, we used raspberry liquor)
• 2 eggs

Base:

• 12 Arnott's Choc Ripples biscuits
• 100 g butter, room temperature

Decorating (optional):

• Apricot glaze (apricot jam and water)
• 1 punnets strawberries
• 1 punnet blueberries
• 1 kiwi fruit

Baked Vanilla Cheesecake

Directions.

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line 12 baking rings (or mini round baking tins) with baking paper. This is recommended; although we found the cakes to slide out easily regardless. (We did two batches of 6). 
2. Use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and lemon juice (or liquor) until creamy and smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Set aside. 
3. In a food processor, blend the biscuits until fine crumbs. Then add in butter and continue to blend until mix in well. 
4. Divide the biscuit mix amongst the baking rings and press down firmly. Fill each ring in with cream cheese mix, be sure to stop approx. 1 cm from the rim. 
5. Bake for 20 mins or until slightly risen and just beginning to crack on the surface. 
6. Set aside to cool for 10 mins. Refrigerate for 1 hr or until chilled. 
7. Decorate: top with fresh strawberries, blueberries and kiwi fruit; brush with apricot glaze to finish (or dust with icing sugar instead). 

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Mini Baked Oreo Cheesecakes

Ingredients.
Filling:

• 350 g cream cheese, room temperature 
• 1/2 cup caster sugar 
• 1 tsp vanilla 
• 1 egg 
• 1/2 cup oreo crumbs (10 halves, cream removed) 

Base:

• 20 Oreo cookies with cream (we used chocolate Oreos) 
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter 

Decorating:

• 200 g thickened cream, whipped to stiff peak 
• Nestle chocolate buttons, melted (to make chocolate shards pictured) 
• 1 punnet strawberries 

Directions.

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Line 12 large muffin pans with baking paper. (We used cylinder silicone baking pan to give the shape pictured. They were a bit small so we also managed to fill a mini round springform cake tin). 
2. Use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, sugar until creamy and smooth. Beat in the vanilla, cookie crumbs and egg. Mix until just combined. Set aside. 
3. In a food processor, blend the biscuits until fine crumbs. Then add in butter and continue to blend until mix in well. 
4. Divide the biscuit mix amongst the muffin pans and press down firmly. Fill each pan in with cream cheese mix, 3/4 full. Tap pan on counter to release air bubbles. 
5. Bake for 15 mins or until slightly risen and just beginning to crack on the surface. 
6. Cool completely on a wire rack. Then refrigerate for ≥ 4 hrs. (We only had 1 hr).  
7. Decorate: pipe whipped cream, top with chocolate shards and strawberries. 

Storage: Keep refrigerated at all times.

They look pretty fancy but its actually quite easy. Give them a go, impress your friends and remember to post a comment so I know how you went!

Chat Time Cafe, Dural

On a visit to Mr. A's grandmother in Glenhaven for her birthday she took us to Chat Time Cafe for brunch. 

It is a small cafe located inside Dural Mall cornered by Aldi, Woolies and a Bakers Delight, with a large overhead roof that still manages to let in good light. This is probably not the place for formal fanciness but does well for a casual meetup or in between popping in to the shops with the family.

One of the first nice things we noticed was that there were little throws on some of the chairs! So you could wrap yourself in one if you were cold. How nice! Then the waiter came out and suggested we move from the round table to a bigger table (which could have easily seated 6 people) so we could be more comfortable. He mentioned that breakfast was served all day and when we mentioned we already had breakfast he suggested a second breakfast! Ha! Funny guy. 

I ordered a double slice melt of avocado, mushroom and eggplant: 

$10 for 1 slice, $14-16 for two (can't remember exactly)

I wanted to go for something "light" since I wasn't that hungry and then the double-slice came and I was thinking I had just eaten breakfast and I wasn't that hungry!! But I ate the whole thing anyway cos it was so delicious. Crunchy crust with soft bread topped with a thick layer of avocado, mushrooms and eggplant topped with a ridiculous fantastic layer of cheese. If you are not that hungry: do not order the double slice, because your jeans will hurt. 

Mr. A had a vegetarian wrap which was basically a double wrap so we probably should have just shared that, and it also looked very nice. I was too worried about trying to finish mine to try some of his. He mentioned that in the Sydney CBD our meals would probably be $20 odd - I wouldn't be surprised. 

A group of young boys (approx 9 or 10 years of age) next to us ordered really tall thickshakes and some fried chicken schnitzel strips. This place is very family friendly with a kids menu including Fairy Bread ($2). If only there was a child in our group so I could order some. 

Another table ordered some french toast with bacon, also some beef burgers; everything that was served up looked great. Service was smooth and the ambience on the whole was very relaxing, peaceful and cozy, and great for catch-ups.

Inside the shop there is a display of cakes which Mr. A's grandma kept encouraging us to try. Unfortunately we were too full again (on hindsight we could have shared a meal and shared a cake, but alas). Mr. A's grandma ordered a cappuccino to finish off her meal, which was a rather large cup and served with a complimentary wafer biscuit. 

If I was ever in the area again, I would love to go for a repeat visit. 

Chat Time Cafe (no official website) 

Dural Mall

807 Old Northern Rd

Dural, NSW, 2158 

9651 2868

The Waterfront, The Rocks, Sydney

The Big Dinner of the Big Anniversary Weekend was at The Waterfront, Circular Quay. (Again this decision was made by me firing off the names of fancy city restaurants and then Mr. A picking one.) Mr. A booked early in the week leading up to this weekend. Only after this did we do some internet research - Waterfront has generally mediocre ratings, including mediocre service and mediocre food for value. After much discussion we decided to stick to it and go anyway, because it was a nice romantic spot overlooking the harbour, and surely it would not be that bad? Plus we managed to get access to The Entertainment Card - buy one main get one free. 

We arrived right on time at 7pm. The waitress at the reservation desk greeted us with standard cheer. After a few minutes it became clear that they had trouble finding our reservation. Mr. A pulled out the email confirmation to help. They managed to finally find it - in October. No matter; they had us quickly seated next to a heater. And in waiter thoroughfare. And without the Spring Menu Specials card which the next table received. I wonder if the Spring Menu card is for groups as that was a larger table. (They incidentally also had booking troubles when we eavesdropped.) 

The cobblestone flooring, the big mast-like beams and sail-like roofing, gave the whole area a very "On a Ship" feel. Not sure if the slanted floor was intentional or a structural, "Leaning Tower of Pisa" thing happening. This has been mentioned to be bothersome in some reviews but to be honest neither of us were very affected by the slanted floor. Given that we sat approximately 4 rows in from the edge we were well in the covered area and there is actually limited view of the beautiful harbour from there, the best views would be on the first or second row to appreciate the view.

Service was quick and we received our orders in approximately 15 minutes after ordering. Contrary to other reviews we found the service very good, very fast and efficient. A waiter stopped mid-way through our meal to see how we were getting on and topped up water as necessary. There are two groups - the white shirt and vest group are the waiters who take orders and top up drinks; the black shirt group served food. So you just had to flag down the right people. Also, despite sitting near wear the waiters walked, I never got bumped. I would say the service exceeded the expectations we gained from other reviews.

On to our meals: 

Roast corn-fed chicken breast truffled polenta, crisp pancetta, pea & mushroom ragout (gf) $36

Skinless Atlantic Salmon Fillet, $44

The meals were a bit like Monet. 

Let me explain: at first glance, very colourful, richly flavoured, fragrant, juicy. We dug in with enthusiasm. The pea and mushroom ragout was buttery and flavoursome complimented the chicken very well, which had a crispy skin on top, and juicy on the inside. As you dug in further from the exterior, the center became drier and difficult to cut, the mash seemed to collapse from a gravy-like consistency to a runny one, which was a little disappointing. Perhaps if they cut the chicken into two pieces with half the thickness the outcome might be more promising. 

Mr. A's salmon was a similar story - on my first taste it was quite sweet and juicy complimented by the tomato on top; by the second, the salmon was more bland, less flavoursome. He was also a bit bothered that the skinless salmon fillet had some skin on it. Mr. A noted that Garfish in Crows Nest was superior, although they specialise in fish so maybe the expectations are different. 

In both cases I wish there was more sauce to compliment the main, like I wished I was listening to Britney at her concert rather than a lip-synced version of herself. (Is this too harsh? D:) 

I am assuming they do not have a dessert menu because they did not offer one, so we left after our mains. On the website there is one though...

A quick word that the toilets were a bit disappointing - the bag hook was broken/missing, the floor was wet with dirty water, the flush was barely working. The Waverton Station toilet is superior to that one (no bag hook, but definitely cleaner). Mr. A's toilet in the men's also had a broken flush. 

All up it was $80 for the mains plus a $5 per person surcharge on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, which is ridiculous in my opinion, so the total was $90. Our main waiter did seem quite busy, he was running around a bit like a mad chicken, poor chap, so I hope that surcharge helps him, or that the money gets re-invested in toilet maintenance or a better online booking system, or something. With the Entertainment card we saved $36. 

$54 for two mains was not bad overall, given the good service and location. I would say go the Waterfront on The Entertainment Card or a Groupon voucher or the like; at full price there are probably better, more inspiring options around. Mr. A's words to sum up: "probably won't be going back there in a hurry." 

The Waterfront

27 Circular Quay, The Rocks

1300 115 116

Monday-Sunday 12pm-Close

The Pie Tin, Newtown, Sydney - Inner West

After much deliberating on where to go on The Big Anniversary Weekend, we decided (- or rather I fired a lot of suggestions to Mr. A hoping one would stick - ) to head to sunny Newtown for lunch. Mr. A hadn't been to Newtown since the train station renovations back in 2012 and we had never gone there together, and I had very good memories of the previous visit to the Pie Tin, so off we went. 

The Pie Tin is a short 5-10 min walk from Newtown Station, off the main road on Brown St. At the front we encountered two colourful bikes with baskets and streamers straight out of Instagram. I had been to the Pie Tin once before with some work friends and fell in love with their dessert cakes (which unfortunately we could not sample this time around - more on that later). Inside it was crowded with an energetic youthful atmosphere with a large communal table and some private tables surrounding it, as well as a bar area near the big coffee machine; a savoury pie display, a dessert pie display. Since Mr. A doesn't like to wait in lines we checked to make sure there were empty chairs before we went in. 

The dessert pie counter. Grab a tissue to wipe your drool.

The decor is rustic and industrial with heavy tables; raw brick walls accented by Typo-esque decorations, including an artwork of some Napoleon type guy with a pie hitting his face. (Apologies if that is completely incorrect and it is an actual piece of art - I have no knowledge on art at all. I thought it was nice and quirky  though.)  

There is no table service here - you go up to the counter, look at the pies available for the day, and order one. Pies range from $5.80 to 7.80 with meals (Pie + 2 sides or chips) from $11 to 13. If you want to peruse the menu beforehand it is both available on the website as well as on cards on the table. Water, cutlery and tomato/bbq sauce are all available on the side wall. There were no cups displayed (presumably because everyone had used them all) so we had to ask. A short word on drinks; they have basically everything available, coffee to tea, juice to bubbly. The menu gives suggestions of drinks to pair with the pies, which I thought was a nice touch. 

Ordering a pie is instant; they pull from the display and serve this to you on an industrial metal plate. We were both pleasantly surprised for the fast service and yet equally dismayed, for our seats were snatched up in the short time we ordered our food. (Word of advice: if you see spare seats, grab them before you order).

For meals, staff provide a similar metal pie tin (ha!) with a number on the bottom (rather interesting way of presenting meal numbers) and call out your number when it is ready, which allows you time to find a seat. Seat-finding was not bad given our 2pm visit as a small group left a few minutes after we received our meal, and turnover seemed rather quick (despite side-eyeing a group in the corner who were just knitting. Is this a Newtown thing?) 

The size of the pie vs the pie meal.

I ordered the sweet roasted duck with seasonal vegetables and Mr. A ordered the mac & cheese with roasted pumpkin pies. 

Sweet roasted duck with seasonal vegetables

Mac+cheese roasted pumpkin pie

My roasted duck was fabulous. Juicy and sweet on the inside with tender duck meat and crispy crust. I loved the crust. It was thick and crispy without being tough and chewy and the base was sturdy and not soggy given the heavy filling. This makes the pie structurally sound for both picking up and eating or digging out of with a fork, like a bowl. (There must be a quiz online about pie eating characteristics and personality traits?) 

The pie is on the large side (approx 15cm diameter, 4-5cm tall) so I am quite glad I did not get any sides even though they looked delicious. The polenta chips I saw on someone else's table!! If only I could steal a taste without being undignified. The sides range from different salad sides to potato or sweet potato mash and the sides are piled high. I would recommend couples have one pie and one meal and share the sides unless you're both pretty hungry because a lot of plates get returned with a lot of sides untouched. 

Mr. A was equally enjoying his mac and cheese pie, which was a bit different but equally yum. I had a taste and had to sneak my fork back in there for seconds. The pumpkin taste melds with the cheese really well. All in all it was a very hearty meal for the both of us which left us very satisfied. 

Unfortunately this meant we did not have stomach for a slice of dessert pie so we might just have to come back another time. From memory on my last visit a slab of malteser pie knocked out the four or five people sharing the same scrumptious piece so it was close to impossible on a full stomach between two small eaters, even if there is a separate stomach for dessert, as they say! 

Malteser Pie (from my previous visit).

You can order a whole sweet pie as well (ring up on the day to see what is available or ring in advance to get them to make it.) Whole pies cost $39-49. There was also wedding pies available (!!). 

As a last note, The Pie Tin is passionate for pie, and we will be back again. 

The Pie Tin

Mon-Wed 10am-8pm

Thur-Sat 10am-10pm

Sun 10am-6pm 

10a Brown St (Off King St, Newtown) 

9519 7880

Steel Bar and Grill, Sydney CBD

A bit fancier than our usual mid-week dinner, we chose to visit Steel Bar and Grill this Wednesday for a catch up with some friends. We had high hopes as we were promised 'one of the best steaks' (hmm best steak Uncle G drools at the idea).

Eager to see each other (or just get out of work), our group arrives early and gets seated in the restaurant area. We had planned to grab a few happy hour drinks at the bar but we were offered to be seated so 'hey, what the heck! right?'. Just after we've been seated, we were told we could no longer have our happy hour drinks because we were now seated in the restaurant area. Fortunately the waiter picked up on our disappointment and gave us a round of drinks anyway. 

The restaurant ambience and decor worked for me, especially the camouflaged appearance of the bathroom doors. But what is with the mini television screens in the bathroom? It was good novelty and stood out, but its functional purpose perplexes me. Unfortunately I didn't snap too many photos of the surroundings, but there are plenty available on their website. We enjoyed that there was enough diners around us to build an atmosphere, yet quiet enough to hold a decent group conversation. 

We place our orders at around 7 pm and didn't get our food till 8 pm. We weren't sure what the hold up was but I must have been in an outstandingly happy mood for this not to have bothered me. 

Rangers Valley F1 Wagyu FLank BMS 7+ (250 g) $45

By the time our meals arrived we were famished. A few quick snaps and we were ready to tuck in! We broke our golden rule of 'never 'ordering the same thing'. So we all went for a steak - I just really wanted that steak - and not any steak, everyone except Uncle G went for the same steak. (He got the T-bone 'cause 250 g is far from satisfying for him). 

Our Rangers Valley F1 Wagyu FLank BMS 7+ was good; had a beautiful smoky, charred crust and lovely and juicy in the middle. My 'medium' was a little under, but it was a lovely piece of meat and I probably should have chosen medium rare anyway. It was a little chewy, but maybe that's because of the cut? (Not sure about this as I've only used flank for stir fries and its great for that).

[Top] Hand cut chips w herb salt $8.50. [Bottom] Roasted Mushrooms w garlic, baby onions, herb crumb $12

We got three sides to share, Roast mushrooms, Hand cut chips and Shoestring fries (hey, fried potato is a steak's best friend). The mushrooms were yum! Loved the salty, garlicy crunch of the herb crumbs. This went perfectly with the earthy mushrooms. Hand cut chips were average; satisfied the cravings and had a good crunch but somewhat too fat and not enough "deep fried surface area".

Chocolate feuilletine, chocolate dacquoise, Bavarian cream, hazelnut praline mousse, chocolate glaze, tempered chocolate $15

Yoghurt panna cotta: ewe's milk, strawberries, meringue, pistachio ice cream $15

My friend was crazy about the 'sauce filled donut ball dessert' pictured on the restaurant's website. Unfortunately, as we found out on the night, that was from 5 menus ago. Uncle G and I chose the chocolate dessert. YUM! A little like an opera cake but with a higher mousse ratio. Even Uncle G (who isn't a fan of chocolate mousse) could lick the plate of that one. 

The Yoghurt panna cotta was also delicious, less rich and decadent but had a nice balance of sweetness and tang; I could eat 2 of these (that's saying a lot because I'm usually quite adverse to sheep/goat milk products).

Overall it was a fantastic night. I wouldn't say it was the best steak I've ever had (Dinner by Heston in London still wins that one for us). The entertainment card definitely made this a worthwhile visit. I would recommend this place to anyone who wants take a friend to a decent establishment to talk and have a nice meal. At this price it would probably not be my first choice (esp without an Ent book). 

Finally, thanks for checking out my first post. Sorry for the poor quality and quantity of photos, I will work on that.