Flower Child, Chatswood

On many occasions I have walked past Flower Child, located above the Hawker's Lane in Chatswood Westfield, but this mysterious cafe was closed every single time (at night). Hence, when I realised that it was open on early Saturday morn, I bypassed the option for another visit to Elbow Room Espresso and seized the opportunity to check this place out:

Exterior of Dining Area

Cakes and Tarts

Takeaway Counter

Upon arrival, I was promptly told to sit at bar table. Within 1 min of sitting, I was given table water and asked if I had decided on what to order... but I had barely had a chance to read through the menu. Hence, the next few minutes were spent perusing the (small) menu and then swiveling on my bar chair in hope of flagging down a waiter... Eventually, I got hold of a waiter and put in my order.

Hakata-Maru Ramen, Chatswood

To be honest, when I first came to visit Hakata-Maru Ramen, I got lost. This inconspicuous restaurant is not visible from Chatswood station and you would be lucky to notice it if you caught a bus from the bus interchange directly outside or opposite the restaurant. Also, the corner of Victoria St (i.e. directly across from the Chatswood Interchange/The District) is numbered 457 and to its right is 465 (The Avenue) - hence one would assume that 475 would be to the right of The Avenue. However, once you cross Brown Street, Victoria St turns into Railway Square and the street numbering changes. I ended up wandering around the area for over 10 minutes before double-checking with Google Maps (Zomato: your restaurant place-marker is incorrect!) to figure out that I had to go the other direction (to the left) before you hit 475... I was so happy when I finally found it!

Outside of Restaurant

Cutlery and Sides Available at Table

This is probably one of the more authentic Japanese restaurants that I have been to - pre-made ramen is stored inside a wooden box, waiting to be boiled and served to customers:

The Grounds of Alexandria, Alexandria

Hidden within the heart of Inner Sydney lies a (very) busy street corner hosted by The Grounds of Alexandria:

Street Corner of Bourke Road and Huntley Street

You are sure to notice it when you see the large crowds drawn to the area.

Sepia, Sydney CBD

Upon hearing that it would be closing within the next two years, I wanted to check Sepia out before it officially closed its doors and therefore asked SissyG to accompany me on our first (and most likely only) hatted experience.

Situated close to Darling Habour and right next door to PWC, Sepia offers a series of Japanese-inspired dishes across a five or nine course lunch/dinner:

Outside of Restaurant

Bathroom

Hand Towels

Black Star Pastry, Sydney CBD

Being a major fan of Black Star Pastry cakes, it was on my 'to-do' list to take SissyG to Newtown and visit the bakery... that was until I checked out there website and discovered that they recently opened a new branch in Kinokuniya, CBD. Since we were going into the city to watch Kung Fu Panda 3 and visit Sepia, I insisted on a afternoon dessert stop here:

Entrance of Cafe

Just like the branch in Newtown, this cafe offers coffee and a range of mouth-watering cakes:

Individual Cakes on Display

More Cakes and Tarts
(look at that popcorn cake!)

In addition to the usual cake menu, there is a new cake on the block that is (supposedly) only offered at this particular branch (a lie.. also saw it at the Newtown branch) - the Raspberry Lychee Chocolate Cake ($10):

Top View

Side View

Another multi-layer cake, this cake is constructed with the following layers (from top to bottom):

1. Raspberries and lychees (coated in gelatin), topped with an edible flower
2. Cream
3. Sponge cake
4. Raspberry marshmallow 
5. Vanilla cream
6. Chocolate biscuit/cake

Presentation-wise, the Raspberry Lychee Chocolate Cake is very pretty and it didn't taste overly sweet or cream-y. However, instead of doing a raspberry marshmallow layer, I think they opted for a simpler/quicker option of just placing the normal round raspberry marshmallows into the vanilla cream and the chocolate 'biscuit' base turned out to be more like a chocolate sponge cake. Overall, it's a good addition to their cake menu (although only at this branch only).

Also, a sneaky peek at their signature Strawberry and Watermelon Cake:

Strawberry and Watermelon Cake ($7.50)

One of the Asian girls sharing the table with us actually ended up eating two of these...#respect

There is limited seating within the cafe area so you'll need to wait if there are no available tables or takeaway and consume at the nearby TGV underground food court.