Food – Page 8 – ohdenny

Platform 3

May 22, 2015 Posted in American, Australian, Box Hill, Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, WesternLeave a comment

Finding a good cafe in Box Hill can be quite a challenge. You have the incredibly popular Red Cup Cafe towards the Middleborough Rd end of Whitehorse Rd but if you’ve read my review, you’ll know I was not overly impressed by it. Platform 3 complements the transport hub of central Box Hill, by stylising the place with some train station like aesthetics. What I like about Platform 3 is that although its located in the old Box Hill Central, it’s still far away enough from the bustling noises of the market and food court that you can relax in a quieter atmosphere with a coffee in hand.

Platform 3’s Corn Fritters were favourable in my ~~eyes~~ mouth. The corn flavour comes through the fritter quite well, it’s not dry and fried just enough. The addition of salmon and the poached eggs with hollandaise sauce give it that extra punch. I love a poached egg done well, and here it’s how you’d want it. Would definitely order again.

Platform 3’s Big Breakfast can certainly be for two, but for one on a healthy appetite this meal can go down well. Comes with bacon, spinach, tomatoes, sausages, mushrooms and your choice of how the eggs are cooked. It really has everything you’d want and cooked well too. Enough seasoning to go round, it’s happy days for me with this one.

Impressions

While I’m quite fond of their breakfast menu, I haven’t yet delved into their lunch menu. Platform 3 not only do breakfast and lunch but they also have a lively night scene, with a bar for the evenings and serving for dinner. I believe it’s the only bar in Box Hill so you may understand the exorbitant prices for some of their drinks. Though it may just be worth it.

Gami – Lt Lonsdale

May 8, 2015 Posted in Food Reviews, Korean, Melbourne, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Eating at Gami is best with those to share the meal with. With its appeal of Korean Fried Chicken and Beer, it can make for a tasty evening meal. Now with 3 locations in the CBD, and another in St Kilda, it’s great environment just to relax and have some Korean food with a few drinks.

Gami have 4 options to choose from their Fried Chicken menu, Original, Sweet Chilli, Soy Garlic and Spicy. If you’ve never tried the spicy chicken here, be warned it packs a huge punch. I love a bit of spiciness but I couldn’t take more than a few pieces!

Their original chicken flavour is my preferred option to be honest, it’s crispy, with a bit of sweetness and tender. The spicy version lacks the crispiness of the original due to the sauce its coated with.

Other than Fried Chicken, Gami also has a few other menu options such as Kimchi Pancake, Spicy Seafood Soup, and Tteok Bok Ki (Toppoki) which we ordered. Toppoki is usually spicy and here is no exception, but with the noodles in the dish, the sauce no longer overwhelms the rice cakes. Probably one of the better Toppoki’s in Melbourne that I’ve tried.

Impressions
I wouldn’t say their Fried Chicken is the greatest I’ve ever had, but it’s tender, crispy and with enough flavour and goes down well with a beer! What more could you ask for really.

Gami – Official Website

Pho Huong Viet

May 1, 2015 Posted in Box Hill, Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, VietnameseLeave a comment

Pho Huong Viet is one of the few Vietnamese restaurants in the heart of Box Hill and while it may not stand tall against the top Vietnamese restaurants in Springvale or Richmond, for a decent Vietnamese meal around the Eastern Suburbs it’s one of the tastier options.

Their Pho soup base isn’t as strong as I would have liked, milder but I’d definitely prefer this as compared with Indochine, where I can’t understand it’s popularity. It’s not as clean tasting as some other Pho’s I’ve had either overall I’d say it’s above average.

Their Bun Thit Nuong (Vietnamese Grilled Pork over Vermicelli Noodles), is quite fresh and tasty with the sauce poured all over it. I loved the tender pork and the crispy spring rolls that come with it. It isn’t a cold dish as you might think, as the vermicelli here has been just cooked along with the pork and spring rolls, so you get this mix of cold ingredients such as the sauce and fresh vegetables with the hot ingredients. I’d probably go back for this one actually.

Impressions

While Pho Huong Viet doesn’t reach the highs of other Vietnamese restaurants in Melbourne, it’s also a bit difficult to find a great one around these parts of town. Though, I would say Pho 888 is the one to beat in Box Hill.

Straits of Malacca – Box Hill

April 17, 2015 Posted in Box Hill, Food Reviews, Malaysian, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Straits of Malacca opened last year in Box Hill, in a place I never knew could even house another restaurant. Situated on the far eastern side of Box Hill Central, close to Station St and with entrances from Main St and Station St, it’s easily accessible. Straits of Malacca in Glen Waverley, didn’t overly impress me on my initial visit but you can definitely find a pretty good meal there.

The Box Hill outlet may not match Glen Waverley in terms of tastiness but it does come close. Their Indian Mee Goreng has all the ingredients for a great Mee Goreng and has a subtle tomato flavour to it but doesn’t overwhelm the dish with the other spices and sauce.

Straits of Malacca’s Char Hor Fun (Wattan Hor) has that lovely “wok flavour” and aroma to it, with a milder tasting egg sauce but nonetheless it’s quite tasty.

Their Nasi Pataya isn’t quite as good as Petaling Street in terms of their fried rice incased in the egg, but they also do it differently with the addition of a salad with crispy fish and crispy spring rolls. The egg wrap is also very thing (just how I like it) with enough sweet chilli sauce to bring it all together.

Funnily enough, it was their Teh Ice that I enjoyed the most. It has the right amount of tea flavour but not overly sweet. How it should be!

Impressions

Straits of Malacca sprinkles a bit more of Malaysia into the Box Hill food scene, and although it seems many aren’t too taken by it. I find it to be overall quite decent in flavour, not as great as the Glen Waverley outlet but definitely not bad as its made out to be on Urbanspoon. Would dine again.

Straits of Malacca – Box Hill

Waya

April 3, 2015 Posted in Food Reviews, Glen Waverley, Japanese, Korean, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Waya on Kingsway, Glen Waverley is a Japanese restaurant with an interesting assortment of dishes from Sashimi, Sushi rolls, as well as Donburi (rice ), Ramen and Bento boxes as well as plentiful Japanese-tapas dishes. What also interested me was that they also offered hot pot, which you don’t often find in many Japanese restaurants. A few years back it was difficult to find any Japanese restaurants on Kingsway but now there is Monga Izakaya, Ajisen Ramen, Shira Nui and Yokohama Teppanyaki that all have their own appeal.

Waya’s Waka Maki aka rice with Salmon, Cucumber and Avocado topped with Tobiko and Spicy Sauce is probably one of my favourite ones I’ve tried to date. Although, funnily enough, no resturant’s version of their spicy sushi rolls have topped the sushi stall inside Box Hill Woolworths (Spicy Tuna rolls).

As mentioned before, the choice for hot pot is something I’m not quite use to but would love to see at more venues. We ordered the Kimchi Hot Pot served with Kimchi with Sliced Pork, Vegetables, Mushroom, Fish Cake and Tofu. It can actually be served for two to three people depending on if you’re sharing dishes. The hot pot has a lovely kimchi flavour with enough spiciness to go around.

Their Crumbed Crab Claws are fantastic just fresh from the kitchen, with the crispy exterior and flavoured and moist crab claws.

Impressions
I generally found the dishes at Waya to be quite good. Nothing amazing, or spectacular but for a decent Japanese meal at a decent price it’s a good option and I find it to be more satisfying than Ajisen Ramen (located minutes away)

Waya – Official Website

Arisoo

March 27, 2015 Posted in Food Reviews, Korean, Restaurant Reviews, RichmondLeave a comment

Arisoo on Victoria Street, Richmond is one of the few (but increasing) number of Korean restaurants around town. Towards the Hoddle St end of Victoria Street, the type of Korean cuisine is quite similar to many other Korean restaurants such as By Korea or Seoul Soul. One of the things I like about Arisoo is service is great, and definitely value for money with their lunch specials and of course, delicious Korean food.

Their Spicy Tofu Soup with rice is one of my favourites, it’s not overly spicy and has just enough sweetness to balance. Dishes here are usually served with complimentary side dishes.

Arisoo’s Chap Chae (Jap Chae) is also a winner in my book. Some restaurants just can’t seem to do it right, but here it comes close to my all time favourite Chap Chae from Don Udon in Box Hill although just lacking that certain kick in flavour.

Impressions
Having dined at Arisoo on numerous occassions, I haven’t actually found something I hadn’t liked! With great tasting dishes, lovely service and often or not seating always available. It’s one of my go-to’s for Korean food in Richmond.

Corlam Kitchen

March 13, 2015 Posted in Food Reviews, Glen Waverley, Indian, Malaysian, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Corlam Kitchen on Blackburn Road in Glen Waverley is one of the better Indian/Malaysian restaurants in the area. Somewhat hidden in the sense it’s away from the Kingsway hub but still situated on a main road so it gets plenty of traffic passing by. My favourite Indian place to eat is and has been for many years, the shop in the derelict Dandenong Hub Arcade food court. Perfect blend of spicy and aromatic spices. Corlam Kitchen, although doesn’t ascend to the top, it does remain in my go to places if I want Indian/Malaysian food around the area. Corlam Kitchen has a wide selection of Rice, Roti and Curry dishes to appease your Indian cuisine cravings

Their Nasi Briyani is rich with flavour, aromatic however the rice served was not as dry as I would have liked. The curry accompaniment adds the creaminess and spices to the dish, and for something to cleanse the pallet a bit it is also served with a yogurt side dish.

You can also order something like Nasi Kandar, selecting a few dishes with rice. Here is their Sambal Eggplant with rice, it’s actually quite nice, with just enough spice and sweetness in the sambal. The sambal isn’t as good as it is in PappaRich but overall it’s a pleasant meal.

The Lamb Murtabak at Corlam Kitchen is quite generous in its offerings, with the lamb filling stuffed inside the roti. What I would have liked is if the Murtabak itself as a tad more crispy on the outside however the meaty filling inside with the curry sauce is one of the better Murtabak’s around and to be honest the tasty curry sauce that comes with it isn’t enough to eat my way through the dish. Other than that, it’s probably number three as my favourite places to order it (Taste of Singapore and Mamak as one and two)

Impressions

The flavours of the dishes we ordered are on average quite tasty and probably on part with India Delights. I haven’t had the chance to frequent Corlam Kitchen often but I definitely will.

Corlam Kitchen

PappaRich Glen Waverley

March 6, 2015 Posted in Food Reviews, Glen Waverley, Malaysian, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

I’ve dined at most of the PappaRich stores in Victoria and the Glen Waverley and Chadstone stores I would say are the best of the bunch. Although, I’ve heard from numerous people the Doncaster outlet is above all, I have actually yet to try it even though it’s now the closest one to me. Go figure.

Malaysian cuisine has almost become part of the Melbourne dining experience with Nasi Goreng or even Laksa as commonly known dishes to most. What isn’t as well known is probably the more Indian or Malay influenced Malaysian dishes such as their Nasi Kandar style dishes which is usually rice served with curry and side dishes.

PappaRich has a decent selection of menu choices such as beef rendang or curry chicken or even prawns and eggplant for instance. Generally, I would say you can’t go wrong with it and the Biryani offerings I would say are pretty darn tasty.

Their Har Mee (Pappa Prawn Mee) is one of my favourite Malaysian dishes. Some restaurants tend to water down their prawn soup base, but here it’s still full flavoured. My only con is that it’s just overly oily. Otherwise it’s something I can probably rely on being satisfied with.

Impressions
As mentioned before, PappaRich Glen Waverley is one of my preferred PappaRich outlets and both service and food quality is above average. Although finding a table during peak times can be the most challenging issue of it all. Queuing is almost the norm there. However, to be honest I would probably prefer to dine at Petaling Street for my Malaysian fix at Glen Waverley. Though, you’re really spoilt for choice with Kitchen Inn, Straits of Malacca and O’Town all within walking distance from each other.

Highlights
Ipoh Koay Teow Soup with Steamed Chicken, Pappa Prawn Mee, Pappa Special Nasi Lemak

Masak Ku

February 20, 2015 Posted in Camberwell, Food Reviews, Malaysian, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Masak Ku is situated just minutes away from Camberwell train station and on the busy Burke Road. Masak Ku in Malay is translated to as “cooked by” if you’re curious. Masak Ku serves Malaysian cuisine with influences from Malay, Chinese and Indian cuisines as Malaysian dishes usually are in one way or another. It’s not your typical Malaysian restaurant as the ambiance and quality of the food caters towards a more upper market demographic but if the food is great, sometimes forking out that bit extra is worth it.

Masak Ku’s Chicken Satay’s are cooked to perfection, tender but cooked all the way through. They could have been a bit more generous with the satay sauce on the other hand and I prefer a bit more nuttiness to the sauce which I found to be lacking in oomph.

One of the specials that wasn’t on the menu was the Soft shell Crab which had an amazing combination of flavours. Sweet, spicy, salty and with all that crispiness. One of the highlights for me.

The Kelantan Chicken I found to be cooked well, the chicken was tender but the sauce didn’t impress. I liken it to the typical Soy Chicken that you may find in a BBQ Pork/Duck/Chicken Chinese restaurants.

The Nyonya Vegetable Curry was also one of my favourites, the curry had enough spiciness and with the softened vegetables it makes for a delicious meal.

Masak Ku’s Sambal Fish seemed promising on the menu, but overall I found it lacked flavour. Fish was cooked well, but the marinade used just wasn’t absorbed by the fish.

Here they make their own Ice-Cream, and they have a few choices to select from. Such as Chocolate and Chilli Ice-Cream and Durian. The Ice-Cream here whilst flavourwise was fantastic, the ice-cream itself was particular ice-y, and not smooth and creamy as it should be.

Their Lychee Ice-Cream with jelly was quite nice, the ice-cream smoother than the scoops we tried before it. However, still I found the Ice-Cream to be not as smooth as I would have liked.

Impressions
The food and service at Masak Ku is great overall, with some exceptions. I find it hard to justify coming here regularly as I wasn’t overly impressed with the dishes. Whilst the had great flavour to them, I can probably find as good as tasting dishes in other Malaysian restaurants for half the price. However, if price isn’t an issue and you want to try some Malaysian cuisine in or around Camberwell, Masak Ku will scratch your itch.

Highlights
Soft shell crab, Nyonya Vegetable Curry

Hanbat Korean Restaurant Box Hill

February 13, 2015 Posted in Box Hill, Food Reviews, Korean, Restaurant Reviews1 Comment

Hanbat Korean Restaurant recently opened its doors in Box Hill, in the predominantly Korean side of town (on Bank Street). According to the owners, Hanbat is from a famous franchise in Korea. Only doors down you can find Yami Yami and Korean BBQ as well as a Korean grocery store and hairdresser. It seems like the Korean community is certainly growing in Box Hill, much to my liking!

I love Don-Udon‘s Jap Chae and that’s the standard I will uphold all other restaurants too. Here the Jap Chae just lacks that oomph in flavour, as well as being overly wet. It beats Crunch Box but no where near as delicious as Don-Udon.

Their Pork Bulgogi isn’t too bad either, but again I find the flavour just lacking a tiny bit compared with the other Korean eateries around.

Their Hot Stone Bibimbap adds numerous fresh ingredients, and with the chilli sauce gives it the much needed kick. My only negative is probably the egg being slightly overcooked.

Hanbat’s Spicy Seafood and Tofu soup again isn’t my favourite, that award lies with By Korea in Richmond but taste wise it’s actually quite decent with the soft tofu and flavoursome soup base. Nothing to write home about but again I’d say a good dish.

Impressions

Overall, I wasn’t too impressed with the quality of the dishes served here. Which is unfortunate as you never want to dine at a place that disappoints and I want restaurants to succeed. However, it seems the food aren’t up to the standard of Yami Yami or Don-Udon in the area. I’m just hoping we were just unlucky and didn’t select their standout dishes.