Travel – Page 12

Prairie Girl Bakery – Toronto Series

May 16, 2014 Posted in Toronto1 Comment

Prairie Girl Bakery in Toronto is quite well known. Famous for their beautiful cupcakes in either Buttermilk or Dark Cocoa as their base and also speciality cupcakes for an special occasions or events. Choices are varied and you won’t be satisfied until you haven eaten an entire cupcake. Prairie Girl Bakery was recommended by my now Toronto based (ex-Melburnian) sister, and these cupcakes do indeed live up to her recommendation. Delightful in its flavour and sweetness and their Peanut Butter iced cupcakes are something you would hardly ever find in Melbourne.

Their array of cupcakes knows no bounds, and honourable mentions to the Lemon Icing Buttermilk Cupcake, Peanut Butter Dark Cocoa Cupcake, Red Velvet Cupcake with Cream Cheese Icing and the Banana Cupcake with a Peanut Butter Icing. Those were the clear stand outs at Prairie Girl, and I found the Dark Cocoa cupcake base to be exceptionally moist compared with the Buttermilk Cupcakes but both were great cupcake “cakes”, if you know what I mean.

I really did love the Peanut Butter icing, it tasted rich but not overly sugary sweet so the peanut butter flavour didn’t seem in any way artificial, paired with the moist dark cocoa cupcakes and ding ding ding, Prairie Girl, you have a winner.

Impressions
Prairie Girl earns its self proclaimed name as Toronto’s best, and it’s a must for those travelling to Toronto and in need for something a little bit sweet.

Prairie Girl Bakery
Downtown
Victoria Street
Unit 106
18 King Street East
Toronto Ontario M5C

Mon – Sat: 10 am to 6 pm
Closed Sundays and all statutory holidays

First Canadian Place
Marketplace, Concourse level
100 King Street West
Toronto Ontario

Mon – Fri: 8 am to 6 pm
Closed Sat, Sun and all statutory holidays

ChangGo

May 9, 2014 Posted in Korean, MelbourneLeave a comment

Melbourne is abuzz for ChangGo, one of the many Korean BBQ restaurants that have appeared in our city in recent years. The waits can be excruciatingly long and the waiting system is basically taking a ticket and writing your name down on the list and you just wait around the venue listening for your name to be called out. I guess you must suffer a bit to be able to enjoy their food.

One of ChangGo’s specialties on their menu is their 8 ways marinated Pork Belly which consist of wine, original, ginseng, garlic, herb, curry, miso paste and hot flavoured Pork Belly. For a group of two to three, the amount of pork on offer here seems to suffice. With the Pork Belly, they provide Kim Chi, an assortment of vegetables, and a spicy Seafood soup.

At night, the place can be packed and the staff are definitely challenged in assisting everyone with their cooking. So basically, it’s DIY BBQ.

The Pork Belly they provide you is on the fattier side of pork that I’ve come across but nonetheless the flavours offered are varied. The Garlic, Herb and Hot marinated Pork Belly’s were probably my favourite ones because they were flavourful but let the pork shine too.

The Spicy Seafood soup here is wonderfully tasty and best on a cold winter’s day. Not too spicy but enough to tingle your tastebuds and the soup base is exceptionally satisfying.

Impressions

ChangGo does Korean barbeque well, apart from the overly fatty Pork Belly that is. Flavours are overall tasty and for $60 (for the 8 Ways Pork Belly), I find it great value for money. Once you dine here you can see why the waits during peak times can exceed 30 mins. I’d definitely recommend dining here if you feel like some charred meats.

ChangGo
70 Little La Trobe St
Melbourne VIC 3000

Momotaro Rahmen

April 25, 2014 Posted in Japanese, RichmondLeave a comment

Momotaro Rahmen on Bridge Road, Richmond is probably one of my favourite Japanese ramen and curry rice places in Victoria. With their generous portions and delicious offerings, I have never been let down by Momotaro after nearly three years of dining there. Some might say that the generous servings are because the prices are higher, and while that is true as their prices are usually $12+, I’m frequently completely full (and then some) by the end of it. It’s not just great tasting Japanese food but also fresh, and a bit health conscious as well as they serve brown rice with their rice dishes.

The Ramen pictured above is their Negi Miso Ramen, which contains leak and pork with hot chilli, and served in a soy bean soup broth. This Ramen is probably one of their more spicier menu items but if you preferred another Ramen such as their Tonkatsu Ramen you can always add chilli flakes (I always do). The Negi Miso Ramen is incredibly tasty, and the soy bean broth adds a subtle flavour to the soup. A winner

While their Ramens’ are top notch, I do frequently order their Beef Curry Rice with Potato Croquette. It’s served with a salad dressed with sesame oil and a few other ingredients. I love a good Japanese Curry and this one hits the spot, the beef is nice and tender (not tough at all), and the potato croquette freshly served is crispy on the outside, yet fluffy inside. Flavour-wise, the curry is one of the best Japanese curries I’ve tried.

Impressions
Momotaro Rahmen is frequented by many and you can tell why. Tasty dishes at a good price will keep customers coming back for more. I’d definitely recommend Momotaro Rahmen for those looking for delicious Japanese cuisine.

Momotaro Rahmen
392 Bridge Rd
Richmond VIC 3121

Gourmet Girl

April 18, 2014 Posted in Australian, Blackburn, Food, Food Reviews, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Gourmet Girl in Blackburn is a tiny little restaurant in Laburnum/Blackburn, situated close to Laburnum Train Station. Frequented by many of the locals, and it certainly piques my interest. Gourmet Girl by day serves your typical breakfast, brunch/lunch affair. Toasted sandwiches and Focaccias, salads, wraps, pies and pastries as well as a wide selection for breakfast such as pancakes, eggs, muffins, toast and of course your big breakfast. Variety is there and it’s certainly its strong suit and of course they serve your typical hot and cold beverages as well. By night they have a tapas menu with wine for an enjoyable evening out.

We ordered the Smoked Salmon topped with red onions, and served with scrambled egg with toast and a side of greens and tomatoes. It certainly looked inviting, the smoked salmon had a nice smokey flavour to the fish, but not over powering. The scrambled eggs however were on the bland side, and lacked any sort of pepper or salt seasoning. However, I guess the saltiness from the salmon is supposed to carry the dish so you are not overloaded with salt, but unfortunately the eggs did not have any richness to it, nor did it taste like eggs. It was honestly disappointing. The bread was also leaning on over toasted as well (the edges are slightly dark brown) and almost had a burnt taste to it. Care and attention to detail is key and it’s what made this a real letdown.

The “Canadian” Focaccia that we ordered was also a Smoked Salmon dish with cream cheese, capers, red onions, avocado spread and mayonnaise served with a lightly dressed garden salad. Again you can see it was burnt on several parts of the bread, definitely over toasted. The bottom of the Focaccia was also visibly dark brown unfortunately. Flavour wise (apart from the burnt-ness), was decent. Although, on this occasion too salty. The capers and smoked salmon add the saltiness but there is nothing there to really balance it as you also have the richness of the mayonnaise and cream cheese. The avocado attempts to provide a milder flavour to the dish but the avocados here also lack fragrance. The garden salad was basically a small pile of rocket and sliced cucumber with a huge chunk of grated carrot, with a generous drizzling of dressing. Presentation is not their strong suit. Again, I was not impressed with how this was served, lacking in any consideration and served blackened that definitely should not have gone out in any decent cafe.

Impressions

Gourmet Girl, leaves a bad taste both literally and metaphorically in my mouth. The customer service at Gourmet Girl was one of the bad experiences I’ve had to sit through. They forgot one of our orders (which was served to another table that came after us), which I admit can happen when its busy and I do understand. When we finally received our order after more than half an hour of waiting, what we received was above, a charred sandwich (as mentioned above). The kicker, no apologies made when they informed us of their mistake nor when actually providing the dish to us. They even asked if we would like to order drinks (to pay for) while we are forced to wait! Absolutely amazing.

I know this sounds like a rant, but good or even mediocre service can go a long way in providing a satisfactory dining experience. One poor (or many in this case) experience can ultimately damage any good will the place as brought with its dishes. Which unfortunately, in this situation it did not generate any.

To top everything off in our visit to Gourmet Girl, they misplaced our entire order when paying. So having to repeat ourselves of what we ordered, we were questioned on our one coffee. In which, the staff leaned over the counter to check the number of cups on our table. You know, that coffee we ordered while having to wait. That one. Served by three staff during our time there, none was positive and that’s not a good sign. Gourmet Girl certainly is a popular place but I’m unsure if its as a result of desperation for a decent coffee around these parts or if my situation was out of the ordinary.

Overall, I cannot overlook the poor service over the sub-standard food served. It would be dishonest of me to recommend this place to someone, but I do hope that if you do dine here that your experience is wonderful and pleasant and unlike mine. I do although prefer Red Cup Cafe which is minutes away by car over Gourmet Girl (both in service and quality of food).

Gourmet Girl
21 Salisbury Ave
Blackburn VIC 3130

Gelato Messina – Fitzroy

April 11, 2014 Posted in Desserts, Fitzroy, ItalianLeave a comment

Gelato Messina in Fitzroy is another popular Ice Cream and Gelato shop in Melbourne. Originally from Sydney, they have opened their doors down in Melbourne in outer rim of Melbourne’s CBD. What attracts people here is of course their interesting selection of ice creams but having a great depth of flavour as well.

One of my highlights was their Lychee and Coconut gelato. The Lychee flavour is fruity, flavourful and not artificial like you’re eating Lychee essence. The dessicated coconut that weaves through the ice cream, gives it added texture and complements the Lychee well. Tastes fresh, rich and yet not overwhelming with sweetness as some ice creams would be.

Their Hazelnut ice cream is similar to most other gelato stores such as Il Dolce. I would have preferred a bit more nuttiness with chopped hazelnuts, but the flavour of it was quite good.

The interesting other flavour was their Yoghurt & Berry which I’ve never had previously, with poached raspberry and blueberry coulee. The actual ice cream is more milder in flavour but with the berries which bring the sweetness and a tad of tartness, it does make for a great combination.

Their signature flavours (from the website) are listed below:
(G) Contains Gluten, (N) Contains Nuts, (E) Contains Egg, (A) Contains Alcohol

Gelato
Apple Pie (G)(E) – real apple gelato with our own house made apple pie throughout
Banana Split (N) – caramel and banana gelato with chopped peanuts and whipped cream
Bounty – coconut milk gelato with desiccated coconut and choc chip
Caramelised White Chocolate
Choc Mint – real fresh mint gelato with chocolate chip
Milk Chocolate with Choc Peanut Fudge (N)
Chocolate Fondant (N) – a rich decadent dark chocolate (contains traces of nuts)
Chocolate Chip – light cocoa gelato with chocolate chips
Coconut & Lychee – coconut milk gelato with lychee fruit
Coffee – made with real espresso coffee (seriously)
Dulce De Leche – an Argentinean caramel made by reducing milk until it becomes a sweet jam.
Gianduia Bianca (N) – white chocolate & hazelnut gelato with hazelnut praline
Gianduia (N) – chocolate & hazelnut
Hazelnut (N) – made with fresh roasted hazelnuts from Cortemilia in Italy
Italian Nougat (N)(E) (A-traces) – honey based gelato with roasted nuts, egg whites and Italian nougat
Pear & Rhubarb – fresh pear gelato with our own poached spiced rhubarb
Pistachio (N) – made with freshly ground roasted pistachios from Bronte in Italy
Poached Figs in Marsala (A)(E) – baby figs poached in Marsala (a fortified Italian cooking wine)
Salted Caramel and White Chocolate – salted caramel gelato with white chocolate chip (our biggest seller!)
Tiramisu (G)(A)(E) – egg, marsala and mascarpone gelato with lady finger biscuits soaked in espresso coffee.
Vanilla (E) – made from fresh Jersey Milk
Pannacotta with Fig Jam and Amaretti Biscuit (G)(N)(E)(A-traces) – pannacotta gelato base.
Yoghurt & Berry – yoghurt gelato with poached raspberry and blueberry coulee
Yoghurt & Caramel – yoghurt gelato with dulce de leche

Sorbets (all dairy free)
Salted Coconut and Mango Salsa
Blood Orange
Chocolate Sorbet
Lemon
Lychee Martini
Mango
Pandan & Coconut – Pandan is a green asian leaf used in asian cooking.
Passionfruit
Raspberry
Strawberry

Impressions
They have a plenitude of flavours to choose from, and in addition to their specials that change regularly. I’d definitely recommend giving it a try when you’re out about in Melbourne, or in Sydney for that matter.

Once you do give it a try, you can see why it remains popular to this day. With queues even during the evening.

Gelato Messina
237 Smith St
Fitzroy VIC 3065

Opening Hours
Sunday to Thursday: 12pm to 11.00pm
Friday and Saturday: 12pm to 11.30pm

Khao San Road – Toronto Series

March 28, 2014 Posted in Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, Thai, TorontoLeave a comment

Khao San Road at 326 Adelaide St, Toronto was one of the highlights when visiting Toronto. I never knew Thai food could be done so well outside of Thailand and especially in a place like Toronto where the climate seems so disparate. Nonetheless, Khao San Road is extremely popular with the locals and even on weeknights you can see people waiting around for a table and after dining here you can certainly see why.

Pictured above, we have the Khao Soi which is a egg noodles curry with coconut milk, crispy noodles, scallions, coriander, and lime. You can also choose from chicken, beef and tofu or shrimp for extra. It was this wonderful creaminess to it, but not overwhelming or too rich. The subtle spices just alight your tastebuds and create a warming aroma.

My favourite dish of the night was the Massaman curry, I absolutely adored this spicy dish. It’s just the right amount of creamy, and the peanuts and potatoes add a crunchiness and softness to the dish. The spices are fragrant and welcoming. I really cannot fault this dish.

Khao San Road’s Green Curry with the lovely bamboo shoots, green capsicums, kaffir lime, basil and made creamy with coconut milk is another winner but not to the same extent as their Massaman curry.

The Pad Thai was also quite good, but probably not the best Pad Thai I’ve eaten. The tamarind flavour comes through well and it tastes fresh and light.

Impressions

Although Khao San Road leans on the expensive side of things, I can say that you will find it hard to be disappointed with the quality of food here. Again, I must mention the lovely Massaman curry because it was the standout dish even though all the other dishes were excellent too.

Khao San Road
326 Adelaide St W
Toronto ON M5V1R3

T’relek

March 21, 2014 Posted in Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, Richmond, Vietnamese2 Comments

T’relek is another great Vietnamese restaurant in Richmond. T’relek offers a great variety of dishes and delicious nonetheless. What makes T’relek different from the many other Vietnamese restaurants around these parts is cleanliness and service. I find service here to be a step above, friendly and attentive.

The dish pictured above is their Crispy Noodles Seafood Combination. The noodles are indeed crispy and crunchy, and with the generous offering of vegetables, seafood, chicken and beef it all works well together. The sauce is similar to an egg gravy you may find in a Malaysian Char Hor Fun, and whilst not as flavourful it still has a pleasant aroma and flavour to it. Not too salty, and enough sauce to go round.

T’relek’s Grilled Pork Chop and Egg is another decent dish, with well cooked pork and a runny sunny side up egg, freshly cut vegetables as garnish and shredded pork.. It’s basically a Broken Rice dish but without the commonly added pâté. What this dish needs is a dressing sauce, sweet chilli sauce does complement this dish well actually.

The Tomato Rice with Diced Beef and Stir Fried Vegetables is another generous dish, with plentiful capsicum, onions and beef. Unfortunately, the stir fry here is a tad over salted. I find the tomato rice needs egg mixed through and a tad more tomato flavour but it’s tasty but not exceptional.

Impressions

Although T’relek’s dishes aren’t the tastiest Vietnamese in Richmond, it does provide a fulfilling meal and with friendly service, you’d be hard to be displeased.

T’relek
116 Victoria St
Richmond VIC 3121

Plaza Bonita Tusayan – Arizona USA

March 14, 2014 Posted in Food Reviews, Mexican, Restaurant Reviews, Tusayan, USALeave a comment

Plaza Bonita Tusayan near the Grand Canyon National Park is one of the few restaurants in the area catered for those tourists wanting a bite before they head to the park and see the Arizona landmark. Plaza Bonita is a Mexican restaurant that has a family friendly feel, especially inside with the warm colours.

The food here is generous and can almost be fit for two. Their menu is diverse, and it offers your typical Mexican cuisine such as Enchiladas, Burritos, Fajitas and Meats/Seafood and Rice or Beans dishes, and of course Tacos.

The image above is the dish called Arroz Con Pollo, which basically consisted of chicken breast, fresh mushrooms, onions and green peppers. Served on a bed of rice with melted Monterrey Jack. The sauce is their special mild sauce that is garnished with avocados and tomatoes. The cheese and rice combination isn’t something I have come across before, and it certainly has its cheesy appeal but it definitely needed to be a tad more flavourful or spicy to add some depth to the dish.

This Mexican Stir Fry is another rice dish with sautéed chicken, broccoli, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, and topped with melted Monterrey. I found the cheese to be a tad overwhelming, and too rich. Again, the ingredients lacked much flavour and overall it felt a bit bland with just cheese as the focal point of the dish.

I believe this was a Chicken Carnitas aka marinated chicken, with grilled with fresh green peppers, onions, and spices, rice, guacamole. The marinated chicken here actually had some flavour, although a sweetness to it but it came out decently.

From memory this was the Camarones a la Diabla, which is prawns sautéed with garlic, butter, mushrooms, covered with “special” Mojo de Ajo sauce and served with rice and beans.

Chicken Mexican Style was a skinless chicken breast in a stew of onions, tomatoes, garlic and spices. With the red dried peppers (chillies) it was surprisingly flavourful, but the watery sauce didn’t seem to complement the slightly wet rice.

Impressions

Plaza Bonita provide generous servings of Mexican cuisine, but the food itself doesn’t stray too far away from average unfortunately. Which is a shame, but on the plus side, the endless supply of guacamole and tortilla chips is a great starter.

Plaza Bonita Tusayan

352 State Road 64
Tusayan, AZ USA 86023

Cafe Crepe – Toronto Series

March 8, 2014 Posted in Food Reviews, French, Restaurant Reviews, TorontoLeave a comment

Cafe Crepe on Queen St, Toronto was highly recommended to me by my sister and it appears very popular amongst the locals. I love crepes because you can eat them with something sweet or savoury but also because they are like pancakes but ultra thin and light but with a hint of sweetness and buttery flavour.

Other than their specialty crepes, they also serve Breakfast Baguettes which are basically baguettes with egg, tomato, lettuce, basil and bacon with tomato sauce as a side. It’s quite lovely, with the lightness of the egg and overall feels fresh for breakfast that doesn’t bog you down.

The Europa Ham and Egg crepes are on the salty side but light and delightful. I love the thinness of the crepes, just a bit crisp and although the filling isn’t as generous as I would like, I still found it satisfactory.

I love spinach and feta so I had to order the Spinach and Feta cheese crepe, again the crepes are just perfection. Not too floury or buttery and thin enough. The saltiness of the melting feta balances against the fresh spinach. Again, it’s not a heavy breakfast but it does fill you up.

Impressions

Cafe Crepe isn’t the most generous with their dishes but they are incredibly tasty and that’s why people keep coming back. If you want fantastic crepes, of the savoury or sweet kind, this is the place because they have so many varieties to choose from.

Cafe Crepe
246 Queen St W
Toronto ON M5V2Z5

Shophouse Kitchen

February 28, 2014 Posted in Chinese, Food Reviews, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Restaurant Reviews, WesternLeave a comment

Shophouse Kitchen in QV, Melbourne is one of the many new Hong Kong restaurants that have been popping up around Melbourne in recent times. What makes Hong Kong cuisine stand apart from either Taiwanese or Chinese dishes is their fusion of Western and Eastern such as eating a pork cutlet with rice or spaghetti but Hong Kong cuisine of course still retains the Chinese influence and has many Chinese dishes without Western influences.

This dish is not one of those distinctly Chinese dishes, instead this dish is called a Baked Chicken Chop on Rice. This dish is basically Fried Rice topped with a cheese and tomato sauce bake with a Crumbed Chicken Chop. You can also order this with a creamy sauce, akin to that of a Alfredo sauce or creamy garlic sauce. You can instantly tell this is Hong Kong style food, and the fusion here actually works well. The Fried Rice flavour is quite muted, which allows the flavour from the tomato sauce and cheese to come through. The generous serving of chicken is crisp and moist which is the centrepiece of the dish. Overall, I liked it but I didn’t love it.

Here we have the Grilled Chicken Chop Rice Set served with blanched bok choy, a fried egg and white rice dressed with soy sauce. I found the grilled chicken here to be overcooked, and over charred which is unfortunate. The lack of sauce also is a disappointment as with dry meat, almost dry veggies and egg lacking in any sauce as well, it makes for a poor dish as a whole with nothing to gel everything together.

The Fried Chicken Chop Fried Rice dish is as the name suggests, Crispy fried chicken with veggies and served with Fried Rice. Again the Fried Rice lacks flavour and here would be a downside to the dish as there is nothing that really defines the fried rice here with steamed white rice. On the plus side, the crispy chicken was moist and yet extra crispy with plenty of seasoning.

On the dessert side of things, I was intrigued by the Signature Durian Tofu Pudding but was sorely disappointed by the end result. You can instantly tell from the first mouthful that the durian here is just flavouring and not real/pureed durian to provide the flavour. The durian extract or flavouring here was used sparingly and it’s almost just a pudding with a hint of durian.

Impressions

Although the impression you may have here is that the dishes aren’t fantastic, I would say it’s only the Western/fusion style dishes that come up a bit short as they are not either exceptional Western dishes nor are they tasty Chinese dishes. On the other hand, the more Chinese styled dishes such as their BBQ Pork and Fried Wonton (Dry La Mian Noodles) or their Asian Roast on Rice are tasty without question and would actually come back for.

Shophouse Kitchen
Shop 29, 210 Lonsdale St
Melbourne VIC 03000
Inside QV Square

ohdenny

Category: Travel

Prairie Girl Bakery – Toronto Series

ChangGo

Momotaro Rahmen

Gourmet Girl

Gelato Messina – Fitzroy

Khao San Road – Toronto Series

T’relek

Plaza Bonita Tusayan – Arizona USA

Cafe Crepe – Toronto Series

Shophouse Kitchen