Category: Cuisine

by Helen Le

Young and Foolish

So I’ve been telling people about this new brunch / lunch cafe in the local ‘burbs’ that just opened. Being food bloggers we’ve earned a bit of trust when it comes to suggestions for good eateries. But when I tell people that this new cafe is located at Brandon Park shopping centre, even I get doubtful looks and questionable wrinkled noses and frowns. Yes people, there is a pretty decent and modern cafe at Brandon Park! In fact, the last few times we’ve been, we’ve had to stalk other cars just to find parking. I feel like perhaps this cafe may be drawing more people to this place.

Anyway, located on the ground floor in a spacious spot where past failed restaurants have come and gone, Young and Foolish has recently opened up and taken the spotlight at this normally quiet shopping centre with its bright lights, bricks and wooden decor, leather booths and greenery throughout the cafe. It is a refreshing and welcoming change.

Staff were super friendly and seated us down straight away. They took our drinks orders and let us peruse the menu. Now I’ve been here twice now in a span of weeks so some of the dishes we ordered on both occasions included the wagyu cheese burger with crunchy fries, the vodka cured salmon, meatballs risoni and the Young and Foolish breakfast.

All the dishes were presented beautifully, particularly the vodka cured salmon. This was a really pretty and appetising dish. Davin felt like this was probably more of an entree for him and he wouldn’t be full on it but it was a perfect portion for me. The wagyu cheese burger was tasty and the brioche bun was not too sweet. It was a scoffable dish! The meatball risoni had veal and pork in it and it was slow cooked in tomato and basil with buttered risoni pasta. It was flavoured really well and a hearty dish. Our foodie friend ordered the Young and Foolish breakfast which had poached eggs, bacon, pork fennel sausage, swiss brown mushrooms, a hash brown and zucchini tomato relish, a clean dish! We also ordered some fresh juices in which they let you choose different combinations of ingredients and were pretty good.

Overall it was a great place to catch up with friends while enjoying some good food. Service was also great and staff were friendly and accommodating. Highly recommend if you’re in the area!

Young and Foolish
Approx $30 AUD per person
Brandon Park Shopping Centre, Corner of Springvale & Ferntree Gully Road,
Wheelers Hill, Melbourne, VIC 3150
Phone: +61 3 9560 2065

Young and Foolish Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Davin Lee

Nikos Tavern

My friend recommended Nikos Tavern to me as an alternative to the Greek restaurants in Oakleigh. He said they were just as good. My interpretation of just as good was that they are not as good, otherwise he would have said that it was better. My success rate with ‘just as good’ places has been disappointing to say the least. Instinctively I was already thinking that Nikos Tavern may not have been such a good idea, because they were not only further away from me, but I’m settling for just as good. I thought I may be getting too caught up with these 3 words so my stubborn self wanted to be pleasantly surprised!

On one weekday evening, we made the trip to Ringwood to try these guys out. Just like the start of the movie – Meet the Fockers, it was all sweet and rosy at the start. The traffic to Nikos was silky smooth, the exterior and interior gave the place a real authentic feel, and the food we saw come out were big portioned. My skepticism turned to excitement and suddenly I was really looking forward to this dinner! Unfortunately this story has no happy ending, and what followed could only be described as a disaster…

They started us off with a very generous amount of dips, and some pita bread. First thing I noticed was that the feel of the pita bread was different. They were barely lukewarm and tasted very old. Old bread has this weird texture and flavour which is very easy to pinpoint. This was not fresh at all… but what were we going to do with the dips without the bread? They go hand in hand! There were so many dips, we sucked it up and tried to power through it. The dips themselves were OK. They stimulated the taste buds initially, especially the eggplant and caviar ones, but soon they all started tasting the same.

The saganaki was so heavily battered, I didn’t know whether I was eating batter or cheese. By this stage, my taste buds were all shot, and I wasn’t sure what I was looking for in this meal anymore. The chicken gyros came out, and after a quick bite… DRY. It seemed as though their turnover of meats hadn’t been good that night, and they’ve pre-cut the meat and put it in a warmer. Not only was the chicken dry but it was tasteless, and lacked seasoning. We waited a long time for the lamb, when we queried this the waitress said that the lamb was seen as the next course. This was interesting… I didn’t understand why the chicken and lamb couldn’t have come out together. The lamb suffered the same fate as the chicken, DRY. The chips that came with the salad were soggy and had zero crunch to it. They were quite possibly the worst chips I’ve ever had! Things really weren’t working out, we didn’t know what to do, so we just dropped everything and said that’s enough.

Hurts me like hell to waste food like that, but I couldn’t doggy bag it. If I’m eating meat this dry at the restaurant, the next day would be even worse. We drove home miserable, but the hardest thing was when my friend asked me what I thought of the food. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings but the truth had to be told. He seemed disappointed, but I assured him that there’s plenty of opportunities for good food in the future, and told him to not worry about it. With that said, we rode off into the sunset together….

Nikos Tavern
Approx $35 AUD per person
Address: 190 Mount Dandenong Road, Ringwood East VIC 3135
Phone: +61 3 9870 0554
Website: nikos.com.au

Nikos Tavern Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Mr Foxx

So we’ve had a good run lately and found another great brunch place! Lucky us! Mr Foxx has been a cafe in which we’ve driven past a number of times and one where we often say we probably should check out and then just never get around to it. Well on this occasion we made that effort and boy did it pay off!

Located on Malvern Rd in Glen Iris, we found parking instantly and entered into a lovely spacious cafe with a feature wall of artwork of foxes hanging out on a tree. Very cool.

We started off with some coffees. I ordered a latte and Davin ordered an iced coffee. My latte was strong and just how I liked it. Davin seemed to thoroughly enjoy his iced coffee and didn’t think about sharing until I asked for a sip.

For mains, I ordered the Fricassee mushrooms with garlic and thyme butter, cauliflower puree, toasted brioche, poached egg and truffle oil. I also opted for the extra chorizo. The serving was SO generous! The portions were huge! There was like a whole forest on my plate because there were so many mushrooms, and they were truly delicious! The combination of that with the cauliflower puree, the crunchiness of the brioche and the poached egg was divine! It was one glorious dish.

Davin ordered the dill cured salmon fillets with fondant potato, asparagus and lemon salad and pea puree. Again the serving was super generous. The salmon was cooked to perfection and not overcooked at all. The puree was nicely flavoured and complemented the salmon really well.

I have to also mention how attentive, friendly and efficient the staff were there. Customer service is everything these days and we will certainly come back because of that, and of course the great food and coffee! We were very impressed!

Mr Foxx
Approx $25 AUD per person
Address: 1491 Malvern Rd, Glen Iris VIC 3146
Phone: +61 3 9821 0001
Website: mrfoxx.com.au

Mr Foxx Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Davin Lee

Lord Cardigan

Lord Cardigan…. what a name, it’s certainly got a ring to it! Established in 2007, this restaurant was started by a husband and wife combination, John Singer and Dominique Bolger. There’s only one reason why I would go to the effort to read the ‘About Us’ page on their website, it’s because I freaken love this place! What started out as a filler dinner, ended up being one of the best dining experiences for me in 2018. We’re still early in the year, so Lord Cardigan better put the brakes on a bit to allow the others to catch up!

The restaurant welcomed us to vinyl seats, wallpaper and hanging pot plants from the ceiling. There were also pictures of flowers on the wall. Had we jumped into a time machine and gone back in time!? We looked around and we were by far their youngest customers. Amidst feeling a little weird at the start, I soon relaxed and embraced an era beyond my years.

We were greeted by some of the friendliest staff ever, who guided us through the menu in a warmly fashion. It was a great menu indeed, as we really struggled to pick what we wanted. The confidence shines through, and I could tell that these guys were not afraid to ‘do it different’. After much pondering we finally settled on some oysters, various ‘taste’ dishes, the Flinders Island lamb shoulder baked in filo pastry, and the ocean trout fish special. The taste dishes were bite size and $7.50 each. It’s a great concept because it gives you the opportunity to try more dishes without having to spend a fortune.

The Pacific oysters were extremely fresh, with the mignonette dressing and lemon providing the perfect acidic touch. At this stage I was impressed, they got fresh produce and can make a mean sauce, but I was eager to see what else they could do. They respond to the challenge by punching out some of the best bite size dishes I’ve ever had! You know the competition is fierce when the most perfectly seared scallop loses out to quail wrapped in ham. This quail was boned and wrapped in Kaiserfleisch ham with a truffle and balsamic dressing. It was oh so tasty, so make sure you grab one when you come here.

Little did I know that the best was yet to come… it was so good that it’s made it to my top list of fish dishes in Australia. I had given up hope of eating a fish as good as a flounder I had at a particular restaurant in the Melbourne CBD. It was cooked so beautifully, I almost cried! I stared at this ocean trout in awe, as I couldn’t believe how good it was. Being the supportive wife she is, Helen left me alone to savour this moment between myself and this fish. The skin was ultra crispy, with the meat inside just barely cooked. Which chef dares to push the boundaries like this with a fish!?! I’m convinced there’s a madman lurking somewhere in the kitchen! The Asian inspired sauce accentuated the sweetness of the ocean trout. As it’s a special, I may not get to try this fish again. However the memories will live on for many years to come, this I can guarantee.

On our trip back home, we couldn’t stop talking about the memorable experience we had at Lord Cardigan. These guys really are the real deal, and we cannot wait to come back. No ifs and no buts people, Lord Cardigan is a MUST TRY!


Lord Cardigan
Approx $60 AUD per person
Address: 59 Cardigan Place, Albert Park VIC 3206
Phone: +61 3 9645 5305
Website: lordcardigan.com.au

Lord Cardigan Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Little Chloe

Amongst the many brunch places in Melbourne, we’ve yet again found another winner. Little Chloe is located on the more quiet end of Malvern Rd in Malvern East so parking wasn’t an issue when we arrived. This meant fast and easy access to glorious food!

Upon entering, my first impression was that it was quite spacious for a cafe. The decor was modern and clean, and we were greeted by friendly staff and seated straight away. We were excited by the menu because it had unique items that you wouldn’t normally see for a brunch style cafe.

In addition to the usual fresh juices, they also had drinks such as the house made lychee ice tea which consisted of earl grey tea, raw honey, lemon and lychee popping pearl. I couldn’t say no to that and there were certainly no regrets! The tea was deliciously refreshing. What I loved most about it was that it was not sweet at all and it was only the lychee popping pearls that added hints of sweetness to the tea which perfected the drink.

Davin ordered the Expresso on tonic which was Yuzu infused. Again it was nothing like we’ve ever had before and was quite nice. The tonic was served cold, and it allowed us to pour in the hot expresso when we were ready. The combination of the two actually worked.

For food, I ordered the Tasmanian smoked salmon which came with mango and lime chutney, smashed avocado, potato rosti, feta and a poached egg. This was a really good dish! Not only was the serving quite generous, every ingredient seemed to work together. The smoked salmon was not too salty, the chutney provided a nice sweetness to each bite, the potato rosti was crispy on the outside but soft on the inside, and the egg was poached perfectly.

Davin ordered the Breakfast ramen. Yes, you heard right! They had ramen on the menu and so Davin couldn’t resist. It came with a soft boiled egg, mixed Asian mushrooms, chicken and dashi broth, pickled ginger and seaweed. Davin also got the extra optional pork belly. The ramen came out in a generous large bowl with a deliciously flavoured broth. The noodles were cooked well and the pork belly was flavoured. The chicken was however on the dry side. Overall it was a hearty bowl of goodness.

I also ordered a piccolo just to get a taster. It was nice and strong. I’ll have to come back next time and try a latte too. In fact, we will definitely be back again for their great food and drinks! Highly recommend!

Little Chloe
Approx $25 AUD per person
Address: 1810 Malvern Rd, Malvern East VIC 3145
Phone: +61 3 9885 2194
Website: littlechloe.com.au

Little Chloe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Saab Der Thai

We do love Thai cuisine however haven’t had a fantastic experience with Thai restaurants in Springvale in the past. Unfortunately on this occasion it was no different.

Saab Der Thai is located in the heart of Springvale and is a small takeaway style shop with tables for eating in.

We got the Thai iced milk tea which was actually pretty good because it wasn’t overly sweet. It had a good tea flavour to it so I liked it.

Because there were a number of us, we decided to order a variety of dishes for sharing. This included the chicken satay sticks, Pad Thai noodles, red curry with chicken, green curry with beef, pineapple fried rice, tom yum soup and a couple of salads.

The chicken satay sticks were nice, the meat was tender however the sauce that came with it was not the usual satay sauce. Both the red curries and the green curries were not that great. They were very watery and the meats in it was quite tough and far from tender. The Pad Thai noodles and pineapple fried rice were also just okay. The Pad Thai noodles were flavoured, however the fried rice was quite dry and a tad plain.

The salads were nice and had a good chilli kick to it. The tom yum soup was average and not very special.

Overall, we probably wouldn’t recommend this place if you were in the mood for Thai. The main dishes were a let down and you could definitely find better quality elsewhere. However if you’re desperate for cheap Thai and in the area, it might be more for convenience.

Sabb Der Thai and Esan Food
Approx $25 AUD per person
Address: Unit 1/1-3 St Johns Ave, Springvale VIC 3171
Phone: +61 3 9546 0599

Sabb Der Thai Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Davin Lee

Atlas Dining

There are a lot of things I respect about Atlas Dining. For one, the food is inspired by chef Charlie Corrington’s travels. I love the fact that he has brought back pieces of his travels, and is now sharing it with us in the form of food. Let’s not forget that he is only 24 years of age. The menu at Atlas dining changes every 4 months to the cuisine of another country. This concept is not only brave, but it shows that they are not scared to push the boundaries. Helen and I had a chance to experience their Peruvian menu, read on to find out what I thought of our experience!

Walking inside, the interior was very warm and comfortable. It had a Scandinavian feel to it, with the use of light coloured wood around the restaurant. The stained stone wall and big mirror on the feature wall was the X Factor. As we sat down, we noticed the leather cutlery pouch straight away. As much as I appreciated the attention to detail, this leather pouch turned out to be a massive confusion! My cutlery was faced in a different direction than Helen’s, so the cutlery on my left side turned out to be on her right side. It was a guessing game which cutlery we were supposed to be using for each dish. Another thing to note is that they love their stoneware here. It felt like a stone exhibition after a while. After scraping on stone with my cutlery for 7 courses, I really missed porcelain dinnerware!

The menu itself was simple enough, $70 for 5 courses or $95 for 7 courses. I was warned beforehand by my trusted adviser that there was no way 5 courses was going to be enough for me. Therefore we opted for the 7 courses, but little did I expect the 7 courses to be so short on food! More on this later. The food itself was very creative and I got to experience some new flavours here. My favourite dishes were the flathead ceviche and lamb arroz. The ceviche was the perfect starter. I had never had flathead this raw before, and didn’t realise it could have such a nice texture. The lime juice punches through and the result is an extremely appetising dish. The lamb arroz was like a savoury rice pudding, with chewy bits of lamb ‘jerky’. They probably don’t call it jerky, but it tastes exactly like it! I thoroughly enjoyed this dish.

Some of the other dishes I wasn’t a fan of was the potato, and duck dish. The potato with Ocopa and Aji sauce was simply way too dense for me. It started congealing in my mouth and I could barely swallow it. The sauces were good though. The duck was bland, which was a shame because it was cooked perfectly. The eggplant and charred beans did very little to help out.

Before I finish up, we need to come back to the portion sizes. If I was to use universal clothing sizes as a guideline, the portion sizes here would be XS! The extra two dishes did very little to fill us up, and I do speak on behalf of Helen because even she expressed the same views. I feel that for the price, they could have provided a bit more food. Unless you’re coming off a lemon juice diet, it’s hard to imagine anyone even getting close to ‘content’ on the 5 courses. I think one should come here expecting to spend $95 per person minimum for the 7 courses, and even then I felt more suppressed than content.

Overall, Atlas Dining opened my eyes to a wide range of Peruvian dishes. Even though the dishes were a bit hit and miss for me, I appreciate the experience nonetheless. One final thing I’d like to say is that the service here was fabulous! The waiting staff were kind and attentive. Their attention to detail was second to none, and we were well looked after. If any of you are reading this review, keep up the good work!

Atlast Dining
Approx $110 AUD per person
Address: 133 Commercial Rd, South Yarra VIC 3141
Phone: +61 3 9826 2621
Website: atlasdining.com.au

Atlas Dining Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Pie In The Sky

On one sunny afternoon we decided to make the trip to the Dandenong Ranges to check out Pie in the Sky. We’ve known about this place for a while and know that it’s been featured on TV shows as a spot to visit, famous for their hand-made pies made daily.

Upon arrival and entering we could see that it was an obvious tourist drop in place as there were plenty of tourists there either eating in or buying a pie for takeaway. The eatery itself was quite spacious with plenty of wooden tables and chairs.

The staff seated us at a table, however the table still had crumbs and had not been cleaned from the previous customers. In fact, a lot of the other tables looked the same.

The process was to order and pay at the front counter first so Davin got one of the multiple gold medal winner pies which was the Korma Chicken. It had tender chicken pieces and two coloured vegetables in a creamy yellow curry sauce. I ordered the pumpkin pie which had blends of roasted pumpkin and roasted sweet potatoes with rosemary, garlic, leeks and fresh feta. Both pies came out piping hot with a lovely crispy pastry. The ingredients were fresh and flavoured well. I loved the combinations of my pumpkin pie and would definitely order it again. Davin’s pie had generous chunks of chicken, and combined with the curry sauce it was also quite nice.

Overall the pies were very nice and tasted fresh and hand-made. The service however was very average as I think they must get tourists in everyday and perhaps don’t have enough time to clean and set the tables in time.

Pie in The Sky
Approx $25 AUD per person
Address: 43 Olinda-Monbulk Rd, Olinda VIC 3788
Phone: +61 3 9751 2128
Website: pieinthesky.net.au

Pie in the Sky Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Curry Smuggler

We recently had the pleasure of being invited to dine at Curry Smuggler. In addition to the fact that I love their choice of name for their restaurant (it certainly made me giggle!), I love Indian cuisine and never get an opportunity to eat it as much as I would like to so of course we happily accepted the invitation!

Curry Smuggler is located on the business end of Brunswick Street in Fitzroy, a more quiet location away from the busyness that you would normally see and experience on a Saturday night. On the outside, the restaurant looks like any other, however upon entering, we noted how clean, spacious and modern it was inside.

We were warmly greeted and seated at a window seat which was perfect for us. Being a food blogger, great lighting for our photos is everything and nothing beats natural light! Menus were then provided for our perusal which got me quite excited because there were so many delicious dishes to choose from! It is also worth noting that they also have an extensive vegan menu for all the vegans out there which we thought was very considerate.

We settled with trying the Daaku Di Tangri (Smuggler’s) Drumsticks. With ‘smuggler’ in the title we assumed it must be one of their signature dishes so had to try it out. The dish had chicken drumsticks with a core of lamb mince, marinated in tandoori spices and yoghurt and the chef’s special sauce. This is a dish we’ve never had before and was very interesting. It was strange cutting into the chicken to find pieces of lamb mince attached to it. However the meat was tender and flavoured well. The creamy sauce also complemented it.

For mains we ordered the Butter Chicken (it’s one of those dishes I ALWAYS have to get because I love it so much), which were boneless pieces of tandoori chicken cooked with tomato, spices and a nut cream sauce, the Tawa Goat which was cooked in smoked flavoured traditional curry served with smoked onions and capsicum on a hot plate, the Biriyani Lamb which was lamb cooked with basmati rice, and two garlic naan.

The Butter Chicken was really good! The chicken was tender, and the sauce was cooked perfectly as it was not overly creamy and you can taste more of the tomato flavours in the sauce. The Tawa Goat however was probably the star of the show. The goat meat was SO soft! It literally just melted away from the bone and was flavoured really well with lovely spices and flavours.

The Biriyani Lamb was nice however probably didn’t stand out for us compared to the other dishes. Similarly, the garlic naan was just okay, and interestingly had a bit of salt on it which with some bites may have been too salty for our liking.

Overall it was a lovely experience and we enjoyed the food. The prices are probably more on the expensive side compared to other Indian restaurants we’ve come across, however the servings were quite generous and we were so full when we were done!

Curry Smuggler
Approx $30 AUD per person
Address: 223 Brunswick St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
Phone: +61 3 8597 0647
Website: currysmuggler.com.au

Curry Smuggler Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Stones of the Yarra Valley

We recently had the opportunity to dine at The Barn for a wedding on a Sunday afternoon. And if you’re wondering, then yes, we went to Meletos next door only the day before this for a birthday! It was one busy weekend filled with Yarra Valley adventures! The Barn is spacious with lovely floor to ceiling windows offering spectacular views of the greenery and vineyards outside. It has a beautiful rustic feel inside with fresh greenery and wooden decor. It is a real stunning place for a venue.

For entrees I had the heirloom carrot, grilled haloumi, herb crusted cauliflower and radish salad. The carrots were lovely however the haloumi was probably a tad bit salty. Davin had the twice baked Yarra Valley goat’s cheese souffle with chive veloute and confit cherry tomato. This was a really nice dish and the souffle was so light and delicious.

For mains I had the free range chicken breast, romesco, rocket, pistachio and chilli. The chicken was flavoured, tender and was certainly not overcooked. Davin had the eye fillet with gratin potatoes, mushroom ketchup and grilled leeks. The steak was cooked medium. We would have probably preferred it a bit more rare however overall it was a good dish. We also got dobson potatoes with confit garlic and herbs as well as farro, peas, mint, salted ricotta and lemon vinaigrette as sides to go with our mains.

Overall it was a lovely venue inside and outside with its gorgeous surroundings.

Stones of the Yarra Valley
Address: 14 St Huberts Rd, Coldstream VIC 3770
Phone: +61 3 8727 3000
Website: www.stonesoftheyarravalley.com

Stones of the Yarra Valley Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Meletos

If you’re heading out into the Yarra Valley for a day trip and you’re looking for a place with great food and wine, then Meletos might be just the spot for you! We’ve been here to dine on a number of occasions, but most recently we were here for a birthday lunch.

It’s always a lovely drive to Meletos, particularly on a sunny day and the scenery is so picturesque leading up to the restaurant and even more so when you arrive. There are crabapple trees and raised vegetable beds right out the front. The restaurant itself are a collection of century old farm buildings which have been developed into the restaurant it is now. It is beautifully rustic inside with floor to ceiling windows offering views of lush greenery outside.

It is always bustling with people inside and on this occasion it was no different. For drinks we started with a couple glasses of the 2015 Rob Dolan ‘Blanc de Blanc’ Sparkling Chardonnay. We’ve been really getting into sparkling lately and this was lovely and crisp.

All the dishes were ordered for sharing and some of the highlights for the starters included the marinated white anchovies which were delicious and not too salty, and the Yarra Valley goats curd with truffle honey and grilled bread. The goats curd was amazing with the truffle honey!  We also had the hand cut cacciatore mild salami.

For mains we ordered some wood-fired pizzas on their menu which included the Cotechino sausage, San Marazano tomato and Roast pumpkin. We also shared the whole market fish and wood-fired rotisserie free range chicken. Oh and we can’t forget the french fries with smoked paprika and manchego. These came out so fresh and crispy! To be honest none of the dishes really disappointed. It was a great meal and perfect when you feel like trying a number of different things.

We then ended the meal with a couple of Four Pillars gin and Fever Tree tonics which was so refreshing and perfect for a warm day! They came out in these lovely glasses and I am definitely going to have another one of those next time I’m there.

Attached to the restaurant is the Napoleone Brewery so you can also order paddles of beer or cider to enjoy at your table.

Overall, we highly recommend checking Meletos out if you’re after some good food. Whether you’re there to just have a few small dishes and drinks or a proper lunch, this place can cater for it because of their variety of dishes, small and large. And how can you say no to the lovely scenery?

Meletos
Approx $70 AUD per person
Address: 12 St Huberts Rd, Coldstream VIC 3770
Phone: +61 3 8727 3030
Website: meletos.com

Meletos Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Davin Lee

Dairy Bell

I’m going to take you guys on a trip down memory lane today with a review on Dairy Bell. With so many fancy Gelato places these days, it’s easy to forget the humble old school ice cream shops which started our sweet tooth obsession. Without sugar coating anything, is Dairy Bell as good as it’s successors? That’ll be a definite no. The quality just isn’t up to par for today’s standards, however Dairy Bell will always have a special place in my heart. Just like Neapolitan ice cream, the nostalgia is strong.

After a very filling lunch with my work colleagues, one of them suggested to get Dairy Bell for dessert. Since I hadn’t been in a while, I happily obliged. It was my first time at the Malvern branch because the franchises have been steadily closing one by one. Last time I had Dairy Bell was actually in Dandenong, but that store is long gone now.

First thing I noticed when I walked into the shop was that it smelled like oil! This was very weird for an ice cream shop. I soon realised that they were also selling donuts. When I think of donuts, Dairy Bell wouldn’t spring to my mind, but I’m happy they’re trying different things. I looked around the shop and it looked exactly the same as what I remembered it to be. For this day and age, a revamp couldn’t hurt because the layout is starting to look really dated.

My colleague got the banana split, and I only got a single serve of blood orange sorbet on a cone. The prices are certainly on the cheaper end, and it’s very easy to up your sugar intake at this place for not much money. His banana split just looked like an overkill for someone who’s had a big lunch. I couldn’t believe he finished it all by himself! My blood orange sorbet was on the sweeter side, and tasted a bit artificial. It wasn’t horrible but wasn’t the best either. The cone itself wasn’t anything to talk about, it’s the dime in a dozen ones you find at the supermarket.
 

Even though I didn’t have the best experience, I would still come back for old time’s sake. I might try some classics next time like chocolate or coffee. Even though the competition has left these guys behind, I’d still show my support for an old Australian icon.

Dairy Bell
Approx $10 AUD per person
Address: 89 Chadstone Road, Malvern East VIC 3145
Phone: +61 3 9530 4369
Website: dairybell.com.au

Dairy Bell Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Davin Lee

Aoba

We must have Japanese fever here at One Piece Left! Two Japanese restaurant reviews in a row, where the name nearly sounds the same… try and not get the two confused peeps. So on our search for weekday and budget friendly Japanese food, we came across Aoba. This restaurant had unusually high reviews for it’s genre, and we were a little skeptical to say the least. Before I talk about the food, here are some quick observations on Aoba.

1) The place is really small and only has one chef and one waiting staff
2) The restaurant smells like expelled oil, and you will end up smelling like that by the time you walk out
3) There are spelling mistakes everywhere on the menu. Words like ‘dineer’ and ‘dumpring’. I must admit… ‘dumpring’ made me chuckle, I was starting to think they were doing it on purpose!

So let’s talk a bit about the food. I got the Wafu porterhouse steak. The sauce was not overpowering as it allowed the beef to be the star of the show. No instructions were needed as the beef was cooked medium rare, the way a porterhouse should be cooked. The portion size was also really generous and it came with a bowl of rice. At $21 I’m not complaining! You know how hard it is to find a steak for $21 these days? I was very impressed with the quality to price ratio with this steak and Aoba in general.

Helen got the AOBA dinner set which consisted of 2pcs spring rolls, 2pcs pork dumplings, 3pcs agedashi tofu, 6pcs of sashimi, 1 main with miso soup and steamed rice. Not a bad deal indeed for $29! Everything from the starters was cooked fresh and very tasty. The tofu was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The salmon sashimi was a quality cut with plenty of fattiness.

Helen chose the chicken karaage with rice for her main. The batter was flavoured perfectly and the chicken was juicy and succulent. Along with the mayonnaise dipping sauce, it was a real highlight dish!

Some non sweetened Japanese green tea to wash down the oil from the chicken kaarage and we were some happy campers! But there’s always room for dessert, so we shared a green tea ice cream. It had the trademark green tea bitterness and it wasn’t too sweet at all. I’d like to give a quick shout out to the reviewer who said that the ice cream was too icy and hurt their teeth…. absolute CLASSIC! Thanks for making my day!

I think we may have found our perfect weekday Japanese restaurant. Who knows… we may even push the boundaries and come here on weekends too! All the food was what we hoped for and more, well deserving of their high praising reviews. Two thumbs up from us!

Aoba
Approx $25 AUD per person
Address: 279 Glenferrie Rd, Malvern VIC 3144
Phone: +61 3 9509 3399

Aoba Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Aoki Japanese Kitchen

We recently found another local Japanese restaurant! Located in Glen Waverley, Aoki is yet another addition to the already overflowing restaurants around that area. As we do love our Japanese cuisine, we were excited to see what Aoki could offer.

Upon entering we noticed how modern and spacious the restaurant was. The tables, benches and floors all had a similar stone tile theme with the glow of purple lights throughout. In fact it reminded us of some of the Japanese restaurants we recently visited in the U.S. It had a real upmarket and modern feel. We were greeted by friendly staff who seated us straight away and provided us with some menus. There were so many dishes that we wanted to order!

We decided to settle on the Aoki 9 short courses as a starter which showcases 9 of their signature entree dishes. They also had a 6 short course version but of course being the greedy people that we are we picked the 9 course set! It came out presented beautifully in a wooden box with the dishes separated into 9 grid sections. All the dishes were really appetising. Some of our favourites from this set included the chicken salad in this lovely sauce, the eel, blueberry duck and the prawns.

For mains I ordered the truffle honey porterhouse steak with wafu sauce. I was very surprised at how soft the steak was! It was almost melt in your mouth soft and the truffle honey was an interesting yet perfect match for it because the sweetness of it balanced out the savoury flavours of the steak. The coleslaw that came with the steak was also really nice and flavoured well. Overall it was a really good dish that we would order again.

Davin ordered the Poke Don from the sushi menu. For some reason, he seems to keep ordering the winning dish lately. My dish was really good, but of course his dish was even better. The Poke Don is pretty much like the poke bowls that is the craze lately so it was a bowl of rice with fresh fish such as salmon and tuna, with egg and avocado. The fish was super fresh, the rice was cooked well and it was just overall a beautiful and healthy dish. We were thrilled to have found a place where we can order a poke bowl closer to home.

We also ordered a serving of their fatty tuna which was on their specials. Oh my gosh, it brought us back to Japan! It melted in our mouths and left our lips shiny from the fattiness!

Finally we ordered the Yuzu cheesecake with matcha sauce which was also one of their specials that night for dessert. I loved this dessert! It was so soft, light and fluffy and was not too sweet which was perfect for us.

Well as you can see, we really enjoyed the food here and we will certainly be back for their delicious food when we’re feeling like some Japanese!

Aoki Japanese Kitchen
Approx $40 AUD per person
Address: 52 Montclair Ave, Glen Waverley VIC 3150
Phone: +61 3 9561 7442
Website: www.aokimelbourne.com.au

Aoki Japanese Kitchen Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Davin Lee

Melba

Oh Melba… we have shared so many fond memories together. I still remember vividly one of the times when I ate for over 4hrs straight, and I saw fear in the eyes of the lady at the Sushi bar. I didn’t think she could believe that a single person could eat so much, and I nearly had to be stretchered out on that particular occasion! The reason for my madness is because everything tastes so damn good and I just want to eat it all! In case you haven’t realised, Melba is a buffet restaurant.

Walking past The Langham lobby and up onto the podium level, you’ll be greeted by the grand entrance of Melba. It’s quite a classy looking affair inside with massive windows and a magnificent view of Southbank. Growing up, I’m used to eating at buffets filled with a lot of families, fighting over the first batch of prawns to come out of the kitchen! No such dramas here. As a matter of fact this would be a great place to take your date and have a romantic dinner. There’s very few buffets where I can make this claim.

Personally speaking I adapt the same strategy for all buffets. Line my stomach with carbs and hot foods before I attack the cold seafood dishes. I find that hitting the seafood too hard at the start makes me feel extremely sick. Everyone is different and it’s best to find a strategy that works best for you. Forget the notion of trying to eat your money’s worth, it’s simply not going to happen. It’s good to note that the seating times here are generous so you get the luxury of working through the food systematically.

Well onto the food…. where do I start? To begin, I would recommend starting off with either the peking duck, lamb/beef roast or the freshly cooked noodles. Pay close attention to the roasts, you can generally tell which ones have been dried out by the food warmer. Trust your instincts and move onto something else if this is the case. Roast is a good start as it allows you to accompany it with some of the many salads on offer. I like to then move onto the freshly cooked Wagyu steaks. These are high quality pieces. Since they are so thin, I generally opt for them to be cooked rare since they always end up medium rare by the time it hits my plate.

After this it’s seafood time! The oysters are really fresh here, with a creamy texture. The crabs are a bit of work to eat, because I’m lazy I prefer to peel prawns instead. The sushi bar is my favourite hang out spot in the whole restaurant. One serve of sashimi (salmon, tuna, kingfish) is roughly 3-4 pieces, so feel free to ask for double or triple servings if you don’t want to make too many trips. Finish off with some fruits/desserts/cheese.


Obviously this is my routine, so eat and do what feels best for you! The important thing to remember is that you cannot expect an absurd variety like some of the Asian buffets, but there’s more than enough variety to suit even the fussiest of eaters. The prices varies but you’d be looking at around $94 for dinner, cheaper for lunch. There’s no doubt that this is on the expensive end of buffet dining, but it’s truly a case of quality over quantity (I’d never thought I’ll be using a phrase like this to describe a buffet restaurant). I highly recommend going to Melba and eat till your heart’s content!

Melba
Approx $100 AUD per person
Address: 1 Southbank Ave, Southbank VIC 3006
Phone: 1800 641 107
Website: melbarestaurant.com.au

Melba Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

by Helen Le

Miss Marple’s Tearoom

Miss Marple’s Tearoom has been around for some time and is a major hotspot for tourists. Located in the Dandenong ranges, they are well known for their Devonshire teas and scones. Davin and I finally dropped in to check it out recently during our long weekend after lunch.

It was a beautiful sunny day and perfect for a laid back drive to the Dandenong Ranges. When we arrived, I instantly loved the look of Miss Marple’s from the outside and even more so on the inside.

Set in a Tudor style building, the restaurant is dedicated to Agatha Christie’s novel series character, Miss Marple. Upon entering you will see Miss Marple memorabilia everywhere and I was struck by the charm of it. The decor included wooden table and chairs, floral curtains and table cloths, and porcelain teapots of different colours and styles all along the walls. There were quite a few people inside but there was also a nice quietness to the place.

The friendly staff seated us at a lovely window table with a bed of flowers just outside. Given we had just had lunch we couldn’t order anything more than the tea and scones. However we did see plenty of people ordering main meals there too.

We ordered two plain scones served with ‘Miss Maple’s Own’ home-made raspberry jam and freshly whipped cream. We also ordered a pot of tea and chose the Teapot of Taylors which was described on the menu as their house blend ‘Yorkshire Gold’ and was apparently voted as ‘best cup of tea in England’ by the British Tea Council. Interesting!

The scones came out and I was surprised how different they looked to the scones I’ve normally experienced. These scones were not round and small. These were tall and more rectangular in size. In fact, they were so tall I could cut each scone into 3 sizeable pieces. They came out piping hot and boy were they good! The texture of these scones were so light and fluffy compared to any scones I’ve had before. The raspberry jam and the freshly whipped cream was delicious. The tea was also amazing. I have to agree that it was probably one of the best teas I have had. It had a lovely flavour to it.

Overall it was a great stop in experience for us. It would have been great to try some of their other main meals but maybe next time when our tummies are not so full!

Miss Marple’s Tearoom
Approx $25 AUD per person
Address: 382 Mount Dandenong Tourist Rd, Sassafras VIC 3787
Phone: +61 3 9755 1610
Website: www.missmarplestearoom.com

Miss Marple's Tearoom Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato