Eat Like Ushi

After some exhausting Boxing Day shopping and traversing the thousands that had descended into the city, lunch was much needed. Unfortunately Mugen was closed and meant a planned cross city walk to Ikkoryu for ramen. However enroute a very "Melbourne" laneway appeared and my eye was caught by a sign - "Shandong Mama Mini". I had heard rave reviews about the dumplings but had never made it there. This seemed a perfect opportunity to take advantage of the previous (mis)fortune. There was only one other person eating here in the middle of lunchtime and so I didn't have to experience this new fad of queuing.

Black soy milk was something I'd only previously tried at Seoul Soul. The Korean version seems a bit stronger in flavour and more preferred by me. The sauces were standard soy and vinegar, homemade chilli oil (which I bought some as a KK gift) and the garlic chilli sauce that comes with Mackerel Fish dumplings (which is an exceptional sauce of chilli, vinegar and heavy garlic).

- Mackerel Fish dumplings (fresh fillet mixed with coriander, ginger & chives into a mousse-texture filling) $12.8 for 7 - delicious roll-shaped dumplings with a great textural contrast of soft mousse filling, chewy top and crisp fried bottom;
- Little Rachel Seafood dumplings (prawn, calamari, salmon, chives, cabbage & sesame oil) $10.8 for 7 - nice dumplings with the salmon standing out more than the prawn or calamari;
- Stewed Beef Shank Bun (with coriander, peanuts & toasted sesame) $4.8 - beef was soft and seemed braised in masterstock. The bun itself wasn't the best as it seemed a little firm and not that soft and bouncy;
- Wasabi spinach salad $8.5 - blanched leaves and stems mixed through with a small hit of wasabi. A little expensive but if you want a vegetable dish this is a decent option.

I can see why the Mackerel Fish dumplings are the most well known here. I can also see why the chilli garlic sauce is so strongly advertised in the menu. Both are exceptional. I'll come back again for those, to try other varieties of dumplings, the pork belly bun (just to see how the pork compares with all the rest) and fried chicken wings. Without having looked yet, I wonder how much extra variety the mothership has?

I had an afternoon wedding on in the lovely wine region of Coldstream on Melbourne Cup weekend Sunday. The location lent itself to a nice relaxing lunch in the area just before the rains hit down with spiteful vengeance.

Luckily I was told to visit Innocent Bystander, to take advantage of the free tastings (including a delicious "real" apple cider that I took home, a moscato and a little vermouth) and the excellent woodfired pizza (spicy pork sausage, buffalo mozzarella, San Marzano tomato + chilli $25).

The food and drinks are excellent and the venue buzzes some excitement and atmosphere. It's a great place to visit.

I wandered down Hardware Lane in search of Hardware Societe, a cafe I hadn't been to before with its ridiculous 4.7 rating. For reasons unknown (perhaps it was hunger) I saw a place with a sign # and assumed this was it. Hash does have it's own charming interior so I'm not overly disappointed I ended up here. In fact I didn't realise until I left after paying the bill and walked further down the street to see the real Hardware Societe. The lessons we learn.

In Hash I was given a nice solo seat squeezed next to a narrow staircase. Considering I like being antisocial and indistinct when dining alone, this suited me perfectly.

Chai latte was creamy and not overly sweet. Chorizo & seared scallops on toasted sourdough with a fried egg, chilli & white bean spread ($20.5) had nice flavours but serving size was a bit small. I always like getting a side of black pudding but $5 for a few narrow slices is really quite ridiculous.

Next time I would order from Hardware Societe (considering it was my initial intention, is very near Hash, has ridiculously high ratings, and hopefully better value).

I dreamt of opening a smokehouse myself in Melbourne. This came after the London rage initially lead by the exquisite smoked meats at Pitt Cue Co. (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/pitt-cue-co-london-08-2012-12-2012). I even bought the cookbook to complement the massive 22" Weber Smokey Mountain imported from the USA (which I haven't had a chance to use yet). One day I will smoke my own ribs and briskets and my world will be a better place.

In that time Melbourne has seen a few smokehouses open recently to fill this void. Of the few I've tried, none have particularly wowed me and I still persevere on and hope for the best. I must admit the menu at Meatmaiden has been one of the more impressive I've seen, and I've been meaning to try it for a while (not only because the name reminds me of some of my favourite burger experiences at MEATliquor and MEATmarket).

The place has nice decorations on the walls (think female models holding axes), a dimly lit industrial setting, and a glass window showcasing drying slabs of meat. It is good that the dining area doesn't smell of overwhelming smoking and cooking fumes, for although that would be a nice aroma, the smell imbedded on clothing would be less so.

Tangy chilli and sweet BBQ sauces are found on the table to complement the flavours of the dishes. Smoked Old Fashioned (classic old fashioned, Buffalo Trace Bourbon gunned down with applewood smoke, sugar syrup and bitters) $18 was an intensely smokey version with a touch of other flavours to make the whiskey more easily palatable.

- Burnt ends $11 - trimmed ends of beef ribs, reasonably tender and flavoured;
- 20-hour Rangers Valley, Wagyu brisket, Tasmanian pepper berry rub (200g) $25 - nice meat and decent tender texture;
- Lamb ribs, lemon crumb $20 - very fatty (a bit too much) meat with standard lamb flavour but minimal other seasoning;
- BBQ eggplant & roast tomato $19 - piping hot simple eggplant. For some reason I expected this to be smoked but it wasn't;
- Shaved fennel, pomegranate salad $8 - very delicious mix of textures and flavours showing how good raw fennel can be.

I'll still come back to eat these dishes again (except the lamb ribs) and try the beef short ribs, brick chicken, lobster mac & cheese and grilled Sher F1 Wagyu ribeye (1.1-1.2kg), the last one of which particularly sounds like a dream. It hasn't replaced Pitt Cue Co. for me but until I can capably make my own or find better in Melbourne, it'll be fine.

Hammer & Tong has been on my list for months and months. Enough time had elapsed such that I couldn't quite remember why, but after coincidentally walking past the Soviet-looking logo off Brunswick Street, I ended up going the next morning. Funnily enough for a Sunday mid-morning I expected queues but was met with several empty tables including the window bench with people watching ability.

After looking at the menu I remembered why - breakfast ramen. I admit the thought of it months ago initially seemed a little odd, but one couldn't come here and not try the most interesting dish of all.

- Golden Gaytime milkshake $6.5 - considering the Gaytime (and probably Bubble O Bill) are my favourite childhood icecreams, how could I resist this milkshake? It certainly had the flavour and some crumb texture, but it lacked the thick texture of the classic. I suppose it was simply a thin milkshake as advertised whereas I'd have preferred a thickshake that used icecream;
- Breakfast ramen (62c hens egg, bacon, mushrooms, spring onion w bacon dashi) $19.5 - nicely cooked ramen in a ham hock broth (but nowhere near the smoked intense David Chang Momofuku version I didn't like) with some good quality ingredients. Overall very nice and different to a standard cafe breakfast;
- Duck egg & candied bacon waffle (sriracha caramel icecream, toffee popcorn, maple & seeded mustard syrup) $21 - Sriracha icecream? It tasted like it sounds with a hint of spicy and a slightly odd taste. It was a quite sweet breakfast which generally isn't my thing, but I can appreciate the concept.

There's so many things I'd like to try here. Ox cheek benedict, krispy fried chicken sandwich, lamb ribs, soft shell crab burger, briostie - or just go for the breakfast ramen again.

I thought I'd heard from my dad that this pizza place had won a world pizza championship in Italy. I was a little disappointed to find they competed but didn't win - nonetheless that's a pretty incredible feat.

As the reputed home of pizza I remember my first (and only) trip to Naples back in 2005, where pizza was apparently born. We spent the whole time going from one pizza place to the next as recommended in the Lonely Planet. We barely ventured out at night due to safety issues but during the day I could appreciate the old buildings and the incredibly bad (or is it tactical?) car parking on the streets. One of the Zero95's pizza makers is from Naples and he even offered to allow me to come back sometime and make my own pizza... how exciting that would be.

But for this trip I remained solely on the eating side.

- Fried calamari - wickedly soft, tender and extremely well cooked without any hint of rubber;
- Pizze Frutti di Mare $24 - exceptional soft and chewy crust topped with cheese and good quality seafood. It's definitely better for presentation with the shells on but I'm not sure if I'd prefer to eat it without having the remove them;
- Calzone Buffalo (stracchino, prosciutto, rocket, yellow cherry tomatoes, black buffalo cheese) $27 - the typical calzone is filled (this with prosciutto and black buffalo cheese) but also this had a beautifully presented exterior to the toppings laid.

The ingredients are high quality, the dough is exceptionally good (could it be better than Franco Manca? - http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/franco-manca-london-10-2013) and the staff are so friendly and so passionately Italian. I adore it all and will be back to try each of the pizzas and calzones.

Melbourne's first 24 hour ramen place is certainly a welcome addition to the overnight dining scene. Even at 1130pm on a Thursday night there was a 15min wait for a seat. How remarkable.

The menu is small and actually impressively stuck onto the walls (for those of us who can read). The ramen bowls come with two slices of decent (but quite fatty) chashu which are also grilled on one side (haven't seen that before). There is also half a boiled egg and some token vegetables. The ramen itself is probably slightly overcooked so it loses the slightly stiff chewy texture. The standard ramen soup has mild tonkotsu flavour but could be a little thicker. The karakuchi version adds a stiff presence of chilli. The difference between the two bowls in the photos is the 2nd bowl was the karakuchi and was ordered with an extra serve of noodles (and probably extra broth). It's quite a big difference in satiety for $2.

I didn't find any shichimi, grindable sesame seeds nor crushable garlic on the table to add, which I usually prefer.

I think the ramen down the road at Hakata Gensuke is more preferred, but options are more limited and will be adequate satisfying for the late or overnight craving.

I've heard from several (Malaysian) people over the past 1-2 years that Coconut House has the best laksa in Melbourne. I must admit I do like the Laksa King version which is quite coconutty also.

I ordered the Hawker Curry Laksa complete with a full chicken drumstick and a fried egg (which is a little odd I suppose). The ingredients are ok without being special. The soup is rich and coconutty, chicken stock base and really quite spicy. Overall it was good - but I did have to listen to my parents complain the whole time that the serving size had reduced by 30-40% over the past 5 months. Who knows.

The hot fresh soy milk probably has a touch too much sugar added but tastes real.

Next time I would order the Hawker Curry Laksa again or House Laksa Special or try the har mee (Prawn Noodles).

Riding down the 19 tram reminded me of the old days coming back from Melbourne Uni. Luckily for Melbourne (and this generation of uni students) the food options have vastly improved over the past 10-15 years. So has mobile phone technology, which allowed me to search for a ramen joint other than Hakata Gensuke (which I visited on my previous two trips).

Mugen is known for tsukemen - a method of eating ramen where the noodles are served separate to the broth and only dipped in before eating straight away. I first saw this type during a documentary by David Chang. To be honest, as much as he raved about it as the best ramen type available, I never saw the joy of it. But I may as well try it once.

I ordered the Wafu Tsukemen (dashi & soy sauce broth, housemade thick noodles served with slow-cooked chashu, bamboo shoots & seaweed) 360g $15. When ordering this, I wasn't exactly sure what 360g referred to. Now I know - it's the noodle serving (I think) which is twice the standard cooked noodle weight for one. The noodles are excellent - thick, chewy, excellent texture but are cold. The soup is heavily flavoured and served hot - it's quite nice, albeit strong to drink on its own.

The method of eating means dipping and swishing cold noodles into hot broth. Thus lies the dilemma - each time a dip occurs the soup becomes colder and colder. At the end of the noodles, a small teapot of dashi is given to add to the remaining broth to drink as a lukewarm finisher. There's one slice of chashu, a few bamboo shoots, and an added $2 marinated egg which is really excellent and great value.

So my two issues - the best part of almost any noodle dish (eg. ramen, pho, laksa, assam etc.) is the broth. I know many others think it's the noodles, but not for me. The time-consuming, impossible to replicate broth. It almost seems unfair to have such a small amount of broth compared to the large serve of (admittedly excellent) noodles. Secondly cold broth isn't the most appealing thing to eat (I've been told tsukemen is more of a summer dish, but still).

I still like tonkotsu better. I think I always will. However the ramen itself at Mugen is outstanding and so I'll try again for a bowl of the wafu ramen (although the noodles are thin, not thick - maybe I can make a request?)

03-2016

After a late work finish one evening I felt the need to splurge of some flavour as a reward. Driving through the city and finding a carpark was the first order, and after success selecting a late night dish in the area.

Mugen was close (conveniently being away from the masses area even on a Thursday) and the downstairs was relatively free. 7 Samurais was playing in the background.

After checking my previous review, I ordered the Wafu Ramen (soy sauce & dashi broth cooked over 48 hours, house made thin noodle served with chashu, bamboo shoots & seaweed) $15 - as suspected I did enjoy this hearty warm delicious bowl of broth more than the tsukemen style. I had the standard thin noodles (which really aren't that thin at all) and didn't miss the thicker version of above. Perhaps next time I'll request the thick ones just to mix it up a bit. The miso ramen also looks a good bet to try.

I also tried the Salmon Yaki-Foil (braised on the grill with Mugen special Miso, spring onions, shiitake and enoki mushrooms) $15 which had strong umami flavour and nice texture but seemed uninspiring compared to the identically priced ramen brother.

Funnily enough after living off and visiting Victoria Street so often, I'd never realised there was a dumpling restaurant there. Subtly hidden near the corner of Victoria and Nicholson Street, opposite the Hive and right near the CBA ATMs, it seems to have slipped past me over and over. It could be because I rarely walk on that part of the road, either crossing the road on the other side to go to Nhu Lan or Pho Hung Vuong 2 or not crossing the road at all and settling at Seoul Soul.

For a late lunch I decided to try this place for something a little different.

There's a good stream of customers buying uncooked/frozen dumplings home. They are all handmade inhouse by the proficient and expert older Chinese females. It gives the place a real family feeling about it.

- Fresh homemade noodles with spicy pork sauce $11.8 - they asked if I wanted it hot. I said yes, but not too hot. The serving was filled with cut fresh chilli. Luckily my fears subsided when I realised the chillies were large and thus not vey spicy (unlike those ridiculous Beijing ones). In fact I finished all the chilli pieces together with the thick irregular (ie. homemade!) noodles. Surprisingly good;
- Steamed lamb dumpling 6 for $11.8 - I opted for lamb as something to differ from my pork noodles and Northern Chinese tend to do lamb things well. The dumplings were thick and meaty, with salty liquid inside that balanced well with the table vinegar.

Altogether the meal was very nice and I'll happily come back for my China, chilli and dumpling fix along Victoria Street. 

Next time I would order either of those two dishes again, particularly the noodles with spicy pork sauce. I'll preferably come with more people next time to try extra dishes also - more dumplings include in hot & sour soup, wontons with chilli oil, mapo tofu, lamb with cumin and beef brisket noodle soup.