Eat Like Ushi

I was in the mood for laksa but enroute to Chef Lagenda was begrudgingly dissuaded into a recommended homestyle Korean place in Kensington. I actually like Korean dining and so in order to make up for laksa, there had to be a strong flavoured soup dish (usually chilli-based) or my other staple of chilli rice cakes. I didn't see tteokbokki on the menu but at least there was bibimbap, spicy seafood soup and if necessary japchae to select from.

The introductory snacks were much more unsual than the typical kimchi and pickle vegies. They served slivers of potato, egg wrapped in egg and some vegetables. I wouldn't have minded some kimchi though actually.

- Gyoja $6.9 - little dumplings (gyoza?) very well fried and crisp on all sides. The vegie filling was plain but enhanced well by the vinegar;
- Bibimbab with tofu $17.5 - the elements were nice but the sauce wasn't strong enough for me. I like the deep intense flavour of gochujang and add a lot of it. Also despite being served in a hot pot, it wasn't hot enough to sear and crisp the rice base which is an essential part of the dish in my opinion;
- Spicy seafood tofu soup $19.5 - moderate flavour tasty soup with nice pieces of prawn, calamari and tofu with enoki mushrooms. Served still bubbling and steaming with rice. Great dish.

Other customers seemed to be regulars with conversations of familiarity between them and the staff. A lot of people about seemed to be about to get married. The food was good with some limitations as mentioned and seemed a bit expensive for Korean food in Melbourne (my other comparator being Victoria Street). But it's good to support wonderfully friendly small businesses doing their best to feed people well.

After leaving I noticed another Korean place around the corner (Frying Colours) touting their fried chicken. I'll have to try that next time.

After brunch at Chez Dre, my inadvertent initial stumble into Bibelot and visual delight of chocolates and sparkling desserts meant I needed to look again. The gelato/sorbet list is extensive and each flavour individually reads like a special from any other place. I'm not a huge dessert person generally but I was told the small cakes here were better than Zumbo, Burch & Purchese etc. and so since in the area (and probably wouldn't be again for a while) I bought up large for takeaway.

1L gelato for $19.5 and 3 flavours started off. There's so many to pick from that although I wanted to taste a few, I knew it would take too long. I've had to leave the mandarin & yuzu, strawberry & lemon myrtle, amrood (since found out is guava) pineapple & chilli chocolate, coconut & pandan for another time.

Pistacchio gelato was mildly sweet, quite nutty and boosted by whole roasted pistacchios - excellent overall. Pear & ginger gelato was mild with intermittent chunks of crystallised ginger - unusual and great. Coconut & cherry chocolate sorbet was a mix of flavour with coconut being the most prominent - it was good but overwhelmed by the other two.

The beautiful gourmandise board $27 samples most of the cakes on display. The favourite two were the hazelnut-praline crunch (strong chocolate with crunching popping texture of the base) and the much lighter and softer manga, yuzu & coconut. Life with Bibelot and green tea dome were similarly light but very mild in flavour, and the other four chocolate options didn't wow me. The rose-raspberry macaron was very sweet (as expected) and a little too much for me.

I know what I'll be getting next time.

It's extremely rare I venture to South Melbourne. The last time was when I bought a cheap Scoopon gym membership for a few weeks and the only places I visited in the area were Andrew's (defeats the purpose of going the gym perhaps) and the market.

On this occasion it was enroute and I had time to spare. A quick look found the ridiculously well rated Chez Dre - I can't remember why the name sounded familiar. Maybe it was so highly rated a cafe that I intended to go sometime. Perhaps it's the same name as somewhere I've been overseas. Not sure. In any case the entrance at the end of a little alley is slightly hidden and went into Bibelot first by accident. On a Thursday late morning the place was quite full inside and outside.

There's some great sounding menu options and I had trouble deciding between the grilled sardines and pork belly. My waitress said the choice was difficult but each was completely different - either breakfast or lunch. After a pressured 15 seconds of indecision I opted for lunch.

- Confit Pork Belly (with pickled pear & chive salad, crispy pig ears, apple & vanilla puree) $23 - a very nice slab of pork belly (natural flavour, not too fatty, quite tender meat) served with the crispiest skin I could imagine. The ear slivers add a little smoky touch and firm texture and the salad is the cold and light contrast;
- Prana chai with soy - real spices served in a pot. Mildly sweet and a good amount of cardamom. Not bad.

I liked the lunch but maybe being 1115am I intrinsically felt like I was missing out on carbohydrates. It could've been related to my seat next to the counter with all the breads on display and reading the information card about their sourdough. I satisfied that craving by taking home a 1.5kg round michette loaf for my next morning's breakfast - a soft, strongly wheaty brown colour bread.

Next time I would order grilled sardines or spiced lamb jaffle for breakfast, lamb goujons for lunch and a smoothie or iced coffee.

Forest Hill - I haven't been there for probably over 10 years. After viewing a property for sale nearby in Box Hill, it was time for lunch. Something fast - maybe noodles? I was surprised that a place called India Delights would serve excellent Malaysian noodles, but that's exactly what I found.

- Mixed plate with biryani rice $11 - extraordinary value with selections from the serving basin. I chose a mildly sweet and tender beef rendang, spicy mutton curry, eggplant masala and pumpkin curry;
- Mamak mee goreng $9.5 - a pretty good dish and satisfying;
- Combination hor fun $11 - a heap of runny egg sauce topping flat rice noodles, prawns, squid and more. Really really good version served (when requested) with green chilli in soy vinegar;
- Indian rojak $10 - really thick and tasty peanut sauce smothering fried dough (which would have been better crispier), beancurd, bean sprouts, potato, cucumber and boiled egg.

From the menu and dishes I assume the chefs are Indian ethnicity from Malaysia. I'll have to try the roti and murtabak next time as well as the fried chicken and pastries.

For some reason I've never been to Port Melbourne. And that's despite one of my best friends living there for a while. Funnily enough my first visit to the area wasn't because of her.

It was a brunch catchup with a friend not seen for probably nearly 10 years and her suggestion to come to the area.

- Baked Eggs – 2 x Eggs, Sugo (Italian Tomato Sauce), Chorizo $17
- Moulin Noir Big Breakfast w/ Egg, Bacon, Chorizo, Mushroom, Tomato & Hash Brown $23

The highlights were good bread, tasty chorizo and crispy hash browns (the extra side was too much in the end). All in all a nice breakfast but nothing that seemed special compared to the haunts more local to me.

The Vietnamese noodles person's alternative to pho is BBH. Other than trying a famous version in Hue itself and making an excellent version from Luke Nguyen, most of my BBH has been from Victoria Street's Co Do. Footscray's equivalent is supposedly Dong Ba who also advertises their specialisation in BBH.

Interestingly they only serve only BBH dish - I suppose you could call this traditional rather than bastardised. This version includes pig blood and cartilage which many would probably not order. For $10 the medium bowl is ample for my appetite. The broth is actually very sweet, perhaps a marker of MSG? It takes a good addition of the sate lemongrass & chilli sauce and a bit of requested fresh chilli to bring some heat and a squeeze of lemon to bring out the complexity. The meat quality is very good and tender.

For some reason they were out of che ba mau and all combinations of these. I settled for basil seeds and grass jelly in coconut milk which was a fine alternative.

I think I like Co Do better. But I definitely like Luke Nguyen's recipe even more.

Even though Smith Street isn't far from Abbotsford, finding out about the more recent Church Street branch was great as it meant I could catch one tram rather than walking (or driving) to Smith Street. The best opportunity arose whilst deciding what to have for dinner coming back on a tram from Box Hill. It's been a long time but the thought of souvlaki always seems to excite me and I'm more enamoured with Jimmy's since my first visit (http://eatlikeushi.posthaven.com/jimmy-grants-melbourne-01-2014).

The Richmond branch is larger and has more restaurant/cafe feel to it than the tiny Collingwood one. The food is identical and delicious. Mr. Papadopoulos has excellent tender meat and wrapped in thick pita. The grain salad isn't as good as what I remember from Hellenic Republic, perhaps due to less honey and no pomegranate. The chips with feta and garlic oil are nicely seasoned. Loukomades are sweet, crunchy and a good finish.

Although the prices seem to be going up but the size and quality still remains at least. I haven't been to Stalactites in years and with this around I don't think I need to.

There's always been 2 pho places in Victoria Street that I visited - Pho Chu The (one of my favourites but the longest walk) and Pho Hung Vuong 2. On Christmas Day there were always going to be limited eating options, but the reliable Asian work ethic means Victoria Street is as good as any (and apparently why the Jews in America all eat Chinese food for Christmas).

I saw I Love Pho 264 have many articles talking about how much people enjoyed their food - David Chang was a notable name in there. But for some reason the articles all stated Pho Chu The. It wasn't after a little reading that I discovered both these places are run by the same people. Why they have both of these restaurants a couple of doors down away with different names escapes me.

The pho is good, the articles admit using "just a bit" of MSG. The meat is fine and the brisket has very little fat which is great. The 3 colour drink is fine but there's probably too much ice even though at least it is shaved finely.

Best of all, they accept credit card - I'll be back.

I was looking up stops between Apollo Bay and Geelong. I considered having lunch in Lorne but having stayed there a few times in the past few years there wasn't anywhere that particularly interested me. One of the regular names appearing was A La Grecque, a one chef hat Greek place with excellent reviews and one of the few must stops in the area. The other option is Brae, but given the detour and the intention of enjoying the coastal route, I'll have to save that for another time.

Ever since the incredible Greece trip back in 2010, the only Greek places I've eaten at are Gazi and Hellenic Republic. There's been a few souvlaki stops too but the only one worth mentioning is Jimmy Grants. It felt like a great opportunity to break free from the Calombaris stronghold on Greek cuisine in my life.

I felt lucky to be able to book Sunday lunch on the day itself. There's a carpark for the restaurant although it seems most people (including myself) don't realise until walking into the restaurant and park on the street next to it.

- Grilled kephalograviera, chargrilled peach, almonds, pekmezi $18 - I remember asking the chef in Greece what this incredible cheese in a salad was and it's been my choice ever since. Forget about halloumi, kefalograviera is much better and this was an outstanding version served. Perfectly crisp with chewy squeaky heavily salty cheese with contrast from warm peaches, nuts and mint (I would have liked more of those given the amount of cheese). It was served on a piping hot plate meaning the cheese didn't go cold and hard;
- Roast spatchcock, hilopitas, garlic, chilli, basil, olives $34 - a beautifully cooked and seasoned bird served with pasta. Good flavour and texture;
- Slow roasted goat shoulder, red onion, parsley, radish, caper, za'atar $36 - it was a toss-up between the goat or pork shoulder. I'm more partial to goat on menus since I simply see it less often (and mostly in curries). For some reason I expected more of a roast with gravy. This was tasty, relatively tender and simple meat with salty za'atar and fresh salad. The lemon really helped break the salt and brought each element to balance;
- Roasted cauliflower, golden raisins, coriander, pinenuts $11 - an excellent combination of cauliflower, sweet raisins, a salty dressing and lots of pinenuts.

The food and cooking is outstanding. I would have liked to know what meat and seafood were local but the young waiter didn't know (other than assuming everything was Australian). There's so many other interesting dishes. I probably wouldn't order the goat again next time, and if ordering for 2 would opt for kefalograviera, the scallops with black pudding, flatbread with lamb, the pork shoulder and save a bit of space for dessert.

I'd heard a lot about Top Paddock for a while, as possibly being the new best cafe around town. The new cafe precinct of Church Street seemed to be largely driven by the queues for this place, and this particular Sunday was no different with people lying on the lawns outside waiting for seats.

There's a lot of breakfast items that sound enticing - eggs benedict with pork cheeks and yuzu, chilli scrambled eggs, spanner crab and the list goes on and on.

- White anchovies & Jamon Serrano (with fried eggs, padron peppers & manchego on toast) $19.5 - the first place I've seen with a real Spanish breakfast and the items took me back to a happier place over there. Tangy anchovies, beautifully cured serrano, grilled peppers and quality bread.

It took me a long time to make it there the first time and it probably will the second also. But I'll be looking forward to it.