Buckingham Palace

Whilst serving a self-induced banishment in Rad-City, I came across something that tickled my excitement - Kate Middleton's dress going on display!  In the same way I was confused about how much I cared for the British monarchy, I was again a little confused about my excitement for Kate Middleton's dress.  The whole concept of royalty is outdated and based on battles and plundering!  But.. but... I couldn't shake off The Royal Wedding fever!  

Having lived in London for three years, it was never my priority to tour inside Buckingham Palace.  But now with the dress on display, hey, why not?  I had initially try to book tickets online on the day of release but the server crashed and I was left a bit disappointed.  Knowing that tickets are limited, I figured I missed my opportunity.  However, the drive from Heathrow to London home, passes the palace and I thought, 'Hey, I'm gonna try to get tickets again!'  Yay.  Ticket purchase successful!  Smee and I opted for the full works ticket which included access to the palace state rooms, Queen's gallery and mews.  The importance of pre-booking tickets was shown when we turned up at the palace gates.  So many other tourists were turned away as the daily quota for ticket sales had been reached.  

First stop, the Queen's Gallery.  

The Queen's stuff... for public adoration!  

Appreciating the stuff.

Next stop, the State Rooms within the palace.  No photography was allowed indoors - boo.  But it's as grand as one would expect.  Detailed decals, gold plated staircase, all that stuff.  I had the audio tour but I've pretty much forgotten everything that was said.  Kate's dress looked as it did on TV but even more impressive up close (or more like, as close as the general public were allowed).  Her shoes looked unworn and more importantly - my size!  Also on display were Kate's earrings, a replica of her bouquet and part of the original wedding cake.  The tradition is that the newlyweds keep the top two layers of the cake aside t o serve at their first child's christening.  Wedding cake can last that long?  

The only photo I was allowed inside Buckingham Palace was actually outside the palace back entrance.  

Next up, the Royal Mews.  This shows how poor my English is - I had no idea what was a mews.  In my defence, I've never come across a real mews in my life because living in Oz, they probably never built any!  Anyway, it's where the horsies and their handlers reside.  

The Glass Coach.  Wow so much history!  I'm so close, I can almost touch it!  Believe it or not, there weren't any security personnel in close range either. 

The Gold State Coach.  Even older!!  That wheel is massive. 

A brown horsey.  The youngest of them all.  *pat pat*  Smee got a lucky shot because when it was my turn to pose with the horsey, he turned around and showed it's bum.  

This is a Royal Watcher's delight but for everyone else, it's just an optional touristy activity.  For those interested in tickets, just be aware that the palace is only open over the Summer months.  As I said before, try to book your tickets at least the night before and avoid the lottery of trying to purchase them on the same day.  

Wahaca

On the other side of the world, Smee and I decided to check out the new Westfield Shopping Centre in East London.  Being a weekday and post-hype, we were fortunate enough to be not be squished among squillions of people.  It was pretty much a replica of the West-End Westfield. *yawn*

After all that mall trawling, we needed to fill our stomachs.  We'd always wanted to try Wahaca in Covent Garden (always full) so we were happy to see an outlet at Westfield Stratford.  A table for two please!

Wahaca serves Mexican street food and I had kinda been skeptical of the concept.  Mexican... for British tastes... hmmmm.  Would it be much like Wagamama (yuck!) which desecrates much of Asian cuisine?  Very possible.  With the not-so-pleasant experience of the cuisine-similar Newmarket Hotel in mind, I wanted to see how Wahaca stacked up.  

To start, Smee and I ordered:

Pork pibil soft tacos (£3.95 for three on a plate) and a Chipotle chicken quesadilla £3.85.  

Then we also added:

 MSC ceviche salad £7.95 (edible tortilla bowl!) and a British steak burrito £6.85 with Baja cheese (45p extra). 

Smee showing me the portion size.  Pretty generous! 

Ok, I'm going to discuss the tacos first only because I can directly compare them to the Newmarket Hotel.  Wahaca gave us three for £3.95 (AU$6.25, approx $2 each), whereas Newmarket served us two for AU$14-$16 (approx $7.50 each).  Taste wise they were just as tasty.  Wahaca's had a little less greenery but portion size was otherwise identical.  Eating tacos at Wahaca made me even more angry about Newmarket Hotel.  As a gross generalisation, food is better in Oz, but now Wahaca has made my world topsy-turvy.  I can't believe that London food is better than home!  The quesadilla chicken was nicely smokey and cheesy.  The ceviche salad surprisingly massive and filling.  The burrito was good too.  

Wahaca can't really be called a chain yet - it only has five outlets - but for a mini-chain, Smee and I were pretty impressed.  Whether Wahaca serves genuine Mexican fare, I can't really comment.  A Mexican person might express the same attitude I have for Wagamama - blergh!!!  All I can say that I'm happy to try more of the menu at Wahaca.  Give it a shot if you're sick of the usual British fish and chips, sandwiches and curry.  

Añada

From the disappointment of today's earlier encounter at the Newmarket Hotel comes the absolute awesomeness that is Añada.  Cheap Spanish food is an oxymoron anywhere outside of Spain but Añada's menu, specifically the tasting menu is a damn pretty good deal.

Spu, Tina, Glenda and I were adamant that we were living life to the full and decided that we wanted the $70 tasting menu.  This came with not seven, not eight, not even ten tapas/raciones but the more hearty number of 12 tapas/raciones.  Yes.  Twelve.  Ok so they were to present the 12 plates as a course of five but still... 12 plates people!

My new motto - A meal without wine is like a day without sunshine.  We enjoyed a bottle of tempranillo.  

(L-R) Coffin Bay oysters with lemon.  Celeriac soup with black salt.  Joselito Jamon Iberico.  All yum and nice way to start the dinner, although they could have been a bit more generous with the jamon. 

(L-R) Rabbit empanadilla.  Charcoal grilled quail with pomegranate and freekeh.  Stuffed squid with sumac. Nice, nice, keep it coming!  The quail reminded me of that served at Barrafina.

Up to this point, we were all still a bit hungry.  However, we were about to reach the turning point. 

(L-R) Otway Ranges pork belly with fennel seed & smoky aubergine.  Gem lettuce & chervil cress with crispy garlic, barberries & 12 year old Andalusian white balsamic.  Grilled prawns with soft egg.

Mmmmmm the pork belly was simply superb and the crackling just.. crackly.  Not fatty either!  The prawns and egg went surprisingly well together.  By now, we were pretty stuffed but there was more to come.  

(L-R) Savoy cabbage and caper berry salad with walnuts and sumac.  Slow roasted beef cheeks in Oloroso with fava bean puree.  Mmmm yum but we couldn't appreciate it as much as we should have on our full stomachs.  

We were pretty glad to realise that the dessert tasting plate would be our final dish.  

(L-R) The "Dessert Tasting Plate".  This was not a tasting plate.  These were full sized!  Churros with chocolate.  Moscatel and pomegranate sorbet.  Crema Catalana.  Lemon & yoghurt sponge cake with pistachio crumb.

We really couldn't give the desserts the enjoyment they deserved but we did a pretty good job at polishing them off, leaving only the sponge unfinished.  Great value though as these desserts are usually $12 each. 

When comparing similarly-sized menus, Añada's 12 dishes for $70 comes out on top of my earlier visit to Wabi Sabi which offered eight dishes for $80 (and no bowel runs either!)  The food was all tasty without any low points.  Our waiter was awesome too and seemed to genuinely revel in our enjoyment of the meal.  The restaurant itself is fairly small but it wasn't difficult for us to get a reservation within a week's notice.  So, get to this place peeps and book a table.  My suggestion?  Starve yourself before committing to the 12 course tasting menu.  

Newmarket Hotel

When I first saw the Newmarket Hotel menu online, my mouth started to salivate.  I told Spuey 'Let's hit this place' and he obliged.  The parentals decided they also wanted a bit of food action and came along for the ride too.

The restaurant is a slick bit of space and in the Summer, the outdoor bar area would be an excellent place to sit and enjoy a jug or two of sangria.  But we were here for the food and once seated within the Mad Men-esque decor, our hipster waiter arrived to take our order.  It was suggested that we begin with a few shared starters (as I intended) and then go on to a few larger dishes to share.

Starters:

(L-R)  Guacamole with native lime salsa fresca, taro, jicama & tortilla chips $12, Soft tacos with prawns, fragrant herbs and jicama slaw $16, Crispy chicken wing tacos, cucumber slaw and spicy peanut mole $14, Pork carnitas with soft tacos, baby gem, spicy pineapple salsa and hot adobe sauce $16.  

Ok so not all of the pictures are there but I will say this.  We ordered two rounds of three different taco plates.  Each plate of 'tacos' had two tacos on it.  That's right - TWO tacos on six plates - 12 tacos to be shared between four people.  That equates to... hmmmm, each individual taco costing $7-8.  You've got to be kidding me.  When they brought the plate out, I had been expecting three, maybe four tacos on a plate given that it was priced at $14-16.  But only two?  C'mon people!  That being said, they were tasty but not $7-8 worth of tasty and especially when each taco can be consumed in one and a half bites.  

Larger dishes to share (they weren't actually that large at all): 

(L-R) Wood roasted octopus salad with chorizo, pumpkin, lime & olives $18, Today’s fish seasonally garnished - can't recall what fish it was $30-something, Spring quinoa, lemon & broad beans $9

Tasty?  Yes.  Happy?  No.  All up, lunch was about $47 a head.  For that amount of money, one should feel full from lunch.  However, what stopped me from 'becoming full by ordering more' was knowing that it would end up be about $60+ a head in order to achieve so.  Who pays $60+ a head for a 'casual' lunch which is not in a fine dining restaurant?  That's dinner prices!  

The parentals weren't complaining but I more or less felt that this was an extortion racket.  I'm not the only one who thinks so, just read a few of the more negative reviews.  I put a stop to Newmarket hustling us - no more food to be ordered!  Our stomachs were settled but for $47 a head for lunch, I expect to be overstuffed.  Service was pleasant but hipster-haters could easily be offended by the mere wannabe vibe of the whole joint.

So yeah, go if want, but I suggest going at dinner time when you may feel a bit more inclined to spend more. As we left the restaurant, Spu and I agreed 'Yeah, let's go get a pork roll.' 

Durian Cupcake

About a year ago, I bought cupcakes from The Cupcake Family.  They were moist and lovely little things but the one thing I missed out on was the Durian flavoured cupcake.  So whilst I was getting my greys dyed today, I messaged Spu with a request to buy me a one.  He succeeded.  He also got a blueberry cheesecake one too.  Good boy Spu. *pat pat*

I tell you what.  The cupcake sure smelled durian-y! Yum!

So yep, I ate it.  I am on a food mission this week.  It was durian-y but the cake base was a bit dry today.  I might have to try it again another time.  

D.O.C Carlton

Who doesn't like pizza?  What is wrong with you?  You probably fall into the same group of people who don't like fried chicken either.  Fried chicken is a unifying food and I believe it could be the key to world peace.  Ok, I digress.  Tonight's food hunt was at D.O.C Pizza and Mozzarella Bar and non-imaginary guests included Spuey, Yetapee, Mischka, Kahoons and Constable.  

With six guests in tow, I thought I'd do the smart thing and make a reservation.  D.O.C told us we didn't need to book and 'just turn up' which we did.... and then we waited in a queue for a table.  Nothing to whine about as we were seated within ten minutes but hey, I could have been seated ten minutes ago!  

I'm not a fan of overly doughy Pizza Hut-style pizzas because I do appreciate the thin crust.  Well here is a place where you can only get thin crust. *thumbs up*  The other great thing about D.O.C is that it is BYO and a bottle of 2006 Langmeil Three Gardens washes down pretty well with pizza.  (It had been left in the cupboard at home and was dying to be opened).  

I made sure that I maintained the Asian stereotype by preventing everyone from eating in order to photograph their food.  Here are the delights we enjoyed tonight:

 D.O.C Antipasto platter.  Such a good thing that Yetapee doesn't like cheese.  I'll happily eat your share of the smoked mozzarella ball :D

Pizza Salsiccia - sausage with creamed broccoli and mozzarella.   Pizza ... I don't know.  Pepperoni I think. 

Pizza Tiger Prawns - with endive and chilli.  Pizza Speck - with mushies. 

A few of us underestimated the power of the pizza and were surprised to be full at the end.  Nevertheless that didn't stop three of us from ordering dessert.

Sweet pizza with belgian white chocolate, ice cream and strawberries.  Sweet goats cheese tiramisu (YUM!).  Mixed gelati.  

Yep, this place is what it is.  A decent pizza joint serving rustic pizzas.  I'll be back for sure.  

Wabi Sabi Garden

Hunting for food is something I do when I'm back in town and am formally permitted to eat in a civilised setting with non-imaginary people.  Today's non-imaginary person was Spuey and the setting of today's hunt was Wabi Sabi Garden in St Kilda.  (Not to be confused with their Collingwood spot.)

I had assumed that Wabi Sabi would be located in the bustling part of St Kilda but no, instead it was on a residential street which otherwise had nothing else going for it.  A bit of an odd place for a restaurant but hey this is Melbourne and odd places are the norm.  The 'Best Japanese Restaurant in Victoria' award on their website simultaneously elevated my expectations and excitement levels.  *rubs hands with glee*  I've said it before and I'll say it again - Japanese food in Melbourne is only so-so and Sydney does it way better.  I was hoping in anticipation I would find my Melbourne Japanese gem in Wabi Sabi.  

Spuey admires the indoor iron tree. 

I find a rope monkey hanging from the branches. 

Because we were ready to go all out, Spuey and I had the Wabi Sabi Signature Share Plate Course.  You have the option of either six ($60pp) or eight ($80 pp) dishes to share and of course, we chose eight.  

 (L-R)  Hiramasa Kingfish Sashimi with ponzu lime dressing, garnished with mint and garlic chips.  Oyster tempura with asparagus sauce.  Lightly scorched ocean trout and scallop nigiri with lemon. 

(L-R) Oyster mushroom and fish tempura.  Duck breast with mustard sauce. Crumbed minced lamb balls infused with spices and red wine miso sauce. 

(L-R)  Delicately poached broadbill tuna in a tasty thin bodied Japanese stew.  Wagyu meat balls with a dark miso demi-glace sauce. 

So did I find my Japanese gem?  The short answer is No.  Overall, the food was quite average and nothing mind-blowing.  Nothing was 'bad' but nothing was 'omg I have to return for this' either.  It was all just 'good'.  Basically Wabi Sabi didn't go beyond the usual expectation of a Japanese restaurant.  At the price of $80pp, it is average in terms of value and both Spu and I were definitely full.  The one thing Wabi Sabi did do well was offer dishes which are otherwise not seen on typical Japanese (but run by Chinese) menus.  I'd say that is worthy enough to book yourself a dinner and test the waters.  

I figure it might be me with the problem.  I do have a slight issue with bias because eating Japanese at excellent places really does set the bar quite high.  It was only a month ago that I was left super-impressed with the dishes I sampled at Tokkuri located in suburban Sydney (no blog though).  I had left thinking 'Gee I wish this was my local Jap place.'  Why can't more of these places exist in Melbourne? :(  My thoughts about Japanese food in Melbourne have only been reinforced.  

Oh the other thing I should add - both Spu and I had extreme bowel movements immediately after dinner - or in Spu's case, late during dinner.  Whether this can be attributed to consuming excess amounts of food or other causes related to restaurant hygiene, shall remain a mystery.  

Cupcake Central

I do wonder when the cupcake trend will die. At the moment it's still going strong. (In larger cities anyway - I haven't seen a dedicated cupcake shop in the 1950s time capsule that is Rad-City).

I had every intention of eating cupcakes today and in the midst of searching for a rival cupcake store to add to my 'eaten' list, I stumbled across Cupcake Central.  The back story was charming enough - an incidental, follow-your-dreams business borne out of a GFC job loss.  I scoured the menu, ranked the flavours I wanted most and studied the baking schedule to ensure I came in on a day when Salted Caramel cupcakes would be available.

Cute slogan - Hatch that Dream! 

Well I couldn't just buy one so I bought a box of ten.  

(1st column) Chocolate Malted Milkshake, Cookies and Cream.
(2nd column) Vanilla Vanilla, Cherry Pistachio, Red Velvet.
(3rd column) Boysenberry Cheesecake, Citrus Lemon.
(4th column) Salted caramel... three of them.

So what did I think?  They were nice and moist and a re-purchase is likely in the future.  I was pretty happy with the cake to icing ratio and the mini size also prevents cupcake overload.  I think I hyped up the salted caramel though.  I had hoped that it would reignite memories of a Parisian macaron but of course, it didn't.  It doesn't matter anyway.  As long as they cupcakes stay consistent, I'll be back! 

Alaskan Malamute x Golden Retriever

I don't understand the high turnover of puppies at this particular pet store located within the Bogan-central shopping centre where I spend my days toiling for cash.  There are only so many bogans in the world and only so many puppies that one can properly care for.  The bogans can barely look their human selves, so how they cope with a dog completely baffles me.  To observe this pet store turning over new puppies within 2-3 weeks makes me kinda angry.  The cynic within rears it's head and I find it hard to believe that all these puppies are going to a good home and worst still, they probably never came from a good home to begin with.  

Anyway, as much it makes me angry, I also can't stop cooing when I see puppies like these.  

Awww, his/her little howl is so painful!!!  I want to scoop it up and give it a cuddle.   

Even still, who thought of cross breeding a Malamute with a Golden Retriever?  It's a little unconventional and completely stinks of backyard breeding.  I will admit the Retriever temperament would make a Malamute a more agreeable though and I also do love the Malamute fur colouring with the Retriever floppy ears.  However, I will not succumb to buying one.  I will not perpetuate this vicious cycle!!!!  *shakes fist*  Hopefully, this litter did not come from the same Retriever who gave us these puppies.  That would make me very sad indeed.  

Charlie & Co. Burgers (and other stuff I ate)

I'm back in Sydney.  Time to see friends.  Time to eat.  Lectures?  Yeah, that too but that's too boring to blog.

First stop for Friday's dinner was Shan Cheng Hotpot King.  I didn't take any photos but check out this guy's blog.  His photos make the venue look much more open and cleaner than the reality.  The seating arrangement (one word - crowded) was a fire escape hazard.  The hotpot broths were very tasty and we opted for a half chilli/half non-chilli base to satisfy our various tolerance levels.  

I've never been a hotpot fan as I don't really care much for cooking my own food in a restaurant or more specifically in this case, dipping frozen food into a boiling soup.  That doesn't really require much skill.  Everything tasted the way it should - yum quail eggs - but there weren't any culinary surprises.  The next day wasn't good though.  I woke up nauseous and with a sore stomach.  TK didn't fare so well - she had the runs!  Ok, I am so not coming back here.

Saturday night was dinner at The Passage for Dru-poo's birthday.  Now this was a cosy-almost-hole-in-the-wall restaurant bar.  Food - naice.  We had the $45 sharing platter set menu which included a most impressive antipasto platter.  Wine/cocktail list - naice.  I arrived nursing my sore stomach from last night's venture anticipating that I might have to leave early but alas there's nothing a glass of red can't fix.  It must have washed away all that hotpot bacteria!  As the night wore on, we were treated to an awesome mix of RnB retro hits.  Errr, by retro I mean about 8-10 years ago - uni days!!  The group consensus can't be wrong.  Check it out peeps! 

Sunday lunch was with ##s and JB, the latter whom I haven't seen in 6 years!  The relative tourists that we are, we decided to explore our lunch options at the new-ish fancy food court in Westfield Sydney.  It really was about time that Sydney CBD got jazzed up with a decent shopping centre and the Westfield party surely didn't miss a beat.  If you've been to any of the new Westfield foodcourts lately, you'll see they've raised the bar high above the fastfood, cheap laminex foodcourts of the 1980s.  

After moseying around, I settled on Charlie & Co. Burgers.  I'll have to return for the gourmet hot dog stand another time.  

The Federation Burger - Seasoned Angus beef pattie with tomato relish, tomatoes, lettuce, aged cheddar, fried egg, bacon, sautéed onion and aioli.  $14 take away to the food court or $16 eat in in Charlie & Co. cordoned off area.  

Was it nice?  It sure was.  I was stuffed.  Was it worth $14/$16?  I dunno.  Grill'd do the Mighty Melbourne (aka Almighty if bought outside of Victoria) burger for $12.50 and it's pretty much the same.  I'll eat Charlie & Co. again but if Grill'd opens up shop nearby, I'll be heading there instead.