Serviced Apartments

I've stayed at many different serviced apartments in my time of travelling so I think I'm in a good position to tell which ones are good or bad.  Hence, I'm not sure how this place can pass as a serviced apartment when my 'stove' looks like this:

It's a portable hotplate!  On top of that, there is no oven in this apartment. *groan*

At $157-$239 a night, I'm glad I'm not the one paying for my stay.  What a rip off.  I've stayed at another serviced apartment around the corner for $120 a night.  It was waaaay better and equipped with a full kitchen and laundry facilities.  Oh well, I guess staying here for the next two weeks will be marginally better than my previous two weeks in a Canberran hotel whereby I had no cooking or clothes washing facilities.  Breadtop and Sushi Train are also downstairs too!  :D

Things You Eat When You're Alone Part XV

What do you eat for dinner when you're living in a hotel for two weeks?  You do have restaurant options located 500 metres away but because it's been rainy, you're a bit lazy to leave your room.  Room service! 

I had already become sick of eating pre-packaged caesar salads with roast chickens, so I checked out the room service options.  Here's what I've eaten so far:

Club sandwich with chips ($15.50)  I tried to make it healthier by requesting wholemeal bread.

Chicken parmagiana with chips and garden salad ($15.50) 

I thought I'd try to get some omega three after the nutrient devoid parma dinner.  Beer battered flathead fish and chips with green salad and citrus aioli ($15). 

What can I say?  All the meals were edible and reasonably priced.  It was pretty much like having a pub meal but in my room.  I can't complain but I seriously could not eat like this for much longer than two weeks.  The bigger problem with staying in a hotel for two weeks is washing underwear!  Lucky for me, RP lives nearby and has offered the use of her washing machine :D 

Missed My Flight...

... so I'm sitting in the airline lounge enjoying some freebies.  I don't normally have lounge access but I had a complimentary pass which I was saving for a most suitable occasion and today was the day.  

The best thing about the lounge?  Free food and alcohol! 

This Hungarian goulash was so-so.  Although I guess I don't know what a good goulash tastes like.   

 Next dish - some antipasto options.  The bonus today was macaroni cheese.  It was surprisingly good! 

More antipasto and cheese.  A glass of shiraz to help all it go down.  

I finally boarded my flight and am now in Canberra.  My employer stupidly booked in a hotel rather than a serviced apartment, so it's going to be a bit of struggle with dinner over the next few nights.  

My home for the next two weeks.  The room is far too big and so much space is wasted.  

Bar Lourinhã

Spu worked late tonight but that doesn't mean he's not up for some late night munching!  What a good eating buddy.  Late night eating options are a little more limited at 11pm but we managed to strike another restaurant off the Hitlist - Bar Lourinhã .  

It was a balmy night - the best kind - and wandering the streets for some munchies just makes so much sense.  I totally understand why the Spanish eat so late!  Bar Lourinha has embraced that spirit and their kitchen (not just the bar) opens until 11pm Monday to Thursday and until 1am Friday and Saturday.  All for your eating and drinking pleasure.

The venue itself is a small to mid-sized which added to the overall feel of tapas bars found in Spain :D  Me already happy.  Eating can be done seated at the bar or at table.  It was still half full at 11pm, so we were seated at the bar.  Still comfortable and if anything, it's nice to watch the barman serve up drinks and easier to order your own drinks!

I brought my camera but because the bartender was right in front of us, I was a bit embarrassed to take photos, so here's the run down of what we ate:

• Pork trotter and morcilla croquetas ($5 each) 
• Jamon Serrano Montesano Gran Reserva ($20)
• Slow cooked pork butt and piri piri ($24)
• Roasted mushrooms and garlic cream ($15)
• House made free range chorizo, apple and cider ($20) 
• Blood orange crema and burnt orange caramel ($11)

It was a pretty porky dinner.  A bit of overkill but we didn't notice it when placing the order.  Each dish was a reasonable size (although $5 per croqueta, large as they were, was pushing it) and for an 11pm dinner, we probably ordered one plate too many.  But because we are Asian, we left nothing to waste!  

Each dish was tasty and I particularly enjoyed the croquetas and mushrooms.  The mix of apple and chorizo sounded interesting and it worked quite well.  I was fairly content with the size of the jamon serving too although I could always do with more.  I thought the dessert would be more like a creme brulee but it was more like a panacotta.  Tasty nonetheless!

At $50 a head, I though it was reasonably priced and more happily so, all of the dishes were tasty and on the repeat-eat list.  I should go back and sample more of the food and drinks though.  I think Bar Lourinhã could become one of my regular haunts!