Walkers Fruit & Lemon Biscuits

Taste

These Walker's biscuits are really scrummy. There's a fresh lemon tang and some juicy raisins, with crunchy and crumbly biscuits. It's not shortbread but I may say it's even better!

Rating - 8

Look

It comes in the trademark red and black checkered box. The biscuits are contained in their own compartment, then sealed in foil. The biscuits look all lemony and cute with little specks of raisins.

Rating - 2

C-factor

150 g for $5.95 from DJs. A bit exy but they are imported from Scotland.

Rating - 0.5

Swiss Points - 10.5

Ingredients

wheat flour, sugar, currants (13%), butter, vegetable oils, lemon peel (3%), skimmed milk powder, raising agents, lemon oil, salt

Available At

David Jones Food Hall
Website

King Island Surprise Bay Cheddar

Taste

This is not that strong, not that salty, not that sweet, quite middle of the road really. One thing I command them for is the great balance in flavour they have achieved.

Rating - 7.5

Look

This is covered in a pleasent looking red wax. The cheese itself is very light in colour.

Rating - 2

C-factor

$29.99/kg is quite expensive for the type of cheese it is.

Rating - 0

Swiss Points - 9.5

Ingredients

pasteurised milk, salt, enzyme (rennet), cultures

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

Hastings Valley Dairy Country style Yoghurt

Taste

I tried a few different products from their range. The lemon myrtle & honey set the precedence. The subtle sweetness of the lemon myrtle combined well with the honey and vanilla yoghurt. It was a bit different, tasting a bit like ice-cream. The honey & walnut met my high expectations. The walnut a bit more subtle than lemon but adding a bit of spiciness. Lastly, the country biscuit reminds me of cookies & cream ice cream. The sweetness of the biscuits went quite well with the creamy yoghurt. The yoghurt itself was thick and creamy, but this is helped along by the addition of gelatine.

Not long after that, I had the pleasure of trying some non-Australian flavours, Apricot lite - which was not very spectacular at all, tasting like all the other apricots, except thankfully, less sweet, and Vanilla and Hazelnuts which had very little hazelnut or vanilla taste at all. I was disappointed after such success with the Aussie flavours.

Rating - Aussie flavours - 7.5, Others - 6

Look

The yoghurt is set in its own tub, and looks quite creamy. The lid is reseable, but I finished all of mine in one go ;p

Rating - 2

C-factor

200g $1.30, quite good value for a "boutique" yoghurt.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - Aussie flavours - 10.5, Others - 9

Ingredients

lemon myrtle & honey

whole milk, cream, skim milk powder, sugar, honey (5%), thickener, gelatine, vegetable gums, dried lemon myrtle, live culture

country biscuit

whole milk, skim milk powder, sugar, cream biscuit preparation (sugar, rolled oats, coconut desiccated, oat bran, malt extract powder), thickener, natural identical flavours, vegetable gums, gelatine, food acid, natural colour, live culture

Apricot

skim milk, whole milk, fruit preparation, skim milk powder, thickener, nature
identical flavours, vegetable gums, gelatine, food acid, natural colour, live
culture, min 5% apricot

Available At

Coles
Website

Castellini Hungarian Salami

Taste

Very strong, almost overpowering. There is a sharp sour taste, with fat distributed throughout. The pepper kick is quite strong.

Rating - 6

Look

This comes like a fat sausage, it's hard to slice into pieces, and harder to keep once it's opened. The deep red of the meat looks very inviting though.

Rating - 1

C-factor

300g for $4.99. Not great.

Rating - 0

Swiss Points - 7

Ingredients

meat (96%), salt, soy protein, spices, dextrose, lactose, food acids, mineral salts, antioxidant, sodium nitrate, starter culture

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

Quadrant Restaurant

We were off to see the lovely Jean-Yves Thibaudet at the Opera House. Being a Sydneysider, I'd never tried the row of restaurants along "the toaster". On this occasion though, I thought I would show off Sydney. There was a storm brewing, so I chose to sit indoors instead, so that's how we found ourselves at Quadrant Restaurant.

Food

We decided to take up the Pre-Theatre Menu, of 1 course + glass of wine for $35. There were only 3 choices on the menu, so we picked the beef medallion with sauteed spinach on a potato puree, which had the most tender beef I have tasted for a long time, although it was cooked a bit passed the medium I specified, with a lovely rich wine reduction sauce on the potato puree. Viv's pork fillet, caramelized apple, prune and armangac was equally lovely. The pork was tender, the meat sweet and mild, so that the stronger accompaniment of apple and prunes was not overwhelming the pork.

Our accompanying wines were fine but not anything flashy. The bread roll was a safe choice of a soft white roll, but some good butter.

We were having such a good time discussing everything that we decided we had time for dessert. We shared the coconut and mango bombe alaska, raspberry coulis ($16). Those who know me will know that I am not a fan of meringue, so I automatically have a dislike of the outer shell of this dessert. In saying that though, it looked so spectacular with that white dome with browned side sitting in the middle of a pool of red sauce. The inside filling tastes, I have to say, like a weiss bar. It was a bit too sweet for my taste so I'm glad we shared.

Rating - 7

Atmosphere

Well, we did dine on a Monday night, aka "stay at home night", so the restaurant was very quiet. The only other people out and about were tourists. Towards the end of the night we did see a couple of family groups around, but that was it. The restaurant is quite small but very nice, all white tablecloth and formal service, somehow it didn't fit with the type of people going there though.

We were seated in a corner besides the window, where we got a view across Circular Quay and was a great spot for people watching.

Rating - 2

Service

Very polite and "correct". Well, considering they had two waiters serving a room of about 10 people, I expect them to be on the balls. We had no problems with anything at all.

Rating - 3.5

C-factor

$35 for a main and wine, is ok considering the location and that they are using good produce. A normal main course there costs >$30 normally. Enjoying the time with an old friend I haven't seen for a long time? As they say, priceless.

Rating - 1.5

Brownie Points - 14

Info

Level 2, Quay Grand Suites Sydney
61 Macquarie Street
East Circular Quay
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9256 4000
Website

Janani 2

I am actually quite surprised that I haven't been back here again until now, but so many restaurants, so little time, and so little money...but better late than never, so here I am!

Food

It's great to see that every time I come they seem to add more on the menu, but I decided that it was time to revisit an old favourite. The Masala dosai ($6) was as good as I remembered it to be. A crunchy lentil pancake encases some seriously morish spicy potato mixture. The silver tray also contained - green yoghurt stuff, orange sauce, 2 soupy thing. All accompanied of course by my favourite plain lassi ($3.50). Dad picked his usual Vegetable Thali - Palin rice & Puri with 5 Vege. curries curd,pickle,pappadam and other specials - ($8.50) offering. The curries were great as usual, the standout this time was actually the one with cheese! The food was a standout as usual.

Rating - 8

Atmosphere

Well, it looks like thsoe renovations have finished. There is now a plasma in the room showing those Bollywood movies instead of that small TV! Otherwise, things are the same. We chose to sit outside this time, and got to see the guy sitting behind us consume 2 entrees, a main and a Naan all by himself. Considering how huge the meals usually are, it's an amazing acheivement!

Rating - 1.5

Service

Well, it was busier this time, so we found the service pretty slow. The food was a bit slower than usual (but was still only about 10 minutes). Service is not one of their strongest points but I am so familiar with this palce that I can almost serve myself, almost.

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

Still cheap as chips for good hearty food. Dining al frescho was great, and the best thing is watching everyone else eat.

Rating - 1.5

Brownie Points - 13.5

Info

32 Burlington Rd
Homebush
NSW 2140
Phone (02) 9763 2306
Website

Bond Cafe

Bond is an old favourite for the work set, I come here regularly for coffee. It's the first time I've tried lunch though.

Food

Bond actually pitches itself at the high end of the cafe market, with main course prices in the mid 20s. I ordered the tuna ($27.90), which was actually quite beautifully cooked, to medium as requested. The tuna rested on top of a bed of crunchy potato mash, with a creamy orange and green sauce. We accompanied this by some ordinary white Woodfire bread served with extra virgin olive and balsamic ($4.50) - which I can't believe we had to pay so much money for so little quality. The Potato fries ($6) were shoestring, so not my favourite, but were passable. At least they were crunchy and not dried.

The others seem to like their mains, so it has led me to conclude that the mains are good, but they skim on bread...but since I love bread so much, not performing even adequately in this department means that I have to dock points from them.

Rating - 6.5

Atmosphere

This place is always filled with corporate types. The setting is very casual, white laminated tables, quite closely placed together, with the only section offering a bit of privacy being those seated on the banquettes near the semi-open kitchen. There is a footpath dining section, but that gets filled pretty quickly too.

The furnishing is very safe, and looks like other typical cafes, I wish they'll go for more though.

Rating - 1.5

Service

Well, the staff do a lot of things wrong, like making our table too small to accommodate 7, forgetting my order, to not knowing the etiquette. They redeem themselves though, by fixing any problems quickly and apologising sincerely whenever something happens.

The regulars here also get special treatment, and everyone always seem happy about the place. It certainly helps a lot if you are having a bad day.

Rating - 3.5

C-factor

The mains are about on par. The coffee and the extras are too expensive, especially for a casual place in the city, and with so much competition around.

Having lunch with great company though was all worth it, especially when I can delay my return to evil boss and hell work.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 12.5

Info

111 Phillip St
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9223 9332
Website

Pyrmont Bridge Hotel

Question? What kind of bar doesn't have lime? I asked for a simple drink. Frangelico with lime and the girl informed me... we don't have any limes...ok, so I made do with Frangelico with lemonade, which actually tasted ok...I only had one of those, then switched to soft drinks. They served up a few packets of chips, still in their bag too. And the service... don't get me started. They made a big fuss about how the manager had to walk up 3 flights of stairs just so she can serve us, and there was a huge fuss about starting a tab. So who actually drinks in this pub? The only good thing I can say about this is their roof-top garden is relaxing and cosy for drinks, with some superb views back to the city.

Info

96 Union St
Pyrmont
NSW 2009
Phone (02) 9660 6996
Website

Girls Night Out

9 girls in short shorts and towering stilettos gathered at the Shangri La on a Saturday night. We rode the escalator up to the famed Blu Horizons Bar for a Hens Night drinks. We got there at around 10pm, which was the best time as we just managed to beat the crowd and scored a table that sat 4. For those not in the know, Blu Horizons is famous for their eye-popping view of Sydney Harbour as well as their extravagant and delicious cocktails. Well, all the tables with the views were taken, so we had to make do catching glimpses of it. Fortunately we were kept amused by the huge choice of cocktails:

• Aperitif Cocktails ($16.50)
• Champagne Cocktails ($18.00)
• Blu Martini ($17.50)
• Blu Signatures ($18.50)
• Horizon Classic Cocktails ($17.50)
• Classic Cocktails ($17.50)
• Shooters ($12.50)
• Classic Cocktails ($17.50)
• Flames ($14.50)
• Test Tubes ($14.00)
• Healthies ($13.00)
• beer
• wine
• spirits

After deliberating for 10 minutes or so, I finally setteld on a Blu Signature, A Little G-Thang - cucumber infused Absolut Vodka, Jade Honey Dew Melon liqueur, Midori, muddled kiwi fruit, shaken with pineapple juice & a sugar rim. This arrived in a martini glass, with green tinted sugar lining the rim and a cut kiwifruit as decoration. Little pieces of kiwi-fruit floated in an apple green liquid. I'm happy to report that it tasted as good, if not better, than it looks. It was subtly sweet but not overpowering. You can feel the heat of the alcohol but it's nicely balanced. The other girls were also very happy with their pretty and delicious cocktails.

While we waited, we watched the passing parade of people coming to the bar, there were old couples, young couples, groups of friends, even some kids and people dressed in kimonos. The majority were good looking people dressed up to have a good time. I actually felt a bit old and daggy here...

While still waiting (it was busy) we saw a few groups vacate their spots. We were tempted to jump ships, but was warned by one of the girls that anyone who switches seats without permission gets kicked out. And it's true, we saw 2 other groups of people kicked out because they switched seats. So we did it the smart way, we asked the waiters, and they graciously allowed us to do the swap. I can understand why they are so anal though, they have a HUGE crowd waiting to get in.

By midnight, we'd all finished our drinks, they turned the music up, the cool people were piling in, time for us to go.

But wait, it's not all good. They took FOREVER to bring us the bill, but at least it was calculated correctly.

Info

Level 36, Shangri-La Hotel Sydney
176 Cumberland St
The Rocks
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9250 6123
Website

Jindi Supreme

Taste

This cheese won the Australian Grand Diary Award - 2004 champion, and I have to say, is very very good. It's similar to a triple cream cheese and is very gooey and certainly creamy, with the right balance of saltiness.

Rating - 8

Look

Like other Jindi products, the packaging is not exactly that appealing but the cheese itself screams "eat me".

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

170g for$6.99. Comparable to other top rate Australian cheese. Worth it.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 10.5

Ingredients

pasturized milk, starter cultures, salt & non animal rennet

Available At

Supermarkets everywhere

Black Swan pepperdews with cream cheese

Taste

These are much spicier than the ones I get from the deli. They have a mix of cream cheese AND pesto in the filling. The peppers are still crunchy, the filling wonderful. The oil is not of the best quality though.

Rating - 6.5

Look

This comes in a little pack with a reseable black lid. The red and white look very vibrant swimming in the oil.

Rating - 2

C-factor

140 g $3.99. If you buy these in the deli at Harris Farm they cost $35/kg, so I guess they are much cheaper!

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 10

Ingredients

cream cheese (44%), red piquant peppers (36%), canola and olive oil blend, basil pesto, herbs 7 spices, sorbic acid

Available At

Supermarkets everywhere

Katjes Summer Fruit Frenzy Fruit Jellies

Taste

Before I went to Germany, I had no idea that they are famous for their fruit jellies. But after tasting what they had on offer, I couldn't go back to just any old jellies. Katjes is from Germany, and they live up to that German goodness. Each fruit piece was juicy and soft, with no "artificial" taste. The flavours on offer: lemon, red currant, blueberries, strawberry and orange, are also more desirable than your stock standard flavours.

Rating - 8

Look

Each lolly is in the shape of its fruit flavour, super cute. The packaging looks fun, but nothing like Japan's.

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

We got these 180g pack in the Vogue showbag.

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 11

Ingredients

glucose fructose syrup, sugar,fruit pulp.5 & fruit juice (8%) from fruit juice concentrates (cherry, strawberry, blueberry, leemon, orange, currant), gelatine, acid, pectin, flavourings, glazing agent

Available At

Supermarkets?

Godiva Chocolatier

Taste

My first encounter with Godiva was a few years back, and the memory has stayed with me ever since. There's a shop at the QVB which sells them and I like to go and admire. This time around, I tried 2 precious pieces from their collection.

The first was a dark chocolate liquor filled chocolate. The aroma of the dark chocolate was heavenly, the liquor strong. The second was a milk chocolate filled with a creme centre, no nuts. Of course milk doesn't compare with dark but the creme centre was smooth and not too sweet.

Rating - 7.5

Look

The distinctive gold packaging with the black Godiva ribbon has become a trademark and is as well known as the chocolates themselves. Each chocolate sits in their own little compartment with the cushioning top cover. Of course each chocolate looks special and inviting. Just like a Tiffany's box, you know the box represents luxury.

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

$190/kg. Exy! Good things these were a gift!

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 11

Ingredients

bittersweet chocolate (sugar, chocolate, cocoa butter, cocoa, butter oil, soya lecithin-an emulsifier, milk, vanillin-an, artifical flavouring, antural flavouring), milk chocolate (sugar, coca butter, chocolate, skim milk, milk, butter oil, soya lecthin-an emulsifier, matural flavouring), jazelnuts, sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, natural flavouring

Available At

David Jones Food Hall
Website

Doyles Watsons Bay

I've heard such bad things about Doyles' food that I wasn't looking forward to going. Apparently the view is all this place is good for, and it's full of foolish tourists who don't know any better for rip-off food. (Actually it's not the tourists' fault when this place keep being lauded for being the best seafood restaurant in Australia.) Unfortunately, this lived up to its reputation...

Food

We were there as part of a Hen's Night package so we had a set menu of:

• fish & chips
• chicken burger
• "wagyu" beef burger
• chicken caesar salad
• lasagne

They were all supposed to be served with chips and salad but no one got any sort of salad in site. I didn't try the other meals, but I can say that the "wagyu" beef burger tasted like crap. The bread was dry and stale, the bun toasted to a dry cardboard like material. The beef pattie contained mince, no sort of wagyu whatsoever - not quite the same kind of fat here! There was 2 pieces of tasteless tomatoes and a thumnail's worth of shredded iceberg lettuce. They'd already put some ordinary tomato sauce on the patty, but it was needed because the whole thing was so dry.

The chips were terrible, they were so dried out, and had probably been recooked because it just felt like eating oily skin, there was no potato filling inside. Let me say it, it's like the Maccas French flies except these chips are meant to be thick. I think it's one of the worst chips I've ever eaten.

To make matters worst, the house chardonnay I ordered as part of the meal was s**t. I only had a few sips...enough said.

Rating - 4

Atmosphere

If you forget about the people smoking all around you, the view and the atmosphere really is to die for. We arrived in style, by water taxi. According to some girls though, if you drive in, it's certainly not relaxing. We watched all sorts of people gathering there, and they all seemed to be having a good time, but it was an absolutely beautiful day. If it wasn't...

Rating - 2

Service

What service? You are supposed to line up for your food and get a buzzer, but because we were on the special package, they actual took our order and delivered it to us. They were crap, didn't explain things properly, and delivered slowly. Appalling.

Rating - 1

C-factor

Yeah, all the meals are expensive and a rip off. However, the company was great and that's where the marks come from on this occasion.

Rating - 0.5

Brownie Points - 7.5

Info

11 Marine Pde
Watsons Bay
NSW 2030
Phone (02) 9337 2007
Website

Grana Padano

Taste

It has a milder taste than Parmesan, but is still best suited to cooking, or eating with a beautiful caramelised balsamic vinegar!

Rating - 7

Look

Quite creamy and crumbly, almost rustic really!

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

$16.99/kg, good value!

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 10

Ingredients

Italian milk, salt, rennet, egg white, lysozume

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

Gloria Jeans

Taste

We tried:

• Mocha Chillers Cookies 'n Cream ($5.20): Coffee, milk and tasty Oreo biscuits blended with ice, topped with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles. - a mild coffee hit with sweet biscuit and chocolate base, a bit too icy and not as creamy as I thought, but not bad
• Café Latte ($3.30): Espresso and steamed milk below a thin layer of smooth, silky milk - they serve their coffees hot! I quite like the flavour of their beans but the results really depends on who serves you. The baristas at Borders Skygarden the best and the one at North Strathfield the worst. (See my ratings for a complete list.)
• Mixed Berry Smoothie Chillers ($5.50): A non-fat blend of natural fruit puree, skim milk and ice - it's my fault for ordering a non-coffee drink at a coffee place, but I thought I would stop coffee overload by having a non-coffee drink. BIG mistake. This was artificial, sickly sweet and very icy. Very foul.
• Irish Nut Crème ($5.30): A magical mix of Irish Crème and Hazelnut Italian style syrups, white chocolate, espresso and milk. All beneath a mound of whipped cream and green sprinkles. - was very very sweet. The taste of caramel and baileys flavour was pleasant, but was too overpowering for a coffee. No wonder it's sweet - that white chocolate!
• Chocolate Macadamia Nut ($5.30): Soft nut flavour with a hint of chocolate. - again, sweet as anything. It tasted very similar to the Irish Cream, but with mre caramel. I don't know where the nut comes from.

Like other cafes, Gloria Jeans is a franchise so you really need to find the right one.

Rating - 6

Look

All the drinks are standard, and come with either the white lid for the hot drinks or the clear dome for the cold. I like their brown colour scheme (better than Starbucks!). There are a heap of condiments (honey, chocolate sprinkle) you can have with your drinks. There are comfy seatings and mags for you in the cafe, so it's a welcoming place.

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

About on par with other cafes. I still think it's too expensive for hot milk though!

Rating - 0.5

Swiss Points - 8

Available At

Gloria Jeans
Website

Gloria Jeans Rating

Best Coffee

1. Borders Skygarden
2. Rhodes Shopping Centre
3. Mid City Centre
4. Haymarket
5. Sydney Central Plaza
6. North Strathfield

Best Service

1. Mid City Centre
2. Borders Skygarden
3. North Strathfield
4. Haymarket
5. Rhodes

Worst Service

1. Sydney Central Plaza

Zenja 2

Time for another girly catch-up. I was a bit apprehensive about going to Zenja after my experiences last time, but on occasions before that one, I've had such a great time here that I decided I needed another evaluation, and I am so glad I did.

Food

The girls were happy to have brunch. They ordered the Bacon omelette ($8.90), which looked lovely and fluffy, and the corn fritters, which I am happy to report, has two healthy stems of asparagus instead of the tips we got last time.

I decided to deviate from the normal and ordered lunch instead of breakfast items. The Grilled Chicken Burger ($12.90) came with a lettuce salad, dressed just right, a side of thick chips, crunchy and fluffy, which I couldn't finish, and a dusty flour bun with melted cheese and tomato, grilled chicken fillets, tomatoes and mayo. I love the combo of chicken, tomato and mayo. Everything just goes together so nicely. The bun was soft and fresh, much more like what I expect from Zenja.

I also got the Zenja Daily ($5) - a bit more watery than I expected, but refreshing nevertheless.

Rating - 7.5

Atmosphere

I haven't stayed very late for lunch before. The place seems to be quieter at lunchtime. This was such a glorious day that eating at a cafe that lets all the elements in is the best way to wind away a morning...or an afternoon.

Rating - 2.5

Service

It was very reassuring to have the owner hind the counter again. It seemed to make a difference to the food and the service. My gfs were late so I sat at a table by myself, reading the paper. They were very accommodating about that. They gave us plenty of time to pursue the menu, and delivered the meals quickly. The staff were very polite and I didn't notice any mishaps like last time. In fact, I witness quite the opposite. While I was waiting, I saw the owner call over to a few regulars for some coffees and a few people stopped by just to chat, a good sign.

Rating - 4

C-factor

The gfs forgot to use the e-voucher, so we ended up paying full price. We did spend over 2 hours there so the price was right. This just gives us the excuse to go back again I guess!

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 15

Info

5 George Street
North Strathfield
NSW 2037
Phone (02) 9746 9334

Wagamama TGV

We haven't been to Wagamama for awhile. I always feel that this place is way overpriced for the food it serves, and only ever go there for free meals or 2 for 1 meals. Well, I won another TGV prize, so yes, another FREE MEAL was offered up, so that's how we found ourselves dining there again.

Food

We've tried just about every dish on the menu. Being a very hot day, we decided to forgo the soup noodles and order some summer friendly dishes instead. Our "entree" (as we all know by now, the dishes at Wagamama appears in random order, so this arrived after one of our mains) was from the special Spring Menu, the Crab Korroke - lightly crumbed spicy crab cakes served with Japanese mayonnaise ($8). It arrived at our table golden brown and piping out. The filling was kinda like eating raw dough. I couldn't taste any crabs and they were not spicy. Some vegetables as well as the golden outer gave it crunch. The "Japanese" mayo was just mayo with herbs added, but was nice enough.

The Ginger Chicken Udon - teppan-fried udon noodles and chicken marinated in ginger, garlic and lemongrass. served with snowpeas, red onion, beansprouts, chilli, egg and spring onion. Garnished with pickled ginger and fresh coriander ($16.50) - was a poor choice. There was hardly any chicken and the ginger seem to dominate the whole dish. What's more, the onions weren't chopped properly and came in strips that were still attached together at the end, that is just so poor attention to details.

The hit of the day was the Gyokai Mango Salad - shredded crabstick, prawns, rocket, bean shoots, kamaboko, snow peas, yaki chikuwa,daikon and carrots tossed with a sweet soy Asian dressed and served with a mango salsa ($15.50). The ingredients were fresh. The rocket added bite while the daikon and carrots added sweetness and texture. They were a bit skimpy on the seafood, with only little bits of prawns and very little crab. The kamaboko and yaki chikuwa are actually fish balls/sticks things, and was quite pleasant. I liked the dressing best, the nutty sweetness really conveying the feel of spring. I don't know what the mango salsa added though... it was put to the side and I kinda just mixed it a little with the salad. It was pretty tasteless, only the added chilli in it lifted it through.

Rating - 5

Atmosphere

Well, with a chain, at least you know what you get. Long timber communal tables, with my favourite feature, the handy handbag rest under each table. It's very casual, with a no booking policy, the wait staff dressed in their Wagamama t-shirt uniform, and the order written on placemats, this place is aimed at the trendy crowd. If you want "real" Japanese food, don't eat here, but if you want a casual and relaxed setting, with reasonable food with some friends, this is a great place.

I really like the location of this Wagamama. On this occasion, we were seated near the window. You can sit and observe the hustle and bustle of shoppers below.

Rating - 2

Service

Even for a franchise, the quality of service is always hit and miss. On this occasion, the restaurant was busy but not overly busy, and the waiters served us in good time. They also clear all our dishes AND bought us water, plus the meals came out at a reasonable time. The bill was also worked out quickly. I know I know, this is what you would expect from a typical restaurant but believe me, you don't always get it.

Rating - 3.5

C-factor

Like I said before, Wagamama is normally a rip-off, but if you use their 2 for 1 vouchers or look out for free meals, it's a good experience.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 11.5

Info

level 1,
TGV
500 George St
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9264 9155
Website

Tasmanian Pate Cracked Pepper

Taste

One of the best pates on the market I have to say. The pate was complex and "livery" enough for my liking, the pepper adding a nice sting but not overpowering, the pate was creamy and smooth.

Rating - 7.5

Look

I really like the look of pate. This one is in the standard rectangular packaging where you peel back some plastics and eat, nothing out of the ordinary. It's hard to store, but it would look nice on a platter.

Rating - 1

C-factor

125g for $3.99. It's cheap and better than some of the other stuff that's more expensive in the supermarket.

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 10

Ingredients

chicken liver, lard, onions, butter, gelatine, pepper, salt, herbs, preservatives

Available At

Supermarkets everywhere

Maggie Beer Pheasant Farm Pate

Taste

This pate from the famous Maggie Beer range is sweeter than others. It comes in a round tub instead of the rectangular slab. It doesn't hold its shape but is more mousse like. The pate itself is great, but I don't really enjoy the whole berries that are buried in the pate instead of just on the jelly on top. I found the jelly is a bit sweet and come off in chunks.

Rating - 6.5

Look

The prettiest of the lot. It comes in a black, non see through tub. Best of all, it's easily resealed for any unfinished product - and who can eat this in one go? The jelly layer was a light champagne colour and very pretty. Maggie has also printed her philosophy on the side of the box.

Rating - 2

C-factor

220g for $6.99, about on par for pate, and it's a great price for the quality.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 9.5

Ingredients

poultry liver (33%), port, margarin,e thickened cream, water, egg, onion, thickener, garlic, spices, juniper berries, salt

Available At

Supermarkets, gourmet food stores

Sculpture by the Sea 2006

I've wanted to go to the famous Sculpture by the Sea for years, but every year it's only on for a short period of time and I had always been busy (usually with study or weddings), but I can now report that I finally made it this year. It did take a lot of effort, as Cityrail was not running trains between Hornsby and Strathfield, but they promised a replacement bus was running every 10 minutes. So off we went to North Strathfield station. Sure enough, it took 40 mins before the bus arrived. Well, the bus was filled up already, so the 20 or so people waiting at North Strathfield decided to squeeze on anywhere, who knows when the next bus will come. What's worst, once on the bus, we were stuck in a traffic jam, so that it took 20 minutes to complete a 5 minutes journey. So all together it took us about an hour to get from North Strathfield to Strathfield. What made it worst was that if we had walked from home it would only be 25 minutes, but that's traffic in Sydney for you.

Once we reached Strathfiled though, it only took 15 minutes on the train to reach Town Hall, where we hopped on to a bus, which took 45 minutes to get to Bondi Beach.

So after the long journey, we finally arrived. The sculptures are situated on the walk between Bondi Beach and Taramara Beach. There were over 100 exhibits ranging from "wonderful" to "What the?". The walk was filled with people all out and about, enjoying the excellent weather like us. We even got some of our photos printed out for free.

So where's the food I hear you ask? Well, we were so late they'd already given out all the free samples of Lipton ice-tea. Once we made our way back to the shopping/tourist strip, we went to the wonderful Gelato Bar, recently reviewed in SMH to try their pastries. Their window displayed a whole array of wonderful treat, I picked up the Poppy Seed Strudel ($5.00), glossy with poppy seed, the feeling sweet but aromatic, and the pastry was flaky and wonderful. It was also big enough for 2. Slokky had the Giant Palmier ($4.50), and it was one of the best palmiers I've ever tasted, and I should know, since we've been on the hunt for great palmiers for a looong time. (The other palmier that was great was in New Caledonia, but you can't go there to get one whenever you get the craving). The buttery and flaky pastry was slightly sweet... yum.

Satisfied, we took the 40 mins bus ride back to town, where we tried to book a restaurant to go to. Encasa, Cafe Pacifico and Mezzaluna were all booked out, but we were told by Mezzaluna staff to try their sister restaurant, Beppi's, instead. So we gave them a call, and sure enough they had a table for us. After dining there, I know why they have a table available now, read my review to find out.

Postscript - the bus back home only took 10 minutes, including waiting time!

Info

Gelato Bar
140 Campbell Parade
Bondi Beach
NSW 2026
Phone (02) 9130 4033

Beppi's
21 Yurong St (Crn Stanley St)
East Sydney
NSW 2010
Phone (02) 9360 4558
Website

Beppi's

Beppi's is one of the oldest restaurant in Sydney. It's in the news a lot but hasn't been a place I had particularly wanted to to try. But this Saturday we really felt like eating out in the city, and as usual, our top 5 choices were all booked out, but Beppi's had a table. Even though we were a bit suspicious about a restaurant that has spare table on a lovely Saturday evening, we decided to give it a try anyway.

Food

The food is what you would call "classic Italian", none of that new-age or Modern Italian stuff. We took this opportunity to try some of the dishes we had in Italy.

For entree we shared the Capelli d'Angelo con Granchio Gamberi e Zafferano - Angel hair pasta with blue swimmer crab meat and saffron ($24). Well, about 2 minutes after we ordered, the meal had already arrived at our table, I was still making my way back from the bathroom when the waiter skillfully divided the pasta onto two plates for us. Thankfully the pasta tasted hot and fresh, so maybe their prep work was good? The pasta wasn't the best I've had, but the creamy sauce had great complexity and just the right amount of cream. There was a generous amount of crab, cooked well.

We had virtually just finished licking our plates clean when the waiters cleared our plates. A few minutes later, our mains arrived. I ordered Beppi's Veal Saltimbocca con Formaggio e Prosciutto - White veal scaloppine folded with ham, fontina cheese and sage ($38) just so I could compare Beppi's to Rome's. The presentation was classic Italian. 3 white veal fillets smothered with cheese on a white plate, serve it like it is with nothing extra. The veal was very tender and the cheese tasty, but I'd forgotten that I didn't really like the saltimbocca from Rome because it was too salty. There's nothing to fault about Beppi's interpretation, except I found this one too salty. The bacon was pretty overpowering. The Spatchcock con Salsa di Vino Rosmarino e Aglio - Panfried Spatchcock with Rosemary, garlic & white wine ($38) was nicely cooked. The quails were fried to the brown side of golden, the birds were average size but retained its juices after cooking. The classic rosemary, garlic and white wine combo was a winner. The waiter warned us that there were no vegetables on the plate (which was kinda untrue as there was 11/2 a tomato, but then again, we all know that a tomato is a fruit right?), so we ordered the Vegetable ($8) - baked potatoes and green beans. I was disappointed with this dish. For $8 we got some baked potatoes, not cooked that nicely (no crunchiness & fluffiness!) and too salty. The beans were blanched, with no sauce added, but they didn't even string the beans!

I think the longest part of the experience was actually our eating - it's hard deboning the quails with knife & fork! As soon as we put our cutlery down, the plates were cleared and dessert menu brought. It suited us fine as we were tired and just wanted to eat and go home, but if we had wanted to make an evening out of it, well...We skipped dessert and actually got out of there after 1 hour, which must be a record for this type of restaurant.

Rating - 7

Atmosphere

We certainly felt out of place there. First off, we were dressed very casually after our Sculpture by the Sea outing. Everyone else was dressed to the nines. Secondly, we seem to be the only people under 40... maybe even 50, eating there!

We watched the waiters greet a lot of people, who were obviously regulars, there are also one or two tables set for one, it's that sort of place. The decor is like an old house, the furniture quite rustic and basic. The colour scheme is "old style", with dark green and brown and orange the dominant colour. There are some "homely" looking paintings on the wall. One thing though, the tables were VERY VERY close to each other. There certainly is not much privacy. We were put in a corner table that really should only seat 1, luckily we weren't that fat, but it wasn't exactly the most comfortable or pleasant setting. We were right next to a doorway AND the staff door to the bar. The good thing was we were tucked in the corner and the table next to us was empty, otherwise it would be very unpleasant indeed.

Rating - 0.5

Service

The age of the waiters seem to reflect the clientele. I didn't see any without grey hair. The waiters might be unattractive, but at least they can serve. They certainly have great experience, being polite, and anticipated when we needed attention. They all seemed to be Italian or at least spoke with an Italian accent. Not long after we sat down, they asked us if we would like some bruschetta or anything, and we said no, then they looked at us incredilously and said, "no bread", in that very Italian manner. They also do the giant pepper grinder thing. I consider them part of the entertainment!

Rating - 3.5

C-factor

The bill came to $70 with our e-card discount. It's in the more expensive range, but they serve quite homely food, and the poor attention to detail certainly didn't warrant the price. It was certainly a strange meal. The speed suited us fine and we did get some entertainment watching the waiters.

Rating - 0.5

Brownie Points - 11.5

Info

21 Yurong St (Crn Stanley St)
East Sydney
NSW 2010
Phone (02) 9360 4558
Website

De Costi Seafoods

I won a few prices as part of the TGV October competition, so I went to claim my prize today.

Taste

De Costi's is of course originally from the Sydney Fish Markets, but in the last couple of years has spread their retail arm into shopping centres and food courts. The Salt & Pepper Squid & Chips Pack($7.50) was definitely fresh fried, and it came piping out on a bed of chips. The batter was a bit thick, but the pepper coating great. The texture of the squid was kinda mushy, and it didn't really feel like squid at all. The chips were of medium thickness - I know they use McCain's as I saw them take bags of it out of their cool room as I waited. They were ok but a little too salty. The best thing was actually their tartare sauce, not sickly sweet like most tartare sauce, but with a complex flavour and a slight tartness.

Rating - 5.5

Look

The squid has been scored in that beautiful diagonal pattern, and fried to a golden colour. It comes in a Styrofoam box.

Rating - 2

C-factor

For $7.50 you get 7 small pieces of squid and a big box of chips and a small tub of sauce. Probably doesn't cost that much to make... Well, I got mine for free because of the comp, but would I pay for it? Probably not.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 8.5

Available At

De Costi Seafoods
RLG13&14, Shop 04
Lower Ground Floor
TGV
500 George St
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9283 9330

Lindt Dark Hot Chocolate

Lindt Cafe used to be the favourite haunt of my old work team, but since I left and since they jacked up their prices, I haven't been back. Today though, I had this craving for hot chocolate, so that's how I found myself back there, ordering up. The place was packed as usual, and I had to wait quite awhile for my hot chocolate.

Taste

Followers of this blog will know that I love dark chocolate, so I ordered a dark hot chocolate ($3.50). Take-away is not as fun as having it there, where they serve froth milk in one jug, and melted choc in the other, and you mix the two to the sweetness you desire. For takeaway though, they determine all that for you, but they do put a sprinkling of chocolate shivers on top, just like they do with all their coffee orders. You can tell that this has been made with real chocolate, a dark milky drink, it's very filling, and for some reason, tastes better than Max Brenner's.

I also picked up the Coffee Delice ($1.70) - which is a French macaroons, two small mounds of melt in the mouth almond meringue sandwiched together with a rich ganache filling. This one is a Coffee macaroon dusted with cocoa powder with a Lindt dark chocolate and coffee filling. I am not usually a fan of meringues, but this one really is melt in the mouth, and light as a feather. The filling was complex, I really like this!

I also had the opportunity to try the Giajuda Delice ($1.70), which, could you believe, was prehaps even better than the coffee. Giajuda means hazelnut, and this one was nutty and chocolatey!

Rating - 7.5

Look

If you haven't checked out the cafe, go do it. A space with extra high ceiling, there are all the Lindt products on display, it's very tempting while you wait. The chocolate and delice both look as good as they taste!

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

$3.50 for a small takeaway, $4 for a large. It's up to $5 for eat in. The delice are $1.70 each or 2 for $4 eat in. Lindt is pretty expensive, but I think it's worth trying, if it's only once.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 11

Available At

53 Martin Place
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 8257 1600

"Gold" Drinks

My favourite trashy read, 9To5 had a promotion as part of their special gold issue, for a free at Mint. So that's how I found myself wondering to the stylish and exclusive Inter Continental Hotel on a cool Thursday evening. Mint is dolled up to look very sexy, with silver, beige and chocolate being the colour scheme. The atmosphere is enhanced by low lighting and a lot of velvet seatings with scattered cushions. This Thursday night was pretty quiet, with some couples, friends, hotel guests, and, I am sure of this, 2 people on first dates enjoying a drinks.

The bar is split over several levels of little inter-connected rooms. We settled in the main room, on some comfy couches next to the faux fire place. There is table service and we were immediately brought the menus. Thursday also happened to be 2 for 1 drinks night, with 5 drinks on their menu qualifying for the deal. We tried the Vanilla & Lychee Martini ($16) - vanilla vodka mixed with Pariso lychee liqeur and lychees - quite sweet, doesn't taste much of alcohol, but looks very pretty with a single lychee resting at the bottom of the martini glass, and definitely a girly drink. The Mango Dash ($16) - mango juice with mango liqueur with bubbles and a touch of cranberry juice - was served up in a big bourbon glass. I think the champagne must be pretty bad quality, as I didn't enjoy this drink at all. I thought it was a bit off balance, hey, but that looked pretty too!

I think I must've been the only person to spot the freebie in 9To5, (hehe I have a talent for these things), because when I asked the bartender, they had no idea about it, but said I could have any cocktail on the menu on the house anyway! I chose the High Roller ($16) - grey goose wodka mixed with tuaca and orange curacao combined with muddled lemons and oranges - and it was a great combination of sweet orange, bitter lemons and alcohol. The drink was very refreshing and great for summer.

This is a great spot for some mid-week drinkies. I don't know how crowded it gets on the weekend. There's a great sounding nosh menu too, but we didn't try it because we were heading to Ceci for dinner. The bartender was polite, so I even gave him a generous tip when we left. Now THAT'S a sign that I enjoyed myself.

Info

Mint Bar & Dining
62 Bridge St
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 99240 1210
Website

Bulla Chocolate & Vanilla Ice-cream

Taste

Bulla is the best of the "non-premium" supermarket brand out there. I've always been a fan of their vanilla. Not too sweet, with a hint of real vanilla, and not too much buttermilk either. Their ice-creams are always nice and airy, very soft and creamy and not at all dense. The chocolate was also gorgeous, a real chocolate taste!

They've won a lot of awards for their products, including

Rating - 7

Look

Not that great, and the tubs looks like every other tubs out there. The ice-cream is missing that "gloss" that makes them so inviting.

Rating - 0.5

C-factor

The 2L retails for around $4, the 4L around $7 and the 5L around $8 I think. It's great value for the product you get.

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 9

Ingredients

fresh whole milk, liquid sugar, fresh cream, milk solids non-fat, maltodextrin, cocoa powder (.8%), emulsifier, vegetable gums, vanilla flavour, colour

Available At

Supermarkets everywhere

Ferrero Raffaello

Taste

This is just about the only "white" chocolate I actually like. Just like a Ferrero Rocher, only in white! A crunchy shell surrounds a white coconut cream with an almond centre, coated with crunchy coconut flakes. Admittedly, not as good as a Rocher, but a nice change. Yup, it's not a chocolate at all, but a little piece of heaven. Did you know that Ferrero is also the maker of nutella and tic-tacs? They are a talented bunch!

Rating - 7

Look

Absolutely beautiful, all snowy and white, in a bite-sized snow dome. They come individually wrapped too!

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

These babies are qutie expensive but should only be consumed as a treat.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 10.5

Ingredients

odium Bicarbonate Leavening Agent , Vanillin Artificial Flavor , Salt , Soy Lecithin Emulsifier , Natural Flavor , Milk Proteins , Lactose , Wheat Flour , Almond , Non-Fat Dry Milk , Sugar , Dry Coconut Extract , Dry Coconut , Modified Palm Oil

Available At

Supermarkets, specialty stores

Sanitarium Granola Clusters

Taste

I tried the Vanilla and almond version of this new cereal range. They are very interesting, a mix of corn flakes, and "clusters" (really the best way to describe them) of Sanitarium's Weet Bix, mixed with bits of dried fruit and nuts. After you add milk, the clusters become the soggy texture that Weet Bix gets, that so many people don't like, but then the nuts are bitey. The corn flakes still remain crunchy. All I can say is, it doesn't taste too bad but it's quite strange. Given the vast choice of cereals out there, I can see that they are trying to do something different, but I think I prefer sticking to the traditional. Rating - 5.5

Look

The packaging is quite funky, evoking a very healthy image. The box is like the other cereals, so once opened, it's not a great place to store this stuff. The actual "clusters" themselves don't look very appealing at all...

Rating - 0.5

C-factor

Got my FREE 40g sample at Martin Place station. Since then, I've picked up a few more samples. Hmmmm, they must be really desperate to sell, and I can see why!

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 7.5

Ingredients

wholegrain cereals (52%), (Oats, wheat), sugar, corn grits, vegetable oils, almonds (4%), rice, dried apple (3%), maltodextrin, salt, barley malt extract, flavour, vitamins, mineral

Available At

Supermarkets everywhere

Fontina

Taste

I love this cheese! It's quite strong in taste but mild at the same time. Ok, I need to explain myself better. It actually smells like off-cheese, but it's not, and tastes so smooth and bitey. I really can't think of good words to describe cheese - maybe I should describe it like wine? A faint aroma of honey and coffee beans??

Rating - 8

Look

A milky, almost white cheese coated in dark blue wax. It holds its shape when cut.

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

$22.99/kg, more expensive than some, but cheaper than the average brie or Camembert.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 10.5

Ingredients

milk, salt, starter culture, rennet, raliumnitrat, cheese wax

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

Brasserie Bread

Taste

This is yet another great bread place in Sydney, and I'm not biased! They have won loads of awards, including Most Successful Bakery 2006 and Champion Loaf 2004 -2006 at the Royal Sydney Fine Food Show.I only lament that their shop is so far away! I managed to pick these babies up during the Sydney Food & Wine Fair.

The spelt sourdough was heavenly, the sourdough taste unmistakable, the spelt adding a hint of nuttiness, and with that grainy yet light texture on the inside, contrasting with a tougher outer, do you understand why I love bread yet?

The Sour Cherry was a lot more conventional. A Vienna shape loaf made with light sourdough studded with cherries, it's more dense and chewy. It tastes great toasted and served with some cottage cheese or ricotta.

Rating - Spelt - 8, Sour Cherry - 7.5

Look

Like hand-made rustic bread should. A dark brown outer, with a dusting of white flour. Simply stunning. I love their logo and their packaging too.

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

$2.50 for the spelt and $5 for the sour cherry, but that's a Food & Wine Fair special because I sweet-talked them into giving me a discount.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - Spelt - 11.5, Sour Cherry - 10.5

Ingredients

Sour CherryOrganic unbleached flour, whole meal flour, water, malt, rye and wheat starter, yeast, Sour Cherries, Raisins, currant sugar & sea salt

Available At

Brasserie Bread Bakery Cafe
1737 Bontany Road
Banksmeadow
NSW 2131
Phone (02) 9666 6845
Website

Lotte Pepero Cracker

Taste

This was a copy of the Poare from Glico. I thought I would give this a try. The verdict? The outer shell was quite crunchy and sweet, but the filling was sub-standard. This doesn't taste like chocolate at all! They also didn't fill out the whole stick. It's not as good as the original but for the price, a good substitute.

Rating - 6

Look

The packaging doesn't look as cute but inside still contained two individually wrapped packs for portability.

Rating - 2

C-factor

50 g for $1 is a lot cheaper than its more glamorous big sis. Worth it.

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 9.5

Ingredients

wheat flour, sugar, salt, corn syrup, fructose, cocoa powder, palm oil

Available At

Asian grocers

Pure Gelato

Taste

I love Pure Gelato, as you can see from my recent post. However, it has come to my attention that I haven't actually posted any reviews on these before, so here goes.

The hazelnut gelato is one of the most well-known and popular of their flavour, and it has loads of awards to boost. I won't list them all but the latest was the GOLD RAS 2005. Yes, this is my favourite flavour out of the about 20 flavours I have so far tried from their selection. An intense hazelnut flavour, the gelato is very very creamy with chunks of real hazelnut spread throughout. It's quite addictive!

I also tried the Grand Marnier flavour which had very subtle orange taste, but I couldn't taste very much alcohol.

Of course a visit to the shops would not be complete without some take-home tub. We got the banana chop-chip at the urging of the sales girls. I've had a thing for banana gelato ever since I tasted the most sublime and beautiful banana gelato in Venice. Since then I've been on the hunt for great banana gelato, both in Italy and in Oz. I came close at Gelateria di Piazza in San Gimignano in Tuscany, but unfortunately I can't go to Italy all the time to get my fix, and I thought Pure Gelato could be the Saviour I was looking for. Alas, it was good, but not good enough. There was still a fake banana taste... not like that silky smooth gelato that was just like eating a frozen banana...The choc chip were not of that high quality either...prehaps this is due to them using less bananas due to their high cost? Maybe I should give this another try when banana prices are back to normal.

Another visit to the shops, where I had the Passionfruit, which is one of the best gelatos of any flavour I've ever had, the tangy passionfruit combining with the crunchy pulp. If only they use the good quality wafer cones...

The 3 flavours I picked up this time are:

• Amaretto (Roast Almond) (Gold 2004 DIAA NSW), (Silver 1997 DIAA) was lovely, if you like that roast almond taste. It tastes a bit like that Chinese almond stew dessert.
• Coffee & Walnut is another of their new flavours. The combination of their award-winning coffee gelato with the nuttiness and saltiness of walnuts is wonderful.
• Green Tea is available as a flavour from quite a few ice-cream and gelato places nowadays. Even though this one won lots of awards (Silver RAS 2005), (GOLD RAS 2004) , I found it quite ordinary, just like all the other green tea available out there.

Rating - Hazelnut - 8, Grand Marnier - 7, Banana - 5.5, Passionfruit - 8.5 , Amaretto - 7.5, Coffee Walnut - 8, Green Tea - 6

Look

The hazelnut was a light brown and tan colour, the Grand Marnier a creamy beige/orange. The banana a very light yellow with bits of choc chips in clusters throughout.

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

You can buy at their factory 1L for $7.90 and 2L for $12.80, 5L for $32.00 It's expensive but you know I am always willing to pay the price for quality. If you join their VIP club you can get 20% off their gelatoes on a rainy week day.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - Hazelnut - 10.5, Grand Marnier - 9.5, Banana - 8, Passionfruit - 11 , Amaretto - 10, Coffee Walnut - 10.5, Green Tea - 8.5

Ingredients for Banana

fresh mjlk, fresh cream, sugar, milk powder, milk protein, lactose, natural stabiliser, natural emulsifier, banana pulp, glucose, chocolate chips

Available At

Pure Gelato Factory
30-32 Brighton Ave
Croydon Park
NSW 2133
Phone (02) 9716 4488
Website

Harris Farm Yoghurt

Taste

Before I discovered all the other wonderful deli-style yoghurts, I used to love the Harris Farm yoghurts. Well, it's been awhile so I thought I would give this another try to see how it compares now that I've tried a few different ones. It's still thick, but as you can see from the ingredients, by using gelatine, it's probably not a good way of achieving this thickness.

The yoghurt is a bit too sweet for my liking. I tried both the blueberry - I couldn't really distinguish the blueberry pieces from anything else - they seem to be pulverised to a pulp, and the mango - a subtle mango taste, quite nice.

Rating - Blueberry - 5, Mango - 6

Look

The blueberry was Very spectacular and beautiful, a blue purple colour with little bits of blueberry floating through. The mango was a bit less spectacular but still looked very inviting. They both came in the handy round tubs that's quite strong and closes well.

Rating Blueberry - 2, Mango - 1.5

C-factor

Very exy at $6.99 for 700g, $8.99 for 1kg. The plain yoghurts are $2 cheaper than their flavour cousins.

Rating - 0

Swiss Points - Blueberry - 7, Mango - 7.5

Ingredients for blueberry

milk, cream, skim milk concentrate, sugar, blueberries, culture, gelatine

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

Ceci Korean Restaurant

Before Slokky's wisdom teeth surgery, we decided to have a last hit of spicy food. Before my surgery last year I feasted out at Janani and that kept me satisfied for a day so I didn't have to eat after my surgery. We decided on Korean for Slokky's "last meal", so that's how we found ourselves to Sydney's 2nd Korean capital, Strathfield. We wanted to try Ceci last time but couldn't get a spot, so went to Won Jo Hae Jang Kuk next door instead. This time though, we were determined. We were told there was a 5 minutes wait, so we sat and examined the picture menu while we waited. True to form, 5 minutes later, we were seated and ready to burn.

Food

As is the custom for every Korean meal, before the "main" meal, an assortment of accompaniment arrived:

• sweet potato - this had a great texture. Sweet and mashy. The best out of the lot.
• mayo pasta salad - quite bland, with soft pushy spiral pasta, like almost all Asians cook them, yuck!
• kim chi - these were very hot... and not much else
• spicy turnip - I like the complex sauce from this one.
• hot bean paste rice cake - the rice cakes have no taste, but the hot bean paste was great

While we were still trying to figure out what all the different accompaniments were, our main meals arrived. The Cod Soup on Stonebowl ($15) looked spectacular. Succulent pieces of cod swam in a spicy and complex soup that tastes a lot like Japanese soup stock. There were nutricious vegetables in the broth as well. Do what the Koreans do, mix some plain white rice into the soup and drink the whole lot.

The Hoy Spicy rice-cakes with sticky noodle ($10) turned out to be a HUGE plage of translucent sticky noodle, mixed with tubular rice-cakes, cabbage, shallots, capsicums and yes - spam!, all mixed together in the Korean chilli sauce, like those they use to marinate the meat in Korean bbq. It was spicy all right, but very satisfying. Needless to say, a huge portion of it was left untouched.

Rating - 7.5

Atmosphere

Ceci is supposed to be a Korean cafe. Well, the place was filled with either Koreans or Honkies, so it must appeal somewhat. There is always a crowd of people waiting, and as soon as a table leaves, others come to fill their place. I've walked past this place at all hours of day and it is always busy!

The room is decorated with a grey-green and mirrors, with menus stuck up all over the walls. The staff call out a greeting as you enter. There are banquettes seating down one side of the restaurants, and most of the tables are for groups of 2 or 4.

Rating - 1.5

Service

Well, they come nowhere close to the Japanese, but I think it is more because the waiters are constantly busy with so much coming and going. My water was almost always refilled and the food arrived in due time. When we asked for a takeaway container to put our ware, they were more than willing to oblige.

Rating - 3.5

C-factor

Our meal was $25, no extra charges for anything. It's sorta expensive for a casual sort of place, but the servings are HUGE and the food tasty, so... worth it!

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 13.5

Info

37 The Boulevarde
Strathfield
NSW 2131
Phone (02) 9746 7710

Farewell Drinks by the Water

This is a long overdue review. A few months ago we ventured to Bungalow 8 for Friday night farewell drinks for a colleague. I arrived at around 6.30 and the place was packed! For those of you who haven't been, Bungalow 8 occupies the ground floor site of King Street Wharf, just below where its exclusive cousin The Loft sits. Unlike its cousin, B8 doesn't have a strict door policy and is not up itself, so you will find all manners of people there. The space is HUGE but is usually filled with people. We found some seats closed to the bar and ordered up. My vodka sunrise (not my choice) was ok, I'm not really a fan, I think the orange juice overpowers the vodka (that's the last time I get a guy to choose a drink for me, they think that's what "girly" drinks are). It's not really a place for people who enjoy their cocktails, more a place to slam down quite a few, regardless of taste.

It's one of those places where you go to enjoy the company, loud music, and there are huge plasma screens so you'll find sports playing constantly. Somewhere to go where you don't have to worry about how you look and go and have a good time.

Info

8, The Promenade
King Street Wharf
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9299 4660
Website

Japan Festival 2006

We made a special trip to Tumbalong Park for this year's annual Japan Festival. I'd been to one a couple of years earlier and really enjoyed it, the food, people, and the arts and crafts stall they have set up. Unfortunately, a few things got in the way today (test driving cars at Rick Damelian and Pitt St Mall!), so we only managed to make it out to Darling Harbour at around 5.30 pm. Unfortunately it looked like all the stalls were closed, but the food stalls and performances were in full swing, and the whole park was filled with people. It was encouraging to see lots of people dressed in kimonos walking around, and certainly brings back memories of Japan.

When we saw the food offerings, including tataoki balls, yakisoba, fish balls, we were in heaven! They also did the "Irrashaimases" greeting! We only had eyes however, for the okonomiyaki, it had been so long between bites, but which stall? We let the crowd decide for us. We first encountered Colotako during our Haymarket exploration. They have branched out to include okonomiyakis in their offerings. There was a queue stretching back around 20m, so we went up to the front, bought our tickets, handed over our $7, and joined the queue. Like Japan, the Okonomiyakis were cooked in front of us, I spent a good 20 minutes watching them flip, chop and pour. Unlike Japan, there was only 1 choice. Our Okonomiyaki came with noodles, bacon, egg, cabbage, beef, smolthered with some delectable Japanese mayo, teriyaki sauce and of course the bonito flakes! It came piping hot and tasted absolutely divine. I MISS JAPAN!!!

Our hunger and curiosity satisfied, we settled down to enjoy some great performances including dancing and a lot of Japanese drumming. It was curious to see the different styles of the different regions and the pride and fitness the drummers show.

Pesto

Yes, I've been visiting the Chifley Plaza Food Court quite a bit lately. I decided to venture away from Ton Ton to try something else this time. Italian was the pick, so I ventured to Pesto, which serves a range of pastas and salads, all displayed in bain-marines. You order and they reheat it for you.

Taste

I picked 2 pastas:

• Spinach & ricotta cannelloni - giant rolls of slightly overcooked cannelloni filled with a plain spinach and ricotta mix. The heavy tomato and cheese sauce was nice tasting but there was way too much of it and overwhelmed the dish.
• Gnocchi Sardinia - with boccolini, tomatoes and basil. The ingredients in this one was quite nice, with a nice sauce, but the gnocchi let it down, being soft, floury and tasteless.

I finished the meal with a skinny cap ($2.40) which was pulled a bit too long so it was bitter and the cream was not that nice. So, all in all, a pretty disappointing experience. Maybe I should've stuck to Ton Ton.

Rating - 5

Look

Everything looked fresh and appealing in their display, with vibrant colours and clearly labeled food and prices. The shop itself was very modern, with that stainless steel minimalist look. And you all know what I think about the food court so I won't drone on again.

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

$7 for pasta and a cap, normally $8 for the pasta and $2.40 for the coffee. I saved a bit but I won't be going back in a hurry.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 8.5

Available At

Shop F3, Level 1, Chifley Plaza
2 Chifley Square
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9232 5147

Arnotts Classic Assorted Selection

Taste

This consists of:

• Shortbread Cream - my favourite cream biscuits. Two biscuits sandwiching some delectable lemon creams
• Kingston - the chocolate cream is too sweet when combined with the coconut biscuit
• Scotch Finger - I love this, malty, caramel and buttery flavour. Good for a cheap "everyday" biscuit
• Monte Carlo Cream - I don't like this, probably because I am not a fan of pink cream!
• Farmbake Choc Chip Cookie - a bit dry and not quite chocolatey enough

This is a good choice if you want a variety of classics.

Rating - 6

Look

The pack is divided into little compartments for the different types of biscuits. Once opened it's hard to keep fresh and crisp, and I have to say the packaging is really boring, and the biscuits look kinda cheap.

Rating - 0.5

C-factor

500g for around the $5 mark.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 7.5

Available At

Supermarkets everywhere

Guillaume at bennelong

For this year's Good Food Month, we decided to do something a little different. We skipped our usual Sugar Hits, Cocktails and Hands On classes for something that I'd always wanted to do but never managed to, the famous Hats Off dinners. For those who don't know, this is the philosophy behind the Hats Off dinner:

On selected Tuesday nights throughout October, The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide hatted chefs draw on their past, their favourite dishes and more to create an alternative menu to their award-winning fare.

I was attracted to this description for the Guillaume event:

5 course degustation menu celebrates the best of Australian seafood, with matching wines.

so got on the phone straight away and managed to snare a table. Yup, that's right, one of the reasons we've never managed to go to one of these before is that all the Hats Off dinners get booked out before the first day of the GFM events schedule is released.

Food

We started off with my favourite bread of all time, Infinity sourdough with some luscious butter (I didn't manage to stop a waiter to ask where the butter is from). The bread though, on the Amuse Bouche of Mini Crab Sandwich was suitably soft and white. The filling was creamy, the flesh of the crab quite firm.

An hour after we arrived, our first dish arrived, HIRAMASA KINGFISH SASHIMI with Sterling caviar and traditional accompaniments. This is on their regular menu, and consists of a circular disk of sashimi, sitting on a mayonnaise sauce, topped with caviar and sprinkles of vegetables and other things I can't identify. The fish had been marinated in a lemony vinaigrette, and tasted tangy but fresh, the flesh melt in your mouth.

It was a long time between courses, the next one up was the SEALED QUEENSLAND SCALLOPS in the shell with a confit of leek and ocean trout roe, 3 medium sized scallop (with the roe off :() were served lightly seared, topped with some crunchy roe. The leek reduction tastes like the leak soup I make at home (which means it tasted good!).

We thought that this might be a "main" style dish, but the ROASTED BARRAMUNDI with white asparagus, baby tomatoes and a lemon caper vinaigrette was still quite small. The barramundi was cooked just right so that it was still juicy. The baby tomato was the sweetest I've ever tasted. I am not as big a fan of white asparagus as green, I feel white lacks flavour. It is served softly cooked, tasting more like mash in texture. The vinaigrette smelled and tasted heavenly, and went along so well with the fish.

What followed was a sight to behold. For the LIGHTLY COOKED CLARENCE RIVER SCHOOL PRAWNS in a tomato consommé, a line of waiters carried some extravagent cocktail glasses filled with very very finely chopped up tomatoes and other vegetables, with 2 little, and I mean little, prawns in the middle. The next lot of waiters carried little white jugs with some brownish liquid, which they then poured into the cocktail glass. It was a spectacular display, but what's even better is, the consomme was the BEST consomme I've ever tasted, sweet and sour and balanced. I didn't know how the prawns added anything to it though, they tasted of nothing much - was it just to clear the seafood theme?

At this stage we weren't quite full yet as each dish had been delicious, but quite small. The LOCAL LOBSTER wrapped in Bangalow prosciutto with carnaroli risotto and a veal jus reduction though, was just the right size. A pretty generous piece of firm-fleshed lobster was wrapped in some absolutely delicious prosciutto that actually tasted like the stuff we had in Italy, a little sweet but tasting like REAL PORK! The thing that pushed this over the edge from great to extraordinary though, was the stunning sauce - which must be made from seafood stock, such is its depth of flavour!

After that last savoury dish, I was very satisfied, having just enough room left for the dessert. The PASSIONFRUIT SOUFFLE with passionfruit sorbet is probably my least favourite of the night, nowhere near as good as the one at Claudes. I found the passionfruit flavour too strong and too sweet, overwhelming the delicate texture of the souffle. I was disappointed that mine was on the darker side of brown. Slokky's though was perfect. I also found the passionfruit sorbet, presented on a Chinese soup spoon, too sweet to be a palate cleanser for the souffle.

Coffee (only latte was offered) was again a bit variable. Mine was absolutely spot-on whereas Slokky's had been pulled slightly too long. Our table was offered a plate of petit fours that we had to share amounst 6, which didn't work out well as there was only 4 of everything. Other people were sharing amoung 4 so we got the raw end of the deal. There was a chocolate coated pistachio cream (yum!), orange turkish delight (pretty ordinary), mini merigue (I'm not a fan of sugar and air so they NEVER wow me), strawberry on a cream tart (yum!), and lemon drops (I like these, but they are a bit normal, in fact they taste a lot like the lemon cake I make!). The meal finished after 11pm but it was definitely not just a meal, but an occasion.

Rating - 9

Atmosphere

The whole restaurant was filled for the occasion. It feels very special to dine in a Sydney icon. The architecture and layout looked very impressive, the restaurant laid-out over 3 levels. Although we were told that it wasn't very practical as the huge glass panes let in a lot of heat and light and becomes unbearable in summer. Of course none of that affected us tonight. We sat on a huge table in the middle of the bottom level, with views to the city out of the huge windows. We shared the table with 4 other couples, that's how huge the table was. All around us are little pods for groups of 5-6 and on the outer edge, the prime seats with tables for 2-4. Well, we didn't get the best seats in the house, but we did get to enjoy the conversation with some lovely foodies (a rarity) who totally understand taking photos of their food. They all shared our passion, but they were also a lot older than we were. I hope when I get old I can continue to enjoy these outings and to share it with my children like these couples are.

There were 2 things that I wasn't impressed though:

The pregnant lady at my table who downed a couple of glasses of wine with her dinner.

The nice looking but really uncomfortable chair - with low back and no cushioning, after seating for 4 hours, is not good for the butt!

Rating - 2.5

Service

There were a lot of wait staff, and they were all professionals. We didn't have an assigned waiter tonight, so I missed that personal touch. No one really paused to talk to us, and they told us about the dish only if we inquired. I think on a normal occasion this would be different. I think it's funny though that the higher class you go, the less each waiter carries - but that's to give you more attention of course!

Rating - 4

C-factor

$130 without wine. Their normal menu costs $190 so I guess we saved. As usual, for the quality I got it was exceptional. I was just disappointed that Guillaume didn't come out at the end of the dinner to great diners and nothing out of the ordinary happened at all. There was also no talk about the philosophy behind the menu. Really the only indication that there was an event going on (besides everyone eating exactly the same thing of course) was the printed menu on each table setting.

Rating - 2

Brownie Points - 17.5

Info

Sydney Opera House,
Bennelong Point,
Sydney
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9241 1999
Website

Harris Farm Pate

Taste

I tried the Duckling and Brandied Apricot. At first taste, I wasn't very impressed, it was bitter and overly alcoholic, but once I was warmed to the taste however, I was quite impress. This pate is more subtle than the normal chicken liver pate. It's not as bold in flavour and has a more gamey taste. Made by Just Entrees, the apricot jelly was actually quite bitter and very nice.

I also tried the Duck Liver & Mandarin. This one has a strong pate taste, but the mandarin made it bitter. Still, much better than the supermarket stuff.

Rating - Apricot - 7.5, Mandarin - 7.5

Look

Quite pretty, if you like the look of pate! I had a piece cut from a great log.

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

$18.99/kg for the Duckling, $22.99/kg for the Mandarin, not a bad price to pay for pate.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - Apricot - 10, Mandarin - 10

Ingredients

Apricot

duck liver (64%), onion, margarine, port (3%), brandy (3%), apricots, gelatine, orange juice, apricot nectar, garlic, salt, pepper, herbs, preservative

Mandarin

duck liver, margarine, onions, cream, herbs, slices, gelatine, mandarin essence, salt, preservatives, antioxidant, water

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

True Cravings

I was a bit hesitant to venture to Sydney Central Plaza again after my handbag got stolen at the food courts last year, but I thought, what better way to overcome my fear than to go and eat at the same place as that time?

Taste

True Cravings is on the right corner after you come down the central staircase, and true to its name, specialises in roasts and baked vegetables. I ordered the Roast Turkey with mixed vegetables ($10.50) - creamy cauliflower, beans, snow peas, fennel. The turkey was great, with a salty gravy accompaniment and some great veges. Slokky ordered the Roast Pork with mixed vegetables ($9.50) - mashed potatoes, roast pumpkin, carrot, broccoli. The pork was not as tender and juicy as the vegs, but Slokky said that's because I don't like pork. I don't agree, I love pork belly and pork knuckle and Chinese BBQ pork, just not pork fillet! Well, I guess if you like pork fillet you might like this? The mash was heavenly, slightly lumpy, just the way I like it

Rating - 6.5

Look

Like a mess, and it is a mess, you don't eat roast dinners for their looks! The colours of the veges made this very vibrant though

Rating - 1

C-factor

2 for $6 in their afternoon sellout. And I was hanging on tightly to my bag so nothing happened to it.

Rating - 1.5

Swiss Points - 9

Available At

Store LG25A
Lower Ground Floor
Sydney Central Plaza
450 George Street
Sydney
NSW 2000 Phone (02) 9221 9188

Provolone Dolce

Taste

A sweet cheese that tears off in strips, I quite enjoy this one. It's a bit different, but as bitey, but quite smooth and mellow, not quite creamy, more string-like, if that's a good way to describe cheese...

Rating - 6.5

Look

A milky, off white colour, they come in big balls with wax coating. They peel into these interesting looking strips!

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

$18.99/kg, a bit exy, but they are from Italy afterall.

Rating - 1

Swiss Points - 9

Ingredients

heat treated milk, salt, rennet

Available At

Harris Farm Markets
Website

Jesters Pie

Taste

We decided to try their Jaffle collection, which seems to be a lower fat alternatives to their normal pie range. But don't be fooled, the way they do this is to have less weight per pie, offering 170g instead of the usual 200g in each serving. The egg and mushroom jaffle pie ($3.95) was quite good, a thin and flaky pastry encasing a whole egg, with a creamy mushroom fix. The egg was cooked through but I didn't think you could have it any other way as they aren't fresh out of the oven. The egg, bacon and cheese jaffle pie ($3.95) was a bit too dry, there was no oozing cheese and I can tell that the bacon was cheap. I actually think their jaffle pastries is better than their normal thick, definitely not flaky and light offering, so I would go the jaffle pie next time with a dry ingredient.

I got the opportunity to try the beef and potato pie with salad ($4.50 for pie or 7.45 for both). This one had the classic Jester pastry - which is flaky and pretty good, but can never compare to Jackman & McRoss. The beef was a bit better than average and the potato had a crusty top. I guess they're ok for a chain, but their standards have really gone down. The salad? They don't even list it on the menu anymore... but it was very fresh, with spinach and rocket leaves, cherry tomatoes, radish and carrot, but no dressing. That's ok by me but it would be nicer if it was dressed.

Rating - 5.5

Look

Dinkier than their other pies, the inclusion of the whole egg makes it look kinda cool. I'm a fan of the fun purple Jesters brand, now if only their products measure up!

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

For a fast food place, and especially for a pie place, they are very expensive. I won't call their products high class but they are charging quite high prices. The jaffle pie is actually one of their cheapest offering, with most pies around the $4 mark and a few of their "gourmet" selection up to $5.

Rating - 0

Swiss Points - 8

Ingredients

Available At

Kiost 5
Rhodes Shopping Centre
Phone (02) 9743 4979
Website

The Little Snail

I have been going to this place since 1995, when our French class used to come for an "excursion". In the years since, I've faithfully visited for LOTS of birthdays, catchups, Christmas parties... I've seen them move from their old digs at Broadway to their swanky new spot at Pyrmont.

In this time, I'd like to think that my food palate has evolved and not the quality of the restaurant has decreased, because I used to think that their food was wonderful and cheap, to lately, it being just average and expensive.

Anyway, I'm back again, this time for a work function, so here is what I think of this latest visit.

Food

We started off with some garlic bread, which unfortunately, arrived at our tables only warm. The bread was soft and had a crunchy centre, but the garlic was very faint. Also delivered with this was some coleslaw type salad - cabbage, onion, tomato, carrot, smothered in salad dressing. I only had a bit of this and it tasted like nothing much.

Soon our entrees arrived, my "in short supply" (see Service) Honey cured ocean trout with watercress salad should really be described as Water cress salad with honey cured ocean trout instead, such is the lack of trout. Maybe that's how they made 4 servings enough for the rest of the restaurant, by dividing them into 20 serves!! Seriously, there was only about a 50 cent sized worth of trout in the whole thing. The trout itself lacked the deep smoky flavour and was a bit sweet, but I actually quite like the salad, the water cress had a crunchy texture and the dressing was nicely controlled. Still, I felt like I was ripped off.

Maybe that was a good thing because the mains were HUGE. Since I'd tried every single thing on their normal menu, I decided on the blackboard special of Lamb fillets with eggplant and lentil puree, which turned out to be the BEST MAIN I've ever eaten at this restaurant. Admittedly it's not that hard since all their other mains are only so-so, but this one, wow! The lamb was cooked medium as requested, the still pink flesh tender and juicy, atop a huge mound of creamy and nutty puree. The sauce was complex, slightly salty, and complemented the slight sweetness of the puree very well. I polished this one off. It's just too bad this is not on their menu all the time, because I know what I would be ordering! All mains come with a platter of mixed vegetables - carrots, beans, squash, potatoes on this occasion. Actually, on ALL occasion it has been this combination of veges. They are ok but not great.

I was quite full after the main, and at another restaurant, I probably would have stopped ordering, but since you HAVE to have dessert, I ordered another off the specials board (yup, tried all the normal dessert offering) of espresso ice-cream with wafer basket. The wafer was well done, more brown than normal. The ice-cream was smooth, the coffee flavour was strong but a bit too sweet for my liking. I also taste tested some chocolate fudge cake which was very dense but a bit dried.

But wait, there's more, with our coffees (which I didn't try so can't comment) came a plate of petite fours, or maybe they should be "grande" four, as each morsel took at least 3 bites to consume. The rum balls were low on rum and not very chocolaty, the cinnamon biscuits a bit better, but nowhere near as good as my desserts :)

Rating - 6.5 (7.5 for the lamb and 5.5 for the other stuff)

Atmosphere

Every other time I've visited, it's been a Friday or Saturday night (except for those lunch visits for school of course), so I was used to seeing a full restaurants with lots of groups and the waiters being run off their feet. This visit on a Thursday night was completely different. There were only a few tables and we were definitely the only group there. The atmosphere is nowhere near as good as when it's a full house.

Still, our group created our own atmosphere, with our "Porn name" name tags, trivia questions and tasks we have to do. Plus, if you don't enjoy the company, you can always look out the huge glass windows at the passing parade outside Darling Harbour.

Rating - 1.5

Service

Our waiter was melodramatic (I don't think he was French though), making it out like he was especially serving us, and throwing in lots of hand gestures for good measure. He explained how we were to order, and said that there were only 4 trout entrees left on the menu, and that we would have to be quick to snap it up, as if he was doing us a favour by telling us about some exclusive deal.

We can't really blame them, but we kept swapping seats, so they just had to call out the meals when they brought it out. They could have been better at refilling our jugs of water and replenishing empty bottles of wine though.

Rating - 3

C-factor

The Little Snail works on a 3 course system, where you pay a set price for all 3 courses. It's usually $45, and they also have a special price for groups, where for $55 p.p you get 3 courses and garlic bread, salad,s coffee and corkage. B.Y.O is $5 corkage per bottle. Of course, for me, this was all free. Even though I'm not a huge fan of their food, I had a good time. As a whole package, especially for a group, it is one of the better places to go in Sydney.

Rating - 1.5

Brownie Points - 12.5

Info

50 Murray Street
Pyrmont
NSW 2009
Phone (02) 9212 7512
Website