Vue de Monde

It is sometime to complicate to take picture and enjoy foods at the same time.  Moreover, there are places that I don't want to take picture while dining there.  Vue de Monde is one of the places.  Luckily, Beansprout 's so kind to share pictures in this article. 

We started with Amuse Bouche served on a rectangular stone.  They called it 'Muesli bar'.  It 's a mixture of grains and seeds and seasoned with miso.

First course is 'Jardin Delegumes'.  The Heide vegetable garden 's lovely presented with winter vegetables and garnished with snow-like seasoning.   

Second course is 'Saumon Fume'.  It 's a cured, sugared, and smoked salmon.  Its smoke is from coconut ash.  My first impression 's I want chopsticks since the dish looks very Japanese.  There 're 5 salmon pieces.  The cleverness of this dish 's the taste of salmon changes piece by piece.  I think the temperature of salmon somehow dictates its taste.

Third course is truffle dish from WA.  It's a really rich and deep flavour dish with Manjimup truffle, fried duck egg, and onion sauce, which called 'Oeuf de Canard et Truffe'.  Egg white 's so soft and a bit running. 

After the third course, they served Sorbet au concmbre to cleanse palate.  It's a combination of cucumber sorbet, elderflower granite, and frozen lime.  Classic and yummy.

Our fourth dish 's Boeuf de Blackmore et Bettrave.  Blackmore wagyu steak with beetroot, mashed potato and wood sorrel.  It 's more like a confit with the brown crust and pink meat.  What interested us 's the heart shape micro herb, which later on we found out that it 's a wood sorrel.

Another cleaser 's the Entremet sucre, the lolly.  The lolly 's vanilly ice-cream with popping candy.  It was served with lemonade.  To best enjoy this dish 's eat lolly then sip lemonade.  So that popping candy 'll pop in y'r mouth.  We were warned that 'no dipping lolly in the lemonade' :D

The pre-dessert's Oeufs de Poules.  They 're served in eggshells within 6 eggs-carton.  From the left hand side, Pistachio custard, Prune&Armagnac eggnog, and Grand-Marnier mousse.  They 're as good as my last visit there.

The desserts are chocolate souffle, carrot cake (deconstructed), and Rhubard&milk.  Our waiter 's so kind to arrange for different desserts for all three of us.  Since Beausprout told him that she doesn't like the texture of soft merienge or mashmellow.

We were too full for coffee and tea but the petit ful is too good to resist.  Individual chocolate disguised as Lamington cake, Nugat served with chocolate and orange rind, Tulie and lemon curd.  

 
  

Gewurzhaus

342 Lygon St, Carlton
Tel (03) 9023 1028

My eyes lit up when I saw this shop.  It's a new shop in Lygon Street, Carlton.  It 's about 3 weeks old.
A spice shop!  The shop 's very aromatic from dried herbs and spices.

What actually lit my eyes and I was so excited 's salt... many variety of salts both single origin salts and flavour salts.  The best part 's I can try before I buy :D  I think Merlot salt has a very soft aromatic characteristic.  While truffle salt should be good with simple dish as omelette or mashed potatoes.

Cuter & Co

55-57 Gertrude St,
Fitzroy, 3065
Tel (03) 9419 4888

I want to go there!... I told FH and LS everytime we pass this restaurant since it opened in 2009.  If my memory serves me correctly, I told them the first time when we walked back home from Gigibaba in Smith Street.

FH booked the place during my Melbourne visit.  So FH, LS, Beansprout, and I went to Cutler&Co on one Saturday evening in July.  Thanks FH! xoxo

Brioche served with Murray River salt and Warrnambool butter.

We all had Mandarin duck ($26) as entree.    crisp leg, smoked fillet, foie gras cigar.  It 's nicely done and we agreed that it's the most delicious dish of tonight.  The cigar 's crisp on the outside and foie gras 's very smooth.  Chared fennel 's nicely compliment the dish.  But what I love most 's the deep fried bit :D

LS and me both had slow roasted pheasant, Brussels sprouts, chestnut and quince ($48).
I loved the taste of this dish.  It seems too much but I enjoyed every bit of it.  There 're 3 parts of pheasant used in this dish; breast, thigh, and drumstick.  The texture and taste 're different.  They 're compliment each other and prevented me from getting bored of eatting the same piece of meat.
Eating brussels sprouts also fun, really.  I equally love braised half brussels sprouts as well as fried brusels sprouts leaves.  The fried one tastes like fried shredded chinese cabbage :D

FH and Beansprout's main course were roasted sucking pig, mustard fruits, braised greens & pearl barley ($43).

For desserts, we shared two dishes ($18 each).  Violet ice cream, chocolate garnarche, sour cherry (left) and Steamed quince and suet gingerbread, rosemary, chestnut ice cream (right). 

Passionfruit chocolate's fabulous.  The sweet and sour of passionfruit 's well cut through the bitterness of chocolate.  

We Love Value For Money Japanese

Sake & Grill Maedaya is well-known for its authentic sake and yakitori charcoal grill selection. One of the first properly set up izakayas in Melbourne, it has earned a reputation for its reasonably priced taste offering of Japan.

However, what is less known is its lunch specials. Most would head for Maedaya upstairs to enjoy a smokey dinner (and meat meat meat). Those who are more inclined toward travelling to Bridge Road during the day for, say, shopping would do well to also head to Maedaya to grab a good meal. The a la carte menu is attractive (there, I said it, I called a menu attractive.) but for $14 you choose an entree, a main dish or hot plate and a side dish. Serving sizes are generous, and miso soup & endaname are free. The black walls with hessian rope draped across the ceiling lend to the impression that you are in a big ship, with various sake bottles lined across the walls.

While the girls opted for fried soft shell crab and seaweed salad to go with their tuna tataki (dish of the day), I opted to have the tuna accompanied by a sanma (also known as a Pacific saury) & soba salad and spicy bamboo shoots. The waiter was slightly stunned when we requested for a sake tasting set as it is uncommon for sake to be requested over lunch.

The sake, three types of varying taste strength in colourful glasses of 60ml each, did actually help us wash our meals down. JJ preferred the first which ML explained was "a common though pricey, high quality sake which tastes very light, best served snow-cold", while I preferred the second (a cheaper, more robust concoction) which matched well with the strong grilled taste of the sanma and the lovely tuna tataki that was served with a light wasabi mayonnaise.

The meal was a silent one, punctuated only by slurping and chewing while ML occasionally reminisced over her time in Japan. The clouds rolled in and the rain intermittently drizzled. We sipped our sake and miso soups, we slurped our noodles, we loved the just-right crunchy and salty soft shell crab, we tried hard not to ask for a second helping of rice. We were a very contented bunch.

We are coming back we are coming back we are coming back. That is, when we can resist the nourishing, thick ramens next door at Momotaro Ramen (another Melbourne Japanese favourite).

Food - 4 stars; .5 star docked off when I found out that some side dishes like my spicy bamboo shoots (which I found less than titilating in comparison to the other dishes) had gone through a *shock horror* microwave oven;
Service and atmosphere - 4 stars; the Japanese hospitality industry is the kind that all other nations can only dream of, as with their attention to detail;
Sake selection - 4 stars; bring a friend or two for yakitori, a sake and a good chat. That is what an izakaya is all about at the end of the day, after all;
Value For Money Count - 4.5 stars :)

Today I Like To Remind You About These Funky Places

Atticus Finch - Cider on tap, classy tapas, beer garden, oodles of comfortable seats, old books to read and a Star Wars Stormtrooper helmet behind the counter. Staff are very good and relaxed about how long you sit and chat. If you like, do what I have become accustommed to do in this part of town on a relaxing Saturday afternoon - have an iced coffee at Brunswick East Project or tea at Hellenic Republic, then flip a coin to decide whether it is a tequila cocktail at Mi Corazon Tequila Bar or a cider at Atticus (which is a nice walk down the road). Then try to get a table for dinner at Bar Idda, land of the best marinated fried sardines. Not to mention farro salad, baked eggplant layered with tomatoes and pecorino and homemade pasta with sugo ragu, to follow with a ridiculously good-looking chocolate cannelloni and a cup of three-dollar Italian hot chocolate.

Please note: the traffic on Lygon Street that separates Atticus and Bar Idda is as crazy as it can get in Melbourne, so if you have to jaywalk, don't walk. Run. With eyes wide open and quick reflexes. I have caused a couple of heart attacks for friends in the skip-and-bound from Atticus for a table at Bar Idda...

1000 Pound Bend - Little Lonsdale Street between Elizabeth and Queen Street Melbourne. Random food (no chips here), coffees, so many couches you'd think they raided a furniture dumpster, cherry blossom light installation. The staff give good customer service while being uber-relaxed about how long you lounge around the place without spending any money. Bonus: free secure wi-fi.

Horse Bazaar - best value Japanese lunch menu in a bar I have seen so far - this is probably one of the few places in town I will happily fork out money for tempura anytime. The staff are happy and relaxed even on a Friday night, drinks are reasonably priced (again, cider on the tap but try a cocktail or two), the space is comfortable as an immmersive projection environment and the music is soul-cool. Bonus: sits opposite Design Depot, a little shop crammed with the kind of useful art that you wish you had thought up of.

Dinner For One With Farmers' Help

Entree: Grilled zucchini flowers stuffed with Holy Goat fromage frais, served with a light lemon dressing.

Main: Asparagus omelette (Rhode Island eggs) with roast heirloom tomatoes and a good drizzling of balsamic syrup.

Dessert: Grilled white nectarines and blood plums with Laharum vanilla bean infused EVOO, served with (again) Holy Goat fromage frais. Serve with a chilled semi-dry pink moscato.

Stand back. Delight. Attempt to take photos but fluorescent light defeats the intention. Sit down at meal. Enjoy. Wonder about Sunday's dinner. Should I follow the Silver Spoon recipe and roast the Bultarra Saltbush rolled lamb with new wild pine mushrooms and porcini mushrooms, to serve with Dutch Cream potatoes, zucchini and capsicum? Or should I do the usual and rub dried rosemary, pulped garlic, lemon-infused EVOO, black pepper & sea salt into the meat before slow-roasting it to match roasted red onions, gem squash and beans? Which red would match that? More importantly, should I drench single origin dark chocolate over organic strawberries or (poached) pears to put the finishing touch on the Sunday dinner?

Why go to all the trouble for farmers' markets? I get asked. With the ability to create weekend dinners like these from the ingredients I find in these markets, why not?

The Comfort of Food

It has been nearly 3 months since I settled back in Melbourne and I definitely feel like I have returned home. My decision to not stay in Perth has had an impact on my career progression back in Melbourne and has been the cause of frustrations and disappointments in this New Year. Despite this, I am so grateful and bless to have a network of close friends who have been patient and supportive with my constant vents and doubts on my capability. For those friends who are reading this, Thank You.

I didn’t realise how much of an emotional eater I still am until I stepped on the scale recently and saw the result of my laissez faire attitude towards my diet. The last time this happened was when I broke up with the first boyfriend all those years ago. However,when one is down, one can't resists the seduction of a buttery and chrunchy Noisette croissant with gooey ripe French brie, the creaminess and balance of the bitterness and sweetness of Maggie Beer’s burnt fig and caramel ice cream, the smokiness achieved only in a well seasoned wok of Chom Chom’s Char Kuih Teow, a honey golden 5 year pinot gris which has developed into something complex with lots of nuances that evolves from the tip of your tongue when you first taste it til when you swallowed it. The list goes on...

The effect of food on me was so prominent this morning that it has inspired me to write this post. Waking up with my head pounding, my body aching, my throat scratchy and my nose sniffling. I couldn’t think of anything but a good decent breakfast. Despite already calling in sick and fridge full of food, I was in no mood to cook and decided to wonder to Hardware Society. Poached pear with saffron, star anise and cinnamon complemented with the tartness of plain yoghurt spiced with vanilla seeds, toasted Noisette croissant with homemade fig jam, a cup of Supreme latte and a Gourmet Traveller whilst having breakfast was just want the doctor ordered. Though still feeling the symptoms of the flu, my spirit has definitely lifted.

Yes, I know that using food as a quick fix is not the solution to my problems and bad for the waist line. Yes, I am slowly seeking solutions to my current work situations and hopefully will grow and learn from it.

A Trip to Melbourne, March 2010

It 's good to be back to Melbourne once again. Love the people, foods, and weathers. Melbourne weathers' miracle things, four seasons within a day, lol. FH, LS, and I luckily missed most of the hail storm on last Saturday since we took a train back to city instead of a tram. We totally shocked when we saw not only Melbourne Central lower ground is flooded but also Elizabeth street. Luckily, we agreed to dine at home and do beer tasting. We dicided to do a cupping before dinner since we had time. We first did a cupping with Panama bouquet and then later on with traditional Malaysian coffee. We used pestal and morta to grind Malaysian the beans since we afraid it will be too oily and ruin the grinder since it is roasted with margerine and sugar. For dinner, FH made super delicious Chili con carne and LS brough chocolate tart from St.Kilda farmers' market.

We did a road trip to Yarra Valley on Monday. It is a very unprepared trip, FH suggested we should go out of city about 10 am and we left the city by 11.30 am. Our first stop was at Innocent Bystander but it was fully booked so we went to a very bakery nearby. We ended up ordering 4 different pies; beef, beef+mushroom, sheperd, and Ned Kelly pie, which we cut them into 4 parts to share. So, everyone can try a bit of each. My favorite 's beef+mushroom and followed by Ned Kelly.

We visited wineries after lunch. Our first stop was at Boat O'Craig followed by Oakridge. There wines are good but we were trying to find something special because PP, who very much love wines, is going back home soon. I think we all agree that our favorite winery of this trip is Warramate, a small boutique winery. Suprisingly, we were there because we interested in their riesling after we read FH's James Halliday book since PP, LS, and I are riesling fan. It turned out that we didn't buy a single bottle of riesling, lol, but bought lots of red instead. I love beautiful wines with affordable price :D

The next few days, I visited my favorite cafes. It is such a refreshing. Chris was so kind to change the beans in the grider because I really wanted to try his Sumatra beans, which is a very smoky and bright coffee. Michael and Patricia 's expecting a new family member, congratulation! +39 is awarded a best pizzaria of the year, I still remembered when my sister visited this pizzaria 7 times in a week (it closes on Sunday)!

LS and I also went to my lovely Coda :D It 's one of my most favorite place in town. I love D'Sylva's foods. He doesn't change menu seasonly but each dish tastes different every time I visited. But I think the reason LS and I keep going back there every few months 's because we fall in love with Travis Howe. No... I re-phrase... not actually him but his skill in selecting wine... his wines 're so GOOD.

On Friday night, LS, FH, and I decided to try a new place, Mamasita. A new Mexican tapas bar, not actually new, it 's about 1 month old when we visited. We tried corn on the cob, it 's a bit chili spicy with cheese on top. The cactus salad 's interesting. The chicken dish 's very tender and moist. What I love 's pork shoulder dish (bottom right, the one with chili on top).

My favorite stalls in Collingwood farmers' market Before I went back to Sydney, we all went to one of FH's favorite sugar place, Market Lane Coffee, in Pharan Market. Coffee there 's nice but sugar 's more interesting. It tastes more likely to palm sugar than sugarcane. FH and LS found out since last time they visited that the sugar 's a single origin sugar from Costa Rica.

We went to Hooked after coffee for lunch. Oh! I love sweet potato chips there... very crispy and sweet. Fish was very fresh and the batter was light.... yum... Grilled fish also fantastic ($9.90 for lunch). After lunch, time was up.... it was time to come back to Sydney.

What to do with a Thing of Beauty

As he handed it to me, he said with a twinkle in his eye, "last one - let me know what you do with it."

"No pressure," I joked. In my hands it felt so much more substantive than what its packaging indicated. Another quick look just to believe that I had actually bought it before I stored it away in the protective bag for safekeeping.

Two days later, I took it out of its cold storage space. Ah, consistent crawling white marbling across crimson red. You could feel the care that had gone into it, recall the story behind it. How the man with the twinkling eyes had fought the fires of Black Saturday and almost lost everything in the process. How the couple had to start literally all over again to build their future in the countryside.

Sorry vegetarians, a girl must have her dose of protein and iron to keep going but at least I am supporting local industry.

All right, good to go at room temperature. Rosemary? Thyme? Moroccan style? Honey and soy? Hmm, only the simplest seasonings with care during cooking need be done for this.

Sea salt, freshly ground Sarawakian black pepper, organic Spanish extra virgin olive oil. Massage into this hunk of a porterhouse. Heat up the pan, watch the time, place carefully into pan. Too big for me but then hey this thing of beauty should not be cut up and risk getting ruined.

As the meat sizzled on the gas, I checked for vegetables. No garlic?! No potatoes?! This would have gone so well with garlic mash or roast sweet potatoes tossed with whole garlic cloves, rosemary and coarse sea salt.

Alternatives, alternatives. Baby zucchini, round zucchini, slightly over-ripe tomatoes, snow peas. No time for broadbeans. Forget the cauliflower.

Checked that meat, make sure it was seared rare or medium rare. No way should this be even attempted as medium. Sauce, sauce, sauce...what to do sauce-wise?

Time to get that meat off the pan, leave it to rest in a warm place. Wished I had time to do the restaurant thing and have the meat roasting to melting tenderness after browning. Deglazed pan with water (or red wine; I wished I had thought of opening a bottle of good cabernet sauvignon or cabernet merlot especially since I had a dozen bottles lying around the house). Added the chopped up tomatoes and sliced whole porcini mushrooms (only the best for this steak). Seasoned them with salt and a fruity balsamic vinegar, and cooked until soft. Oh yum.

Ten minutes later, I sat down to: a rare-going-to-medium-rare six-week aged Belted Galloway porterhouse topped with a reduced tomato-and-porcini balsamic sauce, matched with cut up zucchinis and snowpeas that had been cooked with onions & dried thyme and topped with toasted sesame seeds. Oh, and warmed Sicilian marinated artichokes from Rita at the markets. I silently thanked D.O.C for waking me up to the wonders of marinated artichokes.

Ah, what a thing of beauty. You cannot never over-rate home cooked food, especially when you have fresh ingredients and you are willing to put the dish together. Even if the matching is a bit unconventional.

Now for those Sunny Ridge strawberries and Mornington Peninsula chocolates...

Finally It Opened

"I take it you are into coffee?"

I looked up from smelling the buckets of beans with a grin. "How long have you been open?"

"Two days. Try this while you work out what you want?"

Mmm, chocolatey with a slight caramel scent and texture to match. Definitely finishing this cup. This Monday has hardly been a great one, and I probably need all the good coffee I can get.

"Cold drip Costa Rican. I think this is the best bean on the cold drip we have had so far. Why don't you fill out this form so we can help work out which bean we have today that you will really like?"

OK, sure, why not? Yes I prefer berries to mango or grapefruit. I take my coffee black or milk with no sugar. I prefer the smell of freshly baked cookies to roast nuts.

"All right. Uh, this black or milk with no sugar..."

"Sorry, it depends on whether it is a blend or a single origin as well as time of the day."

"No worries. Based on this profile I would suggest a Costa Rican La Luerva (editorial: this is where my spelling goes all fuzzy) either in siphon or pour over filter. If you want something on the espresso machine I would recommend our S3, a blend of Guatemalan and Costa Rican."

"Pour over please. Now can you tell me why the Kenyan keeps ending up on the siphon?"

"Now you put 15g of the fresh grind into the filter, pour over 150g of water. Let it drip for 30 seconds or so. Simple but incredibly effective method of coffee extraction, designed by Monmouth in London. This year we have had a great harvest of Kenyan beans so that is why we keep using it. We will change the coffee menu based on green beans that come in though. This should be at the right temperature for drinking now."

Rats, my tastebuds have gone to sleep now. But I know I am enjoying this white cup of pour over filter coffee immensely. Good old Monmouth, I certainly never regretted only having their coffee when I was in London.

"Take it you will be back?"

Furious nodding from me. Welcome, Sensory Lab, to the scene. You may be Toshi's baby and St Ali's sibling, but if what we have heard about this place potential-wise and what you have offered is anything to go by, then I am coming back for certain.

Sensory Lab, enter via David Jones Little Collins Street entrance.
Opening hours: same as David Jones Bourke Street.
Stars: (at this point) 4.5 out of 5 stars. Helps when the coffees were served with a smile and as a cheery note during my suffering the Monday blues.

The Single Origin Weekend

During my university days, a mini food hub appeared in Adelaide Arcade. An authentic Taiwanese vegetarian food store with various teas, a Japanese cafe with cheap and decent mains, an Italian restaurant that served limited but good homemade pasta, and a Scottish-managed cafe that served the best white chocolate mocha in town (with the odd day where the staff had to wear kilts and long white stockings). Then there was a chocolate shop that sold only imported chocolates, organic cocoas and coffee beans.

It was at this shop, where you were not allowed to say the C word (as in Cadbury) and could only whisper "Haigh's", that I learnt about single origin chocolates. I was already relatively familiar with single origin coffees, thanks to all the exposure at Adelaide Central Market and Kappy's (I do miss sitting amongst the sacks of coffee and tall glass vats of tea leaves, and I remember my sister talking about the Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee roasting session she attended there), though back then I was still confined to sipping the odd Kenya Peaberry mocha and wondering about hazelnut infused ground coffee. My single origin world just ever so expanded when my tongue tingled as it first tasted the difference between Venezuelan chocolate and that from the Dominican Republic, and realised what 65% versus 68% cocoa content meant.

The Taiwanese place has moved to larger premises elsewhere, the Italian restaurant gone and the Scottish-managed cafe changed management, but Chocolate World is still there. In the meantime, I have moved on to trialling home blends with my little Bodum grinder and three-cup plunger. As with my sister, I have also moved to looking more closely at the differences in dark chocolates based on source of origin.

These memories were triggered the weekend I entered Proud Mary with SL, RM and JJ. Four blends, five single origins for espresso and ten single origins for siphon & clover. RM, curious about single origin coffees, happily had the time of his life trying out an Ethiopian espresso followed by a Rwandan siphon coffee - siphon coffee making is always a good show to kickstart interest in single origin coffees. SL thought her Tanzanian siphon was too much like (apricot) fruit juice, while I thought the house blend latte was not a bad cup. I became more distracted by my lunch cum dessert, a hot semolina custard pudding with grilled peaches, roasted hazelnuts, rose-infused mascarpone and honey.
Only one thing to improve on this: I wonder whether pecans or macademias would taste better than hazelnuts on this? Yes I do realise what Proud Mary is famous for, thanks to Melbourne Coffee Review, but I say one definitely needs to give the food a good go. I certainly was more entranced by the food menu than by the coffee menu, though of course I do have this thing about not having too much siphon or clover coffee.

On Sunday, torrential rain led to extremely muddy shoes at Sunny Ridge Strawberries and devouring of fantastic pizza & lasagna (what a sugo) amongst giant artichoke plants at T'Gallant Winery's La Baracca Trattoria. Happily we made our way down the windy road of sea views and grazing cattle to Mornington Peninsula Chocolates. A little shop dedicated to chocolates in entirety. Cocoas, Michel Cruz bars, chocolate lollipops, delicately tempered rounds of sheer delight in passionfruit earl grey tea and coffee ganaches. Ah, what wonderful colour and subtle scents in the shining brightness from the shop's white interior.

But my heart was always with the little boxes and long glass bottles, almost hidden at the side of the shop. The corner for the true chocolate lover. Bolivia 68%, Guanaja 70%, Cuba 70%, Organic Alvesia 74%, and what is this intriguing 80%...here we have smooth velvet, there we have earthy tobacco, but what about this tropical fruit intensity compared to that peach and mango subtlety...

By the time we walked out of the shop with our little bags of goodies, all SL could say was, "And to think I thought this was going to be a chocolate factory tour experience...who needs tours when you have THAT?!"

Ah yes, single origin. Purity in food origin is so under-rated, what a pity, because it can be so marvellous. *Sigh*

Proud Mary: Coffees - 4 stars, including .5 for diversity in choice of single origin coffees;
Food - 4 stars;
Service and atmosphere - 4 stars but peak hour is crowding...

La Baracca Trattoria: Food - 4.5 stars;
Service and atmosphere - 3 stars; we HATE having to queue for 20 minutes and then waiting for just over 1/2 hour for our food...thank gosh for the vegetable garden.

Mornington Peninsula Chocolates: 5 stars. No question about it. If you are a chocolate lover and you miss this place for your ganache fine chocolates & single origin fix, then shame...

Other places to check out while around the Red Hill area:

Montalto Vineyard - famous restaurant, ok wines, definitely best brownies on that side of Victoria...
Red Hill Brewery - be sure to do the beer tasting especially the seasonal brew, and if you turn up during lunchtime you get some pretty decent pub grub like a traditional Welsh Rarebit too.
Red Hill Cheese - enjoying a platter of cheeses on the deck surrounded by bushland on a warm sunny afternoon is always lovely. Just watch out when reversing your car to leave as there is not much space for a proper reversal.

What tastebud renewal does

On one of the hottest Melbourne days in November, I found myself getting ready for a meeting on Spring Street. I was keen to re-acquaint myself with Postal Hall, but the heat was almost oppressive. Then I spotted a tiny almost-hole-in-wall cafe very close by, and thought, "hey why not? A La Marcozza, sustainable coffee, should be all right..."

Poor guys never knew what hit them when they, out of the kind of courtesy that only people in hospitality risk, asked me how I had enjoyed my iced coffee ten minutes later.

"Ditch that pre-made pitcher of coffee, your coffee tastes sour and bitter from being left to sit like that, such a waste of a decent coffee. Just whack two shots of espresso on top of the ice cream when someone asks for an iced coffee."

"What about the temperature?"

"Just add milk."

Almost in awe (and mild fear in case I was a caffeine psycho and decided to hold their coffee machine hostage), they asked "Are you in hospitality?"

"No, just a blogger."

Out of the kindness of my heart (and feeling like I should make up for being so cruel that early in the morning), I ordered a latte to go for the meeting. Light, milky, so bland. Hmm.

Four hours later, I passed by the very well hidden Eclipse, and thought, "well, I have not had a decent shot of coffee yet today, let's try this place. SL did say the house blend was pretty decent, though I'll be darned if I order another El Salvador in Victoria..."

Light, milky, bland. What on earth...wait, we read over the weekend that our tastebuds are "reborn" every ten days. Could it be...oh dear, that means I could have been unfair to that cafe in the morning then. Oh dear. Too late, I can never show my face there ever again.

I did not dare touch coffee again until three days later; thank gosh my tastebuds were revived by the time I was on my regular jaunt to Toby's Estate. In the meantime, SL was enjoying Panamas around the place (why have I not seen any around yet?!) and letting me know at work how tasty they were, not to mention the Indian at Jasper's.

Then, the day after I had sneaked in a delectable Cuban "short" macchiato at Espressino (it looked more like a long mac and it was a tad too hot for my liking but what a bean!), I got an text from SL:

"Why are coffees all tasting bland to me today?"

Me being me, still grumbling over how Panama has eluded me, could only text back:

"Your tastebuds are renewing..."

Eclipse

LS always says 'eat whatever you want, drink whatever you want, and you still can loose weight as long as you excercise', which I prove it true. So, I started the day by having cupcakes at The Cupcake Family in QV before heading to other side of CBD for coffee, ofcourse :D


Mini cupcakes in a pic above 're green tea cake and blueberry cheesecake. In a picture below 're Strawberry-chocolate cake and orange-almond cake. I think it 's a good deal 4 mini cupcakes for $7 and it's a pleasant place to catch up with friends.

After finishing cupcakes, we walked to Eclipse which located half town away from QV. We couldn't find it eventhough I knew that the entrance 's on Flinder lane. My friend and I then went through Intercontinental Hotel from Collins Street side. When we there, we still not sure we came to the right place but I was drawn by the name of coffee bean on the single origin board: 'Panama Geisha'. So, we walked through the door.


Yes, we came to the right place, Eclipse. I started with House blends latte, which 's smooth and strong coffee. I later found out that the house blend called 'coffee junkie', lol. After satisfied with my latte, I decided to try Panama espresso. It 's woody, earthy, chocolatie, a hint of sweetness, and mild punchiness.

Coffee Wrap Up - For Now

The Melbourne Coffee Review 2010 Guide is out in good bookshops and newsagencies now, and naturally the first inclination for all coffee geeks (and wannabes) is to find out whether their favourite haunts have obtained or retained their three-bean score. After all, coffee is as subjective as wine; some like their coffees light and fruity (hello P, how are you?), some like their coffees Italian-style (hey JG), others like their coffees nutty and intense (hey that’s me!) or strong and chocolatey (the rest of the Foodie Team). A favourite is affected as much by the season and origin of the coffee bean as it is by the roaster and barista.

In the case of the Foodie Team, the focus this year has not just been about finding our favourite baristas (e.g. the redhead mo-bro at Handsome Steve’s, Chris in the Brunswick branch of Toby’s Estate, Jesse at Dancing Goat) but also our favourite beans and blends for use on percolator and stovetop. On the point of coffee trends, Toshi from the St Ali family has certainly made his mark as one of the top siphon-coffee brewers in the country, even becoming the Australian spokesperson for the siphon-equipment manufacturer Hario. Those who enjoy their Kenyan beans will do well to watch out for the smooth and clean flavours the siphon exposes in a well-roasted Kenyan.

We have also been fascinated by:

- the financial success of the cup that looks like a disposable coffee cup – what happened to the normal mug and lid?

- the oddity of the cold drip at Outpost – “it takes five hours to set up?!”

- the user-friendly coffee filter for a cup – golden mesh or ceramic makes more sense than paper, of course, and

- the Vacuum Press.

How the baristas in town view and encourage or discourage the use of these coffee making equipment in 2010 will be something to watch out for. The Foodie Team, drooling over the latest release of coffee machines and pondering over the Vacuum Press, will not be moving away from the percolator and stovetop just yet. There is always that thing known as "tight on budget".

This year also saw the scale-back of coffee franchises as the independent cafes re-took the suburbs and street corners with their brunch-pumping kitchens, homemade muffin displays, home blends and single origin offerings. The caffe latte continued its reign as Australia’s favourite way of enjoying coffee, while the increase in coffee sales signs using “fair trade” and “organic” continued.

The Nicaraguan bean has certainly conquered mocha taste buds this year whether roasted by Padre, Jasper or Toby’s Estate, but Toby’s organic Mexican has had the most successful fan accumulation rate from what we can gather (or rather, from whom we have gathered). A Guatemalan is tastier cold than hot (try as a double shot over two scoops of vanilla bean ice cream), but the Brunswick East Project boys know their Padre blend kicks butt whether in a silky latte or an iced coffee served in a bowl. While the idea of drinking a Veneziano or Vittoria Gold blend at home has yet to cross our minds, Jasper’s has enjoyed a nice steady income from its blends courtesy of SL’s filling orders from overseas.

While FH enjoyed an El Salvador short macchiato at Yahava Swan Valley (WA), I struggled to ever go beyond the “sour” verdict for the same bean in Victoria. We have had no luck with Zimbabwe, and the Indonesian beans have also failed to impress this year. Brazil’s fame was only justified via a Cup of Excellence bean found ever so briefly at Seven Seeds, and we mourned over the fact that Seven Seeds only offered its Neopolitan blend for one day after the Victorian State Barista Championships. Coffee that tastes like Neopolitan ice cream is just bamboozling and marvellous at the same time. The light pleasing tones from Rwanda and East Timor continued to rule the aisles though much avoided by the Foodie Team (they do get ever so boring unless served in Clover style) and India’s offerings divided baristas and coffee geeks. Intense, nutty and earthy at the best of time, beans of Indian origin have been described as “powerful”, “metallic”, “bitter bitter bitter” and “bloody” as well.

Back to the 2010 guide. The guide, which scores independently from the blog of the same name, is unsurprising in its conclusion though coffee geeks may struggle to work out what happened to the three-bean members of previous years such as Mart 130 and Dancing Goat. Melbourne’s love affair with the St Ali family continues, with all three key members (St Ali, Brother Baba Budan and Seven Seeds) being the only cafes to get three beans this year. Luckily, to ensure that the Foodie Team is not dismissed as a bunch of idiots for having “issues” with the St Ali family this year (I knew I was in trouble when Chris at Toby’s Estate exclaimed “Shame on you!” after I confessed I was not a fan of Seven Seeds), the guide also awarded 2.5 beans to the following cafes:

- Atomica Caffe, 268 Brunswick St Fitzroy

- Auction Rooms, 103-107 Errol Street North Melbourne

- Brunswick East Project

- Maling Room, 206 Canterbury Road, Canterbury

- Social Roasting Company, http://www.socialroasting.com.au/

- The First Pour

- Toby’s Estate

I think I will save my money and keep reading the blog.

Choosing

Today I did something unthinkable – I told a vegetarian she should seriously rethink her diet and shopping habits if she really wanted to save the world.

Normally I do not criticise food and drink choices. After all, Catholics have Fishy Fridays and the Lent season for fasting, Muslims have Ramadan for fasting and abstention from pork or alcohol, the Jewish stay away from pork and shellfish, the Buddhists and Hindus try to be as vegetarian as they can be, and there are plenty of people restricted by allergies & super-taste buds for particular flavours. We are all affected by our upbringing, and so can be adverse towards some things which are part of others’ normal meals.

However, I am concerned when people look unhappy or confused with the food they eat. Eating gluten as a meat replacement product is bizarre when mushrooms and lentils offer protein replacement in a more natural and healthy manner. Rejecting eggs and bananas because “they are bad for me” is an ignorant denial of the nutritious value and happiness points offered by these foods. Saying that “coffee makes me fat” is an insult to decent baristas around the world, most of whom are fit and thin. It’s the way you consume it, people.

Eating based on ethics is also always fraught with risk as the sustainability debate rages. Cattle reared for meat and milk cause a lot of methane but not eating heritage animals mean they become endangered from a lack of incentive to breed them. Eating organic vegetables is pointless for sustainability if they are shipped in from another country. Salmon and tuna are the best kinds of fish to eat for health but are terrible to eat for the environment.

You end up having to take a strong personal stance for the way you eat. The misconception around vegetables i.e. that “they are yucky and not very nice” is fading but not enough to convince people, short of a famous heart attack or three, that meat is not meant to be eaten alone by the kilogram on a weekly basis. On the other hand, the idea that fruits or vegetables alone can deliver all the required daily nutrients is misleading and a source of many pale faces around the place.

To that extent, I provided the vegetarian with a link to the Melbourne Farmers’ Markets, where she can ask the farmers about the way they grow their produce and support local industry instead of buying her produce shipped in from gosh-knows-where in Safeway. I encouraged her to think about incorporating sustainably-caught fish into her diet if she enjoyed her brief fishy encounter(s). Whether she will seriously consider my words is another matter altogether but at least I have done my part in information sharing.

In the mean time, SL has had to convince her mates that she has not lost weight from any special diet. The weight loss is a result of cooking her own meals instead of takeaways, a reduction in junk food intake, a decent amount of sleep and a lot more walking between meals. Again, the idea that losing weight means “diet” is incredible. Staying healthy does not mean starvation or deprivation, it means balance. It is not about reduction in enjoyment nor obsessive food label reading. It is about consumption in moderation, exercise in moderation, knowing your nutrition requirements and what you need to meet those requirements within the religious, taste, sense of adventure, ethical & medical parameters you operate in.

Overdue on South Yarra

For all to know - you can do a Coffee Crawl in South Yarra now :)

Start from Outpost, the St Ali family's newest member which has received so many accolades from coffee geeks it is mildly hysterical.

Down a relatively obscure alleyway next to the railway tracks, the place is actually tiny. While the barista in charge can come off as cocky, the chef is an absolute gem. They will not mind you getting what I think is the best seat in the place - near the siphon machine, cold drip filter and wee kitchen which serves a tasty dish of the day.
Next, try out Crue, a brother of Sweet Agora which has taken a small spot on Toorak Road near the South Yarra train station and on the same side as Ganache Chocolates. While I must admit that the barista had no luck with me the day I went as I am no fan of beans from Zimbabwe or El Salvador in a single origin form, I think this place still has decent potential.

Grab a couple of chocolates (and homemade ice cream) at Ganache. Then, for an old favourite, Pound is down an alleyway near Bloom Cosmetics off Chapel Street, and still serves a decent caffe latte & lemon tart.

Want more? That is the next round of coffees for us :)

Some Brunches Worth Looking At

Toby’s Estate: Charlie the Brunswick head barista’s macchiatos using full-bodied, rich Mexican Organic beans have become our benchmark by which all single origin short macs are to be judged on. This Sydney ambassador serves a pretty good breakfast menu including some funky fruit smoothies too. While I really like the baked eggs with beans, the French toast with bacon and blackberry sauce was not bad either – il Fornaio’s is still the best we have tasted in Melbourne so far but hey when one looks this good…

Kappaya: this place was once reviewed as being “on the wrong side of Hoddle Street”. I am not sure the locals had cause to complain about that. The lack of a conspicuous shopfront and distance from tramlines meant this quirky Japanese café managed to retain its grunginess in the form of op-shop mismatched furniture and 1930s smoky jazz while serving high-quality Japanese green tea and ten-dollar rice ball bentos.

On the eve of its moving to Abbotsford Convent and become part of the slightly-left-of-centre cafe scene there, I found myself there once again lugging green bags full of vegetables and fruits from the monthly Abbotsford Farmers’ Market. The irony of reading Matt Preston’s take on the top five restaurants in the world, all in Europe, was not lost on me as I munched on an exquisitely shaped rice ball with prawn & seaweed and sipped early-spring Japanese tea. The enticing aroma of miso soup and teriyaki chicken floated from tables around me, but alas I had had the usual coffee and parma + parmesan croissant at Handsome Steve’s House of Refreshment beforehand.

For dessert, the little sign on the glass cabinet indicated "special of the day - green tea mousse cake". Ah the understatement of the week. Green tea mousse cake with a cream cheese base and a crunchy biscuit topping, served with an intense green tea sauce and brandy-soaked raisins, seems pretty out there but if the biscuit layer were just a tad softer and a tad more combined with the mousse and cream cheese layers, it will be easily in the list of Must Have Desserts for me.

Pardon the artistic blur effect on the photo - the lighting of the day was against me but I promise the 15-inch screensaver version does due justice to the dessert.

Food: 4.5 out of 5 stars - you cannot get this kind of stuff at better prices anywhere else near the city.

Atmosphere: 4.5 out of 5 stars - creaky furniture, quirky wall art, smoky jazz, free papers, what is not to like?

Service: 5 out of 5 stars - love places that make sure you have many refills of hot water for your tea and do not seem to care that you have only spent a few bucks there.

Dukes Coffee Roasters - After an alert from FH, the full Foodie team turned out to try this new cafe in Windsor (two doors down from Borsch Vodka and Tears, another great place for brunch if you like your Polish food served with a morning cocktail). The Melbourne Coffee Review had turned up in July to review this place and gave it a bean, always a good sign.

The usual Melburnian wood panelling was in abundance here, and we could spot the industrial-sized roaster sitting at the back of the cafe. I have to admit I got rather excited seeing six single origin coffee varietals, complete with geographical origin and tasting notes, listed in chalk on the long blackboard hung above the bar. However, as with most (if not all) current cafes on the market, the house blend and one single origin was available for drinking on site for the day.

The plan had been to have a quick coffee to test the barista's skills and maybe a morning snack, but plans went awry when I took a cursory glance at the menu and my stomach flipped at "sweet potato and corn fritters with harissa mayo". SY similarly settled in for a decent stay when she saw pancakes on the menu. The waitress was thrown by our enquiries regarding the single origin coffee of the day (we must have been the first to ask, or she had just got on duty) but happily took our food orders.

FH and SY took to discussing the Guatemalan caffe lattes they had ordered and other single origin beans they preferred in comparison - we are all for strong roasts, none of the wimpy weak stuff for us thank you very much. Then the scent of curry powder wafted onto the table as my soft fritters fell apart by the cut of a butter knife. Harissa mayo decently spread between layers of roast sweet potatos shredded and mixed with sweet corn, served with bacon and spinach...I got right into them but FH could not determine whether she actually liked them. I have to admit I would have preferred my fritters browned on the surfaces and edges to give that crispy edge to the otherwise tasty dish. SY found her pancakes "light but not fluffy, but nice citrus sauce". Ah, another case of batter not standing long enough.

As I had enjoyed the house blend latte - strong, nutty, milk at the right temperature - I decided to test the single origin in a short macchiato. By now the barista must have tweaked that we were serious coffee drinkers and so decided to personally serve my cup. Either that or he could not find any of the waiting staff at the last minute, which would seem strange given how many there were.

Ah, the crowd-pleasing latte heart. The only thing is, short macchiatos do not usually have sufficient milk froth to be able to execute such latte art...nonetheless, the silky chocolate bourbon tones of the Guatemalan bean were fully expressed in this cup, leading me to proclaim to SY and FH that I, unlike them, did think that this bean created "not a bad drop".

Food: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Atmosphere: 3 to 3.5 out of 5 stars; we do get a bit tired of coffee places = brown wood, especially since Windsor is meant to be about more creative interior designs.

Service: 3 to 3.5 out of 5 stars; bit slow on the serving side, bit too quick on the dish collecting side.

Coffee: 4 out of 5 stars; I would go again for the house blend that is for sure, and maybe a piccolo or an espresso for the single origins.