Eat. @ Chow City

287 Exhibition Street, Melbourne CBD ph (03) 9663 7898

Woohoo it's Fri-Yay night out with the girls again.  This time we went to Chow City for drinks and dinner.  As usual we chose a place with a good variety of shared plates and pescatarian options for my friend Sarah.  

As I was the designated driver I sipped on my Tropic Thunder mocktail ($9) whilst the girls got started on some wine. The menu was modern Australian Asian fusion with a lot of bar items but a decent number of dinner options.  We were too lazy to pick and choose so we opted for the $65 chow down chef's menu option.

First up some oysters with ponzu, salmon roe and spring onion. A good start with the drinks.

Next up some tuna baos, with confit tuna, tobiko, seaweed salad and nori.  I wouldn't have ordered this usually but the confit tuna was actually really delicious.  I usually get to order for the family, or even with friends since everyone knows I love my food.  It just goes to show sometimes it's good to let someone else have control and choose your dishes for you!

Then came the chef's special of the night, which was watermelon with kimchi, cream cheese, figs, pomegranate and cashew crumble.  I absolutely would not have ordered this if it wasn't for the chef's menu but dang it was delicious and refreshing.  I don't think I will order off the menu again.  Just bring me what ever is good!

Then we got a really decent serve each of the Calamari, marinated in buttermilk, chilli, garlic, with vietnamese mint and crispy garlic.  These were  amazing and we finished it all even thought we were starting to fill up.

The papaya salad came next and was topped with crispy soft shell crab, served with mint, basil, green bean, chilli, lime and peanuts.  I only had a little of this as I had pretty much under estimated the amount of food that would arrive given that this is a bar setting.  So yum.  2 large serves between the 4 of us.

Yes there is more!  The New Zealand King Salmon was slow cooked with peas, green bean, asparagus, and served in a warm citrus broth. (We also got given 2 serves of this between the 4 of us).  I found a new spot in my stomach for this delicious salmon, I just wished I had more room!  Even the veggies were super delicious with the broth.  

All this was served with a side of roquette with coconut snow, a large bowl of rice to share.......

And the best darn serve of shoe string fries I've had. The menu said it was seasoned with garlic salt and served with mayo, but there was a touch of sweetness which really made these fries amazing.















We all agreed that we're now too stuffed to walk back into the city for dessert, only to be told that there is dessert coming!  Each of us had a serve of the cream cheese cake, a soft fluffy mousse topped with caramel, raspberry and popcorn.

All in all it was such a fun night out, the staff were attentive and even tolerated the impromptu karaoke some of us got up to (I'm not pointing any fingers ladies, you know who you are!)  $65 was a pretty good deal and I would highly recommend Chow City for a casual and fun night out!  

Eat. @ Fat Boy Thai Kitchen

850 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn ph (03) 9818 7728

We stumbled across Fat Boy Thai Kitchen one day when we went for ramen at Hakata Gensuke but they were undergoing renovations.  The kids thought the name was hilarious and so we gave this place a try, and so happy to report that it was actually a really nice meal without any hype.

We started off with the fish cakes ($8.9).  Nothing fancy, but a tasty morsel of fish cake with a great sauce.

The crying tiger ($11.9) was a portion of marinated scotch fillet grilled medium.  Another tasty starter.

We couldn't go past the sticky pork ribs ($21.9) on the chef's recommendation in the menu.  These were fabulous, fall off the bone tender, with an amazing caramelised sauce with a touch of chilli.  The broccoli provided the healthy antidote.

We always order mussaman beef curry ($16.9) when we have Thai and that night was no exception.  The beef was tender and the sauce was perfect.  The kids loved this as it's not as spicy as the other curries, and it goes a long way with a nice bowl of jasmine rice.

Lastly we tried the red duck curry ($18.9).  You can't see much in the photo but here's some very nice pieces of roast duck in a delicious red sauce.  I always like the lychees in red curries as it gives a nice sharp contrast to the spicy curry.

We've been back a couple of times since the first time we stumbled across Fat Boy.  The service has always been courteous and efficient.  The upstairs area lets us come along with in bigger groups with friends and family and the lack of hype means we can go for a good feed of Thai food without too much planning or trouble.  Keep up the good work!

Eat. @ Oppa Kitchen

271 Swanston Street, Melbourne CBD 3000 ph 0421 351 489

The kids spotted this new cute Korean place when we were in the city and made a snap decision for lunch there on one of our visits to the city.  I love that they are now at an age where they are keen to try out new places and new foods!  

Well since our first visit we've been there about 10 times because it's such a quick and cheery place to grab a quick meal before we head off on adventures in the CBD!  

To be honest, the food here is not your super traditional Korean fare, but the dishes are pretty cheap, fun and quick to the table, so it ticks all the boxes for my kids.  Now get ready for all our delicious pictures - we've tried just about everything on this menu!

I always get the Fried Rice Cake ($5) here, they are slightly crispy and covered with a good dose of sauce.  The serving is not huge but it's a great starter.

The Korean Fried Chicken comes in original fried, soy garlic and sweet chilli flavours ($6 Small, $11 large).  Not the best I have tasted but still quite pleasantly, and comes mixed with pieces of wedges and fried rice cake.  The kids actually quite like that!

You can also get the same deal but with chicken wings ($6 for 4 pieces, $11 for 8) and they are also quite tasty.

Their Bibimbap comes with a choice of beef, spicy pork, spicy chicken, tofu and mushroom or avocado. ($10 regular)

For the crispy rice version you can order the stone bowl Bibimbap ($12).  Call me a big kid but I am a massive fan of crispy rice!

For a bigger meal we often share a Dosirak ($10 -$12), which is a meal bucket, the equivalent of a bento box in Korea I guess!  Again you can choose a different "protein" topping like beef bulgogi, beef steak, spicy pork, pork belly and pork ribs.  The rice is topped also with a salad, fried potato hash, pickle and usually a piece of orange.  They're pretty good value for money and we quite like these, although I don't really like the pork belly one as I find that the pork is 95% fat so there's not that much meat to eat!

They also serve a Korean Curry (with Korean chicken schnitzel $11), which is quite mild and tastes much like a Japanese Curry.  Macaron Monster loves curry and we tried this once and we all quite liked it and it's not too spicy.

I went with my sister once and we tried out their Meat Platter ($26) which has a nice mix for the meat lovers with beef steak, pork belly, pork spare ribs, chicken breast and lamb ribs.  It's not bad value for money when you share! 

As a change I like their mandarin juice ($3) which you don't often see on menus.

As you can tell we quite like this place and hope that they keep up the prompt service and cheeriness!

David Tsirekas Dinner @ Hellenic Republic Kew

26 Cotham Rd, Kew ph  (03)  9207 7477

I was very fortunate to be invited to the special David Tsirekas event a Hellenic Republic Kew a few weeks back.  The Hellenic Republic restaurants are a favourite of mine, since I love the inventive twists to Greek food they come up with, and they are a very kid-friendly group of eateries in general.  

The room was packed to the rafters with guests.  After everyone was seated, a curtain pulled back to reveal an open kitchen, where George Calombaris, David Tsirekas, Travis McAuley (executive chef, Hellenic Republic), Arron Lynch (head chef Hellenic Republic) and Alex Xinis (head chef, Hellenic Kew) worked their magic preparing dishes under the fascinated eyes of their captive dinning audience.  

David (of Perama and Xanthi) from Sydney is a friend of George Calombaris and their easy camaraderie was sweet and clearly reflected their respect for each other's skills, and the opportunity to hear David's tales of his experiences was both heartwarming and fascinating. 

I was expecting a 4 course dinner, but in fact it was a 4 part dinner with 13 different dishes, each one created by one of the chefs.  The dishes were wonderful fusion dishes merging Greek origins with interesting new elements, some with surprising combinations, some with a touch of whimsy, but all with great thought and amazing execution.

Mezethes

We started with David's Tarama churros, latholemono, a savoury churro, a fabulous Greek take on the Spanish "donut".

The Smoked bone marrow, beetroot, feta, horseradish by George was probably my favourite dish of the night.  I love marrow, but this dish took it to the next level with its amazing flavour as well as it's pretty-as-a-picture presentation.  The chefs joked about the amount of work it took to clean and prepare the marrow and bones, and I am sure it's absolutely no joke!

The Ouzo cured ocean trout, Jerusalem artichoke, cucumber by Arron Lynch  was another beautifully presented dish.  I don't love ouzo but what it does for the trout is pretty awesome.

The Sheftalies, tahini yoghurt, caper leaves by Travis was more of what I usually expect of Greek food.  The meat was perfectly cooked and the yoghurt gave it the tang that elevated this dish to sensational.

The kefalograviera saganaki by Alex Xinis was a wonderful version of the traditional dish.  I love, love, love those caramelised grapes!

Psari

We watched the chefs dish up the Seafood kokoretsi, skordalia by David Tsirekas with fascination.  In essence a seafood filled roll with a crispy pastry, the crunchy outer shell contrasted wonderfully with the delicious and luscious seafood it encapsulated.

George Calombaris' Tartare of tuna with all its frills, prawn crackers was a fun dish clearly coming from the cheeky side of the chef.  The individual components of the tartare was served up separately with a bag of prawn crackers, and once mixed you eat it in the cracker.  It got all the guests at our table talking and giggling like kids.

I loved Alex Xinis' Melitzanosalata - I love eggplant in general, and the dish really showcased the fabulous versatility in texture and tastes you get get with the humble eggplant.

Kreatika

Each of the dishes were shared by 4 of us at the table, but by this stage I was honestly wondering how I would be able to finish all the food that were to come.  The duck and quince by David Tsirekas made it easy for me to "exercise"..... my ability to stretch my stomach to accommodate more food!  The sweet and tangy sauce perfectly balanced the duck meat that had been cooked to perfection.

The wagyu tongue and flat iron kalamaki by Tavis McAuley was grilled nicely and full of flavour, not your average meat on a skewer!

And then came Arron Lynch's Lahanosalata.  I am a big kid and I never liked Brussels sprouts, but these were so delicious that I have been ordering sprouts more and more when I go out (next step is learning how to cook it so that it's THIS flavoursome!)  The salad could easily be eaten as a meal itself.

Glyka

No meal is complete without sweets for me!  David's Touloumba, warm rosewater custard, honeyed walnuts was a traditional and comforting dessert with a lovely custard....

....whilst the "Magnamopolous" - Greek yoghurt ice cream, caramelia, mastic, fruit was another one of George's marvellously fun creations, a tilt of the hat to Australia's favourite Magnum, with a slap of Greek pride and a wonderful tangy twist with the use of frozen yoghurt and fruit.

The dinner costs diners $95 per head for the night, and even though I was there by invitation, we all agreed that for that amount of high quality food and free flowing drinks and ouzo, the meal was definitely value for money.  My kidlets love George's cook book for kids and I bought a signed copy to surprise them in the morning.  They ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the photos of the food I had and I had to promise to bring them back soon for another meal, and of course they were jealous of my photo with George, haha.

Filming for Masterchef had just concluded and we were all amazed at the amount of energy George has, as he had a packed international schedule on top of organising this top notch dinner.  I will have to organise to come with Hubby the next time as I have no doubt he would enjoy a similar great night out. 

Disclaimer : Eat.Play.Shop. attended the David Tsirekas dinner by invitation of Made Establishment and Hellenic Kew.  Opinions are my own.