Eat. and Shop. @ Hinoki Japanese Pantry

279 Smith Street, Fitzroy ph (03) 9417 4531

I'm always on the look out for a good place for Japanese groceries and a good place for sushi.  Hinoki Japanese Pantry has both!

I really like the range of Japanese groceries available at Hinoki.  They have a great selection of essentials like sauces, noodles and cooking aids, as well as a fabulous range of rice crackers, sweets and snack foods that brings me back again and again!

The draw for most people of course is the fresh sushi bar on site.  There's limited seating available for eat-ins, but mostly I tend to grab take away for a great sushi meal on the go.   I find that aburi salmon sushi is not readily available in Melbourne but they make both nigiri as well as aburi salmon topped rolls here!

And of course a kicker of a match milkshake for $2.8 is always good!

A favourite place to eat and shop for our family!

Eat. @ Sakura Kaiten Sushi (Lonsdale Street)

282 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne CBD ph (03) 9077 1167

My kids (and Hubby and I) loooooooove sushi train and are constantly disappointed that we don't have cheap, fast and delicious sushi available like our Northern friends in NSW and QLD.  One of the things that the kids really wanted to try last school holidays was the sushi train that had opened just outside of Melbourne Central, which we had walked past on multiple occasions.

This is an outpost of the Sakura Kaiten Sushi that is popular on Little Collins Street.  I was actually very grateful that this sushi train was configured that there are tables for 4 coming off the side of the train rather than just counter seats.  This makes eating with children so much easier!  The staff were friendly and very accommodating  to our kids.

The plates are colour coded like many sushi trains and are priced at :

• Orange $2.8
• Pink $3.8
• Black $4.8
• White $5.8
• Red $6.8

There was a good mix of fresh seafood sushi as well as cooked items.  I enjoyed the variety of nigiri and rolls available.  I love aburi salmon nigiri and the ones here are very tasty.

We had a couple of fried items like chicken karaage and takoyaki balls for Bubs.  The potato croquettes in particular was a massive hit as he loves potato hashes.

We also bulked up the meal with some cold soba with chicken and also half serves of tempura udon which are available to order from the menu.

Mini Me loves chawanmushi at the moment and quite enjoyed this Japanese egg custard with lots of seafood goodness inside for her to discover.

I treated myself to a soft shell crab handroll in soy, which was super crunchy and delicious!

Being a fan of Japanese Anime I could not resist taking a photo of the wall of Dragon Memorabilia.  Before the various incarnations of eateries that have occupied this space I remember it as the only place in Melbourne you could buy buildable models of cars and every else under the sun from the likes of Tomiya, and this seems a fitting homage to that memory.  The sushi train was good fun and the food delicious.  The budget is easily forgotten with the food coming past and a horde of hungry kidlets so this is a great place for a treat!

Eat. @ Yokozuna

Chadstone Shopping Centre, 1341  Dandenong Rd, Chadstone 0425 115 581

We were sad to see Miam Miam go, but a new ramen place has popped up in its place.  Yokozuna says they are ramen experts, and we are keen to give any ramen place a go!   I love a good shopping trip to Chaddy and I love that there are now so many different cuisines and options for dining there.  We wandered in on a Saturday and were lucky to be served immediately as a party of five since a queue started up straight after we were seated.

We started with a couple of serves of karaage (Japanese fried chicken) ($6.9 for 4 pieces)  These were really, really more-ish when they're served hot, nice and crispy and perfect with the dipping mayo.

The Gyoza ($6.9 for 5 pieces ) were not as exciting.  The kids gobbled them down nonetheless so they did the job.

Hubby had the Ramen Red with pork ($11.9), which uses a pork and soy based soup with home made spicy mince pork on top.  Hubby says it's pleasant enough but not super spicy.

The Kids shared 2 bowls of noodles between the 3 of them, starting off with a Tonkotsu Ramen White ($11.9) with extra charsu ($4.9), which again was pleasant enough without being too salty or mild.

They also had the Torigara Ramen with teriyaki chicken ($11.9) which has a lighter, clearer soup.  I think they preferred the Tonkotsu but did not hesitate to finish this off either!

I actually wanted to have something different on the day and ordered a Salmon sashimi chirashi donburi with wasabi and ginger ($13.9), which I felt was a lighter option and was actually surprisingly filling.  

We were really happy to see that the Ice Matcha Latte with green tea softee ($6.8) from the Miam Miam days stayed on the menu as that was one of our favourite items to order from their menu. 

On another visit I tried out their Salmon Lovers Set ($15.9) which you can add a small udon for an extra $3.  The salmon was reasonably fresh and definitely better than Sushi Sushi next door but wasn't anything too special.

We're happy to see Yokozuna in Chadstone and hope it stays, as it gives shoppers a good choice to have relatively decent ramen fare in a shopping centre setting, albeit at a price higher than what I would usually pay at a shopping centre.  The staff cater well for children and they have high chairs and plastic serving ware for children as needed.   We've been back a few times when the queues have not been ridiculous and have enjoyed each of the meals. 

Eat. @ Tana Cafe

36 Church Street, Hawthorn 3122 ph 0421 965 656

As you can tell from this blog and my instagram feed, I like my coffee.  But there are days I don't feel like one.  And on those days I will be heading over to Tana Cafe, because I seriously think they make the best Matcha Lattes this side of town!

The owners are super lovely people and always greet me with a smile.  

I don't even know how to describe the joy I get from sipping on my matcha latte.  It's just a perfect blend of green tea and frothy milk, not too sweet and oh so soothing.

Bubs is crazy for their corn mayo toast.  I don't blame him, there's just something delicious about the mix of crunchy corn, creamy mayo and that gooey melted cheese. 

Can't wait to come back and try the rest of the menu, and more of that matcha latte of course!

Eat. @ CIBI

45 Keele St, Collingwood 3066 ph (03) 9077 3941

We were on a look out for brunch on a blazing hot Saturday morning, but a table of 5 can be hard to come by and we wandered around Collingwood for a bit and had a surprisingly delicious brunch at Cibi a few weeks ago.

We had a short wander through the shop area which had all sorts of interesting Japanese bits and bobs on display (how many times do you think I had to say "Don't Touch!!" to the kids?)   

We were soon seated and started off with a mocha ($3.8).  Cibi is a fusion treat of Japanese and Australian and the coffee here is truly Melbournian.

We had the Traditional Weekend Special ($18.5). which had grilled slice salmon fillet, free range egg omelette tamagoyaki, seasonal green vegetables, potato salad, organic brown rice and miso soup.  

For $4 more we also ordered the Ultimate Special ($22.5), which was the traditional breakfast, with the addition of tsukemono (homemade pickled goodies), natto (fermented soybeans), umeboshi (sour plum) and nori (dried seaweed).  They added extra elements of taste and texture to the brekkie and the kids enjoyed trying these different traditional Japanese side dishes.

We also shared a soba salad ($14.5), with organic soba, avocado, cherry tomato, lightly pan fried bean curd, spring onion, green salad, olive relish with dashi dressing.  I really liked this dish and have been making different variations of this at home since it's so healthy and tasty!

We ended the meal with a green tea and azuki bean muffin ($4) which was all sorts of yummy, not too sweet and a perfect way to end a meal.

Cibi is a cute little place, and it's fusion of traditional Japanese light fare with good coffee, mixed in with a bit of retail therapy is a breath of fresh air in Collingwood (even thought they have been here for quite a few years!).  An excellent alternative when we don't feel like the usual egg/bacon based breakfast.