2013

We live in circles. All our lives in cycle; Am to pm, Monday to Friday, January to December, year after year. Some of us consciously, most of us unconsciously.

It’s been an ebb and flow kinda year, fabulous none the less.

Peanut butter parfait, Golden Fields.

Highlights: Seeing mum for the first time in six years; Seeing my whole family, together, after ten years; Visiting thirteen new cities over ten countries; A tiramisu I had in Rome; The legendary peanut butter parfait and sorbet ice cream from Golden Fields; Photography sessions with Zina; and pedro ximenez – you are all sorts of yumness!

The Fam Bam in Amritsar.

Most memorable meal: A pork shoulder roast with Yorkshire pudding and all the trimmings at Pig & the Butcher, London. Although the buffalo wings at Cassette 9, Auckland, was pretty A-mazing!!

Pork shoulder, Pig & the Butcher

Most memorable dessert: The corn ice cream with caramelized pop corn from Mamasita.

Corn ice cream, Mamasita.

Most memorable moment: Laughing until we cried on a bus to Wellington. I may have peed, just a little, in my pants.

The best Tiramisu, ever – Rome.

Shoreditch, London.

Venice.

Berlin, I’ll be back just for this – curry wurst. So YUM.

Prawn, caviar, roast peppers – Quimet y Quimet, Barcelona. I seriously recommended this place. Sangria’s for 2.50 Euros, ah what a night!

Henna at my brother’s wedding, Amritsar.

Florence.

Dubai.

Darren Purchase at Taste of Melbourne 2013.

Zumbo opens shop in Melbourne.

Paella at the Night Market at QVM.

Paris is always a good idea. I’d like to go back.

Brunswick.

My god, these were good too. Huxtaburger, Fitzroy.

This is some good pastry, Prague.

Good coffee, Wellington.

Rosetta, Melbourne.

Jacob’s Creak Winery, Barossa Valley.

A special thank you to my ex boss man for sharing his experiences – I’m going to miss you x

Hope you’ve enjoyed my moments with me. Thank you and happy 2014.

Live laugh love eat x

The Urban Trailer Park

I love it when food trucks unite. It means I don’t have to chase after them.

They’ve been getting together at Village Melbourne, formerly Belgian Beer Garden, on the weekends, trailer park style, from noon to eight pm. The outside bar is still in operation.

I spent last Saturday afternoon, sitting under a heater, on a park bench, eating chicken and sausage gumbo from the Gumbo Truck, taking mouthful bites off my guy’s Beatbox beef burger, whilst stealing his chips, and I washed everything down with decent drop of red. Bonhuer!

To finish things off, we shared a salted caramel and Nutella & Strawberry cream brûlée from The brûlée Cart.

I was happier than a bird with a French fry.

All very lovely

I find English men to be quiet charming. Really. For reasons unknown, they’re just very chivalrous, compared to the rest of its race. Jonny English, you’ve got class. Jamie Oliver, love your style. Tom Hardy, take me out on date, any day.

A girlfriend of mine is getting married to a Londoner in a few months. A July wedding in London. I’m all green with envy, because I should. God bless her heart.

You know what else is charming, the Fairfield Boathouse. It was just the right kinda place to spend a beautiful afternoon off. Devonshire scones, canoeing down the Yarra, scenic walks, watching people feed ducks. Lovely!

A typical Sunday #3

Sunday. There is only two ways to spend it. One is brunching with the girls, and having nothing to do the whole day, the other is at a market, with a good coffee in hand.

Taste of Melbourne 2012

I had a day off last Thursday – I slept in, had brunch, caught up with a friend, drank tea, and enjoyed a beautiful evening eating, drinking and meeting some of my favorite people.

Taste held their annual Restaurant Festival at Albert Park this year, and it was spectacular, especially between sunset and dusk.

Rekorderlig was kind enough to invite me and a friend to come taste their newest cider – Orange & Ginger. Loved it!

First up, taste test at the Rekorderlig marquee.

Then to the Taste Bank to get some Crowns – Crowns are the official currency used to buy food and drinks at the restaurant and bars at the event.

Mmmm… its cocktail-o-clock!

We decided that we were going to make our next drink at the Sensology marquee. Yup. We made Expresso Martini’s!

Next, we wondered around for a bit.

A small stop over at Monsieur Truff.

Hehe.. Mo-vember-ing!

Hola. It’s Frank Camorra at Movida, serving some really yummy fideua.

The braised pasta with Spring Bay Mussels and calamari and a chargrilled Moorish Lamb on a skewer. YUM!

I was in love with the San Pellegrino’s marquee. It’s was so cute!

Next we tried the Ceviche de Yucatan by Mamasita. Spicy, but Yum!

And washed it down with some Patron!!! ..then saw Wanita Tanasingham do her thing at the Malaysian Kitchen marquee.

Had dessert and laughs at Sweet Studio with Darren Purchese.

Mmm.. chocolate lollipops!

Coffee time..

Had a spectacular, and scrumptious foodie evening. Still so much to see, eat and drink, but it started to pour, so we called it a night!

Jalan Jalan Cari Makan

I think I fell in love with Melbourne all over again, over the weekend. We experienced all four seasons in 24 hours, and OMG it’s so pretty in Autumn, beautiful in Winter, romantic in Spring, and energizing in Summer!!! And today was simply superb!

Southbank – last night, in the rain.

I went to the Malaysian Street Festival today, at the Queen Victoria Market, and it was amazing! Live music and performances, awesome weather, plus yummy food – simply brilliant. “Jalan Jalan Cari Makan” was one of my favorite tv shows, growing up in Malaysia. Literal translation: walk walk find eat – Lol. It was about, well, food of course, and the different cultures that influence and collectively make up what we know as “Malaysian Food.”

Nasi Lemak, Roti Chanai, Beef Rendang, Laksa, Char Kway Teow, Satay and Ice Kacang – to name a few!

Air Bandung or rose syrup with evaporated milk drink, in a plastic bag – just like they serve it on the streets in Malaysia.

Ais Kacang or Shaved ice with red beans, grass jelly, rose syrup, condense milk, evaporated milk and gula melaka (brown sugar syrup).

Live performances – they even did the Gangnam Style!

The Uncle from Kampung Story frying Char Kway Teow. I stood here, watching him do his thing for 10 minutes, enjoying the sight and the aroma.

Mmm.. Char Kway Teow. YUM!!!!

The guys at the Satay stall doing their thing. They had the longest queue, and wait time to this point was 80minutes.

Chicken, Beef and Lamb Satay – it was worth the wait!

And to conclude this beautiful day, I sat outside, on my favorite spot, in the evening sun, with a young coconut and a spoon.

Terima Kasih, and Jumpa lagi!

Monk Bodhi Dharma

Quirky little sustainable cafe, hidden in an alley, off Carlisle St (Balaclava). Serves delicious organic food (vegetarian/vegan), fair trade coffee, and tea (they’ve got a huge selection of scrumptious tea). Lots of character, very earthy. Love it!

Don’t have to be a hippie to enjoy Zen. Nameste!

Star Struck

Today I walked around my favorite city like I was a tourist.

I enjoyed the street art and music. Drank coffee and ate lunch at Silo. Gave Shannon Bennett a hug. Had afternoon tea at La Belle Miette. Bought a petit tea cup on special from Rap. I even smiled at strangers.

Yup. Just an ordinary day for a Melbourne Foodie!

La Petit Creperie

This got me excited today. The cutest little food stand on the busiest street in Melbourne. I’m going to let the photos do the talking. Bon Appetite!

Where A Girl Goes

I believe in spending quality time with my girls, it’s just what a girl deserves every now and then.

Four weeks ago I decided that its about time the girls and I caught up. Its been a while since the six of us got together. Well, since uni ended last November, some have been busy traveling, while others got busy with summer school and I worked. A couple of us caught up during summer, but it wasn’t the same.

For a bunch of metropolitan girls like us, high tea is just the right kind of catch up! It’s more than just drinking expensive tea in fancy cups or eating scrumptious buttered scones with homemade jam and cream – it’s about dressing up in a pretty frock, showing off your finest jewelry and walking tall in your new shoes (and gossiping about ‘you know who,’ of course!).

Christina Re has created a divine space for girls like us wanting escape our daily routines. In the heart of Collingwood, it was some how odd to find this pretty little cafe/boutique/craft-shop, but it was perfect. The scones were hot and yummy, the selection of beverages were impressive and the hospitality was warm and welcoming. For a Scrapbooker, this is paradise! – Pretty papers every where, signature cards and embellishments screaming “buy me!” and the deco of this place really makes you feel right at home. Overall, we had a fabulous time, and we look forward to our next high tea at Where a girl goes.

Where a girl goes to spend time with her girl-friends is nobody’s business. However, when a girl finds a fabulous place and has a marvelous time, it’s hard not to share the joy. Enjoy!

Where a girl goes – Christina Re

Corner Langridge & Oxford Streets
Collingwood, Melbourne