now, i used to be super self-conscious whenever i whipped out my phone when a dish is set before me in public because of the way some people judge Asian people taking photos of food. if you didn't know it was a thing, it is. i've had people apologize to me when we were dining out when they were about to snap a photo of their food just because they didn't want me to have second-hand embarrassment.
food shots are, by all means, fine by me. hey, if you love your food, why not take a photo of it to remember it by?
***
Wide Open Road, Brunswick
soy cappucino
swiss mushroom gratin with almonds, egg yolk and polenta sticks
Wide Open Road is one of those cafés where you read the menu they plonk in front of you and you instantly can't decide what to order because everything sounds so new, so delicious, so exquisite. Wide Open Road ain't your usual run-of-the-mill brunch joint, oh no.
i could sing so many praises about this particular gratin. sliced swiss mushrooms baked in cheese, topped with chopped almonds. in the middle, having a mingle between the polenta sticks, was a glorious, glorious bursty egg yolk that i reluctantly poked at with my fork to mix it up with the mushrooms. i ate it alllll.
(oh. the coffee was also rather faultless, but i thought i'd wax lyrical about that gratin instead.)
***
T.G.I. FRIDAYS, Melbourne Central
mushroom chicken mushroom burger
this burger was so big, i couldn't open my mouth wide enough to take a bite. the chicken bit of this was scrumptious and succulent, and i couldn't have dreamt of more succulent portobello mushrooms to sandwich it (a ha.. ha... sandwich... while i'm talking about a burger! *slaps thigh, throws head back in a guffaw* ha ha.... *slinks away*).
**
Rice Workshop, Emporium food court
ontama beef bowl
two words: YOLK. PORN. this was a dream to eat. a generous serving of well-marinated beef atop some rice and some salad and the piece de resistance: the egg. oh, the egg. mix it all up and you get a pretty damn satisfying dinner.
ever since i discovered this i usually get some variations of this bowl: my favorite so far is the ontama beef bowl plus kimchi on top. deeeeeelicious.
***
Wat Thai modern thai, Emporium Melbourne
thai chicken red curry
you can't go wrong with curry.
***
Purple Peanuts, Collins St
prawn soba salad with spicy sesame miso dressing
i can't reccomend Purple Peanuts enough. they aren't your generic corner sushi store selling the same generic sushi rolls you can find anywhere else. they focus on homemade, well-made modern Japanese cuisine that cater to a health-conscious crowd, offering healthy brown rice options instead of white. they also do a pretty mean homemade miso soup that i had the fortune of trying one day when the waitress got my order wrong. besides the soba salad pictured, i also love their tuna onigiri (rice balls)... crunchy on the outside, bloody amazing on the inside.
***
Ten Miles restaurant, Crown food court
black pepper beef on rice and stir-fried seasonal vegetables
it's a blessing that Sebrina and i live so close, because when we feel like having a chat over dinner but we're too lazy to venture out into the middle of the city, we meet halfway in Crown casino and usually automatically gravitate to Ten Miles. it isn't your usual food court fare where they plonk piles of oily food from a bain marie on paper plates, you place your order after you choose from a vast array of authentic Chinese dishes and you're given a beeper to come collect your food once it's ready. we almost always order the same thing every time we go there... particulary because i'm on a black pepper beef kick. can't explain it.
***
Mekong, Swanston St
sliced beef and beef-ball pho
oh, pho. ohhhh, pho. pho, pho, pho. what would i ever do without you? ultimate hangover cure to end all hangover cures, how i love thee. this is my usual order at Mekong, but now that A introduced me to the fatty wondrousness of the beef brisket, i think i might have to retire the beef balls until further notice.
***
hope you aren't too hungry! ;-)
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