Three Monkeys Place, Doncaster East by Obelix

M has been urging me to try Three Monkeys Place for awhile now.  It's relatively new addition to Jackson Square in Doncaster East.  Boasting a large al fresco courtyard at the back, it was a logical place to have our get together with the kiddies in tow.

M went for an old favourite, Mr Hermit Crab burger.  Soft shell crab on a charcoal brioche with a apple slaw of sorts.  It was beautiful food styling.  The crab kept whole, creeping out of it's shell of a brioche bun.  The plate aquatic blue.  Little tendrils of salad mimicking seaweed delicately strewn.  It was a feast for the eyes as well as for the palate.

Social Brew Café, Pyrmont (NSW) by Benny

Taking a lunchtime break from work commitments on a recent trip to Sydney, I set off to explore the area around UTS. With some amazing and innovative architecture in the Ultimo / Chippendale / Pyrmont area – and more developments in progress – it is a fascinating blend of the ultra modern, quirky heritage conversions and, for the visionaries, still an abundance of opportunities for urban renewal (ie the raw materials for those heritage conversions). The combination of high density residential developments, the UTS campus and an eclectic range of businesses brings a wealth of funky foodie options to the area.  

My choice of lunchtime venue was clearly very popular with locals, with the added bonus of an outdoor area next to a teeny tiny patch of green parkland. Given the hot and sticky December weather, a salad was called for, and Social Brew’s pulled pork salad proved to be just the ticket.

Pinotta, Fitzroy North by Bureaucrat

Pinotta embodies what great Italian food is all about - delicious flavours, passion, convivial times and food to remember by and yearn for.  Our dinner at Pinotta in Fitzory North for Ms G's birthday was the best meal that I've had for 2015.  It's fine dining without the pomp but classy enough to know that you're experiencing in something special.  More than anything, the food... my god, the food was sublime.  It was the first time the 12 of us had dined at Pinotta and by the end of the night, Pinotta had 12 new fans.


We all opted for the three course dinner for $45, which was an absolute steal considering the quality of the food.  And as it was a celebratory dinner, we decided to add on a dozen or two oysters (and a few bottles of red) to kick off the night!  These gorgeous molluscs were sweet, briny and plump.

Riversdale Thai, Camberwell by Benny

It’s dinner for three tonight. An impromptu encounter with Bilby’s brother and a shared hankering for Thai has us searching for nearby Thai restaurants. We have often driven past Riversdale Thai but never stopped to eat, so in the best traditions of Eat and Be Merry, this is an opportunity to be grasped.

Thai larb gai - minced chicken salad

Leafee Café and Restaurant, Thorndon (NZ) by Benny

Situated in the pretty Thorndon village, just across from the Wellington Botanical Gardens, Leafee Cafe and Restaurant conjures up a magical transformation: during the daytime it offers a range of modern New Zealand breakfast and lunch options; in the evenings from Thursday to Saturday it turns Japanese, with some of the best food we have eaten outside of Tokyo, albeit with a Kiwi twist.

We had been warned by our local source to book first, as the restaurant is quite tiny. Despite the bleak wintry weather that may have deterred many potential diners, it was nearly full and we were very lucky to secure the last available table. But with bright orange walls, it was a snug and cosy refuge.


Bilby Blue and I shared an entrée platter, which included nigiri sushi, beef tataki and panko crumbed chicken. The sushi and chicken were good, but the beef was the absolute standout of the entire meal – very, very rare and melt-in-the-mouth tender.

Old Town White Coffee, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

I first came across Old Town White Coffee a few years ago inside Kuala Lumpur International Airport.  My memory is a bit sketchy as we had arrived there at some ungodly hour, waiting for our onward connecting flight back to Melbourne.  At that time, I only bought a drink from Old Town White Coffee as Beaker convinced me to spend all our remaining foreign currency on a massage.  A few years on, Old Town White Coffee has opened up its first shop in Australia on Elizabeth Street, and this time I made sure to try some of the food.

I wasn't quite sure what everyone ordered, so I'm afraid for some of these photos I have to let the visuals do the talking.  I think this was a Hokkein noodle with curry chicken and potatoes, served with fried wonton skins and garnished with mint leaves(!).

Ripe, Sassafras by Obelix

A little while back, we were in Sassafras for a book fair.  It was one of those extremely muggy days and feeling rather flat from the slim pickings at the book fair, we trudged along to Ripe for afternoon tea for a pick-me-up.  I was with A & A and kiddo and between us, we shared a few cakes and chai lattes.  

The cakes were of generous size and suited to sharing.  The vanilla slice with the passion fruit topping was my favourite.  The tartness of the passion fruit undercut the sweetness perfectly.  The vanilla custard part was a lovely texture on the palate without being overly gelatinous.

Block 7 Kitchen, Camberwell by Benny

As regular Eat and Be Merry readers will know, I am a sucker for a good yum cha. Add an introductory discount to the mix and there is a good chance that I’ll be there. So it is that Bilby and I find ourselves lunching at the recently opened, oddly named Block 7 Kitchen in the Middle Camberwell shopping strip. Occupying a corner position that has housed a series of eateries, you have to look closely to recognise that it is a Chinese restaurant. Given the odd name and the location (Middle Camberwell is not exactly famous for the quality of its Chinese restaurants), expectations were not particularly high – but the possibility of finding good yum cha is worth the effort.

Vegetarian dumplings

Pier, Port Melbourne by Obelix

Zomato got into the spirit of Halloween this year and we were lucky to receive a #hallowtreats goodie bag and within was a voucher to dine at Pier, Port Melbourne. A lovely gesture by both The Pier and Zomato and I decided to take the olds down for lunch. The Pier has prime location by the seaside and its Art Deco details on the exterior make it hard to miss on the foreshore. The interior is tastefully decorated too! (I have included a few pics below).

We were all in a pescatarian jag and ended up all ordering either or vegetarian options. I could not resist the seafood risotto. It was a generous serving size and came with an abundance of large prawns, mussels and scallops.

The Brass Coq, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

There's nothing quite like a name that makes you giggle little a school kid.  The Brass Coq lives up to its name - it's brassy and it's cocky and its modern Vietnamese menu is finger-licking good if you're willing to pay $7 for a single rice paper roll or almost 1.5 times the price of a typical bowl of pho. Located in an otherwise dead-ish part of Little Lonsdale Street, The Brass Coq is 'in', it's chic and it's possibly the most upmarket Vietnamese restaurant I've eaten at (at least in Australia).


Ms G and I picked three dishes and a serve of rice to share as our dinner.  The menu is split up in the oh-so-typical format of little, small and bigger plates (which I personally dislike because I'm greedy and I don't like sharing... unless I have food envy... lol).  The grilled pork loin w lemongrass was one of the bigger plates ($22).  It was tender and juicy and had a nice lemongrass flavour to it.  It came with a slow-cooked egg, pickled salad and this crumbly, savoury 'dirt' as a garnish.

Street Organics, Malvern by Bureaucrat

Clean, green and healthy eating is what Street Organics is all about.  Armed with a voucher, courtesy of Zomato, to dine at Street Organics, I was ready to do my body a favour by treating it to a healthy meal.  The menu is very accommodating to those with particular dietary needs - gluten-free, vegan, veggo, nut-free, dairy-free, paleo, FODMAP... you name it!  Having said that, carnivores need not to worry - there are meat options on the menu.  And as far as I can tell, almost everything (if not, all) on the menu is free-range, nitrate-free, organic, fermented, and/or homemade.


As Obelix is all gung-ho about fermented foods and tries to stick to a vegetarian diet, I took her along.  She had previously visited Street Organics on her own and raved about its sweet treats and kombucha products.  Obelix chose the vegan big breakfast, which for $20 is immense value.  The breakfast itself has organic smashed avo with homemade baked beans, sauerkraut and a side salad.  It was served on sourdough (or gluten-free toast with no further charge). The big breakfast also includes your choice of a hot drink and also a smoothie.

Pizza Religion, Hawthorn East by Obelix

Does this happen in your household?   It's a weeknight; it's pushing on dinner time; there's no food in the house to construct any form of a meal; you loathe to order in a pizza because of the guilt factor associated with fast food...what to do?  I have recently stumbled on what Kiddo called "the best pizza crust I have ever put in my mouth". It's Pizza Religion.  Simply put - they do good pizza.  The crust is the perfect thinness to convey the perfect amount of perfectly amalgamated pizza ingredients into one's gob.  

Here we ordered the kid's margherita pizza which has the option of fresh tomato slices (but we didn't go that route) and my mushroom, caramelised onion and tallegio pizza.  Say no more, you had me a tallegio. I give you this close up to demonstrate the thinness of the crust.

Raspberry and Pistachio Semifreddo recipe - Carbs By Numbers

Why eat and be merry and go dieting tomorrow when you can indulge and be healthy at the same time?  Following the success of their cookbook, Carbs By Numbers, which was published earlier this year (and one of our dear readers won a copy of the book), Sandra Dunbar and Meg Pell have come up with a brand new cookbook just in time for Christmas.  Carbs By Numbers - Low-carb recipe options - Christmas has delicious Christmas recipes that have 15 grams of carbs or less per serving.

Sandra and Meg have given makeovers to traditional Christmas recipes so that there are options to suit those who are gluten-free, diabetic, vegetarian, vegan, egg-free and nut-free.  Recipes include: Cranberry Nut Roast, Roast Loin of Pork with Baked Apples, Cream Cheese Mince Pies, Sherry Berry Trifle and Mocha Cream Truffles.  As with their first book, each recipe in Carbs By Numbers - Low-carb recipe options - Christmas has an extended nutrition panel for your reference.


Photo supplied - Raspberry and Pistachio Semifreddo

Thanks to Sandra and Meg, we have a gorgeous recipe to share with our dear readers, which is perfect for the festive season.