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.

Katarina Zrinski, Footscray by Foghorn Leghorn

Before Footscray was Vietnamese, it was Croatian, and before that it was Polish. The Polish presence is today marked only by the cryptically named Millennium House*. The Croats, by contrast, have the unambiguously named Hrvatski Dom, or Croatian House, proudly displaying the chequer-board red and white Croatian coat of arms. Inside Croatian House is the Katarina Zrinski restaurant. On All Saints' Day, I paid a visit for Sunday lunch, together with Big Fil, Snooze and Mrs Leghorn.

A noticeable thing about the restaurant is the natural light and spacious interior. I've been to many ethnic clubs, and generally they're somewhere between cosy and dingy. Croatian House was renovated in 2006, and evidently it was done with ample funds and a bit of thought. The floor-to-ceiling glass wall gives the room a pleasant feel, and the outdoor terrace is a nice spot for a drink. When we visited, the restaurant was a quarter to a half full. It’s a fairly big space, so that would be 30 or 40 people.

The menu has a range of Croatian dishes, plus some Aussie bistro standards for those who aren't ethnically inclined. With four of us willing to share, we were able to sample most of the Croatian offering.


Mrs Leghorn kicked off with a chicken soup, explaining that it's her ethnic custom (Mrs Leghorn hails from Prague) to start lunch with soup, no matter what the weather. Happily, it was good soup weather, and the soup was just as chicken soup should be, with a nice yellow colour and strong chicken aroma. Mrs Leghorn claimed to detect some Podravka undertone, Podravka being a popular Croatian brand of stock cubes and other things. If there was any, it didn't detract from the flavour.

Little Bridge Cafe, Richmond by Bureaucrat

Medical appointments are never fun.  However, the upside of going to the doctors (at least for me), is that it's an excuse to have lunch at a nearby restaurant or cafe - which is how we came across Little Bridge Cafe.  True to its name, the cafe is little.  But, golly, it packs a punch when it comes to its glorious middle-Eastern influenced cafe menu.

When you're greeted with this amazing bounty, you just know you're onto a good thing.  Everything is made on site - the bouncy doughnuts, custard tarts, muffins and baklava-y sweets.  Also on offer are soups of the day and these delicious, moreish savoury flat breads.  Little Bridge Cafe seems quite popular among the local workers, residents and even the boys in blue come in for a coffee and snack.

12's Cafe, Hawthorn East (by invitation) by Obelix

12's Cafe is a new addition in the Camberwell Rivoli precinct.  Owner Jack Kwan opened in September 2015 with the concept of fusing traditional Chinese BBQ (think roast duck, roast pork) with modern Australian cuisine.  "Fusion without the confusion", is what Jack calls it and it he has nailed that well.  He spent a Sabbatical in Hong Kong learning the BBQ meat techniques and has brought that back to fit in with on trend Australia food culture.

We were offered a sample from the menu and it was exciting as there is nothing quite like 12's Cafe in the Camberwell surrounds.   The menu is a mix of sharing plates, brioches, beautifully plated-up mains.  So the following photos show miniature versions of what's on the menu.


First up, we were treated to a selection of nibblies which would serve well over Happy Hour or over a couple of beers in the jaw droppingly amazing Beer Garden.  (Yes! There's a Beer Garden - quite a fancy one at that but more on that later).

Rosella's 120th birthday (by invitation)

Iconic Aussie products that are Australian owned and Australian grown are a rare breed nowadays. Having grown up with bottles of Rosella Tomato Sauce in the pantry, the Eat And Be Merry Crew were chuffed to be invited to help celebrate Rosella's 120th birthday last week.  It was a celebration that was steeped in Rosella's rich history.  We toasted to Rosella in Cremorne, right opposite its original factories (which were operated from 1905).

What started out as a backyard-operation in Carlton has become a much-loved Aussie brand.  Having said that, it's been a bumpy ride over the 120 years, with Rosella changing owners several times and was even at the brink of receivership.  However, in 2013, Australian company Sabrands bought Rosella and decided to take the company back to its roots.  Since then, Rosella stopped importing tomatoes from overseas and only uses home-grown ingredients, most of which are grown in Victoria.

Pho Minh Long, Mitcham by Obelix

My sister and I tried out a new yoga studio in Mitcham not long ago and walking out completely zen-like we hit Maroondah Highway and noted a waft of wok breath emanating from Pho Minh Long from across a six lane (plus two service lane) Highway.  Surely that is a good sign of good food being cooked, we pondered?  So we checked it out.  Pho Minh Long was doing a steady trade already just shy of noon.  

I ordered the seafood combination with rice noodles.  The serving was pleasingly huge and the wok breath?  Really prominent.  That is some good noodles.  I also liked the fact the fish fillet bits in the noodles were deep fried then incorporated into the veggie mix.  It made it so much more tastier than some slippery flaccid bit of white fish flesh one sometimes gets.  

BonBons Bakery, Burwood East by Bureaucrat

Alliteration aside, it seems these days that no matter where you go, there's an Asian style bakery, for example, Bread Top or Bread Kingdom.  While all of these bakeries offer a similar range of products, not all are of equal quality.  BonBons Bakery is yet another Asian style bakery chain.  And having sampled a few of their baked goods, I have to say, it's now my go-to place when I'm in the mood for a Swiss roll or pineapple bun.  I usually go to the one inside Burwood shopping centre.  This one seems to have a smaller range than, say, its counterpart inside Chadstone shopping centre.  Nonetheless, there's enough of a selection to tempt me to pick up a few goodies for an afternoon treat.  

The simple but fluffy and nicely doughy cinnamon doughnut was delish.  It wasn't too oily or greasy on the fingers.  It wasn't dry on the inside and was pleasantly chewy (I loathe doughnuts that are as hard as a camp-fired damper).  The fresh cream bun was equally delish.  The slightly sweet soft bread  had a nice cream-to-bread ratio.  Lovely with a big cup of tea.

Meme's Gourmet, Mauritius by Obelix

Whilst it is all well and lovely to be sequestered in a beautiful resort in the lap of luxury, I do make an effort to venture out and suss out what the locals are eating (and doing! - for I am an unabashed people watcher).  So we went downtown to the capital of Port Louis and followed our noses for a bite of traditional Mauritian Chinese Hakka cuisine.

Meme's (pronounced Mei Mei's) is the type of place the city-folks who work in the big smoke go for lunch.  It's cheap and unpretentious and generally consistent with quality (so I've been told by the regulars).  We ordered a few things to try.


First up was the min bui (boiled noodles) which we ate with a serve of octopus rougaille.  Boiled noodles in name does not sound very attractive but it was like a Mauritian version of spaghetti aglio olio as it was served with a garlicky and peppery emulsion drizzled over the top.  The octopus rougaille was tender and had a tomato base and slowly cooked down.  I loved it.

Alfa Bakery, Seddon by Obelix

Seddon has really blossomed into quite a happening place in the last few years, particularly down Victoria St and surrounds.  I was pleasantly surprised when asked by a friend, J, to meet her for lunch there to find a hub of inviting cafes; doggie paraphernalia shops; organic produce shops and other curio shops lining the strip.  I was even more awed by the wonderful graffiti adorning the walls at each street corner.  It was obviously endorsed and planned graffiti as it depicted the name of each shop on the corner in techni-colour pictorial but it demonstrated a collective artistic spirit to be found in the area.  We were spoilt for choice when it came to picking a place for lunch.  Eventually we settled on Alfa Bakery as the seating appeared roomy enough to accommodate my friend with her bub.


Being an unseasonably warm Spring day, we both ordered freshly squeezed OJ to quench our thirst from nosey poking in the surrounding shops ($5).

Giveaway—Red Spice Road and Burma Lane at Night Noodle Markets

I love the annual Night Noodle Markets which kicks off today at Birrarung Marr.  This year, there are more stalls than ever - with 56 stalls, three bars and a VIP dining area.  And if you need another reason to go to the Night Noodle Markets, the fabulous guys from Red Spice Road and Burma Lane (see our reviews for Red Spice Road, Red Spice Road QV and Burma Lane) are running an exclusive mystery giveaway for our dear readers.

Red Spice Road's famous pork belly (source: Red Spice Road)

If you haven't been before, the Night Noodle Markets is an opportunity for cheap and incredibly tasty food, served up by the banks of the Yarra River with a beautiful springtime sunset in the background.  The Eat And Be Merry Crew have got attending the Night Noodles Markets down to an art form... all of us know to leave work bang on 5 o'clock to hustle across town before the queues get crazy and to ensure that we can snag a table.  And believe me, it's best to get in before peak dinner time!

Chinta Ria Soul, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

Continuing my ongoing nosh around the eatery options in the Emporium food court, today's review is about Chinta Ria Soul.

The seafood laksa was pretty tasty and was loaded with lots of goodies.  Plump-sized prawns, coils of calamari, reasonably thick slices of fishcake, crunchy snake beans and big puffy fried cubes of tofu. Slurp-worthy noodles.

Blue Ginger, Mauritius by Obelix

Whilst in Ile Maurice, we stayed in one of the villas at Trou Aux Biches Resort & Spa, which as cliched as it might sound was like heaven on earth.  In Trou Aux Biches Resort itself are five restaurants which if you take full board, like we did, the meals were included in the price of the stay.  We had a lovely staff member who met us on our first morning to map out a menu plan for the duration of our stay to suit our taste and lifestyle.  I was very impressed by the careful consideration given to the suggestion of our meals.  One evening she suggested we sampled Thai cuisine at Blue Ginger.

Blue Ginger is located on a floating pavilion surrounded by a pond, lit up with fairy lights.  It was magical.  And romantic...

They served a set menu.  Whilst it appeared it was more a couple-y dining, salle intime sort of venue, they were quite accommodating to flex what they can on the set menu to cater for Kiddo.  They also served separate chicken and rice for the kids as an option.

This is a big call but P and I have agreed that it was the best Thai we have ever had.  So here's what it was:

Campari House, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

Hardware Lane is a bit of a gamble. There are some great places along Hardware Lane but then there are all the touristy trap-y places where touters try to lure you into parting your money for their over-priced, kinda-average quality food.  With no real place in mind for dinner, Ms G and I took a chance on Campari House.  I had some internal reservations about the place, as it looked kinda tourist trap-y.  Plus, I was more intrigued with the nearby Korean restaurant where diners mix up their food with their disposable gloved hands.

But my fears were dashed when the food came out.  The food was real good.  Ms G ordered a goats cheese ravioli dish ($25) which was served with brown butter sauce, sage and lots of toasted pine nuts.

Rochford Restaurant, Coldstream (by invitation) by Obelix

It's an understatement to say that there's been exciting new developments at Rochford Wines.  It's more of a metamorphosis of mammoth proportions.  New head chef Raki Andriana has been injecting the menu with his French techniques and Middle Eastern influences.  And the space itself has also had a revamp.  There are now four new tasting stations accompanied by Rochford's expert sommeliers to guide you through different wine options to complement the new menu.  And there's also the innovative 'take home' option whereby diners can take home what they have enjoyed for lunch with more food and produce available for purchase at the new deli in the Rochford shop.  It's a whole new way of experiencing good food and wine at Rochford Restaurant.  Yes, Rochford Restaurant is the official new name!

The Bureaucrat and I were treated to a tasting menu prepared by Chef Raki.  It showcased a selection of items from the menu.  The menu structure itself lends very well to communal plate sharing and nibbling over wine selections.  Items are arranged by plate sizes.  So one could have a 'large' plate all to oneself as a stand alone course or share a selection of 'small' or 'medium' plates with others.  Particularly now that the weather is fining up and there is generous al fresco dining areas available, I could definitely see myself enjoying the vista over a few plates and a few wines with friends.  I noticed this structure is quite family friendly as there were many families with young children and this menu structure arrangement worked very well.

To start with, our very friendly and knowledgeable waitress Emily provided us with crusty bread to have with our charcuterie platter and she steered me towards the Estate 2014 Chardonnay to go with our starter / entrees.  The platter was laden with charcuterie of a various sorts - two types of salumi; sopressa; proscuitto; marinated olives; eel croquettes and my personal favourite, the smoked ox tongue.  It was sliced paper thin and so absolutely smokey and tender.

South Society, Mt Waverley by Obelix

Feeling very familial one fine morning, I organised a brunch for the three generations of ladies in my family.  My dad was included as an honorary lady of the family.  I have been hearing great things about South Society, relatively new in the Pinewood Shopping Centre area...all accounts fairly positive with the exception of the noise level - apparently there is not much in the way of sound proofing.  And so it was.  An echoey concretey space.  But if you can get over that, and the somewhat on the slow side service, the brunch offerings were pretty decent.  Most of the brunch menu were between $15 - $20 with the exception of the calamari salad which was $22.

I ordered a colourful poached eggs on a vegetable pattie type affair.  It had sweet potatoes, mushrooms, beetroot and rocket.  It was filling and guilt free deliciousness.

Bikaner Sweet and Curry Café, Dandenong by Benny

Our quest is for bling: invited to an upcoming Indian wedding Bilby needed plenty of bespangled items to accessorise her special outfit. And where is the best place to get things Indian in Melbourne? “Little India” of course – a small strip of Indian-themed clothing and grocery shops just beside the Dandenong train station.

Chicken Saag and Lamb Rogan Josh 

Shops are explored and purchases completed. But shopping is hungry work, and recommendations for lunch are sought and obtained from a helpful saleslady of Fijian Indian extraction. “Do you like curry?” she enquires, with a nearby favourite clearly in mind.

Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses' Mini Eclair Collection (by invitation)

I love this time of the year.  No more autumn, no more winter, and hello to spring, summer and a lot of festive-making!  With Halloween (I love how the neighbourhood kids go trick or treating nowadays) and the Melbourne Cup just around the corner, the calendar is telling us it's time to indulge.

With indulgence in mind, the Eat and Be Merry Crew took up Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses' challenge to "d'eclair their love" by trying their new mini eclair collection.

A half dozen of mini Nutella-infused mini eclairs from Ferguson Plarre Bakehouse

Naked Wines Australia winery tour (by invitation)

On the weekend, Ms G and I had a most lovely day trip out to Avenel (two hours north of Melbourne) with Naked Wines Australia. Naked Wines Australia a cooperative of small, independent winemakers who make wines through crowd funding (see my post here for more info).

After a few hours of drinking wine tasting, things got a bit hazy...

Along with a hundred or so Naked 'Angels' (the name given to customers who commit $40 a month into their Naked Wines account to purchase, you guessed it, wine), Ms G and I sipped our way through countless glasses of gorgeous red and whites.  And while this may sound like we were drunk (just happy, we were!), we also sampled some rather scientific wines... red wines that looked as clear as water (if this was a Simpsons episode, I'd be thinking "Mmmm... invisible cola").

Saigon Square, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

The revamp of Menzies Alley has resulted in several new eateries lining this alleyway.  With a menu and prices to entice the nearby office dwellers to part with their money at lunchtime, I was tempted to try Saigon Square.

In line with my ordering preferences at a Vietnamese restaurant, I ordered a bun (warm vermicelli salad).  But uncharacteristically, I ordered five spice grilled beef instead as the betel wrapped beef was sold out (and I wasn't tempted enough to go for the chicken or crab options).

RSPCA’s Choose Wisely initiative

This week, RSPCA launched its Choose Wisely initiative, which is focused on asking all Australians to support humanely produced food when eating out.  As foodies, we think this is a great idea and would love it if our dear readers would also support this initiative.


Photo credit: Choose Wisely

Domaine Anna, Mauritius by Obelix

Domaine Anna is known for its gorgeous garden and water featured settings.  It's a popular place for weddings and functions.  We recently hosted my father in law's birthday there.  Before the sun set, I captured a few shots of the surrounds.  And yes, it was a picturesque venue.  It is large venue.  Alongside our function, there was a wedding held on the other side as well as the regular restaurant section.  

Giveaway—WIN double pass to winery tour, tastings and lunch!

Congratulations to the lucky two readers who will be joining me tomorrow on a gorgeous day of eating, drinking and making merry:

• Laura
• Patrick Wu

Each of them has won a double pass to a winery tour, tastings, masterclass and lunch with Naked Wines Australia!  Please email us (eatandbemerrycrew @ gmail.com) by 5:00pm today with your full name, mobile phone number and email address so that we can arrange your tickets for you.

Thank you to everyone else who entered the competition.

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WOW! Thanks to Naked Wines Australia (see our post earlier this month), we have two double passes to giveaway to our readers.  This is an am-ay-zing prize for wine and food lovers.   Join me (and a select group) this Saturday, 24 October 2015 for a guided winery tour, tasting and lunch in regional Victoria.

We've got two double tickets to giveaway for this flash competition.  Winners will be announced tomorrow at 3:00pm.

Sam Plunkett is an independent winemaker based in Victoria who loves to make delicious, easy drinking Aussie wine. Naked Wines' Angel funding has enabled some super-talented winemakers to follow their dreams and craft their very own gorgeous wines. Spend the day with Sam learning about wines and, more importantly, do a lot of wine tasting and eating!

Giveaway—WIN double pass to the Cake Bake & Sweets Show

Drum roll!  Congratulations to:

• Stefgal
• Jia Yin Tay

Each of them has won a double pass to the Cake Bake & Sweets Show!  Please email us (eatandbemerrycrew @ gmail.com) by 2:00pm Thursday, 22 October 2015 with your full name, mobile phone number and email address so that we can arrange your tickets for you.

Thank you to everyone else who entered the competition.

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With just a less than a week to go before the Cake Bake & Sweets Show, the Eat and Be Merry Crew have two double passes to giveaway to our dear readers!

If you love to bake or indulge in absolutely gorgeous works of edible art, then this is for you. The show features cooking demonstrations from international celebrities such as Duff Goldman (USA, Ace of Cakes) and local personalities from MasterChef and My Kitchen Rules.

Duff Goldman from Ace of Cakes (photo supplied)

Hattori Hanzo, Cheltenham by Benny

Quentin Tarantino fans will know Hattori Hanzo as the master Japanese swordsmith who comes out of retirement in his 2003 movie Kill Bill. The original Hattori Hanzo was a samurai and ninja of the Sengoku era (16th century). This modern incarnation in suburban Melbourne is a restaurant that describes itself as ‘focussed on hawker style food halls throughout Asia’.


Twice cooked duck in red curry

A1 Kebab and Cafe, Frankston by Bureaucrat

A weekend reconnaissance to inspect property was why we were in Frankston.  I don't know much about Frangers except that, well, it's full of bogans, and you drive past it on the way to Mornington Peninsular (you simply must come and stay at my Portsea home, daarrling).

With a tip from the property development manager, Mr P, we went in search of a kebab place in the main shopping area for lunch.  According to the owner of A1 Kebab and Cafe it does a brisk trade.  I was really looking forward to ordering their charcoal grilled meat skewers but was disappointed to learn that they only serve that at dinnertime (however, I think since our visit they now serve the charcoal grilled meats at lunch too).

Between the four of us, we ordered two lamb souvlakis and two pides.  The souv was pretty good - lots of lamb, salad, garlic sauce and soft bread.  For me, the lamb is the most important part.  There was lots of it, it was tender and it wasn't fatty or greasy.  We could tell that the owner really takes pride and a lot of care to make the souvs.

Naked Wines Australia (by invitation)

Ahead of our road trip to Avenel to meet with winemaker Sam Plunkett next week, Naked Wines Australia sent us a lovely package of wines to sample.  Have you heard of Naked Wines Australia?  It's kinda like a collective of small, independent winemakers across Australia.  NWA buys the grapes from the winemakers upfront so that the small winemakers have financial security while they take the time to make great wine.  In turn, customers can purchase great wine directly, which is more bang for their buck.

Left to right: Boy Meets Girl 2014 Prosecco, The Butterfly Effect 2014 Chardonnay, Jen Pfeiffer Rock It Like A Redhead

Solitude Food Truck, Mauritius by Obelix

Picture this: azure blue sky overhead; black sediments of volcanic rock underfoot; sugar cane fields on either side; a truck parked in the middle of nowhere by a twisted leafless tree casting it's shadows like gnarled fingers on the road.  I was having my Anthony Bourdain moment, I was street fooding, Mauritian-style.

This food truck is not surprisingly nameless.  However that does not mean it is not infamous.  I have nominally called it Solitude Food Truck as it is located in the aptly named suburb of Solitude to further highlight that one is in the middle of nowhere.  Try googling Solitude Roti, or Solitude Faratha, it is clear that others have gone before and opinion of it is high.  Locals come screeching to a halt in their cars for a bite.  Likewise the locals come on foot.  Ladies undulating with loads on their heads emerge from the horizon to queue up for a pair or two of the farathas.

Pizza By Nature, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

It was all a matter of timing.  I was on a tram heading up Elizabeth Street, on my to West Brunswick.  But I was really, really, really hungry.  I was already cutting it real fine - I would have just enough time to get to my appointment.  But I needed to eat.  And it wasn't possible for me to grab some eats afterwards.  I didn't want to be late.  And I was hungry.  You get my dilemma?

Feeling like a slow-poke version of James Bond, I jumped off my tram when it trundled up to Queen Vic Market.  I ran like the wind into to the market hall.  All the tourists, students and office workers were flocking around the usual suspects (the hot dog place and the borek place).  Looking much less popular was Pizza By Nature.  No queues and gluten free - bingo bango, this was the place for me.

With about eight types of individual pizzas available, I choose Beet 'n' Meat - a pizza with a beetroot base, salami, Roma tomatoes, capsicum, basil, olives and cheese.  It's pre-cooked and reheated in the oven.  I loved the lurid magenta of the beetroot base.  The base was pretty good in texture - a good imitation of a gluten base.  However, it was let down by the fact that it was rather soggy towards the middle - definitely could do more time in the over to crisp/dry that up.  The toppings were good, too.  Nothing fancy and homestyle in nature.  Definitely no grease or excess fat here.

Flying Dodo Beer Spa, Mauritius by Obelix

Bonjour!  It was Oktoberfest while I was on holiday.  Since I'm not a avid beer drinker, I thought I'll get into the spirit by partaking in a beer spa.  The Flying Dodo is a microbrewery in Mauritius and downstairs in their dungeon area, they also run a beer spa.  A beer spa as I am lead to believe from their brochure and from googling other establishments that also provide beer spa services, involves a soak in beer with a massage at the end.  The Flying Dodo's own brochure depicts a bathtub filled with beer and massage chairs alongside.  So I was expecting a soak and a bit of a rub down.  I was disappointed however to realise that the beer spa at The Flying Dodo despite their advertisement, only involve the soaking part.

Mr Foxx, Glen Iris by Benny

A spontaneous and genuinely friendly “welcome back” greets us as we are seated by our waitress, and this is only our second visit. Even though it is only a week after our first, it is little things like this that enrich a pleasant and memorable meal with friends, and enhances the already good impression we have of Mr Foxx.

Mr Foxx is a breakfast and lunch eatery that significantly raises the bar for innovative value-for-money daytime dining. The décor is difficult to categorise – a functional, almost industrial theme softened by the liberal use of natural timber finishes, with plenty of natural light made possible by large windows taking advantage of its corner location. There are plenty of outdoor tables, but Melbourne’s winter is still with us and indoors is far preferable.


Salmon at Mr Foxx

Cloudy Bay's 2015 Sauvignon Blanc launch (by invitation)

There were no clouds in the sky at Cloudy Bay's launch of its 2015 Sauvignon Blanc.  In a sun-drenched conservatory at The Botanical, Mr Strong and I got to taste the delightfully citrusy and zingy sauv blanc.

Fancy Hank's BBQ Joint, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

To commemorate that I was chucking in the towel (i.e., I was quitting my job... hurrah!) to pursue a scholarly life (i.e., I was going back to study), I used that as an excuse to have lunch with absolutely everybody.

So for my one of many fare-thee-well lunches, I went to Fancy Hank's BBQ Joint with "the guys".  Located near Vic Market, I've been wanting to try this for some time now.  I like the name of the place and who doesn't like BBBQ? (that extra 'B' was a typo).  Throw in a good measure of hipsters with luxuriant beards and body hair (lumbersexual, anyone?) as waiters, I was set to buy into the marketing gimmick,

In short, there's six types of slow-cooked meat on offer and a whole heap of sides and bready options too.  Thinking we'd be OD-ing on meat, Mr G and I decided to share 100gms of Texan beef brisket and 100gms of Kansas city pork ribs plus a small side of chips.  What came out was rather spartan and I felt we were served prison rations.  The good points were that the flavours for both the beef and pork were deepy, smoky and packed full of flavour; the meat was fall-off-the-bone tender.  Chips were the best as it had a wonderful crispy batter-like crust (but rather pricey at $5.50 for a small serve).  The not-so-good points were that the both meats were kinda served warmish - definitely not hot.

Louis Sergeant, Wellington (NZ) by Benny

For those with a sweet tooth, Louis Sergeant is a not-to-be-missed experience when visiting Wellington. Or so I had heard on numerous occasions from Bilby who travels to New Zealand regularly. So when the opportunity came for combining a two-day workshop with a weekend in the windy city, plans were made. Expectations were high.

Louis Sergeant describes itself as a “contemporary Salon de Thé”. It is very, very French and is known for its spectacular patisserie – in this instance the term edible art is not misplaced. Tea connoisseurs can choose from a fine selection, served in floral china pots amidst chic décor that recalls memories of Parisian elegance.

Pho Mee, Melbourne CBD by Benny

Back in the early 1990s I worked within walking distance of what is still a centre of Vietnamese culture in Melbourne – Victoria Street, Richmond. Back then, it was one of the few places where you could get Vietnam’s version of that worldwide comfort food: noodle soup, and it was called “pho”. We didn’t know how to pronounce it then, but that didn’t matter; the English menu anglicised and assigned numbers to each of the dishes. Pho cost between $4 and $6 for a wonderfully fragrant, very large bowl of noodle soup, accompanied by a large plate of fresh bean shoots and plentiful Vietnamese mint leaves to be plucked from the twig and dunked in the steaming soup.

In the many years since I worked near Victoria Street, Vietnamese food culture has spread across Melbourne. A bowl of pho has become a go-to comfort food for everyone.

State of Grace, Melbourne CBD by Bureaucrat

I've had my bespectacled eye on State of Grace for a while now.  Located on Collins Street it has the visual and upmarket glamour that I love... it's the sort of place where I don't mind being parted with my money in exchange for good food and a wonderful dining experience.  Many a-times I have scurried past SoG and have always promised myself that I have to go back and dine there.  I love its big windows and the fancy font and all the pretty people who are inside wining and dining away.  

A dinner with Ms D was the occasion to try SoG.  The staff were ever so patient with us as we were too focused on gasbagging than ordering.  We did eventually placed our order and I got this lovely duck dish.  The duck was done three ways - two pieces of roasted duck breast, a pan-fried disc of shredded slow-cooked duck, and a crumbed cube of this slightly odd mushy duck (potted duck, perhaps?).  I loved the duck breast the best (breast is best!) and the lovely waxy nuggets of chestnuts.

Wong's Lucky Bar, Box Hill by Obelix

Let me set the scene for those who are not familiar with Wong's.  It's location is on the median strip of Maroondah Hwy as it traverses through the busy hub of Box Hill with traffic rushing by on both sides.  Being on the median strip, it shares it's presence on this narrow archipelago with the tram terminal.  So one could have literally one foot at the tram stop waiting for the tram and the other foot inside Wong's ordering take away.  Wong's itself is narrow, no frills establishment.  It is approximately 5 metres wide (if that).  The owners have tacked on an extra 0.5m or so in width simply by building another wall one table's breadth away from the existing external window in order to fit in an extra three tables.  That in itself fascinates me.  The architecture;  the fact its located on the median strip on a busy highway and the intermittent 'ding ding' of the tram a hair's breadth away makes this place an endless source of wonderment for me.  How on earth did they get approval to build this? Other people on the other hand, come here for the food.  Apparently it's good. 

P and I decided to go for a seafood studded meal as that seems like what everyone else was doing.  Most of the main dishes are $18.80 with the exception of crab and lobster, etc which were more based on weight.  We ordered sauteed snow peas sprouts with century old egg and preserved salted duck egg.  It was a generous serve and even P who normally shun any greenage was very happy with this dish particularly as the soupy sauce was morish sloshed over rice. 

Nelayan Indonesian Restaurant, Melbourne CBD by Obelix

I love a good reliable cheapeats and Nelayan fits the bill.  It caters to the university crowd which is fine by me as it's Indonesian cuisine cooked homestyle with no frills service. 

Most of the Nelayan patrons go for the items in the bain marie which vary seasonally.  Most of the bain marie items include a bit of meat (eg a few curries and casseroles), a bit of veg (eg stir fries) served atop of a mountain of rice.  

Mr Hendricks, Balwyn by Bureaucrat

Thinking we'd get filthy rich, over a year ago, we started placing Google ads on our blog.  It'd be the perfect scheme: the blog would pay for itself, and in doing so, we'd get to dine out on the Googley profits.

The reality is that we earn peanuts each day from Google Inc.  So when we finally earned enough money for Google to post us a cheque, it was celebration time at Mr Hendricks, which is a place that Big Fil has had his eye on.

It's a typical breakfast-brunchy place.  Beaker ordered the crispy eggs, which came with sweet potato puree, ham hock, fennel, radish, red onion and candied walnuts.  The eggs looked delish, as they were crumbed and fried.