Gnache and Pacific Seafood BBQ House

Guys, its been a while. Its actually been longer than you think coz a guy at work DELETED my almost finished post. SO ANGRY (and falling in love with the expressiveness of CAPITAL LETTERS)

But ive recently decided that what i need is photos! so hence the delay. And no, this coming post will not have photos either, though i took them, as i am having a minor restle with my iphone camera ATM so they will be uploaded later.

First, i went to a restaraunt in South Yarra called Pacific Seafood BBQ House. I was walking past this place on the way to find a Subway ( i know, SHAME!) and the outside was compeletly covered in newspaper clippings saying how good it was. It also had a sign saying "Cheap Eats" so i thought it was a goer.

HOWEVER

Yeah, no. The food was definitely not cheap and the eats were semi ok.

Just to clarify i consider it cheap if the meal is under ten bucks. i consider it reasonable if the meal is under 15 bucks. anything after that ... is paid for by my dad :)

Anyways i had the soft shell crab with chilli and garlic. It was fried, which they didnt mention on the menu (i say menu but i mean peice of coloured paper stuck to the wall) and it was pretty over powering with lots of garlic and fried shallots. The sweetness of the crab didnt really come out at all.

They do give you a complementary grey troll-booger coloured broth with really shoft nuts and weird white vegetables. I wouldnt call it nice... not bad, not good. Semi-ok.
But then (drum roll please) i had THE BEST CAKE IN THE WORLD!

Its true. But i didnt have it at the BBQ Seafood place, thats for sure. Its a place in South Yarra called Gnache. Its in the main drag near the train station.

This thing was called "Hazelnut Fan Slice" and lemme tell you, I'm a BIG fan. The base was a perfect blend of sponge and hazelnuts, sweet but with a soft crunch, almost a crackle. The top was iced with the most perfect ganache (which explains the name) and the centre- the centre. The centre was a soft creamy delicate perfect mousse that wasnt even too sweet. It was, altogether, perfection.

Maple Leaf

Its my Nana's 80th birthday tomorrow and she is having her party at Maple Leaf Restaurant. My entire family have been going to this restaurant since it opened, and apparently my mum and i went there on the opening night when she was not long out of hospital from having me. We never look at the menu 'cause we know it off by heart and all the service staff know us by name. If fact, when my dad goes there he takes an extra beer for the chef.

So anyways in anticipation of this event i thought i would just let y'all know how good it is, even though its not strictly in Melbourne. Its in noble park but you can take the pakenham/cranbourne/dandenong line and get off at noble park. Just walk toward maccas and its just across the road.

The main reason that my nanna (who lives in QLD) is having her party here instead of in the sunshine state is the PEAKING DUCK. It is legendary in my family. For those not aware of what PEAKING DUCK is its a roasted duck that its carved and put on a thin pancake with delicious hoi sin sauce. The sauce is so delicious that my brother often requests that they leave it on the table so he can put it on everything that comes after.

Another popular dish with the family is hot and sour soup. I never really eat as I'm not a huge fan of hot stuff, but when the waiters go around our table probably 70% get it.

The dim sims are delicious and home made. Chinese sausage is another favorite. But NOTHING compares, in my mind at least, to san choi bow. It is delicious mix of vegetables and meat in a crispy lettuce cup.

I could run through all the things on the menu that are delicious but its pretty much anything. Favorites of mine include the sambol chicken, its fantastic the next day, and shredded beef. My sister likes the garlic prawns and my dads favorite is the Singapore noodles (which i am also very partial).

I don't actually know how much it is as I've never had to pay :)

ENJOY!

Rice Bar

So those who know me probably already know this place but i love their roast pork so i thought id put it out there :)

They have a pretty long menu and i have tried a few of their dishes and they are all pretty good. Roast pork is my favorite and at $9.50 i usually have it on fridays- just after ive been paid. Its in a very convienient location if you are a Melbourne Uni student (but not if you have your lappie and 100 library books on you as it is about a five minute shlep from the library there) and is on the corner of Canada and Swanston or tram stop 3- Lincoln Sq. Majority of their menu is under ten bucks and is pretty sizable. They give you free tea and thats a good thing because all of their drinks are like $2.50 (for a can!) and up.

Its a semi nice place to eat though their chairs are not comfortable at all! The service is pretty good with friendly staff and lots of em. One thing though: they claim to have free internet there but its cable and it didnt work for me :( even though i went there specifically because my own internet was not working...

Shanghai Dumpling House

Step right up folks for the second post!

There once was a place called Shanghai Dumpling House down Tatterstall Lane off Lonsdale street. Along came a university student equipped with an off beat sense of humour and a thirst, A THIRST, for deliciously cheap food. And she found it. The End.

Yep, Dumpling house is apparently another one of those Institutions my friend Kate is always telling me about. Well known by native Melbournians as the place where the service is shit, the food cheap and you can bring a goon bag, get hammered, and nobody would care.

As a side note to those who are first visiting Melbourne: It is pronounced Mel-bin, not mel-BOURNE. I had a customer the other day who told me he had just been to visit jee-lorng. I said: Geelong? He said, No, jee-long.

Nobody likes it when you cant pronounce the place your visiting.

ANYWAYS... the thing to get is the Steamed vegetable and mushroom dumplings. You can get ten for $4.50 or twenty for $6.50 (or if you want them frozen for later, $5.50). To tell you the truth i had these the first time i went there and have not bothered to try anything else. But i went with James and he got the soup and said it was delicious, and we tried the spring rolls, which are pretty piddily little things but at $2.50 nobody really cares. They're pretty darn tasty.