Yayoi Teishoku (Sydney)

We took a visitor to Yayoi at the Galleries Victoria building for a quick dinner. Fortunately we went early as a queue quickly formed after 6pm.

You ordered via the touch screen and I went for the Unagi Hitsumabushi Teishoku set. It was a different and refreshing way to have unagi when mixed with the seafood broth and eat it like a soup.

The fried dishes such as pork katsu and chicken namban are also recommended.

Details:
Yayoi Teishoku Restaurant
Level 1, The Galeries,
500 George Street
Sydney
http://www.yayoi.com.au/japanese-teishoku-restaurant/

est (Sydney)

For our wedding anniversary, we chose to dine at Est. to celebrate the occasion.

We had a couple of mocktails to settle down before the 4-course chefs menu. All the dishes were as pretty as a picture. Spanner crab salad, grilled scallops, venison and passionfruit sorbet were all excellent.

Big thank you for the staff to be very attentive and cater for my wife’s low sodium dietary needs.

Details:

Level 1, Establishment

252 George Street

Sydney

http://merivale.com.au/est

DOC Pizza and Mozzarella Bar (Melbourne)

During a quick business trip in Melbourne, I was craving for pizzas and my friends took me to DOC in Melbourne's Italian district.

The pizzas were certainly excellent and having mozzarella as starters was a must. Make sure you leave some room for the nutella calzone.

Details:
DOC Pizza and Mozzarella Bar
295 Drummond Street
Carlton
http://docgroup.net/

Hello Kitty Diner (Chatswood Sydney)

We had the opportunity to visit the new Hello Kitty Diner at Chatswood's newly established The District. The queue was long and it took us nearly an hour to get in for lunch.

The theme American diner is not all gimmick. The burgers designed by Chur Burger's Warren Turnbull were really decent. The slice of maple bacon inside the pulled pork burger was a pleasant surprise. Yuzu white chocolate milkshake was also a delight. Portion size was on the small side.

Details:
Hello Kitty Diner Australia
The District
436 Victoria Aveenue
Chatswood
https://www.facebook.com/hellokittydineraustralia/

Gypsy & Pig (Melbourne)

We walked past Gypsy & Pig while in Melbourne and decided to head there for an early dinner before going to a sporting event. The prospect of trying Kurobuta pork was too much to pass on.

Both the katsu pork chop and deep fried belly dishes were really comforting for a cold Melbourne evening. The meat was tender, juicy and full of the pork flavour. And the meal was extra enjoyable with all the pig related décor and books.

Details:
Gypsy & Pig
3/391 Little Lonsdale Street
Melbourne
http://www.gypsyandpig.com.au/

Yu-U (Melbourne)

Our friends in Melbourne took us for a real Japanese treat at Yu-U while in Melbourne. The restaurant was well hidden among a dark laneway with a rather obscure steel door.

All the dishes were nice and the highlight for me was the grilled King Fish head. The sheer size of it (as wide as a regular pair of chopsticks) was impressive and the meat, in abundance, was flavourful. The sashimi uni (sea urchin) was also one of the best we have eaten in Australia.

Details:
Yu-U
37 Flinders Lane
Melbourne

Hash Specialty Coffee & Roasters

Upon arriving in Melbourne for our weekend away, we went for a late Friday lunch at Hash Specialty Coffee on Hardware Street. Unfortunately the famous hot chocolate with cotton candy was sold out already; the cold drip coffee was not a bad compromise.

The foie gras sliders were certainly my treat for the week. The richness of the foie was well balanced by the slaw. And it was certainly a delight for a café to cook a quail dish so perfectly. While the dishes were pricey, one’s got to spoil himself once in a while.

Details:
Hash Specialty coffee & roasters
113 Hardware Street
Melbourne
https://www.facebook.com/hashcoffeeroasters

Gowings Bar and Grill (Sydney)

We took a visitor for dinner at the Gowings Bar & Grill. The modern décor and view of the kitchen delighted our guest. The food was satisfactory as well. I was expecting the steak section to dominate the menu, but was delighted to order the wood roasted pork belly. Do order a side of onion rings, and leave some room for the peanut butter chocolate cake for dessert.

Details:
Gowings Bar & Grill
QT Hotel Sydney
1/49 Market Street
Sydney
https://www.qtsydney.com.au/food-drink/gowings-bar-grill/

Salvage Specialty Coffee (Artarmon Sydney)

Living in the lower north shore, we seldom hear brilliant reviews at local cafes (versus the much hyped places at Surry Hills). So we were excited to find out Salvage Specialty Coffee at Artarmon making the Top 20 list in Sydney.

There was a line for Sunday brunch and the wait was around 20 minutes. We were staring at the blackboard deciding what to get from the menu. The Croque Madame was fantastic with the sauce making a big difference. And the filtered coffee was nice and light – exactly what the locals should be waking up for every morning.

Details:
5 Wilkes Avenue
Artarmon
http://salvagecoffee.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SalvageCoffee 

Cross Eatery (Sydney)

A breakfast catch-up with ex-colleague gave me an opportunity to finally try the recently opened Cross Eatery, located at the ground floor of the refurbished former Red Cross building.

Much of the positive reviews attributed to the quality of the coffee and it was certainly very good. I was disappointed with the late delivery of ham so decided against order the reputed breakfast sandwich. My colleague had it though – the sandwich went down well but seems quite messy to eat. I had the sour dough toast instead which went nicely with the excellent coconut almond butter.

Details:
Cross Eatery
155 Clarence Street
Sydney

En Toriciya (Crows Nest, Sydney)

We took our visiting guests (including my in-laws) out for a meal over the weekend and need to settle on a place to impress. So we went to the newly opened En Toriciya at Crows Nest after our excellent experience at its original Cameray restaurant.

The menu at Crows Nest was similar to that of Cameray’s. All the signature dishes were there. The seafood tower, presented in a high tea like setting, certainly impressed our guests with the highest quality of seafood. The “Kinki” fish was a disappointment versus the silky flesh from the real Kinki we had in Japan.

Details:
EN TORICIYA (煙とりしや)
100 Willoughby Road
Crows Nest

Kingston and Co (Chatswood)

We went to Kingston and Co at Westfield Chatswood for a quick mid-week dinner. The dining room was only half full so we were delighted to be sitting inside on a cold winter night.

I ordered the BBQ Angus beef brisket. It was really tender and went down well with the hollandaise sauce. I wished the portion size could be bigger given the price relative to other eateries in the area. However the service was good and we would go back for brunch during the weekend.

Kingston and Co Chastwood
Shop 330-331 Westfield 
1 Anderson St, 
Chatswood
http://www.kingstonandco.com.au/

Aria Catering at TEDxSydney

At the TEDxSydney event at the Sydney Opera House today, we were treated to really good food throughout the day. Both the stomach and the mind were greatly satisfied on the day.

The catering had the ‘Rebel Foods’ theme that promoted sustainability and focus on minimising waste. While the crowd was eating seemingly ‘recycled’ food, the taste definitely was not compromised. I liked the Ash cakes with compote marmalade more than the traditional scones. The mussel shell congee with crunchy prawn head was a revelation. And the roast pig by Feather & Bone was a great sight.

Toriciya (Cammeray Sydney)

For our anniversary, we headed to Toriciya which has been on our hit list for quite a while. It is a small Japanese restaurant tucked away from the main street at Cammeray. We were fortunately seated at the sushi bar opposite to the head chef.

All the dishes on the ‘First Time Visit Degustation’ (we were first time visitors after all) menu were excellent. I particularly enjoyed the kingfish carpaccio and yakitori skewers. To mark the special occasion, we splurge on an otoro sushi each. The quality of fatty tuna was exceptional.

Details:
Toriciya
18 Cammeray Road
Cammeray
http://www.toriciya.com.au/

Pei Modern (Sydney)

We had a quiet dinner mid-week at Pei Modern restaurant in Sydney. The dining room is large and opened, quite different from my Melbourne experience.

All the dishes were shared and I enjoyed the salt cod croquettes as well as the pork and fennel sausage with onion rings – the savoury hits that were much needed after a hard day’s work. I also recommend the duck egg sauternes custard for dessert.

Details:
Pei Modern Sydney
Four Seasons Hotel
199 George St
Sydney, NSW 2000

Hawker (Sydney)

For a quick meal after a whole day of gaming, we headed to the recently opened Hawker at Sydney’s Chinatown for some Malaysian cuisine.

I had the oyster fried and the curry laksa. Both were above average but not great. I suspect I had high expectations coming from the memories from my hawkers market experience in Singapore. I would recommend you to try the apam balik for desserts though.

Details:
Hawker
Shop G.02, 345B-353 Sussex Street
Sydney
http://hawker.com.au/

Crow Zone Cafe (Crows Nest Sydney)

We have brunch often in the Crows Nest area. We walked past Crow Zone Café and were attracted by the blackboard special. I thoroughly enjoyed my chorizo scrambled eggs on Turkish toast. The portion size was generous and the nice brunch made a great Sunday morning for us.

Details:
Crow Zone Café
79 Willoughby Road
Crows Nest
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Crowzone-Cafe/156666281050748

Via Alta (Willoughby Sydney)

To welcome 2015, we dined at Via Alta which is another venture of Alexandro Pavoni.

I really enjoyed all the dishes. Our starters of anti-pasti involved the melt-in-your-mouth veal tongue and creamy burrata cheese. My main course was the Bresciano spit roast was so good, there was not a drop of polenta left. The tiramisu dessert was just right for me (I dislike those that are too sweet).

Details:
Via Alta
197 High Street
North Willoughby
http://www.viaalta.com.au/