New Zealand/Nueva Zelanda/Neuseeland

A few months back I decided that I wanted to see New Zealand. I never really thought it would push through as I had so many troubles along the way. The embassy misspelled my name on my visa and so I had to wait another few weeks for them to return my passport with my visa printed on it, my travel agent really didn't do that great of a job, and so many other things.

However, it did turn out to be a surprisingly good trip.

We planned to go to so many places (which we did, but didn't fully cover our initial plan) and didn't expect to even cover as much as we did. New Zealand is absolutely stunning and is just beyond words.

On our first day it seemed pretty bad as it was raining and it was gloomy, but a lovely dinner with one of my old friends from the Philippines saved it all. We ate at Strawberry Fare and the food was just so filling and beautiful!

Chic menu!

Walter & I had a dish called Simply Salmon (Hot smoked warm Akaroa salmon, salad greens, ciabatta, caper & dill creme fraiche):

Perfection on a plate!

We then drove to Methven, to a place called Mt Hutt Bunkhouse. We had a lovely stay. It was detached from the internet (although they do provide access for a minimal fee), clean, cosy and homey. Giles (owner/manager) made sure we had everything we needed. It was so comfortable and at the same time very affordable. Would definitely stay there again when we do go back for another visit. :-)

Walter & I at Mt Hutt Bunkhouse

View from across our lodge at 8 in the morning the next day! :3

By the time we got there we were absolutely buggered and wanted to be up bright and early for our first day up the slopes. The 2 photos above were taken that morning before we caught the bus to go to Mt Hutt which was so amazingly nice, but that's for the next blog!

Adelaide's food secrets - Cocolat

I can confidently say that Cocolat has been my BEST find in Adelaide. It's a dessert cafe down in Rundle Street.

We had cakes there, and unfortunately they've been gobbled up too quickly that I ended up only having a photo of their amazing tiramisu:

It was soooooooo good. The cake was encased in milk chocolate, topped with shaved white chocolate and served with fudge and cream. I was in heaven for 5 minutes.

I bought a box of their truffles (and thought that maybe they're not as great as the Chocolateria San Churro here in Sydney), but my, to my surprise... They were even better! The truffle menu can be found here (expect to drool).

My chocolate experience in Cocolat was absolutely amazing that I had to go back to buy another 2 boxes of chocolate and indulge myself in 2 massive scoops of their gelato!!! If I'm not mistaken they've been awarded chocolatier of the year and they truly deserve it!!!

Cocolat is unique to South Australia and nowhere else so I suggest that when you go there you make sure that it's one of your stops!

Adelaide's food secrets - Rundle Spices

Before I moved to Australia I never really enjoyed Thai, mainly because I didn't know much about the cuisine. Out here people love it, and I've grown to love it too. Rundle Spices is another restaurant on Rundle Street in Adelaide's city centre.

We came in for dinner (a very late one at that) and they were just about to close shop. Their staff was so friendly that they still let us order despite them already prepping to close up! Suffice it to say the food came out from the kitchen so quickly like any other Thai restaurant.

There were five mouths to feed, and our table looked something like this (notice how the food's already been touched; we were that hungry!):

We had Red beef curry

Some pandan chicken

Some green chicken curry, and satay chicken.

The food was lovely, served very hot (as in hot hot and spicy hot, haha). It wasn't beautifully plated like you would in fine restaurants, but you really get good food for the price that you pay. What I loved about Rundle Spices was that their prices were very competitive. They're situated in the city centre, with many other restaurants that charge heaps for food. They managed to stay on the main street and still serve very affordable food. Entrees are between $5-8 and mains from $11-15.

The servings don't come tiny either. We were all stuffed by the end of our meal and still had some stuff left over. I'd have to say, Rundle Spices has really impressed me, because I've tried and tested so many eat in and takeaway Thai and they've lived up to the standard of serving fresh, delicious food for a cheap price in a beautiful setup.

Adelaide's food secrets - Brunelli

I know, I know... this is 3 months too late... but hey, I'm officially on break which means I can actually squeeze out some substantially sensible blogs! Lol. Last time I said I'd be talking about wining and dining in Adelaide, and here we are. The whole 4/5 days that I spent there, I basically just ate out for most of the time. When I arrived, I had lunch with a couple of old mates from the Philippines. I had a wonderful time catching up, and definitely a wonderful time eating! We had lunch at Brunelli, an Italian café down in Rundle Street Mall which is practically Adelaide's city centre.

My friend had this gorgeous plate of Pollo Principessa if I remember that correctly! It's basically chicken breast, with ham and white wine sauce.

My other friend has a warm chicken salad, which was generously drizzled with honey mustard and candy balsamic.

Meanwhile, I had Garlic Prawns with white wine cream sauce, rice and vegetables. It was absolutely lovely. The prawns were perfectly cooked - meat falling off the shell (in this case, the tail haha), super soft and super juicy! I loved it.

Prices range from about $20-$30 for mains, which isn't too bad considering the servings are hefty. You can either eat inside the cafe, or outdoors (which is, on a beautiful sunny day, so good) where you can people watch!

Tongue Thaied!

University has got me tied down, 100%. I seriously cannot wait to be on holidays - a friend and I are spending 6 days up in Brisbane! In other news, I've only been up to eating lately as compensation for not going out and such. Two weeks ago (?) we went to Marrickville to watch my cousin's band play at The Factory Theatre. We got there considerably early (& hungry) so we walked around to find food. My (good) eye saw this tiny place called Tongue Thaied. It was a little humble restaurant, and their little staff of two welcomed us well. I must say, I did not expect it to have great, or even good food, to say the least. I don't know why, but it just gave me that vibe (or maybe, I'm just highly biased cos I'm a huge fan of Deli's Thai in Glebe). The name was absolutely smart though, short, easy to remember and best of all, funny.

I decided to get out of my comfort zone and tried their Pad Kee Mao. It took me by surprise. It was a faaaaaaantastic dish, that's spicy and nutty and just bursting with flavour. I loved the flat rice noodles; they were cooked al dente. The basil and the chili really locked it all in.

I actually Googled Pad Kee Mao and in English it means Drunken noodles! The name makes it all the more awesome.

We also ordered a plate of money bags, which is our staple starter whenever we have thai.

Meanwhile my aunt got a plate of Pad Thai, which she thought was a safe choice, but turned out to be quite disappointing. I had half of it and I thought it was an all right dish, however, it was too sweet and I just didn't get the usual flavours I'd expect from a Pad Thai maybe because the sweetness overpowered it.

See the excitement on her face before she tasted it? Lol...

Overall, I'd give it a 3.5/5 for great taste, good price (it's about $15/dish) and good serving size. Maybe if I had other dishes to taste I would've been able to say something more, but, I'll leave that up to the next time that I come and get my Toungue Thaied ;-)

Sweet tooth

The last couple of weeks I've been craving for nothing else but cupcakes from The Cupcake Bakery. I've been stopping myself (and had people stop me) from getting them because I know I haven't been the healthiest eater, but yesterday I made an exception!

I was shopping at the Myer store in Pitt Street Mall (MAKE THE MOST OF EOFYS IT'S WORTH EVERY DOLLAR!!!) then I just realised that I was going to walk past The Cupcake Bakery on my way to the train home. Excitement rushed through and I paid for my purchases and rushed out into the crowded streets!

Close to missing my train, I knew I had to hurry (cos I wanted to push my limit and do more shopping, lol). I darted across the great amount of people making their way to the trains, the bakery and the news agent (everyone wanted a chance to win the $90M Oz Lotto). Soon as I got there, I knew which ones I was getting!

Red Velvet, Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake, Carrot & Sticky Date

The red velvet ($3,50) cupcake is a classic! It's a red chocolate cupcake generously topped with cream icing and a sugar heart. I always end up getting it when I'm not sure which cupcake to get at an unfamiliar cupcake shop. I got this one because I just wanted to make sure it's at par (or possibly, even better than) with my favourite red velvet cupcake, from Sonja's in the Philippines. I wasn't disappointed. With a red velvet cupcake, the first bite says it all. It was moist & chocolatey. The icing was creamy and not too sugary which was perfect.

The strawberry swirl cheesecake ($4,50), is so good that it's unforgettable. It was recommended by my aunty the first time I went to The Cupcake Bakery and it's really worth it. It's got the perfect balance of strawberry and cheesecake. It feels silky in the mouth and it's so flavourful. The base is very interesting, as it's moist yet crumbly when eaten. It's so good!

The carrot ($3,50) cupcake is just as expected. Heavy on the carrot and heavy on the cream creese buttercream. I enjoyed it a lot! I like the fact that the icing was made of cream cheese buttercream - some cost-cutting bakeries just use sugar icing which defeats the purpose of even baking a carrot cupcake! Yummy as it is, the carrot cupcake is topped with a sugar carrot which I reckon is inviting. :3

Lastly, the sticky date ($3,50) cupcake is a pretty good substitute for sticky date pudding. It's the normal sticky date cake with a honeyed date on top and a dollop of caramel icing. I'd still pick sticky date pudding over the cupcake, but this one's really good for a cupcake. Definitely one that outshines lots of the sticky date cakes I've eaten before. :-)

These are just 4 of the many cupcakes that The Cupcake Bakery has to offer. So if you happen to be at QVB, George Street or Oxford Street, make sure you drop by and have a boxful of these little pieces of heaven! :-)

In search of palatable goods

One of the things that I love most in life is eating. Anywhere I go, I try to find good food that also comes easy on the pocket. In Melbourne I was able to do just that - no matter how busy our trip went, and regardless of the amazing home-cooked meals my lovely aunt prepared for us during our stay.

My cousin recommended for me to go have lunch at least once in Pellegrini's Espresso Bar. It's an Italian restaurant on Bourke Street, and it's actually been there for decades. In fact, it is also in Lonely Planet's Melbourne Encounter book. The place makes you feel like you're in Italy:

Dining here doesn't come expensive, but it does come really good and in very generous amounts. Also, while waiting for your meal you get warm sourdough bread with butter. It comes well in handy if you choose not to get antipasti.

I obviously indulged on this one.

Anyway here's a rundown of what we had for lunch:

My aunty's seafood marinara: I like the fact that the noodles were cooked perfectly and the flavours left a nice aftertaste but the sauce was a little bit too watery, and the mussels tiny.

I wonder if they're the canned kind... Hmm.

My gnocchi: It was absolutely lovely. The presentation's obviously not the best, but once you bite into the gnocchi pieces, ah, it will just make you smile. The sauce was nice and thick and the flavours were just very well balanced. Apparently, Pellegrini's makes their own chewy-yet-melt-in-your-mouth gnocchi once every week.

My friend Nadine's risotto: one of the 2 things I wasn't able to taste but she sure looked happy (not to mention quiet - a sign of enjoyment, in my opinion) while she was eating this.

My friend Erick's bolognese: okay, honestly, who can go wrong with bolognese? It was divine. I'd have to say it had the best sauce among all our dishes and it was made to perfection. :-)

It's funny how I didn't even get the chance to photograph my friend Brenda's ravioli but she told me it was really good! For taste I'd give Pellegrini's a 4.5, 3 for presentation (we could all do with more appetising plating!) and 4.5 for price. All the mains we had cost only about $12-14. Not too bad for a generous amount of authentic Italian food!

Pellegrini's is open daily from 11am-11.30pm. Bookings aren't necessary.

As I have mentioned in my previous entry, The Tea Room in NGV is also an amazing place to have a nice, sit-down snack or just a cuppa, whichever you prefer. I didn't expect to find a food haven inside an art gallery, but I'm thankful I did!

The Tea Room is an extremely busy humble-sized cafe. I was able to take this photo just before my camera died on me and just after a large group of more than 10 left:

My friend Nadine & I each had a plate of Smoked Salmon, Cucumber, Dill, Crème Fraîche ($8):

One of the best sandwiches I've ever had in my entire life. The smoked salmon tasted just as I imagined, and the dill gave it such a nice flavour. The best part is that it was layered with crème fraîche! I can eat this all day - especially with the very light bread they used (I reckon it's light rye). Very very yummy! It was simply divine.

On the other hand, my friends Brenda & Cathy got Salmon Gravadlax, Vol Aux Vent, Cucumber Spaghetti, Dill Mayonnaise (termed simply: salmon marinated in herbs, cucumber spaghetti and dill mayo in really light but savoury puff pastry - $11):

I had a lot of Brenda's food because she didn't like it so much, but boy oh boy, did I enjoy myself! The salmon was fresh as anything! It's deceiving because at first it tastes bland but after quite some time, it bursts with flavour in your mouth. The herbs in the salmon & the butter in the pastry just mesh so well that I wish I'd order a whole thing for myself!

Last but not least, dessert! Nadine and I made a deal that we'd definitely get scones ($8) after our sandwiches. It was well worth it:

The scones were lightly dusted with caster sugar, and these things just melt in your mouth so beautifully. Especially with a dollop of cream and jam! Phenomenal stuff I must say, and it totally went well with my rich Italian hot chocolate (pictured below)

It came in a nice shiny cup :3

A drink worth trying though, is their chai tea latte ($5)! I'm absolutely raving about this one. It had the most amazing blend of cinnamon, cloves & ginger. If the chai tea latte I had in Badde Manors was good - this one will definitely blow you away. Honestly I've never had such a good brew of chai before.

And it comes in this quaint little tea pot!

The Tea Room feels so homey with its good food and drink and its wonderful staff. The African guy's definitely one of our favourites! Discovering this place was like finding sugar cubes, warmth and happiness all in a little jar.

Wine me, dine me.

Last Friday, I went to out into the city to hang out with my aunty & cousin. I had no idea what we were doing that night; all I knew was that I was sure to be in for a new taste of the city.

When we all got together, we talked about whether we should get a drink or food first. Hah, not being alcos at all, we chose to go for a drink. They took me to Marble Bar - located in beautiful George Street, it's on the basement of the Hilton. It's such a classic place, as it was built in 1889. It was refurbished in 2005, still upholding that really dark, cozy & classy atmosphere. I feel terrible I haven't got any photos. :-( My new camera hasn't gotten into my hands yet, pardon me. Anyway, I had a Vesper Martini - very James Bond inspired. It was a pretty good drink, though I would say it lacked a little kick (salt maybe? But that would ruin it, I suppose). The Vesper costs $16, and most cocktails are, on average, from $16-18. Not too bad for that great an ambience.

After drinks we decided we were hungry. It was a tough decision to make, to be honest. We knew that we were having Asian for dinner, but the problem was where to get it. The consensus was to grab grub at DinTaiFung, as I've never eaten there before, and because it's supposed to be a really good place to get XiaoLongBao. It's at the top floor of World Square, that is also along George Street. We ordered heaps of stuff, and I mean heaps for 3 ladies. Hahaha. People stared at how much we had on our plates, and that is no exaggeration. Just a quick rundown of everything:

Steamed pork dumplings

Steamed crab meat & pork dumplings

Steamed shrimp & pork dumplings

Shrimp & pork shao-mai

Fried rice w/ eggs & shrimp

Green beans w/ mince

Obviously we didn't get that in just single orders... It's my secret to keep how much we really had. Hahaha. It was an AMAZING dinner, and definitely worth the (45-minute) wait (outside in

the rain). I was really, really, really pleased & for all of that we paid around $80-something. Not too bad. I can't wait to go there for dinner again :-) In my desperate attempt to show you guys how amazing the food there is, here's a photo from GrabYourFork (who happens to have amazing restaurant reviews, glad I discovered this site tonight!!! Subscription-worthy, people!):

DinTaiFung review by GrabYourFork here

After much catching up (and me thinking of where to head for dessert), we caught the bus from World Square to Glebe Point Road, which has got to be one of the streets I favour going to more often than usual. The food places on that street are just GOLD! That night we picked Badde Manors to indulge in mind-blowing dessert. We got 3 different cakes - carrot cake, Italian baked ricotta cake & sticky date pudding. To match, we got mokka, chai tea (the real deal guys not powdered stuff) & hot chocolate.

The carrot cake was good, it had a nice thick cream cheese icing and the actual cake wasn't too sweet. Definitely matched the fresh cream garnish and the good thing about it is that it had fruit & nut to taste. It does the job but it's not the best, maybe because it was a little bit dry. The Italian baked ricotta cake was fantastic. It's the first time I've ever tried it and it was good. It was powdered with cinnamon and confectioner's sugar and garnished with fresh cream. But these two don't compare to the sticky date pudding! It was a perfectly-sized one, topped with fresh cream and surrounded by a pool of mouth watering toffee sauce. Ah, it was heaven!

The drinks were pretty good too. The hot chocolate was not too thick and had the perfect amount of sweet & bitter fusing in every sip. The chai tea was brewed beautifully - there was a perfect amount of cinnamon & ginger in it and it's all about feeling warm all over ;-) As for the mokka I forgot to try it cos I was too busy with the sticky date. :-\ I'll try again next time. All that for about $35, I can't complain.

Badde Manors was the perfect place to end our girls' night out but my food adventure doesn't end there.

On Saturday night my aunty, uncle & I agreed on eating at Deli's Thai after church. It wasn't a first time for me, as we all personally love this humble restaurant down at Glebe Point Road. I told you, that road is gold. Lol. Our staple spring rolls & money bags were ordered for appetizer, and for mains we had the usual fried rice & pad thai, but this time I ordered chicken pad cashew nut sauce. Their spring rolls are always palatable, stuffed with vegetables and really thin noodles. The money bags are my favourite; basically they're deep fried minced chicken and dessicated coconut with beans and other good stuff. We devoured the fried rice in a flash and took some time to get to know the chicken pad cashew nut sauce. It's nicely seasoned, not too salty and not too spicy, and had lots of vegetables. I can't say I'd put it in the list of stuff I would re-order but it's definitely worth one try. :-) Deli's Thai offers amazing Thai food for a reasonable price. For all of that we paid around $35.

I may have gained good 5 pounds from this weekend, but it was definitely worth it! :-)

Can I tell you about...

Sydney's Paddy's Markets. It's a place that people go to if they want fresh fruits, meat & vegetables at really low prices. And I mean low, in comparison to Coles, Wooly's and the rest.

So. I went there this morning after mass, and my was it packed. I was greeted by Lebbo guys screaming out "CHEEEPAAAAH" and enumerating their stocks. There was so much to choose from, and everything was massive.

Exhibit A - Cauliflowers. They may look tiny but they're not!

Just one of the price tags - they're a sight for sore eyes, especially for those looking to save on food expense!

The scenario when you shop at Paddy's Mkts

I love these big Valencia Oranges!

Large gingers, sweet potatoes, eggplants and capsicum. LAWL


Gross looking but extremely delish, FLOUNDERS!

Yup, I spent my morning at Paddy's, just adoring the freshness of the fruits and vegetables. Of course we bought supplies to last us the whole week, otherwise the trip to the market would've been useless.

What I noticed was that it looked (and by that I mean organised) exactly like the markets in Phils, as it is run by Asians, Indians & Middle Easterners. The noise and the hustle & bustle are exactly the same that I felt I was home. The difference was that it was cleaner and less stinky than the ones in Manila and the shoppers were either Chinese or backpackers from Europe.

One more thing that's different about it is that it also has stalls that sell clothing and shoes amongst others. It's something like what we'd call a 'tiangge' back home. So yeah, Paddy's is one of the places you should shop at when you visit Sydney because as we all know, New South Wales has the highest cost of living in all of Australia. Hahaha.

Sydney's Paddy's Markets is at Haymarket, Sydney (Click to view map).

First class all the way

But not really. Hah, I must say, I enjoyed flying business with Philippine Airlines, that’s all I can say. It was a smooth flight, and most importantly, I was pampered. I felt sick throughout the eight hours and got meds and 3 hot cups of tea. But of course it wasn’t the only perk. Hah, sorry I’m amazed. I’ve always flown coach as it is the practical choice. I’m not shy to say I’m ignoramus when it comes to flying business because I never have until my flight to Syd.

It was so enjoyable to eat really nice appetizers - tiny bread filled with some sort of paté, a 2-cheese & fruit & nut bowl (wine included!) and fresh fruit. The main course was delectable as well; we were served with either fish, pork or beef (i chose beef). I got a massive slice of beef tenderloin in glazed onions with steamed zucchini & carrots on the side. To top it all off, we were served watermelon & melon (lawl) alongside with a cup of mocha/chocolate mousse.

More than that, the seats were nice and spacious. :-D I was able to sleep nicely for half of the flight, and the rest of the time I just enjoyed the luxury of a smoother, less noisy ride. Overall, I can say I had a good flight to Oz, discounting the fact that we left late (due to airplane traffic, lol). We arrived on time anyhow.

Moving on.

I arrived on the 21st as well at around 8.15 in the evening, Oz time, and we went to Leichhardt straight away. I’m staying there at the moment as Phil’s (my habib haha) has Canadian occupants (our aunty&uncle!). It’s a quaint flat and there are 12 tenants. It’s also just about 15 minutes away from the city which is pretty good.

So yeah that was Sydney on the first day, and I was surprised by almost unbearable 35-degree heat. :c

x
Ryc