A weekend in Adelaide

A weekend in Adelaide

Recently spent a weekend in Adelaide with K and thought I’d share some of the pictures I took during that time. Me being me, it really is mostly food. No wait, it’s all about food. But food is beauty too, hey? There is beauty in the presentation of food and beauty in the consuming of food. There is art and skill to eating.

We started the weekend by having breakfast at Adelaide Central Market. I had read reviews recommending either Zuma Caffe or Lucia’s. After taking a peek into both, we settled with Zuma Cafe.

We both ordered the day’s special which was poached eggs on a hearty sugo. K had the meaty version with chorizos and bacon while I plowed my way through the vegetarian version which was a somewhat less exciting version with chickpeas and the like. I say less exciting because when you taste both, you can immediately distinguish who had the better dish of the meal. The chorizo really added an extra punch and the tasty bacon was absolutely beautiful. Still, the chickpea version was hearty and definitely worth a try. Can’t say the same for their ice mocha unfortunately!

Our next meal came in the form of Burger Theory. Food trucks excite me. I love the food trucks back in Malaysia and the music playing of the bread truck that comes through my neighborhood in the evenings is usually a welcomed sound. Unfortunately food trucks seem to be a bit of a rarity in this country, though they are popping up around the place. Burger Theory is one of them. You can smell the amazing wafting smell of burgers way before you can see the truck! Walking up to it was pure torture and bliss in the same swift stroke and I was practically bouncing with eagerness by the time we got to the truck.

The burger itself had the most amazing bun. The toasted bread was to die for and if all bread was made like that, I would happily survive on just that for the rest of my life.

For dinner, we then visited Matsuri. I’ve long wanted to visit Matsuri as friends have told me that it was a delight. Matsuri is divided into western and traditional seating. Western meaning tables with chairs, traditional meaning sitting on the floor. Kneeling, if you prefer but Matsuri did have the holes in the floor for you to hang your feet into if kneeling wasn’t your cup of tea.

I delighted in the freshness of the sashimi and swooned over the garlic chicken. I did however moan the tiny portions of the sashimi and came to the conclusion that Suzuran is still the king of sushi and sashimi. Still, definitely worth a visit and I’d come again!

Eggless then followed for dessert, though this month’s tasting platter wasn’t quite up to my likings. I did like the panna cotta though, but it lacked a wow factor. Nonetheless, Eggless is always worth a revisit every single month and I have wrote about it before so feel free to read that review.

I think I’ll stop here for today. I’ll come back to tell you about our antics the next day soon! What did you get up to on your weekend? A friend of mine went for a holiday in turkey, the lucky duck.

Zuma Caffe on Urbanspoon

Burger Theory on Urbanspoon

Matsuri on Urbanspoon

Eggless on Urbanspoon

Restaurant review: Steven Ter Horst Chocolatier, Adelaide

Restaurant review: Steven Ter Horst Chocolatier, Adelaide

Steven ter Horst Chocolatier
08 8373 1330
221d Unley Rd Malvern
Malvern, SA 5061

Oh Adelaide. I’m not even that big a sweets lover, but your love for dessert cafe woos my heart so. I was bemoaning the fact that Melbourne really should have little dainty dessert cafes such as this when a friend said to me in no uncertain terms that I needed to stop being greedy and that Adelaide had little enough good food, did I really have to steal the dessert cafes for good-food-aplenty-Melbourne?

Fair. I will admit that was a fair call, so I shut up and allowed myself to resign to the fact that I’ll be flying back to Adelaide in future years (should I ever leave it) for the dessert cafes. Which isn’t a bad idea, really, if you think about it.

Steven Ter Horst would be one of those dessert cafes that I would list as worth flying back for. Housed in Unley, this little chocolatier is cozy and rather unassuming. At least, the front is. That thought is quickly thrown out of the window when you take a peek through their glass fridges and suddenly you are drooling over the delicate looking chocolates and all thoughts of Koko Black goes straight out the window.

I love the neat lines, the use of space, the decor was minimalist and done oh-so-well. There’s tables for folks to cuddle a mug of hot chocolate over though not too many. The variety in terms of other types of desserts is somewhat limited but all of them look equally as scrumptious as the next so I was left despairing over which one to order.

They also sell tea. Just thought I’d put it out there. But you are in a chocolatier. Why would you drink tea? At least, that would be the way I think. What do you mean that’s not the way everybody thinks? Pishposh.

Back to my issue of what to get: I finally settled with this beautiful lemon dessert to curb the lemon tart craving. I’m calling it a lemon dessert because I have no idea anymore what it was called. Notes, what are they? What do you mean I can write in them.

Here’s an inside shot. I may not be able to tell you exactly what it is, but I can tell you it was really, really, good. Full of lemony goodness with some really rich and in-your-face chocolate power in the middle. Plus check out that insane shininess on the outside!

I really should blog more often, I feel like I’m losing my touch at describing food. Becoming more grateful and less picky, more appreciative and less food bloggy. But while I’m still trying to find my magic touch once more, you just have to believe me that Steven Ter Horst is worth a visit, and you best get your butt over there. If you aren’t from Adelaide, maybe you should look at some hotel deals, it’s worth the trip!

I didn’t order all of these, don’t worry. My friends did though, and I was allowed to ‘taste test’. Mmmm, yummy all the way through. Though this cake was not as rich and as yummy as it could have been. And remember, don’t breathe just as you are chowing down onto the cake. Inhale all that chocolate powder and die from hacking up your lungs.

And to top it all off, my standard Hot chocolate. Not as rich as Koko black, not as watery as Max Brenner’s. It sits nicely in the middle and I must say I was in love with its foamy goodness and its velvety good taste.

For the takeaway lovers – see how cute the takeaway box is! Now you never have to fumble with the lid to get it open to remember which box had which dessert. And you get the added bonus of being able to look at it and drool.

Steven Ter Horst – visit it. You won’t regret it.

Steven ter Horst Chocolatier on Urbanspoon

Restaurant review: Eggless, Goodwood. Adelaide

Restaurant review: Eggless, Goodwood. Adelaide

I have an annoying trait. I tend to obsess. That means, I won’t stop talking about something if it is my current obsession. I think my Adelaide peeps are sick of hearing how awesome Melbourne is. I’m sorry, I truly am. I really should curb it, but see, my Melbourne friends have not stop hearing about how awesome Adelaide is for having dessert cafes.

You heard me right. Dessert cafes. Why can’t Melbourne have this? (sorry, I don’t really count Passionflower as one) Oh, Melbourne. I really didn’t want to see flaws in you, but the more time I spend in other cities, the more flaws I see in you. But that’s alright, you are darling the way you are. I’m starting to learn this: every city has its beautiful points.

And for Adelaide, it is the fact that is the buzzing city of dessert cafes. Cafes that open up from 8pm till late and serve coffees and sweets. It is the most brilliant idea ever, and Eggless was the first such cafe that I visited.

Eggless was named because the desserts served at this charming little cafe are all completely eggless. All their sweets and nibbles are vegan and lacto-vegetarian friendly. And for a big lover of eggs, I can assure you that the lack of eggs in their cakes and sweets do not impact on the end results at all. Not one bit.

No visit to Eggless is complete without a glass (or two!) of their homemade Chai. The best chai I’ve had in my whole life, this is a Chai recipe I would love to get my paws on. I’m not having you on, it is really that amazing.

The last time I brought Kev there, we sat there for hours on end ordering glass after glass of Chai. Oh, so good.

The beauty of Eggless, is the fact that the menu changes every single month. Since I was first introduced to Eggless earlier this year, I have been back at least once every month. I need my eggless fix, and I need it quick! Everything sounds amazing, everything looks delish. You can often find me staring wide-eyed at the glass display, and if social etiquette allowed me to be plastered to the glass licking it feverishly, then why yes, I’d be doing just that.

Lucky for me, the greedy pig who wants to try everything, Eggless does a tasting platter with a small selection across their range. This has proved to be such a great idea that every month when I go, I just get the platter and share it with whoever the unlucky (or rather, REALLY lucky!) soul I’ve dragged to Eggless is.

If you are in Adelaide and you don’t get yourself to Eggless, then I’m sorry, you haven’t tasted Adelaide yet. The owners are absolute gems and they remember their regulars, chatting with everybody as tho they were old friends. The cafe opens at 8pm, but if you went at that time you’d be really lucky to get a seat. By 7.45pm, you usually get queues and crowds outside the shop, ready to pounce on seats the minute the shop opens. In fact, so eager they are to get onto seats, the owners sometimes find it hard to get completely set up when they open the doors… they can’t even get their signs out amidst the crowd that’s fighting to get in!

And their Panna Cotta…. where do I even begin to wax lyrical about their panna cotta? The texture is absolutely beautiful and after having Eggless’ Panna Cotta, I can no longer eat Panna Cotta anywhere else. So incredibly soft, creamy and it just falls apart in your mouth! This panna cotta is unlike any panna cotta you will find out there, and undeniably, it is also the best.

There’s no point in me telling you what to order. You will just have to trust me that Eggless knows what they are doing and to go along and order their tasting platter. I can’t speak for their savoury dishes, but why would you go to a dessert cafe to order savouries?

Oh Eggless, you complete my world. I can’t wait to go back to try the new month’s offerings! If you’d like a peek at what they are offering this month, here’s their blog entry on it. As for me, I will be back there tonight. And if you aren’t, then well, it sucks to be you. And that’s the truth.

Eggless on Urbanspoon

Cafe review: Cacao Green, Melbourne CBD

Cafe review: Cacao Green, Melbourne CBD

Cacao Green

(03) 9654 9674
285 Swanston St
Melbourne, 3000

It’s been awhile since I have been able to walk around Melbourne City. Even when I was still working in Melbourne, it was often just work, work, work, and the only times I saw the city was during morning and evening peak hour traffic when I was trying to get through it as fast as I could.

So on one of my last weekend trips back to Melbourne, I took the chance to have a stroll around and to have a leisure Saturday afternoon to catch up with a few fellow bloggers at Cacao Green for a Nuffnang meetup.

Cacao Green is one of the many frozen yoghurt places that have been popping up like wild flowers in Spring time. (you should check out how crazy they are going here in Murrayville.) Sadly, Adelaide hasn’t quite caught on yet so I’m only able to get my frozen yoghurt fix when I’m back in Melbourne. On that day, I was fortunate enough to meet the owner of Cacao Green who very graciously offered us yoghurts and toppings on the house for us to try. Thanks Nuffnang for arranging this!

Hey look, fair trade coffee!! Though I don’t drink coffee, it always makes me happy to see people using fair trade coffee. It’s always good to see people doing their bit for the world! Cacao Green is a fairly small place, they do have some small tables for you to sit and enjoy their desserts, but most people seem to do takeaway frozen yoghurt.

What I really liked was the range of toppings they offered. Till today, they are the only place I know who offers Frosties as a topping! Yum! The fruits look pretty yummy and fresh too. Unlike the pomegranate seeds I had as a topping at the Frozen Yoghurt place in Chaddy. Those were foul.

Here’s what I ordered. Green Tea Frozen Yoghurt topped with Frosties. It was so yummy! We were pretty lucky that it was a really sunny day that day despite being in the middle of winter. It meant we could indulge in the frozen yoghurts without shivering our butts off! The first frozen yoghurt was Strawberry flavoured. Not quite sure what it’s topped with. I think it was Violet‘s, but I’m not 100% sure.

Strawberry frozen yoghurt with cheesecake! This was absolutely brilliant. I adored this combination. Not mine though, so I didn’t get to stuff my face with it. It belonged to Kev.

We were also given the chance to try their waffles. Unfortunately, these were not crispy, somewhat soggy and not very memorable at all. Pass. Don’t waste stomach space on this, go for their frozen yoghurt!

And here’s the hero drink of the day. Green Tea Latte. Omigosh, this was so rich, so good, and brought me right back to the Japanese tea ceremony I participated in when I was in Japan. So, so good.

If you are in the area, don’t bother with slurpees from the 7-11 next door. Just grab a frozen yoghurt. These guys are good!

Cacao Green on Urbanspoon

Travelling in Mary Janes dined at Cacao Green as guests. But the opinions are my own, so there.

Meal to Share: South African

Meal to Share: South African


This month’s theme is : South African!

You can have a look at our previous Meal to share themes:

Moroccan, Outdoor food, Chinese New Year, Russian Feast if you have missed any.

I really do like our Meal to share themes. It sneaks up you, at the end of the month but it’s quite nice because it makes me (and the other two ladies as well, presumably) explore and learn how to use ingredients in a different way. Combine things in a manner that I never would have thought of, and tried new cuisines and recipes that I wouldn’t have otherwise. So I really hope you enjoy it too!

Our Menu today starts with a look at Penny’s Mini Bunny Chow


The name’s adorable, the dish looks adorable! If this is what South African cuisine looks like then let me at it!

I could eat a whole meal of that, I believe. But we need to move on to mains!

For Mains, Agnes brought Bobotie which is a curried mince dish served with yellow rice.


How incredibly colourful is that? Have you noticed that so far the meals have all been quite colourful? I’m really loving the food and vibrancy of the colours from the Rainbow Nation so far! And both ladies’ food styling expertise is making me sigh in envy.

So you are probably thinking that since the savouries from the Rainbow Nation are so incredibly colourful then dessert must be an explosion of colours, right?

Wrong. At least, in my case, it’s wrong!

I made Malva Pudding


Oh you humble looking thing. If people passed you by on the street, they probably wouldn’t even take a second glance. You don’t look very eye catching do you?

But just you wait till you’ve taken that first mouthful. You will be sorry you ever doubted its humble appearance. The beauty of the Malva Pudding is not in its look, but in its incredibly incredibly amazing flavours that just EXPLODES in your mouth like a joyful firework on a clear summer’s night.

Malva Pudding is also known as Vinegar pudding, which I assume to be because of the vinegar you add into it. You can substitute it with Cider, which is what I did.


Here’s the Cider that I used. Mmmmm. It really only required 1 teaspoon. So I drank the rest. Someone had to do it. Mmmm.

Malva Pudding Recipe


(from the book “The Saffron Pear Tree” by Zuretha Roos)
Source: Food Fun Farm

Ingredients

200g Sugar
2 Eggs
1 tbsp Apricot Jam
150g Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 pinch Salt
1 tbsp Butter
1 tsp Cider/ Grape Vinegar
100 ml Milk (Skim Milk Okay)
1 tsp Vanilla Essence

Sauce:
200 ml Cream
100g Butter
150g Brown Sugar
100 ml hot Water

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180’C/350’F/Gas Mark . Beat the sugar & eggs well in a food processor (or with an electric mixer) until thick & lemon coloured, & add the jam, beating in.
2. Sift together the flour, soda & salt.
3. Melt the butter & add the vinegar. Add this mixture & the milk & vanilla to the egg mixture alternatively with the flour.
4. Beat well & bake in a covered oven proof dish for 45 minutes.
5. Melt together the ingredients for the sauce, stirring well, & pour it over the pudding as it comes out of the oven.

Serves 4.


The beautifully golden pudding as it came out of the oven. When I was originally pouring it into my oven proof dish, I thought : what a pity, my dish is too large. Turns out, the pudding expands and almost doubles! My dish turned out to be the perfect height for it after all. Phew!


Pour, pour, pour. Absorb, absorb, absorb… mmm. This makes the pudding somewhat squishy and soggy but it just oozes beautiful juices. The blogger whom I snitched the recipe off said that this was the : “I Think I’ve Died And Gone To Heaven Pudding” I think that is so true. This is definitely making its way onto my to-share list and don’t be surprised if I turn up on your doorstep demanding you have a bite of this.


Looks can be deceiving, but oh gosh. Maybe you want this to look as plain as possible so nobody else will want to eat it anyways. That way you can have it all to yourself. Yum.