Din Tai Fung (Melbourne)

The infamous Din Tai Fung has finally opened its doors to Melburnians this week. And did it live up to the hype?

Having eaten in a few of their branches around the world including their original Taipei restaurant, the Melbourne branch has lots to improve. There wasn't a proper waiting system. Customers were given a number and menu and told to come back and check every so often. Somehow one would think Din Tai Fung (Melbourne) would have learnt a few tips and tricks from their other branches before opening here.

Queuing up for good food has become the norm in Melbourne but the wait time has to be accurate or take one's contact number and call  when the table is ready. Tip for you, Din Tai Fung (Melbourne) - you better under-promise and over-deliver and not the other way around. Going back twice and being told to come back a third time with no guarantee of a table is not acceptable.

Service: :star
Quality of food: -
Value for money: -

Type of venue: Taiwanese

Worth a return visit? No.

Address: Level 4, Emporium, 287 Lonsdale Street

 

Broadsheet Restaurant

Went to the Broadsheet restaurant at about 11 a.m. today. It wasn't very busy which was quite surprising. After all, food markets and the like have always been very popular. It is on from the 5th of June to the 2nd of Aug with a separate day and nighttime menu. We had:

Toasted Reuben sandwich on dark rye with corned brisket, sauerkraut, Swiss and Russian dressing from Five Points Deli (AU$17) - Generous, juicy and tasty. Well done and it certainly makes us want to check out Five Points Deli.

Quality of food: :star :star :star :star ½
Value for money: :star :star :star :star ½

Type of venue: American, Sandwiches,  Deli

Worth a return visit? Yes.

 

Roasted yellow duck curry with jasmine rice from Coda (AU$24) - Simple duck leg curry. However, a bit too sweet and would have loved a bit more of the spice mixture to come through. Also, there was nothing else in the curry; just the meat and sauce. Surely some vegetables would have gone into the curry? Disappointed with it.

Quality of food: :star :star  ½
Value for money: :star :star ½

Type of venue: Modern Australian, Fusion

Worth a return visit? No.

 

Grand Trailer Park Taverna

Sitting above the corner of Bourke and Russell Streets, Grand Trailer Park Taverna is a cool concept and certainly has a wonderful atmosphere. Only complaint was that the staff were a little too quick in wanting to clear the tables without even asking. We were going to have dessert but after the poor service, we left in a hurry. We had two burgers(but only reviewing one) and a shake(not spiked):

KSA -  Premium Aussie beef patter,  American cheddar cheese, tomato, butter lettuce, special burger sauce and American mustard on a lightly toasted brioche bun. It is certainly a delicious burger. A smaller burger compared to the others on the list but if you are after a no-frills burger, you can't go wrong with this one.

Salted caramel and maple bacon milkshake - had this without the alcohol. Presentation was good especially with the piece of maple bacon. Tasted a bit average as far as milkshakes go though.

Service: :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star ½
Value for money: :star :star :star ½

Type of venue: Burgers,  American

Worth a return visit? No. 

Address: 87 Bourke Street,  Melbourne

Oriental Spoon

We have tried several Korean restaurants in Melbourne over the years but have not written a review on all of them. This is our latest review of one of our favourites. Oriental Spoon is a casual restaurant offering a large variety of dishes that are perfect for sharing. Some say it is pricey compared to the many choices in the city but if you ask us, as with most cases, you pay for what you get. This time we had:

Chicken fillets in chilli sauce and mozzarella cheese - Don't let the three chilli symbols put you off from ordering this. You can ask for a milder version. It is cheesy and slightly spicy. Quite a large portion of moist, tender chicken, it is seriously addictive and delicious.

Sizzling Korean beef ribs - You can't go wrong when ordering beef at a Korean restaurant. It is tender, smells incredible and sizzling away when it arrives at the table. The ribs are tasty and go perfectly well with the sides that accompany your meal.

Service: :star :star :star :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star ½
Value for money: :star :star :star :star  ½

Type of venue: Korean

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 254 La Trobe Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Supper Inn

Our go to place for a late night meal. Supper Inn is a popular joint and although the service can be hit and miss, they do quite good congee which is the main reason why we go there. This time we had:

Suckling Pig - not many places do this Chinese style roast suckling pig. Slices of suckling pig with tender meat and crispy skin. Need we say more? Yes, there are better versions in Hong Kong etc, but this will do.

Sliced pork fried noodles - fried noodles and congee go well together and this version of "yuk shi chow mien" is really good. Crispy noodles with a nice gravy, generous thinly sliced pork and crunchy bean sprouts complete this dish.

Pork and century egg congee - they have a good congee list and we quite like their sliced abalone and chicken congee. Decided to try the pork and century egg congee this time and it was just ok. The congee texture is good but the century egg isn't the best in terms of taste and quality. Will stick with the abalone one next time.

Service: :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star ½
Value for money: :star :star :star :star

Type of venue: Chinese ,  Asian, Supper

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 15 Celestial Avenue,  Melbourne VIC 3000

Hakata Gensuke

Hakata Gensuke is extremely popular and there seems to constantly be a queue outside it. We like it because you can specify how you like your noodles, toppings and broth to be. This time we had:

Signature Tonkotsu - Hakata Gensuke original pork bone broth which is essentially a full-bodied and collagen-rich pork bone soup, served with homemade thin noodles, tender pork Cha-shu, black fungus, egg and spring onions. The soup is deliciously rich and the noodles just the right texture. Simple accompaniments such as the tender pork slices and a perfectly soft boiled egg make this our favourite thing to order here. Quick tip: a dash of the ramen sauce helps lift the broth slightly if you want it a little saltier.

Gyoza - Petite, well-made gyoza goes perfectly as a side with the ramen if you are feeling a little hungry. The chicken karaage is nice too but the gyoza is just light enough to have.

Service: :star :star :star :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star :star
Value for money: :star :star :star :star 

Type of venue: Japanese, Ramen

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 168 Russell Street,  Melbourne VIC 3000

Om Nom Kitchen and Dessert Bar

Om Nom is by far our favourite dessert place. We first discovered it after the chef was featured on Masterchef. To say we love our desserts is an understatement. We have probably tried almost all of what is available in Melbourne and are not strangers to driving out just to get some dessert from Mr Hive for example. This time we had:

ChocolaTerrarium - cinnamon sugared churros, chocolate "gravel", pistachio + chocolate sponge, chocolate ice cream, valhrona manjari 64% mousse  + milk foam - A visual treat for sure. Looks and tastes pretty spectacular. Not too sweet and wonderful textural contrasts.

Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte - pronounced "Schvarts-velder-kearsh-torta". Cherry griottine jelly, vanilla bavarois, valhrona manjari 64% chocolate mousse, hazelnut ganache, cherry pate de fruit + flourless chocolate cake - Simply delicious. Love the cherry flavour through the dessert.

Mango Alphonso - choux pastry, mango mousse, shiso creameux, poached mango, coconut pearls, white chocolate crumble, kalamansi sorbet + lemongrass, ginger coconut foam - Asian inspired-technically challenging dessert that is visually stunning and if you love mango (who doesn't) this is your dessert. This is the dessert that was featured on Masterchef.

Raspberry Field - raspberry + lychee sorbet, baked meringue, raspberry pannacotta, rosewater pearls + white chocolate - Good flavours and quite pretty visually, as are all their desserts.

Service: :star :star :star :star ½
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star ½
Value for money: :star :star :star ½

Type of venue: Dessert

Worth a return visit? Yes

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Address: 187 Flinders Lane,  Melbourne VIC 3000

MoVida Next Door

Movida Next Door serves some of the best tapas out there. Always good for a quick bite and some drinks or you could have your entire meal there, the choice is yours. We tend to order the same things every time and this time was no exception. We had:

Chipirones - stuffed baby squid in ink sauce. This is truly tinned food at its best. The saltiness of the tender squid is just right and it is quite rich with the ink sauce.

Boquerone - Spanish white anchovies with cherry tomato. This is a good little appetiser to have. Slightly tangy and gets the appetite going for sure.

Croqueta - wild mushroom. Think really thick and delicious mushroom soup. Then imagine it being encased in a thin crispy batter. Be careful when you bite into it though as the insides can be quite hot!

Mussels - one of their constant specials on the blackboard, their mussels are always cooked perfectly. We can forgive them for the occasional beard, as the flavour and perfectly plump mussels are divine. 

Oreja - pig's ear a la plancha with guindillas. Gelatinous, crunchy, salty and just perfect with a strong drink. The pickled peppers go perfectly with it.

Higo - fresh fig salad with walnuts, blue cheese and honeycomb. Simple salad done well. Everything works well together and it is certainly worth ordering.

Service: :star :star :star :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star :star
Value for money: :star :star :star :star

Type of venue: Spanish,  Tapas

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 164 Flinders Street,  Melbourne VIC 3000

Supernormal

A very popular modern Asian restaurant so do come prepared for the long wait for a table. Dishes are perfect for sharing and the staff are very attentive. 

We ordered:

Smoked beef, mustard leaf, clam mayonnaise - loved the flavour combination and it was very much like beef tartare done really well. Wish there was more!

New England lobster roll - interesting to try but probably won't order it again. We love lobster but in a buttery roll, the flavour of the lobster was a little lost and certainly the price was a little steep.

White cut chicken, cold noodles, sesame, peanuts and chilli oil - perfectly poached chicken, this was moist and delicious with the peanuts and chilli oil.

John Dory, mussels, wakame, celery and ponzu - a few school prawns tossed in, the seaweed flavour was quite nice and the fish nicely cooked though we did not think it went well with the rice and salad as recommended by the waitress.

Peanut butter parfait, salted caramel and soft chocolate - sweet with hints of saltiness equals a perfect way to end the night. Deliciously smooth. In our humble opinion,  we think this may be the best in Melbourne!

Service: :star :star :star :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star
Value for money: :star :star :star :star

Type of venue: Modern, Japanese,  Chinese, Asian

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 180 Flinders Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000

SugarBun

Mr. GastronomicGems grew up in Kuching and Sugarbun was the McDonald's of his childhood.  He was super excited when they opened here in Melbourne and we have been here many times. On our most recent visit, they had a new looking menu and also introduced a loyalty card program. We had:

Dry bak kut teh - sizzling and smoky! Herbal pork ribs, belly, meat-balls, okra and lotus roots. This dish is always delicious. You get a bowl of the bak kut teh soup on the side so the best of both worlds really. The extra pork offal always does the trick. We feel it is the best version of bak kut teh outside of Malaysia.

Oxtail with spicy and sour sauce served with coconut rice - a new menu item, the oxtail is cooked really well, falling off the bone and meltingly soft. The sauce had a little kick and  was very tasty indeed. Good to try for something different especially if you eat here quite often like we do!

Three layer tea - served cold, this is one of our favourite drinks on the menu. Good and strong tea flavour, great to have on a hot day.

Pear and fungus - house-made drink, it is cooling and refreshing. The ingredients are quite generous and can almost be had as a dessert.

Service: :star :star :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star :star
Value for money: :star :star :star :star :star
Type of venue: Asian, Sarawakian, Malaysian

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 205 Russell Street, Melbourne 3000

Lucy Liu

Modern Asian is certainly very popular these days. We have dined here several times and it's always good with dishes perfect for sharing. We had:

Fresh betel leaves with kingfish and chilli peanut sambal - a simple and fresh mouthful of kingfish with just the right amount of sambal. Good thing to order to get things started.

Korean fried chicken ribs with Kewpie mayo - fried chicken done well. Enough said. Perfect finger food with a nice drink.

Crispy pork bun with spicy kimchi and kewpie mayo - pork buns are on nearly every menu these days but the version here is pretty darn good. Chinese meets Korean and it's perfect.

BBQ lap chong "hot dog" toasted milk bun and wombok coleslaw - very simple and tasty(lap chong just is) but $8 is a bit steep when a packet of lap Chong can be bought for that amount.

Cantonese steamed whole flounder with young ginger, black beans and spring onions - a whole steamed fish is certainly a nice touch and normally only something you find in Chinese restaurants. We like this version a lot as the house-made black beans give it a nice lift.

Barramundi and scampi dumplings - seafood dumplings done well with a nice accompanying sauce.

Ginger creme brulee with palm sugar caramel and sesame tuille - not the best as the caramel layer was a little too thick but reasonable at $15 for a dessert.

Service: :star :star :star :star :star

Quality of food: :star :star :star :star
Value for money: :star :star :star :star

Type of venue: Asian

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 23 Oliver Lane,  Melbourne VIC 3000

Gazi

Gazi is a very popular Greek inspired restaurant. The brainchild of George Calombaris, it serves up delicious food offerings in a fun(noisy) environment. It is certainly one of our favourite spots in the city. This time we had:

Taramosalata with prawn crackers - the creamy salted cod roe dip is flavourful and rich. Goes well with the warm pita bread.

Cheese saganaki, balsamic honey and figs - wonderful appetiser of fried cheese, with the sweetness from the honey and figs really complementing the saltiness of the cheese.

Soft shell crab souvlaki with mint, coriander, honey and mayo - an upmarket and modern version of the simple souvlaki, this crab version is juicy, crunchy and just oh so delicious.

Pavlova with seasonal fruit, white chocolate sorbet and curd - as seen on Masterchef, this dessert is a modern twist on the traditional pav. It not only looks good but tastes divine.

Service: :star :star :star :star :star
Quality of food: :star :star :star :star ½
Value for money: :star :star :star :star

Type of venue: Greek

Worth a return visit? Yes.

Address: 2 Exhibition Street,  Melbourne VIC 3000