Seeing I'm sometimes found in chinese grocery stores and -considering there's tons of the bloody things around, you're bound to find something that'll make you go "what the hell?", I figure I'd make a not-too-regular contribution to Om Nom Nommer entitled "Bowl Of Oddities". Half "Steve! Don't Eat It!", half "world of instruments" segment from 'John Safran's Music Jamboree', and a dash of..... whatever else I can contribute to this winning combination to taste.
To kick this off, thought I'd touch on something new I found while spending time down in Wollongong: Black Sesame Soy Drink.
I really don't know what attracted me to it. Maybe it was the Robert Smith inspired black tetra pack, maybe it was the naive idea in my head that it'd taste like chocolate So Good that I down by the litre (hence, why its place in our house is as rare as hens teeth), but to cut a prose on spending maybe five minutes in an asian grocery store, I ended up buying it.
First off, the drink gets bonus points purely 'cause it has those nifty little 'lightsaber' extendable straws that I remember finding awesome back when I was around 7 years old.... What? Stop judging me. I lived in the freakin' sticks, man!
The taste was.... well, pretty much what one expects from Soy Milk. except less of that nutty aftertaste that killed the notion of drinking it in coffee for me back when I woke up retarded one day and thought I'd try being a vegan (suffice to say, it didn't last. It was a month before I got tired of those pointless Soy sausage things and switched back to normal food).
I guess I can recommend it if you're looking for something different. Possibly not for using in coffee though. That's what Bailey's Irish Cream is for.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Truffles Restaurant, Bowral NSW
It's tough to pick what you want to eat with a group. Especially when you get that craving for pancakes, yet your housemate won't shut the hell up and deal with it thus denying your fluffy goodness topped with icecream and blueberry compote.
While out with friends of ours, we came upon a little-known restaurant near Sophie's Books in Bowral known as "Truffles". Enticed by the thought of having a drink thrown in with the meal (a rare commodity these days outside of Lions Club sausage sizzles and places with the prefix "Mc"), we all agreed that this was our place of choice.
The place looked rather inviting, and we were served pretty quickly to begin with. The menus had plenty of choices as well, which is always good.
This, sadly, is where most of the good points about the place ends. While forgivable to a point because the waiter was also doubling as the cook, the service wasn't brilliant and neither was the food. While I apparently got away lightly with my rather average Open/Mixed Grill, the housemates and our friends had a few *ahem* colourful things to say about it ranging from "the steak was a bit tough" to "the mushrooms were foul".
I'll give Truffles Restaurant this: It has potential. It could very well be among some of Om Nom Nommer's top picks such as Cafe Rosso and Gilbert's Cafe, but it'll take a bit more than a free drink for me to mark it as such.
Like the Spur Steak Ranch, I'd be happy to give this place a second chance. But like anything, first impressions are usually the ones that stick and frankly, we weren't impressed.
While out with friends of ours, we came upon a little-known restaurant near Sophie's Books in Bowral known as "Truffles". Enticed by the thought of having a drink thrown in with the meal (a rare commodity these days outside of Lions Club sausage sizzles and places with the prefix "Mc"), we all agreed that this was our place of choice.
The place looked rather inviting, and we were served pretty quickly to begin with. The menus had plenty of choices as well, which is always good.
This, sadly, is where most of the good points about the place ends. While forgivable to a point because the waiter was also doubling as the cook, the service wasn't brilliant and neither was the food. While I apparently got away lightly with my rather average Open/Mixed Grill, the housemates and our friends had a few *ahem* colourful things to say about it ranging from "the steak was a bit tough" to "the mushrooms were foul".
I'll give Truffles Restaurant this: It has potential. It could very well be among some of Om Nom Nommer's top picks such as Cafe Rosso and Gilbert's Cafe, but it'll take a bit more than a free drink for me to mark it as such.
Like the Spur Steak Ranch, I'd be happy to give this place a second chance. But like anything, first impressions are usually the ones that stick and frankly, we weren't impressed.
Banoffee Pie and the Naked Chef
Mmmmm, Banoffee Pie. Banana, dulce de leche and coffee infused whipped cream. It may be a mess in a sweetcrust, but it's a delicious mess.
I decided to try out Jamie Oliver's recipe for sweet short pastry, instead of the Roux variant recipe I normally use. After all, Jamie promised it was "Perfect" sweet pastry. Well, I'm here to tell you; Jamie lies.
Not to say that recipe was revolting. It just couldn't hold a candle to the Roux Brothers. Jamie Oliver is a very good chef, but if it's pastry you're after, go to an expert. To clarify, Jamie's pastry is VERY biscuity, which is nice in a biscuit.... but I like my pastry to be vaguely pastrylike. Also, Jamie's recipe uses lemon zest, which would be a nice touch, if the flavour of lemon zest didn't overpower everything.
The pastry itself was also very floury and crumbly (even though I didn't use all the flour he called for), and because of this, I could only get a thick pastry, which didn't help the biscuit factor. All in all, I really cannot recommend the recipe.... but if you want to try it anyway, it's in "Jamie's Kitchen".
Anyway, as you may have guessed in the first paragraph, I used Jamie's pastry as the base of a banoffee pie. It was delicious. And rich. There are plenty of recipes for making it on the internet, but once you have your crust, the rest is very easy to assemble. The toffee is made by boiling condensed milk in the can for four hours, and sliced bananas are sliced bananas. Make sure to add some coffee to the cream as you whip it (if you have a little black coffee from a plunger or espresso machine, even better) to taste. Even if you don't like coffee very much, do try a bit, I felt that the coffee flavour cut through some of the rich sweetness of the toffee and banana.
And of course, a picture of my pie. I sprinkled some leftover Lindt drinking chocolate in top, but you could add whatever you fancy, like almonds, powdered chocolate or coffee, or some banana slices.
I decided to try out Jamie Oliver's recipe for sweet short pastry, instead of the Roux variant recipe I normally use. After all, Jamie promised it was "Perfect" sweet pastry. Well, I'm here to tell you; Jamie lies.
Not to say that recipe was revolting. It just couldn't hold a candle to the Roux Brothers. Jamie Oliver is a very good chef, but if it's pastry you're after, go to an expert. To clarify, Jamie's pastry is VERY biscuity, which is nice in a biscuit.... but I like my pastry to be vaguely pastrylike. Also, Jamie's recipe uses lemon zest, which would be a nice touch, if the flavour of lemon zest didn't overpower everything.
The pastry itself was also very floury and crumbly (even though I didn't use all the flour he called for), and because of this, I could only get a thick pastry, which didn't help the biscuit factor. All in all, I really cannot recommend the recipe.... but if you want to try it anyway, it's in "Jamie's Kitchen".
Anyway, as you may have guessed in the first paragraph, I used Jamie's pastry as the base of a banoffee pie. It was delicious. And rich. There are plenty of recipes for making it on the internet, but once you have your crust, the rest is very easy to assemble. The toffee is made by boiling condensed milk in the can for four hours, and sliced bananas are sliced bananas. Make sure to add some coffee to the cream as you whip it (if you have a little black coffee from a plunger or espresso machine, even better) to taste. Even if you don't like coffee very much, do try a bit, I felt that the coffee flavour cut through some of the rich sweetness of the toffee and banana.
And of course, a picture of my pie. I sprinkled some leftover Lindt drinking chocolate in top, but you could add whatever you fancy, like almonds, powdered chocolate or coffee, or some banana slices.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Cookie Puffs and Bubble Tea (A trip to Sydney)
Ruku and I went to Sydney on Saturday. As usually happen whenever I go someplace that has a larger range of food options available to me, I tend to get a little giddy, or a little crazy, and on more than one occasion, this crazy giddiness has led to me overeating myself past "Beyond Full" and into "Put anything else in here, and your stomach will recreate Chernobyl" territory.
You'd think I would have learned by now, wouldn't you?
We started in the World Square shopping centre, where we got Bubble Tea and cookie puffs. Normally I am not so much into tea (when I first tried commercial bottled iced tea, i got a horrible migraine soon after drinking it. Needless to say, I was a bit put off tea in general after that), but I got chocolate milk tea, and it was incredible! However, I shouldn't have let the clerk convince me to get a large; combined with the cookie puffs, the tea came across very sickly sweet, and I felt sick pretty quickly. Luckily, dear Ruku obliged me by not only drinking his large tea (he got coconut milk tea, for those interested), but finishing off the half of mine that I couldn't get through.
Perhaps I'm easily amused, but I giggle every time I read these warnings (for clarification, it says "Caution: Beware of choking on toppings")
This is a cookie puff. It's kind of like a profiterole in construction, but the outer shell is crispy and sugary, and not very choux-pastrylike. The custard is also runny, and can be pretty messy if you're not anticipating it. Cookie puffs defintely need to be eaten sitting down! They are also available with chocolate custard, and according to a new sign at the stand, ice-cream filled cookie puffs are now available. I say hoorah, while my arteries weep.
While we were in Sydney, we also went for stroll down Pitt Street, where we re-aquainted ourself with an old friend, and made a new one. Mr Dduckbocki & Miss Kkochi which has been summed up better than I could here, is across from Games Paradise, and down the street from Kings Comics, and as we're big nerds, we like to make a stop at these stores whenever we're in Sydney. So we're well aquainted with Mr D & Miss K, as eating Korean street food is a cultural experience. At least, that's what we tell ourselves, as we nom delicious skewered food like these vegetable dumpling things:
And here is Ruku enjoying a dduckbocki, as you can tell because it's half eaten
Dduckbocki appears to be some kind of rice dumpling that resembles a sunbed, covered in chilli sauce. The texture is chewy, and all I ever taste is chilli sauce. If anyone is more enlightened about the subject, please comment and let me know!
And now on to our last stop. A place where I may never be allowed again.
Cupcakes on Pitt.
The cupcakes are $2. I bought four. All were delicious. (for reference, I bought chocolate strawberry, honeycomb, tiramisu and dark chocolate)
I don't think there's much more I can say without causing drool-induced damage to my keyboard, so instead I will cap off this post with pictures that do these delights absolutely no justice (I really do need to start carrying a camera with me, instead of relying on the camera in my mobile phone).
Enjoy fooderinos!
You'd think I would have learned by now, wouldn't you?
We started in the World Square shopping centre, where we got Bubble Tea and cookie puffs. Normally I am not so much into tea (when I first tried commercial bottled iced tea, i got a horrible migraine soon after drinking it. Needless to say, I was a bit put off tea in general after that), but I got chocolate milk tea, and it was incredible! However, I shouldn't have let the clerk convince me to get a large; combined with the cookie puffs, the tea came across very sickly sweet, and I felt sick pretty quickly. Luckily, dear Ruku obliged me by not only drinking his large tea (he got coconut milk tea, for those interested), but finishing off the half of mine that I couldn't get through.
Perhaps I'm easily amused, but I giggle every time I read these warnings (for clarification, it says "Caution: Beware of choking on toppings")
This is a cookie puff. It's kind of like a profiterole in construction, but the outer shell is crispy and sugary, and not very choux-pastrylike. The custard is also runny, and can be pretty messy if you're not anticipating it. Cookie puffs defintely need to be eaten sitting down! They are also available with chocolate custard, and according to a new sign at the stand, ice-cream filled cookie puffs are now available. I say hoorah, while my arteries weep.While we were in Sydney, we also went for stroll down Pitt Street, where we re-aquainted ourself with an old friend, and made a new one. Mr Dduckbocki & Miss Kkochi which has been summed up better than I could here, is across from Games Paradise, and down the street from Kings Comics, and as we're big nerds, we like to make a stop at these stores whenever we're in Sydney. So we're well aquainted with Mr D & Miss K, as eating Korean street food is a cultural experience. At least, that's what we tell ourselves, as we nom delicious skewered food like these vegetable dumpling things:
And here is Ruku enjoying a dduckbocki, as you can tell because it's half eaten
Dduckbocki appears to be some kind of rice dumpling that resembles a sunbed, covered in chilli sauce. The texture is chewy, and all I ever taste is chilli sauce. If anyone is more enlightened about the subject, please comment and let me know!
And now on to our last stop. A place where I may never be allowed again.
Cupcakes on Pitt.
The cupcakes are $2. I bought four. All were delicious. (for reference, I bought chocolate strawberry, honeycomb, tiramisu and dark chocolate)
I don't think there's much more I can say without causing drool-induced damage to my keyboard, so instead I will cap off this post with pictures that do these delights absolutely no justice (I really do need to start carrying a camera with me, instead of relying on the camera in my mobile phone).
Enjoy fooderinos!
Friday, October 17, 2008
The Quest for Food in General
So Tess touched on our recent experience at the Spur Steak Ranch at Macarthur Square in Campbelltown (or Ambarvale, if you want to be picky).
I won't say much about the service, Tess already mentioned how excruciatingly slow it was. But I'll say it again anyway: The service was excruciatingly slow (especially considering the place was pretty much empty). The only thing saving me from getting greatly annoyed with the situation is that I bought my Sony Pocketstation with me on the trip up (which Tess stole any time there was an event on 'Chocobo World').
Onto the food! I ordered what the lads and ladies at Spur called "Bambino Nachos". I'm not sure what a Bambino is, but I'm sure it's entry at Dictionary.com would read something like this:
Bambino (noun):
- A phrase to fancy up a pseudo-mexican dish that would otherwise be something you'd find at your local RSL, faults and all.
In all honesty, I only picked the dish because I'm too much of a tightarse to order the $22.95 Tex-Mex nachos. That, and the idea of Tex-Mex scares me.
So the meal comes out and I'm initially impressed. I mean, it's hard to screw up what essentially is corn ships, cheese, salsa, and guacomole slapped onto a plate with reckless abandon. I'm pretty sure 'Nachos' is Mexican for 'edible clusterfuck', but I digress.
All in all my meal was pretty tasty. The corn chips could have done with a bit of toasting, but other than that, I was pretty happy with what I got. It's just a shame the service was slow, which really bought down my overall opinion of the place.
Spur as a whole is a place I'd probably go back to. It deserves a second chance and hopefully, my next review of them will be a tad more positive.
I won't say much about the service, Tess already mentioned how excruciatingly slow it was. But I'll say it again anyway: The service was excruciatingly slow (especially considering the place was pretty much empty). The only thing saving me from getting greatly annoyed with the situation is that I bought my Sony Pocketstation with me on the trip up (which Tess stole any time there was an event on 'Chocobo World').
Onto the food! I ordered what the lads and ladies at Spur called "Bambino Nachos". I'm not sure what a Bambino is, but I'm sure it's entry at Dictionary.com would read something like this:
Bambino (noun):
- A phrase to fancy up a pseudo-mexican dish that would otherwise be something you'd find at your local RSL, faults and all.
In all honesty, I only picked the dish because I'm too much of a tightarse to order the $22.95 Tex-Mex nachos. That, and the idea of Tex-Mex scares me.
So the meal comes out and I'm initially impressed. I mean, it's hard to screw up what essentially is corn ships, cheese, salsa, and guacomole slapped onto a plate with reckless abandon. I'm pretty sure 'Nachos' is Mexican for 'edible clusterfuck', but I digress.
All in all my meal was pretty tasty. The corn chips could have done with a bit of toasting, but other than that, I was pretty happy with what I got. It's just a shame the service was slow, which really bought down my overall opinion of the place.
Spur as a whole is a place I'd probably go back to. It deserves a second chance and hopefully, my next review of them will be a tad more positive.
The Quest For Chicken: Introduction and Part One: Spur Steak Ranch
A few years ago, while I was still in high school, I went to a pub that had renovated to make their eating area nice and fancy like, in a bid to entice people other than drinkers into their establishment to eat (it worked marvellously well for them, I'll add). I was there for a friend's 18th birthday dinner. For dinner, I ordered chicken schnitzel with mushroom gravy, and the only thing I can really remember about it now was that;
1. It only cost me around the $10 mark.
2. It was impressively large. Memory tends to blur things into exageration, but I honestly swear that the schnitzel alone took up the entire plate...
3. It was incredibly delicious.
Ever since, I have longed for a chicken schnitzel to compare, but alas, I have yet to find it (granted, I've not been searching very hard). This has changed, because in the last three months, I suddenly have chicken schnitzel on the brain. All. The. Freaking. Time.
Logic would dictate that I return to the pub I first had this delectable chickeny goodness at, but unfortunately, said pub is about 1400km away. Across two state lines. Because the chicken of my dreams is 40 minutes north of Adelaide, and I am currently located 90 minutes south of Sydney, I have to find an acceptable alternative.
Sick of hearing me whine about wanting chicken schnitzel with mushroom gravy, my best friend and co-blogger Ruku dragged me to Spur Steak Ranch at Macarthur Square for lunch today.
In a few words, Spur Steak Ranch (or as I came to refer to it, "El Rancho Steako") utterly failed all three criteria. Well..... I'll be fair. It gets a passing grade on #3, but any points for taste are immediately docked for the negligent and downright slow service.
As for criteria #1 and #2? Well, the chicken schnitzel was $22.95, I paid another $2.95 for lumpy gravy sans mushroom, and as for size, well, for a supposed Tex-Mex inspired place, they have chosen to ignore what seems to be the unofficial motto of Texas. I got two little bits of schnitzel, that put together, would probably just be the size of my hand, including fingers. And I know that's more chicken than a healthy size should be, but damn it, I have little hands, and a big craving for chicken!
Also, the sides sucked. Small serve of over-seasoned, and very soggy chips, and "salad".
According to El Rancho Steako, this is salad. I have unfortunate news. That is not salad. That is a big pile of shredded carrot, next to a big pile of shredded lettuce. Putting an inexplicable lemon wedge does not give you salad brownie points either.
To summarise: Not even CLOSE to what I wanted (and I feel really ripped having paid a total of $25.90 for that). But a fun diversion to post here. If you disagree with my opinion on Spur Steak Ranch/"El Rancho Steako", go ahead and tell me why you think I'm wrong (and I do concede, that aside from the service, the rest of the menu may well be worth checking out. But this isn't a normal review. This, is a chicken review.)
The quest, for better or worse, continues!
1. It only cost me around the $10 mark.
2. It was impressively large. Memory tends to blur things into exageration, but I honestly swear that the schnitzel alone took up the entire plate...
3. It was incredibly delicious.
Ever since, I have longed for a chicken schnitzel to compare, but alas, I have yet to find it (granted, I've not been searching very hard). This has changed, because in the last three months, I suddenly have chicken schnitzel on the brain. All. The. Freaking. Time.
Logic would dictate that I return to the pub I first had this delectable chickeny goodness at, but unfortunately, said pub is about 1400km away. Across two state lines. Because the chicken of my dreams is 40 minutes north of Adelaide, and I am currently located 90 minutes south of Sydney, I have to find an acceptable alternative.
Sick of hearing me whine about wanting chicken schnitzel with mushroom gravy, my best friend and co-blogger Ruku dragged me to Spur Steak Ranch at Macarthur Square for lunch today.
In a few words, Spur Steak Ranch (or as I came to refer to it, "El Rancho Steako") utterly failed all three criteria. Well..... I'll be fair. It gets a passing grade on #3, but any points for taste are immediately docked for the negligent and downright slow service.
As for criteria #1 and #2? Well, the chicken schnitzel was $22.95, I paid another $2.95 for lumpy gravy sans mushroom, and as for size, well, for a supposed Tex-Mex inspired place, they have chosen to ignore what seems to be the unofficial motto of Texas. I got two little bits of schnitzel, that put together, would probably just be the size of my hand, including fingers. And I know that's more chicken than a healthy size should be, but damn it, I have little hands, and a big craving for chicken!
Also, the sides sucked. Small serve of over-seasoned, and very soggy chips, and "salad".
According to El Rancho Steako, this is salad. I have unfortunate news. That is not salad. That is a big pile of shredded carrot, next to a big pile of shredded lettuce. Putting an inexplicable lemon wedge does not give you salad brownie points either.
To summarise: Not even CLOSE to what I wanted (and I feel really ripped having paid a total of $25.90 for that). But a fun diversion to post here. If you disagree with my opinion on Spur Steak Ranch/"El Rancho Steako", go ahead and tell me why you think I'm wrong (and I do concede, that aside from the service, the rest of the menu may well be worth checking out. But this isn't a normal review. This, is a chicken review.)
The quest, for better or worse, continues!
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Greetings!
Quick word from the other author of this so-called "Blog".
Okay, so it's quick, because I actually have nothing to write :P Tess already summed up everything in a neat little package.
All in all, hope you enjoy reading this and PLEASE give us feedback! We love attention.
Who knows? you might actually learn something.
Okay, so it's quick, because I actually have nothing to write :P Tess already summed up everything in a neat little package.
All in all, hope you enjoy reading this and PLEASE give us feedback! We love attention.
Who knows? you might actually learn something.
Coming Soon!
This isn't a blog about "gourmets" or "foodies". This is a blog, about food, by people who like to eat (and have a lot of extra kilos to show for that). And I mean, we *really* like to eat.
Expect to see recipes, food reviews, restaurant reviews, rants, raves, and occasionally "Ewww...... I just ate that!?!".
And as our love of food has made us lardy and lumpy, you can also look forward to our thoughts on a variety of "weight loss" foods, and how they scale up to the real thing...... or don't.
Hopefully you enjoy reading this, as much as we will enjoy writing. Once we've created a fancy new layout, and smoothed some kinks (read; egos) we will be good to go, so wach this space!
Expect to see recipes, food reviews, restaurant reviews, rants, raves, and occasionally "Ewww...... I just ate that!?!".
And as our love of food has made us lardy and lumpy, you can also look forward to our thoughts on a variety of "weight loss" foods, and how they scale up to the real thing...... or don't.
Hopefully you enjoy reading this, as much as we will enjoy writing. Once we've created a fancy new layout, and smoothed some kinks (read; egos) we will be good to go, so wach this space!
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