j-kitchen (Gold Coast)

Address: 3131 Surfers Paradise Blvd, Surfers Paradise, QLD (see photo above for location)

Above: you want to follow the A-banner that I have highlighted by the red rectangular box for J-Kitchen...

This was a very random stopover lunch meal. We were planning to go to this Sushi joint upstairs but they were closed so we stopped by here. Taking real chances here because it was mostly empty and looked kind of dodge.

I ordered the Karakuchi Niku Udon (spicy beef udon) as I was curious to sample this concoction.
And.... it didn't disappoint me. In fact, I would go as far as saying that I quite enjoyed it, and I would go back! (Since not many places make spicy beef udon, if any).


The soup is where its at - soy based, with sesame seeds, some shallots, chilli and the most unique thing I noticed was that I could actually taste the infused soy bean sprout flavour. It was really cool! Udon texture was also perfect - aldente as the Italians would put it.

I've had some pretty nasty udon in the past, so I know how it can be done wrong (e.g plastic taste, too soft, undercooked etc) - so authentic Japanese udon is very important!

This dish was $11 - so not bad for a quick lunch!

HANKOOKWAN Korean Charcoal BBQ Restaurant

Address: Shop 4, 2532 Gold Coast Highway, MERMAID BEACH QLD 4218
Tel: (07) 5572 5733
Fax: (07) 5572 5711

Considering that Sydney probably has a much bigger Korean population, and more "Korean"districts such as Eastwood, Strathfield & Campsie, this Korean BBQ restaurant on the Gold Coast is faring quite well.

The interior is decked out in traditional Korean ornaments and costumes, and the staff are all quite friendly and courteous. They offer both BBQ (cook your own) and a menu for individual authentic dishes (e.g. chilli soups, cooked meat dishes, noodles etc).

For 3 or more persons, get one of the larger BBQ meat plates with an assortment of meats - it cuts down a lot of decision making and works out quite cheaply. Like most Korean eateries, they also provide prior to your main meal some sides dishes. Kim Chi is always a must, there was some potato doused in soy sauce (give that a miss, didn't taste so fresh while I was there), seaweed but my favourite was this mayo-salad dish:


To be honest, I have no idea what its made of, the mayo part is obvious, there is some shredded carrot an some black sesame seeds - but the main ingredient is like a cross between a vermicelli noodle/jellyfish/pickled vegetable. But the taste (quite bland) but texture - incredible! It's almost like a crunch in your mouth, but the contents are soft. If that makes any sense...

They also served this pre-side dish, dish consisting of an iceberg lettuce salad - it was quite light, and different (never had anything like it) because it had like a peppery/spicy powder dressing which was quite unique!

During my stay (dinner for 2) we ordered 2 meat dishes - the beef (left), and spicy chicken (right).

The beef is marinated in the style of Bulgogi, but the marinate of this particular eatery is much more intense, if anything with a slighty sweet taste. It is further enhanced by the charcoal BBQ. The spicy chicken is also quite nice, not overly spicy (so suitable for the starting spice eater).



The minimum requirement for ordering BBQ meats is 2 dishes, as displayed in the image above. The condiments that come with it are: mushrooms, lettuce, onions, garlic, radish? & pumpkin. I can tell you, this was the first time I've had BBQ lettuce - I'm not usually a fan of rabbit food, but I obliged this time - and it wasn't too bad.


Total including drinks worked out to be $20 per head. Speaking of drinks, you must try the grape juice. My friend was telling me it is quite nice, and has floating grapes - so naturally I was keen to see what all this commotion was about. It is a refreshing beverage, however I'm pretty sure the drink itself is nothing more than sugar water - actually very reminiscent of Aloe Vera Drink if you've ever had that.


For a decent Korean BBQ while interstate, I would definitely recommend this one!

Dymocks Cafe

Address: 424 George St, Sydney NSW 2000 (between King & Market Streets)

I've really had trouble finding any information on this cafe because it's not listed as a cafe anywhere. But the location is the Dymocks city book store on George St, and the cafe is on the top floor inside the bookshop (you'll see it, and smell it too).

This has been my hiding hole for the past couple of months. It's a Sunday morning ritual for me to do brunch here because of the secludedness and non-hustle/bustleness. It's a little treasure in the CBD. The serving sizes and prices are quite reasonable, and the menu is reminiscent of home-cooked meals.


I love the herbed chicken schnitzel (lunch version, not in a sandwich) as pictured above - and the potato mash served alongside is simply devine - not too greasy, creamy or overpowering with condiments. It is just consistent, light and a true potato mash (au naturel).

I've also tried the beef pot pie - something different. It's a beef stew served in a ramekin-style pot, with a sesame-seeded bread bun top. The bread is quite complimentary to the beef stew as it is a sweet bread rather than plain white. Definitely complimentary and brings out the best in both flavours (sweet vs. savoury).


Below: Fruit Whip (non-dairy as far as I'm concerned) is a good start to the day - cranberry juice, raspberries, strawberry, apple juice, watermelon, orange and possibly some other fruity goodness. All the seeds act as extra fibre and digestive to move everything right along...



I've tried the club sandwich there, but I wasn't overly impressed because a) it was open, therefore not a true sandwich and b) the ingredients were a mish mash and sprawled all over the plate. So unless you like your sandwiches open, I suggest you don't go there.


The Chicken Burger (as pictured above) with its crusty sesame seeded bun, homemade herbed mayo and panfried (a tad on the dry side) breast fillet, cheese, tomato, beetroot and carrot filling was a delight.

Chicken Schnitzel Sandwich (above) is fantabulous! I've now established that all the sandwiches are open-style i.e. sprawl all the ingredients on a plate and hope for the best. For the club sandwich, I'd say its a miss. But the Chicken Schnitzel Sandwich is made with triangular slices of buttered, toasted bread, cheese, tomato, avocado, marinated char-grilled? vegetables, chicken breast schnitzel, a swirl of tangy cream dressing (could be herbed mayonnaise or something more exotic, like tahini or tsaziki) - served with their token carrot, rocket, cucumber, capsicum salad. The marinated vegetables (zucchini, capsicum, sundried tomatoes, eggplant, mushroom) on the schnitzel is an intoxicating synergy of flavours.

Above: Lamb meatballs have a tomato-based "casserole-esque" sauce.

Below: BBQ Chicken - pan-fried pieces of breast meat, hash brown, toast & the usual.


All in all, its a nice, friendly place. They put effort in the display of their dishes, and the sides are complimentary. Great for a relaxing meal before/after a hard day shopping in the city.

Jasmin (Lebanese Restaurant)

Address: 30b Haldon Street LAKEMBA NSW 2195
Tel: (02) 9740 3589

Situated on the main shopping strip of Lakemba, once you enter Jasmins you are greeted by a friendly face who guides you to a dingy table and ratty chair. This place is by no means flash, but you look around and it really is a different sort of cultural experience.

For those who are new to Lebanese food, getting the mixed plate is a good starter option. It contains falafels and some other meat varieties which I don't know the Arabic name of - bread and pickles are also provided on the side. The mixed plate usually feeds two people to share. Very cheap eat - $13!

Another personal fan favourite of mine is the chilli chicken (don't remember Arabic name). It is lightly marinated, but chilli flavour intense. I have a feeling that you can also order the same chilli sauce that it's marinated - on the side - so if you're experimenting with chilli, order the mixed plate and ask for chilli sauce on the side.

A unique drink to Jasmins is the Lemon Juice. They are freshly squeezed (I assume) and sold in containers with yellow lids for a couple of dollars. I've also been told the Tamarind (the other drink they sell there) drink is quite nice too.

Makoto Sushi Bar (City)

Address: 119 Liverpool Street (Cnr, Pitt & Liverpool St.) Sydney 2000
Tel: (02) 9283-6767
Fax: (02) 9283-6775

Trading Hours:
Monday to Friday: (Lunch) 11:30-14:30, (Dinner) 17:30-22:00
Saturday&Sunday: (Lunch) 12:00-14:30, (Dinner) 17:30-22:00
Website: http://www.masuya.com.au/en/makoto/menu.html

I went here only recently for the first time, after every other person who lives in Sydney ranted and raved about it being the best Sushi joint in town. It does live up to its name as one of the best - and the queues definitely prove so.
There is a certain novelty about sushi trains, sitting there with chopsticks poised like a kid in a candy shop. I was quite suprised by the variety, and mix of flavours available.

Some noteables on the Sushi Conveyor:

• Abalone ship sushi (pictured above)- not usually a fan of abalone or ship sushi, but this was delightful - the abalone was nice and tender and the marinate slightly sweet. 
• Battered calamari rings - don't underestimate this seemingly dull dish, squeeze the lemon over and the flavour is a nice suprise (tangy).

Also, the hand rolls are quite nice too. They are not on the conveyor belt, but need to be ordered on the side from a small menu. My co-eater ordered a soft-shell crab hand roll - very fresh and tasty!

Prego Wood Fired Pizza Restaurant

Address: 126 Burwood Rd BURWOOD NSW 2134

Tel: 9715 7730
Fax: 9715 7740

Website: www.prego.com.au (link dead)

I'm going to have to agree with everyone else on the web which is flaming this restaurant for slow service. Because is it very true. I used to dine here fairly often because it's local-ish, until the service became so unbearable that it was against my principles to keep going there.

If you're going to catch up with a friend you haven't seen for a long time and expect to chat for hours on end, so long that you forget when you placed your order or when your food is coming, then this is the restaurant for you. Food takes about half an hour to come out, but I'm a big fan of their Chicken & Mushroom Tortellini, or their Chicken & Mushroom Risotto. The plates are large, making the serving look smaller than they are, but by the time you are done you should be satisfied.

I've also tried their [can't remember name but it had a tomatoey-dipping sauce] which was quite a different twist on the conventional.

Platinum Bar & Grill

Address:

Shop 404, Macquarie Shopping Centre, Waterloo Road North Ryde, NSW 2113 Tel: (02) 9889-8801 Fax: (02) 9889-8802

Trading hours:

Open Lunch & Dinner

Monday 11am - 9pm
Tuesday 11am - 9:30pm
Wednesday 11am - 9pm
Thursday 11am - 9:30pm
Friday 11am - 10pm
Saturday 11am - 10pm
Sunday 11am - 9pm


Website: http://www.platinumbargrill.com.au/

Once you get past the pretentiousness of most of its corporate clientele, you will realise the waitstaff are not actually pretentious, and the prices are quite comparable to its nearest rival, Inferno Caffe. The service is usually quite attentive here, and the food (and display) is quite impressive.

My latest addiction is the Garlic, Chicken & Mushroom Risotto. Described as "Garlic marinated chicken breast with field mushrooms in a spicy Napolitana sauce", in my opinion it is truly a magical experience. I'm only new to risotto, but I tend to prefer tomato-based ones as there's less area for error (some of the cream ones tend to separate, or are overpowering in cream) - and this version is very tomato-tangy which is an interesting twist.


The chicken breast pieces are exactly that, mostly fat free, a little reminiscent of a Lean Cuisine microwave meal - but more tender and fresh. Texture of the rice = bliss. Even an entree size dish was suffice (as you know, rice expands in your stomach, especially after drinking liquids).

Another recommendation is the Chicken Breast Schnitzel Baguette. They way they crumb the chicken (fresh), and the gourmet mayonnaise - yum! Tis' a filling dish but great for a day when you're craving chicken schnitzel. Picture below:


I also suggest you wash it down with an Iced Coffee. I really do like their iced coffee - it is just the optimum mix of bitterness and sweetness. I don't like my iced coffee overpowered by coffee-flavoured syrup (in which case, that stuff is EVIL and should not be sold unless to make cheap milkshakes) - I'm pretty sure they use real coffee in this instance which gives it extra oompf.

Others:

Prawn Bruschetta (below) - an interesting take on bruschetta. Squeeze the lemon slices over the bruschetta and you have a seafood-salad on toasted sourdough culinary experience. They do butter and I suspect add some garlic to the base to give it extra flavour boost. Can never go terribly wrong with seafood + garlic + lemon.


Below: Beef burger
Below: Bruschetta with Roma tomatoes, boccocini, rocket lettuce and pancetta. They do have a few different takes on bruschetta, this one is a good mix, particularly because the base is buttered and also has pesto. I'm quite anal about bruschetta being made properly (i.e. Roma tomatoes) because the taste is just so much better! They should however, leave the boccocini out because it is just too cold and stark in both flavour and texture to do this entree justice.


Below: Fettucini Con Polo - chicken breast, bacon, mushroom, avocado in a cream napoletana sauce.

Inferno Caffe (Woodfired Pizza)

Location: Shop 454, Macquarie Shopping Centre, Herring Rd
North Ryde, NSW 2113
Tel: (02) 9888-9992
Fax: (02) 9889-1113

Trading Hours:
Monday 9.30am - 9.00pm
Tuesday 9.30am - 9.30pm
Wednesday 9.30am - 9.00pm
Thursday 9.30am - 9.30pm
Friday 9.30am - 10.00pm
Saturday 9.30am - 10.00pm
Sunday 9.30am - 9.00pm

Website: http://www.infernocaffe.com.au/

I currently have a Brushetta addiction, so I've been in search of Sydney's best Bruschetta - and I've found it right here!

At $8.90 for a serving for 2, it is by no means cheap, but they make it "Roma style" with
"Lightly toasted sourdough bread topped with freshly chopped roma tomato, garlic, basil, onion and olive oil" (As per website menu description). A more accurate description would be that they also drizzle Balsamic Vinegar, as well as shaved sheets of Parmesan cheese - a texture and taste which brings out the best in the Roma tomatoes. After you've had this, all other Brushetta's made with the common supermarket (round) tomato seem inferior. A tip is to eat this entree fresh - if you spend too long yakking it becomes soggy and loses its appeal.

Other dishes served at Inferno are primarly woodfired pizza (some gourmet/exotic flavours), mains such as pasta, hearty meat dishes (Italian style) and sandwich grills. They do breakfast too.