Now THIS is 100% authentic!

Two minutes 53 seconds before this shot was taken, it was a world-class bowl of Sarawak Laksa. RM3 in Kuching, RM15 or thereabouts at Alexis in Bangsar (KL), absolutely, magnificently priceless here in Melbourne. There's no way my photography could do justice to my wife's amazing noodles. And besides, I was too busy scoffing it down to think about a camera. So here you go, the aftermath of tonight's dinner. The only reason there's about 15ml of soup left in the bowl is because of Babes' (un)timely reminder about my cholesterol level.

In search of cod

Here's something I really, really miss! Just like the KFC Hot n' Spicy variant, it never occurred to me that I wouldn't be able to find cod here in Australia. Well, at least not in Melbourne anyway. Some of you would know that steamed cod is one of my specialties, one of the few items in my (very) limited repertoire of culinary delights. And. I. Can't. Find. It. Here. Instead, there's some dodgy thingy called Murray Cod, which looks and tastes absolutely nothing like the real thing. Oh well. Guess I've gotta wait till September...

Back to Malaymas

You might recall an earlier post ("Chicken season continues" on June 30) where I mentioned this Malaysian restaurant in North Fitzroy. Well, I've been meaning to go back there and test the authencity of their other dishes. So tonight I tried the Char Kway Teow, and guess what? It's 96% authentic, I kid you not! With clams, 'lap cheong', just the right texture and blackness, and even that familiar 'wokky' flavour. Never mind the fact that it costs A$8.90, which is somewhere in the region of RM24. Ayuh, if I calculated everything, I'd starve! Anyway, Char Kway Teow's sorted, now if only someone could get the KL-style Hokkien Mee right...

The second-best burgers in Melbourne

As Mietta's review says, "Some come by foreign convertible car, others by tram, from far and wide they come for Andrew's burgers". So of course, I had to try it lah. Incidentally, I was going to use a shot taken using a co-worker's brand new Sony Ericsson K800i (with a 3.2 megapixel camera), but for some reason the shot he took focused more on the oil-soaked wrapper. So sorry, no free plug for a mobile phone manufacturer, I've taken an image from www.burgerquest.com instead. Anyway, Andrew's Burger (I ordered the one with "The Lot") WAS pretty awesome, and yup, it's the best I've had in Melbourne, other than my wife's yummy gourmet versions. But when it comes down to it, it's still not a Ramly Burger. For the non-Malaysians among us, the Ramly Burger is Malaysia's gift to the world of fast food. You've gotta try one...

Flashback to our honeymoon, Part One

Someone recently asked for accommodation recommendations in Tuscany and Umbria, where we went on our honeymoon two years ago. (We also went to gorgeous, spectacular Santorini, but that's a different story, and possibly a different post.) Here's an interesting one in the beautiful hilltop town of Orvieto, which was featured in Conde Nast Traveller. Palazzo Caravajal was built in the 15th century for an Italian cardinal, and here's our room with its 18th century frescoes. That lovely room plus a delicious breakfast was just 60 Euros, quite a bargain especially for Italy. It's not flash or anything, just cosy and steeped in history. And it just so happened that Orvieto was the venue for a Slow Food celebration while we were there. So of course we stuffed ourselves silly with a special menu that night, including the region's specialty: wild boar.

Doing our bit for the Victorian tourism industry

Amidst reports of declining tourism numbers in Victoria, the Bracks Government will be pleased to know about our recent (well, fairly recent) visitors. And here we all are on the beach in St Kilda! Thanks for coming, guys, we miss you all... I know these are the kind of photos that would only interest the people in them, but what the heck, this is our blog! And thanks to Will and Joose for sending the lovely pictures to us, taken with the outstanding Nikon D70S. There you go, free plug for Nikon...

Friday night in Heidelberg

After a quick stop at Ikea for some home essentials, it was time to decide on a dinner venue. The Chinaman that I am suggested an old favourite: Pacific House in Richmond, home of excellent roast duck (yes, duck again, so sue me) and other Chinese delights. But then the Entertainment Guide was brandished in front of my face, and I remembered reading a very favourable review about Cafe Matto in Heidelberg. So off we went, and it was pretty darn good. Babes had Hapaku (NZ fish) wrapped in prosciutto, while I had the Osso Buco. Round 'em off with a glass of Italian wine (can't remember what it was called lah), a slice of lemon tart with King Island cream, the Entertainment Guide offer of buy-one-main-get-one-main-free, and we both left extremely happy. And only a wee bit poorer. We'll be back for sure, this time to try the potato gnocchi - which has been getting rave reviews - and probably the pizza. Anyone care to join us?

Malaysia Boleh!

Say hello to Chris and Joel, ex-colleagues of mine at DDB Singapore. Chris is a Kepong boy who's also my personal Mac consultant, while Joel is a part-time wine connoisseur from Kuching. Here they are at the recent Osim Triathlon in Singapore, medals and all. Well done, boys!
Sorry girls, they're both taken... well, Chris is anyway. As for Joel, he tends to get quite secretive about his social/love life. I'll find out and get back to you!

A Night at the Old Kingdom

Six days a week, chef Simon (not me lah) puts on a show for Peking Duck lovers. It begins with a quick lesson on how to prepare the first course; "First, put the crepe on the plate." Or if you're across the table, he might even toss it over. Unfortunately his aim isn't as true as it used to be, as mine landed two inches short of my plate. "Next, one piece each of spring onion and cucumber, placed at a quarter past three." Once the duck has been sliced onto the crepe, fold up the crepe, "six o' clock up, twelve o' clock down, nine o' clock across." It's just a little bit of theatre before the serious business of eating begins. Crepes, sliced duck and beansprouts then soup, all for under thirty bucks per person. And you get to take the carcasses home, which we all did, including Kieren.

Melbourne's Mamak

Around these parts, it's the closest thing to home. And it just happens to be five minutes drive away. Bismi Restaurant is located on Sydney Road, Brunswick, and it's got all my favourite mamak dishes. We ended up going there tonight because Babes finished work late and was too tired to cook. So we enjoyed an unexpected (and totally delicious!) treat of Paper Tosai, Mee Goreng, Roti Telur, Roti Bawang and Teh Tarik. That was probably one Roti too many, due to a miscommunication; Lakshmi at the counter didn't understand the concept of combining the Telur and Bawang. Apparently that's not the way it's done over here. Sometimes I forget that not everything's the way it is in KL lah. Oh and just to cover my ample behind, this image is courtesy of www.bismi.com.au

Tan Sri Gregory Lim

Congrats, Ellen and Boon Kit! Good ol' Greg was born on June 22, and has already developed a voracious appetite like his Mum and Dad. Right now it's milk, but odds are KFC and Crystal Jade will be on the menu before too long. And while we're on the subject of odds, the word is that Boon Kit's already teaching him the basics of poker.

Chicken season continues...

And here's another magnificent chicken recipe! Orange roast chicken, now that Babes has already perfected the Jamie Oliver version of a chook in the oven. Tasted as good as it looked too. That was earlier in the week. Tonight's dinner was Malaymas in North Fitzroy, pretty darn good Malaysian offerings. Babes had the Combination Hor Fun (78% authentic by my reckoning) and I had the KL-style Hokkien Mee (53% authentic).
Now, on the subject of KL-style Hokkien Mee... some of you have already heard my whingeing about the lack of the genuine article here in Melbourne. So far, even the absolute worst I've ever had in KL has been better than the best I've had here. Until tonight, that is, which was about as good as a mediocre KL one... but I'm in no position to be picky. Is there a better KL-style Hokkien Mee in Melbourne? Recommendations welcome!