Eat, Pray, Love: 2013

Continuing from Early birds @ Sydney, this blog post will bring you my food journey in searching for best dessert in the town. Ranging from gelato, drinks, cakes and sweets, macaron to pancakes, Sydney offers diverse choices when it comes to dessert. To me, it is the melting pot of various cultures, conserving the originality while injecting its own uniqueness into each food.

1. Chanoma
Chanoma means Japanese style living room (tea room). What will come to your mind when Japanese tea is mentioned? Bingo! Chanoma is all about matcha! As a matcha fan, I fell in love with this place instantly. The cafe adopts the order-at-counter concept whereby you will receive a buzzer after placing your order.

One of the ordered items is the matcha shiratama parfait. It is highly recommended if you are looking for a more complex and diverse dessert. It has matcha ice cream, love letters, ice cream cones, more matcha ice cream, rice cakes, swirls of chocolate syrup and whipped cream. After finishing a serve of parfait, you will be pretty full. Definitely a filling afternoon tea to satisfy your cravings.

Matcha shiratama parfait

Order at the counter

Next up is the matcha anmitsu. It comes with small cubes of agar jelly, a stick of Japanese rice cakes, bean paste, sweetened peach and pineapple slices as well as the matcha ice cream. The matcha ice cream is my favourite! Its smooth texture and rich matcha flavour make me crave for matcha even more. It is a relatively sweet Japanese dessert and to my liking.

Matcha anmitsu

Besides matcha dessert, Chanoma does offer drinks such as green tea latte and Japanese hotdog.

Website: -
Address: Regent Place, 501 George Street, Sydney
Trading hours: Lunch and Dinner time (Mon-Sun)

2. Gelato Messina
Gelato Messina is by far the best gelato that I have ever tasted! With its full-bodied flavour, it captures my heart and even intensifies my cravings even after I am back in Adelaide.

There are a few branches in Sydney, namely Surry Hills, The Star, Darlinghurst and Bondi. Recently, Messina has opened a new interstate branch at Fitzroy, Melbourne. Different branches might have different special flavour but one thing for sure is that they use authentic ingredients in churning the gelato.

Gelato Messina, The Star

We chose 5 flavours to be shared between 4 people, namely Pistachio, Milk chocolate and chocolate peanut fudge, Salted caramel and white chocolate chip, Italian nougat and Dulce de Leche. The pistachio flavour left me awestruck as I can literally taste the thick nutty pistachio. On overall, the gelato is thick and smooth with authentic flavour. Definitely creme de la creme in the gelato world.

From left clockwise: Pistachio, Milk chocolate and chocolate peanut fudge, Italian nougat, Salted caramel and white chocolate chip, and Dulce de Leche

Website: http://www.gelatomessina.com/
Address: Cafe Court, Level G, 80 Pyrmont Street, Pyrmont
Trading hours: 11am-11pm (Sun-Thurs), 11am-11.30pm (Fri-Sat)

3. N2 Gelato
N2 gelato adopts the technology of using liquid nitrogen to create a large number of microscopic ice crystals in seconds, resulting in an exceptionally smooth texture. So, you might be asking, 'Is liquid nitrogen safe?'. Well, it is definitely safe (think about it, a single breath consists of 78% of nitrogen gas!) as it is non toxic and non flammable. As the boiling point of liquid nitrogen is extremely low (-196C), it would have evaporated from your cup of gelato when you are scooping a spoonful of the goodness.

I find this concept interesting, especially as the store members wear like lab assistants while preparing me the extreme gelato. The flavour combinations brianstormed by the gelato creationist in N2 gelato are truly special and worth trying. I ordered the 2013 creation, le Cloudy Bay Duck and Pinot!

N2 'lab assistant'

Interesting and wacky enough, N2 gelato has the concept written on the blackboard at the store. Cloudy Bay Duck and Pinot has frozen ducky custard as its base, topped with Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir brulee and finished with salted earl grey infused duck fat sand. As you can see, hear and feel, this gelato is extremely fattening. The gelato itself is thick and smooth, with every scoop full of light creamery taste, accompanied with crisp brulee and a tinge of earl grey scent. A perfect combination indeed!

This is how Duck and Pinot comes about

Do stay tuned for their new creations!

N2 extreme gelato

Website: http://n2extremegelato.com.au/

Address: 43/1 Dixon Street, Sydney.

Trading hours: 1pm-11pm (Mon-Sun)

5. Adriano Zumbo
Zumbaron is the special name of macaron created by Adriano Zumbo, one of the guest judges who appeared in the first series of MasterChef Australia. He is a patissier who has great passion for dessert and started his apprenticeship at the age of 15. If you are observant enough, you would have noticed the various premix pack to make macarons and cakes on the shelf of local supermarkets (Coles, Woolworths).

At The Star outlet, there is a dessert train for the cake lovers whereby you get to choose the desserts off the moving belt. You can choose as many desserts as you like, but do mind that this is not a buffet and you have to pay for the individual dessert you have taken. Please note that the dessert train is only opened on Fridays and weekends.

View from the exterior

Interior display

Aside from dessert train, you can buy zumbarons from the outlet. Interestingly, as few as one zumbaron you have bought, they do provide you with a box instead of just a plastic bag. According to the store assistant, the popular flavour is the salted caramel. Since it is fresh, as I bite on the macaron, the shell collapses and the salted caramel filling is pushed into my mouth. When I further bite it, the chewiness comes by and that makes the macaron perfect!

Salted caramel zumbaron

A pack of 6 Zumbarons

Website: http://adrianozumbo.com/
Address: Shop 1, Cafe Court, The Star, 80 Pyrmont Street, Pyrmont NSW
Trading hours:
- Patisserie: 11am-10pm (Mon), 11am-11pm (Tues-Thurs), 11am-Midnight (Fri-Sat), 11am-9pm (Sun)
- Dessert Train: 6pm-11.30pm (Fri), 2pm-11.30pm (Sat), 12pm-6.30pm (Sun)

5. Flour and Stone Patisserie

Situated in Woolloomooloo, this patisserie is popular for its panna cotta lamington. The lamington is huge but yet not overpoweringly sweet. It consists of 2 layers of sponge-like cake, layered and coated with chocolate, finished with shredded coconut. Definitely a good idea for an afternoon tea, especially if you are near Hyde Park.

Aside from lamington, they do provide cookies, savoury pies and tarts, cakes and scones.

Panna cotta lamington

Website: http://www.flourandstone.com.au/
Address:53 Riley St, Woolloomooloo
Trading hours: 7am-4pm (Mon-Fri), 8am-4pm (Sat)

6. La Renaissance
La Renaissance is a small patisserie at quaint The Rocks precinct. Even though the patisserie itself is small, but the outdoor seating area at the back has the old Victorian style. Do take note that customers who opt for a takeaway are not eligible to sit at the seating area.

The products of this patisserie include hand crafted cakes, macarons and flans. Its popular item is the mille feuille, also known as vanilla slice or the Napoleon. It consists of layers of delicate puff pastry and vanilla creme patisserie dusted with icing sugar. La Renaissance's specialty is French based desserts and hence its mille feuille will fare better than other bakeries.

The mille feuille is crunchy and the light cream fits the pastry nicely, creating a good soft and hard combination. It is light, fresh and not too sweet.

Mille Feuille

Website: http://larenaissance.com.au/
Address: 47 Argyle Street, The Rocks
Trading hours: 8am-6pm (Mon-Sun)

La Renaissance Cafe Patisserie on Urbanspoon

7. Pancake on the Rocks
Do you know where is the best place to go for supper late at night or dinner when almost all restaurants are closed at wee hour of the day? In Australia, pancake houses are always good choices because they open 24 hours per day and 7 days per week. Pancake houses in Australia are brainchildren of Mr Meadmore. The idea was triggered during his driving trip in America whereby he noticed the pancake-eating obsession of local Americans.

Pancake on the Rocks has 2 choices of pancakes to choose from, buttermilk pancakes and the famous chocolate pancakes. Besides pancakes, they do serve crepes, pizzas, salads and ribs.

We ordered the Blueberry Heaven. There were 2 buttermilk pancakes with blueberries in sauce, served with cream and vanilla ice cream. The buttermilk pancakes were fluffy and light. Even though the blueberry sauce was slightly sweet, it fitted well with the unsweetened pancakes.

Blueberry heaven

Since it was dinner time and we queued up almost 1 hour for seating, we were so hungry and decided to go for a savoury chicken and bacon pizza. The pizza had chicken breast pieces with bacon bits, fresh and sundried tomatoes, marinated mushrooms, tomato salsa on a guacamole and mozzarella cheese base. It was topped with sour cream, guacamole and shallots. The pizza was not too bad on overall.

Chicken and bacon pizza

Aside from Blueberry Heaven, we did order another buttermilk pancake but this time with fresh strawberries, cream, vanilla ice cream and strawberry coulis. It was the Strawberry Patch. Again, it was a little bit too sweet to my liking.

Strawberry patch

My favourite pancake from the pancake house is the Devils Delight. It has the famous chocolate pancakes with strawberries, chocolate ice cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce. If you are a chocolate lover, you will love this absolute chocolate pancake.

Devils Delight

Website: http://www.pancakesontherocks.com.au/
Address: 227 & 229-230 Harbourside Shopping Centre, Darling Harbour
Trading hours: Open 24 hours (Sun-Mon)

8. Black Star Pastry
Nestled in Newtown, the food heaven of USyd students, Black Star Pastry offers its customers with varieties of pastries and cakes. Among all its creations, the strawberry watermelon cake is the famous one. Due to its popularity, I made a trip there just for the cake.

The strawberry watermelon cake has tiramisu-like moist cake layered with rose-scented vanilla cream and watermelon. On its top is strawberry slices on bed of strawberry jelly, finished with rose petals. This is such a wonderful creation! With every bite, the scent of rose, sweetness of strawberry and watermelon, soft texture of cake just exude the uniqueness of the cake. It is definitely a must-try if you drop by Newtown!

Strawberry watermelon cake with rose scented cream

Website: http://blackstarpastry.com.au/
Address: 277 Australia Street, Newtown
Trading hours: 7am-5pm (Sun-Mon)

9. Guylian Chocolate Cafe

Guylian is a renowned chocolate brand which uses the finest Belgian chocolate. Guylian seashell is undoubtedly its signature chocolate, which also coincides with its support for seahorses conservation work in the world.

Aside from Guylian chocolate cafe, Lindt does open its chocolate cafe in Sydney. These 2 brands produce premium quality of chocolate and it is worth visiting either one of both stores.

At Guylian cafe, we ordered the Belgian waffle. It came with praline ice cream, chocolate dip and whipped cream. Different from the traditional Belgian waffle that I have eaten before, this waffle did not have pearl sugar within. It was sprinkled with icing sugar instead.

Unique Belgian Waffle

Visiting a Guylian chocolate store, you wouldn't want to miss the Guylian Chocolate Special. It comes with layers of yogurt, mixed berry fruit, raspberry sauce, chocolate milk and topped with whipped cream. On its side is a Guylian praliné chocolate. The yogurt and mixed berry fruit balance the sweetness of chocolate milk, conferring the mixture of mild sour and sweet taste. A great drink which symbolizes Guylian chocolate.

Guylian Chocolate Special

The chai latte comes with a sweet offering of Guylian chocolate. The chai is mild in flavour and can warm you up on a cold winter day.

Chai latte

Website: http://www.guyliancafe.com.au/
Address: 1-25, Harbour Street, Sydney
Trading hours: 8am-late (Sun-Sat)

Guylian Belgian Chocolate Cafe on Urbanspoon

10. Bondi Surf Seafoods
What to do when you are strolling along Bondi beach and your dessert craving strikes? No problem, have a fried Mars bar at Bondi Surf Seafoods! Check out here for my experience.

Fried Mars Bar

11. Chat Thai
If you are wondering what dessert to eat for supper, Chat Thai might be a good idea as it offers Thai desserts after 10pm. Mhmmmm, needless to say, Thai dessert will surely salivate you and satisfy your cravings!

May this blog post be a saviour to you who have a sweet tooth at any time of the day. Enjoy!

Love, Victoria

Hello readers! When you think of food culture in Australia, what comes to your mind? For me, it is a brunch with bacon, avocado and poached eggs. Well, Melbourne and Sydney will also appeal to me as the food paradise in Australia. As a result, I prepared an extensive food list before I visited Sydney half a year ago. Follow this blog post for my Sydney food adventure.

Waking up in the morning to refreshing breeze, what is much better than a satisfying breakfast or brunch ? In Sydney, you will never run out of ideas on where to go (or maybe you will be headache due to myriad of choices).

1. Bourke Street Bakery, Surry Hills

No.1 Bakery in Sydney and the bread is freshly baked everyday. They do offer sourdough, sausage roll, pastries and coffee to their customers. A great place to spend your morning if you want a light breakfast.

Pork and fennel sausage roll

The popular bakery item is the pork and fennel sausage roll. The crispiness on the outside and its generous fillings will satisfy your tummy. Do accompany this sausage roll with a cup of hot chocolate or coffee.

The exterior

The queue will never cease ever since the bakery opens its door everyday. Most often, the customers opt for take away because there is limited seat inside. But a couple of outdoor seats will do the favour if you want to dine in.

Ginger creme brulee

Another popular item up the rack is the ginger creme brulee. Different from the conventional creme brulee, the tinge of ginger gives a refreshing vigor to the day. The crunchy pistachio and burnt caramel add in the excitement. Apart from that, the custard is light as well. Highly recommended if you are a fan of ginger.

Website: http://bourkestreetbakery.com.au/
Address: 633 Bourke Street, Surry Hills. (Corner of Devonshire and Bourke Street)
Trading hour: 7am-6pm (Mon-Fri), 7am-5pm (Sat-Sun)

2. Reuben Hills, Surry Hills

Reuben Hills is famous as a coffee roastry and cafe in Sydney. It has been awarded as Latorre & Dutch best boutique roaster of the year 2013. Besides coffee, it does provide its customers a comfy environment to have brunch.

Contemporary interior design

Cappucino

I ordered the 'NOT reuben' (pretty ironic!). It consists of wagyu salt brisket, pickled slaw, manchego and horseradish cream on rye. I guess one of the reasons behind the name is that typical reuben sandwich normally has corned beef, Swiss cheese with Russian dressing and sauerkraut, grilled between slices of rye bread, whereby Reuben Hills' creation is different.

Not Reuben

The portion comes out to be pretty small, in size of a typical rye bread, being divided into 2 halves. The wagyu brisket is a tad dry on overall.

Not so Reuben

Aside from the NOT reuben, they do have other breakfast options and sweets. A place to consider for catch up over coffee. Their coffee options range from filter, cold filter, white, black to affogato.

Website: http://reubenhills.com.au/
Address: 61 Albion Street, Surry Hills.
Trading hours: 7am-4pm (Mon-Sun)

3. Grounds of Alexandria

Nestled at industrial area in Alexandria, Grounds of Alexandria is a family friendly brunch place. It is also a good idea for someone who wants to escape the hustle and bustle of city during weekend. The seating area is spacious and there is a small barn for the little ones. In addition, there is also florist at the precinct, selling fresh flower. There is also a garden with fresh vegetables and herbs, where the fresh ingredients on your plate come from. The combination of freshly brewed coffee, giggling from children and appetizing menu does make a short satisfying weekend getaway.

The exterior

The interior

Grounds of Alexandria is the flagship venue for its specialty coffee. Formerly an old pie factory, the Grounds has been transformed into a rustic, yet stylish cafe. Besides hosting a coffee research, the kitchen also practice holistic approach to food and design, as well as picking herbs fresh from garden every morning. The Grounds also offers its customers seasonal menu whereby we can taste the best in every season.

Bakery area

Latte

Mini barn with roosters

Outdoor seating

Family area

I ordered the smashed avocado on sourdough with haloumi and poached eggs. The ingredients were indeed very fresh! There is another popular menu item, which is the Grounds Breakfast Platter. It includes a couple of items such as cured meats and poached eggs.

Smashed avocado on sourdough

The Grounds of Alexandria is highly recommended! Be it bakery items, or coffee, or breakfast menu, they will surely tantalise your taste buds, with bursts of freshness in every ingredient. Not to mention that the Grounds does have its own market on every first weekend of the month, providing live music, great brunch and own-roasted coffee.

Website: http://groundsroasters.com/
Address: Building 7A, No.2, Huntley Street Alexandria

Trading hours: 7am-4pm (Mon-Fri), 7.30am-4pm (Sat-Sun)

4. Mad Spuds Cafe

Reflecting the name of the cafe, Mad Spuds Cafe is all about potatoes. According to the website, the potatoes are sourced from Robertson on the Southern Highland of NSW. Robertson is famous for its rich volcanic soil, which provides lots of nutrients to the potatoes, giving them a robust unique flavour. This cafe also advocates healthy living as the potatoes are all baked.

From the outside

I ordered the Mad Spud Stack. It consists the crispy potato cake, halloumi, avocado, roast onion, spud skins, sweet potato and mint yogurt. Trust me, this will be a heavenly meal for the potato lovers. I especially love the spud skins. Crispy and crunchy, accompanied with the soft mashed texture of the potato cake, I finished the whole plate within no seconds. As potatoes contain a lot of carbohydrate, I was full to the brim after a stack.