Chik's Crib

13 December 2015

Gaijin

Review December 13, 2015 0

Okay, so Gaijin isn't the most convenient restaurant to get to from my place. And looking for nearby parking may be a problem. But if you don't mind these slight inconveniences, you'll find yourself at one of the best, and affordable, Japanese restaurants of Melbourne.

I've been here a couple of years ago for dinner with Miss XS. The dim yellow lighting wasn't conducive for photo-taking, so we kept our camera away and gave the food our undivided attention. It was a really remarkable meal, and I promised myself I would be back. I couldn't shut up about it ever since, but with a name like 'Gaijin' (Japanese for foreigner), it was a little hard to convince my Japanese-saavy friends to come with me. Still, I persevered for the better of the next two years, but it still took a birthday (mine!) to finally convince them to give Gaijin a chance. The food was as good as I remembered. Every dish was perfect, and I would order any of them again in a heartbeat.

We had a selection of sashimi (8 pcs for $10), which was as fresh as they come. (See above, picture)

Volume Cafe

Review December 09, 2015 0

When a couple of surgeons opened Volume Cafe across the main street from Dandenong Hospital, it caused a bit of a stir. I hear (don't sue!) that up along the food chain, the people in management were concerned whether opening Volume would divert traffic away from Zouki's, the in-hospital cafe chain.

But still, no one was as ecstatic about Volume as the staff and students were, and everybody that I've talked to had nothing but good things to say about the opening. Even though the in-hospital cafe is more convenient to grab a cup of coffee from, there seems to be a lot of people walking around clutching a takeaway cup from Volume these days...

Alice Medrich's Chocolate Fondue Recipe

Recipe December 07, 2015 0

The first time I made this fondue, I had an accident. I took my eyes off the water bath for just a minute, and water managed to get into the chocolate and seized the chocolate into an unappetizing glob. Don't be like me. Because my mind seems to wander off more often than a goldfish with ADHD, I took no chance with my second batch a few days later and chucked the chocolate-milk mixture into the microwave, as Alice Medrich recommended.

If someone tries to make you feel bad about using microwaves, show 'em this webpage on what Jonas Mikka Luster has to say about microwaves. (A German Master Chef. The real ones. Not the tv show.)

Which goes to show that making a chocolate fondue for dessert is as hard - or easy - as you make it to be. Combine milk and chopped chocolate, and heat until they combine. Serve with cut fruits and voila! Desserts doesn't get simpler than this. The best part about this versatile recipe? Feel free to tinker with the proportion of the ingredients according to your preferred taste.

I served this with strawberries, bananas, mandarin oranges and apples, and liked the crunchy apples most with the thick chocolate fondue. Alice M commented "I have never seen anyone dip anything (even a finger) in chocolate without a smile. Although this festive, simple party dessert is a year-round opportunity to use the season’s best and ripest fruit, I am partial to the time between darkest winter and early spring, when citrus fruit and bananas and dried fruits cry out for chocolate.” But like the recipe itself, feel free to use any fruits - or cakes or biscuits - that you want to try. This is after all, your show. When done right, (and really, it isn't that hard!), it makes a wonderful accompaniment to winter fruits, and as a chocolate sauce, dress up a bowl of ice cream or slices of cakes.

Brooklyn Crumb Cake Recipe

Recipe December 03, 2015 0

My first childhood memories of cakes came from prying a slice of Sara Lee's pound cake from the aluminium container. These cakes can be found in the refrigerated section of any supermarket back in those days, and it was a treat to come home to find a box in the fridge. We were probably meant to heat the cake up in the oven, but for some reason, I just never got around to it and often eat it cold from of the fridge.

Jyu-Jyu

Review December 01, 2015 0

Jyu-Jyu is a no-frills Japanese place for a quick informal meal, where good Japanese food comes at an affordable price. There is plenty to choose from on the menu, but the only thing I've ordered was the Katsu-Don ($9.80 - above), which comes in my Goldilocks portion- not too big, not too small. It's satisfying for a lunch, and doesn't leave me in a food coma. Which makes it a terrific place for me to pop into for lunch before heading back to school.

Not having enough sauce is my not-so-secret pet peeve for Katsu-Don. Here, Jyu-Jyu does it well when I ate in-store, and I was happy as I can become. The last time though, I had the Katsu-Don to go (we were rushing for a movie), and the rice was distinctively dry. Seriously, folks. Just drench the rice. But two happy visits out of three ain't bad, and I'll just make sure to eat in-store the next time I go.