Attica!

it has been a while since I have posted
partly as im not at home anymore with a desktop and the laptop-to-desk-to-arm-to-chair-ratio is slightly off, so im not on much.

and also because photobucket has decided you need to pay to access your own images to be hosted on a website. bleh. =.=. top header of xmen disappeared for that reason.

anywho
tonight was a tick the item off the list night with no.34 restaurant in the world, Melbourne's very own Attica.

David took most of the photos which snaps a bit away from the experience (lewl take that as you wish). I prefer to DIG IN. But it was a fun night indeed. Esp the part of strolling out back to their garden where they grew everything that ended up on our plate. Definitely special.

And to walk past the kitchen and all the staff happy to be there and working away with genuine smiles. One even encouraged us to eat the strawberries from the garden =] You wouldn't be able to fake happiness if you work everyday and dish out the same menu. So that was definitely a pleasant sight to see.

What I loved was the authentic australian if not Melbourne involvement from the food to utensils to decor to lighting. Tributes to the local neighbourhood and its unique contribution to the lifestyle around there was spot on.

Worth a visit i'll say.
Gets interesting from the half way point.

in sum_
food so fancy you aren't sure its edible.
note: you cannot eat the quandong pips, that someone mistaken for nuts LOL

we ate ants tonight! it tasted like popping candy. crunchy!

oh so shiny.

growing their own edible tulips!


excursion time with gumby gumby tea. hits the spot!

wonderful weekends!

As we wrap up another week,
the insane timetable of squishing everything social begins again

Sat.
was early to the venue so checked out Salvos Op shop, and
wow.... a pair of bright red boots that actually fit. There was no way they werent leaving the shop with me. lol. Can officially wonder woman cosplay now.
But when will there ever be a time. lewl. considering I am a DC fan.

i would just have to stick some white down it front of it :P

Also picked up two niffty books and good ol Forrest Gump :)

So Brunch! woah at Sugar Buns , and what a lovely cafe it was.
Catching up with uni mates always a plus.

Extremely filling lunch!! and generous portions . They are now famous for their milk shakes

popped along to a Honey Farm and learnt many interesting things about bees and honey.
mmmmmmmm taste test everything. SUGAR HIGH

Dash dash to high school friends dinner, ordered the cheapest item on the menu, because I spent too much already. and woahla, friends announce they will have a BABY! We indeed are growing up :P

End the night with a blessed birthday dinner of a church mate . much love.

Sun

Church. Thankful for Mentone Baptist for addressing a confronting and rather alarming yet real report on the issue of domestic violence and its connections at times to churches.
We do NOT support domestic violence in anyway.
It is NOT pleasing or glorifying to God in anyway
and as a church there needs to be much more care and practice in protecting and preaching the word faithfully in deed and action. and when it needs to act to incorporate professional assistance. it should.

Brunch with bestie and his girlfriend.
Very pleasant discovery of a cafe i never knew existed.

Cafe 1809 *link*

then more church , visiting and supporting the boyfriend.

dinner at their close mates house

pooped!

what a weekend. 

thank goodness for clinical team meeting and chillaxy monday :P

til , the next weekend!

All you can eat dumplings!

tried a scoopon deal
$15 roughly each for all you can eat dumplings
YUM YUM

at a place that seems too fancy to be in the middle of clayton.
being fancier I suppose it means they can serve the food a tad later,
but they did forget our order twice and once drink was missed.

perhaps the waiter was new, because they spilt sauces twice lol. kinda funnny
but it was rather enjoyable I'll say.

full circle

end of an era for sure.
closure at its best

met my bestie upon a full moon over pancakes
ten years on
finished up the chapter upon a full moon at grossi (of which the food was fantastical!)

peculiar, as once i walked below this restaurant as a student and thought wow so fancy , who would eat in there!  and now i sit upstairs staring out, a strange feeling, plus some wonder as my high school mate is the dessert chef, creating incredible inventions.

food with a story + presentation = ART!

upon leaving they gave us a gift, how nice.

strolling past the Royal Exhibition to a free ride home

it sealed up the chapter on uni life were i once had exams

no more.

stage adult entered

engagement begins

what is this nonsense?

maturity

:P

Oh what a week...

Catch up with friends

over much much hipster fancy face food

fun times

seretonin eatery

super healthy but delicious

sunsets in mornington, beach houses

yumyum The Grand Hotel with workmate
quite satisfying, or was it the fact we were super hungry

Lunch, by Dinner by Heston Crown

Liver pate but in the creation of a fruit. most peculiar sweet and palatable :P  

ending the day off taking the train, 

venturing through the subway to discover

a perhaps politically charged

enthusiastic live band

gotta love melb,

the place to be :P

B is for...

Burgers, breakfast, brunch & buddies =]

 Soft shell burger, yum!

 Fried chicken!

 Such a hipster modern place in Springvale, totally unexpected 

Heheh, bed hair :p

Kettle Black

So went for brunch with best friend to Kettle Black.

*source*

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The fit out is pretty and hmmm...i actually liked the look of the place better than the food.
Was a little confused walking in, but soon realised that the left and the right of the cafe are visually very different. Left - urban office like; Right - terrace house.
Staff was hit and miss, depending on who you had, some weren't very friendly whilst others did smile and made you feel welcomed.

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Ordered the Air-Dried Wallaby with eggs.
Eggs - ordinary

Wallaby - takes like kangaroo , little raw. not kinda meat i guess

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The Open Breakfast was warm and hearty. Tomatoes were perfect =] Probably my fav for the day

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The Crayfish burger was very refreshing. Too bad the top was all ashy, and left your fingers dusty and black

Butchers over this any day =]

lazy saturdays....

ah the calm =]

brunch with sandy @SIPP Cafe, with newly renovated courtyard,
 and being a total tourist in hampton,

eggs benedict w salmon. yumyum

love the street food smells, everyone walking dogs, and browsing la many op shops.

well that was a blur....

the last 48 hours ... ._.   ...yerr.... lol.
a mixture of friends, food, sake, dancing, church, fun, catch ups, prayer, parties, more food, not in that particular order

spots visited_

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Robot Bar
atmosphere - ★★★
drinks  - didn't stay long enough to find out :P
food - didn't stay long enough to find out
service - ★★★★★

neat cosy place, can get very loud as the tables/seats are very close to each other.
dim interior, easy for my eyes ^-^
super nice staff that gave us free cider since they poured it by mistake hahaa.

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Spice Market
atmosphere - ★★★★friendly n sane
drinks - ★★★
food - range was big, but didn't eat, looked good though 
service - ★★★★★

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wandered in as the first guest to arrive for a friend's re-21st haha. nice interior and the music wasn't that loud, until it hit 10.30pm x_x. my earssss...
plus side - free entry to this place
the staff were very friendly and pointed me around the place, saying i can go anywhere besides VIP area. didn't stop me from trying to sneak in though :P
side note_ people don't really dance well. more bopping that anything else. there was barely any dance floor as the venue randomly scattered round tables and chairs.

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Ping's Dumplings Kitchen (Clayton)
atmosphere - ★
drinks - ★★ 
food - ★★★
service - ★★

quick, filling, cheap, left me a lil sick lol :P
but i would go again.

*source* HUGE ASS BREAKFAST!

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Piatella Cafe Bar
atmosphere - ★★★ 1/2(pretty good for an ex-hairdressers) 
drinks  - ★★★★ decent range, tea, milkshakes, coffee, alcohol
food - ★★★★
service - ★★
HUGEEE SERVINGS! So i guess it is worth the price. Split the big brekkie with my sister and that was fine. Lasted me a few hours.
Service was pretty slow poke, but they did give a written warning on the menu to be patient with them during peak times.
Peeped into the kitchen and it was tiny, and about 5 kitchen staff being crammed in there making all the food. No wonder it's slow.

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Taiwanese Cafe
atmosphere  - ★ loud asian place, meh 
drinks - ★★★★
food - ★★★ 1/2
service - NEGATIVE 10

Yep, HORRID table service, kind of as expected for asian places, but this tops it.
Yelling at us to take our orders and to order more, then shouting back the orders to confirm they they actually got it the first time @_@ ugh. Super intrusive approach as they did this as well, being about 6cm distance from your face, if you were the unlucky guy sitting on the outside edge of the table.

Food is pretty standard, too salty for me.
The drinks were good though, giving an option to SUPER SIZE to which it pretty much was a milk tea with peals in a vase. To drink it, they combined to straws together. It was a fun experience to watch kiddies drink that , since it was the size of their torso.

Day 2

Hooorahh.. day 2 of my five day weekend and instead of paediatric masking revision and summaries of electronics, i decided to give macarons an attempt

after an unrelated 40mins skype call , I decided to try this recipe. *link*
smart me, decided to leave the ingredient list at home and only realised whilst half way walking to the shops. x_x

on the way to waverley gardens, i saw a girl with a floppy hat smoking in the front yard, a young man walking home in only socks but holding his boots in his outstretched hands and an unmarked police car behind another car with a man that refused to get out... ohh my....my typical neighbourhood.

regardless, here are some pics for food :P

egg whites, almond meal and sugar took frikin forever! to get the the right consistency 

was worth it though ^^

wooahlah~!
i'm very happy with the result, and there was actually some gooey centered ones. woohooo.
super sugar overload though.

on the side_

prior to grocery shopping, picked up some niffty clothes, 

all under $7 

Marvel singlet that basically can double for a v.short dress
Sports top
White knit for appropriate for clinic

end of day 2 - accomplished
tomorrow exercise and homework begins

:P

Sunday Brunch

Nothing better than brunch after church service with best friend and sister

Place: Prospect Espresso

Conveniently located, parking on streets/shops
Super friendly welcoming staff
Chillaxed environ
Definitely felt that I was in Melbourne.

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The Brekky Roll was awesome. Something about that caramelised bun top that is a pleasant wake up surprise for the taste buds. 

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Truffled Brioche. melts! =]

And we also had slow cooked lamb sandwiches. yuuuuuuuum. 

stomach status: satisfid. 

The Saturday Adventures Continue ... ^^

Yet another awesome weekend of not knowing what to expect.

Heading down to squash and yay! catching up with my brother, treasuring every moment of it, although it was mostly him lecturing me not to cut my hair. According to him a ground rule has been set that if I cut it  shorter than my shoulder length he will refuse to talk to me until it grew out. hmmmm guess I won't be seeing him for half a year =.=

Short hair is so incredibly awesome, it's like I can breathe again. And I seriously don't care if I look like a boy and deter male interests...maybe that's the point hahhahhahha. Sorry victor.

Optom appointment and I need new glasses, hmmmm sat on them over the eight years I've had them, so scratched, sooo wonky. Bleh couldn't find any frames that I liked.

running to catch a train to meet up with Roy Morgan buddies...and food adventures

*kokoblack*

mmmm..rose jelly choc samples..so good hahah

Atmosphere - 5/5 (Royal Arcade branch, nice decor, enclosed, comfortable)

Menu range - 5/5 (so many choices!)

Services - 3/5 (maybe it was a super busy day, but was told to wait then other group of 4 just went up in front of us, and they forgot about us)

Price - too much $$$$$$$ =.="

Suga @ Royal Arcade

watching the guys make letters into candy was most interesting. packed fun, little store.

*Cafe Giraffe*

Watching Xin sit down in this rather doll house looking cafe was quite hilarious. Nice vegetarian dumplings though. i would like to come back and have a teaparty here hahaa

Atmosphere - 4/5 (cute-sy/doll like, fairly quiet, semi study environment)

Menu range - 5/5

Services - 4/5

Price - $6 - $14

Little Ramen Bar

Which according to Rayoul is the best in Melb. Hmmm i prefer Kokoro Ramen though.

Atmosphere - 5/5 (small, cosy, not for very large people, coz you will be bumping arms with the person next to you. Brick, earthy layout)

Menu range - 4/5 (short and simple)

Service - 5/5 (meals came out in 4mins upon ordering, friendly staff)

Price - $9 - $15

Free Fun in the City afterwards.
Telstra store and street camera hahaha.

Buskers! - panpipes on Bourke yet this random eldery asian man stole the spot light, dancing his heart away and inviting audience in members to groove with him. the most hilarious sight.
able to woo 3 women in the span of 10mins. impressive

Chalk artist - had a chat and a group of artists including himself want to do an optical illusion 3D art collaboration in the summer. According to him, it's all mathematics, imaging a surface beneath a surface and scaling accordingly. Reason why it hasnt been done yet is that the team cannot agree on what to draw. apparently it also only works upon being viewed from one angle.

Break Dancers - Swantson St, impressive crowd, wow performance, such sports =]