Monday, October 31, 2011

South Melbourne Market Dim Sims

South Melbourne Market Dim Sims
South Melbourne Market,
Corner Cecil & Coventry St, South Melbourne

I had read about this place a few times, most recently on the Age about queues around Melbourne. They had mentioned Mamasita (which I know is good but yet to try because the line is just ridiculously long!), Myer Christmas Windows, Apple and Boxing Day Sales - all of which I know are things worth lining up for =P So I thought we should give these Dim Sims a try and thought we should check out South Melbourne Markets anyway.

Dim Sims actually started off in Melbourne when William Young decided to produce these to rival meat pies at football games! (what a surprise - learn something new everyday!) A few years later, Ken Cheng opened up this stall at South Melbourne Markets and have since been a favourite in Melbourne, where people would travel across Melbourne and even interstate to devour a bag of these! He passed away a few years ago, and apparently ever since then, the quality of the dim sims had gotten downhill.


It was a raining gloomy day so I thought there wouldn't be that long a line - all the websites say you should be prepared for a long queue =P But there was only like 3 people waiting in line when we got there at 11am on this Sunday morning. The line moves very quickly, and the lady asks you bluntly for your order, picks it all up and takes your money, then "NEXT!" No time to ponder your order =P We decided to try 2 fried ones and a steamed one. They were $1.80 each,  I had read on websites that they were $1.20 3 years ago - seriously, inflation is not THAT steep!


The dim sims were quite large, and they were so hot fresh from the fryer and the steamer. We decided not to put any sauce on - didn't want any chilli and THANK GOODNESS we didn't put any soy sauce on it!


The skin is quite thick - I guess it's to hold all the meats together, a combination of pork, cabbage and spices and LOTS OF SALT. My gosh it was like a ball of salt and MSG - I'm not sure how people can say these are remotely nice, let alone come back for it and line up?!

I thought maybe the fried one would be better since I <3 fried food.


The casing was alright, crunchy - well, it is deep fried =P but the insides were salty-as again!


P ate half of one and could not take any more. I hate wasting food so decided to finish my own fried one but even then, it was difficult and we ended up throwing away most of it.

What an utter disappointment. Strangely enough, as we shopped at the markets, we saw many Westerners holding BAGS of these dim sims, and munching into them - we could not believe our eyes lol o_Oa

Food~
2/10 - wow, I've never tasted such horrible food before! So super salty and very not nice =(

Service~
2/5 - the lady was really blunt, but I had read it's like that - service is fast and blunt here, you need to know what you want, how many, separate bags? and have your money all ready lol

Definitely NOT coming back.

C.
xo

South Melbourne Market Dim Sims on Urbanspoon

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Hwaro Korean BBQ

Hwaro Korean BBQ
562 Little Bourke St, Melbourne
(Ph) 9642 5696

Another optom catch up =D For some reason every time we catch up we go to Korean restaurants =P See Oriental Spoon 1 and 2 and Gami =P



L booked a table for 18 of us at 6pm - they do 2 sittings here, 6pm and 8pm. I arrived at 5.50pm and obviously was the first there. As I sat there waiting, many Westerners had walked in and had booked tables already - 50% of the customers here were Western! I was quite shocked I didn't think they would like Korean BBQ. But it was Derby day and many people were out in the city already so that might have made it more popular - still, Korean BBQ is so dirty and smelly and not really for ladies on dresses and fascinators =P

They initially sat me down at the normal tables, but then decided to move us to those tables where you're supposed to kneel on the floor, but have been redesigned for Westerners so we can put our legs underneath the table into the hole under the table. I initially took my shoes inside since there was only one pair of slippers at the edge, but then got told off for wearing shoes inside - woops, I didn't think they'd be so traditional in such a Western environment ^^;;

Most of my buddies didn't get there till 6-6.15ish so by the time we were all seated and caught up a bit, we had lost 30mins already. We initially wanted to share 5 bbq meats between 8 of us on our table but then realised there was a minimum 1 serving of BBQ meat per person rule here. I didn't order so don't remember exactly all the meats we got but some of them were Wine Pork Belly, Mild Thigh Fillet, Ox Tongue, Bul-gol-gi and Gal-bi. And we also got a Lots of Tofu and veggies in mild-spicy soup served with 2 bowls of rice.

They all said this Korean drink called ping ping / ping pong (or something? =P) was super tasty with bits of lychee in it so we ordered a jug of it.


Whatever it was - it was super tasty, it's more a juice with bits of lychee floating =)

What I like most about Korean restaurants are the free appetizer dishes - different every time you go =)


Kimchi and bean sprouts and a plate of onions etc


The best one was the sweet soybeans - I've never had this one before so it was a change from the spicy appetizers =P Apparently there's a sweet potato one which they normally have here but didn't have on this night =(

The waitresses helped us cook our meats initially. We thought they were gonna come and fully cook for us so we left our ox tongues there - got a tad too charred =(


So we did it ourselves - that's the fun of Korean BBQ!


The soup is very similar to the one we had at Oriental Spoon last time except it's just vegetables here.


Gives us a break from all the Korean bbq meats =P this soup wasn't too spicy so I didn't mind it - too bad they didn't have any enokitake in it =(

We were all pretty full by the end of it - on just meat and next to zero carbs =P Ended up $24 each. Not too bad but you can probably elsewhere for Korean bbq buffet for about the same price?

Food~
6/10 - was alright, have had better Korean BBQ and for the amount of money we paid probably could have gotten more food elsewhere

Service~
4/5 - the waitresses were very attentive to us, especially near 7.30pm when they were helping us cook so they could get us out in time for the next sitting =P They also have a bell you can ring when you want them but they were so attentive we didn't have to use it at all =)

Atmosphere~
2/5 - expect to be smelly when you step out of Korean bbq restaurants because the air is filled with smoke! they already have air vents taking out most of the smell out but it's still quite strong =P Quite a rowdy environment but that's what you'd expect at these kinda restaurants =)

C.
xo

Melbourne Hwaro Korean BBQ Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Groove Train - Part 3

Groove Train
Melbourne Central Level 3
211 La Trobe St, Melbourne
(Ph) 9654 2730

Omg third time coming here in the span of a few months =P This was the first time and the second time.

We were catching up with all the college people - there were 18 of us, so there aren't really any other places in the city that can cater for so many of us together.

I had to get something different to what I've had at the previous visits - something away from Italian =P I saw Veal Parmigiana - topped with ham & cheese, Bolognaise sauce & parmesan cheese, served with salad & chips $22.90. A little expensive compared to the other dishes on offer here, but I've never had a veal parma before so thought I should give it a try =) I had decided to order this beforehand already, but because we had dinner really early (6pm) I wasn't hungry at all, so wasn't sure if I should order something light. P said he'd help me eat my chips so I stuck with my decision =)

P had been here before, not with me, and he said someone else that time had ordered the Fried Calamari - floured with lemon pepper & lightly fried, served with fresh lemon, tartare sauce, salad & chips $21.90 and it was a very generous dish, so he ordered it.

Veal Parmigiana

Wow it was massive! The parma was much bigger than I thought it would be, and it was covered in bolognaise sauce and cheese! <3 The veal was soft inside yet super crunchy on the outside - all my favourite things in one =D too bad the heat from the parma made the chips soggy =( So I only ate half my chips 'cause they weren't very nice and I was super full from the veal - and P didn't have room to help me after he finished off his massive dish =P

P's Fried Calamari was seriously massive!

Fried Calamari

It doesn't actually look that nice - the calamari and the chips kinda blend into each other - needs a bit more colour in the dish =P They were very generous with the calamari, but the problem with ordering calamari is A, B and C etc all want to try a piece so there's not much left for yourself =P It was a bit too salty and quite oily though =/


Yay managed to get a photo of all of us! =D

Food~
Veal Parmigiana - 6/10 - cheesy bolognaisy goodness =D it's like second to my favourite lasagne <3 too bad the chips weren't very good

Fried Calamari - 5/10 - a bit too salty and a bit too oily, but very generous =)

Service~
2/5 - food came really quickly, but when we wanted to ask them for more tomato sauce there was no waiter to be found, they all stood to the other side which was a bit annoying =/

Atmosphere~
4/5 - they were very quite on this Sunday night, so they had blocked off half the restaurant for us =)

Seriously don't want to come here again any time soon =P

C.
xo

Groove Train on Urbanspoon

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Grandma Funks

Grandma Funks
256 Swan St, Richmond
(Ph) 9421 0510

B had told me about awesome hollandaise sauce in their breakfasts here and since there was a 25% off voucher in the Entertainment Book, I decided to come here for brunch with P =) I looked at the weather forecast for today yesterday morning and it was initially "sunny" then became "thunder" in a matter of hours =/ anyway, we came anyway and it was sunny ^___^ it was so hot that P didn't want to sit outside under the sun =___= so we got a window seat =)

All the waiters here were Asian, and I peeked inside and saw the chefs all had black hair too - how weird to have such a Western restaurant owned by Asians - I guess Richmond is quite Asian =) but not the Swan St side of Richmond! Anyway the waitress were really prompt with ordering - gave us the menu for one minute then asked if we were ready to order =P Which was good 'cause we were super hungry - it was basically midday already and we hadn't eaten all morning =/

I had to get something with hollandaise sauce so I decided for the Eggs Campagnola - a variation of the classic benedict: poached eggs & smoked salmon served on an English muffin spread with cream cheese, dressed with hollandaise $13.50

P wanted the grandma's Big Breakfast - 2 eggs cooked to your liking, grilled tomato, sausage, bacon & mushrooms, hash brown completed with caramelized onions, served on toast $15.60. Of course he wants the big breakfast he never goes for anything else =P

He initially ordered an English Breakfast tea as well then changed his mind and said he wasn't gonna pay for $3 for something he can get easily at home so he got a Banana milkshake instead for $4.80

Banana milkshake

Was delicious! There were still bits of ice-cream leftover floating =) We were slightly regretting not ordering the Banana smoothie $6.50 instead as it's "made with fresh fruit, natural yoghurt and a hint of honey" as opposed to a milkshake which apparently is made from flavoured syrup? Says P anyway. And I just looked it up on Wikipedia and he was right - so milkshakes are made from fruit syrup, milk and ice-cream, while smoothies are made from yoghurt, ice and fresh fruit - ahah so I learn something new everyday =D Anyway the milkshake was super delicious and thick anyway that we didn't find the need to pay extra for the smoothie =P

P's breakfast was MASSIVE!

Big Breakfast

Check out how big his pieces of toast were! each piece is like double the size of a normal toast =/ and omg it was SOO toasted... like a third of the back was BLACK burnt! =/ we should have complained about it but by the time P realised he had basically finished his food =/ The eggs were a little sad looking - how can you fry eggs and break the yolk like that?! The rest of the stuff was pretty good - the hash brown was SUPER crunchy =) 100% deep fried - I like =) The mushrooms were very tasty - much better than the pile at Tango Charlie =P The bacon and sausages and tomatoes were like any other big breakfast - not too bad, but nothing special to comment on =P

My dish looked so small compared to his =P

Eggs Campagnola

But it's not quantity that matters, it's quality =) And yes my dish was really tasty =) Though they were VERY stingy with the cream cheese - I had to search quite hard for it underneath all the stuff - there was a tiny layer spread onto the English muffins =( I was expecting a slab like you get on bagels in America! The hollandaise sauce was pretty good but not the best I've had. 'cause I had super high expectations of it, I was expecting it to "WOW" me but it didn't which was kinda disappointing =( The English muffins were slightly over toasted (not as burnt as P's toast =P) but they definitely need to work on their toasting of their breads =P They were very generous with their smoked salmon which was really good considering the dish was only $13.50! A dish like this elsewhere would definitely cost like $18!

Food~
grandma's Big Breakfast - 6/10 - super burnt toast! otherwise everything else wasn't too bad =) <3 the hash brown =)


Eggs Campagnola - 6.5/10 - super generous with their smoked salmon! if only they were more generous with their cream cheese =P


Service~
2/5 - the waitress was super prompt with ordering and the food came in like 5mins =) but they made us pay at the counter - or more like we were in a rush to move our car =P


Atmosphere~
3/5 - it's a very family feel in this restaurant, nice for a Sunday morning =)

Well worth it given we got 25% off so ended up was only $25.40 =)

C.
xo

Grandma Funks on Urbanspoon

Friday, October 21, 2011

Le Traiteur

Le Traiteur
552 Lonsdale St, Melbourne
(Ph) 9670 0039
☆☆☆

Lunch with P again! I'm yet again going through the Cheap Eats Guide and finding lunch venues - this place was given ☆☆☆ for takeaway and breakfast - it never mentions lunch so I figured good takeaway means good all day food =)

We got here at 1pm - was pretty empty, only 1/3 of the cafe was seated! We chose a window seat =) Though 20mins later the whole cafe was filled - we came at a good time for once!


The menu had big meals (dinner-like meals) as well as baguettes - $11 dine in or $10 takeaway. P and I both wanted baguettes =D

The list sounded soo good! We got it down to 4 -
Pork, sage & orange terrine, cherry tomatoes & grain mustard
Marinated salmon, avocado & egg salad
Roast duck, baked pear & caramelised onion
Spicy beef sausage, chilli jam & chedder cheese

In the end P decided to get the pork terrine and I got the marinated salmon =)

Pork Terrine

Wow the baguette is overflowing with stuff! Restaurants' are never this generous =P We weren't sure if we should pick it up and eat it or cut it with knife and fork. So we looked at the table next to us (who had ordered 2 baguetttes too) and they were chomping into it with their hands so we followed suit - except my ingredients kept falling off as I bit into it ><

P's baguette was a little hard but the pork, sage & orange terrine was really tasty =) I'm a fan of this anyway - it tastes like the steamed egg and pork cake you get in Vietnamese broken rice (see Vietnam Noodle House) But for some reason P was expecting like some roast pork so he was slightly disappointed it wasn't, even though he thought it was tasty anyway =P We weren't a fan of the cherry tomatoes though -they had preserved/dried it and tasted kinda bitter =/

My Marinated salmon, avocado & egg salad was yum =D

Marinated salmon

They did not even TRY to put all the stuff inside the baguette, it was just fully overflowing =P The salmon was really tasty - it was kinda like smoked salmon but not really, just - marinated yeah =) There were potatoes in the egg salad which I was disappointed to find - I don't like potato salad =( what's with cafe's putting potatoes with salmon?! Do they really go together? See Earl Canteen. Their homemade mayo sauce was delicious with the salmon and avocado though =) Plus my baguette was softer than P's which made it slightly nicer =P

I think they overtoasted the pork baguettes. The table next to us had ordered the exact same 2 baguettes, except only ate half of their pork baguette - they took all the pork and left the bread. I'm assuming it's 'cause they thought it was too hard/burnt too =P

P also ordered a plate of Shoestring fries $4.50

Shoestring fries

That's pretty cheap for such a big plate of chips! Though it's guaranteed they buy the fries cooked and frozen so they just have to deep fry it once and it stays crunchy, unlike when I try to make it at home and I don't let it freeze for long enough so it doesn't stay as crunchy =( Too bad they oversalted it! I hate oversalted fries (like the McDonald's shake fries) =(

Food~

Pork, sage & orange terrine, cherry tomatoes & grain mustard - 7/10 - was pretty good, if only the bread wasn't overbaked!

Marinated salmon, avocado & egg salad - 7.5/10 - I really liked mine =) would have been better if they don't have potatoes in it =P


Service~
4/5 - great service, waitress came and told us what the specials for the day were, and were very prompt when we asked for tomato sauce (and again! =P)

Atmosphere~
4/5 - was so nice sitting by the window on this beautiful sunny day =)

Will definitely want to come back and try the other baguettes!

C.
xo

Le Traiteur on Urbanspoon

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Taipan

Taipan Restaurant
237-239 Blackburn Rd, Doncaster East
(Ph) 9841 9977

We went to Doncaster to get our personalised "Share a Cokes" (which we lined up an hour for o_Oa!) and since we were in the area, P wanted yumcha for lunch even though we weren't that hungry after brunch at Tango Charlie. We decided to just order a few dishes and go somewhere not as expensive as Plume ><

Taipan was just a 2 minute drive from Doncaster Shopping Centre so we decided to go there.

Taipan is more like a "normal" yumcha restaurant, not as high class and Western as Plume makes itself so we figured that'd mean cheaper food =)

They didn't have any 壽眉 "sau mei" tea so I decided to get some 普洱 "pu er" and see why my brother loves it so much. And yup I've confirmed my dislike for pu er - it's too strong and bitter =/ We should have asked for a pot of hot water too so we could dilute our tea ourselves lol. Or we should have ordered 香片 "xiang pian" instead - which is more like a Jasmine tea - ah well next time!

While P was in the bathroom, I ordered a few dishes that I like myself - woops =P

Ox Tongue Puff

牛脷酥 (uw lai so) - "ox tongue puff"! P had never tried one before and I told him it's like the sweet version of 油炸鬼 (yao tsa gwai - "deep fried ghosts") which he doesn't like very much but he liked this! =) It's more like a dessert with it's sweet strip in the middle and it feels really oily - well yes it is deep fried =P

I also got a "Mexican Taro Bun" - yay taro <3

Mexican Taro Bun

Mexican bun is kinda like a "Pineapple bun" but the top crunchy layer is slightly different and not as sweet - the top layer is not actually made from pineapple at all - it's called pineapple bun because the pattern is meant to look like a pineapple with the criss-cross (it generally doesn't =P). I normally like "pineapple buns" better the top layer is more crunchy and sweeter =)

Pineapple Bun (bor lor boa) with Red Bean Paste Filling
Pineapple Bun

I don't know why Mexican bun is called that - what part of it is Mexican?! But the taro paste inside this bun was tasty =) <3 taro!


Of course we had to order 排骨 (pai gu) - spareribs =)

Spareribs

Why is ours never as tasty and our sauce is always really liquid from the condensation while steaming =( They put a few carrot bits in it instead of taro - the carrot had absorbed all the juices so was very sweet =) Not as good as some other ones but still settled our craving for it =)

Of course P had to order 蝦餃 (har gao) prawn dumpling and  燒賣 (siu mai) pork dumpling.

Prawn Dumplings

Wow the prawn dumplings were so big and chubby! P said they were very tasty and juicy inside with thin pastry =) I wonder why they give 4 prawn dumplings but only 3 pork dumplings - you'd think prawn is more expensive and they'd give fewer =P but then again, because it's more expensive, it's a "deluxe" item as opposed to the pork dumplings being "small".

Pork Dumplings

These don't look very good at all =/ So irregular shaped  and toppling over =/ was alright nothing too spesh about it - pretty sure they used minced pork instead of cutting their own pork bits which apparently is what traditional 燒賣 is meant to be so you have some texture to bite into instead of it being like a meatball, but most restaurants in Australia use minced pork 'cause it's easier.

P said he didn't feel like 叉燒包 (cha siu bao) - BBQ pork bun but I said if he didn't get one I know he'll regret it 'cause it's normally his favourite yumcha dish =P

BBQ Pork Bun

They looked slightly disappointing to be honest - looked quite small (generally they're bigger with only 2 in each basket) and the buns were split revealing the not-so-juicy BBQ pork inside =(


I always think the BBQ pork should be red and juicy which this one wasn't =( the bun was quite soft though but what's a BBQ pork bun without good BBQ pork!

I saw they had 千層糕 (tsin tsun gao) - thousand layer cake here as well and I was reminiscing the delicious one at Wealth Garden.

Thousand Layer Cake

It wasn't as tasty as the one at Wealth Garden =( The cake was a little overcooked - would have liked it if it was softer and more moist, and the salty egg layers didn't taste like salty egg at all =/ like they couldn't afford salty egg and had to mix other ingredients in it as well or something - disappointing =(

Yay they have 流沙包 (luw sa bao) runny sand bun here! <3 I ALWAYS order it whenever they have it =) you have to order them - they never bring them out in the carts. I guess it's 'cause they don't taste good if they're left cold - the "sand" won't be runny anymore =P

Runny Sand Bun

Hmm it's not as yellow as I would have imagined - and one cracked!


Very disappointing! The "sand" was not runny at all and there was barely any inside! There was more bun than "sand" and the "sand" is not even regularly placed in the bun, it was popping out at one end while the other end was full of bun. Man they really don't like to give us much salty egg here - so stingy! Was not very nice and definitely doesn't compare with the Shark Fin House one - definitely is the best I've ever tasted! *craving*

Bill was about $45 for 8 dishes - so a lot cheaper than Plume which was $60 for 9 dishes, but Wealth Garden was by far the cheapest being ~$15 per person - all within 2 minutes drive of each other.

Food~
5/10 - can't be bothered rating each separately, but none of the dishes here really stood out as "oh this is delicious!" I guess the Ox Tongue Puff and the Mexican Taro Bun were pretty good, and P liked the Prawn Dumplings.

Service~
4/10 - pretty good, the waiters were very good with refilling our teapot and taking away our dishes.

Atmosphere~
3/10 - normal yumcha atmosphere - I miss it and yes it's rowdy but it's very comfortable =)

C.
xo

Tai Pan on Urbanspoon

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Tango Charlie

Tango Charlie
353 Smith St, Fitzroy
(Ph) 9078 3510

I had bought a voucher off Living Social a while ago for this place - $19 for 2 breakfasts and 2 drinks. Sounded like a pretty good deal =) A few months had passed and I read reviews of this cafe - people saying the food was bad and cold, and service was crap, so I was a bit disappointed and didn't have high expectations. Still, we had to use the voucher.


It was raining on this Sunday morning so the street was really empty and we were the only customers here. Which means we should have really good service (and we did!) =) We sat down at the couch tables, P was gonna sit on the wooden chair opposite the couch but I said the cafe was so empty anyway might as well sit on the couch with me =)

We were served by a very nice waitress who took our orders promptly. She was the only waiter there, with another man at the bar area making our drinks - P got an English breakfast tea (surprise surprise lol =P) and I got an orange juice.


Looks pretty good aye, until we saw this =P


Haha, P said the tea didn't have much taste =P


My orange juice was definitely not freshly squeezed and most likely from a homebrand bottle from the supermarkets too =P

Our food came really quickly! Definitely not the "waited one hour for a cold meal" that other people were saying. P got the Big Breakfast - eggs poached, fried or scrambled, bacon, mushrooms, hash brown, tomato, toast, chorizo and spinach normally $15.00

Big Breakfast

Was pretty good overall =) Though P said the eggs could have been fried a touch longer to more crunchiness and the bread was a bit hard - like old bread maybe? The chorizo wasn't hot at all which we didn't mind at all =P Could have been a bit more generous with the butter =P

I got the "Hangover Cure" - three hash browns, bacon, tomato, mushrooms, eggs poached, fried or scrambled and hollandaise normally $13.00

"Hangover Cure"

Yay lots of hash browns! If only there was avocado and spinach in it as well =P The poached eggs were good, still super runny inside and the soft egg white. I don't like it when the egg white tastes vinegary which I know is how some places poach their eggs - they weren't here =) The mushrooms were a bit sad though - was kinda a mush =P Lucky I love mushrooms of all sorts so I didn't mind =P The hollandaise sauce made some of the hash browns soft which was a bit annoying but there was enough hash browns to go around so was alright =)

Food~
Big Breakfast - 7/10 - P really liked it, the only downside was the homebrand bread =P

Hangover Cure - 7.5/10 - this was good =) nothing was really bad, just wish there was some greens in it!

Service~
4/5 - service was good here! the waitress was very attentive and polite, and food came out very quickly =)

Atmosphere~
4/5 - it was really nice sitting there on the couch (there were wooden chairs at other tables which looked really hard =/). With no one next to us, P and I could have a nice conversation without eavesdropping on others while the rain poured down outside =)

Definitely was a lot better than we expected and got our money's worth!

C.
xo

Tango Charlie on Urbanspoon

Saturday, October 15, 2011

The Acland Cake Shop

The Acland Cake Shop
97 Acland St, St Kilda
(Ph) 9534 3785

We came to St Kilda for a doctor's appointment and since we came a bit early, we decided to walk around and treat ourselves to some cake =)

The first cafe/bakery we come across was The Acland Cake Shop - I wanted to walk on and see what the other cafes had but the waitress here was really nice so P said we should get something here. There were so many different cakes and tarts and slices etc to choose from! Looks so nice from outside =)


All cakes/tarts cost $5.10 here 

P wanted the Chocolate waffle but I said that didn't sound that fancy so he decided to get the Chocolate Tunnel.

Chocoalte Tunnel

It's a piece of chocolate wrapped around chocolate cake in the middle and chocolate mousse at the two ends, with the edges dipped in crushed nuts. Looks fancy but taste was alright - cake was a tad on the dry side and the chocolate was sooo sweet!

I wanted to get a slice of baked cheesecake (of course I do =P) but I know P doesn't like it so I got a Vanilla Slice instead.

Vanilla Slice

I don't know what the big dealio with Vanilla Slices are - I'm not usually a fan of them, it's just pastry wrapped around some custard lol. And when you try to break the top pastry it never breaks properly and end up squashing the custard in between =P Would have liked it if the pastry was slightly more crunchy but the custard was very smooth and creamy. P liked this very much =) There was a French Vanilla Slice as well, not sure what the difference is, but the custard looked whiter and the slice was higher - should have asked the waiter what the difference is!

Food~
Chocolate Tunnel - 4.5/10 - looks better than it tastes

Vanilla Slice - 5.5/10 - was alright, but I don't really know what the hype over St Kilda cakes is about, cakes here are alright but they're not the best, for $5.10 I can get much tastier cakes elsewhere

Service~
2.5/5 - the waitress was really nice and polite and brought water outside to our table

Atmosphere~
3/5 - we sat outside and since it was a nice warm sunny day, it was beautiful ^^

Won't trek all the way out here for the cakes, but if I'm in the area - by all means! =)

C.
xo

Acland Cakes on Urbanspoon