Food Archives | Page 16 of 68

Mamasita (Melbourne, Australia)

17 January 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 1 Comments Category: Food, Restaurants

Note: AWCL visited Mamasita on 20 January 2012.

From the best Spanish restaurant for lunch, our next meal was at Mamasita, considered one of the best Mexican places in Melbourne.

Thanks to a good friend’s tip, we mentioned this to our Melbournian friend as a place for dinner and meet-up and luckily, she also wanted to Mexican food with us.

We arrived at Mamasita early as we’ve been warned that the queue gets really long during peak hours. And true enough, we arrived around 5:30pm and there was a line. The place was packed!

We got ourselves a good table nonetheless, thanks to the accommodating wait staff.

The place is dark after sundown that it was difficult to take food photos. Thank God for a camera that had high ISO settings plus the use of Curves in Photoshop, I share with you a number of decent photos.

I’m unable to specifically tell you how each dish tasted like but I assure you that each dish served to us that night tasted perfectly. The Husband and I left Mamasita with a full tummy and a wish that they’d open a branch in Sydney.

A rundown of what we had that night:

Tecate Cerveza which I had a few sips just to know what it tasted like.

Totopos (Tortilla Chips) with a siding of guacamole and salsa.

Tacos de Pollo filled with chargrilled chicken, avocado, chipotle mayo and queso fresco.

Quesadillas de Cordero stuffed with braised lamb, queso criollo, mint and jalapeno herb sauce.

Tostaditas de Carnitas. This is our favourite! Slow braised pork shoulder, encurtidos, pickled jalapeno and chicarron.

We made room for dessert that night.

Helado de Maiz. Sweet corn ice cream with caramel popcorn. This is another favourite of ours. A must eat when at Mamasita.

Pastel de Chocolate. Flourless chocolate cake with tequila white chocolate sauce.

Mamasita
Level 1, #11 Collins Street
Melbourne, Victoria
Phone: (03) 9650 3821

Movida Aqui (Melbourne, Australia)

16 January 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 0 Comments Category: Food, Restaurants, Travel

It’s Australian Open season and a part of me wishes that I’m watching the games in Melbourne right now. We are taking a break from travelling to Melbourne this year as I want a quiet birthday month. Last year was truly a blast–a month-long celebration with family and friends plus having the extraordinary holiday in Melbourne during Australian Open. This year, the Husband and I are celebrating our wedding anniversary and my birthday here in our city with little flair but still (expecting) lots of food and fun.

Since I’ve got Melbourne on my mind, I’ll start sharing our gastronomic adventures during last year’s Melbourne holiday from today til next week.

If there’s one thing I’m grateful for was that all the places we ate at last year were superb. It’s always lovely to enjoy good food on special occasions, isn’t it? All the more when you are travelling as it makes the event more memorable. And as always, Melbourne doesn’t disappoint being the food, chocolate and coffee capital of Australia.

Our first Melbourne meal upon arrival was at Movida Aqui which was a dream come true. We’ve always loved Spanish cuisine (and still do) and we’re heard/read very good feedbacks about Movida. We tried getting a table in 2010 but failed. If you’re sure about eating here, call in and make a reservation, which we did for our 2012 holiday.

Started off with a cool and refreshing jug of Sangria which we enjoyed with complimentary bread.

We decided to have a light lunch so we only opted a few Tapas, one Raciones and one Arroces. The service was fast so should the need for more food arises, it was easy to order again.

Although our orders seemed not enough to make us both full, it actually did. We were surprised that even with just a few Tapas and Raciones our tummies felt full already. The Arroces sealed it all that we decided to forego dessert.

Bocadillo de Calamares. Calamari sandwich with Basque guindilla and mayonnaise.

Bomba. Catalan potato bomb filled with chorizo. This is a favourite of ours.

Butifarra. House-made Catalan pork and pepper sausage with chickpeas and morcilla.

Arroz Caldoso. Wet bomba rice with salt bush lamb ribs and peas.

All these dishes looked and tasted exquisitely. Beautiful balance of flavours and surprisingly filling. If you’re in Melbourne, a meal at Movida Aqui is highly recommended.

The good news to Sydneysiders is that Movida has a opened a restaurant in Surry Hills (50 Holt St,Surry Hills, Phone +61 2 8964 7642) so no need to fly to Melbourne to have a taste of great Spanish food.

Movida Aqui

Lvl 1, 500 Bourke St,
NAB building, (via Lt Bourke St)
Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone: +61 3 9663 3038

Note: “A Wife’s Charmed Life” visited Movida Aqui (Melbourne) on 20 January 2012.

Happiness is Indulging in a Cup of Salted Caramel Yogurt!

10 January 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 1 Comments Category: Charmed Life of a Mrs, Food, Restaurants

Due to the heatwave last Tuesday, the Husband and I decided to meet up at Westfield Sydney after work. The temperatures went up to 42 degrees Celsius, it hurt the skin even if we’re not directly under the sun. There’s no way we’re going to brave riding the train and sitting out the heat at home. I didn’t want to cook anything at home too as it will add up to the heat. Our best solution would be to hang out at an airconditioned mall and wait out the sunset there and that’s what we did.

As per usual, I had some time to myself. I window shopped and had a looked at sales to entertain myself. When I learned that the Husband’s about to arrive, I walked up to Westfield’s Level 5 Food Court where we’re supposed to meet. I plan to reward myself a large cup of Brown Rice Milk Tea at Chatime but my attention diverted to a newly-opened restaurant nearby. It was a yogurt place called Yogurt World. The place was nicely-lit as the dining area faced the windows. Love their concept of bar stools.

Yogurt World has 16 flavours and about 101 toppings available in store. That’s a lot!

By this time, I’ve forgotten about having milk tea. I had a quick look at their yogurt flavours and found SALTED CARAMEL! They have a salted caramel yogurt! That is sooooo brilliant!

With that, I quickly grabbed a cup and poured some yogurt and toppings.

Based on my previous yogurt experiences, I’m not very much on toppings. I think I get overwhelmed with all the choices before me that I can’t really think. But what I always choose are the marshmallows and blueberries. With chocolates, it varies. This time, I put two sticks of Kit Kat, one for me and one for the Hubby.

I love their coloured spoons! It had Yogurt World etched at the end. It’s very personal.

This is now my favourite yogurt! It’s not as sour that even the Husband can tolerate it and it tastes so much like ice cream. It’s so good I regretted not getting more.

I realized now how fixated I am with Salted Caramel. You can easily tempt me with almost anything that has Salted Caramel in it. To begin with, I really love Caramel-inspired food like the Philippines’ Yema. And I love cakes and ice creams that has Caramel in it.

Last year, Salted Caramel Macarons became one of my food favourites. Now I add Salted Caramel Yogurt to my list.

Yogurt World

Level 5, Westfield Sydney

Pitt Street, Sydney NSW

Senario (Blacktown, NSW)

9 January 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 1 Comments Category: Food, Restaurants

The newest restaurant in Westpoint Blacktown reminds me of lady’s budoir. An air of elegance is felt when one sees velvet-cushioned chairs in Senario but the place has a tinge of rustic and in truth, just casual.

We had breakfast here during one of our Boxing Day adventures. I like the way they made my coffee. It was smooth and didn’t have any funny aftertaste.

The Husband and I tried their Eggs Benedict and Spinach Omelette. Both dishes satisfied our love for eggs although presentation seemed simplistic.

Came back here again to have coffee with a girlfriend last week. On a hot Friday afternoon, an Iced Coffee seemed to be the only answer to the summer heat. We indulged in this sweet and refreshing drink that also provided a kick of caffeine.

Snacked on a Hot Chips and Strawberry Crepe which somehow felt like a perfect childhood memory. Lightly-seasoned chips that almost burned the tongue but oh so good and filling. It was the perfect partner to our Iced Coffees.

The Strawberry Crepe was divine! The sweetness of the thin crepe, maple syrup and vanilla ice cream, plus the sour but refreshing taste of strawberries equalled to a perfect harmony inside the mouth.

I’m glad that a cafe/restaurant like Senario has opened in Westpoint Blacktown. It’s a place where we can have good coffee and good food while having a quiet moment amidst a busy shopping mall.

Senario
Level 3, Westpoint Shopping Centre
17 Patrick Street, Blacktown NSW
Phone: 02 9676 7737

Cicco Chocolaterie (Broadway Shopping Centre)

6 January 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 1 Comments Category: Food, Restaurants

Started work on the 2nd day of January but since it was the first week of year and our office was still officially on shutdown (I just opted to come to work because I didn’t want to use up my recreation leaves), we were allowed to come and go as we pleased. I was told to go home early on Thursday and since I had an errand at Broadway, I stopped by at Cicco Chocolaterie for some coffee “Me” time.

Situated in the middle of Level 3 of Broadway Shopping Centre, it gets its natural light from the roof, making you feel like you’re dining alfresco. They offer homemade chocolates, Hot Belgian Chocolate, coffee and pastries. I found out that they serve cooked meals too when I smelled freshly-cooked eggs from the other table.

I just had a Cappuccino and two pieces of macarons: Salted Caramel and Mango. Their coffee was well-made, rich, creamy and not too bitter.

Their Salted Caramel is the creamiest I’ve ever tasted while the Mango macaron wasn’t as sweet as I hoped it to be. Next time, I’ll buy a few pieces of their chocolates and see if they’re good too.

Not a bad place to have my first coffee “Me” time.

Cicco Chocolaterie
Level 3, Broadway Shopping Centre
1 Bay Street, Broadway, NSW
Phone: 02 9280 0014