Friday night is a win all in itself, no matter where you are in the world, but I had three more wins on my Friday night. First win. Dinner at Ichi-ban Boshi where they serve matcha cappuccinos hot or iced. Second win? Dinner with the stunning Maria who laughs at my dodgy Finnish pronunciations but hey, I blame Panu. And third win? She sent me home with some deriiiiicious mocha cake!
Believe it or not, one of the things I most looked forward to about coming back to Sydney was, despite popular belief, not the food. I know, crazy right? But true. I looked forward to a bunch of other things, and am still looking forward to many things, like meeting my friends’ new baby girls (two friends, two new baby girls, just this week. It’s all happening y’all).
But really, the thing I most looked forward to was getting a car and having legs wheels again. To go forth wherever I wanted to go. Which mainly, is to go eat.
2.15pm: touched down in Sydney.
6.00pm: dinner at Mamak, Chatswood.
There’s pretty much no other way I would have wanted my first few hours back on home soil to go down. Every time I visit, Mamak is usually my first stop and also my last, enroute to the airport.
Today is my last day in Brisbane! And so it seems appropriate that I share with you one of my favourite places in this entire city: Cold Rock Ice Creamery. They have macadamia nut ice cream. They have cookie dough. They smash it together. LOVE.
If you’re in Brisbane on a Saturday morning and the sun is a-shining, drive on down to West End Markets on Montague Road. It’s an eclectic mix of food, fashion and all kinds of odd things and definitely worth some wandering around. Last Saturday we did just that and not only did we pick up some cheap fruits and veg, I got me a jar of macadamia nut BUTTER.
OMG. I tasted some at the stall and died on the spot. I bought a jar but my dad says I can’t open it until I’m back in London. But WHY?! I want to rub it all over my face it’s so damn delicious.
*Sigh*
Note to visitors (well, not visitors to this blog – although, Hi! – but visitors to my little home town of Brisbane) – if you’re after Chinese food, do not – I repeat do not – go to Chinatown. Aside from a couple of tacky Chinese murals and obligatory statues of dragons and lions, there’s nudda much happening in Chinatown and the food is certainly Not Happening.
Instead, drive southbound to Sunnybank, Brisbane’s unadulterated, unashamed suburb filled with the Chinese folk of this city and it is here you’ll find all the best Asian food in Brisbane. I found myself a Little Singapore.