First World Problems

I apologize for my long, unexplained absence. Life has been a whirlwind of assignments, rehearsals and delicious food (praise the Lord).

But the main reason really, is that I've maxed out the amount of photos I can upload through the blog and I have yet to figure out an alternative solution that does not involve me having to fork out cash. Because my cash is precious. No money = no brunch = sad Ro.

Which brings me to my random thought of the day. Fine its not that random really. I am (apparently) the queen of First World Problems.

My thoughts are disjointed.

Its the start of SWOTVAC and I should be studying.
Which probably explains why Im here writing again! - because there are other things that I should be doing.


Pfft.

Time for more Earl Grey.

Brunch Adventures: Tom Phat

When I first came here with my mom and brother I was absolutely in love with this place! I was told that this was a "Malaysian Fusion" place, and so I expected Malaysian people running the place, and was slightly surprised when I saw Caucasian waiters! I suppose my brother was just slightly misinformed, and consequently I was misinformed too.... 

It definitely is fusion but hardly Malaysian :p More Vietnamese and Thai influences. At my first visit here I had this amazing roti + thai beef salad thing, which sounds a little weird (roti plus salad? In fact when I ordered it, it was under the heading of "Roti and Salads" but somehow I interpreted it as being "All roti dishes and salad dishes are listed here" instead of "All these salads are served with roti") but I loved it! Super tangy and the roti was soft and chewy (the way it should be! not crispy like how some people seem to like it, especially here in Melbourne. Roti tisu is crispy, yes. Roti canai crispy on the outside, yes. Roti canai crispy inside and out?? no. just, no.)

But that was almost 2 years ago...

And so much to my disappointment, by the time I came back, they've changed their menu :(

You know that reeeeally lousy feeling when you've set your taste buds on something and then you cant eat it because the restaurant is closed or its sold out or something horrible like that? Or maybe thats just me...

Roti Omelette with Tomato Salsa, Bacon, Chives.
 I wanted more meat so I had a side of grilled pork chop.

I really wanted roti. And from the list of roti+salads they used to have, the new menu only has one roti dish! (for lunch/brekkie anyway, not sure about dinner). I suppose its kind of like roti telur, but instead of the telur being in the roti, this roti is in the telur. Personally I thought it was'nt seasoned enough. But I have a feeling thats more of my own problem than theirs. Somehow to me if something isn't spicy, its borderline tasteless. Had to add salt and chilli sauce... But after I did that, cant fault the dish! Plus it satisfied my roti cravings so I'm not complaining.

Yellow curry with Hanoi Baguette

Meitze's dish. I thought those were carrots. But they're sweet potatoes! An interesting twist to the usual curry chicken and potatoes, I suppose? Super fragrant and flavoursome! Well spiced, (could this be my bias-ness to the spice? hmmm) and the bread dipped in curry sauce is just ... yum. Salivating just thinking about it.

Conclusion: Not very impressed with my roti dish, but the curry dish gives me hope. Maybe one day I'll come back to give this place another go and try other things :)

Meitzes totally sinful chocolate coated reese sandwiched in a double stuffed oreo 

Needless to say, its going to take me 500 days of exercise before I burn off all those calories... yup.

Not gonna happen.

side note: maybe I should start rating my dishes out of 10? hmm.

Tom Phat

184 Sydney Road

Brunswick VIC 3056

03-93812374

Brunch Adventures: Lot 6

I cant believe it took me 1 year of being a lost Foundation Studies student roaming around uni + 1.5 years of being a Melbourne Uni student to finally give this place a try. This entire time I've been hiding in Union House eating the same old same old (Honey chicken with rice), and missing out on life. (Okay not really).

So, Lot 6. AstroTurf and the constant crowd should've given me a hint that this place was gonna be good. 

All the nice sunlight, pretty wooden benches and steel tables, reasonable prices, good selection of yummy food and pastries, perfect location (right next to my favourite building in uni).. Lot 6 has officially become my current favourite place for catch-ups in between classes. Like seriously, how could you top that. I think for a period of time I came here almost twice a week.

Scrambled eggs with pumpkin, feta, and spinach on toast.

 Looks pretty mehhhh on the place but tastes great! Eggs were nice and fluffy, and the contrast between the saltiness of the feta and sweetness of the pumpkin was so yum. Personally I find it pretty hard to cook (and even more so, cut) pumpkin. Its so hard to get it to soften! But then again maybe thats just me. The pumpkin was creamy and smooth and the cheese was all melty and just, yum.

side note: is it just me or does this picture of the scrambled eggs look blurry? But if you enlarge it its clear. Weird. I always thought it would  be the other way round.

Spanish baked beans with chorizo, feta and a poached egg

 The beans weren't as well cooked as I had hoped, it was still a little chewy and hard. But I guess that means it didnt come from a can? Super filling dish, I had this for breakfast and I didnt eat anything else for the rest of the day until dinnertime. Which is, a rare occasion for me (who constantly and I mean CONSTANTLY snacks in between classes).

Lemongrass and ginger tea

Must try! Their Dark Hot Chocolate is my favourite beverage though.

Photo by Shini.

Sense my excitement.

Everything  looks really simply presented but for the very reasonable price I'm not going to complain about the lack of unnecessary leaves and drops of oil around my plate. They were even giving out free beverages the other day while we were there, SCORE!

Thank God for all these lovely cafe's in Melbourne. I would have no idea where to go for brunch if I was in Malaysia. Then again, in Malaysia I'd be busy stuffing my face with Char Kuey Teow and Claypot Loh See Fun with a nice cup of Teh O Ais Limau to be thinking of Ham and Cheese Croissants and fancy coffee.

Till next time! x

Lot 6 

located next to the Eastern Resource Centre (ERC)

Melbourne University

Sweet tooth.

Or is it sour? Nobody says "sour tooth". But sour desserts are amazing. Even though my brother disagrees.

I have made it a personal goal to try every lemon tart available (unless I am absolutely convinced that it is hopeless) until I find the best one, and LO AND BEHOLD, I HAVE FOUND IT.

Ive been craving this so badly I have decided to dedicate a post to it.

Say hello to the awesomest lemon tart ever.

(If you know of a better place, TELL ME PLEASE.)

Babkas lemon tart served with clotted cream

I have yet to try the food from this cafe, but really, the lemon tart alone is good enough to make me want to go back again and again. The texture of the filling is alot more soft and curd-y than most of the ones I've tried, which are usually abit stiff and slightly dry (if you get what I mean). On its own, the tart is already great, but it really does pack a lemony punch so it might be too sour for some. So even if youre on some kind of diet, I STRONGLY RECOMMEND you have it with the cream! With the cream, its like an orchestra in perfect harmony in your mouth, the amazingly creamy texture of the lemon curd+cream enveloping your tongue, the cream cuts the acidity of the lemon, the lemon cuts the richness of the cream.... 

I could go on forever.

I'm not even kidding when I say I have to hold myself back from breaking out in a joyful song or getting up and doing a little dance when I eat this.

Babka Bakery Cafe

358 Brunswick St

Fitzroy, VIC 3065

03-94160091