Double Shot Please!

It's ages since we have eaten at Riverbend Bookshop in Bulimba so when we turned up today and found it is now Double Shot Cafe it was a nice surprise. The eating area is all outdoors but mostly undercover and today's temps finally lowering to a pleasant level made eating there a delight.
The service was great.  The staff circulated constantly and new arrivals were made welcome as they walked up to the entrance area.  The menu is sure to please everyone with all day breakfasts and lunch specials as well.
I was after a salad today and my Green Papaya, Mango, Shredded Chicken, and Mint Salad hit the nail on the head for me. Beautifully presented and clean fresh flavours. He-who-paid-the-bill ordered the Shredded Pork and Apple Pie with salad.  It came on a large wooden board and looked really appetising though it did take a while to cook and so my belly was nearly touching my backbone by the time it arrived.  (Dear close friends, please stop snorting with mirth at that image!).  I really was hungry.

 I passed off the ritual coffee (I had a headache later in the day for my effort) in favour of a fresh pressed apple juice which arrived in a lovely glass jar; delicious.
The new cafe is fresh, and bright with black and white subway tiles and splashes of yellow as an accent colour in lemons and a wonderful vase of fake but lovely flowers.  The glass display case had a good selection of goodies in it.  Most of the tables were full but there was a good turnover of customers and no one seemed to be waiting to find a seat.
This meal more than met expectations for lunch on a summer's day.  Nice changes, worth going back.
 

A Spoonful of Goodness - East Brisbane

Spoon, situated on Lytton Road in East Brisbane is a great place to drop in. They have express coffee that can be obtained from their outdoor cafe nook which sits just outside the indoor eating area. The fabulously huge indoor / outdoor cafe and seating area has a range of fixed seating, chairs and stools around small to large tables so there is somewhere for everyone to sit.  I prefer the larger tables because I love to spread out the paper and have a good read. The big long table is great when there is a group of you wanting to share. 

I had a very pleasant meeting there the other morning. The coffee was good and I had a quick breakfast of avocado and haloumi which was much bigger than I expected (but I ate it all!).  I have eaten here many times before though and find they have a good selection of eats. One meal I particularly liked there was the breakfast rice with a poached egg on top,  I'm unsure if this is still on the menu but if so, it's worth a try. They always have a great selection in their showcase too. The food is fresh, hearty and consistently well presented.

I've also been to a private function at Spoon and it was a great place to hold a special event. The space works well for a small crowd providing easy indoor /outdoor flow. The only complaint I've ever had about Spoon is that the service can be so slow but that was not the case this visit so they have redeemed themselves!  I will be back.

A few things to do in Melbourne

Sunday morning early my daughter-in-law and I zipped into Queen Victoria Markets in Melbourne city to check out the vintage clothes stalls. We both ended up with goodies to come home with. I love to walk into the food hall at the markets, I could get lost there for the morning. There cheese shops, bread shops, meat shops, fruit shops, and variations of all those. The goods are amazing and well presented. You get to taste test and the shop owners are generally passionate foodies. I particularly liked the coffee we got from the little Italian coffee van. The Italian food looked amazing though I couldn't eat the beautiful pastries (rats!), my hands were full and I didn't grab a photo or the name of the van but it was a stand out because it looked clean, fresh, and the offerings were different.

After lunch we wandered down to the Morondah Community Fair and enjoyed watching the smallest boy's delight at driving a fire engine, jumping on the jumpy castles and dancing with the Tickety Toc crew on main stage (yes I was the only adult in the front row but I was SUPPORTING my grandson!!).  There were an amazing amount of free activities so we had a very happy boy that afternoon.

 We headed out for a coffee the next morning and went straight to Bekendales.  This is a cafe we love to head to when we are in Croyden.  Dale is a real character; welcoming and warm, loves his food and coffee, and he serves the normal breakfast fare with nice treats in the cabinet. The cafe is small and cosy on a cold day, air-conditioned on a hot one, and there are outdoor seats for when the weather is lovely....

Monday saw us alone with Mr I-Must-Have-2-Marshmellows (3.5years old). We went up Mt Dandenong which is another favourite thing to do. Main destination was Sassafras for breakfast and as much shopping as the 3.5 yr old would allow (not much apart from in Geppettos Workshop).  The  Cafe de Beaumarchais beckoned us in on this cool morning.  I had held off having breakfast and thought I would get something healthy to eat. NOT! One look at the offerings and I just had to have something so NOT good.  I settled on a white chocolate, raspberry, lemon curd cheesecake.  It was decadent to say the least. but I washed it down with a short macchiato which cut through the sweetness. Of course someone lactose intolerant should take a little more care over their choice of breakfast, the consequence was that I suffered a little but it was a lovely thing to eat at the time. Husband ate a fritatta and Grandson had banana bread which went down a treat and was enjoyed all morning as the left overs were wrapped, taken with us and munched in the car. This cafe is a little bit of Paris, the pastries are beautiful to look at in an old glass fronted case, the furniture has a distinctly French look and the atmosphere is dark and moody which reminds me of that night we had in Paris.....

Australia Day Ride

Australia Day dawned with the weather predicted to provide (1) rain and (2) heat, so we decided to jump on the motorbike and head to the hills early in the morning to avoid both.  While the sky was overcast and threatening rain, we managed to be out for 3 hours and not get wet or too hot. We headed to Dayboro first, such a pretty spot. Usually we stop at the Dayboro Deli Country Kitchen for a bite to eat but we were too early. I've got to do a plug for this cafe because we have always had great food here. We have been for breakfast several times and for dinner (special set menu) on St Patrick's Day; that meal in particular was fabulous with the green theme prevalent in food and service! I have also been there on a breakfast outing with Nat and Carol (the bird scarer). Thanks go to our friends Michael & Pip for loaning us Carol who loved the convertible, with the wind blowing over her feathers. The Dayboro Deli staff even brought Carol a "birdie chino" to enjoy while we had our breakfast - very accommodating I thought! Here's a few pics of Carol, Nat and our adventure.
Anyway, I digress. No Dayboro Deli for us this time so we headed the bike towards Samford and enjoyed being one of only a few vehicles/ cyclists on the road which was really surprising since it was a holiday - we must have been early!!  From Samford we headed up the hill to Mt Glorious.  This hill is massive and full of switch back turns which I hate as a pillion passenger (my thrill is speed) but it is a beautiful drive climbing rapidly up through the trees. Once you reach the, turn right and in no time you arrive at the Maiala Rainforest Teahouse at Mt Glorious.  This stop is made for cyclists and bikers. There is covered seating stretching out in front of the long low structure which fronts straight onto the road allowing great views of cycles and motorbikes passing, stopped and leaving. On this particular morning there was plenty of action with one side of the frontage filled with cyclists and the other with motorbikers.  If you want to see serious $$$ all lined up then this is the spot to go. You don't come to Maiala for the food experience, this stop is a fueling station for the next part of the ride however, the coffee surpassed expectations and the scrambled eggs on toast were well done if plain.

We would have expected a surcharge on this holiday weekend but instead there was a big sign at the door saying no surcharge for the holiday but all food would be served on plastic plates and we would have to come and pick up our order when our number was called.  I was perfectly happy with that arrangement and I doubt that anyone else there would have cared either.

Once we had finished breakfast we headed back home along the top of the mountain range, through Mt Nebo and down through The Gap. The view across the valley from the top of the range is breathtaking and if you have time it is well worth stopping for a while at Jolly's Lookout on Mt Nebo Road. Even though we haven't stopped there for ages, the Dr Red Vineyard, is worth having a look at. The views from the cellar door out of the valley are amazing and the wine is ok too.

This is a nice easy ride (not too bum numbing) though care needs to be taken on these roads which are narrow and shared with cyclists and cars, there is not always enough room for everyone plus the corners require a high care factor.  Coming home we saw someone gathering bits after a spill from his bike, thankfully he was ok.  It's always disappointing to drop down out of the cool of the mountain and back into the heat of the city but the pleasure of the ride usually outweighs the disappointment of the heat.

A night to remember....

Don't you just love dining with good friends? We had the opportunity late last year to trial dinner at at Cinco on Cleveland Road, Camp Hill with some very special friends who were visiting.It may be in the midst of suburbia but this restaurant can hold it's own against the city restaurants.  We were not unhappy!

One of our party of 4, Reece, is a chef.  I can vouch for his cooking skills because he and his family lived with us a long time ago and we all looked forward to the nights he was on dinner! For me it was a good time to not have to think about the cooking but I also loved watching him at work. Now, whenever I can, which is rarely because we don't live close anymore, I love nothing better than to jump in and stir, slice or be his lackey to make a feast for friends and family.

There is always a little pressure when you take a chef out to make sure that what is served up will thrill his tastebuds and meet his stylistic standards! Cinco thankfully satisfied all four of us.  We all enjoyed each mouthful of our dinner, the service was exceptional with a waiter who knew the menu inside out - we do all like to ask questions about what we are eating, and a good wine menu.

I hadn't done any research into this restaurant, it had been a recommendation and I had been gifted a voucher to dine here so I feel like a winner. I had thought this was an Italian restaurant (after all there is a pizzeria next door - Piccolo Pizza) however I think it is best described as Australian fusion.  All the best fresh local ingredients with global ideas.

The menu has changed a little since we went and I can't remember the exact dishes we had but the pictures all still remind me of a lovely evening dining out.

Mickle Pickle

I've driven past Mickle Pickle numerous times but I'm usually in the far lane and it's too difficult to cross over.  However this time I set out to stop so I was in the correct lane and pulled into the roomy carpark, necessary since this place fronts Wynnum Road at Tingalpa and not very often found.
I arrived early after my morning walk at the seaside so they were just getting ready to start up when I rocked up.  They took my order and explained they'd be a few minutes which was fine by me. This place is comfortable.  I was able to spread out the paper and read, the fake grass adds a touch of mirth to the grimness of Wynnum Road and the people were just, well, nice! Oh yes, and the coffee was worth waiting for.  If I lived in Tingalpa this would definitely be my local. I didn't eat this time around but this could be a good brekky spot after a weekend walk.

Chop Chop Chang's Anniversary Celebration

After a Friday night catch up drink, hungry tums sent us in search of a tasty eatery.  On the recommendation of "He-who-is-a-city-dweller" (oops I had accidentally written sweller and that could be correct but I'll change it in case he reads this...) we headed to Chop Chop Changs for something tasty, not too pricey and that would not be so full we couldn't get a seat. That's not to say it wasn't busy, but it is a big spacious restaurant.
Chop Chop Chang was the first monkey sent into space, this we found out from Google.  He lifted off on January 31, 1961, so we were in fact eating an anniversary dinner to commemorate his marvellous achievement.  His picture adorns the wall but there was no monkey business when we were there. The wait staff were helpful, explaining how the menu worked, the sizes of the various options and even how slurpy the meal might be.
As we'd had drinks prior to eating we abstained but there was a good looking bar along one side of the restaurant which I am sure would have met any requirements. We started off with a small bowl of Tom Yum Cashews, sweet, spicy and sticky, and a Satay Dipping plate which was great too. The rest of the meal came quickly, Seared Kingfish Tataki, Spicy Beef, Wok Tossed Prawns and Gai Lan.  The Spicy Beef was thinly sliced, and had an after kick to it but as it was mixed in an Asian salad of mint and coriander the freshness of flavours balanced that out. The Wok Tossed Prawns were disappointing because there were only had 6 prawns in the dish and shared between 3 that just wasn't enough however, the flavour of the dish was rich and lovely.  The stand out for me was the Kingfish. Beautifully presented, thinly sliced and so succulent. Of course we had ordered too much and didn't manage to quite finish everything. Needless to say we left satisfied.
We loved the lighting and the communal seating; long tables and stools.  This suited our mood really well, with chatting throughout that competed with the rest of the room. This is a place to go when you want and affordable, fun, great tasting meal that doesn't ruin the bank balance.  

We were introducing Deb to the West End and I think she was suitably with impressed with the food at Chop Chop Chang's, the vibe, tastes and location just suited our night perfectly. After dinner we wandered down to South Brisbane, passing through the night markets on our way, which I'd also never been too.  There are plenty of reasons to head back to West End another night.  This is a place to return to and I suspect the more people you take with you the better it gets!!