Tag Archives: Belconnen

What’s happened this week food wise? | Spam spam and more spam | Chairman and Yip

by

All of these images are from my Instagram account. If you want to read the comments and see the likes please click on the image. Feel free to follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter :-)

Since my last post about the crust-free meat mince pizza I’ve been pretty occupied at work and then this weekend has been a combination of going out and eating and today being at work again.

On Wednesday morning I made green eggs and ham

#lunch Green eggs and "ham". I mixed my eggs in my Magic Bullet™ with some feta and parsley. I filled the omelet with a little grated Gruyère cheese and fried pieces of Strasbourg. #yummy

The green came from some parsley I added to the egg before whisking it.

———-

On Wednesday night Bron came over and shared some of your super yummy salted caramel macarons with me

Bron brought over one of her delicious salted caramel macarons #yummy

This was about the best salted caramel macaroni I’ve ever tasted

———-

Bron also brought over some beef pie she’d made

#dinner Beef pie with magnificent pastry and vegetables. #yummy

This was a fantastic meal

———-

On Thursday morning I had spam and egg

#breakfast I feel better today. Fried egg and spam #yummy

A nice light but filling breakfast

———-

Thursday night it was my turn to cook for Bron

#dinner with Bron. Simple and light. Salmon and vegetables. #yummy

Salmon and vegetables

———-

Bron was given a box of Champagne truffles as a gift by a work mate after she did a spectacular job on a project

#sweet #treat from Bron #yummy

These were pretty delicious

———-

Friday morning was another egg and spam meal. Omelet :-)

#breakfast cheese and spam omelet #yummy

———-

Friday was spent at The Canberra Hospital, so I bought lunch

#lunch Bacon and onion quiche with a caramel thick shake. The quiche is too salty.

Bacon and onion quiche with a caramel thick shake. The quiche was way too salty. I don’t think I’ll do that again.

———-

On Friday night Bron and I went to see Iron Man 3 in 3D. We enjoyed it.

———-

On Saturday morning we went to the Belconnen Fresh Food Markets to check out some groceries and other things.

#paleo #breakfast not too bad

I had a pale breakfast at Beppe’s Tuscan Kitchen. It was pretty good and filling too. The bacon was a little too salty for my liking and the egg was slightly over cooked. 

———-

While in Tom’s Superfruits I spied this jar of pickled onions

Bum hummers 1000 farts in a jar #funny

Hilarious | Bum Hummers | 1000 farts in a jar

———-

On Saturday night Bron and I went out with some friends to Chairman and Yip for dinner. This is one of the finest restaurants in Canberra and never fails to please. I’ve reviewed it here a few times. Search Chairman and Yip in Yummy Lummy

I started with stuffed mushrooms

#dinner mushrooms with pesto #yummy

These were stuffed with pesto. Always good.

———-

For a main I asked for pork chops honey gin seng red dates goji berries and then we shared

#dinner pork chops honey gin seng red dates goji berries

The lighting was pretty low in the restaurant. Sorry about the poor quality of the images.

The Chairman and Yip on Urbanspoon

Trip Advisor reviews

———-

Bron asked for sea perch and our friends asked for the beef and scallop hot pot plus the caramelised pumpkin and cucumber

#dinner sea perch pork chops and beef hot pot #yummy

It was a lovely plate of flavour

———-

Chairman and Yip is a must do for anyone serious about eating in Canberra. A very worthwhile restaurant to visit.

Dunny rating is 2½ out of 5. If it wasn’t for the Aēsop hand products it would rate 2 out of 5. The urinal plumbing had obvious corrosion. The hand basin was old. The hand dryer was weak and there were no paper towels.

The napkin rating was a pass. They were cloth. Cloth=classy.

———-

For dessert I had a takeaway Tiramisu from Gelato Joe’s

#dessert tiramisu takeaway

It was okay. They ran out of churros so I was disappointed.

———-

To make up for the poor egg experience at Beppe’s Tuscan Kitchen Bron made her fabulous poached eggs

#breakfast perfection with Bron #poached #egg on a #muffin #yummy

Nothing beats Bron’s eggs

———-

I spent today at work. After a weekend away with my kids last weekend and a day off this week because of illness I had a lot of catching up to do.

———-

Tonight I made some pumpkin soup

#dinner Preparing pumpkin soup #yummy

I used onion, ginger, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, Kent pumpkin, white wine, curry powder and coconut cream

———-

The finished product

#dinner Pumpkin soup with ginger, coconut cream, curry powder with a few other flavours. It was delicious. #superyummy #YummyLummy

I topped the soup with a little parsley, Gruyere cheese and coarsely ground black pepper

———-

I hope you have a great week ahead. I’m planning to. If you haven’t worked it out, I like spam :-)

Related articles

Bolly Buds Indian Restaurant in Belconnen

by

Last night we went to Bolly Buds in Belconnen to pick up some takeaway dinner. The restaurant is located on the ground floor of the Oracle Building on Benjamin Way (corner College Street [-35.242754, 149.067981]) in Belconnen. The website http://www.bollybuds.com.au/ isn’t up yet but they do have a Facebook Page.

Bron and I spent some time looking over the menu and asked for:

Onion Bhajia $5.9
Lollipos $9.9
Butter Chicken $16.9
Korma Lamb $17.9
Paneer Makhani $14.9
Plain Rice $2.9
Plain Naan $3.0
Garlic Naan $3.9

We think the Lollipos were meant to be balls of chicken meat on sticks, however we received for tandoori like chicken wings which were large, tender and delicious.

After dinner Bron served her apple and cinnamon muffins with vanilla ice cream. It was delicious.

All in all, Bolly Buds as a takeaway restaurant is pretty good. The service was fine and friendly. The taste delicious. The cost not exorbitant. I expect it will be a popular venue for the residents of the Oracle after a busy day at work. Inside the decor was pretty plain and not that enticing in terms of wanting to sit in an eat. As a takeaway venue it was perfect.

The menu for Bolly Buds


View Larger Map

Eatability reviews for Bolly Buds
Related articles

Chong Co Thai Bar and Restaurant | Sanur’s Balinese Restaurant | @Bron99 ‘s amazing birthday cake

by

After being away last week in Ottawa it was good to see and catch up with Bron. On Thursday night we had a night out at Chong Co Thai Bar and Restaurant and then to Max Brenner for some chocolate. Yesterday was Bron’s birthday and a few of us went to dinner and then had dessert at a friend’s place.

On Thursday night we didn’t really need to scan the menu. We knew what we wanted and shared some Thai fish cakes for an entrée. These were nice and full of flavour but a little rubbery. For a main course Bron chose the barbecue chicken (marinated skin on chicken with served with sweet chilli sauce) and I chose the barbecue lamb which Bron had the last time we were here.

Chong Co Thai fish cakes (iPhone)

Chong Co Barbecue chicken (iPhone) Served with sweet chilli sauce

Chong Co Barbecue lamb cutlets (iPhone)

The chicken and lamb were delicious. I would highly recommend these two dishes for a main course meal.

After the main course we walked to Max Brenner for a little chocolate.

I had a white chocolat and an exploding chocolate shot. The hot chocolate drinks are served in hug mugs which look like toilet bowls.

Max Brenner white chocolat in a hug mug (iPhone)

Exploding chocolate shot is popping candy over melted chocolate served with gummy bears (iPhone)

The popping candy is fun. It’s a pity the venue is very noisy, it would be good to eat this in a quiet room.

Friday was a pretty full on day but our Friday’s are always made better with a Mavi Breakfast wrap and coffee. This is a deal done at Mavi.

Mavi Breakfast wrap contains a hash brown, egg, bacon, mushrooms and barbecue sauce. (iPhone)

On Friday evening I didn’t get to Bron’s until late (don’t ask, it was a long day at work). Bron prepared a lovely Chicken thigh roasted with lemon, garlic and shallots served with lemon risotto and broccoli. This was accompanied later with a Flourless toffee date hazelnut chocolate muffin with cream. The meal was delicious.

Chicken thigh roasted with lemon, garlic and shallots served with lemon risotto and broccoli (iPhone).

Flourless toffee date hazelnut chocolate muffin with cream (iPhone)

Saturday was Bron’s birthday. We went to the EPIC markets at Exhibition Park early in the morning. Bron bought a heap of produce including some truffles and cultured butter. I bought a vanilla slice.

Do you think it’s big enough? (iPhone)

After the markets we had breakfast at Ricardo’s Cafe in Jamison. This is an amazing place for pastries. Just click on the link to see. I had a coffee and big breakfast.

This was very filling (iPhone) You can see Bron’s Eggs Benedict in the background.

On Saturday night we went to dinner with some friends to Sanur’s Balinese Restaurant in Belconnen. We’d been there before but that was years ago. The menu is full of delicious choices and I’m reminded of a review from T1 of In The Taratory fame. Bron and I shared a couple of entrées, viz., the Bakwan Jagung ($9.9 buys you Sweetcorn patties with prawns and shallots served with sweet chili dipping (3 pieces)) and the Udang Goreng Tepung ($10.9 buys you King prawns in spiced, crispy coconut batter served with cucumber relish (4 pieces)). For a main I had a whole deep fried fish (a little fish) Ikan Balado ($28.90 buys you deep fried of whole fish or prawns or calamari served with padangnese style mild chili sauce). I like fish like this and was happy to head the eyes.

Bakwan Jagung Sweetcorn patties with prawns & shallots served with sweet chili dipping (iPhone)

Udang Goreng King prawns in spiced, crispy coconut batter served with cucumber relish (iPhone)

Ikan Balado Deep fried of whole fish or prawns or calamari served with padangnese style mild chili sauce (iPhone)

Ikan Balado Deep fried of whole fish or prawns or calamari served with padangnese style mild chili sauce sans flesh and eyes (iPhone)

After dinner we went to Tanya’s place for dessert. Meredith had given Bron a Dutch pancake maker for her birthday and we needed to try it out. In addition Tanya had been busy making a cake or awesome proportions.

Dutch pancakes with maple syrup and ice cream. (iPhone)

The balls are cake encased in white chocolate. The balls are decorated with icing and the green grass is also green dyed chocolate. This was amazing and tasted so good (iPhone).

I was so relaxed after dessert I fell asleep and put a show with my snoring :-)

This morning Bron prepared scrambled eggs with the cultured buttered infused with the truffles she bought at the markets.

Truffled scrambled eggs (iPhone)

Related articles

Chong Co Thai Restaurant and Max Brenner

by

Last night we went out with some friends to the Chong Co Thai Restaurant in Belconnen and then enjoyed dessert at Max Brenner which was in the same area. Bron and I had been to Chong Co a couple of times before and enjoyed the food.

There were five in our party and we quickly agreed to start with the mixed entrée which consisted of a spring roll, curry puff, fish cake and and Satay chicken. The spring roll was quite peppery and the fish cakes had a lovely firm texture that wasn’t rubbery.

The mixed entrée consisted of a spring roll, curry puff, fish cake and Satay chicken. (iPhone with flash)

For the main course Bron chose the deep fried batter soft shell crab topped with tamarind sauce, ginger, shallot, coriander, crispy onion and mixed vegetables. The dish was enormous with at least two crabs.

Soft shelled crab (iPhone with flash)

I chose the Pan fried batter barramundi topped with chilli, cooked in coconut milk, kaffir lime leaves and sweet basil leaves.

Fried barramundi (iPhone with flash)

The barramundi was rated with two chillies. For me it was bordering on hot. It was not uncomfortable but certainly sinus clearing. Mixed with some rice, this was delightful.

The service at the Chong Co is remarkable. The ratio of wait staff to customers is very high, nothing is too much trouble.The restaurant was fairly full with a good turnover of patrons. When full the place is very noisy and hearing conversations can be difficult. It would be good if the owner added some sound baffling to the ceiling and walls. The wait staff all look very good in their costumes and the decor is very inviting.

I would recommend this restaurant to anyone who wants a good night out.

After our main course we elected to enjoy dessert at Max Brenner. We’ve been to Max Brenner a few times before. Last night we tried a few different things.

I had a passion fruit waffle sundae.

Passion fruit waffle sundae (iPhone)

Michael had a Max-wich

Max-wich (iPhone)

Bron had a banana crepe.

Banana crepe (iPhone)

Max Brenner Chocolate Bar on Urbanspoon

It was a really good night out. Given the proximity of Max Brenner to Chong Co, it was a great combination.

Related articles

ANZAC Day post

by

To those who have served Australia,
THANK YOU.

To those who have lost sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters to protect our country,
THANK YOU.

To those who have mourned the loss of loves ones as they fought for freedom,
I feel for you and THANK YOU.

To those who are serving Australia today and making a difference to countless lives around the world,
THANK YOU.

I will not forget.

Today I wanted to do something that involved a product of New Zealand. However, there has recently been some controversy in the news because a journalist from New Zealand called Australian soldiers lazy bludgers (http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/last-post-first-light/6792303/No-apology-over-dig-at-Aussie-soldiers). That gave me a reason to pause and reconsider. Rather than something obvious like lamb I chose tinned beef. Bully Beef (bully beef; from the French bouilli “boiled”) is the name of a tinned meat that soldiers ate in the field. Soldiers’ only food was whatever they had carried ashore in their packs. Apparently for several days on end all they had to eat was a little bully beef, some tea, sugar and a few very hard biscuits from the ship. (Reference http://www.anzacday.org.au/education/afor/afor-b.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corned_beef)

Now who can forget some of my special corned beef dishes? My Man versus Food version and my previous sausage roll.

New Zealand Corned Beef (Nikon D90)

New Zealand Corned Beef (Nikon D90)

For lunch I made myself a sausage roll with the corned beef. I added a little flavour with GOA beef curry powder and an onion. I also added a little Worcestershire sauce (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worcestershire_sauce).

 

Corned beef sausage roll (Nikon D90)

Corned beef sausage roll (Nikon D90)

One of the other flavourings for today is rosemary. I didn’t realise until recently what the significance of rosemary is for ANZAC day. A sprig of rosemary is worn on ANZAC day. It is an emblem of both fidelity and remembrance in literature and folklore. It is found growing wild on the Gallipoli peninsula. (Reference http://www.awm.gov.au/commemoration/customs/rosemary.asp, http://www.theradish.com.au/rosemary-for-remembrance-677/, http://www.anzacday.org.au/education/tff/rosemary.html, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anzac_Day). Today I acquired my rosemary outside of Swimming Australia on Beissel Street in Belconnen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swimming_Australia). This is particularly apt given it’s an Olympic year and my favourite sport is swimming.

Dinner was a surprise and by surprise I just put stuff into a saucepan and hoped for the best. It was surprisingly good. I did the usual sauteing of onions, garlic and ginger. To this I added some diced tomatoes and then diced chicken thigh meat. After everything was soft I added Mudgeeraba Parsee Chicken and Potato curry powder. I added some sliced potato and sweet potato and then put the lid on the saucepan and kept it simmering for three hours. With half an hour to go I added some beans, corn and mushrooms. I served it with noodles.

Curry chicken and beef (Nikon D90)

Related articles

Maestral Mediterranean and Seafood restaurant in Weston

by

Yesterday was a slow kind of day. We started with brunch at Black Pepper in Belconnen. This is a local café that does a good breakfast and brunch on weekends. It is very popular amongst locals and especially cyclists and walkers who exercise around Lake Ginninderra.

Bron asked for Eggs Benedict on Turkish bread and I asked for the Black Pepper big breakfast with Turkish bead. Black Pepper Menu July 2012

When our meals arrived, the Eggs Benedict were sitting on a muffin. Rather than waste time and send the dish back, I shared my Turkish bread.

Beautiful eggs Benedict

The plates were cold and the bacon was also cold. The eggs were slightly over cooked. The yolks were still soft but they weren’t really runny like we like them. Otherwise, the Eggs Benedict and Black Pepper Breakfast were very nice. As you can see I also asked for a bowl of hollandaise sauce to go with my breakfast. Along with our coffees, it was a good start to the day.

The day got better with a visit to Costco. I wanted to see the optometrist, although I didn’t realise I needed an appointment. I’ll be returning next Saturday. To compensate my disappointment we went to look at the meat section. There is a whole cold section dedicated to Australian produced Wagyu beef.

Costco's Wagyu cabinet

I will blog soon about cooking Wagyu beef.

The Maestral Mediterranean and Seafood restaurant is on 13 Trenerry Street in Weston. The menu is a combination of Croatian, seafood and beef. The surf and turf/reef and beef options look amazing.

We started with baby fried calamari and then went onto a Maestral seafood platter.

Baby fried calamari

The calamari was perfectly fried. It was juicy and tender.

The Maestral seafood platter. The soft shell crab was the highlight.

The platter had a combination of oysters (natural and oysters Maestral [see menu]), scampi, prawns, fish, soft shell crab and fried potatoes.

Me smiling because I love seafood platters

I would definitely go back and try other dishes on the menu. It’s a very popular restaurant. We saw a number of familiar faces and friends there last night.

After the Maestral we thought we’d enjoy dessert at Max Brenner in Belconnen. I chose the waffle with strawberries and vanilla ice cream.

Max Brenner waffle with strawberries and vanilla ice cream

And so finished a pretty good day.

Related articles

Dinner at Lemon Grass Woden and Max Brenner Belconnen

by

After an afternoon of shopping at Costco and DFO we’d worked up a hunger for Thai food and chocolate.

I’ve been to the Lemon Grass restaurant in Woden a few times. The food has always been nice. Last night was no exception. The service though was a little quirky. At one stage we had food and no plates and at other times plates and no food. All the servers looked unhappy and it appeared they didn’t have designated tables to wait on.

For starters we had Taud Man Pla (Thai fish cakes) and Goong Taud (deep fried King prawns coated in almond flakes).These were tasty morsels and certainly made me hungrier for more food.

Taud Man Pla Spicy Thai fish cakes

Delicious

Goong Taud Deep fried king prawns covered with almond flakes

A little over cooked.

For a main course I had the beef Gang Panang (creamy red curry with crushed peanuts and kaffir leaves topped with crispy egg noodles). Along with the rice to soak up the amazing creamy curry juices, this was a light spicy and tasty meal.

Gang Panang Creamy red curry (chicken or beef) with crushed peanuts and kaffir leaves topped with crispy egg noodles.

I’ve never really appreciated Thai desserts, so instead we went for a drive north to Belconnen to Max Brenner to enjoy some chocolate, viz., in the form of chocolate fondue (Pure melted milk and dark chocolate served with strawberries, bananas, marshmallows and banana bread).

Chocolate fondue with melted dark and milk chocolate.

In the end there was melted chocolate left over. I didn’t want to waste it.

I think this is an acceptable way to finish the melted chocolate.

The Lemon Grass menu can be found at www.lemongrassthai.com.au/Images/LemonGrassMenuWeb01.pdf

The Max Brenner menu can be found at http://www.maxbrenner.com.au/menu/menu.pdf

Max Brenner Chocolate Bar on Urbanspoon

Related articles