Melbourne Food: Round One
So, Melbourne is full of food. Not sure if you caught onto that yet from my previous posts. I’ve now decided to write about all the food I’ve eaten so far in more detail. However, I have eaten so much and consumed so much coffee that it will be in installments. Probably three or four or five of them. It will be best not to read this is if you are hungry!
Foxtrot Charlie: This was my first dining experience in Australia! Gabe and I found it in Brunswick and it was a great introduction to the joy of food in Melbourne. I had a double espresso black to drink and my meal was the Baked Eggs in Tomato Sugo with Soft Gnudi. Sounds complicated, right? I did have to Google some of the ingredients. It was two tomatoes in a thick Italian tomato sauce with three balls of cheese that were slightly similar to gnocchi and then two slices of fresh crusty toast. It was delicious even though I wasn’t sure how to eat it when it first came to the table.
Rice Queen: I’ve been having incredible cravings for Asian food recently so dinner on my first night was at Rice Queen in Fitzroy. It’s billed as an Asian Diner and Bar and it was fabulous. I had a pint of an Australian IPA (I don’t recall it though because the jet lag was becoming very real) and lots of water. To eat, I devoured the Rice Queen Fried Rice with “prawn, char sui pork, spring onion and roasted chili sauce.” Within ten minutes of ordering, my food was at the table and it was delicious. It came in a bowl and was filled to the top with fresh ingredients. There were three shrimp, lots of pork and the perfect amount of onion.
Laurent Bakery: Laurent Bakery is a chain and Torii and I had breakfast here one morning at the William Street location. I had a large flat white, which was served in a bowl. A real bowl that I could've eaten soup out of. I enjoyed a salted caramel donut as well and it was delicious. My mouth is watering a bit right now. It had the salted caramel in the center and the entire donut was rolled in cinnamon sugar. The dough was light and I was in heaven.
Canton Fast Food at Queen Victoria Market: More Asian food! This time I had sweet and sour pork, honey chicken and noodles that weren’t called chow mein but were quite similar. As with my food from Rice Queen, this again was not too salty. Definitely less salt used in food here than in America and I reckon it is because food here is fresher and doesn’t need all the salt for flavor.
Asian Beer Cafe: Alaina took us here for happy hour and while I enjoyed the pitcher of cidre I shared with Maya, I was much more impressed with my $5 pizza! It was so good. It was called The Adventures of Tin Tin and had olive oil, rosemary and garlic brushed onto the crust with Napoli base sauce, cheese, and bbq chicken. So worth my $5. I also had a side of their fries with “secret seasoning” and they were also delicious. I think the seasoning had paprika in it.
Shuki and Louisa: Oh wow. If you want an amazing falafel wrap, go to the University of Melbourne market on Wednesdays. The stand is called Very Good Falafel and it is mouth watering delicious. I had no qualms standing in the rain as I watched my falafel be fried in front of my eyes and stuffed into a warm fresh pita. There was so much crammed into the pita that I was bulging by time I finished but I wouldn’t let a single lick of hummus go to waste. It was phenomenal! Also, bonus points because there was a hot guy stuffing the wraps.
Arcadia: Alaina, Torii and I stopped here for a break in Fitzroy after a lot of exploring. I wasn’t hungry so I solely opted for coffee, single origin cold drip. As I’ve said before, finding iced coffee is hard in Melbourne so I just on the chance to drink it anywhere I go! The cafe was cute and the food looked decent.
That’s Amore Cheese at The Night Market: This meal made all of my Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat dreams come true. I ate pasta that was tossed in cheese inside of a giant wheel of cheese! As I wrote previously, I had the Pasta 4 Formaggi, which is: “spaghetti with 4 cheeses (ricotta, bocconcini, scamorza, parmesan) tossed in a 40kg Parmiggiano cheese wheel.” I added crushed red pepper on top and it was so delicious. Thankfully, the portion was not too big because it was a very heavy meal with all of that delicious cheese!
Much More to Come
As of right now, I have another 12 cafes or market stalls in my draft to write about. This post only covers my first three days in Melbourne. I wish I were embarrassed but I cannot be because food here is life. Plus, my friends are foodies so why not enjoy company and great food? The next posts will have lots of pictures and descriptions of places I haven't yet written about so keep your eyes peeled.
What Do You Want to Know?
Did any questions pop into your mind as you read? If so, I am here to provide answers as best as I can!
All products and businesses mentioned are linked in the text because if I’ve a good experience, I’d like you to have it as well. And no, I am not getting paid for any of this.
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