Chez Dre (Melbourne, Australia)

AWCL visited Chez Dre on 21 January 2012.

Here's one the cafes our friend took us to when we were in Melbourne last year. We had dessert at Chez Dre after we had lunch at Dahon Tea Lounge. 

Chez Dre is not only a dessert place as they also serve hot meals. Their cafe seemed like the perfect place to have brunch. 

Our group ordered cakes. Pretty and delicious cakes that melt in our mouths and more than satisfied our love for dessert. Below are photo of what we devoured that afternoon. 

They also offer indulgent macarons. So, so decadent.

Chez Dre

Rear of 285-287 Coventry Street

South Melbourne 3205

Phone: 03 9690 2688

Email: info@chezdre.com.au

Dahon Gourmet Tea Lounge (Melbourne, Australia)

AWCL visited Dahon Tea Lounge on 21 January 2012.

The Husband and I always have this conversation where we'd wish there'd be a nice, classy Filipino restaurant in Sydney that serves delicious Filipino dishes. We've been wishing for years and it hasn't happened yet. That's why last year, we felt envious of Melbournians because they have Dahon Gourmet Tea Lounge. 

Dahon Gourmet Tea Lounge (DGTL) is the brainchild of Filipino brother-sister tandem Cherrie and Ed who grew up in Melbourne. They owned and managed a franchise of an Australian restaurant before but they decided to make their dream come true which is to build a Filipino restaurant.

I met Cherrie online via our food blogs and then later on we became tweetmates. When we visited Melbourne last year, we made sure to have a meal at DGTL. The Husband and I brought our Melbournian friends to share in the discovery of this cozy and zen-like restaurant.

From the interiors of restaurant to the way they serve food, Dahon Gourmet Tea Lounge took a very refreshing approach to Filipino dining. The food satisfied our love for Filipino food as were all delicious plus we get that homely feel while savouring the dishes we ordered.

Pancit Palabok

Pancit Bihon

Pork Barbeque with Rice

Lumpiang Prito

It was like being home again thru great friends and delicious food.

Here's one of the owners, Cherrie. Thanks for saying hello to us and please bring DGTL to Sydney too? :) 

If you're in Melbourne and want great tasting Filipino food, visit Dahon GourmetTea Lounge at Shop 5, 111 Cecil Street, South Melbourne, Victoria. Check out their facebook page for more details.

Mamasita (Melbourne, Australia)

Note: AWCL visited Mamasita on 20 January 2012.

From the best Spanish restaurant for lunch, our next meal was at Mamasita, considered one of the best Mexican places in Melbourne.

Thanks to a good friend's tip, we mentioned this to our Melbournian friend as a place for dinner and meet-up  and luckily, she also wanted to Mexican food with us.

We arrived at Mamasita early as we've been warned that the queue gets really long during peak hours. And true enough, we arrived around 5:30pm and there was a line. The place was packed!

We got ourselves a good table nonetheless, thanks to the accommodating wait staff.

The place is dark after sundown that it was difficult to take food photos. Thank God for a camera that had high ISO settings plus the use of Curves in Photoshop, I share with you a number of decent photos.

I'm unable to specifically tell you how each dish tasted like but I assure you that each dish served to us that night tasted perfectly. The Husband and I left Mamasita with a full tummy and a wish that they'd open a branch in Sydney.

A rundown of what we had that night:

Tecate Cerveza which I had a few sips just to know what it tasted like. 

Totopos (Tortilla Chips) with a siding of guacamole and salsa.

Tacos de Pollo filled with chargrilled chicken, avocado, chipotle mayo and queso fresco.

Quesadillas de Cordero stuffed with braised lamb, queso criollo, mint and jalapeno herb sauce.

Tostaditas de Carnitas. This is our favourite! Slow braised pork shoulder, encurtidos, pickled jalapeno and chicarron.

We made room for dessert that night.

Helado de Maiz. Sweet corn ice cream with caramel popcorn. This is another favourite of ours. A must eat when at Mamasita.

Pastel de Chocolate. Flourless chocolate cake with tequila white chocolate sauce.

Mamasita
Level 1, #11 Collins Street
Melbourne, Victoria
Phone: (03) 9650 3821

Movida Aqui (Melbourne, Australia)

It's Australian Open season and a part of me wishes that I'm watching the games in Melbourne right now. We are taking a break from travelling to Melbourne this year as I want a quiet birthday month. Last year was truly a blast--a month-long celebration with family and friends plus having the extraordinary holiday in Melbourne during Australian Open. This year, the Husband and I are celebrating our wedding anniversary and my birthday here in our city with little flair but still (expecting) lots of food and fun.

Since I've got Melbourne on my mind, I'll start sharing our gastronomic adventures during last year's Melbourne holiday from today til next week.

If there's one thing I'm grateful for was that all the places we ate at last year were superb. It's always lovely to enjoy good food on special occasions, isn't it? All the more when you are travelling as it makes the event more memorable. And as always, Melbourne doesn't disappoint being the food, chocolate and coffee capital of Australia.

Our first Melbourne meal upon arrival was at Movida Aqui which was a dream come true. We've always loved Spanish cuisine (and still do) and we're heard/read very good feedbacks about Movida. We tried getting a table in 2010 but failed. If you're sure about eating here, call in and make a reservation, which we did for our 2012 holiday. 

Started off with a cool and refreshing jug of Sangria which we enjoyed with complimentary bread. 

We decided to have a light lunch so we only opted a few Tapas, one Raciones and one Arroces. The service was fast so should the need for more food arises, it was easy to order again.

Although our orders seemed not enough to make us both full, it actually did. We were surprised that even with just a few Tapas and Raciones our tummies felt full already. The Arroces sealed it all that we decided to forego dessert.

Bocadillo de Calamares. Calamari sandwich with Basque guindilla and mayonnaise.

Bomba. Catalan potato bomb filled with chorizo. This is a favourite of ours.

Butifarra. House-made Catalan pork and pepper sausage with chickpeas and morcilla.

Arroz Caldoso. Wet bomba rice with salt bush lamb ribs and peas.

All these dishes looked and tasted exquisitely. Beautiful balance of flavours and surprisingly filling. If you're in Melbourne, a meal at Movida Aqui is highly recommended.

The good news to Sydneysiders is that Movida has a opened a restaurant in Surry Hills (50 Holt St,Surry Hills, Phone +61 2 8964 7642)  so no need to fly to Melbourne to have a taste of great Spanish food.

Movida Aqui

Lvl 1, 500 Bourke St,
NAB building, (via Lt Bourke St)
Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone: +61 3 9663 3038

Note: "A Wife's Charmed Life" visited Movida Aqui (Melbourne) on 20 January 2012.