Ramen Lunch at Ippudo Sydney

Fri-date lunch was at Ippudo. It's been seven months since we've had our ramen fill at Ippudo so we decided to have lunch here after our Cherry Blossoms exploration in Auburn. It was already late, about 2pm, when we arrived so the lunch peak hour was over.  We each ordered a bowl of ramen and their famous pork buns. 

Ippudo Pork Bun ($4 each). Braised pork belly in Ippudo sauce with lettuce and wrapped in steamed bun. The steamed bun is soft and pork belly is flavourful. 

Shiromaru Motoaji Ramen. It's a classic Hakata-style ramen that comes in their original Ippudo tonkotsy broth served with thin noodles, pork loin, cabbage, black mushroom and shallots. This was the ramen that chose that day. It was so deliciously comforting. The porkloin is so soft. 

Miso Tonkotsu Ramen. This was their winter special ramen. It is made of a special blend of miso and Ippudo's signature broth, pork loin, egg, corn and veggies. It has a lovely flavour that brings warmth. The perfect ramen for Winter. The Husband's very happy that he got to try this before the season was over. 

It came with a siding of open Sushi and shredded Ginger. The staff told us that if we want to bring more flavour to Miso Tonkotsu Ramen, we can add more ginger to the broth. The Sushi was for dipping into the ramen. Cool, huh? 

A delicious brunch and a hearty lunch that filled us the whole day made our Fri-date perfect!

Ippudo Sydney
Level 5, Westfield Sydney
Pitt Street, Sydney NSW
Ph: 02 8078 7020

Brunch at Platform No. 8 Cafe (Parramatta, NSW)

Because I wanted to see the Cherry Blossoms Festival in Auburn last week, the Husband and I decided to take a day off and go on a Fri-date! 

On the way to Auburn, we had brunch at Platform No. 8, a cafe located conveniently near Parramatta train station where we got off to take the bus to Auburn. It is inside the Level 1 of Westfield Parramatta, a few steps from the entrance. 

The name Platform No. 8 refers to a train platform as it showed on the photo on their wall. I think it's a great concept as one gets to see what Parramatta Train Station looked like then. 

Coffee was the first order of the day. The Husband had his Latte while I had my Long Black. Their coffee was rich, creamy and strong. 

We shared a plate of Eggs Benedict with Ham, then just asked for additional Bacon and Hash Browns. 

The eggs were perfectly poached. We loved seeing the ooze coming out smoothly as we sliced them open. We loved how fresh the spinach was. A little thing to improve though was adding a little more hollandaise sauce perhaps. 

The meal we shared filled us up quickly and soon we finished our plate empty. The friendly staff bid us adieu as we left with full tummies and smiling faces.

Platform No. 8

Level 1, Westfield Parramatta

Ph: 02 98938818

LaMesa Philippine Cuisine (Sydney, Australia)

LaMesa was a known Filipino restaurant in Dee Why and now they have moved to Sydney. We've always wanted to visit the restaurant but it was just too far away. Now, it is located conveniently in the city where we can conveniently visit in case we're too lazy to cook but crave for Filipino food.

And so one fateful night in May, a few friends and I got together and tried LaMesa's offerings. We arrived and dinner was already in full swing. I recommend calling to reserve a table as it seemed that things get busy and full during peak hours. The place was cozy, dimly-lit and had nice looking furnitures. A few touches of Pinoy can be seen in the decors such as monochrome photographs of the Manila we once knew. 

We started off with Kwek-Kwek, deep-fried coated quail eggs. The taste of the coating was as bland as it looked (we're used to orange Kwek-Kwek).

The Okoy looked different as well as it seemed like the prawns were individually battered and fried. This was definitely more of an appetizer. I think we were used to the big Okoy which can be paired with rice. The coating was crunchy but did not leave any significant "Oomph" as we took a bite in.

The sinful and indulgent Sisig (diced meat from pig's face) was everything we hoped it too be. Sizzling and with egg on top, beautiful on its own or with rice. Best eaten with a bit of lemon and chili sauce. 

A cold night is often associated with Pork Sinigang at home. It was nearly winter then so we got ourselves a bowl of Pork Sinigang to warm our tummies. An enjoyable tamarind soup with pork, radish, okra and kangkong that tasted like the comfort food we enjoy at home.

Pinakbet was another dish we enjoyed. With just the right saltiness from the shrimp paste, the vegetables were tasty, fresh and flavourful. It also had a generous portion of meat. 

We resisted to order another pork dish but threw all health caution out the window and got the Lechon Kawali. Deep-friend pork belly with crispy crackling. The best partner to the Pinakbet. 

Over-all, we enjoyed our dinner at LaMesa inspite of a few misses with the appetizers. They have definitely nailed the true taste of Filipino food. Our only hope is that they add a little more to their serving as we found the pricing of their food quite on the more expensive side. 

Will we visit again? Why, yes! Once in a while we'll come back to try their other offerings and bring other friends to enjoy Filipino food with us.

LaMesa Philippine Cusine
Level 1, 19 Goulburn Street
Haymarket NSW 2000
Ph: 1300 880 835

Food Find: Mango Chocolate by Cebu Best

One of my great food finds in Manila this year was the Mango Chocolate by Cebu Best. I found this at Kultura in SM Megamall.

It's ingenious to put together two delicious things, dried mangoes dipped in Belgian chocolate, have them wrapped individually and packaged in a gorgeous box. It's a product worthy of praises both from local and international consumers. 

The dried mangoes were chewy while the generous Belgian chocolate coating was of good quality. I find that it is best eaten straight out of the wrapper (no refrigeration needed).

I bought a small box containing 12 pieces for P419.75 at Kultura (Megamall). I also found them available at NAIA 1 Airport (they were more expensive there though).

I highly recommend them if you love dried mangoes and Belgian chocolate. These are also a yummy gift to your family & friends who live overseas.

Want to try dried Mangoes covered in chocolate but can't find these in the market? 

Check out my blogmates DIY entries, Toni and Kaoko, as they recreate these yummy Mango Chocolate in the comforts of their home.