Hawker Hall, Windsor

Big fans of Chin Chin, we of course had to try out Chef Benjamin Cooper’s latest creation, Hawker Hall. The night before, we had arrived at 6:00 p.m. only to be told that we would have to wait for 90 minutes! So this time, we arrived an hour earlier and (barely) managed to get a table.

The atmosphere is electric. It’s a huge space adorned with lights and neon signs. The DJs keep the volume loud and your eardrums ringing. True to its name, Hawker Hall feels like a pimped-up version of the hawker centres in Singapore.

Our waitress (don’t know her name, she's in the blue shirt at the bottom of the first photo above) was really friendly and attentive in a natural way. However, service in general was slow at times. I guess this is a consequence of the place always being so insanely busy.

I had a Sugar Cane Juice with Mint & … ($7.50). Interesting, but a bit too sour to be refreshing.

Sugar Cane Juice

To start off, we had the Cucumber, Mint & Shallot Salad with Cumin & Coconut Yoghurt Dressing ($9.00). In short, this was a huge disappointment. When I read ‘Cucumber, Mint & Shallot Salad’, I envisioned slices or julienned strips of cucumber and shallot mixed with mint and yoghurt to make a crunchy and refreshing salad. What we got, however, were a few haphazardly-cut chunks of cucumber dumped on a plate. Strangely enough, this was one of the ‘recommended dishes’. I strongly advise that you don’t order this.

Cucumber, Mint & Shallot Salad with Cumin and Coconut Yoghurt Dressing

But things thankfully took a turn for the better after that and stayed that way. The Malay Vegetable Spring Rolls with Green Chilli Soy (4pc, $12.00) were hot and super crunchy. I think they should offer non-vegetarian fillings like prawn and pork too as these have the potential to become one of their signature dishes.

Malay Vegetable Spring Rolls with Green Chilli Soy

Next was the Combination Satay Plate ($18.00) – 2 skewers each of Beef, Chicken and Pork with Peanut Sauce and 4 Squid skewers with Sambal Belachan. When this came out, the table next to us, who were still looking through the menu, gasped and said ‘We are definitely ordering that.’ And it certainly tasted as good as it looked. Every meat was tender and succulent; for me though, the stand-out was the squid. Highly recommend.

Combination Satay Plate - Beef, Chicken, Pork & Squid

Then came the Chicken Tikka with Coconut Yoghurt, Chilli & Lemon ($16.00). The chicken was well-cooked and moist. The flavours were nice but way too subtle. Needed a lot more spice.

Chicken Tikka with Coconut Yoghurt, Chilli & Lemon

The highlight of the night was without a doubt the Malay Coconut Beef Rendang ($15.50). The beef melted in your mouth and the curry was rich and fragrant. Every mouthful brought a smile to my face. How is this not one of their ‘recommended dishes’? You simply must try it for yourself!

Malay Coconut Beef Rendang

As you can see the Beef Rendang came with rice but since we were sharing we ordered an extra bowl of Jasmine Rice ($3.50).

Jasmine Rice

Finally, the Roti Canai with Curry Sauce & Eggplant Sambal ($8.50). At first, when we asked the waitress whether they made their own roti and she told us that it was made off-site then cooked in their kitchen, I was a little doubtful. But my doubts disappeared as soon as my teeth sank into the crisp and buttery roti. Some people say it’s not flaky enough, but I actually like my roti to be more substantial like this one. Tip: order it without the sauces, as it’s $3.00 cheaper, and dip it in the curry instead.

Roti Canai with Curry Sauce & Eggplant Sambal

On the way to the bathroom, J saw Benjamin Cooper himself mopping up the floor. Not something you’d expect to see at all. Respect!

Verdict: Don’t be put off by everyone’s comparisons to Chin Chin, Hawker Hall is the real deal - it’s just a matter of choosing the right things to order.

Food: 8

Service: 9

Atmosphere: 10

Value: 8

Would I come back? Yes.

Entrecôte, South Yarra

Unfortunately we had already had lunch, so we instead tested the coffee and dessert offerings on a pleasant summer’s day at the most popular establishment on Domain Road, Entrecôte.

The vibe was definitely vibrant and social, evident in the friendly and smiling waitstaff.

To satisfy our sweet tooths we went for the Bombe Alaska ($17.90) – milk chocolate parfait, mango, brûlée meringue and gold leaf. Top marks for presentation. The parfait was cold, smooth and creamy and the meringue was like lightly-toasted marshmallow. Together with the mango, the flavours and textures worked exceptionally well. Despite the somewhat questionable price tag, without a doubt an amazing dessert.

Bombe Alaska

For drinks, I ordered an Iced Coffee ($5.00). Strong coffee flavour. Could have used more milk, but not bad.

Iced Coffee

M had a Latte ($4.00). Distinct coffee taste and a good amount of foam, quite good.

Latte

Verdict: If you’re up for a bit of a splurge when it comes to your caffeine and sugar fix, this is a very sound option.

Food: 9

Service: 9

Atmosphere: 9

Value: 6

Would I come back? Most likely, yes.

BEBU, CBD

Looking for some tasty Korean tapas as well as street food, we checked out BEBU for dinner. We had previously gone past it on the way to Wonderbao and were intrigued by classy interior and the menu.

The staff were friendly and spoke good Korean as you’d expect and I assume that their English is good also.

We ordered two dishes from the ‘Signature Tapas’ menu, the first of which being the Salmon Tartare with Salad, Gochujang Vinaigrette & Seaweed Cracker ($13.90). The salmon was fresh and melted in your mouth and was a perfect contrast to the super crunchy seaweed cracker. The sweet and spicy gochujang (fermented chilli paste) gave it some well-needed kick.

Salmon Tartare with Salad, Gochujang Vinaigrette & Seaweed Cracker

The second was the Soy Garlic Korean Fried Chicken ($13.90). This was easily the stand-out dish. The meat was tender, the skin was crispy and the sauce was sweet and tangy. Just thinking about it makes me salivate… It was really well-executed and you simply must try it if you come here.

Soy Garlic Korean Fried Chicken

While you can add more tapas to make a set menu (3 ‘smaller’ plus 1 ‘larger’ for $59, a pretty good deal), we wanted to try the more traditional street food. So we ordered the Tteokbokki ($8.50), which is rice cakes and fishcakes cooked in gochujang sauce. The ricecake had a nice chewy texture and sauce was thick, but not as spicy as I would have liked (this is probably because I have had Korean food for most of my life :P). I think most people would find it to be a good level of spice though.

Tteokbokki

We also ordered the Gimmari (4pc, $5.80), which are deep-fried seaweed rolls filled with japchae (sweet potato noodles with various vegetables). In Korea, gimmari are usually sold alongside tteokbokki, intended to be dipped in the tteokbokki sauce. On their own, they were quite crunchy but not really outstanding. Once dipped, however, they were amazing.

Gimmari

All the dishes seemed to be rather sweet - not at all sickening, but definitely noticeable. Nevertheless, we had to try the Hotteok, which is another popular street food in Korea, especially in winter. It’s basically a sweet doughnut made with rice flour filled with molten sugar and nuts. BEBU’s version was very satisfying: it was doughy and had a strong cinnamon and peanut flavour. However, the filling could have been more runny and at $4.20 each, a bit overpriced.

Hotteok

Verdict: A trendy restaurant that adds a contemporary touch to Korean food and also serves up the classics, both to an equally high standard.

Food: 9.5

Service: 10

Atmosphere: 9.5

Value: 8.5

Would I come back? Yes!

A25, South Yarra

In the mood for good pizza, we headed to South Yarra’s hip A25 for dinner.

Most people choose to brave the heat and sit outside; we, however, prefer to enjoy our pizza in the comfort of mankind’s greatest invention - air-conditioning. The styling was cool but didn’t make me go ‘wow’.

Service was somewhat friendly and quick, with food arriving after around 10 minutes.

We ordered the Margherita ($14). The crust was to die for, thin in the centre and bouncy and moreish at the edge. Definitely up there with the ones I’ve had in New York. The flavours were very fresh and refined.

Margherita

Curious, we also had the Carbonara ($19). It wasn’t the cream-fest that’d you’d expect but actually surprisingly light. Very nice but overpriced.

Carbonara

But not to worry – all pizzas are $13 on Mondays (and the same goes for all pastas on Tuesdays).

Verdict: One of, if not the best pizza in Melbourne.

Food: 10

Service: 8.5

Atmosphere: 8.5

Value: 7

Would I come back? Yes.

PappaRich, CBD

Craving Ya Kun Kaya Toast after returning from Singapore, we went to PappaRich at their opening time of 10:30 a.m. to try their more breakfast-oriented items (note: their menu is all-day).

We instantly noticed the new interior design. The place feels a lot more sleek and high-end than the last time we came.

The ordering system here is a godsend. You look through the well-illustrated menu, write down your table number and the code and how many of each item you want on a sheet then push the button to call for someone who will take it away and put your order in the system. No more language barrier, nervous trainee or awkward conversation! They will come back to give you your receipt, so remember to take this to the counter to pay after your meal.

The drinks came out first. I ordered the Iced Kopi (#MF20, $4.20). It had a strong coffee flavour and was nice and creamy.

Iced Kopi

J had the Hot Teh Tarik (#MF15, $3.90). A pleasantly fragrant milk tea.

Hot Teh Tarik

Then came the food. We ordered the Hainan Toasted Bread with Butter & Kaya (#B02, $4.90). The bread was really thick and fluffy and came sliced in half, making it easy to share (not that you’d want to). The kaya flavour didn’t come through as strongly as I would have liked but it was still quite nice.

Hainan Toasted Bread with Butter & Kaya

We also had the Hainan Toasted Bread with Condensed Milk (#B04, $4.90). It was as good as it sounds. The same bread covered in rich, sweet and calorie-packed condensed milk. I personally recommend this over the butter & kaya.

Hainan Toasted Bread with Condensed Milk

Verdict: Although popular for their savoury dishes, PappaRich also offers very attractive breakfast options.

Food: 9.5

Service: 8

Atmosphere: 9.5

Value: 9

Would I come back? Yes. But after some (intense) exercise.

American Doughnut Kitchen, CBD

Wandering around the Queen Victoria Night Market on a Wednesday night, having indulged in Korean twist potatoes, gözleme and the like, we looked for something sweet. So of course, some invisible force led us to the Melbourne institution that is American Doughnut Kitchen.

There is only one item on the menu: their famous Hot Jam Doughnuts (5pc, $5.50). Once you order, the staff swiftly pop them in a paper bag and twirl it by the corners to seal it shut, making for an exciting display of theatrics.

As soon as you take a bite, you will understand why the business has survived for over 60 years. The doughnuts are nice and doughy, without being oily or too sweet. But be warned, the jam is super hot. They also reheat well (15 seconds in the microwave and they’re as good as new) so don’t be afraid to buy more for later ;)

Hot Jam Doughnuts

If you haven’t been to American Doughnut Kitchen yet, you don’t know what you’ve been missing out on.

Food: 10

Service: 9

Atmosphere: 9

Value: 9

Verdict: The best jam doughnuts you will ever have. Ever.

Would I come back? I’m probably on my way there as you’re reading this.