Encasa

i really should stop worrying. it's not good for your health if you worry to much, knowing from experience...but my head still hurts from thinking. i think when i go out, i put on a facade, but deep down i'm still worrying and can't enjoy things. but what's done is done. my path has already been planned, so i should enjoy life. i guess the only positive thing is that if i ever repeat a year, i get 3 more months of holidays/travelling time before you get stuck into the whole full-time adult life with no discounts etc. slept in way too much today. usually i would start filing stuff the day after exams finish, but i don't feel like i can atm...

went out to dinner with my cousin, uncle and mum. my cousin always thinks she knows best, since she has been everywhere, so when i suggested mamak, she immediately turned down my suggestion since she thinks it's "too plain". it's because she's only ever eats out/doesn't cook at home, so her palate has become over seasoned.

anways, went to a spanish restaurant in haymatket, and according to urbanspoon, it's reviews were decent. i have to say, the service was so good! we chatted for about 15mins before actually ordering anything, and they explained how you had to wait at least 45min for the paella. they also changed our dishes and gave an extra dish for shells when we had the paella. they also kept changing our serviettes/keep on giving us new ones. like they saw my tissue was dirty from peeling prawns and they changed it pretty quickly. i don't think i've ever had authentic spanish food in sydney before, and this place is pretty decent and not too expensive with nice service (: my only comment is that they had dim lighting, but luckily the iPhone still can take decentish photos in super dim ambient lighting without flash. also spanish food is good since it's not spicy, and it's actually not over seasoned, like compared to korean food/chinese places with heaps of msg etc.

Vieiras en Azafrán - Scallops in the shell with saffron, shallot and cream sauce   13

i thought it would be super creamy and rich, but luckily it wasn't and the scallops were nice and soft 

Champiñones al Ajillo - Sizzling garlic mushrooms   9.5

good balance of garlic. didn't have the garlicky after taste, but could still taste the garlic 

Catalana Spinach · Pine nuts · Onion · Garlic · White Wine · Cream -14.5

Chorizo a la Sidra - Spanish sausage poached in apple cider 11

the pasta was alright, not super creamy, but could have been more flavourful with the garlic and pine nuts. the chorizo wasn't spicy at all, and the cider was quite interesting in it.

Paella Valenciana
Saffron rice with chicken and seafood 25.00pp

this was a minimum order for 2 people, so the above was $50, but it was massive! rice was good, and the seafood was cooked nicely, but the prawns were cooked in their shells so it was hard to peel them without getting my hands dirty. my uncle/cousin eat out almost everyday, so the can unreel a prawn with a knife and fork. everything was quite "natural" and distinct/clear in terms of flavours.

sangria.

it's a spanish red wine, and apparently they cook/stew it with some fruit. it has a little bit of fizziness, and it's supposed to "hit you" after a while. we ended up having 2 jugs, so i had about 4/5 drinks, but i still felt fine. this was expensive though, around 30 a jug. 

definitely a good spanish place with super good service. jamies was around $20ish for lunch, but this was around $30ish pp since we had drinks. uncle shouted again (: