Passion Tree

I actually came to Chatswood to use this cake voucher and was hoping that some cafes were open late afternoon. Unfortunately almost all cafes closed their kitchens after 2pm on a Saturday, so we walked around a bit, then stumbled across this-dessert saved the day! This was on my list to eat, but I did forget about it. Also, the Hello Kitty Diner closed down, didn't even get to try it but that was ok, since I wasn't really into what they offered in their menu.

Taro Bingo-$16.90

I think I took too many photos so by the time I poured th hot taro sauce, the white choc flower didn't melt immediately, but it did melt eventually. I found the taro sauce way too sickly sweet, and the red beans also made it too sweet, then you still have the white choc. Although I have a sweet tooth, I need a balance in flavours. The taro ice cream had a nice sweet taro flavour, and good crunch from the cornflakes and almonds. The ice is just normal plain shaved ice (not the milk style ones which are more Taiwanese I think), so I guess that's why you need some sweetness to flavour it. I loved the mochi as a fun chewy element and they weren't too sweet.

Matcha mochi pancake-$13.95

   

Super fun to look at an upside down ice cream, with crunchy chocolate balls inside. The matcha ice cream had a good hit go matcha, and the space wasn't to sweet. There were some red beans in between, but didn't feel like it needed it. Wished the pancakes were bigger to help get more of that sauce.

        

Top Impression Bakery

Making the most of going to food places when dropping relatives off at the airport. The prices of the croissants have gone up since I heard about this bakery with injected croissants.

From memory-Matcha croissant $4.50, matcha latte-$4.50

 

inside

It's not a buttery or flaky sort of croissant. The pastry is less flavourful which gives way for the green tea cream, The inside had the right amount of sweetness and matcha in it. I wouldn't say it's mind blowing. Found it pretty average since the pastry top was sort of hard compared to normal croissants and didn't have the nice lamination. Matcha latte was definitely the bitter kind, which helped to balance the cream inside the croissant.

Got some other bread for ~$2-3

I found their Asian breads were quite good quality compared to your typical Asian bakery, more value for money. It was a bit heavier/dense yet not so lightweight that you feel like you pay $3 for air at cheaper Asian bread stores.

 

Gojima

I know I'm late to the sushi burger party, but better late than never. The first time I came here they were opened for a week, then closed for a day before their grand opening. Just a coincidence I came the only day they were closed...First steps walking in was how similar the menu design is to Shack Shake (in New York but now in a few cities like London and Dubai). It even has frozen custard, which is pretty iconic to Shake Shack (apart from the burger itself).

Gojima Cheeseburger: angus beef, cheese, tomato, pickles, onions, lettuce and special sauce-$12.90
Green tea (brewed genmaicha and matcha) thickshake-$7.90

    


inside

This lived up to the hype! I was quite surprised at how delicious this rice burger is. The rice crispy on the outside and a bit on the inside, which held up perfectly with the seaweed. The beef was not too fatty and still a bit pink on the inside. Good balance of veggies as well. The sauce was definitely the highlight. Loved that sort of Jap sauce with bits of seaweed and not a salty sort of flavour, but had  Jap twist to it. No idea what base the sauce is made out of, but it was a creamy orange colour. The paper around it was enough to not get your hands dirty at all. I loved how I could eat my burger with one hand and using my other hand for my phone lel. Hands weren't dirty at all, but they do give you a wet wipe as well.

They use their frozen custard in their thick shakes. You can taste the roasted green tea with the matcha. It was a tad bitter and not too sweet, a good balance for a thick shake as most of the time you expect something overly sweet. I thought Shack Shack frozen custard was pretty mindblowing-this denser than ice cream texture but still smooth and creamy, really have to try it since it's hard to describe. I'll probably try their frozen custard next time and a burger with sashimi.

this looks exactly like Shake Shack menu style 

 

Haven Take 10+: Egg Waffle Series

I've been here too many times to keep track, but I always love their food and super friendly service. I know I'm 6 months late to the egg waffle party, but better late than never right?

Loving the latte art on this capp

Hokkaido red bean & matcha: hokkaido red beans, coconut cream, matcha sauce, matcha ice cream, classic plain waffle

Sexy Me: black sesame cream mochi, black sesame sauce, black sesame crisp, vanilla bean ice cream, lemon zest, mint, classic plain waffle-$16.50

inside

The egg waffles are not the typical ones you find in HK. These are a lot more dense and thick, without the crispy outer and thin shell, and light and chewy insides. I guess since with all these toppings, sauces and plating things on top of it, you would need a thicker batter to hold it and soak up all the sauce. Both dishes were surprisingly filling. Wasn't adventurous enough to try the kim cheese waffle (not a big fan of spicy stuff/kim chi).

We preferred the green tea on as it was less sweet. Loved the little tea pot with matcha sauce you could drizzle at your own leisure and without drowning the waffle in it. Ice cream had a good hit of green tea and red beans weren't overly sweet.

The black sesame mochi was on the sweet side, and with the sesame pralinethe whole dish was sweeter than the green tea. Still a lot of black sesame with different textures throughout made this a fun dish. The sauce is more of a paste, rather than the matcha sauce which is pourable over the waffles. The lemon zest on top of the vanilla ice cream really helped to give this dish a refreshing element, would have actually preferred more to help balance the sweetness.

Cre Asion

Finally a place in Sydney where I can get a good, strong hit of matcha. Yes, I'm late to the party, spontaneous decision to go here after a lecturer didn't show up so we ended up having a 7 hour break.

cute little corner cafe

macarons and cakes!

There is really minimal seating here, more stools and also stool height tables, so not ideal to study at, but good to just relax away from the busy-ness out on the main streets. Most people but stuff to takeaway. It actually is quite tiny, but I think they do some/most of their baked goods there. Could see them whipping up egg whites for the meringues for the chiffon cake (which I will be coming back for), and saw a whole tray of granola stuff which smelt amazing. Their toasted sandwiches smelt really good as well, but didn't have any at this visit.

Matcha latte-$5

It was quite a big bowl, so value for money. You could really taste the matcha in it. It's quite nice initially and I prefer bitter matcha over the sweeter matcha lattes, but it got a bit too bitter at the end. The milk was frothed perfectly here. I guess i have had a more bitter matcha latte overseas, but it was a smaller portion. Still a good price for the quality and quantity.

Genmai matcha latte-$5

Could definitely taste the roasted rice flavour in this. So fragrant.

Green tea tart-$4

Had a bit of this, and the green tea was so smooth. It wasn't too bitter or sweet, just the tart base was a bit harder to cut through, especially since the tables are so low.

Fondant cake-$8.50 ($6.50 takeaway)

inside

Apparently the size is smaller compared to when my friend was here last. It didn't completely melt and pool out when I cut into it, and wasn't super warm either, but it was still moist. It looked really chocolatey, luckily it wasn't. Matcha flavour prominent both inside and out. This cake is minimally sweet. The matcha sauce on top was actually even more bitter than the matcha latte, but helps to keep the cake moist with every bite. The berries on the side with a coulis actually helped bring sweetness to the dish, The fondant wasn't mind blowing, but still very good and worth a try.

First day of summer school was very wet. Feels a bit weird wearing a jacket in summer, love the cooler weather but hate the cold. Started to watch Downton Abbey and ended up finishing 3 seasons in less than a week in between work and uni...So many things on my to do list, but I should actually study for this since it's a 2.5 week course with 3 exams in that time limit.

Had my first Aqua S this year, although I shouldn't have it as often now. New year means increased prices and smaller serving size.

Small: Match latte and tofu-$4

Unconventional picture of this at Macquarie, so no nice cloudy walls. It used to be $3.80. I guess they used that money to purchase smaller cups with print. The matcha was so good. Lovely hit of green tea and good amount of bitterness. The tofu tasted like a soy bean drink and was way too sweet for my liking, even though I like sweets. Luckily I had the matcha on top or else the tofu would have been too overpowering...

Hasn't really been a great week to start the year, but you can bet it'll pass by very quickly.

One Tea Lounge and Grill

Have been wanting to try out this place for well a long time now, and finally tried the new menu for freeee, thanks to YO Xmas party (and sponsored by CooperVision). How ironic, haven't had time to attend external event except for the last one of the year...Many photos to come, didn't bring my dslr, so lighting from phone not as great...

Matcha Fries with Sambal Miso Sauce

Nice way to start the night with some shareable snacks. You can see the matcha, but couldn't really taste it. The not spicy sambal style sauce really gave the fries flavour, even dipped my fork in it to have more of the sauce.

open-ish kitchen

I love when chefs open up their kitchen, shows their confidence in their cooking, with nothing to hide, and free entertainment. Although you can't see it whilst sitting, it's still interesting to see when you're standing/walking around

menu

The food was to be shared in pairs, but our table had 3 people, since I think there was an odd number of people who attended. For most meals, we had 2 sets to share between us.

seafood ceviche and octopus salad

love this liquid nitrogen for theatre

The octopus in the scallop shell (which made it confusing since the scallop was the middle one) was definitely the favourite.  The tropical fruit and yuzu dressing complemented the scallop and John Dory nicely, without being too overpowering. Love fresh (slightly raw) seafood.

Matcha Scampi Tiger Prawn Martini

Interesting little diy, and letting us play with our food. The seafood is so fresh, with juicy prawns. The soy sauce didn't look like it had wasabi since it was so clear, and you could only taste the wasabi when you dipped a spoon into it. Apart from that, it was a perfect balance of soy sauce and wasabi for a sushi roll. Couldn't really taste the matcha (although it was visible) on the scampi, but it was so juicy and fresh I don't think it mattered if it did have the matcha or not.

action shot

Miso Pipi Udon Pot

Whole table agreed this was probably the best seafood soup base ever-scampi flavoured so prominent, right balance of the sweetness and seasoning using fresh ingredients. You could taste the effort and love put into it. Not oily either, so we ended up drinking the rest of the soup. It was amazing. There was also over 8 pipis in each pot cooked perfectly. Udon was a bit tricky to get out of the pot without splashing it a bit...We were super satisfied with this (especially waiting over an hour from the previous course)

Ramen Beef Slider

The infamous ramen burger which I tried at the 2013 Night Noodle Markets. The wagyu beef was so juicy, and cooked perfectly as it was still slightly pink in ht emiddle. The ramen itself is a bit burnt, but you expect it to be since it's been fried in heaps of oil. It is super oily, almost impossible to cut in half (as we had an extra one to share between 3 people), and not #cleaneating. Fingers are covered in oil, but it's worth it for the crunchy ramen 'bread'. Wish there were more veggies to balance out all that oil

The chef: David Yip ft 'Flaming Christmas Tree' Demo

fireee

This involved stacking a few glasses and wine bottle on top of two cocktails: sour apple flavoured and strawberry. One day I'll come back for cocktails and drinks. Really wanted to get a drink, but I knew I would be get super full from the food. David pours alcohol with lights up once the fire contacts it, and the drink at the bottom gets some of the alcohol as well.

Flaming Wagyu Volcano

Fire lit by the chef (:

Love flaming fire on food! The onion in the middle gives height to the flame, where the poured some sauce on it then lit it with a lighter. Loved the sauce teriyaki sauce with a hint of wasabi. Wagyu beef so soft, and definitely top notch stuff. 

Lava Stone Grill 9+ Wagyu Beef 120gm

This one was more diy, and it's quite hard to tell which pieces are rare/medium, some smaller pieces were properly well done or even over cooked, as it was a small grill and hard to fit everything on/control the cooking. It was still fun though, and it came with three dipping sauces. We all liked the yakiniku (grilled meat) sauce the best, super flavoursome without actually being salty/artificially seasoned. The matcha salt only had a hint of match, and the hollandaise also had a hint of green tea, so would have liked more tea flavour in it, but was still delicious with the good quality meat.

leaning tower of glasses

People from the public also came in for cocktail drinks, with this special demo costing around $60ish (I think). The stack above ended up falling, breaking at least 3 glasses. Expensive cocktails, but it comes with a show and broken glass. One day when I have the money/time, I'll come back for drinks, hopefully. So interesting mixing tea, alcohol, and liquid nitrogen together...

Yuzu Duck with Matcha Peach

Duckkk, one of ym favourite proteins. So delicious with a unique pairing of yuzu flavour and still pink in the middle. Again, would have preferred more matcha on the peach. We only got one dish to share between 3 people, would have liked another one since it's duck.

Infamous Ice Cream Baoger

Finally tried one of these! The normal flavours of green tea, black sesame, and lychee(?), but the new ones on the menu are Ferrero Rocher which chocolate ice cream and miso caramel. Personally I would prefer green tea since I'm not a big chocolate fan, but this was so damn good. White chocolate no too sweet, topped with a smasher chocolate, and drizzled with the miso caramel. The sauce is similar to salted caramel, but the saltiness isn't that noticeable unless you just taste it by itself (or maybe my slider just didn't have enough sauce). The deep fried baos was just deep fried oily goodness. Messy but fun to eat. 

We left early before the last dish (not on the menu)-Watermelon Christmas Tree. We saw David carefully walk to another table open to public, with carefully stacked watermelons forming a xmas tree, which was slightly slanted, but I'm sure it made it to the table fine. Overall, definitely top quality food and service. Changed the plates and cutlery almost after every dish. Was so full after that night. Hope to be back to try more things on the menu and definitely the drinks (: