Cafe Oratnek

Situated amongst terraces in a slightly different part of Redfern is this cute little cafe. Walkable from Central so not too far away. Love the Asian style food with a modern and Western twist.

pastries

Matcha lamington-$5

I was expecting the lamington to be really sweet, but it actually wasn't. So light and fluffy, with a good coating of matcha and desiccated coconut. First time having a matcha lamington, and it was worth it.

small matcha latte-$4.20

The matcha here is the bitter type of matcha, close to Cre Asion's bitterness, but not quite as bitter. If you prefer sweet green tea lattes, this one's not for you. I love both bitter and sweeter versions of matcha lattes. This latte had a really authentic matcha taste, and milk frothed perfectly. 

Matcha french toast, banana chips, coconut, strawberries, matcha mousse-$15 

inside

This is not your average french toast, it wasn't fried in egg, but had a more bread-cake texture, kind of like denser pancakes but without being too heavy or buttery. This french toast did taste a lot healthier as it wasn't oily, and there was enough bread to accompany that super light and slightly sweet matcha mousse. You could even eat the mousse by itself. The banana chips gave the dish a good crunch as well. 

200g pork fillet katsu, cabbage, Japanese bbq sauce, mustard-$12 

It was hard deciding which savoury option we should order, but opted for this sandwich (saw other tables plates, and the other dishes looked and smelt really good as well). Even after eating the french toast, the katsu still retained it's crunch. I loved how they served the sandwich on it's side, so the sauce won't soak into the pork as quickly, making it less soggy. The crumb was really thin and didn't leave an oily feel, so also felt more 'healthy'. Good portion of meat in this, and the cabbage, sauce and mustard really helped the pork flavours to shine, and without the mustard being too dominant. 

running out of time ):

so i've had my phone for just over 2 weeks and it finally hit me why the lock button moved to the side every since they made the phone bigger.

it's so you can still lock your phone with one hand using your thumb, rather than trying to use your index finger to reach the top if the lock button was at the top like in older models. if you have baby hands like me, if your thumb is on the home button, you can't reach the top of the phone without adjusting your hand position, but you can still reach the side to lock your phone with your thumb.

not sure if i mentioned this before, but can't believe i've been missing out on not having a touch ID sensor, it actually is pretty useful. still miss 'swipe to unlock,'' but now if i'm on my Mum's 4s, it seems so tedious.

also, the iPhone 7 (and 6/6s) looks a lot bigger than iPhone 5/5s, but it actually isn't. only a little bit wider and taller, but they also decreased the plastic around the screen, so for a slightly bigger phone you get a lot larger screen display. it surprisingly fits into almost all of my bag/handbag pockets. still questioning myself why didn't i upgrade my phone earlier before it crashed...

don't like tempered glass screens cause it feels a lot thicker, and it covers the front camera, but using a normal screen protector was way too hard to put on and filled with too many bubbles...

There's 3 more weeks until final starts, and yes, I am freaking out. 

Actually, the past week was spent eating free Grill'd burgers, but I literally walk past it everyday, so wasn't really a waste of time. Just 15min to make, 15min to eat, and I normally eat my sandwiches in 15min, so only 'wasted' 15min waiting. But never waiting over 1.5hrs for Grill'd burger ever again, which I have done about 4years ago....200% satisfied any burger cravings, so won't get distracted during finals lol

Apart from the assignment that was due today, there's at least 2 other assignments/thinga to be submitted, and around 2 other hurdles/stuff to type before I can actually start studying for finals. There's so much stuff I don't know where to stuff, and not enough time. Working both weekends for the next 2/3wks as well, so no time to study then.

I actually haven't been stressing/freaking out as much relatively, compared to previous semesters, but worried about everything now, especially with some concepts, you can't just route learn...

 

I did manage to get some free tea last week (worth over $20, but this stuff they don't sell anymore since it was last season). Goodbye to being a top tier T2 society member, not that I got many benefits anyway...

 

#foreveralone

I didn't realise picking a place for preceptorship next year would be so confusing. When you factor in marks, I know for sure I'm not in the top 4-8 to go to NYC ): Can't believe I only get max 2 more chances to see patients then I'm done for the year! Time sure does go past quickly

Also side note, got my first ColourPop today, and wow, I really like it! I think all of you know I'm not a make-up type of girl, but 3 dabs of the matte lip finish and it goes a long way, so don't have to use as much. It's an alright price as well.

Bondi Pizza

My yearly trip to Bondi Pizza, because free pizza (or main meal up to $27) on your birthday. This year I didn't get as much free food compared to a few years ago, and you can check out my free birthday food post. Getting old means I can't eat as much, but some free food really is good value and better quality.

Since the Macquarie one opened recently, that means I can go here after uni, rather than Bondi Junction (although it does have one of the best views of Sydney with a balcony as well). There's plenty of seating, and even at 2.30pm, quite a few people were there having a late lunch.

Pumpkin and Sage Ravioli: Roasted pumpkin and fresh sage filled ravioli, tossed in butter & sage sauce with sundries tomatoes-$22.95

inside

Used my voucher for pasta rather than a full sized 12" pizza since I've had too much pizza recently...Pasta not overcooked and not too thick and decent size. The colour of the pumpkin was a bit yellow rather than a vibrant orange. Loved all the pine nuts sprinkled on top, although the sauce reduced that nutty flavour. The butter and sage sauce was fragrant and not overly salted, but yes, it's not healthy since it's butter. Sundries tomatoes gave a tad bit of sweetness and acidity to help cut through the butteriness.

Lunch special (8" pizza + drink): Grilled Atlantic salmon, parsley, Spanish onion, roma tomatoes, crispy capers, rocket & our creamy Caesar sauce-$10.95

The lunch deal is pretty decent for price, since a normal 8" pizza is around $14 plus a drink. The base was a bit hard to cut through this time and would've liked more salmon. I guess since it's small there's less toppings, but the salmon was relatively fresh and cooked well. Good amount of toppings as well. There wasn't much cheese for the base, so a bit more sauce would've helped to boost the creaminess.

Out West

I'm actually never around here, but when I am, I make sure to grab a pork roll.

Pork roll-$3

The last time I was here, the one closer to the train station waster $4, this place is on the other side of the main street, so I guess it's cheaper. I hardly ever have pork rolls, so can't really judge it. I'd say it's average. Bread could be a bit more toasted but luckily it wasn't tough. Felt like my filling was lacking, and not enough of that processed meat. They also probably could tell I wasn't a local....We also bought a box of fresh rice noodles to take home. Wow, super soft and definitely could taste the freshness compared to those rice noodles you find prepackaged in Asian groceries. It came with a container of sweet chilli, fish sauce, other oil as a sauce (though taking home actual pho would be too messy...)

Lecture was cancelled today, so meeting up for group work in the area, and we decided to go for a coffee break here.

Regular capp-$3.70

Damn, this is one pricey coffee and it's out far west and not Surry Hills. It was also smaller than normal, even though I'm not a regular coffee drinker, the paper cup definitely felt smaller than other typical regular $3.50 capps. Unfortunately, there wasn't much coffee flavour or aroma in it, a tad bit on the watery side, drinking temperature was quite hot (almost but not quite burning your tongue), and not much foam or chocolate sprinkle on top. Not worth the price.

Also took my phone to one of the repair guys who opened it up, and apparently the logistical board inside (or whatever it's called) is completely dead. Parents have a feeling they would have taken parts out of it from the inside so they can use as spare parts....and when my mum takes it to HK, there would be even less of a chance to fix it. Goodbye to all my photos....luckily some food posts photos I had already uploaded onto Blogger, so won't lose those ones...btw, you can't download Blogger from the Apple app store anymore =/

0.5L tub-$12.80
Nonno Carlo-strawberry sorbet with vanilla cream and marsala soaked
Coconut and pandan
Blood orange

Messina has a new app, and if you were one of the first to download it, you got a $10 voucher! Decided to sue this today before exams hit and it expires...We really loved this strawberry special, the cream in it made this sorbet more towards a gelato side. The alcohol was subtle, strawberry was not overly sweet, and chewy biscuit/cake thing gave it some texture. The coconut and pandan was on point as normal, however the blood orange was sweeter than when I've had it previously...Maybe people complained it was too sour...

Free Grill'd burgers

They have this initiative where you sign up to help raise awareness against child abuse, and get free burgers for a bit over a week. I will do a Grill'd post, most likely after exams.

Eating so much this week, so screwed for exams and assignments...

Inferno Grill and Cafe

I think it's good to make an effort to go to some places to eat during uni since the working life won't allow such freedom to go and explore. Decided to finally come here to try the burgers. I used an Ompty deal which was $15 and included a particular burger, chips and drinks (chose a juice, but there's beers/wine available as well). Yep, always looking to have good food at cheaper prices.

(btw, none of my food posts are endorsed. I'm too poor and unfit to be a full time food blogger who gets freebies from people...)

They weren't too busy around lunch time. Service was friendly and attentive.

The Clucking Pig: crispy chicken, bacon, coleslaw, chilli, aioli (normally $12)+ side of chips

I heard this was one of the best chicken burgers in Sydney. I normally don't get chicken but opt for beef when I have burgers, so it was nice to try some chicken. It was indeed crispy, and moist inside, with heaps of steam coming out when you cut into it (just wanted to dissect it). It looks pretty tall, but you can still hold a half of it in your hand to eat, so structure was decent. The chicken pieces were thin, but they gave you 2. Would have liked more coleslaw to help balance out the saltiness from the chicken. I asked for a bit less chilli sauce which was a good idea, since I could still get the chilli kick from it without reaching to grab something to drink. The bread top was a bit thinner, but it was average, not brioche and milky. Aioli wasn't too creamy or dense. Overall burger was nice but not mind blowing.

Loved this style of thick cut chips, but could have been more potatoey in some parts. Good crunch and not overly seasoned. They also gave you more aioli on the side to dip. 

quite of lot of other meats, sides and salads available, all looked really good

kitchen

was too full to try their home made ice cream...

Hectic Mid Sem Break

The mid sem break was even more hectic compared to uni, so crazy, and didn't even really catch up with people.

Monday: swimming, home, phone died
Tuesday: Apple Store, lucnh with some of the G8s, group work at uni, then event hosted by Speccies. Every time they host events, they also do it well. Canapes and drinks at Ivy, they even had 3 different desserts.
Wednesday: Work
Thursday: Dinner + Aladdin
Friday: Eye Ball
Saturday: Wedding
Sunday: Work
Monday: Work, surprisingly busy. First time having an optom on a public holiday.
Tuesday: back to uni, the stress had multiplied at this stage. Nothing has been done

But at least I enjoyed myself. Just too bad nothing has been crossed off my to do list...