Night Noodle Markets 2017

Updated post-scroll down to round 2 for more food!

Yay, October is Good Food Month (and also noo because exams are looming). Let's be honest, I really come to the Night Noodle Markets for the desserts. I don't think I've ever had noodles before at the NNM. Recap of Night Noodle Market 2016 shows I ate pretty similar stuff haha. This year they totally got rid of the 'Sugar Rush' or 'Let's Do Desserts'. Last year they had way too many boring chocolate dishes, and I think they got rid of it this year because it's probably the only thing which is worth your money, $20ish for a dessert plus wine at a restaurant, compared to market food which is $15+ for a smaller portion of fried rice in a cardboard box. Once again, they are cash free again this year. There were heaps of people on the first night, then I realise it was still school holidays last week.

Round 1

Hyde Park Palms

They tried to make a more Cali feel with the theme of Hyde Park Palms. Pretty sure they put in new palm trees, since my bus stop is outside Hyde Park, and only noticed the palm trees just a few days before NNM started. I finally have a CitiBank card so could enter the 'VIP' section. This year you can pre book tables as well, but ceebs.

Always come to Messina because they create different desserts every time

Menu

Kamikaze Katsu Sandwich-$12

Not going to lie, was a bit disappointed half of it was melting cause it just doesn't look that great and I was most excited to try this one out. It still tasted really good though, loved this concept of combining dessert with Jap food. The gelato could have had more lime in it, but the soft red velvet cake wasn't too sweet, and there was still a slight crunch from the panko crumbs. Loved the yuzu sauce to give it some acidity and again not make it really sweet. Normally I don't like fried ice cream apart from the Thai ones, since the Chinese ones are all floury/doughy, and really the flour is soaked in oil. I think if the gelato was harder you could actually eat it like a sandwich, but ended up eating it deconstructed. They actually replied about the melted gelato. I guess that's why they hire HRs and PRs for all this social media stuff. Obviously I didn't get this replaced, but I do wonder if I showed my post will they offer me a free one...(doubt it though, but if I had time wouldn't mind trying lol).

O-no-giri

inside

Ahh, this is so cute! The only onigiri I can remember having this year was in Japan at a 7/11 (didn't even have time to have a nicer onigiri at other places), so does this gelato version count as one? The white choc did make the whole thing quite sweet, and it too a while to go past the hard-ish mousse to get to the green tea. The green tea could have been more bitter (maybe I'm just too sued to super intense matcha ice cream these days), and the pistachio could be a bit stronger flavour.

This year at the CitiBank dining area, you can order stuff and they would fetch it for you from around 5 different places, so you don't have to wait in line. 

Black Star Pastry: The Mango Cake-Fresh blueberries and crystallised lavender aboard slithers of sweet mango on a layer of coconut mousse, a bed of sago pudding on a foundation of gingerbread sponge-$9.50

The cake was slightly 'leaking' when it arrived, and didn't hold it's shape after another 5 or so min. The cake wasn't really sweet, but I did find it was lacking a punch of mango flavour. There was hardly any blueberry on the top, actually pretty much hardly anything on top compared to other slices...The coconut mousse could have had more coconut, and the sago is softer than normal. Gingerbread sponge again could have more spices/flavours in it. I still prefer the OG strawberry and watermelon cake. I think the textures are a bit different in this one, but it's not amazing. Maybe a bit better than the Jap Forest Cake.  

Hoy pinoy: chicken skewers in traditional soy glaze, 2 for $13

Another price inflation noted, all thanks to this food blog (jks). But it has increased $1 from last year. It's obviously not cheap, but no market food is cheap. It tasted alright, wouldn't say it's amazing, but luckily it wasn't overly marinated.

Round 2

got here a bit later on a Tuesday night, still just as many people

 

Puffle: Korean marinated Bulgogi Beef Philly Cheesesteak style stuffed inside our signature cheese Puffle topped with Japanese mayo and shallots-$16

I was actually pleasantly surprised since this met my expectations, even though the line was almost 30min. Normally a lot of these things the markets are a bit gimmicky, and probs not worth the money but still worth the experience (or photo). I think this tasted really good with the crunch from the waffle, and cheesy flavour inside. There was a decent amount of beef and other toppings as well, drizzled with that super yum Jap mayo, and slightly refreshed by the shallots. It's a nice sort of comfort food and wasn't too messy to eat.

Indu: Smoked Goat Dosa-Smoked goat’s leg dosa, zucchini ribon raita, pomegranate, chilli and bacon jam-$15

Interesting flavour combination, where I could actually appreciate the chilli. Loved the salty yet sweet flavour from the bacon jam, but needed more refreshing elements in it. Hardly ever have Indian food so I can't really compare it to others.

Din Tai Fung: Giant Dumpling-$12

it's so cute!

They had this earlier this year for a limited time at the restaurant, but I didn't manage to have time to try it. They have it here at the markets so I thought why not give it a go. It's really a novelty thing, but it's so cute with the straw to drink the soup. It's also the hardest thing to eat and you just sort of have to deconstruct it with a fork. It tasted like a normal xiao long bao, but I think because the proper ones are mouthful bites, the flavour is more prominent compared to this big version.

other things from Din Tai Fung

 

One Tea Lounge: ube x matcha soft serve w/ green tea ice cream-$8

The ube/yam/taro flavour was quite nice and went with the matcha. I would have preferred the matcha to be more bitter so the sweetness of the ube would come out more, but most people probably like a sweeter than bitter matcha. Couldn't really taste the the flavour in the cone though.

behind the scenes shot

I Think I’m Turning Sesame-Black sesame gelato, condensed milk coffee jelly, miso crunch, banana miso bread, vanilla cream and coffee powder-$12

Back again for more Messina. I think from memory, this is the first time they did a black sesame flavour, and it was quite a good hit. The coffee jelly bits were interesting, sort of like a panna cotta but not as creamy. The miso crunch could be more miso-y, and although the band bread was there, also felt like it lacked the miso flavour. Personally didn't think the cream was necessarily since once the ice cream sort of melted at the bottom, it mixed in with the cream. 

lights

night

the only lanterns

They had less stuff put up this year, like last year they had the cranes, other years, more lanterns or other Asian inspired deco, but I guess importing palm trees plus big fancy lights weren't cheap. Hope to be back before it ends next week to try some other stuff from the markets since those ice creams were surprisingly filling.

Night Noodle Markets 2016

Finally doing a real time blog post, mainly because the Night Noodle Markets are ending this coming Sunday.

October is Good Food Month, and I usually go to a dessert place with my fellow Good Food Month friends every year 2015, 2014, 2013. However this year, it was the worst choice of #sugarrush restaurants, with mostly chocolate and nut desserts on offer. Nothing was really appealing, and quite expensive. So we decided to ditch the desserts and just have desserts at the Night Noodle Markets.

The line up was generally the same, some new and some people who didn't come this year. Set up same as usual. Just get there early to secure yourself a table, since lines are quite long even at 6.30, then peaks at around 7, but finally dies a tad bit at 8.30. As always, everything is more expensive, smaller and not as good quality here compared to getting it to the actual restaurant)

It's the first year where it's card payment only, which is good I guess since you just tap, and no need to deal with change, get out your whole wallet whilst holding a ton of food, and just speeds up the line/payment process. It feels prices may have gone up due to card payments...However, if you lose your card, then gg. Friends found a credit card lying on the floor, and chucked it into the bin-since the security/bag checkers won't know what to do with it, and better to chuck the card than someone scam away on your card the whole night before you realise you lost it and it may have been too late to call up and cancel your card. 

 

fav colour (:

reminds me of Vivd (not that I went this year..)

 

cranes not your typical lanterns...

Hoy Pinoy

A filipino style store, known for there skewers which you can smell and see the smoke from the other side of the street. I come here every year but walk past it. This time I just decided to get it, since might not have the chance or time next yr. Super overpriced skewers if you compare it to supermarkets, and the skewer is big but not a lot of meat either....It's just fun to hold a skewer haha.

    

 

Inihaw na Baboy: pork belly skewers with banana ketchup glaze-2 for $12

Messina

Too bad you can't mix and match or just get 1 skewer, so ended up getting 2 pork, which apparently is the more popular option over the chicken. The skewer is super long, but there's actually not that much meat. The glaze was a sweeter version of a tomato sauce and less 'sticky, but would have liked more glaze on it. Some parts of the pork was quite fatty, but when you're walking around and trying to make sure no one bumps into your overpriced skewers, it's hard to get bite away the fat...

   
Only On Sundaes: salted coconut sorbet, black sticky rice, lychee tapioca, caramelised puff pastry, lemon grass & white choc ganache-$12

Shared this with a friend, and I think this dessert is relatively value for money compared with other stuff in terms of quantity, quality and price. It was super filling even after sharing it. The sorbet wasn't really icy, and more smooth which I prefer. The salt wa more on the subtle side which is good in this case, since there are a few other flavours here. The lychee flavour was more sweet than lychee, but tapiocas are always fun to eat. Caramelised puff pastry was crisp but wasn't really needed. The lemongrass and white choc ganache was a tad bit grainy, maybe they put it on the stove or stirred it for too long...The black sticky rice was the really filling part. By itself it had a really plain flavour, so just try ti save some sorbet when you are finishing this off.

 
Matcha Do About Nothing: Milk chocolate and matcha gelato, white chocolate and pistachio crunch with a green tea waffle cone-$10

Tried a bit of this, and enjoyed the matcha flavour gelato inside, relatively good hit of matcha. The choc top was too sweet with the white choc. The cone was lined with choc, so couldn't really taste the green tea flavour in it.

Harajuku Gyoza

 
Octo Dog-$9

Bought this because it was so cute I couldn't resist! Look at those eyes haha. Didn't even know what it is until I bit into it. It's pretty much a frankfurt deep-fried in some Japanese style batter, which is slightly sweet. Wasn't too heavy or oily, and quite delicious.

Was thinking of trying the raindrop cake, since this restaurant is based in Potts Point which I never pass, but my friend may attempt it in the holidays, so passed on it since it's pretty overpriced for some agar and water. How much does agar even cost? Even if you but one small packet, pretty sure you can make a lot more than just one tiny portion...

Also wanted to try One Tea Lounge, but couldn't bring myself to buy 3 small sliders for $23 and was quite full. They actually do have the full size Matcha Baoger last week at the restaurant for $18 ($14 for fatties) which I missed...Also could've won a chance to win $50/$25 if you took a pic of something from them, but didn't end up getting anything from there...

Probably won't have time to come again to try more food...Finals just 2.5 weeks away. Did not study tonight, but life is too short without some good food (:

NT Part 1: Things to do in Darwin

As I said before, I do not recommend going to Darwin, but if you're in the area, I do recommend doing a day tour and go and explore NT. You can pretty much do everything in Darwin in 2 days, and that's pretty much what we did for our weekend in Darwin during preceptorship. Darwin doesn't have much to do, but there's still a lot of history involved, from WWII to cyclones.

north coast

Mindil Beach Markets

Mindil Beach

made it just in time for the sunset

markets

It felt like the whole of Darwin plus surroundings were there. Usually you don't really see anyone apart from tourist on the main strip, but there were so many cars parked, it felt so weird seeing so many people here. Lots of locally produced market-style stuff, plus quite a large selection of food.

Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory

giant paper dresses

real crocodile

It's free, so why not? Although no museums in Aus will be as good as those overseas, it still had a decent collection of Aboriginal arts, and other stuff like Cyclone Tracy history, which was quite interesting.

Parep Markets

Similar vendors to Mindil Beach Markets, just in a smaller area so it feels more crowded. It's kind of situated on/next to a carpark so it's more dangerous, with cars going past you whilst you're waiting in line.

Darwin Military Museum

By the way, super limited number of buses on Saturdays, and most don't run on Sundays. Ended up walking 1.5hrs here (but took a taxi back). It's $18, and there's in indoor section which explains things, and outdoor you get to see all the tanks/guns. I think we preferred the other museum, but this one is still pretty interesting, and learn a bit of Aussie history.

Cullen Bay

Man made marina where rich people live. There are restaurants here, but more pricey. We were here for the view.

Darwin Waterfront

The other tourist section, reminded me of Darling Harbour. They have restaurants kind of along the sea/wharf and a retail section (but not many shops). Other hotels here, wave pool (fake waves because only the East coast has decent waves on the beach), artificial beach and just a nice place to walk around. So many people come to the parks for picnics.

WWII Oil Tunnels

inside

Walked past this and thought yolo, $8 to go inside a tunnel. It's just a tunnel they dug back in WWII to store oil tanks since they kept getting bombed above ground. The war ended before they even used these tunnels. 2 other tunnels are being used by the navy currently. 2 of them are opened, but only visited one of them since the other was apparently flooding on the day.

remains of the town hall after the cyclone

the main street

Feels more like a country town like Bateman's Bay or Port Stephens, rather than a CBD. No/minimal high rises, and 'high' is like 1/3 a Sydney building. You'll also notice almost everyone drives a 4WD. Most people here are tourist travelling through, or stopping in Darwin then travelling out.

Darwin Show

cute wooden carved owl

The week we were in Darwin just so happened to be the Darwin Show, where they also get a public holiday. It's like the Sydney Royal Easter Show but only goes for 3 days. It's also smaller, but has similar stuff. I think it's relatively big for Darwin, and people normally travel 2-3 hours to get here if they live in rural areas. It's a pretty big event for people living in this side of Aus. I used to go to the Easter show every year as a kid, back when show bags were $10, then 15 then 20ish. Now everything is at least $30. Went on a ride for $15, which is quite expensive, but yolo since I'm here, and haven't been on a ride in ages.

Accommodation feels like it's either Hilton or backpacker accommodation and plenty of hostels around. Not much 'in between' hotels. We stayed at a 2.5-3 star hotel, which was average but rooms were tiny, could just fit a small suitcase, other big suitcases you would need to stand it up and can't let it lie on the ground open. Basically there's not much choice in terms of hotels.

Taxis are limited, so make sure you book beforehand. They're just as expensive as Sydney imo (not that I take taxis in Syd). Just buses are so sparse here and most don't run on the weekends. They number them, and they are only 2 digits, where as here bus numbers are 3 digits plus the occasional letter. 

Darwin just mainly has things to see, and some walking around.

Goodbye Darwin