Review: Ramen Ya

Posted by ~RnR~ in $10-$20, Restaurant

2 comments

Ramen Ya Review

Ramen Ya, one of the best restaurants that served ramen. Well, they don't serve wide variety of ramens but sometimes "less is more".

Let's proceed to the main points,

This is the well-known Charsu Ramen in Tonkatsu broth. As stated on the menu, this ramen is the speciality of Ramen Ya. I've to admit that this ramen was awesome! The broth was very tasty. The ramen was well-cooked too. The highlight of this ramen was the charsu or the pork slices. Maybe this is what they described as "melting in your mouth". Trust me, the pork slices are addicting!

Besides the Charsu Ramen, we also ordered Seafood Gyoza Ramen. If you don't think that the ramen will be enough to make you full, you can ask for extra ramen with additional cost of $2.5. They really add a lot of ramen if you order for an extra but they don't add the broth, which was disappointing. For this ramen, we ordered with the same tonkatsu broth. The difference here was only the seafood gyoza. The skin of the gyoza was quite thin and hence it broke easily. The Seafood inside was mainly made of octopus and prawn I guess. Overall, it was delicious too.

For the side dish, we got pork gyoza. The gyoza was rather small. The pork inside was not bad. The skin was quite crispy. Honestly, I like the skin more than the pork. Anyway, it was just alright.

Overall:

Price:8/10

Food: 8.5/10

Service: 7.5/10

Ambience: 7.5/10

Estimated price per person: $ 10

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Shop 25G Melbourne GPO
350 Bourke St,

Melbourne VIC 3000

Website : www.ramenya.com.au

~Rondoletto~

Review: Earl Canteen

Posted by ~RnR~ in $10-$20, Restaurant

0 comments

Earl Canteen Review

Earl Canteen, the top number one talk of the town in Urbanspoon till today ( 3 Oct '10).

Well, Earl canteen has been in my wish list since I discovered Urbanspoon... :P

With so many reviews and talks about this little and sweet 'canteen', finally I've made a visit. ^^

Let's start with their infamous "sex sandwich". XD

This sandwich is actually known as Pork Belly Sandwich on their menu. I've heard numerous rumours regarding the crispiness and the deliciousness of this sandwich. Well, it's now a fact that I can't deny. Yes! It's indeed yummy!!! ><

The crispiness of the pork accompanied with the freshness of apple, cabbage & fennel coleslaw, and wilted silverbeet, hmmm..., I'm pretty sure that you'll want it more and more....

The pork is quite salty if you eat it by its own. However, it goes really well with the baguette. Owh ya~ the baguette is pretty hard to be cut by knife though. So if you really want to enjoy it, I suggest that you can just grab the sandwich and give it a big bite! :D

Since it's our first time there, we didn't have the chance to try other menu since we wanted to try the Pork Belly Sandwich. Fortunately, my friend tried the Wagyu Meatball Sandwich. I was pretty excited to know that it's wagyu. So, I offered an exchange :P

It's indeed a delicious sandwich topped with zucchini pickles and shaved parmesan. The sauce tastes pretty much like bolognese sauce.

Honestly, I'm a bit disappointed with this sandwich. The meatball is not as good as what I was expecting or maybe my expectation was too high. ;P

But overall, It's still good.

Maybe next time I should try the Real Steak Sandwich which sound mouth-watering to me... :P

Overall:

Price: 7.5/10

Food: 8.5/10

Service: 7.5/10

Ambience: 7.5/10

Estimated price per person: $ 15

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Ground level,

500 Bourke,

Lt Bourke St courtyard,


Melbourne 3000

Website: www.earlcanteen.com.au

~Rondoletto~

Review: Cafe Cavallino

Posted by ~RnR~ in $10-$20, Restaurant

2 comments

Cafe Cavallino Review.

Firstly, I want to apologize for the postpone of the posts due to my laptop that broke down a week ago. Now I'm still considering which laptop to get. So please be patient.. :D

Once, I get the new laptop more posts will be up...^^

Okay, let's get to the main point~~

Confuse of choosing so many Italian restaurants along Lygon Street?

Well, I have Cafe Cavallino to be recommended for you. I believe that it is a cafe for Ferrari lovers. :D

It's also a good place to celebrate your friend's birthday as what we did.

Anyway, Happy Belated Birthday to Ms S... ^^

For the appetiser we ordered Pumpkin Soup and Wedges with Chili Sauce and Sour Cream

For the Pumpkin Soup, I did not find anything special with it. It's quite tasty and creamy. Still passable.

Wedges with Chili Sauce and Sour Cream. Well, the wedges is just like any other wedges. Again, nothing much special about this one but it makes a good starter for crumbling stomach. The sweet and sour cream is a bit tasteless though. You need to dip a whole lot of it in order to get the sour taste.

Next,

Bocconcini bread. At first I've mistaken this bread as garlic bread as they look very similar. However, their taste is quite different. This Bocconcini bread is made up of herb bread with Bocconcini Cheese. There is an alluring fragrant from the bread which will make you impatient to try this bread. The cheese is yummy!!! I like it a lot. Also, the bread added the sense of crispiness to the dish. Yum~~

This one? It's called Agnolotti Doriano. Basically, it's a kind of ravioli filled with beef and served with bolognese  sauce and parsley. Overall, it's not bad. However, I didn't find it as tasty after a few bites. I guess it's because of the beef that is inside the agnolotti which I found a bit plain. 

This pizza is named after the cafe, Cavallino. According to the description, this pizza contains sauce, mozzarella cheese, fresh tomatoes, olives, parsley, Proscuitto(Ham), Rucola (roquette salad), shaved parmesan, goat cheese, bruschetta. Quite a long description isn't it? Yea...

I didn't expect the pizza to suit my taste. Surprisingly, this one is delicious.  The crispiness of the base, accompanied with the freshness of the rucola and tomatoes, created a great combination! Don't forget, there is also Ham on the pizza which gives extra indulgence to your mouth.

Do you notice something different with this pizza? Ya! It's a combination of "American" and "Lygon Special". For some of you who loves pizza, American maybe a wise choice to try. Personally, I felt that the highlight of the night is the Lygon Special. Wonderful combination of Ham, Mushroom, Hot salami, mild peppers, pineapple and prawns is ready to shake your mouth with a blazing sensation! So far, in Melbourne, I think this pizza is the best pizza I've ever had. Well, I have not been staying too long here. Probably you can give me suggestion if you don't agree with this. :D

There is spiciness and sourness in the pizza which I love the most. I really feel like eating this pizza again. ><

Actually, we also ordered a cake, which I believed to be a triple chocolate cake. I can't really remember the exact name. The cake was just awesome! There is a plenty of chocolate in it! For a chocoholic like me, I love everything with chocolate... :P

Sorry that I forgot to take the picture of the chocolate cake since it's a birthday cake for Ms  S. :D

Overall:

Price: 8/10

Food: 8.25/10

Service: 7.5/10

Ambience: 7.5/10

Estimated price per person: $ 18

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181 Lygon St

Carlton VIC 3053

Website: www.cafecavallino.com.au

~Rondoletto~

Review: Oriental Tea House

Posted by ~RnR~ in $21-$30, Restaurant

2 comments

Oriental Tea House Review

First of all, big thanks to JS for the treat at Oriental Tea House. I've heard that Oriental Tea House serves really good dumplings, but expensive at the same time.... 

Oriental Tea House also sells varieties of tea, which I've yet to try. Unfortunately, this was the only shot I could get inside the restaurant as taking photos of the restaurant was not allowed :( 

To start with was the prawn toast. Crispy and you can taste the prawn... yummm =D 

This was the fried prawn dumplings. Indeed, they've got really good dumplings. And the mayonnaise gave perfect kick to it.... 

Next was the chinese broccoli with oyster sauce. The chinese broccoli was cooked well. A simple yet delicious dish. And also this dish was way better than the one at New Kum Den 

I was a bit disappointed with their Xiao Long Bao. It was too dry!! That's the only problem, I guess. For the meat: it was tasty =D

A definitely must have dish when you're having yum cha. Their siu mai was awesome!!!! It was full of flavor... Just by looking at it, makes me hungry =P

I'm not sure whether I have to upload this one or not. But I have something to say about their steamed rice. This was too little!!!! and it was too expensive for a bowl of steamed rice ( $ 3 as far as I remember) :(

This was the best!!!! This was Crispy shredded steak. It was beef in sweet sour and chili sauce  with capsicum... A great dish and definitely a must-try. 

Nothing impressive with their pan-fried dumplings. Still a great dish too!! =D

And the last one was fried chocolate dumplings. A great dessert!!! but I thought that the chocolate fillings were too little... other than that, Perfect!!! =D

Overall, the food at Oriental Tea House was great. But the biggest problem was the price. It was too expensive and the portion was small also. Take for example the siu mai. 3 pcs of siu mai was priced at AUD 6. It was over-priced, I guess. Will I come back? Probably yes, but just for high tea as I need to eat a lot for lunch or dinner =P

In conclusion:

Price: 4/10

Food: 9/10

Service: 8.5/10

Ambience: 9/10

Estimated price per person: $ 30

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Shop F015 Chadstone Shopping Centre

Melbourne VIC 3145

Website: www.orientalteahouse.com

-Rondoletti-

Review: Rose Garden BBQ

Posted by ~RnR~ in Less than $10, Restaurant

4 comments

Rose Garden BBQ Review

Yup... This is Rose Garden BBQ. One of the busiest restaurant in town.

I think a queue is a must in Rose Garden especially if it's dinner time. :p

Don't worry if you are unfamiliar with Rose Garden. They have their top 10 list of dishes on their menu. So it's really easy for you to order.

#1 Spicy Green Beans with Minced Chicken on rice

 I apologize that I don't have any picture for the top number 1 dish in Rose Garden. 

I guess the name of the dish is self-explaining. Basically it's just green beans and minced chickens. It is tasty. However, I don't find anything special about this dish although I heard that some people left the restaurant once they heard that Rose Garden is out of this dish. It's ashamed that people just left without trying their other dishes. I believe that they have other delicious dishes beside their Spicy Green Beans with Minced Chicken.

For example, Spicy Chicken Ribs on rice. Apparently, this dish is their #3 top dish in Rose Garden.

   

This, Spicy Chicken Ribs on rice, is actually Rondoletti's favourite dish since he always ordered the same dishes every time we went there. 

This dish is really yummy... >< The chicken is tasty and crispy. The gravy on the rice blend well with the chicken too. Moreover, they also give a few pieces of steamed broccoli as complimentary. However, it's not really spicy for those who are used to chili. :p

Rondoletti and me love spicy food. XD

Another recommended menu in Rose Garden is Crispy Skin Pork Omelette on rice. This dish is still in their top 10 menu. If my memory serves me well, it's #4. This time it is my favourite dish... :P

For me, this dish is really sensational. The gravy is just perfect. What's awesome is that although the pork skin is wet with the gravy, it's still crispy... ><
Moreover, the omelette makes the dish even more delicious. I really can't resist the temptation now...  ><


The portion of the dish is quite large. So I think it really worth it. Really satisfy with the dish.

Impression?

Price: 8.5/10

Food: 8.75/10

Service: 7.5/10

Ambience: 6.5/10

Estimated price/person: $9

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CBD

435 Elizabeth St
Melbourne, 3000

Website: none 

~Rondoletto~

Review: New Kum Den

Posted by ~RnR~ in $10-$20, Restaurant

1 comments

New Kum Den Review

Chinese restaurants are just everywhere in Melbourne... This was my first time dining at New Kum Den to celebrate friend's birthday...

(Interior)

Firstly, they gave a complimentary broth. This wasn't really good... It was bland... There's nothing in the broth except for a piece of carrot :( Lets now go to the main dishes... =D

This is one of the best... deep-fried crispy skin chicken... The skin was very crispy and tasty... and also the salted egg yolks made the chicken very yummy! 

Next is sweet and sour pork... There's weird smell, which I can't really specify... but this not a really bad dish.... =D

Sorry that I couldn't take a closer pictures of all the dishes...  anyway lets continue

In the middle there's stir-fried beef with black bean sauce... it's a good dish, but there's nothing to be brag about..

In the extreme right there's roasted duck...  this one was great!!! I usually don't really like to eat duck... but this one took was able to took my heart away =P délicieux (means delicious)

Moving on to the this beside the roasted duck...  stir-fried green beans with minced beef...  they've cooked this really well - the green beans were not overcooked... 

And the last dish at the bottom is chinese broccoli with oyster sauce...  it was just okay... still passable... 

So the conclusion...

Food: 8/10

Price: 7/10

Service: 8.5/10

Ambience: 8/10

Estimated price per person: AUD 18

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New Kum Den

15 Heffernan La

Melbourne VIC 3000

-Rondoletti-