Malaysian food and I'm jaded

Jade Kingdom is a no frills old school malaysian chinese restaurant in Heidrlberg Heights. I'd say it's a gem when it comes to food but definitely not the service. Who cares? I want good food!
Well, considering I haven't been home for a year now, this restaurant satisfies my craving for simple no nonsense Malaysian fare.

5 of us ordered 7 dishes in total on the night. 2 plates of hokkien mee, fried in sticky black sauce and lard. Of course!  The lard is key to the authenticity of the dish.
1 plate of yam basket with stirfry chicken kungpao style.  The yam was well cooked although it could be a little fluffier. Not complaining though! Chunks of thigh fillets with cashew nuts in the sweet and smoky sauce, was tasty. Good balance of sweet and salty.
1 plate of sambal petai, long beans and pork mince, spicy and salty. Was a good first dish although I would have preferred less oil. The vegetables were glistening.
1 plate of Marmite pork spare ribs were as close to Malaysia as it gets if not better. Better eaten with some rice as I found it a tad too salty.
1 plate of sizzling tofu. Enough said... an egg at the bottom of the plate, tofu and mince poured onto a very hot plate.
Finally,  sambal kangkung.  Fried in sambal belacan,  yums! Of course,  there were some parts that were a bit chewy but still tasty from the sambal.

The place was packed to the brim even at 8pm. If you don't mind the wait, and the not so good service,  then it's worth a try.

Next round,  curry laksa,  curry fish head,  lobak....

Jade Kingdom

235 Waiora Rd, Heidelberg Heights VIC 3081
(03) 9458 3188

Chew Chew, near the choo choo

This cafe has a nice woody interior and is across the road from Moonee Ponds train station.
I had a cafe latte to start. The coffee met standards but wasn't really outstanding. Ordered the tagliatelle with a lamb ragu which. Portion was generous.  I loved the taste of the ragu as the lamb and tomatoes married well. Could use  little bit more seasoning but I'm not complaining.
This neat little café is worth a try. I'd go back to try their breakfast items.

Chew Chew
7/9-11 Norwood Crescent
Moonee Ponds 3039
Victoria,  Australia

Tel: 03 93701941

On the spot

I've decided to try blogging my food escapades on the spot. An attempt to keep posts updated.  No promises though. I just hope you find my reviews useful and any feedback would be appreciated.

Simon says have duck peiking

Peking duck in Melbourne is so different from Malaysia.  Although the essential combo is thin crepe, cucumber,  spring onion, crispy duck skin with sweet plum sauce,  the melbourne version includes meat with skin. No complaints here as I love duck!
Simon's peking duck is an 8.5/10 for me with points lost because of flavour and the fact it is deep fried.  Crepes are 10/10 and sauce 9/10.
The stir fried bean shoot (bean sprouts or taugeh) with duck meat was delicious as the shoots were still crunchy and not too salty. Bean curd and salty vegetable with duck soup was flavourful. Sweetness of the soup solely derived from the duck bones and saltiness from the salty vegetable. No salt added so some of you may find it bland.
Overall, I enjoyed the experience and will return with more accomplices.

197 Middleborough road, Box Hill, Victoria,  Australia.

Breakfast Thieves is a steal

Today is just another random day where I find a new cafe to have brunch. With the train schedule all messed up, I decided to take the tram towards the city.
Breakfast Thieves?  It's the catchy name and the rave reviews that caught my eye. As I was alone, I was immediately seated, one of the advantages of going solo on a busy weekend.
The cafe latte was the perfect pick me up. They use MOFO deluxe coffee beans.
Finally,  the tea smoked salmon with tabbouleh,  beetroot and sweet potato.  Lovingly smoked,  the smokiness of the tea hits you but once you start eating,  it's just soft, moist and savoury. The sweetness from the beetroot and crispy sweet potato balances the dish like tea to milk.
Enough said, let me see what my next steal would be...

Shop 1, 420 Gore Street, Fitzroy 3065, Victoria, Australia. 

Cumulus Inc. is really good

Some people may claim this place is pretentious but I beg to differ. It can't help that it has developed a character of its own through time.
My friend and I decided to try Cumulus for lunch and we were not disappointed.  As we entered, we were met with a bespectacled big smartly dressed man. We were told it would be a 30 minute wait. No problem.  We sat by the window on bar stools whilst enjoying a cafe latte and English breakfast tea.
15 minutes later, we were led to the bar and seated.
Now, the food.  The tuna tartare on peas and goats cheese ($34) came first.  Tuna perfectly seasoned. Smashed peas and goats cheese complemented the tuna...heavenly.
Next came the kitchen selection charcuterie ($29). The hams, salami and prosciutto mix were not up to expectations so will give it a miss the next round.  The finale was the flounder special with butter and corn ($36). The fish was fried bone in, perfectly cooked. Flesh was soft and I could taste the sweetness of the fish, a sign of freshness.  I liked the corn in butter sauce. Very tasty. This dish was ordinary though as it would have been a typical dish in my household.
Overall,  it was a great dining experience. Will go back for the signature lamb dish.

Cumulus Inc
45, Flinders street
Melbourne, Victoria.