Cafe Adventures @ Shortstop Coffee & Donuts

12 Sutherland St, Melbourne VIC

Phone: N/A

7:30am - 4:30pm Weekdays

9:30am - 4:00pm Saturday

9:30am - 3:30pm Sunday

Mmm, delicious donuts & coffee, what more can you ask for?. Shortstop coffee & donuts specializes in a range of freshly baked donuts and hot coffees that draw in new and returning customers every day.

A shame that the store doesn't do cold drinks, as when I was craving an iced coffee when at the time, but nonetheless the hot coffees are still a delight.

The seating in Shortstop are quite cramped, especially since the store is usually filled with people wanting coffee and donuts so it's quite rare to see a vacant table / seat.

They also have their coffee beans on sale if you love their coffee.

I came here at the hour before the store closed so the donut selection was limited, but nonetheless there was a great selection for everyone. 

Cappuccino ($4)

A refreshing drink, perfect for the sleep-deprived such as myself. Nothing that really stood out but just tasted overall a lot better which is to be expected for a specialty coffee store.

(6/10)

 New Orleans Iced Coffee Donut ($4.50)

The New Orleans Iced Coffee Donut was definitely the best donut from what my friends and I ordered. Packing a huge punch of flavour upon the first you it had a perfect level of sweetness and was perfectly paired with the cappuccino 

(10/10)

 Earl Grey & Rose Donut ($4.50)

Didn't really meet up to my expectations, the donut wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be, but it's a great pairing with the cappuccino.

(5.5/10) 

To be honest I don't remember what this donut was, and I can't find the name of it on the menu or online. But if you do see it around when you visit shortstop, what I can say is that the donut was pretty average. Didn't stand out in terms of flavour.

(5/10)

Food - 7 / 10

Ambiance - 6 / 10

Service - 6 / 10

Total FoOodie Points - 19 / 30

Italian Adventures @ Maccaroni Trattoria Italiana

10/16 Manchester Ln, Melbourne VIC
9090 7634

9:00am - 9:30pm Weekdays

9:00am - 10:00pm Weekends

Located in Manchester lane, Maccaroni Trattoria Italian's, to be quite frank ranks at the top 3 of my go-to places when it comes to pasta. With a vibrant and dimmed atmosphere, it's a great place to eat with a small group of friends or if you're having a date night.

It's fairly easy to spot the restaurant, as seen above, you'll be able to see the bright and attractive signs as soon as you walk into Manchester lane.

With candle lit tables, relaxing music playing in the background, and also the light-lit plant (which can be seen above), This place has a pretty nice atmosphere.

Lemon Lime Bitter ($4)

Would have been a lot more enjoyable if the restaurant had not run out of ice, which eventually resulted in the drinks becoming warmer as time went by.

(4/10)

Misto Fritto (Serving for 2) ($15)

Bolognese Arancini, spinach aracini, ascolane olives and panelle 

An interesting dish, a lot of hit and misses. The bolognese arancini was definitely the standout and probably the only stand-out, as it was crunchy and had delicious mozzarella in the center. Spinach aracini was quite average, alongside the other bite sized delights. 

(6/10)

Gnocchi Mushrooms ($16)

Small potato gnocchi with mushrooms, cream & parsley

After a long research on what to eat, I've heard constant positive reviews about the gnocchi here with many absolutely loving it. 

My review, the gnocchi was cooked perfectly and was overall quite delicious. But I felt that it was lacking in something, or perhaps i'm not much of a fan of gnocchi since it was my first time trying it. But overall, an enjoyable experience.

(7/10)

Spaghetti Carbonara ($18)

Spaghetti with egg, bacon, cream, parsley and parmigiana cheese

The carbonara was absolutely beautiful, though not the traditional carbonara it was delicious either way. The creamy sauce paired incredibly well with the spaghetti and is just delightful.

(8/10) 

Chocolate Mousse Cake 

I'm not sure what the exact name / price the cakes were as the dessert menu is separated from the main menu, but i do remember the taste so i'll base it off that.

The chocolate mousse cake was underwhelming, lacking in sweetness, I was quite disappointed as it did look pretty promising.

(4/10)

Creme Brulee Cake

The creme brulee cake was pretty good, had a distinct coffee taste which is to be expected and was quite delightful. Though it's not as good as many other cakes I've tried therefore i'll rank it on the bottom half of the ranking board.

(5.5/10)

Food - 5 / 10

Ambiance - 9 / 10

Service - 6 / 10

Total FoOodie Points - 20 / 30

 

Japanese Adventures @ Bankara Ramen

305 Swanston St, CBD, Melbourne VIC

Phone N/A

11:00am - 12:00 Midnight Everyday

With just so many ramen joints opening up or already in the city, I've lost count for places that I need to try. But recently I just ticked off a recently opened chain store Bankara Ramen, which just opened up on Swanston street.

Renown for being an international franchise with atleast 80 stores over the world, I decided to come here to see what this place has to offer.

Exterior

The food display is just like the displays in Japan if you've ever been there, and I absolutely love it!. Just from the outside it let's you know what the dishes look like and is a perfect way to lure in customers such as myself.

Interior

The service here is pretty inconsistent, for example, my first visit, the service was amazing. The waiters greeted us, explained to us the different types of seasoning on the table and what paired well with what, poured water when it was close to empty, it was simply amazing service.

 But then on this visit there was none of that, the amount of customers was the same but there was barely any of the customer service mentioned before. Perhaps it's because we were seated on the upper level?.

To be honest, for a ramen joint, the food is pretty overpriced for what you get. As most ramen restaurants in the city usually serve classic ramens for $10 max, but here it's more than that, also mentioning that the extras / upgrades are pretty overpriced as well.

 Classic Tonkotsu Ramen ($13.8)

Tonkotsu ramen topped with pork chashu, black fungus and seaweed

I've been told that the Tonkotsu ramen isn't that good, but to be honest I absolutely love it. The broth is amazing and smooth, combined with the thin noodles and tender pork it's a comforting dish.

(8/10)

One of the cool things i've noticed is that for each type of ramen, they have a specific type of noodle that is paired with it. Which is pretty awesome as most ramen places use the same noodle for every soul base which sometimes doesn't work well. 

 Premium Kakuni Tsukumen ($21.8)

Cold noodles served with a side on rich broth, kakuni, pork chashu, seasoned boiled eggs, bamboo shoots and seaweed

I'll be frank about one thing, don't upgrade to the premium. The premium gives you the kakuni and egg, and to be honest it just isn't worth the extra $. The kakuni is tender, but it's quite average. 

The dish itself was pretty good and I enjoyed it, though I prefer the Tsukumen at Mugen Ramen, the tsukumen at Bankara is pretty high up in the list if you can deal with the price.

(6.5/10)

Chuka Soba ($13.8)

Chuka Soba topped with pork chashu bamboo shoots and seaweed

To be honest, it wasn't as good as the other dishes. The soup wasn't that great and the overall dish was quite disappointing. I don't recommend this but I do for the others.

(4/10)

Food - 6.5 / 10

Ambiance - 6 / 10

Service - 7 / 10

Total FoOodie Points - 19.5 / 30

Italian Adventures @ Pellegrini's Espresso Bar

66 Bourke St, Melbourne VIC

9662 1885

8:00am - 11:30pm Everyday

You don't find any classic Italian style restaurants nowadays, as most restaurants aim to go more a modernized look and atmosphere. 

But that's an exception for Pellegrini's Espresso Bar, because from just looking at the store outside, with it's cozy atmosphere that will make you feel like your in Italy.

You can really tell this store has been here since 1954 and has almost remained unchanged with its old classic interior which takes you back a few decades in the past.

To be honest I was really confused about how the ordering system worked, upon entering we weren't greeted so we just awkward stood at the entrance before deciding to just sit at one of the stools.

What disappointed me about this place is one of the waiters here, we were served by a waiter and he gave off a rude vibe and it felt like he didn't want to be there. But the owner on the other hand, though we weren't served by him, we could tell who he was by his bright personality as he was very talkative to the other customers.

Anyways, ordering was really confusing as we ended up figuring out that the menu is actually on the wooden board hanging from the ceiling, but luckily we did our research so we already knew what to get.

 Lasagna ($19)

Classic, home-style Lasagna, obviously the presentation from Pellegrini's doesn't have much effort put in we were hoping the flavour would make up for it. 

To be honest, it was good, but it wasn't anything superb. I felt the Lasagna was lacking in actual cheese instead of the Parmesan added on top of it, the dish was a bit too salty for my liking and to be honest wasn't quite worth for $19. 

(6/10)

Spaghetti Bolognese ($19)

The Spaghetti Bolognese was pretty average, generous in portion, it lacked in flavour and didn't taste as great as other bolognese dishes I've had before. The store doesn't actually show how much the dishes cost so we were quite surprised to find out at the end that the dishes were $19 each. 

(6/10)

Also to mention that they provide complimentary bread with butter which is a plus. Though the quality was inconsistent with my bread being quite dry whilst my friend had soft and fluffy bread.

Sadly it just wasn't worth for the price as we can easily find better restaurants elsewhere.

Food - 6 / 10

Ambiance - 6 / 10

Service - 3 / 10

Total FoOodie Points - 15 / 30

Korean Adventures @ Uncle Jung's

 360 Elizabeth st, Melbourne VIC

9654 3428

Mon - Thu: 5pm - 11pm

Fri - Sat: 12pm - 11pm

Sun - 10am - 11pm

A new Korean takeaway establishment Uncle Jung's, which has just opened up recently, it serves up Korean fusion food such as burgers and tacos but with a Korean twist. 

After walking past this place a few times I decided to give it a try, from what I could tell, they also own the bar which is directly above this store and serves up alcohol and bar food just like any other bar would.

 Galbi Burger Combo ($10.50)

The Galbi Burger was pretty small, the size of my palm if I were to be precise. I hoped that the flavour would make up for the lack of size but it was pretty ordinary. Nothing really special about the Galbi burger.

(5/10)

The combo came with chips & drinks, the we were offered 3 different types of flavours with the chips that were (Ordinary, Chilli & Rosemary). The chilli flavour was chosen for this, and I absolutely loved the chips. Crispy, golden and the chilli salt added a great flavour to it.

(7.5/10)

2-Fried Chicken Combo (Fries + Drink) ($10)

The fried chicken was crispy and succulent, though I was disappointed because the pieces I received were pretty much mostly bones and lacked actual meat itself. But I would definitely come back as the chicken was pretty good

(7.5/10)

The Rosemary chips were pretty disappointing in portion, I wasn't able to tell between the ordinary flavour and Rosemary besides the tiny specks of Rosemary on the chips itself. There was a lot more on the bottom of the basket but I felt that it could've been served or done better. Either way the accompanying chilli mayo sauce matched really well with them.

(7/10)

Food - 6.5 / 10

Ambiance - 6 / 10

Service - 8 / 10

Total FoOodie Points - 20.5 / 30

 

Dessert Adventures @ Lindt Chocolate Cafe

271 Collins St, Melbourne VIC

9667 0900

Mon - Wed: 8:30am - 6:30pm

 Thu - Fri: 8:30am - 9:00pm

Sat - Sun: 9:00am - 6:30pm

If you're someone that loves chocolate, then you'll know what Lindt is, and if you love Lindt, then I introduce to you to the haven of Lindt Chocolate Cafe. 

Filled with Lindt delicacies such as their signature chocolate items, cakes and beverages made with pure Lindt chocolate. You just can't go wrong here.

Interior 

Lindt Create-Your-Own Gift Box

They have a pretty cool create-your-own gift box where you can choose the box size, and fill them up with Lindt goods of your choice.

Cake Display 

Dessert Display

Brownies & Macaron Display

The Collection

With so many options to choose from, it was a great idea that I came here with a group of friends so I could try numerous delicacies Lindt cafe has to offer.

Opera Cake ($10.50)

A layered cake of dark chocolate ganache, coffee buttercream and almond sponge

I was quite disappointed in the Opera cake, Though I feel like the main reason was due to coming to the cafe when it was just about to close but the Opera cake was really dry and didn't have that smooth, creamy texture that most cakes have. But i'm sure that if i came earlier it would've been a better experience.

(5/10)

 Salted Caramel Cake ($10.50)

Dark chocolate mousse, crunchy hazelnut and salted caramel ganache on a Lindt chocolate brownie base

The Salted Caramel Cake on the other hand was pretty good. A smooth and creamy texture, with a beautiful salted caramel taste, it was great mood food. The salted caramel ganache was a great addition as it enhanced the salted caramel flavour when mixed together.

(7/10)

Lindt Chocolate Brownie ($6)

A tad dry, but I wasn't expecting much from a brownie, it was pretty good on it's own with a rich chocolate flavour. But it was definitely lacking something to make it satisfying, perhaps ice-cream would've been a good idea.

(6/10)

Lindt Mocha ($6.50)

Layers of Lindt dark chocolate, velvety milk and a perfectly drawn shot of espresso coffee topped with a Lindt chocolate thin

Topped with a Lindt chocolate, it was an uplifting drink. I reckon on the high end of the Mocha drinks I've had. A bit pricey but it's definitely worth it.

(7.5/10)

Lindt Decadent Chocolate Milkshake ($8.50)

Lindt excellence 70% dark chocolate ice cream blended with with milk and Lindt chocolate.

Now if you love a rich chocolate drink, then you'll definitely love the chocolate milkshake. My first sip of this and I was in heaven, rich, creamy and enhanced with that extra dark chocolate ice-cream, I could easily come back just for this.

(8.5/10)

Iced Coffee ($8.50)

Espresso blended with vanilla white chocolate ice cream, ice and topped with icecream and dark chocolate flakes

The Iced Coffee was pretty average in my opinion, the coffee flavour wasn't strong enough which led the drink becoming too sweet for an iced coffee.

(6/10)

Food - 6.6 / 10

Ambiance - 8 / 10

Service - 7/10

Total FoOodie Points - 21.6 / 30

Dessert Adventures @ Movenpick (2015)

2/210 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne VIC 

9654 4423

     11am - 10pm Sun - Thurs

11am - 11pm Fri - Sat

With so many stores around the CBD, everyone must know of the famous Swiss ice cream franchise Movenpick. I've had Movenpick plenty of times to try a bit of everything here and have only come to love a few dishes and flavours, but for this blog it'll just be the ice-cream.

Swiss Chocolate, Mint Chocolate & Maple Walnut Ice-cream ($9.95)

I can proudly say that my favourite ice-cream in Movenpick, and possibly in general, is the Swiss Chocolate. I'm not sure whether its the amazing chocolates bits in the ice-cream or how the flavour just gives a huge punch, but it's my all time favourite, highly recommend!.

(9/10)

The mint chocolate is also another great flavour, I've had other mint chocolates before and the one at Movenpick would rank mid-tier on the chart.

(7/10)

Maple Walnut was quite average and didn't impress me that much.

(5/10)

Espresso, Lemon & Lime & Strawberry Ice-cream ($9.95)

To be honest the other flavours didn't really stand out to me as much as the Swiss Chocolate did. Everything else felt pretty average with a few better and worse ones.

The espresso was normal, had a strong espresso taste, but a bit too strong for my liking.

(5.5/10)

Overall, I think that Movenpick does pretty disappointing fruit / sorbet flavours, the lemon & lime just tasted like lime and wasn't that great. I recommend sticking to the sweeter / non-fruity flavours. Same goes for the Strawberry Ice-cream.

(5/10)

Food - 6/10

Ambiance - 8/10

Service - 5/10

Total FoOodie Points - 19/30