Eating Around Melbourne - The Savoury Edition

For those of you who read my last post thinking "damn she drinks alot of coffee"...well there was savoury (and sweet) food too here and there. Here's another recap of a few places I've popped by during my brief Melbourne weekend trip

CONE HEADS, MELBOURNE CBD

Chips and Gravy (R: $6.50, L: $7.90)

I arrived in Melbourne very late on Friday and the other girls wanted to get an early rest for the following day. Sadly, Huxtaburger CBD was closed and it was too cold to walk around so we stumbled upon a few fast food eateries close to our hotel and eventually settled on Cone Heads (not to be confused with that 90's comedy movie) because it's halal friendly. Sure it may not be the first thing that will pop up into your mind when you are in Melbourne but it actually has a few franchises including one that has just opened in Pakistan! It's the type of food that we can see ourselves eating after an epic night out clubbing. Despite the many layers of thick country style gravy coating the chips, it actually didn't get soggy. Was still quite crispy after we ate more of these chips back at the hotel. If you are a big fan of poutine, this is also available at Cone Heads. Perfect for a dirty, late night feed.

Cone Heads
Shop 6, 2-26 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
http://coneheadschips.com/
Sun-Thurs: 9:00am - 1:00am
Fri-Sat: 9:00am - 3:00am
 


BELLE'S HOT CHICKEN

A few week ago, I've had the pleasure of tasting Belle's Hot Chicken at Harpoon Harry's. Even though the wait a the pop up was agonising, it was worth it in the end. It was actually my second time tasting the Nashville-style hot chicken since I have also made a visit to the Fitzroy restaurant at the recent trip. The restaurant vibe had a similar noisy, pub-like vibe with a Melbourne hipster edge judging from the crowd and the atmosphere of the venue.

Bourbon Iced Tea

There were heaps of choices on the beverage menu - particularly wine. However, I was intrigued by their uniquely combined Bourbon Iced Tea. While there's that alcoholic taste from the bourbon liquor, the sweet ice tea makes it drinkable like a normal ice tea if straight bourbon isn't your strength. This is perfect to wash down after devouring the fried chicken pieces.

Belle's Hot Chicken Tenders with Mixed Pickles ($16.00)

For Belle's famous chicken, you get a choice of tenders, wings or dark meat (drumstick and thigh). At $16.00, the meat menu comes with a choice of 1 side for no extra cost. Feeling a little guilty about the food I've consumed all day, I opted for mixed pickles as my side dish. While it was called "mixed pickles", it was actually a variety of veggies with a sour taste that helps with the fatty flavour from the chicken. You also get to choose the level of spice for your chicken. FYI, I tried the hot level at Harpoon Harry and my tongue was already burning from that level let alone their hottest "Really f@$*in hot" flavour. At medium, I was already getting quick a kick from the spices though I thoroughly enjoyed its crumbled skin and tender chicken meat. Definitely one of my fave eats in Melbourne for this trip.

Belle's Hot Chicken
150 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy VIC 3065
(03) 9077 0788
http://www.belleshotchicken.com/
Mon-Sun: 12:00pm - 10:00pm
 


KOKORO RAMEN

This review was mostly through the perspective of my friends T and AC who were still hungry after our visit to Supernormal. On the other hand, I was too full but went along to check it out with them. I did have a small tasting of each of the bowls and from what I can tell, they were completely satisfied with the ramen at this joint. 

Miso Ramen with Soft Shell Crab ($18.00) with extra Ajitama egg (additional $2.00)

The menu at Kokoro is 12 pages worth of food including many different types of ramen from various regions of Japan. It even gives you a bit of background history behind the origin of the ramen, which is pretty cool. There is even a ramen burger! GG. The miso ramen that T tried was based in the Sapporo region. It has a thick, tonkotsu pork broth with an additional miso paste for that tangy, slow-cooked flavour. This was served with an Ajitama egg (though T wanted more so he ordered an extra one!), bamboo shoot, spring onion, black fungi, sesame seeds and a thin, straight and firm egg noodle. Loved the colourful look of the broth and it seemed to be more flavoursome than some of the other miso ramens I've had in the past from what I've sampled. T gave this two thumbs up. 

Shio Ramen - small ($7.80) with Soft Shell Crab ($8.00)

AC got a smaller bowl of the lighter, salt-based Shio Ramen. This type of ramen was based in the Nagahama region in the southern island of Japan. The broth was clearer and not as flavoursome as the miso ramen but AC seemed to enjoy this as well. Both bowls had that irresistably gooey egg and the guys have also opted for the soft shell version, which was highly recommended at Kokoro ramen. It was crisp on the outside, juicy on the inside and seemed to stood out so well in both bowls. The pork that came with the shio ramen was on the thick side and seemed quite tender from what I've tasted. It's a shame that I was quite full to get a proper experience at Kokoro Ramen but it was good to see the mates feeling so satisfied from their time here. 

Kokoro Ramen
157 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
(03) 9650 1215
http://kokororamen.com/
Mon-Fri: 11:30am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 10:30pm
Sat: 11:30am - 10:30pm
Sun: 11:30am - 9:00pm
 

Stay tuned for the final Melbourne recap on The Random Foodie (for now) where I explore lots and lots of sweet stores in Melbourne CBD and South Yarra.

Mary's City, Sydney CBD

Damn Sydney you are so obsessed about burgers right now! It's seriously hurting my weight loss these days but it's so hard to avoid especially if they look so damn good. With all the burger joints opening left, right and centre in Sydney, it was no wonder that Mary's has taken advantage of the situation and opened its second branch for the hungry people in the CBD. It's just takeaway with no seating and a limited menu with burgers only. Although there's no fried chicken or mash on the permanent menu, Mary's CBD offers up a one-off special menu item popping up every now and then, which you can find out through their social media pages or through other foodies in the know.

Mary's Burger ($10.00) 

In my Mary's Newtown review, I initially thought that the burgers were similar to Maccas but pricier. Of course, that didn't stop me from going back again...and again. Sure they are the pricier Maccas but the bun was soft and glossy, burger is bigger and the beef patty was juicy. I prefer the Mary's burger over the cheeseburger that I had on my first visit because of the addition of the lettuce and the tomato. So greasy but hey when are damn good burgers not? If one patty is still too small for you, I would suggest getting a double (or triple!!!) beef patty with trash-can bacon. Went to Mary's CBD for my birthday last year and got so full on the double patty burger.

Fried Chicken Burger ($12.00)

While the fried chicken may not be available (unless it pops up as a special...more on that later), you can still find it in the form of a fried chicken burger. So messy to handle but the crispness coated with Mary's tangy sauce and sloppy tasty cheese was worth getting your hands dirty.

Fried Chicken and Waffles - Easter Special item ($15.00)

As I have mentioned earlier, special one off items pop up for a very limited time only at the CBD store. This can be available for one week or even one day only (usually from 3pm on the day with a super quick announcement on their Instagram page). So it's no surprise when you literally blink and miss out on them like myself countless times. One thing that I didn't miss out was their recent Easter special menu item. Thankfully it was available for a whole week since I only found out on the first day on my way home and you know how much I love my fried chicken! While you don't end up getting any cutlery (unless you ask), the fried chicken was crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. Combined with the sweet and crispy waffle and the crispier bacon (omg bacon!!!), this dish was a total guilty pleasure. Hope to see it making a comeback in the near future.

While there's no seats and the food will definitely not help you lose any weight, it has its charms that wooed most of the mates who have tried it with me in the past. The burgers at the CBD store are also cheaper than the original Newtown restaurant. If you aren't keen on waiting in the weekday lunchtime queues, dinner service and weekends have been less busy from what I've noticed. Whether you like or hate Mary's you can't deny that it has played a role in kick starting the intense burger craze that is happening in Sydney right now.

Mary's City
154 Castlereagh Street, Sydney NSW 2000
https://instagram.com/marysnewtown/
Mon-Sun: 10:00am - 10:00pm

Product Review: Domino's Pizza - New Pulled Pork Range

A few years ago, you don't see that much restaurants serving pulled pork in whatever form. Times have changed and pretty much every second or third restaurant now has it whether it's a pulled pork roll, pulled pork burger or even a pulled pork pizza. It's no surprise that Domino's Pizza has released a new range of Chef's Best pulled pork pizzas for you to sample this delicacy without the need to travel.

Hickory BBQ Pulled Pork

The first slice I've tried was the Hickory BBQ Pulled Pork, which contains generous amounts of tender pulled pork, red onion, capsicum, mozzarella and a hickory BBQ sauce swirl. It was quite sweet from the sauce and the red onion. While the pulled pork was slightly dry, it didn't really bother me. While I enjoyed this pizza as it was well balanced with between the pulled pork and the veggies, the folks thought this pizza was too sweet for their liking. Reminded me of the classic Supreme pizza with a pulled pork twist with these toppings.

Chilli Lime Pulled Pork

The Chilli Lime Pulled Pork Pizza (pulled pork, crunchy Vietnamese slaw, mushrooms, red onion, baby spinach on creme fraiche with mozzarella on a chilli lime drizzle) ended up being the favourite for the parents due to its abundance of veggie toppings and unique flavours. While I'm generally not a fan of creme fraiche, there wasn't much of it detected in the toppings so I actually enjoyed it. The white-based pizza did have a strong ginger-like flavour and the chilli lime was a tad spicy. With all those toppings and Asian-inspired flavours, it was different to the usual fare I've had at Domino's in the past.

Pulled Pork Meatlovers

Thought that the Pulled Pork Meatlovers (tender pulled pork, Italian sausage, pepperoni, rasher bacon, mozzarella on a Hickory BBQ sauce) was pretty similar to the regular Meatlovers pizzas except with extra pulled pork. While I liked the smoked flavour and aroma, the abundance of different meats seemed to overshadow the pulled pork. Although the Pulled Pork Meatlovers had the same sauce as the Hickory BBQ Pulled Pork, it wasn't as sweet thanks to the different meats which pleased the folks. It is delicious option though if you love a meaty feast.

Belgian Hot Choc Fudge Brownies

For dessert, we got to try Domino's Belgian Hot Choc Fudge Brownies with hot fudge dipping sauce on the side. Initially I didn't have high expectations but I was surprised at how warm, soft and moist these brownies were. It felt so sinful when you pour the rich fudge sauce all over these baked treats.

The folks enjoyed it too and it's a good way to take a break from cooking for the night. The three pizzas and the brownies were more than enough for 4 or even 6 people to dig in since we had a good amount of slices for leftovers. While I'm not sure if the pulled pork pizzas will be on the permanent menu, it was a tasty experience trying a new range of flavours with the family instead of the usual favourites. 

DISCLAIMER: The Random Foodie was invited to sample the pizzas, courtesy of Domino's Pizza. Opinions are however, my own.

Domino's Pizza
1300 DOMINOS
http://www.dominos.com.au/

Speaking of food delivery, don't forget to enter my Menulog giveaway! Entries close at midnight on Monday 1st September 2014.