Holy Basil- Canely Heights Review

A few years ago, I used to frequent Canely Heights like almost once a month- I'm quite the seasoned grocery shopper so when Holy Basil first opened there I didn't think much of it because Canely Heights is a second Viet Central apart from Cabramatta. It was until I noticed how busy Holy Basil was that I was interested in eating there but back then the only reason why I would be in Canely Heights was to eat Vietnamese food and when they started to make a name for themselves luck wasn't on my side as I barely go to the suburb anymore. 

As fate would have it (no destiny at play), grocery shopping took me back to Canely Heights and finally an excuse to eat at Holy Basil. After hearing good feedback from some friends I had high expectations, without a booking I had to wait around 10 minutes for a table for two. Initially I loved how they employed the buzzer system like those in Korean restaurants and pretty Korea itself, because that gets rid of those awkward moments when you're not ready to order or when you need to get a waiters attention but don't want to make a fool of yourself. Now, that sounds good and all except for the fact that when you press the buzzer your table number shows up on a board and when someone else presses after you, your table number appears smaller and obviously the more people simultaneously pressing their respective buzzers... well don't even think about service and even when someone notices that you've pressed your buzzer I'm pretty sure they forget about it the next minute. Out of the five or so occasions that I wanted service, NO ONE CAME TO ME! It was only when I physically talked that I got noticed. 

If you're not sure what to pick then a safe option is always the chef's favourites of which consists of the duck salad and roast pork belly featured below.

Roast Duck Salad $16.90

What you see is what you get and that is literally the case for this humble roast duck salad. Whoever said that good things come in small packages obviously lied when it applied to food. For practically $17, a small bowl of duck coriander, onion, cherry tomatoes, bean sprout, carrots, cucumber and plum sauce is a TOTAL RIP OFF. That said, it was quite nice apart from being too salty but still I cannot get over how overpriced the food was. 

Seafood Combination Panang Curry $17.90

LOVE IT LOVE LOVE IT

enough said, spicy is good

Roast Pork Belly in Chilli Basil & Garlic Sauce $18.90

Well flavoured, slightly spicy but paired well with the bamboo shoots and capsicum

Holy Basil Fried Ice-cream $13.90

Dessert itself was lovely, it is truly worth being dubbed their signature dessert and is a must order dish if you're at Holy Basil for the first time. The roast coconut on the side is to die for, that's simply how good it is and the phyllo pastry like coating together with the ice-cream and sticky caramel is just sensational. Warning may be too sweet for one person to enjoy and sharing is caring so my advice is not to tackle this one alone.

 My only problem was that when I got my spoon it had rice stuck to it and if it weren't for my good eyesight it would've gone unnoticed, I know a wonderful to cap off a night filled with good food but small overpriced portions served with terrible service. 

Ampersand on Crown Cafe, Bar & Bookstore Review

Surry Hills is absolutely littered with fabulous cafes, bars, restaurants and let's not forget that the one and only Bourke St Bakery is in Surry Hills as well. Originally I wanted to go to Rustic Pearl but like so many other stores (i.e. Mak Mak) they suffer a bout of Monday-itis and so to my dismay they were god forbid, CLOSED! But that's okay because just next door is the book cafe/bar or you can refer to it by its proper name- Ampersand on Crown which is distinguished from The Book Kitchen which is also in Surry Hills. One of the best things about Ampersand, or at least I think it's great, is that it is next door to Surry Hills Library (the library is also spectacular) and that means that you can leech off their free wifi because nowadays that's a hot commodity, agreed.

Latte and Chai Latte

Because starting off with coffee is always a good idea for me and my fellow sleepy companion. I may not be the best judge for coffee but I trust myself to tell good coffee from bad and this coffee was good.

Ricotta Pancakes served with Banana & Mixed Berry Coulis 

So I guess I'm not the only one who cannot achieve those perfect flat looking pancakes with that even golden-brown colour all the way round. Pancakes were just full of buttery goodness, thankfully they weren't that fat and the grilled banana together with the berry coulis so just heavenly. Or maybe because they paired two of my favourites fruits but I'm not complaining except I would've like for some more maple syrup mainly because I'm a sauce person so you can never really have enough sauce in my books.

Morning-After Breakfast: Bacon, Eggs, Sausage, Mushrooms, Roasted Tomato, Spinach & Toast

It's hard to go wrong with such a classic breakfast combo so I won't say much on this but it is a good feed.

Mak Mak Review

MACARON JOURNEY COMPLETE!!!!

Thank to all my lovely readers who have been following me splurge my hard earned monies on macarons but I have finally bought all the macarons that I wanted to...in Sydney that is, one day I'll be snacking on them in Paris from Peirre Hermes and Maison Saint-Honore but till that day I'll just have to make do with what Sydney has to offer. Mak Mak may not be as well known as Zumbo but they are certainly on par with them if not better, I'm of the opinion that they're SO MUCH BETTER and yes they truly deserve the title of best macarons in Sydney chosen during a blind taste test.

All the way down King St towards St Peters is Mak Mak Macarons. This is what it looks like from the outside guys so take note of this because there is no sign.

Box of 12 for $34

$3.20 each

Marvel at that sight because I had no regrets pigging into that

Overall Comments:

Lovely consistent shell which thankfully was not hollow, read on about my CreAsion macaron story to find out more, with the best ganache flavours. Like Zumbo, Mak Mak also chooses to add special surprises in their centre like a whole macadamia for example

Peanut Butter & Belgian Milk Chocolate (Blue)- Peanut Butter centre encased with milk chocolate ganache

Raspberries and Cream- Creamy white chocolate ganache balanced with fresh raspberries

Personal favourite of mine, great flavour and you can really tell that it has been made using fresh raspberries

Green Tea Latte- if you've read my Tom n Toms post then you'll know that I'm a sucker for green tea lattes. First of all, how cute is the design, Mak Mak simply tops everywhere else for presentation. How they do, I'm dying to know but I guess the only way to find out is to enter their macaron class which I shall do... one day. Then the taste, OMG so so good, the matcha is really strong but that mean that it's truly worthy of calling itself a green tea latte.

Banana, Macadamia & Coffee (Seasonal Flavour)- Coffee infused shells with milk chocolate and banana ganache and a whole macadamia centre

Even though the coffee is infused, it flavour is still very much present along with the banana.

Rhubarb & Rose

Salted Caramel- Rich, luscious caramel with bursts of Maldon sea salt 

Strawberries & Cream

Smoked Vanilla & Pecan Praline- Belgian milk chocolate ganache laced with apple wood-smoked vanilla beans topped with crunchy pecan praline

Nectarine, Raspberry& Vanilla (Seasonal Flavour)- Vanilla and white chocolate ganache surrounds a unique two-tone jelly made with fresh nectarines and raspberries.

Bellini (Peach & Prosecco) another seasonal flavour- Fresh peach and Prosecco ganache

Cherry, Mango & Passionfruit (Seasonal Flavour)- A centre of black cherry jelly surrounded by mango and passionfruit ganache

Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Lemon & Dark Chocolate- Dark chocolate ganache enriched with extra virgin olive oil and a sound hit of lemon 

Rounding off the list

Bitter's personal macaron list for Sydney:

1. Mak Mak Macarons

2. Baroque Bistro/ La Renaissance

3. Adriano Zumbo

4. Laudree

5. Cre Asion

Lindt Cafe Review

One of the 12 000 people that bought this Groupon, I know that's quite a feat to garner the interest of 12 000 people and their credit card/paypal details.

The Deal: $19 Chocolate Platter for 2 worth $45.50

• Brownie $5
• Lindt chocolate cake $5
• Delice Excellence 70% $3 (macaron)
• Delice Vanilla $3 (macaron)
• Three Lindor Balls $3.60
• Single scoop of ice cream $5.50
• Dark chocolate shavings $0.15
• Pot of chocolate sauce $3.50
• Lindt Swiss Thin $0.25
• Chantilly Cream $2.50
• Two ultimate Lindt hot chocolates $14

Aerial shot because they're cool

Up close

I don't think I need to say much, chocolate speaks for itself and when you attach the name Lindt, words cannot do justice to how good it is especially when you combine it with nuts, chocolate sauce, cream and ice-cream

DIY hot chocolate with an additional Lindor ball, as there was a premonition- free Lindor ball with each drink. Simply pour the milk into the mug then chocolate to your liking and stir, drink, enjoy and savour that lovely taste. If you like to have some fun and be artistic then make sure you pour out the foam as well otherwise the chocolate just seeps right through.

 Previously on sale at Woolworths for $3
Strawberry Cheesecake is really good

"Nice to Sweet You"

Pie Tin Review

A 90%+ satisfaction rating is hard to come by in urbanspoon, so when you see it you know you just have to try it out for yourself. Taking the humble pie, Pie Tin offers a range of savoury and sweet pies  with the choice of sides such as fries, side or mash. So if you're looking for a good feed, without hurting your pocket then drop by Pie Tin, it's not too far off from King Street, Newtown and when you're there look out for the 'Pie that ate Newtown', it's monstrous.

 Classic Apple crumble $7.50 and $1.00 for ice-cream
Nothing beats a good apple pie oh except for ice-cream served on a cold day because desserts are best savoured, enjoyed and appreciated in such weather. You can probably tell from the photo but the slice (which is quite big) has a lovely thick short crust pastry which I have yet to achieve myself (I get so jealous whenever I have tarts and what not because I can't replicate myself), a healthy serving of crumble with apple slices below. 

Slow roasted shredded pork with apple and BBQ sauce $7.80
In terms of pie ranking, I have to say that Pie Tin ranks amongst the top, perhaps just below Black Star Pastry's lamb shank and red wine pie. Apple in a savoury meal may be uncommon and perhaps frowned upon but let me tell you otherwise because the apple in this pie works wonders. Succulent, juicy meat with thick pastry, a bit on the crunchy side and not the buttery flaking pastry that I love but the flling more than compensates for the void left by the pastry. And if apple really turns you off like it did to one of my eating companions then fret not because they offer other delectable pies but be warned , the popular flavours sell out quickly.

Bally Outlet Store in Sydney

To be honest this post has been sitting in my drafts folder for well over 3 months now, I don't know why I have delayed it for this long but with Christmas fast approaching, this post should be helpful to a few of you. Pitt Steet Mall, Martin Place and Castlereagh St and QVB are well known for being home to some of the biggest fashion houses and luxury brands, what often goes unnoticed is the factory outlet stores. Yes we shan't forget about DFO but has anyone ever mentioned to you the Bally Outlet Store in St Peters- it is, correct me if I'm wrong the only outlet store of a major fashion house in Sydney that isn't a licensee of DFO but with the Homebush developments- Sass & Bide, Salvatore Ferragamo, Burberry and other labels will open up their own outlet stores in DFO.

As a forewarning, do bear in mind that as an outlet store, the range is quite limited from the previous seasons, that said they do have a wide selection of shoes and clothes. So if you're looking to indulge yourself or someone special then perhaps, the Bally Outlet Store may be worth your while and yes everything is on sale- all year round with bigger discounts available at certain times of the year.

 Address: 8 Canal Road St Peters 

Reasons for my visit:
I love shopping, and I love shopping for others so when my mum gave me her handbag challenge I had no idea if I could even meet your requirements.

They were:

• ideally under $300 
• leather- the good type and not the artificial or combination that you usually find in most mid-tier shops
• Colour should be tan/camel/brown or a reddish-brown
• Long handle or short handle with a strap
• No bling, no tassels, i.e. minimal everything
• A certain size and style for a mature aged woman

I have a very picky mother if you can't tell already, but the biggest challenge was the price and whilst I didn't adhere to it strictly (you can tell from below), price is usually of the biggest discriminants when purchasing something. So now that you know that this place exists, I hope I helped someone out whoever you may be. Below are some photos of the bag that I decided on.

 RRP: $595, paid $357 (40%  discount)

Gelato Messina Monoporzione Review

Of the two occasions that I've been to Gelato Messina Darlinghurst, both have been marked by bad weather but that didn't stop me from indulging in gelato. I feel that a lot of us don't reward ourselves enough, one of the mottos I live by is: live well, eat well so whenever I have the opportunity to treat myself to good food I do so. I hope that I'm not the only one.

Yes Peter $10
Milk chocolate gelato | Passionfruit puree gel |Passionfruit curd |
Chocolate almond dacquoise

What can I say; simply marvellous. I love passionfruit, the passionfruit puree gel just bursts in your mouth, it's quite refreshing. Chocolate is always a safe choice, you really can't go wrong and the chocolate almond dacquoise adds texture to the dessert so that it is not just gelato with gelato.

The Choc Pot Review

Newly opened Choc Pot offered a quiet and relaxing sanctuaryfrom the harsh wind and rain and soothing medicine in the form of chocolate to recuperate after an exam. Although, there is minimal seating inside, you'll find that it is quite intimate.

Studying and food comes hand in hand for anyone who doubts this matrimony

Top left are the lights, I found them quite adorable how they seemed caged

Mango sencha $4.50

I'm adding this tea on my list of teas to buy when I need to replenish my supplies. It has a lovely mango scent which isn't overpowering but rich enough to meet my standard for how strong my teas need to be. 

Chocolate Soufflé with salted carmel sauce $12

Nothing beats chocolate on a cold and rainy day, it's one of the best ways to lift one's spirit. The salted caramel sauce went well with the sweet soufflé and before you know it you're already at the stage where you're scraping off the edges and licking your spoon wishing for more.