Jack Daniel's inspired dinner at TGI Friday

Sponsored by Healthyinternational student site who asked us to help promote their book. They are raising money for the Salvation Army who need the funds for the homeless.

Everyday more and more people turn to the streets for many reasons, one being financial.

TGI Friday's have a 50% off the main discount. That is if you buy the book off us. And if you buy there might also be a $20 iTunes gift card for you thrown in for good measure.

There are two TGI Friday's in the city but I went to the one in Southbank. This one is much more open and inviting in terms of atmosphere. Here you can watch the NRL or footy on their live screens and enjoy the many specials by the bar.

TGI Friday's are known for their Jack Daniel's dishes and other Amercian foods. Think buffalo wings or the Jack Daniel's sampler plate. But they have a great range of artisanal burgers. I wanted to try the Jack Daniel's beef brisket burger. It comes with a side of chips and the classic Jack Daniel's BBQ sauce which is sweet. It's a pity that TGI Friday's don't sell the actual product and if they do good for them.

To offset all that sweetness I went for a Jack Daniel's inspired drink and that is bourbon and coke which was very strong in taste. The bartender knew what he was doing.

Do buy the Entertainment book here and you'll support their charity which is the Salvation Army.

The General Assembly

The General Assembly is a pub that serves American food. I have heard ok reviews from Pigging out around the world and others on zomato. Here I was invited by Dimmi so I did not have to pay for anything.

The place is a huge one showcasing beer.

They specialise in Matilda bay beers and old cans of beer. In fact they have a huge history of beers.

The service was quite slow even though the place was busy.  The guy that served me was attentive.

 Here I had two courses and bread and it was a filling meal. For the mains I had baby barramundi and for dessert I had the chocolate fondant

The fish was fresh and it was a small barramundi. It was not deboned but that is ok as Chinese we are used to eating the bone. Here it was cooked just right and it took fifteen minutes to cook. It came with lemon inside and lots of spring onion and coriander. The other table of eight didn't know what to do with theirs and they also didn't know it was quite small.

However a bowl for washing hands would be nice. In many Chinese restaurants bowls for washing hands are provided. Luckily though I was right near the bathroom.

The bread was small for $4 but I enjoyed their herbed butter very much so and the bread was chewy.

The chocolate fondant was a lovely way to finish off the evening. It was decadent and the ice cream was really good.

Rating: 15/20- good food but marred by the slow service.  I would just go there for a drink and not much else.

8 Bit

8 Bit is a burger place which is well talked about on Zomato. It is in Footscray and there is another one in the city. I went to the original one in Footscray on the way to the city. As a student I was looking for a cheap meal. I was also in the mood for some fried food.

The staff were friendly and at 6:20pm it was really quiet. For a hyped up place I would have thought that there would be huge queues but no such thing.

They don't just do burgers. They do other American stuff such as potato gems and hotdogs. I haven't had a hot dog in a while, so I ordered the original one for $7.50. It was like the Queen Victoria one except it was a little bit soggy. It was attached to the paper and when I ripped it from the paper some of the bread was stuck there.

The onion rings had too much batter on them and was a little bit undercooked. It tasted a little bit floury. I did however like the bacon sauce that went with it. 

I could have had a milkshake but I really just wanted dinner.

Rating: 17/20- liked it. They are here to stay for a while and it should be that way. I am glad that there is another one in the city and can't wait to go there.

Oh and they also have another store and its in the city on Swanston st. Do check that one out if you like this one

Alison Nelson's Handmade chocolates

There are a whole heap of new chocolate stores popping up in Melbourne and Alison Nelson is the latest one. Hailing from New York it is a success in Melbourne and it appears to be that RNIS is the first one to write about this.

Alison Nelson is in Emporium and they have only been open for six months. They caters for kids as well as Adults so Joyce from Mel: HOT OR NOT might actually enjoy this. She and all the parenting bloggers might actually like this place.

I came at 11:30am wanting coffee and cake. I saw the sign saying $7 for coffee and cake and the luscious looking cakes so I was tempted. That and I saw the handmade chocolates and thought "wow I must try". The handmade chocolates are $2.50 each but they are seriously THAT GOOD.

The service there was great and the waitstaff were very attentive. The American one was very friendly.

So I did. I had a piccolo and a chocolate cupcake. The cupcake was divine and was just like I would make at home which is not too sweet and not too moist. The piccolo was burnt and was bitter. But I loved the sublime lime handmade chocolate.

THERE WAS NO ARTWORK ON MY PICCOLO! I would love some artwork as Melbourne coffees have artwork on them.

Rating: 14/20-come for the chocolate and the chocolate drinks. They have a huge range of chocolate drinks which are not overpriced like Max Brenner. That and their chocolate gifts on display which are fun to look at and seriously addictive.