Opening of Market week

Today was the official opening of Market week. And it was held a Fed Square on a beautiful sunny day.
There were lots and lots of people turning up including tourists. I had heaps of fun enjoying the seeing the  cupcake decorations, samples and free fruit.

Free fruit

The mussels which somebody had and it was $10 a bowl.

Tossing the ingredients which I saw

The cupcake stand on display

Strawberries on sale for $2 a punnet

More free samples

During the class many of the kids got to decorate cupcakes and take them home. The designs were judged and the winner got to take home a pack of four cupcakes.

There was also cooking demonstrations which I got to see and try stuff. These were from Ripe Organics.

There were free coffee samples but it was too late in the day for me to try anything

Many thanks to the South Melbourne, Queen and Prahran markets for this event. I enjoyed myself today. Thank you and see you again soon.

Luncheonette

Luncheonette is a little cute, kitchy place by the train station really close to the gates. I pass by it most mornings but have never been in until today.

Today was rather quiet coz everyone was already at work. But the noise of the boom gates and the trains was enough to startle me a little.
They do take aways as well as eat ins. And on weekends they get extremely busy.

But the food and the service made up for this. For this I ordered banana waffles ($12 for a small plate) and a long black ($3.50). The beans are by Coffee supreme; that might mean an extra strong for me.

I loved how clean and homely the bathrooms were. Most cafes I know don't put flowers in their bathrooms. But this one did

The waffles and bananas and nuts were organic which is good. I love all things that are organic. Organic is good for you. These were made fresh on the premises in their small kitchen which you can see. It is small but very homely.

Oh and they also do sandwiches and other baked goods. They looked really nice. Next time when I visit I'll have to try. And also try not to visit during peak hour in the morning when it becomes really noisy outside.

Helados en Jujaja

This is an Argentinean ice cream place located on Lygon st just opposite the Carlton Gardens.
It was hard to find at first, but now I've found it.

They are only opened in the afternoon and at night... not in the morning. And it is here where you can get fresh ice cream at a premium price. expect to pay $7.50 for two big scoops done in Argentinean style.

They just started back in October 2011 and have been steady ever since. It is here where a Malaysian student as noted by Meld shared her passion for ice cream with the rest of Melbourne.

Today I had the ever so popular salted peanut/caramel du leche ice cream and a vanilla one for $7.50. It was the best ones I have ever tried during my time in Aus.

I also sampled the wonderful Argentine tea speciality ($3.70) per pot and enjoyed it. It was a wild yak tibetian tea.

I think that during the summer when it is really hot I might just come and enjoy heaps of ice cream in the lovely shade. Its a great thing that today was really sunny when I went.

Kimukuran

This place is in Chinatown and run by the Chinese. It is a Japanese restaurant serving bentohs for $9-$10.
It is small, dark and dingy. I don't have any problems with the place being run by Chinese provided that they can serve good japanese food. I didn't smell the toilet smells as we were seated far away.
But sadly not except for the really good tempura and sashimi and dessert.
I had the tempura bentoh and agedashi tofu ($8 for a tiny plate). My good friend had the sashimi bentoh and he loved it. He loved the sauce.

The agedashi tofu was the worst that I tried. It had no flavouring to it. It was bland and awful
My tempura was great but the rice was not. The rice was gluggy and microwaved and the tempura sauce did not have any raddish to this. Instead it was sweet.
The pork looked overcooked and so was the gyoza. It was overcooked dry and bland.
The vegetable salad was overdressed for my liking but I loved the freshness of this.
I'm in two minds about the dessert. It was really hard to eat it with chopsticks but it was quite nice. It was jelly.
The green tea that came with it was good though.
All in all seeing as there is always new Japanese places I do not want to come back here again.

7 apples

7 Apples is a place that has been talked about for some time. It is one of the best gelato places in Melbourne. It is featured in many Asian Magazines. They won a few awards
It is near the St Kilda beach. Here you can take the number 96 tram and hope off at stop 139 and there it is.
There is no seating area.

Gelato is Italian ice cream which is low in fat and sugar. It is found all over Melbourne.
I signed up online for their free membership and scored a free ice cream. Yay!
So I had my favourite strawberry and lemon gelato in a cup. And boy were they nice. I loved the little flake in the ice cream. Heavenly.

I'd like to see what Meld thought of the ice cream at 7 apples. I shall be back during the summer to try their other five flavours.