Sourced Grocer @ Teneriffe

Dropped in Sourced Grocer in Teneriffe.

Exciting little fresh produce shop with cafe specializing in local produce made with attention and care. Owner Jerome’s point of difference is sourcing out passionate producers and running his own truck to collect the goods himself to bring it to his customers. The shop is small but organized and stylish. The coffee is good and the deli showcases all the great produce sold here. We had the sourced sandwich, a iced latte and took home some Bangalow Cheese and cultured butter, and fresh fruit and veg.

Chatting with Jerome and great to see a business like his thriving. We share a common philosophy of truly believing in the quality of what we sell and enjoying it at the same time. I have always been keen to increase the amount of organic produce we use so seeing if he can help me source some organic shallots.

Just a few of the brands that I picked up.
Blendale Organic Poultry
The Original Bangalow Pork
Bangalow Cheese Co
Pepe Saya Butter
Brambah Organics (Dairy)
Cup Coffee
Choquette Breads

The sandwich was delish. The bread is wholesome and fills you up. Juicy sweet tomatoes, ripe avos, salad, the dressing is yum and the Bangalow ham and the aged Swiss or jarlsberg cheese also very nice. Coffee by cup in westend is sweet and aromatic.

Also inspired by the open warehouse style setting and decor.

オーガニックや小規模生産者の商品を中心に取り扱っている八百屋兼カフェ。置いている商品を盛り沢山で詰め込むサンドイッチは新鮮ヘルシーでうまい。コーヒーも美味しく、店の雰囲気も楽しくて超オススメです！

Oktoberfest

Came to the festival for the first time. Yes I admit, the catch copy of “you had me at pork nuckle” was the persuading point.

Tried all three biers. Lager, wheat and dark. All very good. A festival with German tap beer as the main spot light. It’s good stuff.

Sausages supplied by Goitzinger. Purchased the Frankfurter and Bratwurst. Brat looks appealing with pepper and herbs and frank looks relatively bland but the frank is about the smoking. The meat and skin are crispy having had enough moisture taken out through the process. Both very good though. The knuckle was perhaps more a novelty. I am sure I can do much better considering the potential of the meat. It’s got all those good inter connecting cartilage tissue that would turn into great gelatinous moist chunks of meat as long as its been cooked properly. The meat was roasted too long and skin was dehydrated and even the insides became a bit dry. And the seasoning ha not seeped in enough. Still an exciting dish to have in front of you with cold beer!

ekka

Ekka, the once a year event where you pay heaps to enter a park to spend heaps for rides, games, overpriced food and grog. And pay again and again, and again… Have to admit the once a year novelty and the kid’s sheer expectations to the extent that they will actually behave if they want to be taken to ekka does loosen the wallet.

Since last year, starting off the festivities with fresh SA coffin bay oysters and some bubbles has become a routine. Actually not a bit of respect paid to the agricultural highlights of QLD but what the heck. The Ocean Kings were a bit of a let down this year. The oysters superb, and the Seppelt sparkling, fleur de lys? was really good. The can bottles of crown lager were cute too. Mini hot dogs from goitzinger not bad at all.

Obviously we can’t go home without the strawberry sundaes.

We passed the dagwood and went for meat on the bone. A roasted turkey leg and pork ribs with chips. Both a feast for the eye but unfortunately not equally great in the mouth. Both meats a bit gamey and lacking flavoring. Perhaps too spoilt as I always get to eat Bangalow Sweet Pork. Tons of BBQ sauce to save the lack of flavoring!

Not pictured, also let our appetites roam free on coffee, frozen coke, honey doughnut puffs, strawberry gelato from the Greek Youghurt Company. beautiful and the kids only day in the year when they can have two ice cream in the space of 30minutes!

My show bag! Beautiful proper smoked small goods from goitzinger!

The kids got their rides and daddy tried to impress them with the hammer scale game which ended up a pretty average 118 out of 150, with a pretty average prize being a smallish stuffed snake.

All in all, had a great time!

Pho Hoang Gia @ Fortitude Valley

Close to the city, open 7 days, pretty good pho. Some how we find ourselves heading here regularly.

This time we tried the beef stew with clear and egg noodle the egg noodle was undercooked and very mushy.

Others all good.

I like ordering ice lemon tea no sugar.

Mitoki @ Kangaroo Point

Izakaya cuisine with touch screen ordering. Service has brought in all the good that japanese service is all about, personal with nice smile, efficient and high tech! Jamon iberico melts in your mouth, the seared tuna caeser salad with soft poached egg yummy! Being an izakaya, their selection of sake is abundant.

Through their menu including food and drink, I can see their philosophy of trying to be different and I like that. Their dimmed lighting and decor with attention to detail along with quality traditional chinaware should appeal to customers looking for a quality personal experience.

Courier Mail Review

We were recently picked up as one of the best ramen in Brisbane.  They let us choose which ramen to picture so I chose the Tsukemen.  This one, I believe is already currently pretty close to perfect, meaning not much more I can alter to make it any better.  Tonkotsu, Shoyu and others, I still need to keep working on. 

http://www.couriermail.com.au/life/fooddrink/brisbanes-best-ramen/story-fn8wa7yw-1226112998864

 

Brisbane’s best ramen

Asian influence

It’s fast food, but not as we know it. In Japan there’s a ramen shop on just about every corner, but in Brisbane, they’re only just starting to take off. Believed to have originated with the Chinese, ramen are basically noodles in a flavoured broth. However, aficionados will tell you there are good and bad as well as many variations, favoured by the inhabitants of different regions of Japan. Hearty, healthy and good value. Eschew the burger and fries for a bowl of steaming ramen at the pick of Brisbane’s ramen shops.

Natascha Mirosch, Food Editor

Taro’s Ramen and Cafe

Ground Level, Boeing House
363 Adelaide Street, City
Ph 3832 6358

A more sophisticated offering than usual, both in seating options and menu. No MSG or preservatives are used and the pork is quality Bangalow pork, while the special water (must be referring to Kansui or lye water, ie sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate) used to make the noodles is imported from Japan. There are around half a dozen ramen, from the Tonkotsu to a fiery Tonkotsu, Shio or Golden Triple Soup – a chicken, vegetable and seafood broth with prawn oil. Each large bowl comes with generous amounts of spring noodles, as well as, from boiled egg halves to nori and bamboo shoots, priced between $13.80 and $15.80. (prices now 13.90 to 15.90)

Hakataya Noodle

Shop 27B Sunnybank Plaza,
Cnr Mains Rd & McCullough St, Sunnybank
Ph 3344 1313

You’ll know you’ve found it from the line that begins forming from 11am. This is a sister to the popular Hakataya noodle shop in Surfers Paradise. Order at the counter and take a number to one of the outdoor tables or squeeze in at the bench and watch the action in the kitchen. The menu has four types of ramen priced between $10 and $13, from the clear broth of the Nagahama with thin slices of pork and spring onions to a miso-based and richer Karaka men. They come with a side of spicy pickles and extra noodles are free if you ask for them when ordering.

Men-Jikan

1/16 Railway Parade, Geebung
Ph 3265 5665

Terry Forbes fell in love with ramen on a visit to Japan. A chef who is self taught in the art of ramen, he opened this simple ramen shop in Geebung in mid-2011. A master miso paste is the basis of many of the ramen broths that come in eight types, from soy to butter and corn or a spicy miso. All have generous amounts of meat and are garnished with half a soft-boiled egg and other goodies like fermented bamboo shoots. Prices are from $10-$16.

Back at Men-Jikan

Miso Butter Corn and Gyoza with my daughter. 

Takeaway Gyudon, Gyoza, Side Salad, and Pickles for wife and other daughter both home with the flu…

Brisbane News Review No.2

Brisbane News has reviewed Taro’s once again. This time by serious restaurant reviewer Tony Harper.  Click on the edition with the title “Stage Corps”, the review article is on page 17.   

http://www.brisbanenews.com.au/index.html

As the Ramen Missionary, I feel satisfied when I see my ramen being so highly commended by the likes of Tony who knows his gastronomy.  I am also glad Tony took notice of my passion for sake shochu and wine.  Perhaps this article will be the start of the Brisbane ramen boom?!

 

Best Sushi in Brisbane? easy answer…

“Sushi” well-recognized by Brissies thanks to outlets like LR and Top Sushi, frankly, is not authentic sushi.  The term sushi means vinegared rice so technically, the “sushi” these outlets sell are sushi but they are more accurately “sushi rolls” and nothing more.  We also sell sushi rolls, however I would never say that I am a sushi chef.  I simply do it to offer healthy safe eating options to complement my cafe menu.  My sushi rolls use gluten-free ingredients, premium short grain rice and organic seaweed.  Anyway these sushi rolls are not “The Sushi” Japanese people refer to when they speak about the delicacy they love and sometimes do not hesitate forking out fortunes for. 

There is probably only one outlet in Brisbane that I can highly recommend in this regard.  This is ”Fresh Sushi Co.”  Being jointly run by the fish market, you are guaranteed freshness.  And the skills of co-owner Narita san, the executive sushi chef, is magnificent.  So accurate and the presentation is simply pure finesse.   

<a href=”http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/337/1434707/restaurant/Queensland/Fresh-Sushi-Co-Fortitude-Valley”><img alt=”Fresh Sushi Co on Urbanspoon” src=”http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/1434707/biglink.gif” style=”border:none;width:200px;height:146px” /></a>

Look at these beautiful plates. 

Chirashi

Moriawase

I can also recommend Hatsuhana in the Gold Coast Sea World Resort and the Tsuruya restaurant in Yeppoon Ridges Capricorn Resort.  These resorts are both run by Japanese companies that have extensive knowledge and high standard of service in Japanese hospitality industry.  Yuga in Surfers used to be really good but I have heard their chef changed and since have not been back to check myself.

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