Shinara Grill and Lounge, Sydney

Usually on this blog, I try to remain positive. No eatery is perfect, so I try and focus on the many positives rather than lingering on the bad aspects of the meal. Unfortunately, this becomes quite impossible to do when the bad outweighs the good. And so begins the story of Shinara...

Once upon a time, three hungry bloggers sat at Ton Ton, awaiting an 8pm reservation at Shinara to celebrate a fellow blogger's birthday. They were cold, they were hungry, and they were being lured by the smell of Japanese curry, ramen and chicken karaage. But they resisted, for everyone knows not to eat before an all-you-can-eat BBQ dinner. Little did they know that they would remain hungry and unsatisfied for another 4 hours...

Eager to fill their stomachs with meat, they arrived early at their reservation, and sat perusing the menu until they were joined by five more bloggers. Drinks were ordered, toasts to the birthday boy were made, and gifts were given. Formalities now aside, it was time to order the food.

And with a press of a button, a waitress was called, who attentively (or maybe not so attentively) wrote down their selections from the premium buffet menu ($39.50). "Ox tongue!", "Wagyu!", "Corn!", "Korean pancake!", "And the pork neck!", "Ooh let's get the beef rib!", "Oh... and the edamame as well please". It marked the start of their 60 minute time limit for ordering, and 90 minute time limit for eating. They were pleased with their choices, and now sat awaiting the arrival of their food.

(clockwise from left) edamame, takoyaki, korean chilli radish, kimchi

Bourke Street Bakery Carrot Cake

The other day, I received a random facebook message from Rachel, another food-loving friend of mine. This came across as a bit strange since we haven't spoken for a while. "I love Bourke Street Bakery!" it read, "and their pork and fennel sausage roll is AMAZING!"

I completely understood her need to extol the virtues of Bourke Street Bakery - the first time I tasted their strawberry vanilla brulee tart I was telling anyone who would listen how awesome their stuff was. I was so sad when their store in Broadway closed because I used to visit their frequently for post-uni pastries and other carb-laden goodies.

When I came across this fluffy looking carrot cake on Almost Bourdain and saw that it was a Bourke Street Bakery recipe, I had to make it just to get another taste of that BSB awesomeness. And it didn't disappoint - it was a light and moist cake with bags of flavour and of course it just gets better with lashings of cream cheese frosting and candied walnuts. This may just be the best carrot cake ever.

Ripples at Sydney Wharf, Pyrmont

It's been a bit quiet on the blogfront here, and uni is solely to blame. The thing is I haven't stopped eating and cooking and so a sizeable backlog of photos is developing which I have yet to post about. Hopefully there will be more frequent posts from now on but I'm not guaranteeing anything because I think the onslaught of assignments and exams has only just begun!

It was my parents' anniversary and they were jetsetting off to Europe for 3 weeks to celebrate (they've been back for a while now, which just goes to show how late I am with this post). We wanted to have one last family lunch together before my sister and I became parentless for 3 weeks, and we decided to go to Ripples at Sydney Wharf in Pyrmont.

Beef shortrib bourguignon, creamy parmesan and parsley pomme puree - $27

Ripples currently have a lunch promotion running which lets you have one of four mains, a glass of wine or beer plus coffee or tea for $29, Monday to Friday, which my parents and Sir D took advantage of. Dad chose the beef shortrib bourguignon, which was two fat beef ribs with the meat so tender it only needed a fork to prise it easily off the bone. The pomme puree was magically creamy and soft - it was so good I kept stealing some off his plate.

Vegetarian tasting trio: Potato and leek soup with gruyere toast, mushroom and rosemary risotto, goats cheese pomme dauphine - $28

Spaghetti with Cherry Tomatoes, Ricotta and Spinach

One of the very first cookbooks I received as a gift was from my sister for my 18th birthday. At the time, I had no idea who Bill Granger was or what he was well known for, but flipping through Simply Bill I could immediately tell that Bill Granger's approach to food was all about simplicity and a focus on fresh ingredients.

A while back I visited Bills in Surry Hills for dinner and my sister ordered this spaghetti dish which looked so minimalistic on the menu but was bursting with flavour. I remembered seeing the dish in Simply Bill so I tried out the recipe at home and was surprised at how simple it was to recreate.

The ricotta imparts a lovely creaminess to the pasta dish while roasting the vegetables brings out the natural sweetness from the onion and richness from the tomatoes. Toss it all into some cooked pasta with some baby spinach and you have yourself a quick and tasty dinner in no time!