Pafu, Melbourne Central MELB

I’ve walked past Pafu a few times whilst commuting around in the CBD and never once did it cross my mind to try it out myself. For those unfamiliar, creamy types of sweets do not appeal to me but rather, receive the opposite reaction. 

I have bought a few for a friend as a treat and after much contemplation, I thought it’ll be nice to bring some home for sharing. Flavours include pineapple, apple, strawberry and a chocolate version; in addition to savoury options for those wanting protein alternatives. 

Priced at $16 for 4 pieces, they weren’t exactly the cheapest snack in my books. I tried the Apple and strawberry flavoured puff pastries that very night after purchasing some a couple of hours prior. 

The verdict? The delicious fruity filling and flaky puff pastry was a winning combination albeit its seemingly ordinary appearance. Despite using jam/preserve as a filling, I was surprised at how fresh and flavourful it was. 

Definitely worth a try and I would recommend getting the ones that came out freshly baked from the oven. 

Shujinko, Glen Waverley MELB

The sister can be very predictable with her food choices and is no stranger to the many ramen restaurants around Melbourne. Affordable, delicious and filling best describes her regular choice of restaurant, with the exception of her intermittent fine dining indulgence.

Post-work grocery shopping followed by devouring a bowl of heart warming ramen best described last Thursday's outing.

Chicken karaage - fried chicken that arrived piping hot at our table.

Shujinko ramen - rich pork broth and a good serve of grilled pork belly.

Tsukumen - I am a fan of tsukumen aka Japanese dipping noodles whereby both broth and noodles are separated. Generous serve of chopped pork belly came with the broth. I found it a little salty towards the end of my meal but overall, had thoroughly enjoyed it.

Gyoza - a little different from the Chinese version that I am used to but nonetheless, delicious it was.

Cafe Carpenter, Malvern East MELB

A long overdue catch up which led me to choose this quaint little cafe located along Waverley road. While it was not overly crowded when we appeared, I would recommend making reservations to avoid disappointment.

Having said that, outdoor seating can be considered, granted the weather permits it. Akin an izakaya aka Japanese pub scene, whereby diners can sit close to the bar for dinner and a chat with staff members, the atmosphere felt welcoming.

Spoilt by a myriad of alcoholic beverage choices, locally and internationally sourced, we declined having a few drinks for fear of not being in the right mental state at work the following day. As compensation, we fed ourselves well that night.

Japchae - Korean stir fried noodles tossed in vegetables and thin slices of beef. Not too bad but can do better with a little more seasoning.

Bossam - steamed pork belly served with lettuce, kimchi, carrot, cucumber and ssamjang soy paste. A little pricey for the portion served but aside from that, I liked the fact that a leaner cut of pork belly was used. Less guilt involved post consumption.

L.A galbi - marinated BBQ beef ribs served with lettuce and ssamjang sauce. One of my favourite dishes for the night. Sticky, sweet and savoury flavours marred well in this dish. In hindsight, I wished this came with the option of a larger serve.

Seafood okonomiyaki - another highlight for the night as we can't get past how crispy and generously stuffed the pancake was. Perfect balance of chopped cabbage and seafood bits, drizzled in a sweet sauce and kewpie mayonnaise.

Hakata Gensuke Ramen Professional, Hawthorn MELB

Every now and then, I would crave for a bowl of non-commercially produced ramen that had been carefully prepared in the kitchen as opposed to in a factory. Having been to their first branch in the CBD, I had good faith that the Hawthorn branch would not disappoint.

Only downside is travelling here requires a bit of patience due to rush hour traffic congestion and lack of available parking nearby. Nevertheless, I still made it to the restaurant. More than a few minutes after the desired meeting time.

Chicken karaage - can we all take a pause and admire how round this piece of chicken is? Golden, crisp and juicy.

Signature tonkatsu - deliciously rich and well seasoned, topped with a generous amount of spring onions and black fungus. Both of us had to order a flavoured egg each to bump up our protein intake. Diners can choose how they want their noodles cooked be it al dente, soft or firm. I liked mine al dente and had thoroughly enjoyed each bite.

Gyoza - bite sized pan fried dumplings, not overly greasy and pleasantly flavourful.

Aya Teppanyaki, Armadale MELB

It has been sometime since I've last had teppanyaki and being that we are in a celebratory mood, this seemed to be appropriate for the occasion. Booking are absolutely necessary due to the limited seating area.

A bit of sake to get us started.

There are a few different set menus to choose from depending on one's hunger level. The sister and I opted for the fancier option, just to make sure we are well fed by the end of the night.

Tempura vegetables and prawn - freshly prepared appetizers.

Miso soup -

Salad mix -

Lobster tail - cooked in butter, soy sauce and a bit of sake. No qualms on having fresh seafood on my palate.

Lamb cutlet - ermm..the sister and I both had different sizes of this and truthfully, was a little let down because we felt that it was not a proper cut of meat..

Premier wagyu beef - can't say I am impressed with this cut of meat either. Yes, it was cooked perfectly but the quality of the meat was a let down as it did not resemble wagyu to us but rather, a regular piece of beef fillet..

Bean sprouts -

Fried rice - I do enjoy fried rice from teppanyaki restaurants and this one was a pretty delicious bowl. Not overly greasy and had a good distribution of eggs and chopped veggies amongst each grain of rice.

Vanilla ice cream -

Chayo, Clayton MELB

I am a big fan of Asian desserts and whenever a new outlet pops up within my vicinity, it won't be long until I make my way there. The weather was a blistering 34C that Sunday but being sleep
deprived did not stop me from crawling here after a filling lunch at a nearby dumpling restaurant.

The cafe is small and offers a decent selection of Japanese mains but what I was really after was a taste of their matcha drinks/desserts. Would love to a cool matcha/yuzu drink but decided on a warm up instead.

Matcha latte - not overly sweet or creamy and had a good aroma of matcha in it. I do like my caffeinated drinks sweet but hey, I wouldn't mind another cup of this.

Strawberry shortcake - having been to Japan a couple of times and both times, failed to have a slice of strawberry shortcake. Henceforth, this piece would make up for it despite strawberry texture from both countries being far from similar. Overall a really yummy slice that had the right balance of sweetness and tartness.

Aoba, Malvern MELB

Lazy saturday evening calls for a quiet night spent at a quaint little Japanese restaurant in an attempt to reignite my zen mood prior to commencing work the next day. Story of my life summed up after working 5 days a week and waking up early for a non-existent shift.

Simple menu with favourite crowd-pleasers such as dons, sushi rolls and a few bento boxes for those looking for value for money.

Miso soup - first course to warm up our tummies.

Nasudengaku aka deep fried eggplant with sweet miso sauce - eggplant is well cooked through and generously topped with sauce. A little fiddly to consume as the entire eggplant held its shape pretty well but yummy nonetheless.

AOBA box - seaweed salad, spring roll, gyoza, takoyaki, vegetarian croquette with teriyaki chicken and rice.

S&S box - 8 pieces sashimi, 4 pieces sushi roll, 3 pieces nigiri and seaweed salad. No qualms about this box.

Sushi Jiro, Glen Waverley MELB

Andddd it's the weekend once more. Did a fair bit of cooking in anticipation of the coming week and seeing as I needed to get one more ingredient at the shops, lunch there wouldn't be a bad thing.

Having been to the newly opened food court once, I had a rough idea of what I wanted for a cheat meal. Sushi would have been considered a "clean" meal but I was more so interested in the deep fried options.

Would love to dine in at their corner but unfortunately, time is not on my side and so, a takeaway will have to do for now.

Had the soft shell crab with nori, aburi salmon and unagi rolls. I am a sucker for soft shell crab and loved how it was nicely paired with a bit of rice and topped with sweet mayo. Would gladly have ordered more if only it was more affordable. Unagi roll and aburi salmon were equally delicious and were given a generous lash of sauce for added sweetness.

Omi, Glen Waverley MELB

Last week's impromptu catch up brought me to Omi, conveniently located in the newly refurbished Glen shopping centre food court. The food court would usually be packed full on the weekends and having arrived just after the lunch period, we did not have to wait long before we could grab a bite.

Black truffle wagyu - so many different variations to choose from be it with mentaiko, sambal or without any fancy dressing. The truffle version won us over and it was creamy and very indulgent. Wagyu pieces were well seared although I can't really tell for sure if it is wagyu or not. Bed of rice had also been lightly seared and topped with furikake (Japanese rice seasoning) before being covered by the beef and sauce. Onsen egg added another touch of creaminess to the dish.

Truffle fries - crispy and sprinkled with thin curls of cheese and seaweed crumbs. Extremely addictive it was. One can only imagine what the salted egg version would taste like.

Overall, I did enjoy this quick meal and wouldn't mind popping by again. Reasonably priced for good quality food too:)

Isshin Japanese House, Forest Hill MELB

The siblings and I rarely do get an opportunity to spend time together and seeing as all of us have now relocated to Melbourne, we headed out for a buffet as our Chinese New Year reunion dinner. A win solution seeing as everyone can order what they want and eat to their heart's content.

At $43, this is a decent price to pay for a Japanese themed buffet that includes a small selection of sashimi, rolls, entrees, mains and desserts. Drinks are not included with the price tag. My word of advice would be to order everything you want when the waitress first takes your order as subsequent orders will be attended to at a much slower pace.

So what did we have *drum rolls*

Pork and vegetable gyoza - because dumplings signify wholeness, an important criteria for us auspicious folks.

Chicken skewers - hmmm...

Premier beef steak - labelled as premier, I am not sure if it does live up to it's name.

Fried rice - just to round off everything we had throughout the evening!

Beef tataki

Edamame - because I love veggies and need my fiber intake

Chicken karaage - a little greasy but still strangely satisfying.

Takoyaki - piping hot and beautifully presented.

Prawn tempura - Fried seafood here is yums

Unagi nigiri - slightly charred but still tasty

Beef tongue - chef may have overdosed the meat with MSG. I personally felt it would have done so much better without it.

Deep fried abalone - didn't get to try this

Salmon and kingfish sashimi - not the freshest or prettiest of cuts but for $43, I am not complaining at the unlimited flow of it.

Soft shell crab rolls - one of my favourite items to order and again, could do better with a bit more crab stuffed into it.

Tuna and prawn nigiri - delicious

Chawan mushi - aka steamed egg custard. Not bad

Fried mochi topped with red bean - at this stage of the meal, I was filled with fried goodness and still managed a bit of this. A little soaked in oil but the red bean paste convinced me to not get overly disappointed.

Matcha and black sesame ice cream -  absolutely loved the black sesame ice cream and even managed to have seconds.