Alice Nivens Cafe

Take a step into wonderland and join Alice Nivens for afternoon tea.

Janet Wong's alter ego has manifested itself into the hidden gem that is her cafe. Tucked away in Port Phillip Arcade, Alice Nivens bakes delicious new treats everyday that are served alongside lovingly made coffee and tea (from Storm in a Teacup). 

The cupcakes, muffins and cakes change on a daily basis so there's always an excuse to come back and try something new.

If the sweets aren't enough to lure you in, simply popping by to chat with owner, Janet is as good a pick me up than any coffee will ever be. Her energy and passion is simply remarkable.

Open Monday to Friday, it's perfect for your early morning coffee or for a bit of afternoon tea.

Izakaya Den

How's everyone been?

I've just realised it's been a month since I last blogged so HERE YOU GO GUYS!

A little while ago my boyfriend and I decided to try out a highly recommended "modern"  Japanese bar/restaurant called Izakaya Den. Hidden away obscurely on Russel St, Izakaya den is an incredibly stylish and modern looking venue with a lengthy bar that appears to go on forever.

The decor is minimalist and the menus projected on the wall add to its Japanese flair, which just emphasizes style and function. Not to mention it's small but well organised open kitchen where the many chefs prepare your meals right before your eyes. Nothing is more reassuring than knowing the kitchen has nothing to hide.

Moving onto the food!

These are scallops with garlic butter and soy 

Gotzinger Pork sausages

Wagyu beef with a side of pickled cauliflower 

Spicy Tuna Tataki (I LOVE TUNA)

Duck Liver Parfait with Crispy Wonton skin

Sweet Japanese Pumpkin Creme Brulee

Everything was delicious and cooked to perfection. The scallops were succulent, the meat well cooked and properly rested, everything just bursting with flavour. My only fault would be that there wasn't enough wonton skin for the duck liver! haha

I washed our meal down with a lovely glass of Umeshu and Matcha tea, one of the few selections on their extensive drinks list. I highly recommend this place but try to go on a quiet night as they don't take bookings and the place can get CROWDED.

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As an apology for not writing a blog in so long, here is some more food porn.

Brie-gazm pizza from the Lucky Coq

Chocolate fondue for two

Burger and chilli fries from Soda Rock

Lamb rack, sweet potato puree, fondant potatoes and chorizo

Green tea Swiss roll

A spit roast at my friend's birthday party!

The cake above is the one I bought my dad for his birthday, it was raspberry and chocolate.

The first time I came to this sweets/cake store, I was met with a huge surprise....Julia from this year's masterchef was doing work experience there!

She was so friendly and TALL in real life (she's bending down for the photo) and her skin is lovely as well. I can't wait to go back, it's quite close to my work so i'll be making lots of visits.

Thanks for reading! Until the next blog~ (hopefully soon)

Put Your Paws Up!

Hello Readers,

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I hope you're all doing well. I've been having a really excellent holiday filled with lots of food and fun.

On the 1st of July I took my sister to the Born This Way Ball, Lady Gaga's concert. It was the most amazing concert I've ever been to, the 5 month wait was WELL worth it.

The stage was incredible and the show was intense! The whole stadium was jumping up and down and dancing. It's hard to believe that Gaga has so much raw talent and theatricality. 

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Back to business as usual, I've been eating a lot of food! So here it is....

Camembert Chicken Mignon

Barramundi and Lentils.

We also made a really FAR trip out to Narre Warren where the first ever Krispy Kreme Melbourne is. It was actually pretty cool, I got to see how the donuts are made on this giant conveyor belt. Even though I ate 3...which is the equivalent to eating 3 Big Macs....I regret nothing! They were so warm and sweet!

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Speaking of sweet.....My boyfriend and his friend attempted to make this cake last week. It's a passionfruit infused chocolate ganache cake. The recipe is from Heston Blumenthal and it's perhaps the most expensive and difficult cake to make EVER.

The main reason was frosting the cake.....

Other than a blow torch, we needed more power tools to finish the cake. We had to buy a paint spray gun from the local hardware store to frost it. It was well worth it though, the final look and finish of the cake was gorgeous! It was a rich and wonderful cake.

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So that's all for now, I'll see you guys next blog. I swear it'll be about something other than food, so keep an eye out!

Finishing with my new red shoes.

Chicco & Luxbite

Hello Readers!

I've cut my hair! It's now the shortest it's been since I was 14! What do you think?

Anyway back to business as usual, I've been to some rather delightful cafes lately and so I thought I'd share my experience.

As a part of our family day of togetherness we picked a new cafe to go to called Chicco. I'm really glad we chose this one cos I was extremely satisfied with the brunch we had there.

It's a very melbourne-style cafe so it's very quaint with lots of interesting interior decoration and even their own blend of coffee. My dad is even considering having his birthday here.

This is what I ordered, it was simply called The Baguette. It had eggs, organic bacon and their tomato chutney inside. This was possibly the best bacon I've ever had in my life. I'm not sure whether it being organic had to do with the amazing crispiness and flavour of the bacon but it was just perfect, I could not have asked for anything more.

A word of warning though, I don't recommend the salmon. It wasn't very fresh and tasted veeerryyy fishy.

Finally as usual my meal was finished with a nice cuppa tea.

I also noticed this on their wall on my way out, it's like a flower made of chairs. haha

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Now if you've got a sweet tooth, these next few pictures are for you!

Luxbite is a well-known cafe on Toorak road and has a wonderful selection of desserts.

Luxbite also has a very good reputation for their macarons, it's apparently one of Melbourne's top 20 macarons as well. There was so much to choose from our family ended up being greedy and getting 5 desserts! 

This was mine, a very rich dark chocolate with some raspberry flavour as well. An excellent combination.

This was my sister's. I'm not a fan of rose so it wasn't my favourite but the raspberries and macaron consistency were very nice.

This one my family agreed was superb! An adorable little meringue with watermelon yoghurt inside, it also had a nice zesty biscuit base as well. It had all the elements of a great dessert. It was light and sweet with great textures.

This one would be great if you're a Forrero Rocher lover, it has similar flavours but so much prettier.

Another unanimously voted favourite by my family, well suited for those who like a citrus, zesty kind of flavour and biscuit bottoms. 

We had such a wonderful time at Luxbite, it was just so nice to bond with my family over some incredible desserts. The service was also amazing, extremely helpful and friendly. The waitress said we were the cutest family she's ever met and that we made her miss her own family, I think her name was Gift.

In conclusion, I will definitely be coming back to try their next season of cakes!

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Thanks for reading! Going to end this blog with just a few other things I've had the pleasure of eating.

Big brekkie from Globe on Chapel St.

Tonkatsu Ramen from Ajisen.

Chicken Salten-Boca and a Duck Risotto from Zest 89

Baked eggs with cheese and bacon and a side of herby bread made by my sister and me.

Crazy Wing!

and finally a cute little Korean cake in the shape of a fish.