I’m a big fan of Regional Victoria’s dining scene with their fresh local produce and great community vibe. When I heard about Restaurant Igni, I knew I had to make a booking a check them out. For an 8 course degustation for $150 per head, it’s still quite affordable compared to those in Melbourne with a price tag of +$200 per head. There’s plenty of parking on the main street so that’s not a problem at all. Moving along, it’s a very discrete restaurant and when you get inside there are only 10 or so tables thats spaced very far apart so you’re not bumping elbows with the next table. The atmosphere is very casual and friendly yet the staff are very professional. They’ll ask for your dietary requirements including what your likes and dislikes are so they can be sure to cater for you. It was already a good start to our lunch!
Arco Restaurant, Dandenong South
Since I’ve started work at Dandenong South I’ve been hearing about Arco for a nice place to check out for lunch / dinner. So you can imagine my excitement when we were going to have a work lunch there! Inside it was pretty fancyyyy for an industrial area in the ‘burbs and the staff were super duper friendly. So we all rattled our order to the staff and waited for the food.
Now, I’m all for food coming out together BUT a 40 minute wait for our food to come out when it wasn’t super busy was unacceptable. I tried to brush that aside and tried to enjoy my calamari salad. Unfortunately, it was super salty and quite oily and I was quite disappointed. The salad? It was just rocket and cabbage.
Calamari Salad (entree)
Riverview Cafe & Wine Bar, Warburton
A day out in Warburton to visit the Redwood Forest, we definitely had to stop by to check out the food scene. It was smack bang lunch time and everywhere on the main street was so busy. Luckily for us Riverview Cafe & Wine Bar had a table so we were going to get our tummies filled!
First up, the seafood chowder. The serving was very generous and was filled with clams and fish with pieces of parmesan and bacon. It was very filling and was quite salty which was disappointing.
Seafood Chowder
Izakaya Kuuraku, Melbourne
Mr D and I absolutely adore Japanese cuisine, we can’t get enough of it. We’ve been eyeing Izakaya Kuuraku but never had the chance to try it, until now…BOOM! Walking in, it felt more like a bar with seats – music pumping and heaps of people having after work drinkies. We were lucky enough to check out the omakase menu which means you leave it up to the chef to decide what you’re going to get. We tucked in and let our tummies enjoy the food.
Nong Tang Noodle House, Melbourne
Nong Tang Noodle House had their First Birthday and boy oh boy did they do an amazing launch. We were in for a feast, a 10 course feast that is. Located in the mid-city arcade, it’s a very cosy eatery so if you do come here, make sure you make a reservation. Back to the food, first up, the west-lake veggie soup. This soup was quite thick and a touch on the bland side.
Hakata Gensuke, Westfield Doncaster, Doncaster
Hakata Gensuke is a well established and known throughout Melbourne as one of the yummiest ramen and it’s so popular that there are many chains opened around Melbourne. We visited the one in Doncaster’s food court and there wasn’t a huge line so we went up and ordered our ramens. On the side of the counter, there was a sign and it was a special deal where you get a meal for two for $33! So we went ahead and got that!
Gukbab, Melbourne
Korean food is always our comfort food and so when the girlies wanted to check out Gukbab. Located on Little Lonsdale St, there are heaps of Korean restaurants around. Walking in, the staff were super friendly and showed us to our table and we started our Korean feast. Also, make sure you make a booking because it gets super busy.
Teaser Feng Cha, Melbourne
Milk teas, who doesn’t love them? So off we went to check out Teaser Feng Cha on Russell Street in the city and holy moly it was super duper busy! They have the menu at behind the counter or on the counter near the register so take a looksie, pick your teas and quench your thirst.
Paik’s BBQ, Melbourne
Located on Little Lonsdale Street sits a Korean BBQ in a stand-alone brick building, Paik’s BBQ. It’s much bigger than it looks and it gets super busy, so make sure you have a reservation before you turn up. Oh, I wouldn’t wear my best clothes either because all the smokiness will get into your clothes. As we stepped in the staff greeted up with all smiles and enthusiasm and was shown to our table. Looking over the menu, we started our meaty night!
Drumplings, Melbourne
I have heard so many good things about this cheeseburger dumplings at drumplings so of course I had to go and try it. We visited on a Tuesday at 5pm (yep, we’re like old grannies that loves to eat early) and there’s already quite a few tables that were reserved. Luckily for us, we were there early so we snagged a table. The staff were friendly and welcoming once walking in and boy was it hot in there. It reminded us of being on a tropical island and the interior just makes me feel oh so happy.