Pepper Lunch

331 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne

When Pepper Lunch came to Melbourne it was already an established and very popular widespread food chain in Asia with over 200 stores open. The food is prepared and served to you on a 260°C iron plate and the meat on the plate is raw so you can cook it to how you like.

Clean and bright interior

Salad bar and kitchen

The service at Pepper Lunch was reminiscent of a fast food chain store, fast yet not interactive. While we were dining at Pepper Lunch, from the ordering process to the food being delivered to our table we felt like the service was very rushed.

Kimchi beef $11.50

Beef pepper $9.90

Our dishes arrived quickly on the signature iron plates which were cooking the meat as it arrived. I found that the sauces they offered for mixing with the rice dishes were not needed as the dishes were seasoned quite well. The portion sizes were also decent for the price of the meal which was good as we were very hungry. 

Apart from the lapse in the service, the food here is quick and and filling with some good flavours, definitely a good place to get a quick meal in the city.

Food Rating 7/10

Overall Rating 6.5/10

Old Town White Coffee

303 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne

Old Town White Coffee is a large Malaysian coffee and restaurant chain that has expanded to different countries in the world, during August of 2015 they opened their first Australian restaurant on Elizabeth Street in the Melbourne CBD.

Heart of the CBD

Quiet evening

Eager for a Malaysian fix, I came here with some Malaysian friends to try some of their more traditional Malaysian dishes. However after we were seated and ready to order we were informed that they did not have any curry chicken left. This was upsetting as all of our orders contained curry chicken and we had to order other items.

Supreme prawn meehon & mee $13.90

Roti canai with curry potato $7.50

Roti canai with egg $7.50

The prawn meehon was average, it was a small serving and was missing the strong and rich prawn flavours that a prawn meehon is known for. On the other hand though the roti canai was a great dish which contained sauces and sabal that were rich and spicy, as well as roti with a crisp outside that was still soft on the inside. Although the meal and the service was sub-par the roti was a redeeming factor and both my friends and I agreed that is was the best roti we have had outside of Malaysia.

Food Rating 6.5/10

Overall Rating 6/10 

Messina

171 Chapel Street, Windsor

As one of the most popular gelato shops in Melbourne, a trip to Gelato Messina can be a great way to end a night with something sweet. With stores in Fitzroy, Richmond and Windsor, Gelato Messina has quickly become a well known name in Melbourne.

Gelato Messina

Stylish interior

Very busy night

Being one of the most popular Gelato stores in Melbourne means that it can get very busy. Sometimes it can feel like you are being rushed as they are trying serve people quickly, however the service in general was still quite good and the staff were all very friendly.

Wide range of flavours

Even more flavours

Apple pie & choc chip $6.80

Coconut lychee & Salted caramel $6.80

Gelato Messina boasts a huge range of flavours, with some of them more unique than others. I had the coconut lychee & salted caramel as I love both of those flavours by themselves, but having them together made them have an even better flavour. My friend had a combination of apple pie and choc chip, I did not try any of it but I was told it was quite tasty and contained actual chunks of apple pie in it.

Food Rating 8/10

Overall Rating 8/10

Tsukiji

237 High Street, Prahran

A while back while I was having breakfast in Windsor, a friend of mine showed me Tsukiji. A small cross between a Japanese grocery and sushi shop run by a Japanese couple, Tsukiji boasts some of the best and freshest sashimi in Melbourne and as a lover of sashimi I was incredibly excited when I had the chance to try it out.

Dimly lit entrance

Tsukiji

Photos of Japan and others

Japanese grocery stand

Sake and beer range

A selection of different beers and sake are available here as well as a small menu of hot Japanese food and sushi.

Seafood salad items

Salmon and other fish

Tuna, oysters and more

When I arrived at Tsukiji they had not opened yet, but there were already people waiting outside. The first thing you see when you enter is a small stand of different Japanese groceries, directly to the right of it lies what they are known for, the seafood.

Surf clam, broadbill (swordfish), tuna and salmon $20.50

The sashimi I chose included the surf clam, broadbill, tuna and salmon. After taking my choices up to the counter, I was handed a number and the sashimi was taken in to be sliced. Expect to wait quite a while for it to be prepared though, the only people working there are a Japanese couple who do both the cooking and the serving. When the sashimi arrived and I started to taste it, I realised that the wait was worth it. The fish was firm and fresh and the taste was great, along with the atmosphere of the restaurant, I could not imagine a more perfect place to be eating sashimi on a cold night.

Food Rating 9/10

Overall Rating 9/10

Sushi Hotaru

Shop 118, 200 Bourke Street, Melbourne

One of the most popular sushi trains in Melbourne, Sushi Hotaru serves a large variety of sushi at one of the lowest prices in Melbourne. Those looking to dine here should arrive early since they have no bookings available so waiting times can be upwards of thirty minutes to an hour during busy times.

 Usually a long queue here

 The train

Unlike other sushi trains where the price of the dish varies and is colour coded with the plates, Sushi Hotaru has an almost universal price of $3.30 per plate, except for the gold plates of sashimi and some of the larger items you can order.

 Takoyaki (Missing a piece)

 Soft shell crab handroll

A personal favourite of mine, the soft shell crab handroll, is an item you can order from their menu which comes hot and crispy. Every time I dine at Sushi Hotaru I make sure I order at least a couple of these.

 Seared scallop

 Tuna negitoro gunkan

 Spicy tuna nigiri

 Seaweed salad gunkan

 Beef nigiri

Scallop and salmon box sushi

The rest of the sushi was of decent quality. I personally enjoy the different variants of the box sushi as well as the soft shell crab hand roll and some of the side dishes you can order. Although the price recently rose from $3.00 to $3.30 on the basic plates, they offer a 10% off if you pay with cash. The service here is also what you would expect from a restaurant that is trying to rotate people in and out quickly. Even then the staff serving us always had a big smile which I love to see, this along with the cheap food always has me coming back for more.

Food Rating 7.5/10

Overall Rating 8/10

Massive Wieners

226 Chapel Street, Prahran

Massive Wieners is a small, vintage style eatery serving super-sized American hot dogs and sodas in the heart of Melbourne's Prahran. With a great location and great atmosphere it is easy to see why Massive Wieners is popular.

Prahran's Chapel street

Small, yet popular

Vintage style

Wall of fame

Special beverages

A range of beverages that are normally only available in America and Mexico are sold here such as the glass bottled Mexican Coke, 7 Up and Dr. Pepper.

12" Chilli cheese massive wiener $10.00

I decided to order the Chilli cheese massive wiener, which was a twelve-inch hot dog with ketchup and mustard, which was then loaded with beef and bean chilli and cheese. When the chilli cheese dog was ready, I noticed that there was not much chilli or cheese on it, but after I started eating the hot dog, I realised there was a good amount of cheese and chilli hidden under the sausage.

With good food, friendly staff and a nice vintage feel, Massive Wieners is a great place for a snack and I would definitely head back there when I am around Prahran again.

Food Rating 7.5/10

Overall Rating 7.5/10

Waya

100 Kingsway, Glen Waverley

Down by the end of Glen Waverley's iconic Kingsway lies a moderately sized Japanese eatery that stays busy throughout the day. With small tables in the front section of the restaurant as well as a seating area with booths in back of the restaurant, Waya can cater for any casual diner to larger groups.

Booth seating area

Mixed sashimi $15.50

The sashimi arrived quickly and was presented well which made me want to dig in quickly, however I quickly noticed that the three scallops in the description of the dish actually turned out to be 3 halves of scallops.

Teriyaki beef bento $14.80

Grilled salmon bento $14.80

Both of the bento boxes we ordered were good value for money. I had the teriyaki beef while my friends ordered the grilled salmon bento. The bento boxes also included a grilled chicken skewer, two pieces of sushi, two pieces of egg omelet, a serving of green salad, a serving of seaweed salad and a generous amount of rice.

Red bean taiyaki

Although we dined at Waya on a busy night, they were very accommodating and quickly found a booth for us, food also came out very quickly and the staff were very efficient. If we had to fault something for the night, it would have been that we found most of the meat was quite salty and that the sashimi servings seemed smaller than I expected. Other than that point though, Waya is a great place in Glen Waverley for a quick and cheap Japanese meal.

 Food Rating 7/10

Overall Rating 7.5/10