France-Soir

11 Toorak Road, South Yarra

Melbourne has no shortage of French restaurants, ranging from the small French diners and bistros to the finest of dining venues. One of these is France-Soir, a small French bistro style restaurant on the busy Toorak Road in South Yarra.

Huîtres naturelles

Steak au poivre

My friend ordered the steak au poivre, which is a a scotch fillet coated with black pepper. As a black pepper lover, the dish was enjoyed very much, with tender and flavourful meat and a generous coating of black pepper.

Duck à l'orange

Duck à l'orange is a very well known dish which originated in France and gained popularity internationally. The duck was cooked magnificently, with the duck breast still retaining moisture and a pink tinge. The real star of the dish was definitely the sauce though, with hints of orange that accentuated the duck instead of overpowering it, which is a common problem I have encountered before when ordering duck à l'orange.

Mashed potato

Frites

The frites, or french fries were the only part of the meal which was disappointing. When the fries came out they were not particularly hot, and the crispy texture I was expecting was not there.

With the number of French restaurants in Melbourne it is definitely difficult to make a name for yourself. France-Soir has been able to do just that, with lovely and traditional French dishes, as well as a good mix of French and Australian wines on their wine list. I will definitely be back for more!

Food Rating 8.5/10

Overall Rating 8/10 

Bebu

2/31 A'Beckett Street, Melbourne

Bebu is a small Korean eatery hidden down A'beckett street just a minutes walk away from Melbourne's RMIT university. They serve a large range of Korean style dishes, ranging from the ever present bibimbap to their special crazy tteokbokki set.

The kitchen

Cold kimchi noodle

As one of my favourite Korean dishes, I always like to try cold noodles when visiting Korean restaurants, whether it be in the summer or winter. The cold noodle dish served at Bebu was similar to a mix of the two styles of cold noodles that I am familiar with, the spicy bibim naengmyeon and the mild mul naengmyeon. The most enjoyable aspect of the dish was the balance of flavours, especially the vinegary flavours and the spice.

Fried eggplant with chilli caramel and peanuts

The fried eggplant dish was a dish completely different from most of the eggplant dishes I have tried in the past. The eggplant itself was soft on the inside, yet had a nice and crispy coating, which along with the nuts, gave the dish good textural contrast. 

My experience at Bebu was a very enjoyable one. The dishes served used a lot of Korean flavours and techniques, but the added creative twist to their style was a very welcome and refreshing change, I look forward to visiting again!

Food Rating 8.5/10

Overall Rating 8.5/10

Gelocchio

230 Lygon Street, Carlton

Gelocchio is the new gelato store on the block, having just opened on Melbourne's Lygon Street. They offer many different types and flavours of all natural gelato and sorbet, as well as other icy treats. 

While Gelocchio is already an established store in Cairns, their opening on Melbourne's "Little Italy" on Lygon Street has put them among a number of excellent and already established gelato stores, such as Pidapippo and Il Dolce Freddo. 

Gelocchio

Pinocchio inspired decor

Paddlepops and Maxibons

Other than gelato, Gelocchio also offers many different icy treats, such as their various flavours of gelato pops as well as maxibons, my favourite of which was the passionfruit pop.

Range of different flavours

Even more flavours!

Pina Colada

Although there were many wonderful flavours on offer, my love of coconut led me to the pina colada flavoured gelato. The pina colada gelato was a smooth gelato with a strong coconut base, which was then enhanced with hints of pineapple in the background. This made it so the gelato did not have two clashing flavours, only flavours that complimented each other, which I noticed was a technique that was applied to many of their flavours.

Gelocchio was a fun and quirky place to visit, with friendly and knowledgeable staff, as well as a diverse range of sweet treats. They have shown that they are more than capable of competing with the other well established gelato names on Lygon Street and I would definitely recommend giving them a visit!

We were invited by and dined courtesy of Gelocchio.

Food Rating 8.5/10

Overall Rating 8.5/10

Oh Deer

Shop 24, 235 Bourke Street, Melbourne

Oh Deer is a Korean style fusion restaurant located in the heart of Melbourne's CBD. Although their location at the back of Tivoli Arcade on Bourke Street may seem like a strange place to find a restaurant, this is definitely not the case as the immensely popular Warra Warra is open right next to Oh Deer.

Oh Deer

Spacious and clean

Pineapple punch

Spicy ddeokbokki

Spicy rice cakes are a staple dish from Korean street food and is found all over the world. The variation served at Oh Deer was more of a snack than the traditional dish, which uses large rice cakes as well as fish cakes, egg and various vegetables. In terms of the flavour of the dish, the sauce was quite spicy and sweet, which I enjoyed, however the sweetnmess could have been toned back slightly. 

Cold noodle plate

The cold noodle dish was meant to be shared, however I decided to order one for myself as I was quite hungry. The noodles used were of a different kind variety than the chewy buckwheat noodles that I am used to. This was however not a bad thing as the lighter and softer noodles worked well with the lighter flavours of the broth and meat.

The food at Oh Deer uses many different influences to add something to the Korean roots of their dishes, hence being known as a Korean fusion restaurant. While I did enjoy the food at Oh Deer, I also noticed that there were some added elements which did not add anything to their food. With that and the service being lackluster, I would much rather head over to the well established Warra Warra right next door.

Food Rating 7.5/10

Overall Rating 7/10

Sam Sam

209 Swanston Street, Melbourne

SamSam is a restaurant in the Melbourne CBD that specialises in Korean fried chicken. Although SamSam has been around for quite a while, it is still quite a newcomer when compared to the well established fried chicken restaurants, such as Gami. 

Sam Sam

Coconut jelly

SamSam Chicken wings $15

Pickled radish

Because there are already many established restaurants already, new restaurants looking to enter the Korean fried chicken scene need to have something special to stand out from the crowd. We tried the chicken wings from SamSam and while they were satisfying, there was nothing that differentiated them from ordinary fried chicken wings. I feel like I would definitely have preferred to visit one of my usual fried chicken restaurants instead.

Food Rating 6.5/10

Overall Rating 6.5/10

Fancy Hank's

79 Bourke Street, Melbourne

Fancy Hank's is an American BBQ restaurant located in the heart of Melbourne's CBD. Before opening their restaurant on Bourke Street, Fancy Hank's was a pop-up serving slow cooked meat throughout Melbourne.

The smoker

Devilled egg

Corn bread

Beef brisket, pulled pork shoulder, half chicken and sausage links

We decided to try a range of their most popular smoked meats so that we could see what Fancy Hank's had to offer. Most of the smoked meats we tried were only average, each with their own faults and no huge redeeming qualities that made me crave more. I did however enjoy the flavour of the rub on the brisket, as well as their attentive service.

Food Rating 6/10

Overall Rating 6.5/10