Tai Pan

237-239 Blackburn Road, Doncaster East

Growing up in an Asian family, Yum Cha was a weekly ritual for us. Having tried many of Melbourne's Yum Cha offerings, we have settled for a few favourites of ours, including Shark Fin, Gold Leaf and of course, Tai Pan. 

Having existed as a standalone restaurant for many years, Tai Pan is now under the Secret Kitchen name, which also included a revamp of their menu to include some of Secret Kitchen's dishes.

Going to Yum Cha is more of a complete experience rather than a sampling of individual dishes, as such it is quite difficult to judge each of the separate dishes we tried. Although the Yum Cha at Tai Pan is slightly more expensive than the other places that I usually visit, it is definitely something I do not mind, as the overall experience is generally better. 

Other than the quality of the food, which is of a consistently high standard, the staff also make the rounds and take orders quickly and efficiently, which allows the customers to enjoy the Yum Cha without worrying about flagging staff down constantly or waiting for food. I would definitely recommend giving them a visit for Yum Cha if you are in the area!

Food Rating 7.5/10

Overall Rating 7.5/10

Little Woodpecker

55 Katrina Street, Blackburn

Little Woodpecker is a small local cafe located in Blackburn North that specializes in fresh seasonal brunch items with a little bit of a Middle-Eastern twist, as well as custom roast coffee. As Little Woodpecker is the closest local cafe to me, I often find myself visiting them for a coffee and quick lunch.

Little Woodpecker

 Chai Latte

Grilled chicken burger with extra free range bacon

As a complete dish the burger was very enjoyable, but there were definitely some ups and downs with each element of the dish. Some of the negative points of the burger I noticed were that the chicken breast was slightly dry, which was not a huge problem as well as the fact that the burger was stacked really high, which made it quite difficult to eat without dismantling.

Although there were a couple of small negatives about the meal, I was definitely still satisfied and would visit them again. The location of the cafe is also a godsend for me, as there is a distinct lack of cafes around my area.

Food Rating 7.5/10

Overall Rating 7.5/10

Fonda

651 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn

Fonda is a Mexican restaurant with many branches all over Melbourne. It was started in 2011 by two friends, Tim McDonald and Dave Youl, with a vision to develop Mexican street food dishes designed to share using Australian produce, Fonda has grown into one of the biggest names of Mexican food in Melbourne, with 7 restaurants currently open.

Fonda

D.I.Y Tostada board

Charred corn

Various tacos

Since we had already eaten a small dinner before we visited Fonda we decided to share some of their smaller, but more well known dishes. 

The charred corn, which is a signature of Mexican street food was not everything that I had hoped it would be. Although the dish itself was not terrible, there was nothing special that made it stand out from the other Mexican restaurants that I have visited. 

Another slight disappointment was the tacos that we had ordered. While the filling in the tacos were flavourful and balanced, trying to eat them ended up being incredibly messy, as the tortillas were soggy and fell apart in our hands. 

Although the dishes each had some issues with their execution, the exciting flavours of  Mexican cuisine were all there. We enjoyed the mix and match sharing style of the food shown especially in the D.I.Y tostada board, which was a highlight of the meal. Overall I would say that although we were slightly disappointed by Fonda this time around, I would definitely consider visiting them again.

Food Rating 6.5/10

Overall Rating 6.5/10

Dumplings Plus

269 Swanston Street, Melbourne

Earlier in the year Dumplings Plus on Swanston Street received a makeover, which resulted in a bright and clean new restaurant with a beautiful store-front display for their take-away items. It was this take-away display that lured me in to Dumplings Plus after a long night out.

 Dumplings Plus

 Stir fried noodles & beef slices in honey pepper sauce $13.80

Pan-fried mixed dumplings $12.40

I absolutely love dumplings and have tried many different styles of dumplings from a broad range of cultures including, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Polish and more. Although I have tried a wide range of styles, the Chinese style dumplings have always been a favourite of mine. The dumplings at Dumplings Plus had a slightly thicker skin than I was used to, but it was not overbearing, as the filling was quite robust in texture and flavour.

While there are definitely better choices for dumplings in the CBD, Dumplings Plus is definitely a good choice. The no-frills simplicity of the dumplings and other Chinese dishes they serve make it a good choice for a quick meal.

Food Rating 6.5/10

Overall Rating 6.5/10

Mary Miller

171 Miller Street, Fitzroy North

Previously the location of Me & Julio, Miller Street is now the home of the small and cosy Mary Miller Cafe. The simple and laid-back neighborhood atmosphere of the cafe is a welcome change from the nearby Brunswick restaurants and cafes, which makes it a great place for a casual breakfast or lunch - or for parents from the nearby school to relax before picking up their kids!

Chocolate milkshake

Being located next to a school, the chocolate milkshake is one of their most popular menu items. The milkshake had a rich chocolate flavour, but was unfortunately let down by the large amount of froth.

Beetroot, matcha and turmeric lattes

Steak sandwich

The steak sandwich was actually similar to a steak sandwich that I enjoyed at The Burger Lounge, so I was quite happy about it. The sandwich itself was a simple dish consisting steak, along with swiss cheese, caramelised onion, roquette, mayonnaise and beetroot relish. The steak was tender and while the other ingredients were all present, none of them overpowered the main ingredient of the steak.

Wagyu beef burger

My friend ordered the wagyu beef burger as they were looking for something a little more substantial. The composition of the burger itself was excellent, with a good balance of tasty components, such as the caramelised onion, short cut bacon and tomato relish. Although the burger as a whole was quite a good dish, it was not without shortcomings - the biggest of which was the wagyu patty, which was slightly overcooked and dry.

Zucchini and haloumi fritters

We were recommended the zucchini and haloumi fritters so we decided to give them a try, even though we already had quite a decent amount of food. The dish as a whole served as a wonderful and filling breakfast, with a mixture of fresh and savoury elements. While we did enjoy the fritters, we found it to be slightly on the heavy side, although some people might enjoy this.

Mary Miller is an great new cafe with amazing options for everybody, whether you are looking for a light breakfast, heavy lunch or are just stopping by for a milkshake after picking up the kids. While there were some minor setbacks and problems with the food, the overall standards and concepts were good and with some time, Mary Miller Cafe will definitely be a great cafe!

Were were invited by and dined courtesy of Mary Miller Cafe. 

Food Rating 7.5/10

Overall Rating 8/10

Noodle Queen

240 Swanston Street, Melbourne

Noodle Queen is one of the newer additions to the Melbourne CBD's Asian noodle scene. Being located next to many well known favourites, such as Tina's Noodle Kitchen, Noodle Kingdom and many others from the nearby Chinatown means that Noodle Queen will need to bring something special to the table to be able to compete.

I ordered the noodle soup with pork chitterlings for $14.80 and at this price I was expecting an above average dish. However, the serving size of the dish was quite small and although the soup did have a strong flavour, it was a quite one dimensional.

Although my experience at Noodle Queen was not bad, there are far too many great options for noodles in the city and without any redeeming factors, I cannot see any reason to choose Noodle Queen over any other establishments.

Food Rating 5.5/10

Overall Rating 5.5/10

TGI Fridays

Westfield Doncaster Shopping Centre, 619 Doncaster Road, Doncaster

TGI Fridays is one of the biggest American restaurant chains in Melbourne and as such has found much popularity. While they have always been quite popular, I have generally avoided visiting TGI Fridays due to the poor experience of some of my friends. Despite this, as TGI Fridays features in this years Entertainment Book, we decided to visit them for a family dinner anyway.

TGI Fridays

Coconut thick-shake

Although I am a big fan of coconut, the coconut thick-shake at TGI Fridays was a little lackluster. The thick-shake mainly tasted of cream and dairy rather than coconut and while there was a small amount of coconut taste in the shake, it was a little strange.

Dry aged rib-eye on the bone

Jack Daniel's rib, steak and prawns platter

TGI Fridays is quite well known for their meat dishes, ranging from wings to burgers, steaks, ribs and many other dishes. The meat dishes we ordered for our meal had a lot of ups and downs. The Jack Daniels sauce and the ribs were tasty and tender, the sauce in particular was packed with flavour which I enjoyed. On the other hand, the steaks on both of the dishes were overcooked and had become a little tough, with the rib-eye dish in particular being disappointing in both taste, execution and presentation.

We specifically visited on a weekday night where there would be fewer patrons in the restaurant, as we had seen the restaurant quite packed on other nights due to its popularity. Despite this, our food still took over 50 minutes to arrive, by which time we were absolutely starving. A redeeming factor was that the waiter who was serving us was very friendly and apologetic about the wait for the food.

Food Rating 6.5/10

Overall Rating 6/10