Makanan Indonesia, West End

Last night I had dinner at Makanan Indonesia.  There are a number of interesting looking dishes on their menu, a reasonable portion of which I have sampled.  On this occasion my interest was piqued by something called Dendeng Empai Belado.  According to the menu this is "fried marinated soft beef pieces and potato chips tossed with Makanan Indo's chilli".  I thought to myself that this could be really good or really bad.  However, I chanced my hand and ordered this dish.  My concern was that this dish might be full of onion or some other vegetables.  I was also curious what would constitute potato chips in this context.  When the dish arrived I found out.  These were literally potato chips or crisps.  I was expecting some variety of fried potatoes, but crisps surprised me.  I have never seen a dish like this before, but thankfully it was void of onions or other vegetables.  Anyway, the chips were nice; obviously homemade, but as good or even better than any crisps on the market.  Owing to the sauce, the chips ranged from crunchy to crispy.  This might sound like a shortcoming, but I appreciated the variety of textures that this provided.  The chilli sauce was sweet, tangy, and not particularly spicy.  This was by no means a bad thing, but I was hoping for the hot chilli sauce I normally associate with South-East Asian cuisine.  As for the beef, the menu said "soft beef pieces".  I would consider the beef in this dish to be more well done.  Again this wasn't bad, but I was expecting the beef to be more tender.  When I placed my order, the waiter said that this dish is usually consumed with roti or rice, so I ordered some roti.  The roti was good; not too flaky as roti can be, but I didn't find it to be a necessary accompaniment.  Overall, I took a gamble on this dish, but I think it paid off nicely.

The Boundary Hotel, West End

Today I had lunch at the Boundary Hotel in West End.  The prospect of a counter meal with chips and gravy was appealing to me all day.  When I got to the hotel I ordered a roast lamb roll with chips and a pint of Toohey's pale ale.  Until today I had no idea that Toohey's made pale ale and was happy to try it.  It was decent, if not remarkable, but the food is the major focus of this post.  My concern about the meal that I ordered was that the roast lamb might not be of the highest quality, similar to some of the rubbish you get at certain food court carveries.  I was certain however, that the gravy would be great.  My expectations were challenged on both of these points, but I'll start with the chips. The chips were your standard pub, beer battered variety with a little bit of what looked like barbecue salt.  They still required regular salt, which would not normally be a problem, but the salt shakers at The Boundary are old beer bottles with lids attached.  While this is nice decor, these salt shakers are impractical as it is very hard to get a decent amount of salt out of them.  The roll was lightly toasted and I think it was toasted just right.  The roll was slightly crispy on the outside, but still retained its softness on the inside.  Anyway, I was delighted that the roast lamb was quality.  It certainly wasn't the greatest roast lamb ever, but it was about as good as you could expect for a relatively cheap counter meal.  The gravy was not at all what I was expecting.  It had the taste and consistency of barbecue sauce, but perhaps not quite so sweet.  This was by no means bad, but I was really hoping for the gravy that you normally associate with pub roast fare.  Had the meat been barbecue pork ribs instead of roast lamb, this gravy probably would have worked out quite well.  The other thing about this gravy is that there was a lot of it.  I had to use numerous serviettes wiping the sticky substance off my mouth and fingers.  While not quite what I was expecting, this roast lamb roll was a decent lunch.

Red Rooster, Myer Centre Food Court, Brisbane City

On Tuesday I was passing through the city and felt peckish so I decided to get some cheesy nuggets from Red Rooster as this was something I had not indulged in for quite some time.  I feel I must point out that I think the idea of cheesy chicken nuggets is great and I'm surprised that they're not more commonplace.  Red Rooster's chicken nuggets are of the crumbed variety, and whereas I prefer battered nuggets, the addition of cheese makes up for this.  Another nice addition to these nuggets is the presence of sesame seeds.  Although I think the seeds are solely there so that the staff and customers can differentiate between the cheesy and regular nuggets I still like them as they provide a bit of texture.  Another good point of Red Rooster's chicken nuggets is that instead of having them sit in a bay marie all day, they cook them upon ordering.  While this takes a little bit of time, it means that the nuggets seem fresh.  The only drawback is that melted cheese is incredibly hot so you have to wait for the nuggets to cool a little bit or else you'll burn your tongue.  But anyway, Red Rooster's cheesy nuggets make for a good snack.

McDonald's, The Myer Centre, Brisbane City

Normally, I avoid McDonald's unless I'm drunk or feeling particularly nostalgic for chicken nuggets. However, last Sunday I decided to visit McDonald's after work.  This was because I have developed a taste for Hungry Jack's chicken royale burger and was curious to see how the McDonald's equivalent would compare.  So when I got to McDonald's I ordered the McChicken, which is basically a crumbed, fried chicken fillet with lettuce, mayonnaise and a bun.  The first difference I noticed was the price:  a chicken royale is noticably cheaper than a McChicken, despite the two burgers being practically the same size.  The next thing I noticed is that the McChicken fillet is in the shape of a love heart.  Some might find this cute, but I found it slightly disconcerting as I am puzzled what McDonald's do to a chicken fillet to get it into this shape.  Another difference between the chicken royale and a McChicken is that the McChicken has a lightly toasted bun, whereas the bun of a chicken royale is soft.  Which is better is a matter of personal opinion, but I prefer a soft bun.  In terms of taste however, both burgers have slightly less mayonnaise than I would like, but the chicken royale compensates for this with the flavour of the chicken fillet to a greater degree than the McChicken does.  In conclusion the chicken royale is a better burger than the McChicken.  This is not to say that the McChicken is a bad burger, but I'm only ever likely to order it again if I am hungry and McDonald's is the only place that's around or open.

Trang Restaurant, West End

Last Friday, I went to Trang, a local Chinese/Vietnamese restaurant.  All week I had been craving something hearty for my usual Friday night, end of the week dinner.  Even before I looked at the menu I was eager to try some Szechuan beef, a dish I have never experienced before (to my best recollection).  When I arrived at the restaurant I ordered prawn toast and my anticipated Szechuan beef.  One thing I like about Trang, as opposed to similar restaurants, is that all of the tables have an array of condiments on them.  This suited me as I like my prawn toast with soy sauce, and sometimes get strange looks when I ask for it.  Anyway, there was nothing special about the prawn toast, but it was still a satisfying entree.  When the Szechuan beef arrived my hopes were realised.  It tasted as good as I imagined it to be.  It had the flavour one expects from Chinese cuisine and was spicy.  However, if I ever order this dish again (a distinct possibility), I would ask for it to be a littler spicier.  The only drawback was that the beef came with a variety of vegetables that I could have done without.  However, this is a common experience for a vegetable avoider such as myself, so I contented myself to munch on the spring onions after all of the beef was polished off.  After the main dish, I still had an appetite so I ordered some deep fried ice-cream.  God bless whoever invented this dish.  The ice-cream had a nice coconut based batter and came with chocolate topping and thankfully, no fruit.  Overall this is one of the better dining experiences I have had in recent memory.  As evidence of this, I was feeling abdominal pain all day Friday (not a rare occurrence for me).  This meal made me forget about my pain and I felt better for the rest of the night.

The Coffee Club, West End

Last Thursday I went to the local Coffee Club in the afternoon for some all-day breakfast.  Take note cafe owners or aspiring cafe owners, if you want my patronage, serve breakfast all day.  So I ordered crispy bacon, fried eggs, toast, and a pot of English breakfast tea.  I was quite content with what I received.  Sometimes at The Coffee Club the fried eggs can be a little singed around the edges, and occasionally the yolks are broken.  Not so this time.  The bacon was crisp to a degree that suited me nicely.  The toast was Turkish bread with butter.  There was a substantial amount of butter and the porous nature of the Turkish bread allowed the butter to permeate the toast very well.  It was very satisfying to wash the toast down with the tea.  The pot of tea was also worth commenting on as I received a good 3 cups from the pot, when usually The Coffee Club can be stingy with their pots of tea.  Overall, a pleasing, if run of the mill experience.

Subway, University of Queensland, St Lucia

On Tuesday last week I got myself a sandwich from Subway.  Usually, the only time I patronise Subway is when I have a late shift at work because Subway is the only place one can get something substantial to eat that's open at that time.  So I ordered my usual turkey, cheddar, bacon, lettuce, and mayonnaise sandwich expecting the usual.  Even though I did not hold high expectations, I was disappointed.  The sandwich "artist" (I really resent that term) did a poor job on this particular sandwich.  It was all crumpled and mashed together; so much so that I'm sure if you got out a ruler you would have found this sandwich to be short of its purported 6 inches.  There was not nearly enough mayonnaise, and the sandwich "artist" somehow managed to get the bacon on one side of the sandwich and the turkey and bacon on the other.  Normally, when ordering from Subway I expect a satisfactory albeit humble offering.  On this particular occasion however, the best I can say is that it was edible.

The Lamington Teahouse, Binna Burra Mountain Lodge, Binna Burra

Two Sundays ago, my friends and I drove to Binna Burra for lunch and bushwalking.  I was looking forward to getting something to eat from the Lamington Teahouse.  Being somewhat ignorant of the geography of south-east Queensland, I was unaware of just how high up Binna Burra is.  I soon learned that in order to get to Binna Burra, one has to ascend a narrow windy mountain road on the side of the mountain with shear drops by the side.  My driver was not the most cautious of drivers and consequently I found the drive anxiety provoking.  As a result of this anxiety, by the time we reached Binna Burra, my appetite had somewhat diminished.  I still desired food, but not the sizable meal I was expecting to have.  So I ordered a toasted ham and cheese sandwich (as well as a couple of beers).  When you order a toasted ham and cheese sandwich from a modest cafe like the Lamington Teahouse you pretty much know what you're getting.  Not on this occasion.  This toasted ham and cheese sandwich had an insane amount of ham in it.  Honestly, I have never seen a sandwich of any description with this amount of ham in it.  The cheese was quite generous too.  Were my appetite stronger I probably would have appreciated this.  As this was not the case I was only able to eat half the sandwich.  It is also worth noting that my friends' dishes were also lavish in terms of portions.  So, if you ever find yourself eating at the Lamington Teahouse, expect a lot of food for your dollar.

Quan Thanh, West End

Two Fridays ago, I had dinner at Quan Thanh.  Quan Thanh is a Vietnamese/Chinese/Malaysian restaurant in West End.  It is interesting in that the restaurant is separated into two dining areas:  one for Vietnamese cuisine, and another for Chinese/Malaysian fare.  The two areas are divided by a bottle store.  However, if you are seated in the Vietnamese area, you can order from the Chinese/Malaysian menu, and vice-versa.  Anyway, all that day I was in the mood for a large, rich meal.  However, by the time I got to the restaurant, my appetite was not as strong, so I ordered the comparatively light chicken laksa.  Ordering a laksa is usually a safe bet, and this time was no exception.  One laksa is much the same as the other, however, this laksa had a couple of unique nuances.  The first was that there was some sort of flavour that I could not identify, and have never associated with laksas in the past.  This was by no means bad, just different.  There was also two different kinds of noodles in the laksa.  I liked this touch.  After you've had your fill of the soup and meat in a laksa it can get kind of boring finishing off the noodles.  So the fact that there were two different kinds of noodles was welcome.  Another plus was the vegetables.  I am notoriously fussy when it comes to vegetables, and often omit them from my dining experiences.  On this occasion, most of the vegetables were some sort of Asian greens; vegetables I will happily eat.  There were also some beans, which is also good.  However, there was some eggplant, which I avoided, but thankfully, there was maybe only three or so pieces of eggplant, so it wasn't a major issue.  I am rarely able to finish a laksa due to the shear volume of soup and noodles that they usually contain.  True to form, I couldn't finish this laksa, but I did polish of the chicken and vegetables, which was enough for me.

Oporto, Myer Centre, Brisbane City

Two Thursdays ago I decided to have lunch at Oporto, a destination I have not visited many times.  I ordered a Bondi Burger (grilled chicken, lettuce, and a tangy sauce, served on a bun) and chips.  The first thing I noticed was that, for a fast-food type establishment, the burger was a decent size.  The bun was nice and soft.  Grilled is not my favourite preparation of chicken, but in this case, it was done quite well.  My only quibble with the burger was the sauce.  On the plus side, it was spicier than what you'd expect from a franchise like Oporto.  However, there was some sort of flavour in the sauce that I felt was about of place.  I couldn't put my finger on it, but when I bit into the burger, something was wrong in terms of taste.  It didn't ruing the meal entirely, but without this mystery flavour, the burger would have been a lot better.  The chips were okay, but after eating the burger, I was no longer hungry, so I didn't finish them.

The Newsroom Cafe, Toowong

Two weeks ago I found myself in Toowong with some time to kill.  I felt like something light to snack upon, and after perusing the various eating options Toowong has to offer, I decided to get some tea and buttered toast from The Newsroom Cafe.  Forking over five bucks or so for two slices of toast may not seem like some to be good  value.  However, for as long as I can remember my toasters have been of poor quality:  not evenly toasting the bread.  So for me, good toast is something of a luxury.  Anyway, I wasn't expecting much; just evenly toasted bread.  However, when my food arrived I was pleasantly surprised.  I got two thick pieces of some sort of brown bread that looked to be of high quality.  I'm no bread expert, but I think it might have been sourdough, and it is possible that this bread was baked on the premises.  While the bread was thick, it was also very light and toasted in such a way that there was a lot of give when biting it; certainly a plus.  The only drawback was the amount of butter on the toast.  I like my toast slathered in butter.  I'm sure that if I had asked, they would have accommodated my tastes, but I didn't think to do so, so I can't really complain.  As for the tea, it was proper leaf tea, but the pot only yielded two cups, but I suppose that's par for the course these days.

On a Roll Bakery, University of Queensland, St Lucia

Three Mondays ago I went to this bakery to purchase a bacon and cheese roll.  However, there were none left, so I bought a steak, bacon, and cheese pie instead.  This was only a very slight disappointment as generally, On a Roll's pies are of high quality and there is a substantial array of pies to choose from.  The first thing I noticed is that the pie came in a tin.  In the past there were no tins.  I also noticed that the tin had writing on it.  I forget just exactly what the writing was, but it had nothing to do with On a Roll Bakery.  I didn't think much of this at the time, but the next day, at a different location, I saw some very similar looking pies with very similar looking pie tins.  This has lead me to question whether On a Roll are baking their own pies or sourcing them from somewhere else.  This is not really a big issue for me as the pie was of high quality and where it comes from doesn't really matter, as long as the pie is good.  It was not the best steak, bacon, and cheese pie I've ever had, but it was certainly up there.  The only thing that could have been improved on would to utilise a higher quality cheese, but I have never encountered a steak, bacon, and cheese pie that didn't have processed cheese in it, and besides I like processed cheese if used correctly.  I think that the highlight of this pie was its pastry:  it was crispy and firm.  This is important as soggy pastry makes eating a pie difficult as the filling falls out while you're trying to eat it.  If you like a steak, bacon and cheese pie, you could do a lot worse than On a Roll Bakery.