Big Mama Restaurant
466 Swanston St
Melbourne, VIC 3053
Tel: 03 9347 2656
A favourite of college kids who seek tasty Korean cuisine is Big Mama restaurant, which occupies a prime spot on Swanston St. I've walked past the reasonably-priced restaurant countless times, but never went in, so I decided to pay a visit with my close friends Eve and Jan. While I've never been a huge Korean food fan previously, I began to enjoy it after moving to Melbourne. From what I hear, the Korean food that's available here is generally more authentic and accessible than the Korean fare in Singapore. We ordered a couple of dishes, one of which was japchae (AUD$12) ; stir fried sweet potato noodles with bell peppers, carrots and onions. The noodles were delightfully springy and not too oily. Jan went with the cream garlic prawn and kimchi fried rice (AUD$15). Part Italian, part Korean, this fusion-style dish was initially quite confusing; but all confusion goes out of the window once you've had a taste of this. The creamy sauce went unexpectedly well with the kimchi rice. Delish! We also had the standard bimbimbap (AUD$13) - fresh, crunchy vegetables mixed with rice, and topped with a fried egg. For the unadventurous (like me), bimbimbap is a godsend, because it's such a reliably good dish that you can always fall back on. Lastly, we picked the Tok Bo Gi (AUD$13) to share. The chewy rice cakes were accompanied by some ramen noodles, under a generous blanket of mozarella cheese. I reckon I'll be frequenting this place more often in the winter, ducking in periodically for piping hot Korean fare to warm my system. It was a sufficiently good meal, with decent prices, and I can't fault it for that! Big Mama Restaurant 466 Swanston St Melbourne, VIC 3053 Tel: 03 9347 2656 Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
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It's the start of a new semester, and campus is buzzing with activity - freshmen walking around with hopeful looking expressions, start of uni parties (sorry, Mom) and the "F*** Tony Abbott" campaign that's parked outside the Baillieu library. Here are three things I love about this lovely, lovely school: 1. Wonderful student welfare I hear that somewhere on campus, there exists a mystical place where students who hail from far-flung regions of the world (ahem, international students) can get a loan of up to AUD$5,000, interest free. This is, of course, if you need the money urgently / encounter unforeseen circumstances that prevent you from being able to pay for your course fees; and is not applicable for occasions where you bombed way more than you should've at Crown playing Roulette. Still, it's a great initiative. 2. Free lunch Tuesdays Friendly Aussie barbeque, free beer and live music - need I say more? Headlining acts like The Temper Trap and San Cisco have graced the humble stage of North Court, with students casually milling around like it's no big deal, because Unimelb is so flippin' awesome that it is to be expected. Also, you're free to go for seconds, if you'd like, because God knows you need one more beer to get you through lecture day. 3. Arched hallways Walking through the Old Quad always makes me feel like an extra on the set of a Harry Potter movie - dim, enchanting walkways that lead to the vastness that is South Lawn never fail to amaze me. Here, the weight of the great men and women who have walked these hallowed halls echo through my mind - Prime Ministers, Nobel Prize winners and the like. Having said that, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for a Dumbledore sighting :-) Here's a picture of my brother walking through said hallways, just because he looks kind of cool. And with that, it's time to get back to my readings.
It feels great to be back, Unimelb <3 Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates. For me, this look was all about the movement of the fabrics; richly draped, with a couple of gold accents. I layered camel on camel - a beautiful scarf with frayed edges (it's so soft, I have to restrain myself from nuzzling my face in it on cold days) over a voluminous sweater to catch a movie screening under the stars. This isn't something I would typically have picked - I tend to favour more fitted and streamlined cuts because I find it makes me look thinner. Increasingly, I've been experimenting with different silhouettes and wider cuts, just for fun; and I think this helped to remind me that fashion isn't just about looking thin. My hope for this year is that I will grow stylistically to become more adventurous, and dabble in various styles of clothing. My teeny-weeny Furla crossbody bag. I snagged these buttery soft Steve Madden flats during the Boxing Day sales - three cheers for good buys! Also, I swear by the Topshop 'Leigh' jeans...the fit of these babies are like no other and I will be wearing them to death when it gets colder. Oversized V-neck sweater: Zara
Camel scarf: H&M Jeans: Topshop 'Leigh' jeans Black leather crossbody: Furla Beaded bracelet: Topshop Black leather and gold cuff: Dotti Gold bangle: Massimo Dutti Cage rings: Lovisa Studded flats: Steve Madden Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates. Here it is - it's officially the last day of summer!
School begins tomorrow, and while I am both hesitant and nervous at what this semester will hold, I know that God is my provider, and I choose to rest; knowing that He is my infinite source of strength. I don't mean to sound all 'holy', (in fact I'll be the first to admit that I'm not the holiest person around) but this is what I know to be true for my life, and that is all. I was placed in Unimelb for a reason, and if God opens a door, He will lead me through it. There is no module that God can't handle - because dude, he WROTE IT. That thought alone is immensely comforting. Tomorrow, I am going in to classes, and I am going in to dominate the modules I am taking. #competitiveasian Here's to a kick-ass semester, filled with the joy of learning :-) Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates. There's nothing I love more than spending quality time with my girlfriends. From sharing hilariously cringe-worthy experiences to discussing about heartbreak / loss, my friends have seen (and heard) it all. I gathered the Aussie girls (Yan and Eve) for lunch in Singapore, and invited my friend Yao to join us. We met for lunch at North Border Bar & Grill, a picturesque, al fresco restaurant that's surrounded by the lush foliage of Rochester Park. North Border offers a reasonably-priced two, three or four-course set lunch meal. However, do note that they have an awful policy of not allowing people to share these dishes. We visited in a group of four and wanted to order two three-course set lunches to share (to sample more dishes within one visit), but that was not allowed. Worse still, waiters watched like a hawk for any violations, which made us feel restrained throughout the meal. (from left: Yao, Yan and Eve) The food was passable, nothing majorly spectacular or worth writing home about. The redeeming quality of this restaurant lies in its ambience - a beautiful and cosy space that's perfect for intimate gatherings.
I love hanging out at Rochester Park, because it allows you to escape from the manic crowds of places like Orchard Road; but having said that, I doubt I'll return to North Border. There are plenty of better establishments in the vicinity! North Border Bar & Grill 2 Rochester Dr Singapore 139213 Tel: 6777 6618 Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates. |
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