Hope everyone has had a kickass start to the week. x
Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
Hey guys! My friends and I drove down to the Peninsula over the weekend, and for this I wore the no-fail, ever comfortable t-shirt and jeans combo. Lately I've been into basics with a twist - think plain tees with unexpected cutouts, stitching or fabrics...and knotting every thing I own. Shirts, skirts...I want knots on it all. It's freakin' Britney, circa 1999 all over again, folks. (Who remembers what I'm talking about??) We spent the day driving by the coastline and strolling around Sorrento, a seaside town at the Southernmost tip of Victoria, before tucking into a seafood feast at sundown. I'll be sharing more pictures from our trip sometime this week, so make sure to look out for that!
Hope everyone has had a kickass start to the week. x Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
0 Comments
Hey guys! Hope everyone has had a great week. My friend Evelyn turned 22 over the weekend and hosted a birthday brunch at The Stables of Como, a picturesque café that's hidden within the Como House compound. It's moulded after the concept of a stable, complete with fake grass and sketches of chickens on the walls. Forget grubby-looking cattle and dodgy barn houses - this stable is for the kind of people who want to experience the outdoors without really experiencing the outdoors, if you know what I mean. The place was bright and airy, with oodles of light streaming in from the outdoor deck. Melbourne really turned up the charm last weekend, and now that we're back to gloomy days and icy weather, I'm itching for Spring more than ever. Here's the radiant birthday girl! `First up, Yan had the lyonnaise salad. This was surprisingly good. The crisp greens really cut through the saltiness of the cured duck, which was thinly sliced and laid over anchovies. Serving sizes here are quite modest; with most options being just right - it's not suffocatingly filling, that's for sure, and since we're at that time of the year where everyone's rushing to shed the winter weight in time for summer, I doubt any of us minded. Felisa (above, right) and I went for the more classic brunch options. She had the smashed avo with mushrooms and feta on sourdough toast. Man. Talk about a real Aussie brunch staple - virtually every café serves a variation of this, and it's just one of those no-fail, feel-good options. Nothing revolutionary, I'll give you that, but satisfying nonetheless. I'm a sucker for sweeter breakfast items, like the banana hotcakes with berries and pistachio praline. The crew at The Stables of Como gave the regular buttermilk hotcakes a pass, and instead made these like a banana bread, in hotcake form. The highlight of this was really the sticky-sweet pistachio praline, which was caramelised and broken into sugary bits. Yum. Here's me shoving food onto people's plates. "Here, try my hotcakes!!" As for the boys, they went for something meatier - here's the man-approved grilled wagyu rump. Together with a hot tomato salsa and sourdough crisps, this was juicy, pink and tender, with a hint of smokiness. The almost lattice-like bread crisps lent a bit of crunch and added to the texture as you chow down on this baby. Simply put, this was just melt-in-your-mouth delicious. This café tends to crowd up past 11am on a weekend, and because they don't take reservations here, I'd recommend going earlier to secure a table. Otherwise, get your shades on and prepare for quite the wait outside! The Stables of Como Corner of Williams Rd and Lechlade Ave Como House Grounds South Yarra, VIC 3141 Tel: 03 9827 6886 Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
Hiya all :-) Thought I would share some pictures from my 21st birthday luncheon at NSHRY, a beautiful restaurant by the bayfront, near Albert Park. My parents and extended family flew into Melbourne to celebrate this milestone with me, and we got together with a few of my friends as a resounding "Whoop!" to my newfound adulthood. So, we settled on the ultra cool NSHRY (pronounced 'Noshery') with a killer ambience and a view to match. It stands resolute, a glasshouse by the seaside; fusing modern Australian fare with Japanese influences -- think Umami burgers, fluffy omelettes with shiitake mushrooms and lightly cooked in truffle oil....mmm. Here's what it looked like: Check out these tempura-battered fish and chips, lightly sprinkled with seaweed, sesame and wasabi flakes (above). And some spicy buffalo wings! Chorizo slices, with gooey gruyere cheese, spicy cassoulet, topped with a poached egg and served with a chilli sourdough. Oh, and here comes the baked eggs, but with a twist - it included teriyaki eel slices, along with smoked rainbow trout in creme fraiche gravy. Yum. Here I am, ripping into the gift Eve and Jan got me :-) Thanks for all the parcels and gifts, guys. I really, really appreciate it. Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
A glasshouse by the seaside: Pelikan Société is something straight out of a dream, alright. The relaxed establishment is located in the coastal town of Hastings and boasts a stunning view of the jetty that's right outside. You can huddle up indoors with a mug of coffee, or lounge around on the deck outside - it's your choice, and it's one of the reasons why this place seems to be a local favourite all year round. With an outstanding view and an even better rating on Urbanspoon, let's see how this café measures up: Get a load of that yolk, guys. Oozing out onto a crispy ball of potato hash, this bad boy was quite the treat. The deep-fried sphere broke apart to reveal a rich, savoury goodness that was as comforting as it was flavourful. While it was enjoyable, I felt that the pancetta and gruyere toasties that were served alongside lacked in size and flavour. They were the size of my pinky, and for the price we paid (AUD$17.50), we could've gotten a much heartier meal. The buttermilk pancakes (AUD$17.50) were pretty ordinary - good, but nothing to shout about. Also, the presentation was a bit of a letdown. Surely they could do better than just three miserable blueberries, sitting atop some marscapone and limp slices of poached pears? Not impressed. That said, I've seen multiple images of better-looking dishes coming out of their kitchen, so I reckon it might be a hit-or-miss kind of situation. As for the breakfast quesadillas (AUD$16.50), they proved to be a tastier option. Truffled mushrooms and sweet corn were stuffed into warm quesadilla pockets, rounded off with manchego cheese and served with a bowl of smashed avo on the side. Again, with two sprigs of frisée vegetables half-heartedly added as garnish, its presentation could certainly use a bit of work. As much as I wanted to like Pelikan Société, I found myself feeling slightly disappointed - the food, while reasonably good, were small in portions and lacked creativity. While I'm sure it would be a lovely place to spend the afternoon, especially in the summer, I'm not quite convinced about its food just yet. Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
Here's me and my mum, ready to dig into wood-fired pizzas for lunch! Braved the storm and heavy winds to catch a glimpse of Cape Otway. What a hauntingly beautiful sight... Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates.
Look what I found at a honey farm! Isn't that novel? Too bad it was a complete and utter letdown. It tasted suspiciously similar to cough syrup; which, naturally, didn't sit too well with my tastebuds and I gave up after a few swigs. A glimpse of the Mornington Peninsula coastline, through the thunderstorm... Part Three is coming up soon, so keep your eyes peeled for that :-) Hope you're enjoying the pictures!
Follow me on Instagram: @paintingrachelred for more updates. |
AUTHOR
|