Just Coconut - Sunnybank

There is hardly anything more satisfying than seeing your project come to fruition. My good friend Aunty Molly accomplished this with the opening of her long awaited dessert and drinks store, Just Coconut, on Level 2 of the newly completed building at Market Square. I was lucky enough to be able to check it out on opening night.

 

The menu was on point with almost all the drinks and desserts made out of coconuts imported straight from Thailand. Drinks consist of a series of coconut shakes, coconut water as well as coffees which could also be made with coconut milk. Desserts were coconut waffles with an assortment of toppings and coconut ice cream. 

I had thought that as it was their first day of trading, service would be slow. In fact it was as fast and efficient as a well oiled machine. Our drinks were made within five minutes, perfect for when you're in a rush or just really need that hit of refreshing coconut.

 

I tried both the Strawberry Coconut shake as well as the Tim Tam Coconut shake. Neither could be adjusted for sugar and ice, but the ice was blended in like a frappe and the sugar levels were fairly mild, much like a half sugar drink you would get from a bubble tea shop anyway. Dr L liked the Tim Tam shake which wasn't overly decadent and he found it chocolatey and very enjoyable. I also really liked my strawberry shake, I particularly like how it was separated into two layers, a delicious strawberry puree and then the coconut frappe, that way I could appreciate the coconut as is as well as the intense strawberry before mixing it through.

We had three food items to share. The first was the Nutella waffle. It was deliciously fluffy on the inside with a light and crisp exterior. The waffle itself was made with a considerable amount of shredded coconut. As someone who is not a huge fan due to the residue that it leaves in your mouth, there was definitely not too much of that. It goes without much saying that I am also a huge fan of Nutella and there was definitely a generous amount of Nutella on the waffle, which was a fantastic accompaniment.

 

Other than the Nutella Waffle, we also had the Peanut Butter Waffle and an Affogato. The Peanut Butter Waffle was just as good as the Nutella one, of course with the salty goodness of peanut butter. The affogato was made with a non dairy, coconut gelato (as you would expect), it was delightfully fresh and fragrant, with a texture that was far lighter than your regular dairy ice cream. I could eat so many scoops of this and not feel overwhelmed. The strong shot of coffee on top was also a delicious addition too. We had a great time at Just Coconut and can't wait to come back again to support Aunty Molly.

Price Range: $5 - $15pp

Taste: 8.5/10

Value: 8/10

Service: 9/10

Environment: 8/10

Double Maker - Brisbane CBD

End of the year always gets busy, other than birthdays and Christmas parties its also a time to meet with friends who you really should have seen more in the year for a belated catch up. With this in mind, I made plans to meet up with a dear friend at Double Maker Coffee last week. It is at the old shopfront of Coffee Anthology along Margaret Street, no longer a close walk to my work, at least it wasn't too sunny that day and I didn't get too burnt.

Seating was more or less just like Coffee Anthology, and I opted for some indoor seating so we could get air conditioning, but the light was obviously not as nice for my photos. We were given a menu and ordered at the counter. I liked the Asian twist on a lot of traditional cafe dishes. As the cafe was quite empty, service was exceptionally fast.

First to arrive was my cold brew. It was strong and refreshing without being overly bitter. I liked it a lot, especially on such a hot day.

My companion ordered the Miso Beef Burger, this came with a side of slaw and a hash brown. The portions were generous and my companion enjoyed the burger. With it's nori puree and miso mayo, this is definitely my pick next time I come here.

Opting for something out of the ordinary, I had the Mushroom Bulgogi Fettucine. The beef was quite well done and I would have preferred it a little pink, but the sweet soy flavours were delicious. It was a nice contrast to the rich creamy pasta which was cooked a little softer than al dente, just the way I like it. Portions were generous and the dish was fantastic. I would definitely recommend Double Maker and look forward to coming back again soon.

Price Range: $15 - $30pp

Taste: 8/10

Value:  7/10

Service: 8/10

Environment: 7/10 
 

Barbecue Mafia - Coorparoo

Have been meaning to try out Barbecue Mafia for some time but never really got around to it because it was a little out of the way. But when a friend asked to catch up last week, it was a good opportunity to hang out not too far away. We made a reservation online and there wasn't too many people there on the day, largely on account of the rain.

 

They were changing their menus regularly so I wasn't able to get the platter for two I so keenly wanted to try. Instead they had things like Banh mi and Reubens on the menu. I was interested to try the Banh Mi but by the time we arrived it had sold out so we tried some other options.

This was the Texas BBQ box for one, it contained brisket, pulled pork, mac n cheese, pickles, chips and a bread roll. For one, it was a very generous serving of food that was packed with protein. I was told that the beef brisket had won quite a few awards and it was deliciously tender and moist without being oily. The added BBQ sauce added a lot to it by way of flavour too. In contrast I found the pulled pork to be a bit on the dry side. The mac and cheese was stringy and tender and the chips were crunchy. The bread roll was the weakest link, but a necessary part of the meal.

We also had some of the double smashies to share. Usually these are served with fries but we opted for no fries because of how much we had with the Texas BBQ boxes. These were probably the best cheeseburgers I've had in my life. The patties were crispy at the edges with the fat rendered away, they were thinly sliced and had a wonderful amount of gooey cheese on top. There were a few pickles to keep it fresh and it was sandwiched between some perfectly fluffy buns. I will definitely need to come back again as soon as possible for more cheeseburgers.

Price Range: $20 - $30pp

Taste: 9.5/10

Value: 8/10

Service: 7/10

Environment: 4/10 

Jaylianos - Strathpine

Having not gone overseas for more than two years now, I can't help but reminisce my travels overseas. One of the things that really stood out in my memories was the extravagant buffets from America and Canada. I could hardly find anything remotely comparable locally, that is until I stumbled on Jaylianos up at Strathpine. 

A friend had gotten some fairly stellar recommendations about this place and we took the hour long drive up north to try it out. When we got in, it was like we had skipped the 20 hour flight and landed directly in NA. Having made a booking meant that all we needed to do was wait for our table to be set.

There was a huge selection of hot and cold food. With a few covid restrictrictions in place, we were able to get up and get our own food like we were back in the 2010s.

My first dish comprised of quite a few hot items such as the crispy pork belly, steak, spring rolls, chicken wings, dumplings and some seafood salad. The steak was definitely the highlight. It was charred with a crunchy exterior and a medium rare interior. The pork belly was well seasoned but the skin was a bit chewier than it was crisp. The rest was fairly standard and I also liked the crispy chicken wings. The steak made the buffet dinner excellent value on its own and reason to come back.

My second dish comprised of yet another steak, this time it was a little overdone but not too chewy. I also had a piece of chicken parmigiana, some creamy mushroom pasta and some stir fried noodles. I liked the chicken which was thick cut and had some delicious sauce and melty cheese. The pasta was soft, but Dr L said he found it too soft. The fried noodles didn't have too much meat to go with it but it was well seasoned.

Interluding with a coffee, it came out of those machines where you only pressed one button and it made up the whole coffee for you. The coffee obviously wasn't anywhere as good as the barista made ones in the city but it did strike the right cord of nostalgia for me.

First round of desserts included a piece of chocolate cake, a chocolate mousse and some chocolate coated marshmallows. These were not overly sweet, nor overly decadent. The cake was moist and spongey, the mousse was smooth and the chocolate fountain was always fun.

Rounding off the evening, this was the fresh fruit and a side of lime jelly. The watermelon was refreshing and the lime jelly was neither too soft nor too firm. Representing excellent value in this day and age, I would definitely come back to Jaylianos for their steak alone.

Price Range: $38.50pp

Taste: 7.5/10

Value: 9/10

Service: 7/10

Environment: 7/10 

Bapman - Upper Mt Gravatt

In all honesty it has been some time since I've seen something new and been so enthused about it that I had to immediately go and check it out. But since I saw the initial photos and reviews of Bapman at Garden City, I knew I had to have it for my next brunch. So taking maximum advantage of Dr L's driving lessons, we drove to Garden City to pick up some food and take it home with us.

The menu was simple. There were only five brekky burgers and an assortment of coffees. I was keen to try them all but only settled for two of the five options. The food took a little while to prepare and it came in a super cute carry bag to go.

I only realised after ordering that they were doing a free coffee promo, so I ended up with four drinks instead of two. These were the small complementary lattes. Expertly made without acidity and not too bitter, they provided a caffeine hit that I desperately needed.

 

In terms of the drinks I actually ordered, I opted for a Cold Drip whilst Dr L had his Iced Chocolate. Cool and refreshing, it was a great contrast to the latte. Both drinks were equally smooth though and I really enjoyed it. He particularly liked the chocolate shavings in his iced chocolate.

 

Onto the main event, this was the Big Bap which contained pork and beef sausage patty, free range egg, American cheddar and relish. The buns that I had were probably the fluffiest buns I've had since I was last in Taiwan. Fluffy and squishy it perfectly encased the fillings which were juicy but not oily. In this burger the egg was cooked through, the meat patty was well seasoned and it was just executed perfectly.

Our other Bap was the Bacon Egg and Avo. The bun was just as good and fluffy with the added excitement of a runny yolk which the bun completely mopped up. There was a generous amount of seasoned avocado which was ripe and delicious along with some crispy fried bacon. Overall it was just simple food done well. I'll definitely be back soon to try the other options.

 

Price Range: $15 - $25pp

Taste: 9/10

Value: 7/10

Service: 8/10

Environment: 7/10

Paella Y Pa' Mi - Coorparoo

We had heard a few good reviews of the fairly new Paella Y Pa' Mi at Coorparoo. Last week we took the opportunity to have a girls night out and grabbed a quick dinner there after work on Friday.

With a very limited number of tables, booking is essential. The shop itself was very small and our table could barely fit both menus. There were a handful of starters, paella dishes and desserts designed for sharing.

On the topic of sharing, we had the Sangria Roja to share. This was sweet and fruity. A carafe yielded four generous glasses. It was a bit sweeter than my usual preference for drinks but wasn't overly sugary.

In deciding which paella to share, we defaulted to the Marysol, their mixed signature Paella. It took a little while to arrive but it was well worth the wait. Topped with prawns, mussels and some chicken, it was fragrant and delicious. I really enjoyed the fresh tomato-y goodness that went with each grain of rice. The prawns were big and juicy but the meat in the mussels were as small as a thumbnail The paella itself had a delicious texture and a nice caramelised base but the portion size was definitely insufficient. The menu indicated that it would serve 2-3 people so we thought it would be more than enough for the two of us, but it really should have been for 1-2 only. The spoon in the photo is a good indication of the depth of the pan and at most it was only a thin layer of rice. It was a shame because the taste was good but the portions were nowhere near adequate.

 

Initially we had not intended on ordering dessert as we were not overly hungry, but given how small the paella was, we had two to share, the Naranja Catalana and Churros. The Catalana was essentially a creme brulee with some fruits and other garnish on top, it was also well executed with a crisp sugar shell but the portion was small given the price paid. The churros were interesting as the batter wasn't as dough-y as I expected but tasted a lot more like deep fried pieces of custard instead. It was rich and creamy and went well with the dark chocolate dipping sauce. I really enjoyed the dessert.

Price Range: $50 - $70pp

Taste: 8/10

Value: 4/10

Service: 7/10

Environment: 6/10