Dandelion & Driftwood - Clayfield

Wanting to feel more mature and responsible, I woke up early one morning and decided to have brunch with a friend. He suggested that we try out Dandelion & Driftwood in the wild Northside of Brisbane. As far as I could make out, its situated in suburbia at Clayfield, north of Brisbane River (where I rarely venture).

I found the store to be rather quaint. It didnt seem like it could fit in many customers though.

Each table had fresh flowers, salt shakers and interestingly, sugar lumps (which I've never encountered before yet) in a commercial context.

My friend ordered the Orange Ceylon Tea, which he found rather refreshing and fruity. It was an interesting way to start the day.

I opted for the Siphon Coffee, which I had tried in another cafe overseas. What I really enjoy about siphon coffee is actually watching the coffee drip down through the system. In this instance, I didnt get the pleasure of enjoying it, but was rather served with the end product, being Geisha Blend. I also found it to be very fruity, specifically citrusy. It was a nice change, but I prefer my usual Japanese imported drip coffee more.

For our breakfast, we shared one serving of "The Drifter Woman", which contained Potato Rostis, Onion Marmalade, Bacon, Egg, Spinach and garnished with Chives. I found it to be quite a wholesome and delicious breakfast, which I could eat without much guilt. The bacon didn't have too much fat, and the spinach made sure that the dish was well balanced. The onion marmalade was an interesting addition, and I liked the comfort of eggs for breakfast. What I liked most though, was definitely the potato rosti, which was crispy but not to oily.

Price Range: $20 - $30 per person

Taste: 7.5/10

Value: 6/10

Service: 7.5/10

Environment: 8/10

2015 Brisbane Noodle Night Markets - Southbank

July 9 marked the start of Brisbane's Good Food Month. One of the things which I make sure to attend is the Night Noodle Markets at Southbank, which runs from 22 July to 2 August this year.

The first thing we tried was the skewers from Hoy Pinoy. Having actually very little exposure to Philippino Food, I was interested to try it out. For $12 for two skewers ($24 for 4), I found the prices to be quite steep. We tried both the Inihaw Na Baboy (BBQ Pork Belly with Banana ketchup glaze) and the Inihaw Na Manok (BBQ Chicken ion traditional glaze). I liked the pork belly more than the chicken, as it had a better meat texture. I would have enjoyed the chicken if it had been chicken breast, but in this case it seemed to be chicken drumstick or thigh meat. In terms of the marinade, both were sweet, and the pork had a fragrant banana smell to it, which I really liked.

We considered getting Taros, but having gone to them recently, we opted to go elsewhere.

Our next stop was Koma Sliders, where my companion decided to try the  Fully Loaded Fries - Curly Fries topped with Bulgogi beef, kimchi, mozzarella and Aioli. Again for $12 for the size of the serving, I found it rather expensive. Although in this case I found it to be very worthwhile, the chips were nice and fresh, and the toppings were definitely unique and captivating. The kimchi was tasty and actually went surprisingly well with the cheese. We only wish there could have been more.

Following that, we got the Power Combo at Zagyoza, which consisted of 4 chicken gyozas and 4 pork gyozas. Having tried Harajuku Gyoza at the Noodle Markets last year (and been exceptionally impressed), I thought I'd give Zagyoza a shot. Unfortunately they weren't as good as expected. I found the skin to be rather thick, especially where it was scrunched up at the top, and the fillings to be quite bland. The bottom could also have been crispier.

We grabbed a drink at the schweppes stall during the evening, but was a bit underwhelmed by essentially paying $4 to have someone pour you a cup (not very full either) of soft drink and garnish it with a mint leaf.

 

Being a regular at the Eat Street Markets, we often get Okonomiyaki from Okonomi House. What stands out for me is that their Okonimyaki is made with lettuce rather than cabbage. I find cabbage to be rather hard and coarse, lettuce is far more agreeable. I liked how the pork belly was grilled to be rather crispy, and the added cheese gave it a very delicious texture. 

We finished off our meal with some waffles from "Waffle on a Stick". They had quite good presentation, and for $10 a piece, I did have quite a bit of expectation. Unfortunately though, it didn't really work for me. I felt the waffle had more of a pancake texture than waffle, and the toppings was definitely not enough. It was also rather dry and not moist enough for our liking.