Udon Noodles + Beef + Burdock Root Tempura (¥1250)

Soy sauce Udon + Sliced Chashu + Soft-boiled Egg Tempura (¥1200)

Japan has some of the most interesting and unique attractions in the world - the Robot Restaurant in Shinjuku; Mario Go-karting around Tokyo (Maricar); and of course, the popular maid cafes.

The maid cafes are themed restaurants where all the waitresses are dressed as maids. Initially, it sounds really kinky but there is absolutely nothing kinky about the maid cafes (it's pretty tame and child-friendly!).

We checked out one of the more popular chains of maid cafes in Akihabara - Maidreamin. If I had to compare it to any restaurant, it would be hooters. What Hooters is to Americans, Maid cafes are to the Japanese.

We are welcomed by one of the maids, sat down and bunny ears are popped on our heads. She explained that there is a charge of ¥500 per hour in the cafe and each person had to order an item from the menu.

What we noticed with their menu is that all the meals were presented in a really cute way. We ordered the 'Bear swimming in curry topped with a tonkatsu'. This was really yummy!

Bear sleeping in Curry - ¥1340 (exc tax)

We also had the Bear Hamburger patty with Veggies. The patty was coupled with a demi-glaze sauce. It was pretty good!

Bear Hamburger Patty with Veggies - ¥1340 (exc tax)

Finally, we had a super-duper cute omurice - which was shaped as 2 sleeping bears, covered in an egg blanket. This meal was alright. More cute than delicious.

Sleeping Bear Omurice - ¥1580 (exc tax)

To complete the meal, we opted for a Matcha sundae - shaped as a turtle. Kawaii!

Matcha Turtle Sundae - ¥770 (exc tax)

In summation, it was definitely a unique experience but once is probably enough - unless you're hoping to bring friends to experience it. Oh, and John got to take a photo with the maid lol




Watch the video here 
Press play to watch more of the maid cafe



If it doesn't work, you can watch it on Youtube here.


Maid Cafe Maidreamin

Website: https://maidreamin.com/en 

Located in Otsuka, Tokyo is the second ramen shop in the world to receive a Michelin Star - Nakiryu.  It is only a 5min walk from Shin-Otsuka station (Tokyo Metro line) and about 7min walk from Otsuka station (JR line). Coincidentally enough, it's quite close to Tsuta - the first ramen shop in the world to receive a Michelin Star.


Nakiryu is renowned for it's signature dish - Tantanmen. However, if you want to taste their awesome ramen, you'd better arrive early.


We arrived 45min before opening (opening time - 11.30am) and there was already a line which steadily grew. It grew to the extent that the line had to separate on BOTH SIDES of the road. As the restaurant holds about 9 patrons at a time, we just made the first cut. As news of it's Michelin Star status spreads, it will only get busier so best to come a bit earlier to avoid disappointment.

Let’s get straight into it! Once we were called in, similarly to other ramen shops, we had to order via a vending machine. Thankfully, there were english menus so all we had to do was to match the corresponding Kanji from the pamphlet to the vending machine. Easy enough? Thankfully, I was Ok at recognising Japanese characters.

Watching the chef whip up the piping hot bowls of ramen was like watching a show. Oddly enough, I found the draining of the noodles to be the highlight. Who would have thought I'd be so fascinated by such cool noodle, draining techniques.


I was salivating as the bowl hit my table. Spicy, nutty, sesame broth with ground pork and topped with green onions. I’m no ramen expert, but that broth was absolutely delicious. Slightly spicy and peanutty but highly addictive. I couldn’t stop slurping.
The handmade noodles were awesome , with a firm texture and it held the broth really well. Still, at ¥800, what an absolute bargain!

Tantanmen - ¥800 (~$9AU)

We also got to try the Shoyu Ramen. Again, another awesome bowl of ramen. The broth was flavourful, the slices of chashu were nice and slightly chewy, although I prefer mine more fatty and tender. The noodles were a bit softer than the tantanmen noodles, but this worked well for the dish. The broth was sticking onto the noodles like glue. Now, to the egg. Wow that soft boiled egg was AMAZINGGGGG. The soft gooey yolk was so damn good.

Shoyu Ramen (with chashu and soft-boiled egg) - ¥950 (~$11AU)

Next time, I'll make sure I order an egg and extra chashu with my tantanmen. With extra noodles. Perhaps 2 bowls. Yes, it's that good.


Watch the video here 
Press play to see the ramen in all it's glory!


If it doesn't work, you can watch it on Youtube here.

NAKIRYU (鳴龍)
Address: Tokyo, Toshima-ku, Minami Otsuka 2-34-2
Phone number: 03-6304-1811
Opening Times: Wed to Mon, 11:30am to 3pm & 5pm to 9pm (Mon is only day time). Closed Tuesday
Website: www12.plala.or.jp (Japanese only)

Looking for a decent cheap italian midweek dinner option? Try Rocco's Ristorante in Casula! Check out their $12 Pizza and Pasta Special on Wednesday and Thursday!








Rocco's Ristorante
Address: 688 Hume Hwy, Liverpool, New South Wales, Australia 2170
Phone: (02) 9602 6749
Opening times: Wed 6 PM to 10 PM, Thu 6 PM to 10 PM, Fri 6 PM to 10:30 PM, Sat 6 PM to 10:30 PM, Sun 5 PM to 9 PM
Website: https://www.facebook.com/RoccosRistorante/

Some of the raw meat selection. It was definitely fresher than other BBQ buffets. Wouldn't recommend the chicken items on the Satisfaction Buffet.





For the buffet option they offer Green Tea and Black Sesame Ice-cream! My favourite flavours!




Ryoma Yakiniku Japanese BBQ
Address: 239 Canley Vale Rd Canley Heights, Sydney, Australia NSW 2166
Phone: : (02) 8764 8761
Opening times: Mon-Sun: 5:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Website: https://www.facebook.com/Yakiniku-Ryoma-738153836264226/

Sydney needs more Japanese Bakeries like Fujipan! I stopped by last week to check out their goodies. When I saw that had a Green Tea Melon Pan I had to try it!

For those who don't know Melon Pan (or Melon Bread) is a type of sweet bread that is popular in Japan and resembles a melon (it is not necessarily melon flavoured). I also tried the BEST melon pan while I was in Japan. See blog post here. 

The Green Tea Melon Pan ($2.20) from Fujipan definitely looked authentic. It was slightly bitter and not as sweet and sugary as the ones in Japan because of the green tea flavour. It had the distinct crunchy exterior but was not as fluffy on the inside.



Fujipan bakery certainly satisfies my Japan withdrawals and was serving up a variety of other  goodies that come quite close to the bakeries in Japan.  Will be making more visits here!


Fujipan Japanese Bakery CBD
Address: 605 George Street, CBD, Sydney, NSW
Phone: 02 9283 2268
Opening times: Mon-Sun: 9:00 am - 10:00 pm
 Website: https://www.facebook.com/FujiPan.Sydney/

First up was Jack Greene. Located in Salamanca Place, Jack Greene serves mainly burgers for lunch and have a large variety of beers on tap. Interior was very rustic and barn-like.
I opted for the Southern Fried Chicken burger (tasmanian free range battered chicken tenderloins, crunchy slaw, streaky bacon, cheddar cheese & sriracha mayonnaise) and a side of chips. Chicken was moist and tender, and the flavours really worked well together.

Southern Fried Chicken Burger ($15.5)

Only thing that let down the burger for me was the bun. It was a bit chewy and reminded me of those flat-rolls you get from Hot Bread bakeries. The chips however, were awesome - crunchy and potato-ey. So good! Service was great here so definitely would re-visit, but probably try out all their sliders.




Jack Greene
Opening times: Sun - Fri 11.30am - late, Saturday 10am - late
Address: 47 Salamanca Pl, Hobart, TAS
Contact: (03) 6224 9655
Website: http://www.jackgreene.com.au/

I hardly have Vietnamese food when travelling but I decided to hit up Sapa Rose as it was close-by to work. You're welcomed by a modernised establishment and friendly service. Being Vietnamese, I normally order speaking the mother-tongue. It was to my surprise that the waitress taking my order didn't understand Vietnamese, even though items were in Vietnamese with English descriptions. I had their variation of Banh Canh Cua (Drop-noodles with crab meat). It came out super hot! Quite yummy but I would have liked chunkier pieces of crab.

Banh Canh Cua (Drop-noodles with crab meat)

Very homey cafe which gave off an authentic vibe to the restaurant. I initially wanted the Hainanese chicken+rice but Aunty (owner told me to call her Aunty lol) said she sold out since 1pm. I decided to go for the seafood laksa. Your given the choice of vermicelli or thick egg noodles - I got a combination of both.

Seafood Laksa ($14.90)

 The laksa came out quite quickly and in an unusual elongated bowl. It was a little bit awkward eating from it as I'm more accustomed to round bowls but that didn't detract from the deliciousness of the dish! Piping-hot and full of various seafood including prawns, scallops, fish and calamari.


Due to my problematic sweet-tooth, I completed the meal with dessert - Ais Kacang. Blend of red beans, corn, grass jelly, rose-syrup on shaved ice topped with vanilla ice cream and sweetened milk. Another please?

Ais Kacang

Singapore Kopitiam Cafe
Opening times: 9:30 AM to 7 PM
Address: 86 Collins St, Hobart, TAS
Contact: 0450 588 761
Website:https://www.facebook.com/KopitiamSingaporeCafe/







Salamanca Bakehouse
Opening times: 24 hours
Address: Shop 5 Salamanca Sq, Hobart, TAS
Contact: (03) 6224 6300
Website: https://www.facebook.com/thesalamancabakehouse/

Also within Salamanca Place lies the Machine Laundry Cafe. Half cafe, half laundromat separated by a glass window and a door. Quite quirky and different and the service was fantastic.


I started off with a macchiato and chose the Ricotta hotcakes for breakfast.



The hotcakes were so damn good - nice and fluffy and went well with the roasted white chocolate chunks!

Ricotta Hotcakes w/ mascarpone, chocolate ganache, raspberry coulis and roasted white chocolate

Machine Laundry Cafe 
Opening times: 7.30am - 5pm (8.30am-5pm, Sunday)
Address: Shop 12 Salamanca Square, Hobart, TAS
Contact: (03) 6224 9922
Website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Machine-Laundry-Cafe/113296732063100

To end this trip, I had to get obligatory donuts. These were from Small-fry. With so many options i opted for the  White Peach Oat Crumble donut - filled with white peach jam, and topped with leatherwood honey granola with a yoghurt glaze. The donut texture was doughey - just the way I like them! (unless they're Krispy Kreme OG donuts).

White Peach Oat Crumble Donut

Small Fry 
Opening times: 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Address: 3/129 Bathurst St, Hobart, TAS
Contact: (03) 6231 1338
Website: http://small-fryhobart.com.au/