LuMi Bar & Dining

LuMi Bar & Dining
56 Pirrama Road
Pyrmont NSW 2009
Tel: +61 (02) 9571 1999
Website: http://www.lumidining.com/LuMi/index.html

I'm just going to state it upfront - I like LuMi.

It's a perfect restaurant for a date night; not to stuffy and located right by the wharf for that nice little stroll right after (or before) dinner. It's a great restaurant to enjoy a good night out with close friends. It's even family oriented. A girlfriend was raving about how well her little 2 year old was so well taken care of on the night she dined there. But none of this would matter if the food wasn't good.

hong kong eats: yardbird

Yardbird

33 - 35 Bridges Street

Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2547 9273

Website: http://www.yardbirdrestaurant.com

It's truly been a while since I've had excellent kushiyaki. It might sound simple but it is an art to ensure that the grilled meats on skewers taste juicy, succulent and smoky from the slight char from the flames. My favourite has always been Torisho Taka in Singapore but that has since closed down. In Sydney, I've never been a place that totally specialises in kushiyaki/yakitori and in the few places where I've had the opportunity to savour some of the kushiyaki offerings on a menu, they've never really blown me away. And that is why I hope that a place like Yardbird opens in Sydney.

Yardbird in Hong Kong is just that kind of restaurant you would wish was in your neighbourhood - it's hip, very casual, inviting and best of all, it serves excellent food. In order to ensure that one gets a table without having to wait too long (the restaurant has a no-reservation policy), there is only one rule. Get in early (or very late, whichever you prefer).

A brush with Boston.

 

I'm not a sporty kinda person I'll admit. However, I've definitely watched my fair share of football matches, basketball playoffs, the Olympics etc. On the telly, that is. I have never watched a professional game live (I think) except for probably once at a golf event. That was probably it. 

With us headed to New York, R planned for a quick stop in Boston just to watch his favourite baseball team, the Red Sox, play. Afterall, they were on a winning streak (we watched the last match of the regular season). Watching them play and hitting the home runs was an amazing experience; once in a lifetime probably. Just being in the legendary Fenway Park grounds was exciting in itself. I was suddenly the crazy sports fan, screaming, singing along to Sweet Caroline and snapping up all sorts of Red Sox memorabilia. It was quite astonishing how much of that energy of just being in a stadium full of baseball fans could rub off on me. Plus I almost felt proud as everyone in the stadium stood up to sing The Star-Spangled Banner in unison. It's hard for Americans to not be patriotic especially if you're a sports fan really.

The Red Sox won that game of course and we were right there to witness it as they went on to win the World Series eventually. And I got to score some pretty awesome grub.

Italian Sausage Hotdog

Deep Fried Clams

Cracker Jack

Take me back to the ball park!

New York Eats: Momofuku Ssäm Bar

Momofuku Ssäm Bar

207 Second Avenue

at 13th Street

New York, NY 10003

Website: http://momofuku.com/new-york/ssam-bar/

 

I have been thinking for awhile about how to start this post off. There's been plenty of ideas swirling around in my mind and one of which was to talk about the genius that is David Chang. It was however, difficult to summarise how much of a "rock star" Dave Chang is and to explain just how much influence he has in the culinary world. In my opinion, Jamie Oliver has made cooking at home fun but Dave Chang has made food "cool". I admit, I am a fan. That is why, we HAD TO visit at least one Momofuku restaurant before we left the Big Apple.

 

 Arctic Char Tataki with Peach, Pine Nut and Lovage

 

goodbye 2013.

I thought I should squeeze in a last post so that I can say goodbye to 2013 properly.

It's been one big year for me.

The biggest event was obviously getting hitched - I spent most of 2013 planning it together with R. It was trying at times but it was fun. And it made me learn more about myself; what I was good and worse at. It also made me realise how in some little ways I have changed since I've been with R and moved to Sydney; changes which I like. So 2013 has in some ways, become a year of self-discovery.

It's also been a year of friendships. I've made many new friends over the year and I've reinforced many old ones, or least I think I have. With us all getting older and many friends moving on to different stages in life and some different countries, it's been extremely comforting to know that some friends are friends I will keep for life and who will always have my back no matter what.

And as always, it's been a year of eating. It keeps getting better and better and new experiences keep things interesting. There were many highlights of course which I shall reserve for another post. I hope that it'd stay the same way for 2014 and that I get to travel more.

So I look back on 2013 with much fondness and wish that I remember more of it as it went by too quickly. I'm looking forward to the new year and hope that 2014 will be as crazy good, if not better than 2013.

And I wish the same for all of you too. Have a wonderful 2014!

Sat Bains @ Momofuku Seiobo

I'd like to think that we got pretty lucky to score ourselves a slot at Sat Bains' 'one night only' dinner at Seiobo. Afterall, I was sharing a room dining with some of the who's who of the Sydney culinary scene. I love it when renowned chefs come to visit and cook at host restaurants in our city as it's always a good way to have an idea of their cuisine without having to buy a ticket halfway across the world. Plus, it's also great to see how their food sort of fits in with what we already have here. Most of the time though, such experiences can go either bad or great and rarely in between. I went to one visiting chef's dinner in Singapore before and it was disastrous when his team tried to use mangosteen in their dessert just because they wanted to incorporate local flavours. And there were the great ones like Ben Shewry whose food I was impressed with when he visited Singapore for the World Gourmet Summit one year and Magnus Nilsson who cooked at Marque during the Sydney Good Food Month. But I digress. Armed with the head chef, John Freeman, from Restaurant Sat Bains in Nottingham in tow, Sat Bains' collaborative dinner with the guys at Seiobo was a culinary experience that was truly mouthwatering.

 chicken batter

smoked roe