After flying back in from Melbourne I picked up Alec and head on over to try the Bondi Bite Me store – according to Bev, they had more items on the menu.
Bondi is a LOOONG way in peak hour traffic and cyclonic storms, but it was worth it for the delicious burgers and company.
Note the tomato sauce splatter on the ceiling.
Drawing a rocket.
Onion rings.
Alec’s burger.
Lisa’s topless burger.
Flourless chocolate cake.
Aww group shot.
I’m not a very creative cook. I tend to make the same few dishes over and over again cos it’s easy.
I’ve been feeling lately however like I really should branch out as there are only so many times I can make pasta before Alec starts eating out. I thought I’d try risotto – I’ve only recently decided I like it and wanted to give it a go.
I used the basic recipe in the Donna Hay Classics cookbook and added the vegetables from another recipe. Turns out it’s pretty simple if not time-consuming and tiring.
Yay, risotto success!
This movie is based on the book Bringing Down The House, about team of students from MIT university who formed a card-counting team to make money at Black Jack. The book had a lot of fictional elements to it and the movie even more so – which made it more dramatic I imagine, and more interesting to first read, then watch.
What did impress me was how smart the students are (which highlighted how very poor my own math skills are) and what a genius scheme it was.
We had dinner at Alec’s favourite Vietnamese place in Chatswood – Golden Bo. I had some kind of noodle and vege dish.
Alec’s sauce for his noodles.
Vermicelli noodles and spring rolls. Delish!
One turned into two … turned into four? How did this happen?
I orderd a second-hand black Bambinone Tokidoki bag so I could wear it around everywhere and not worry about ruining it. Then Lisa brought me back an amazing messenger bag Toki from Haway in the L’Amore print – it’s gorgeous – and huge!
Sushi train for dinner at Chatswood! I don’t really like sushi, but I love edamane – I had two serves 🙂
Sweet pressies from Lisa – body wash and cute little Hawaii post-its.
I love my mum a lot. She’s pretty awesome, so I was looking forward to spending the day with her and my dad.
We decided to go for a drive down to the Southern Highlands, to a few places we used to drive to frequently when I was young.
We had lunch at our first stop, Bowrel at The Grand Bar and Brasserie. The old hotel had a great vegetarian menu so it was perfect for me, as well as having lots of old favourites like fish and chips for my dad.
The damper garlic bread was divine.
My vege tasting plate – with broccoli tempura, honey carrots, sweet potato chips, asparagus and beans.
Mum’s vege omelette with tomato salsa.
Dad’s fish and chips.
The area had a lot of beautiful autumn trees. The colours were amazing!
Nina’s chocolate shop – lots of sweets from all over the world as well as these handmade chocolates – made in Sydney, and really delicious.
This was a really quirky antiques store.
After Bowrel we drove to Berrima which is about 15 mins away. Berrima is a bit more touristy than Bowrel but also has more galleries and cafes. I do love Bowrel though as it has amazing tulips in October every year.
We went to some markets at the public school in Berrima an came away with homemade food and second-hand books. Awesome bargains.
Afternoon tea in the Southern Highlands is always Devonshire tea. The alpaca centre has a great little cafe in it that looks quite plain from the outside but is really cosy on the inside. It also has really lovely scones.
Mmmmm!
With Mum.
Tasty caramel slice from the markets.
Yummu chocolates.
I love a good action movie, particularly when it is based on a Marvel superhero. I had never heard of Iron Man before, but after hearing some early rave reviews I was more than keen to see the movie.
Robert Downey Jr stars in the main role of Tony Stark, a brilliant rich play boy who uses his amazing mind to create weapons for the USA to use for “homeland security” if you get my drift. He is captured by a group of terrorists who want him to build weapons for them. Stark builds a robot to escape instead, and is motivated by the experience to turn his life around and save people rather than building weapons.
I just realised writing this how bad the plot sounds, but I really enjoyed the movie. I found it exciting, smart and funny. Robert Downey Jr is an actor who has shown a lot of talent over the years – when he hasn’t been on drugs or in rehab. It’s a shame that he’s been so screwed up as this movie shows what a great actor he really is.
After the movie we went to Mr Wong’s Kitchen. I absolutely love this place and its cheap delicious food.
Tonight however the service was really slow and the spring rolls weren’t fabulous. The vege fried rice and mixed veges were delicious however, so the meal was redeemed and I will be back for more.
Alec and I caught up with Lisa, Matt, Bev and Chris at the Firehouse in North Sydney. Beverly knows all of these great places with cheap. awesome food, and the Firehouse was no exception.
The meal deal was $10 for any mains if you buy a drink – super good value!
Nacho pizza … some things are not meant to be.
Mmmm chippies …
Steak for the carnivore.
Salmon.
My normal-looking pizza.
Something is wrong with my hair …
Thursday night drinks and pizza at Tokio Bar to celebrate great end of quarter results.
The pizza was super-slow coming out, and I drank too many of these potent cocktails while I was waiting. They are called Melon Blush and are AMAZING.
The pizza was really average and we couldn’t see well enough to tell what was on them.
That’s right Kae, get stuck into that girlie drink 😛
Chocolate dessert pizza with Nutella on it. YUM.
This is my new favourite snack joint. Babycakes.com.au has opened up on 66 Erskine st, right near my work. I grabbed a dozen – which, by the way, isn’t enough to feed my hungry team. Next time I will get 24.
The super-cute menu. I loved the Madeira and hokey pokey flavours.
I couldn’t believe Bev had never been to Newtown before. It’s my fave indie shopping Mecca, so met her for lunch, shopping and more food on a sunny Saturday.
Before shopping we needed to fuel up with some Thai that Newtown is famous for.
My fried rice and veges was amazing.
Bev’s beef thingy was enough for two. She said it was delicious. A shame I didn’t write down the name of the place!
After shopping, more snacks at Cafe C – my ice chocolate and Bev’s strawberry smoothie.
Churros and chocolate.
My shopping results – dress with little white hearts, books to read on the plane and warm peach cobbler-flavoured lip balm. It smells divine.
