friends Archives - Page 5 of 10

Happy Birthday Beverly!

November 7, 2008 / friends / 0 comment

For my dear friend Beverly’s birthday, we gathered at a little Japanese / French place in Willoughby called A La Facon de Shimizu.

Girls dressed for the occasion. Like my new dress? Seduce factory outlet sale!

Fried Camembert cheese wheel that I split with Lisa (around $15). Super delicious!

Food porn shot.

Happy girls in summery dresses.

Neither the Japanese or French do vegetarian food particularly well, so it wasn’t a surprise that they didn’t have a single vegetarian main on the menu. They did however make me a fantastic dish on the spot to suit me – how very obliging! It was also big enough to feed two people, so if I go back I will ask for a half-serve!

Vegetarian pasta dish (Around $22).

Beverly, the beautiful birthday girl.

Blowing out the candles.

Tasty cake Chris organised.

I really loved that the restaurant was BYO and didn’t charge for corkage, and they also didn’t charge us cakage either! A really great evening.

Happy birthday Beverly!

A La Facon de Shimizu
537 Willoughby Rd
Willoughby NSW 2068
Phone (02) 9958 8785

Cruelty Free Festival and Chinatown Shopping

November 2, 2008 / Sydney Life / 0 comment

I asked Lisa to accompany me to the Cruelty Free Festival in Haymarket. Even though she is a meat-eater, she also eats a lot of meat substitutes – way more than me! I thought it would be good to try some new vegan foods and see what they had to say about living a cruelty-free life – something I have become more and more passionate about over the past year.

I hoe into one of my favourite foods – corn!

Lisa tries a vegan curry puff.

Close-up – it was so tasty she went back for more!

We went halves in a vegan “cheesy” pie. It was filled with soy cheese and textured vegetable protein. I’ve wanted to try soy cheese for a while to see if I could actually eat it instead of cheese. The answer? No, no I can’t, sadly.

The “Cheesy” pie. Pastry was fabulous, but the insides were another story.

Lots of hippy vegans.

We sat down to eat and listen to some vegan singers and bands.

Faux beef jerky … heavily dosed in honey we thought. Tasted fabulous so Lise got a bulk pack to take home!

Glistening faux meat …

Lise loves coconut juice.

There were lots of stalls filled with vegan cosmetics and skincare products as well as plenty of animal rights groups. I bought a “Save Babe” tee from Animals Australia and a calendar from Monika’s Doggie Rescue. Both are animal charities I strongly recommend supporting.

Pet Rescue stall – I want to save all the cats, dogs and other animals out there in pain. There are just so many of them it’s overwhelming.

Happy, loved vegan dogs chilling out.

Trying vegan pecan pie for dessert. Super pricey and not as tasty as the real thing unfortunately!

After doing our bit for a cruelty-free life, we needed some shopping at Market City’s outlet centre and Chinatown shops to lift our mood (plus a real dose of sugar after all that healthy food!).

In Morning Glory. They have such cute things … and weird giant stuffed condoms.

They also had keyboard stickers. My personal fave was the “my god!” key. Always a favourite when your computer crashes.

A giant stuffed poo?

Cute kitty – Lisa had to be persuaded to leave it behind.

China Town!

Smiling faces on our way home.

Beverly’s Farewell

October 24, 2008 / friends / 0 comment

For Beverly’s last day at eBay Australia, I joined her and her work mates at The Loft for after work drinks and commiserating.

With a fellow Googler, Angela.

I started getting starving and insisted – rather aggressively I think – that we must go and eat. The only reasonably priced food joint nearby was Wagamama, so off we went for late-night noodles.

About to pass out – saved by noodles!

Delirium caused by hunger. Lol-isa wants nothing to do wiht my antics.

Bev loves noodles – as long as they aren’t udon.

Dessert – fried banana with coconut ice-cream.

The restaurant cleared out and we were the only people left.

Mmmmm dericious.

These sweet potato chips were addictive.

Romantic … and delirious at the same time.

It was a fun but also sad night as it was the farewell for many eBayers as well as Bev. It won’t be the same without you Bev, my dear!

Food, Fun & Friends

October 5, 2008 / friends / 0 comment

Beverly asked us all over for dinner during the long weekend.

She very sweetly made special food for a fussy vegetarian. I’m so grateful that I have such amazing friends who cater for me and my special tastes without complaining. Thanks, I love you guys 🙂

Amazing tomato and bocconcini salad.

Home-made garlic bread.

My vege patties and extra salad.

Alec gets up close and personal with a ferret.

Looking indignant.

Oh hai!

The cutest things!

Or maybe “cute” isn’t the right word.

Need dessert Bev?

Singed ferret! Jumping over tea lights ends with burned ferret.

Awesome custard tea cake that Bev made from scratch.

Obligatory food porn shot.

Happily fed and among friends.

Cuddles time!

Happy with great friends!

Dinner at Bev’s

September 24, 2008 / Animals, friends / 1 Comment

My dear friend invited us over for a girlie night of puff pasty pizza and ferrets.

Bev … about to hack up something or another.

The makings of a very tasty salad – with rennet-free cheese.

Ummm I can’t even begin to explain this.

Bev starts on the pizzas.

Lol-isa can’t resist the feta.

Spreading on the topping.

LOL-ing.

My vege pizza with a corner of meat.

The meat-lovers’ pizza.

Covered in cheesy goodness.

Lise finishes up the salad.

Baked and ready!

After-dinner ferret-play.

There seems to be a ferret in the Tokidoki.

Or two!

What are you doing, naughty ferret?

“I am putting my head between my legs is what!”

When ferrets attack.

Acrobatics – trying out for Cirque du Soleil.

Tired and ready for snuggles.

Candice’s Hen’s Party

September 20, 2008 / friends, Sydney Food / 0 comment

Another hen’s party this weekend, this time for my friend Candice. She chose to have a high tea at the Park Hyatt. The Park Hyatt is in a fabulous location on the water with a stunning view of the Opera House.

It is a very elegant place, very modern and chic in comparison to the QVB Tearoom, which is very “old world” elegance.

A back-lit shot of me.

The food! Bigger portions rather than a wider variety. The top tier contained the most divine chocolate mousse and Shortbread cups with cream and strawberries on top.

Next tiers – sandwiches (I had a very tasty egg and mayo). There were some mini vege quiches as well (they were cold and not very nice). Bottom layer were the scones. Very nice indeed – light and fluffy with a crispy edge.

Table full of ladies and delights.

My favourite part – the mousse.

With my dear friend Candice.

The view!

It was quite intimidating for me to go because I didn’t know any of Candice’s friends. Luckily she has a lot of very friendly friends who went out of their way to be extremely nice to me and get to know me. I ended up having the most delightful day. A perfect Saturday afternoon!

La Gerbe D’or

September 20, 2008 / friends, Sydney Food / 0 comment

J’adore French food. Since I can’t be in France to eat it right now, the next best thing is La Gerbe D’or in Paddington Five-Ways. Delightful cafe for breakfast or lunch, plus a patisserie to buy treat from to take home for those we left behind.

Last time we ordered a bowl of hot chocolate each, not realising it would be the size of our heads. This time we thought we would be smart and only order one and share it. Only problem was pouring it into the cups. This below illustrates what happens when you attempt this debacle.

A tomato and cheese tart. DELICIOUS. I will order this next time instead of stealing pieces from the girls.

Croque madam – like a croque-monsieur but with two eggs on top.

My French toast. The way the French have it! Seeped in eggs, with home made apple jam and cream and covered in icing sugar. The most delicious I have ever tasted.

Inside the croque madam.

Happy girls about to stuff themselves.

Dessert! The St Tropez – we shared this treat. A light friand-ish thing with light custard / cream blend.

Can I fit it all in my mouth?

Full of food goodness and ready to shop!

First day of hot weather! Check out our summery clothing.

Sushi Tei

September 17, 2008 / friends, Sydney Food / 0 comment

Beverly and I put ourselves through a pump class at the gym, then indulged in noodles at Sushi Tei – one of Bev’s favourite places nearby. I love Japanese noodles and this place had a wide variety of delicious noodle and sushi dishes – as well as very polite service.

Bev practice’s Alec’s “stop taking photos of me” look. Check out the giant menu.

Potato and corn cakes.

My udon noodle soup. Very simple and plain.

Bev’s cutlet.

Sesame ice cream.

My ice-cream with chocolate inside thingy. I don’t know what it was called but it was very unique!

Isis’ Hen Night

September 14, 2008 / friends, Sydney Life / 3 Comments

Isis chose a hen day with a difference – a pole dancing class followed by dinner.

The class took place at Studio Verve, a little place in Surry Hills. I have taken a few pole dancing classes several years ago when it was just starting to become a trend, and it’s amazing to see how much it has changed from unstructured lessons in strip clubs to properly kitted out studios with syllabus’ and levels of classes.

The hen looks hot to trot.

Go Isis!

Alice takes a spin.

My turn. Weee!

Our instructor, Angie, shows us some advanced moves.

It looks pretty easy, eh?

Our turn to learn a routine.

Finishing pose.

Gratuitous butt shot #1.

Gratuitous butt shot #2.

Posing after the hard work is done. Hussies!

Group shot – go pole dancing!

The hen and Alice start with the drinks.

I try to get the hang of spins.

Me and Jenn – posing again.

Changed and ready for the night on the town.

All the girls at Pazzo, Surry Hills. Delish food at a reasonable reasonable price. It was about $50 pp for antipasto platters, bruscetta, a main (I had pumpkin filled pasta with pea pesto. Ultra tasty!) and a dessert platter. It was also BYO. We all brought a bottle of wine and got incredibly sloshed.

Yuuuuum! The marriageable dessert platter.

Malabar at Crows Nest

September 4, 2008 / Animals, friends, Sydney Food / 2 Comments

I’ve never been a fan of Indian food – with the exception of cheese naan (which I was told recently wasn’t traditionally Indian – what a disappointment!).

Beverly and Lisa however have been raving abut their favourite Indian place in Crows Nest, Malabar, so in the spirit of trying new things, I agreed to come along for some new flavours.

I was pleasantly surprised by the delicious food – although I shouldn’t have been surprised since B & L are usually right when it comes to good restaurants. I was also pleased by the variety of vegetarian food on offer.

The interior – very dark unfortunately which made it not optimal for taking photos.

Colourful menu.