7-8 Coffee Shop

A cosy suburban eatery serving mainly Japanese fare, with a range of set meals (all same price) that will see you get change from a tenner. Unless you add one of the fancy sounding drinks or some cake to your order, that is. The food is generally nice without being sensational, nevertheless I hope to return again soon and try a few other dishes.

Address: Shop 5/17 Barrett St (Robertson Village) Robertson 4109
Phone/fax: 3272 7878
Hours: 1200-1530, 1730-2130 (later Fri-Sun); closed Thursdays
Web: http://coffeeshop78.webnode.com
Email: coffeeshop_78@hotmail.com
Parking: Robertson Village car park - outdoors in front of shops and undercover below shops

I first knew of this little cafe's existence more than a year ago, when a friend suggested it for a dinner one evening. Unfortunately the place was full and couldn't take us, but I'd been curious to try it ever since. Sometimes things move pretty slowly in my world...

View of the interior, from near the entrance / waiting area.

The place is small, but not cramped. It has a nice and welcoming feel to it.

Ordering is a bit of a DIY affair whereby you fill out an order form. The menu is in Chinese and English, and there is a minimum order of $3.50 per head. One side is for food, the other drinks. Most meals are $9. Here's what we had:

Japanese deep fried chicken udon noodle set meal

Pumpkin pot dish meal with pork, served with rice and side dish of the day

Teriyaki chicken rice set meal, with soup and side dish of the day

One of the salads avaiable... forgot to get the details

The food is good and most of the drinks have exotic sounding names like Blossom Plum (black tea, plum juice), Irish Love (black tea, orange juice, yoghurt, lemon juice, honey, ice cream) and Pure Temptation (fresh watermelon, milk, grenadine syrup). This is definitely a place where you can hang out for hours chatting away while having a nice meal, sipping away at your drink, or having a spot of afternoon tea / dessert (a selection of cakes is available at the counter).

While I was there, I joined up for their VIP membership (free), which entitles you to a buy one, get one free beverage. Perfect excuse for a drink for two :)

Time of visit: Monday dinner
With: island, yung (and todd)
Trivia: miss the current lot of VIP cards, and you'll have to wait till 2009 for the next opportunity?!

La Quinta Mexican Cafe y Bar

A bustling Mexican restaurant in the heart of Bulimba's Oxford St food scene. We were a group of people looking for a place to go for dinner, and picked this from the Entertainment Book. Not a bad choice, I'd say, but I'm not sure if I'd be rushing to return.

Address: Shop 1/189 Oxford Street Bulimba
Phone: 3399 2800
Hours: lunch Wed-Sun, dinner 7 days till late
Web: http://www.laquinta.com.au/index.html
Parking: some off street parking available, otherwise on Oxford or nearby streets

They say theirs is authentic Mexican cuisine, not the "Tex Mex" variety most equate with Mexican. I can't say I knew the difference before my visit, nor am I much the wiser after. I think the Aussie 80's soundtrack playing during the night added to my confusion. Anyway, here are some photos from the night:

View from the interior - we were along one wall of the restaurant, and this is looking at the opposite wall

Choice of 3 dips served with corn chips and tortillas, $15. Can't remember what the actual dips were...

Pescado pibil - fillets of fish marinated in Mayan spices, wrapped in banana leaves and baked. Served with an onion and citrus marinade, corn fritters & baked potatoes (or fries). $23

Something someone else ordered...

I think everybody enjoyed their food, and a good night was had by all. The place is nice enough but it's not high on my list of return visit venues. This is the first time I've dined in Oxford St. If I'm in the area again I'd rather check out some of the other venues and compare offerings.

Time of visit: Saturday dinner.
With: misc. Clayers

Cafe Mindoro - not quite a "gold mine"

A Filipino/Spanish cafe which takes its name from the 7th-largest island in the Philippines, and that from a Spanish term meaning "gold mine". My verdict? Not quite the find I was expecting. Though I won't rule out a return visit, it's not going to sit very high on the agenda.

Address: 26 Station Rd (cnr Riverview Tce) Indooroopilly 4068
Phone/fax: 3878 6422
Hours: Mon-Fri 1000-1430, 1700-late; weekends 0900-late
Web: http://www.cafemindoro.com/index.html
Email: enquiry@cafemindoro.com
Parking: on street

I have walked past this place a few times without ever really taking much notice of it, and it wasn't until I read a review in the newspaper ("Feisty feast", The Sunday Mail, IE, June 17, 2007) that my interest was piqued. After reading the review and checking out their website, I was keen to try out the food for myself - and finally got the chance to round up a group from church last Sunday to sample the Mindoro fare.

Restaurant interior, as viewed from our corner table.

The venue is reasonably bright, having lots of glass along two of its four walls, and yellow paint on the walls. There's also a large slab of mirror in one corner (where we were sitting, with one side of the table getting cushioned seats). A reasonably pleasant dining environment.

Disappoinment #1: Having seen the menu prices, I was pretty set on trying the $8.50 lunch specials, a feature listed in the newspaper review and also on the online menu. However upon arriving at the cafe I found only a regular menu without lunch specials, and the waitress subsequently confirmed that they were no longer serving these specials. So it was onto the pricier mains, figuring it would probably be a wasted trip to come here only to eat sandwiches to stay close to the $10 mark...

The newspaper review gave the impression that the servings at this joint are quite generous, suggesting that you come hungry - almost starving. Our table of 9 had a mixed order of a Lamb Caldereta ($19), steak sandwich ($8), and the rest opted to share 3 serves of the Cafe Mindoro Paella amongst them. This last dish is listed in the menu as "fragrant rice with prawns, pork, Filipino sausage, chicken and vegetables. Serves minimum 2 persons." Having read from the newspaper review that the $35 signature dish was "amazing value for money" and "bursting with meat and sweet prawns", I confidently opted to split the dish three ways while the other two serves were each split two ways.

Cafe Mindoro Paella - definitely not as described.

Disappoinment #2: The paella that we did get served was not quite bursting with meat, and there were no prawns in sight, let alone any sweet ones. Neither were there any vegetables, unless you count the decorative snip of parsley (or was it coriander?), four slices of cucumber, and the tomato bits which formed the sauce. There was pork and a bit of chicken, as well as a few bits of calamari (which is not included in the menu description). As for the Fillipino sausage, I have no idea... maybe that's what the meatball looking things were meant to be?? Lastly, maybe I'm a bigger eater than the average Cafe Mindoro diner, but I would be hard pressed to imply it as sufficient to serve minimum 2 persons. Which is a good thing that all mains come served with steamed rice - I ate at least as much steamed rice as I did paella rice, in order to not leave the place in the same state as which I entered: hungry. One of the other guys who split a paella two ways was still hungry at the end of his share, though I don't think he ate much steamed rice along with it.

Now maybe this was the product of another recent change, sometime between the date of the newspaper reviewer's visit and ours, and recent enough that the in-house and online menus have not yet been updated... I didn't ask, and reserve the right to be unimpressed.

The food itself tasted ok, without being fantastic. The sauce was strong on tomato, which some did not find to their liking. Mine was diluted with equal parts steamed rice anyway, so I didn't mind. But it ends up being a tasty yet fairly normal sort of rice-based meal with some meat, and definitely not something I would pay $35 for (even at ~$12 for my one-third share -- there are places closer to home where I can get a truly generous serve of some tasty rice/noodle based meal and maybe even get change from a $10 note).

If I come back, I might try the Filipino breakfast (which if I recall correctly is served all day), or if I'm in a particularly adventurous, cashed up, and forward planning mood, one of their special orders (needs to be ordered one day in advance). That's if I feel like giving the place another chance to impress. Either way, "cheap" and "where value for money is first-rate" are descriptors used by the newspaper reviewer, which I could not apply to this cafe.

Time of visit: [Lunch, Sunday 29 July 2007].
With: Clay/SLE misc.
Trivia: One of the waitresses is from Peru, and the chef is a Malaysian from Sabah!

Oishii Sushi Bar - true to its name, oishi desu ne!

Another one from the archives... photos from a visit in December 2006.

I had heard good reviews about this place, which was recently opened. A friend of mine took the photos for the menus (the chef/owner is a school friend of his) and my sister (who also knows this photographer friend) did a bit of proof reading for the text. So when it came up as a suggestion for a meal with some friends, I voted yes to trying it out.

In short, I thought the food was pretty awesome. Nice flavours, good presentation, and the price is reasonable. Great meal.

Address: Shop 2/70 Pinelands Rd Sunnybank Hills
Phone/fax: 3423 7774
Parking: off street parking available - can fill up quickly during busy periods (eg meal times, since there are a few other eateries in this complex all sharing the same small car park)

Edamame - more than just soybeans

Another entry from the archives... within a week of hearing about this newly opened eatery, I found myself eating there on consecutive days. The first was more or less planned, the second because I was following a group. It's a nice setup with a bit more character than the other Japanese place along this stretch, and should do good trade amongst the uni student crowd unless they shy from the price tags and opt for cheaper offerings. Shot on right is from second visit - fellow diners sitting on the bench seats outside waiting for the shop to open for lunch.

Address: Shop 2, 224 Hawken Drive, St Lucia
Phone: 3876 0060
Parking: Limited spaces behind/under building, otherwise on street

Photos below are combined from my two visits in August 2006.

Inside view. The majority of seats are outside (covered).


Karaage (deep fried) chicken


Can't remember... it's what I ate for dinner on my first visit.


Yakitori platter (yakitori, negima, tsukune, kushikatsu). $7.40 per person, min 2 people.


Gyoza - pan fried dumplings filled with prawns and vegetables


Mochi with hot sweet red bean soup. $5.90


Apple custard harumaki (spring rolls), served with scoops of green tea ice cream, sesame ice cream & whipped cream.

The thing about posting photos from the archives is that it's a bit difficult to remember how the food tasted at the time. Nevertheless, my impressions of this place were generally positive.

Time of visit: Saturday dinner / Sunday lunch
With: island, yannie / Clay folk

Ottoman Café - would you like some lamb with that?

Not much activity yet on this blog... this is some info on a place I visited last November

I don't usually order lamb when I eat out, partly because I don't eat that much lamb to begin with (it just wasn't a big part of my diet), and because I'm not confident that my taste buds will be happy after the money is spent. This being a Turkish restaurant, it's a bit hard to order anything but lamb... the results, I'm happy to say, were pleasing to my taste buds!

Address: 37 Mollison Street South Brisbane
Phone: 3846 3555
Hours: Tue-Sun 1200-1500, 1730-2200
Web: http://www.ottomancafe.com.au
Email: enquiries@ottomancafe@bigpond.com
Parking: on street

The decision to try this restaurant came about from browsing through the Entertainment book looking for something a bit out of the ordinary/mainstream. It was a good choice - taking us on a lamb fest of never before experienced proportions.

Interior view. There were 2-3 other groups the night of our visit.


Mixed platter entrée

A bit of all the dips, of which I can't recall the names of any! The red thing in the upper right is beetroot, and there's a few bean-based ones... the leaf-wrapped thing in the middle reminds me (inlooks, not taste) of the "lor mai fan" you get at yum cha.

Vezir Kavurma - "Seasoned lamb cooked with herbs and spices until it is verytender."$20.50

Pretty nice dish, definitely tender.

Navruz Shish - "Marinated and seasoned lamb, char grilled with herbs." $21.50


Lamb Shanks - "Lamb shanks baked in tomato sauce with herbs and spices until it is very tender."$19.50

This was so tender I could hardly believe. It would have to rate among the best lamb dishes I ever recall having. A must try.

Baklava for dessert.

This turned out to be significantly smaller than all of us imagined from the description given by the waitress. And these aresupposedly the larger servings...

We also tried a drink called "salep", a sweetish milk based drink containing a powder made from orchid tubers(?!). All the food went down well. A definite winner for good lamb dishes, though you could have too much of a good thing!

Time of visit: Thursday dinner
With: renai, essay

Disclaimers

• I am definitely not a gourmet, and wouldn't usually consider myself a foodie either. While I may have the odd occasion to indulge in fine dining, my tastes and budget typically run a lot simpler -- the subjects of this blog's entries would naturally follow suit... I am a guy who would be happy eating fried rice, or a pack of IndoMie Mi Goreng (instant noodles). Ironically these are not usually blogworthy foods, though one could raise a case for the mi goreng, which can be quite shiok!
  
• I am self-confessedly quite ignorant about food - I just know what I like to eat, but usually precious little about the ingredients, preparation, cooking method, serving style, variations, or anything else verging on the technical.
• This blog is not meant to be comprehensive in any way:
1. I don't have the time, money, or company^[1] to eat out on a very regular basis. Trying new places happens even less often. This places a limit on the number of venues I visit.
2. I don't tend to travel for the sake of food, unless it's a special occasion or a place comes highly recommended, or I'm feeling adventurous. This places a limit on the location of venues I visit. Areas where I frequent (for home, work, and church) are Brisbane's southeast and inner west.
3. I don't consume alcohol, so am unable to comment on the drinks side of any venues that may be licensed.
4. I tend to eat a lot of Asian food (because that's what I grew up eating and it's what I like). This places a limit of sorts on the variety of cuisine I sample. Having said that, I am generally open to new tastes and experiences.
   
• Unless otherwise specified, all opinions expressed are my own, and do not represent those of any other people/organisations. Quoting/paraphrasing opinions of dining companions may be done with lax citation habits.
  
• All opinions expressed are opinions only, and may only be valid for specific or limited times/circumstances (eg during my particular visit). You don't have to agree with them, trust or believe them. If you wish to objectively correct a factual error, please do so. If you wish to subjectively pick bones because you disagree with my opinion, or are looking to troll and/or flame, do something positive for world energy conservation: save yourself the trouble and don't bother.
  
• I think it's a bit silly to have disclaimers, but some things are probably better spelt out than left unsaid.
• I am not a lawyer, so have probably not spelt things out well enough :) But I'm going to stop (well) before I reach the level of including disclaimers for knives warning people to be careful of the sharp edge...
• I have a tendency to ramble.
  

[1] I welcome contributions towards addressing these hurdles :) (though I'm not quite sure how you would go about giving me more time!) ** Update late 2007 ** I am now married, so can't really say I struggle to find company anymore... but the more the merrier :)

Why brisvEGustation?

A number of factors, really... including but not limited to:

1. One can never have too many excuses to procrastinate, for example, blogging! Especially when one should be doing something else (usually more important/urgent/worthwhile) :p
2. Seemed like a good idea at the time - what's one more project started and never carried through to completion?
3. I often have trouble finding good information on potential eating venues, possibly because:
1. I tend to eat at smaller, cheaper places, not typically written about in mainstream media^[1]
   
2. These places don't always have their own (functional / up-to-date) website
3. People (general public) don't tend write about / review these places on the web^[1]

So this is my attempt to write about some of the places I visit when I eat out. If it only serves to jog my own memory, that's sufficient. If it benefits anyone else looking for information on these venues, that's a bonus :)


[1] I'm sure there is information out there, but whether it's in English/a form I can easily read is another question...

What is brisvEGustation?

"brisvEGustation" is a portmanteau of Brisvegas and degustation (click on the words if you don't know what they mean, or are otherwise unfamiliar with the terms).

• "Brisvegas" is for the city of Brisbane (Queensland, Australia),
• "degustation" is for the sampling of food/eateries (in this case it's moreso the eateries in a geographical area, than properly the food in an eatery),
• "EG" is exempli gratia (for example).

Hence the description of the blog is

A meandering journey through some of the eateries in and around Brisbane (and sometimes other parts of the world). For example...

In short, you could say this is mostly a Brisbane food blog.

the FAQ that isn't yet...

Well, the idea is that readers ask me questions, and I try to answer them. There are no answers yet because no questions have been asked... I could try asking myself questions but I think a bit more interaction would be the go!