Treasure Hunt

This weekend has indeed been one filled with treasure finds around Melbourne. After dinner on Saturday evening, the Jman had this sudden crazy idea of “let’s go to the bar for a drink” – crazy because he doesn’t even take alcohol! Haha.

Evidently he was stressed and was in need of some chilling, so we went down to Enoteca on Gertrude Street where he’d been before and said was nice, and I hadn’t, and we did the most crazy thing of not having any alcohol at a bar…well, almost.

I wasn’t in the mood for a vino that evening and whiskey, though with an enticing selection, didn’t quite fit the mood either. It was a tad too chilly for cocktails as well, so we did the next best (granny) thing and opted for a peppermint tea and a hot chocolate instead.

Now you can’t get too far with peppermint tea simply ‘cos it’s just straightforward, but where the hot chocolate was concerned, think molten Valrhona “Manjari” pumped with a good dose of rum. Now we’re getting somewhere eh? Now THAT was absolutely to-die-for.

It’s All Greek To Me!

If there’s anything about Melbourne that I actually think is rave-worthy (which we all know is definitely not the weather), it’s got to be vibrant gastronomical scene that see excellent restaurants mushrooming up all over the city.

I just returned from a work lunch at The Press Club, which serves modern Greek cuisine. With The Age Good Food Guide 2008 Best New Restaurant – Chef Of The Year title firmly tucked behind Chef George Calombaris’s belt, the restaurant certainly looked promising when I sussed it out this morning.

Needless to say, it didn’t disappoint. The bread – which tasted like sourdough ciabatta – was still warm from the oven, absolutely amazing, and the olive oil that accompanied it was totally mindblowing. It was THE best olive oil I’d tasted – full-bodied, pungent, and wow…need I say more?!

For starters, we shared a Mezedes platter amongst ourselves, the Greek counterpart of the Italian antipasto and ordered our own mains. I had a grilled mullet (fish) that came with a variety of sides – a fish croquette, tzatziki, cous cous and pickled zucchini. I also tried some of the fish kebabs that my colleague ordered, and it was absolutely bursting with flavour! Not that I’m a fan of cous cous or anything close to it, but to cut the long story short, The Press Club was nothing less than impressive and it looks like I’m gonna be heading back again soon!

[proh-duhk-tiv-i-tee]

“the power of producing; generative; creative”

See also: the ability to complete an afternoon’s work in the office within an hour at home.

Nice Legs Nice Bum

Every Tuesday afternoon, the girls and I will walk out of our Body Pump class moaning about how painful the session was and how sore we’re going to be the next day. We’ll whinge about how cruel the instructor was to make us do those killer lunges that ALL of us dread.

“Nice legs nice bum!”, I’d echo, and we’d all chorus in agreement that this pain would hopefully be worth it. We’d stumble back to office with our lunches in hand, and come Wednesday we’d be limping pitifully around the office giving each other knowing looks.

But goodness knows what possessed me last night when I got home. We had another gruelling session at Body Pump yesterday (again attributed to those killer lunges), but I was feeling restless and decided to head out for a spin. So the Ice Queen and I made our way to the top of Kew Boulevard to do a couple of loops on the hill circuit. It didn’t feel so bad then but by the time I got home, I couldn’t feel my legs and my toes were all cramped up; strangely though, it actually felt really good. How sick is that?!

I woke up this morning and all I could feel was pain. My legs are wobbly, my bum’s sore, arms and abs are jello, but all I can do is to remind myself – “Nice legs nice bum!”

Kitchen Kulture

Cooking is the sort of thing where you’ve got to get “in the mood” for it. There are days when I shift into full gear and cook up a storm (even when no one else is eating), and then there are days when I couldn’t be bothered and eat takeaways instead. Any meal attempted without being “in the mood” usually ends up in disaster.

I got into the cooking mood this evening. It must’ve been a bad case of Monday blues or the fact that the tram disruptions got the better of me, but I came home feeling the urge to cook up something! Anything! I’ve been thinking about cooking Japanese food all week so I rummaged through my pantry (and freezer) and came up with this…

Clockwise from top left:
1. All laid out on the dinner table
2. Inari sushi
3. Grilled spanish mackeral marinated in ponzu and served with dipping sauce (kecap manis, shallots, garlic, ginger and chives)
4. Cold tofu with pork floss

Ok so it came with a fusion twist but it was an incredibly healthy, refreshing and satisfying meal.

Flower Power

On our way home from the Asian grocer’s this evening, the Jman and I stopped by the 24hour florist just a few blocks down from my apartment. We picked up some fresh flowers to fill the vase that I bought yesterday. I very quickly cut off the stems when I got home and stuck it into the mouth of the vase, with the thick foliage hiding all the sins of my haphazard floral arrangement.

I trimmed the flowers off the leftover stems and put them into the bright yellow takeaway-chow-mein box that Da left behind for me. Flowers are just gorgeous, aren’t they?

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

A little bit of blooming action going on in my balcony, thanks to the Jman.

Clockwise (from top left): Daisy; Morning glory; Daisy plant; Herb box

It Only Takes A Spark

Distance: 6.3km
Time: 41:13
Pace: 6:30/km

Feeling: Priceless.

Sesame Street – A Different Side of the Story

The best part about having siblings, cousins and sibling-in-laws is the type of creativity that transpires over the dinner table. Put a pilot, a psychologist, a homemaker and an auditor together and this is what you get out of a toy car and leftover Sesame Street figurines from a toddler’s birthday party: