Zante (II)

As soon as you arrive at Zante you are given a jug of water and glasses with the menu.  Which gets a big tick from me & ET.  And in between courses, they automatically take away your cutlery and plates and give you a new set.  Yet another big tick from us.  Luckily the food also gets a tick of approval.  We started with the Char-grilled Calamari.  It was soft and not at all chewy and I could definitely taste that it was grilled (but not in a bad way).  ET said it was "interesting".

On the surface, the Scotch Fillet seems like a bit of an odd choice for a Greek restaurant, but ET really scored with this dish.  He ordered rare and he got a pink piece of steak with no gristle to wrestle with.  Upon clearing away the plates, the waiter took great pleasure in asking how ET enjoyed the steak and appeared very proud of how they professionally prepare such dishes.

Because ET enjoyed the Chicken souvlaki last time we visited, I decided it was my turn to try it.  It was good; I even enjoyed the tzatziki even thought I don't usually eat it with chicken.  And apparently all meat dishes are served on a bed of marinated potato mash.  Just not sure what it's marinated with to turn it orange-y in color (although you can't tell from the pictures - sorry), but it tasted good all the same.

Surprisingly I was up for dessert, and with the help of the wait-staff, talked ET into sharing the Loukoumades with me.  (She was right - the dish was too bit for one).  And as it turned out, ET liked it just as much as me!  These little Greek dumplings were so crispy on the outside that they crackled when you cut into them but were soft and light on the inside.

We ate rather early but were surprised to still find the place half empty when we left.  Although the staff is quite attentive, and the food good, the prices aren't light on the pocket, so perhaps that's what is keeping the crowds away?  After all, I wouldn't think there would be much competition for Greek food in this area.

Zante

1039 Whitehorse Rd, Box Hill

Chef Lagenda

To be honest we just stumbled across Chef Lagenda as the relocated Laksa King (our first choice) was still completely packed at 8pm in the middle of the week.  We managed to snaggle one of the last few tables at Chef Lagenda, and chose the upstairs balcony.  This place looks quite small from the outside and I, for one, was unsure if this was just a takeaway joint.  It seats a few tables downstairs and even more upstairs plus another 20 or more seats on the balcony.

On to the food - the Chicken Satay Skewers was not spicy but I wasn't game enough to smother it in sauce.  Although, since they serve the sauce in a small but very deep saucer, I hardly got any onto my skewer when I tried a bit.  Now that I think of it, we should've just poured it over.  Specially as ET has a high tolerance for spicy stuff.

The Sui Mai is served as 3 pieces so it was hard to share equally.  But when you bite into it, you can see the prawn, and not just prawn mince so I was quite pleased.

A.k.a. steamed dim sims

My Salted Pepper Calamari was actually served between the two entrees but I had ordered this as my main meal so by the time I the rice arrived, the calamari was cold and I'm unsure how crispy it would have been at the beginning. :(

In the background are the used Chicken Satay skewers and the deep dipping bowl

Being a balmy evening, I ordered a Mango Ice Blended drink but the top was so hard to puncture with the straw, even ET had to use brute force to so I could slurp away.

In their world, it's only 2008!

ET found the Sizzling Udon Noodles with black pepper sauce delicious and really enjoyed it although he's not sure why he ordered rice when he knew it was a noodle dish.

A bit of chopstick action going on there

Tea was served as soon as we sat down and there was plenty of chopsticks as well as cutlery on the table, although we did have to steal another table's soy sauce.  Overall the balcony was a pleasant surprise as was the food.  Having read some reviews, it seems the head chef came from the old Laksa King.  So I guess next time we're in the area, we'll be giving Chef Lagenda another go.

Chef Lagenda

16 Pin Oak Cres,Flemington

Foo Doo's

We were surprised to find Foo Doo's open on a Sunday, specially as the sign outside says "Sundays Closed" but there were several people inside so we walked in and after looking at the specials board, grabbed ourselves a table.

ET chose the Gnocchi Amatriciana which he said "wasn't bad, it's hard to do gnocchi".  It had bacon, capsicum, chilli and onion in napoli sauce.  (Lucky it was on the specials board because I was able to write that all down.  It's hard to write down ingredients when they take menus away at most places.)

My French Toast with Banana was barely warm and a bit soggy with no crisp edges.  But there were two big pieces of bread and the maple syrup was on a small saucer so I was able to dispurse it as I pleased.

Foo Doo's

366 Smith St, Fitzroy

Enrik's (VII)

Because we wanted to see Enrik's lunch menu (because frankly, ET & I couldn't remember if they had one) plus they have more variety that some cafes we've been to of late, off we went to Enrik's.

We walked in at 11:40 to be told breakfast finishes at 11:45 so we would have to wait 20 minutes before lunch is being served.  Say what now??  Who ever heard of a restaurant closing the kitchen between between meals for 20 minutes?  Seriously - if anyone has, let me know where.

Anyway, we were there already there so we ordered coffees and went through the menu while waiting.  A few minutes before they were ready to take our food order, ET ordered a second coffee and I asked for some water.  Incidentally, you can order from the full menu from 12:00pm (except for breakfast, of course) but we had to ask because they didn't explain that bit to us.

As always, ET went the pasta route.  The Fettucini Carbonara had more of a mushroom flavour and color but ET thought it was good.

The lunch menu Chicken Ceasar Foccacia had a nice dressing and filled the spot.

Oh and that water I asked for earlier - I'm still waiting to get it. :s

Enrik's Restaurant

25 Railway Rd, Blackburn

Strictly Thai

Being relatively busy late on a quiet week night, we thought Strictly Thai  would be a good go.  For starters, ET didn't mind their famous authentic Thai Fish Cakes, but didn't like the Curry Puffs at all. I didn't think it was at all flaky; perhaps it needed to be cooked a little longer? 

The Chicken Curry was also not very hot so ET was disappointed he didn't order the green curry instead.

Luckily my stir-fry chicken with garlic and pepper wasn't spicy like I expected, so I had no complaints.

Overall ET was disappointed with the service and food, which he thought was not authentic and a little pricey.

Strictly Thai

170 High St, Kew