With winter comes cold and with that comes the intrinsic need for comfort and what better way to find this in a meal than through a wonderful bowl of Ramen?! A good ‘Winter Warmer’ should provide what my good friend M describes as a “hug in a bowl/cup” and for me, ramen has never failed to do so!
Here is a preview (temptation???) of what is to come!!
mmmmm…..warmth and hugs in a bowl!
This week I was rather heartbroken. No, there is no tragic love story to share. In my mind it is something worse! The recovery process of my external hard drive did not fair too well in the end and I ended up losing ALL and I mean ALL my photos, which I have taken over the last four years. Yes, it’s seems obscenely petty to be whining and dwelling on this when there are so many bigger things in life, but in a way I feel like the memories of my graduation, 18th birthday, family holidays and so forth have partially been lost.
Funnily enough when I think about it, this would not have happened say around 10 years ago. I would have developed my photos and have had hard copies of them. Oh how the convenience of technology has backfired on me.
Perhaps, I should take this as a sign??
It may be time for me to honestly start afresh and create new memories. Maybe, it is a metaphorical disaster that is urging me to pursue something completely different this year. Yes, it is rather sad that HSC English analytical techniques will forever run in my veins. In all seriousness however, it is quite possible. Perhaps I need to re-evaluate my goals? Much pondering must be done now – quite appropriate really as this has coincided with a conversation I had with Mumma last night about what other options there were for me to pursue in my studies.
No matter, I hope 2013 will be a year, which I look back upon fondly and this whole shenanigans and (momentary) heartbreak will only be a miniscule fraction of the painting.
Moral of the story: NEVER EVER trust an external hard drive!!
Note to self: develop my favourite/most important photographs!
I don’t think I could have ended without a quick foodie-graph section! I may as well start sharing some of these new memories with you all. Here are a few of my eats of the week.
(Excuse some of the photo quality – I took a fair few of these on the go with my iPhone.)
Trips back to Sussex Street’s “Yummy Thai” for their delicious Fried Fish Set have become a weekly event! Mumma and I went slightly crazy and ordered three different variations – Sweet Chilli, Lemongrass and Chilli and Chilli Basil. We may have eaten all three between the two of us but it was hard to resist when fish is fried to perfection and it was in fact not overly filling! I assume that the frying process renders off a lot of the fats etc, making the fish super crispy and light! Our favourite still remains the Lemongrass and Chilli variant but the abundance of vegetables with the Sweet Chilli makes me quite the happy eater!
After hearing the sad fate of my photographs, I pulled myself together and headed to the city on Friday to run some errands for Mumma. It was indeed a productive day and I treated myself to one of my favourite salads from Mero Mero located in Westfield’s Food on Five and my undisputedly favourite Soy Vanilla Latte from a hole in the wall Vietnamese joint on Clarence Street. “Why is this Ming’s favourite salad?” you may ask. Well, it’s “make your own salad” at Mero Mero and their ingredients are always fresh and full of flavour. My usual combination consists of Baby Spinach, Avocado, Feta, Chilli, Pumpkin, Mushroom, Cucumber and Sundried Tomatoes topped with a Chilli Mayo Dressing. It also helps when they provide a piece of soy and linseed on the side ;)!
I am proud to say I returned home from the city with a brand new Phillips Juicer as well – a health kick for the family! We’ve been on the juice wagon for the last month and it really does wonders when one is feeling a bit under the weather or stressed (and Lil’ Bro is certainly feeling that with the HSC ahead!)
After picking Lil’ Bro up from his very long English tutoring session after his first week of HSC assessments, a quick, simple, enjoyable and fulfilling Friday night dinner was in order!
Drunken Chicken
Crispy Duck
Shanghainese Nian Gao
Four Season Beans
Siew Mai
Kensington Peking is a deceptively great restaurant, which the family head to when in search of comforting Chinese fair, without having to face the chaos of Chinatown. Must tries are their Drunken Chicken, which is so tender and wonderfully marinated, and their Crispy Duck, which can only be described as perfectly ‘crispy’ haha. For the vegetable lovers, the Four Season Beans are what I think to be one of the best. So don’t let the exterior of this restaurant fool you!
Stay tuned with my next post with photos from the last weekend of Chinese New Year!
P.S. I hope the new approach I’ve tried in this and the previous post of combining a few eats/events into one is being enjoyed. Hopefully, I’ll be able to develop a style that doesn’t make everything seem too disjointed.
Ming xx
After spending a wonderful afternoon in the city catching up with ‘Wifey’, one of my closest friends, followed by the comedic interruption of Lil’ Bro who came to join in on our ‘chit chat’, it was time to meet Mumma and Pappa for dinner. Lil’ Bro was abandoning us for dinner to meet up with some friends in the city, so as the remaining three; we went on the hunt for a simple yet tantalising meal.
Sydney’s food scene has really begun to grace the stomachs of its dwellers with an eclectic range of cultural delights. With the ever growing hype surrounding ‘higher end’ dining and the café scene, it is comforting to know that there are still ‘foodie havens’ which can more than satisfy our cravings for comfort food while providing a myriad of authentic cultural choice
After following one of my favourite blog’s “Street Food”, I began to patronise ‘Sussex Street Food Centre’, which is definitely a melting pot for all things Asian. All credit goes to this blog for pointing me in the direction of cheap and cheerful meals that are rather successful in picking me up from my ‘I miss hawker food’ and ‘uni stress’ moments. From Thai Boat Noodles to Vietnamese Pho, this South-East Asian food map is almost reminiscent of the typical food centre in Singapore or Malaysia.
It had been on my agenda to try ‘Yummy Thai’s’ Fried Fish, so I quickly directed all my attention to the wafting smells of lemon-grass and ginger as Mumma and Pappa began to survey the premises. The number of Thai patrons ordering from this stall had me a little excited at the prospect of its authenticity.
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hello it's ming. 