The Oyster Bar, Adelaide

The start of summer often means the start of great summer food to come. For example, stone fruits and strawberries are usually widely available in summer rather than autumn/winter. Another example is oysters and crabs. Although oysters are available all-year round, frozen or fresh, but I usually like to eat it when it's in season, mainly because it is fresher, bigger and usually cheaper. :)

I paid a visit to the Oyster bar in Adelaide East, mid-November because I was hankering after au natural oysters and Adelaide East was much nearer than Glenelg. Since I've tried the Glenelg branch once during my 1st/2nd year, I decided to give the Adelaide East branch a go. :)

For those who are planning to pay this bar a visit, be sure to head down on a Tuesday as the oysters are much cheaper then! The day that I and another friend went down, was fortunately a Tuesday, so we had the chance to order and try out more oysters. :P We ordered one dozen of Oysters Natural and one dozen of Oysters Mixed.

Oysters Natural, with 2 wedges of lemon and 1 triangular slice of bread.

I love, love, love the oysters from this place! It's fresh, firm and succulent. Absolutely divine! The only gripe about it is the size. Why is it so small!? :(

Oysters Mixed: Darleyfella, Kilpatrick, Natural and Chilli & Cheese (Clockwise from Top)

This plate was not all-good though, it had hits and misses. The hits were the Chilli & Cheese (my favourite!), Darleyfella (Spinach & Mornay) was not too bad but it had a strong tuna mornay taste and Natural was awesome (as usual). Haha. The miss was the Kilpatrick (bacon with special sauce), it tasted queer, I'm not too sure if the special sauce was meant to taste as such but it was just bad. And very salty, bacon itself is already salty, plus the sauce = too salty! :( Again, the sizes of the oysters are pretty small. But I think having the extra ingredients helped to make it seem more worth it?

Summary

I would highly recommend oyster lovers to go for the Natural oysters and Chilli & Cheese oysters. Stay away from the other two, unless you like having tuna flavoured oysters. I heard that the Pesto oysters are quite good too, but it wasn't included in the mixed platter, so we didn't order that to try. The total damage done to our wallets that day was AUD$39. Not too bad for the quality of the oysters (mainly the Natural and Chilli & Cheese), but I wouldn't go back again because the sizes of the oysters are too small to justify the price. 

Food: 3.5 / 5
Service: 3 / 5 (Service was pretty slow as there was only one staff working and oysters were shucked to order, so it would have been better if there were at least two staff present.)
Value: 2 / 5 (It would have been better if oysters were much bigger, $16 for a dozen small oysters, is indeed quite steep a price.)
Ambience: 3.5 / 5

Adelaide Oyster Bar
14 East Tce, Adelaide, SA 5000
(08) 8232 5422

Maki Maki Japanese Cafe & Takeaway

I love Japanese food, it's one of my top most favourite cuisines in the whole wide world. :) And I'm very blessed to be born in Singapore where a favourite cuisine of Singaporeans is Japanese. So the supermarkets often stock sashimi, sushi and other Japanese food like unagi (eel) which is pretty affordable, although not as cheap as Japan.

Unfortunately, Japanese food in Adelaide is not so cheap and affordable as Singapore. So I do have major cravings now and then, and I'm quite glad that I've found this eatery tucked away in Gawler place. It is pretty secluded and I daresay I would not have known about this place, if not for a friend's recommendation. :) I remember the first time I tried to find this place, I got lost. -_- Even Google maps did not know where Parc Arcade was, can you believe it!? I can't. Haha. So yes, I walked for a good 10 minutes before I found this place. :( A pretty good tip to find this place is to walk in from North Terrace, and soon after you turn into Gawler Place, you will see Parc Arcade. :) Walk in and you will spy Maki Maki on the left.

I think one reason why this place remains relatively unknown is because it's situated in a place where not many people go to. Although it's pretty near to Rundle Mall but I don't go to Parc Arcade at all, and that's probably why the food prices here are cheaper than the other sushi places nearby. :) A bowl of udon costs roughly from $8 - $12, and that is relatively cheap compared to Maru near Flinders Medical Centre, where one bowl starts from $14.

Maki Maki is a nondescript place, it's not heavily furnished with Japanese decorations, it is simple and the colours of the walk-in eatery is mostly red and white. I've went twice so far, and only for their udon! I love their udon noodles. Chewy yet firm and very yummy to slurp it up. The soup comes steaming hot, so hot that if you are hungry, you have to be very careful not to burn your tongue! I did that once, and I was left with a scalding burnt tongue at the end of my meal. =.= It was definitely not pleasant but that goes to show how good their udon soup was - too good that I could not wait for the soup to cool down before chowing it down.

The first time I went, I had their Crispy Chicken Udon.

Crispy Chicken Udon

I was pleasantly surprised when it arrived because as you can see, it actually has spinach leaves inside. This is uncommonly seen in udon and it is, secretly, a gripe that I have with udon soup: too little vegetables. The only vegetables commonly seen in udon is usually kelp and seaweed and it is only 1-2 pieces. Haha. So the dietitan in me was pleased with this bowl of what seemed to have more vegetables than usual-udon noodles. :) The soup was delicious, love the noodles, spinach, seaweed and kelp inside. The chicken was actually quite tender too. But one thing I didn't like about this was that the chicken (deep-fried) was put into the soup. So the oil from the chicken actually seeped into the soup. -_- And I didn't like that oily taste from the soup, plus the chicken which was suppose to be crispy became soggy instead. :(

It would have been much better if the fried food was kept separate from the soup. So that it will really be Crispy Chicken (+) Udon. Haha. 

So with that in mind, I went back to Maki Maki for a 2nd trial, which was about a week later (yet another testament to how delicious the udon noodles are). This time, I decided to try a different variety of udon and so I ordered the infamous Tempura Udon. Now, for those who are fans of Japanese cuisine like me, you would know that there are 3 foods that a Japanese chef should not get wrong: sushi rice, tempura and udon. It is actually the mark of a Japanese chef to be able to cook all these 3 well enough as they are pretty simple yet very easy to get them wrong too. So if either of the 3 foods taste bad in any Japanese restaurant, well, I don't have much faith in trying out the other dishes then. :)

So I had high hopes for this dish, seeing that the udon met my standards. And I specially told the cashier that I would like my tempura separated from my udon soup, please (as I would really want to eat my udon soup as it is - free from any oily taste).

Tempura Udon 

And so it arrived. I was pretty happy with the presentation. Glistening udon soup with spinach leaves & two fried prawns (Note: This is not tempura) on the side. I was pretty puzzled by the round fried thing though, had no idea what it was. 

Thought it looked suspiciously like a prawn vada (a Indian fried dough snack with prawn shells) and tasted like one too. It was not too bad, really. So I happily ate it and I left the fried prawn for last and attacked my udon noodles first, being careful not to scald my tongue like last time. And I'm happy to say that the udon soup noodles tasted as good as the one I had last time. :)  

The big puzzle was, the "tempura" prawns that seemed more like fried ebi instead than tempura. And it didn't taste like tempura batter at all. Which was a big disappointment as it doesn't matter how fresh the prawns are, once the batter is off, it throws the whole balance of the dish. :(   

Summary

Not too happy with the tempura dish and most likely won't order the Tempura udon again. I would most probably give the Crispy Chicken Udon another go and order the Crispy Chicken separately from the Udon, because I really like the udon noodles, soup and the chicken, just not together. I've read from the other reviews that the bento sets are pretty decent too, especially the sashimi and unagi set. This place does hold potential with its decent food and affordable prices - but don't expect it to have the same food standards as Wasai or Sushi Train. 

Food: 3.5 / 5

Service: 4 / 5 (Friendly and helpful staff)

Value: 4 / 5

Ambience: 2.5 / 5

Maki Maki Japanese Cafe
Parc Arcade, Gawler Place, Rundle Mall, SA 5000
(08) 8231 9334

A Macaron Review :3

After trying out the macarons from Le Carpe Diem, I can say that I have fallen in love with these little tricky bites of delicious-ness. Every bite of macaron was like a little food-explosion in my mouth! I couldn't help but go back again, and again, just to buy their macarons! I think I've gone back like 3 times so far? Yes...their macarons are to-die-for! :) It also doesn't help that my chiropractor is like 15 mins walk away from this French cafe. :( So every time, after I'm done with my chiropractor, I take it upon myself to exercise and walk to that place and get my fix of macarons, as and when I need it. :P

Haha. I've even introduced my friend and housemates to the macarons and they loved it! Yay! :D Such a nice feeling when your recommendation is recognized and acknowledged! Happy. :) Anyway, while I was sharing + posting about these macarons, I heard of another macaron place in Adelaide, known as the Mac Factory (TMF). Intrigued, I searched it up online and realized that it was just <5 mins walk away from my chiropractor! What a coincidence! So being the foodie at heart, I felt compelled to check that place out and compare it against Le Carpe Diem (LCD). :) But apparently, it's even more 'popular' than LCD because it has funny working hours, and I had to make sure that they were open before I popped by. =/

Since I was going to do a comparison, it made sense to buy the same flavours as they have at LCD; salted caramel, lemon and raspberry.

Macarons from The Mac Factory

Macarons from The Mac Factory; Salted Caramel, Lemon & Raspberry

As you can see, the macarons from The Mac Factory looks just like all the ordinary macarons out there.

Macarons from Le Carpe Diem

Macarons from Le Carpe Diem; Salted Caramel, Lemon & Raspberry.

Yep. I bought the same flavours. But as you can see from the pictures, LCD macarons are smaller but the shell is higher and the filling looks to be more generous than TMF. TMF macarons are $2.50 each whereas LCD macarons are $2.80 each.

Review

Taste-wise, Le Carpe Diem macarons win hands-down. The flavours of each individual macaron was stronger than The Mac Factory and it tasted genuine. With TMF, I had this plastic after-taste in my mouth which was rather unpleasant to be honest. :( And only the salted caramel macaron was decent. There was barely any taste of lemon and only a hint of raspberry. Yes, TMF macarons are $0.30 cheaper and bigger too, but quality over quantity, LCD is the overall winner. Plus LCD macarons look so pretty, it's like a work of art! The pastry shell from LCD macarons are melt-in-your-mouth, it's truly how macarons should be! Whereas I found that the shell from TMF macarons were a bit too chewy, I can feel it sticking onto my teeth. :( Another thing that I really love about LCD macarons is the filling. Oh man! Their fillings are so delicious and it is different from TMF and the other average macarons out there. It's like a combination of ganache + buttercream. So, so, so, so good! It just makes me want to eat more of their macarons! :( 

The filling inside. (LCD macarons)

I did a time test too. In other words, I only ate the macarons (bought from both LCD and TMF) 2 days after I bought them, under the same conditions, barely a week apart. The LCD macarons tasted as good as I bought it on day 1, whereas TMF macarons tasted a little stale (probably explains the plastic after-taste that I had). =/

Summary

Le Carpe Diem 1: The Mac Fac 0

So yes, overall, I wouldn't buy TMF macarons again unless I have a really bad craving for macarons and LCD is too far for me to travel (which is not going to ever happen since LCD is just like 10-15 mins walk away from TMF). TMF's macarons are average at best, the only good thing is that they offer more variety than LCD. But quality-wise, I'm not really that taken in. 

With that said, I would really like to try out other macaron places to see if LCD's standard can actually be beaten by others. Or would the authentic French bakers win, in this case? ;) Stay tuned!

Le Carpe Diem Cafe Creperie // BEST Macarons

Bonjour!

Recently, I was searching online for a list of cafes/restaurants that I haven't been to, in Adelaide. And I found a fair few, some came with recommendations from friends. :) I chanced upon this quaint cafe while googling online and I'm so glad I came across it. I think Adelaide is doing pretty well recently, there's so much new cafes sprouting up and the food is really good too! :)

What made me sit up and notice this cafe was that it's French. Yes, finding a French cafe in Adelaide is like finding a gem in the coal mines! Haha. Okay, that's such a lame analogy. But it came with very good reviews too, such that I was so tempted to go and try it with a friend. And I was praying that she will want to go to that place too! And she did!! Yay!! :) I was very happy when I found out that she wanted to try that French cafe too! :D Great minds think alike! :) 

So off we went, on a sunny spring day, to broaden and explore our horizons on French food ! 

Writing the opening hours on the glass! :)

The French decor. I love the lamp at the corner. :)

This is where they make their coffee and the left is where they make their crepes fresh. :) 

The staff were all from France and spoke real French. It was really like coming to France without actually hopping onto the plane! It's a good place if you know French and want to practice your French. =P

Another thing I wanted to come to this cafe is because this cafe serves gluten-free food. And being a student dietitian, I was very interested in that! Haha. I've tried gluten-free food in the past, even though I don't have to, but I wasn't impressed with gluten-free food at all. The bread is just plain unpalatable, to say so in the least. It was more of a cake-consistency rather than a bread. :/ So I was very interested to try out the gluten-free food here! :)

The food menu. Simple yet informative. The names are mostly in French but the descriptions are in English.

Stated clearly that their galettes (savoury crepes) are suitable for those who have coeliac and diabetes. :D

Let's move on to the FOOD, shall we? After all, that's the main highlight of our trip. :) 

What's a French cafe without pastries? Yum.

French Puff Pastry filled with sultanas

The gateaux cabinet filled with yummy desserts! Top: Salted caramel creme patisserie, chocolate eclairs, chocolate mousse.
Bottom: Chocolate lava cakes (gluten-free), __ cake, macarons (lemon, raspberry and salted caramel)

Top: Lemon, chocolate and lemon meringue tarts. Bottom: Nuts and fruit tarts. 

The chocolate lava cakes with dried fruits inside that are gluten-free. :)

A special french dessert that's chocolate mousse with pear mousse on top of a praline peanut base.
Wanted to try this, if not for my sore throat. :(

My friend and I decided to start off with main courses first, since we haven't eaten lunch yet. So we both ordered the savoury galettes (crepes made with buckwheat flour). I ordered the Saint Malo Galette (mushrooms with swiss gruyere cheese, tomatoes and egg) with a sweet cider and my friend ordered the Brest Galette (chicken with goats cheese, tomatoes and olive oil) with Spring Juice (rose, strawberries and raspberries).

My sweet cider that came in a red 'bolee', a bowl-cup. This French cider is a little stronger than the normal cider. :)
And the cutlery that came in a metal tin with the table sign: 23! :) 

Saint Malo ($12.50)

This buckwheat flour crepe is indeed my first time tasting buckwheat flour! The crepe itself was crispy and light, it tasted a bit like wholemeal but a lot lighter. What I loved about this crepe was that it is super cheesy (every bite had this long strand of cheese attached to it), the ingredients were generous (heaps of mushrooms and tomatoes) and the runny egg yolk! YUM! :D This filled me up to about 3-quarts, just nice enough for dessert space. :)

Happy friend with her Brest Galette ($14) and Spring Juice ($8.90). :)

After our main courses, even though we were kinda full, we still went ahead with desserts because the pastry table and gateaux cabinet were too tempting for us to resist! We even chatted with the knowledgeable and friendly lady boss, Djani Goodes, where she introduced to us the variety of French desserts and pastries they had on board and even snippets of French cuisine. :) Gained a little bit more knowledge on French cuisine and how they managed to have so many delicious desserts yet they are not worried about gaining weight! It's because they eat quality food in small amounts. e.g. they only eat a small square of good quality dark chocolate and pair it with a fruit coulis.

We were so spoiled for choice with our desserts! Didn't know which to choose, in the end, we decided to share! :D Best decision ever! :D We chose the salted caramel creme patisserie and 1 each of the different flavoured macarons! :) 

Salted Caramel Creme Patisserie

This dessert was truly a delight to eat! The pastry outside was soft and light and the creme caramel was so light and fluffy! I thought it will be too sweet to eat, but no, the salted caramel had just the right tinge of sweet and salt to it, that it went perfectly well with the fresh whipped cream and sweet strawberries. Truly a sweet feast.

L-R: Lemnon, Raspberry and Salted Caramel

The BEST macarons I've had to date! Seriously. I don't usually order macarons because they are overly sweet, even with the fruity flavours! But THIS! This changed my mind!! They were absolutely scrumptious! Each macaron was infused with the actual real fruit/ingredient and they didn't taste like artificial flavours. These macarons had a gooey centre where I could taste really aptly lemon, raspberry and salted caramel in each of the respective macarons. It was not overly sweet too! Absolutely delicious! :D

After eating this, I'm sold on their macarons alone! This, I would come back for!! Haha. Actually I tried to do so 2 days after coming here, but it was closed on Monday, sadly. :( So I didn't manage to satisfy my macarons craving!

My chai latte ($4), which went perfectly well with the desserts. :)

This chai latte was a perfect combination with the desserts that we ate. :) I love that it's not too cloying sweet such that it clashed with the desserts, instead it complimented the desserts. And it was the perfect ending to my meal as well. :) This place is definitely a place I would go to, over and over again. :) 

Food: 4.5/5. Service: 4/5. Value: 4/5. Ambience: 4.5/5. 

Le Carpe Diem Cafe Creperie

230-232 Grenfell Street

Adelaide, SA 5000

-Closed on Mondays. 

-Tuesdays-Saturdays 8am-5pm

-Sundays 9am-5pm