J Kitchen at the Coast

J Kitchen
Center Arcade, 3131 Surfers Paradise Boulevard



Those who live in Brisbane know that it's getting quite Summery these days. If these last few days of Winter are a taste of what is to come Dec, Jan and Feb, I'd say with a good degree of confidence that we're in for a scorcher.

On this plus side, this means sunny skies and time for the beach. On the down side, pants are losing out in favor of skirts and everything is getting shorter. In other words, it's becoming increasingly unsuitable to hide extra lumps and bumps behind layers of clothing. Hot weather fashion is unforgiving. Time to watch what I eat.



Last weekend, my parents decided I was just too bored for my own good. A trip to the Gold Coast was announced and off we went. For some reason, the traffic along Gold Coast Highway was beyond atrocious so that by the time we got there, all we wanted to do was have lunch.

Bit slow...

Hi there,

I realize my updates have been few and far in between of late. I moved house quite recently and have just dived head first into loads of uni work so it's a bit hard to find time to cook and eat out. I had a few cooking disasters because I've got to get used to using the BIG OVEN (as opposed to my little portable one) but I promise to get back on the horse.


There are a few posts waiting to be done up but I'm missing some photos for whatever reason so they're NEARLY there. Just keep checking!

Family Meals

Dinner with the Parents
Guest Chefs



I dug up some photos from a few weeks back when my parents decided to cook up a feast for me. My memory is a bit hazy but I THINK the occasion was uni-related so possibly, end of exams.

It was during the cooler Winter days and we had just tried the lamb hot pot from Newway a week before. Dad figured he could do better so that's what he set out to do.

Our meal consisted of grilled scallops, a braised goat dish and stir-fried sandcrab.

Antarctic Circle

Antarctic Circle
Shop 1, 2898 Logan Road, Underwood



I have quite a history with Antarctic Circle. My family and I started going there ages back, near when it first opened up. We are quite the bunch of carnivores (myself included) and everyone got really excited about this new-fangled 'wagyu' meat. Now, every 2nd cafe/restaurant/bistro on the block does something with wagyu which goes to show how long ago I mean.



At the time, the oily aroma of sizzling wagyu brought a tear to our eyes. We hadn't seen steak THAT thick and THAT fatty before. The steaks come out raw on the stone and you could literally trace the white marbling throughout. Sounds slightly gross but it smells and tastes like caveman heaven.

Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse

Kingsleys Steak and Crabhouse
http://www.kingsleys.com.au/



It's steak and it's crab... therefore, it must be good. Going back a few weeks, I became somewhat obsessed with Singapore chili flavored things. Ideally, I would have liked the crab version but due to monetary constraints, I settled for chili bug. I had it at Obsession and Adam's Oriental. Both dishes were awesome. All the same, it made me crave the real deal - the Singapore chili crab, if only because I knew there'd be more meat.

Through all my research, I found out that Kingsleys on Eagle Street Pier did a Singaporean Chili mud crab. That nugget of knowledge was filed away until the other day when I was called upon to recommend another restaurant for my family members. There are lots of big boys in my uncle's family and they like their steak. This seemed to be an intuitive choice.

Chai Fan (Bok Choi Rice)

Chai Fan (Bok Choi Rice)
Home Cooking



When I feel like I need vegetables, I order salad or I made savory muffins/pancakes. When my parents feel like they need vegetables, they make 'chai fan'. I'm not sure if this is a specific Shanghainese thing or more trans-China but it's a meal staple, it's nutritious and it tastes good.



I'll run through the method that my mum uses but apparently, there's a lot of estimation because the technique is 'touchy'. Up to a certain point, the steps are straight forward and then, when you're adding water, call on your risotto instincts because the principle is very much the same: add water gradually until the rice is just cooked.

Layered Milk Chocolate Mousse Cake

Layered Milk Chocolate Mousse Cake
Home Cooking



This cake could have been PERFECTION if only I followed my instincts.

Unfortunately, I got duped by a recipe typo.

Restaurant II - Feasting the Family

Restaurant II
Dining Out



Some family flew in from the States last week and I was delegated the task of finding a nice restaurant to show them. This is not as straight-forward as it seems because I had to choose between the 'well known' Brisbane restaurants and my personal favorite Brisbane restaurants, as well as cater to kids (9yo and 13yo) and adults alike, including some who don't eat 'strong flavors' (namely, my mother).



I ended up choosing Restaurant II for one simply because it's one of the highest ranking restaurants in Brisbane. If it gets a bad reception, my own ego isn't shattered.

Extreme Vegetable Muffins

Extreme Vegetable Muffins
Home Cooking



I'm not sure if muffins are the best way to describe this. One of the things I ate last week was a low-fat vegetable frittata from a cafe near my uni. I didn't have time to eat it for lunch (such a hectic week in clinic) but once reheated, it made quite a nice meal at night.

My fridge was loaded with a collection of vegetables (my favorites being carrot, zucchini and pumpkin) so it was intuitive for me to try my own version. Every now and again, you'll come to realize that I'm actually not that knowledgeable about food at all. I didn't really know what a frittata was and just assumed it was like a savory muffin in the shape of a tart. I've since learnt that a frittata is basically an omelet loaded with 'stuff'. Therefore, what I made is better categorized under muffin since I used flour and rising agents as well as egg.

Brisbane City Farmers Market

Jan Power's Farmers Market
http://www.janpowersfarmersmarkets.com.au/



I was way excited when my friend (a Brisbane CBD resident) told me there'd be a farmers market in Brisbane City. Though I don't live around there myself, I go to uni in the CBD and Queens Street is like a second home. This was all a while ago so now, as I'm writing in July, the Jan Power's Farmers market has been happening for quite some time.



Every Wednesday, head to Brisbane square (top of Queen Street) and you'll see all the stalls set up. There's a great selection and every time that I've been, there's always a new stall that wasn't there previously, or that I happened to miss.

Sizzling Mongolian BBQ House

Sizzling Mongolian BBQ House
144 Indooroopilly Rd, Taringa



This was a spur-of-the-moment decision a month or so ago. We were driving through St Lucia in search of food and suddenly, Sizzling Mongolian BBQ House sprang to mind. I'll be honest and say that I haven't heard nice comments regarding this place but sometimes, I take no heed and just do as I please.



We arrived there for dinner and the place seemed kind of quiet. There are plenty of tables but most were vacant seats. What hooked me in was the guy in the window frying up food on the big stone hotplate. Disregarding any reservations that I might have had, I went on in.

Room4Dessert

Room4Dessert
Shop 5/155 Baroona Road, Rosalie



I saw this place being built and set-up a while back and when I realized that it was a dessert cafe, I was beside myself with joy. Many times on this blog, I'm emphasized that there should be more dessert cafes to rival Freestyle. In fact, nearly all my dessert cafe posts to date reference Freestyle because it has become a reference point.

More competition can be nothing but a good thing for us dessert buffs.

I've been to Room4Dessert twice now. Walking past at dinner time, it sometimes looks a bit quiet but later in the evening, it definitely picks up. I think that's when people start succumbing to the sugar cravings. It is open from 6pm till late on weekdays and 3pm till late on weekends.



The cafe is pretty small - there is outdoor seating and if you're lucky, a cozy lounge set up inside. I believe that it is owned by the adjacent Blu Grotto and the cocktail menu is shared between the two places (yet to be confirmed).