Weekend at Byron Bay - Belongil Bistro for Lunch

Belongil Bistro
http://www.belongilbistro.com.au/

Last weekend, Kat and I spent a glorious 4 days down at Byron Bay for a yoga retreat. I do like to practice yoga casually and for someone who's brain buzzes as relentlessly as mine, yoga is great not only for the body but also the mind. There's about a million things going on in my life right now that I have varying levels of control over and it was starting to get quite overwhelming. Big thanks to Patty at Mana Yoga Retreats for a trip I can't recommend highly enough. I didn't realise until I came home that this weekend was exactly what I needed to get my mind and body back into balance.

Most of our meals at the retreat were catered for and eaten at the accommodation. However because the weather was a bit temperamental, Patty arranged for us to have two meals, a breakfast and a lunch, out at the local cafe.

Weekday Degustation at The Foraging Quail

The Foraging Quail
http://theforagingquail.com.au/

Last week, Jenny made some commendable life achievements. What better way to celebrate than with food? Another mate of ours recommended the degustation from The Foraging Quail and the menu looked good online so we went with that. The Foraging quail offers a discount off their degustation options if you dine on Wednesday or Thursday night and are seated before 7:30pm.

I took this 'seated before' business a bit too seriously and booked us a table at 5:30pm. Due to some crummy navigational mistakes, I got there 15 minutes late, which left Jenny alone at the restaurant for an embarrassingly long period of time. I think her glass of wine was the only thing that kept her going. The restaurant stayed empty until after 7. It was fairly lively by the time we finished. I felt like a complete nanna eating as early as we did!

Amimoto, Gold Coast for Dinner

Amimoto
24 Orchid Avenue, Surfer's Paradise

My favourite unexpected find during our trip to the Gold Coast last weekend was the little Japanese eatery, Amimoto. Marc and I had lunch at Boom Boom Burgers earlier that day and when we were brainstorming what to eat for dinner, we decided that sushi/sashimi would be light and contrasting.

After a quick look on Zomato to figure out which Japanese eateries were close to us and had a decent reputation, we settled on Amimoto which was only a short stroll away. Amimoto is a tiny 'hole in the wall' eatery located in one of the off-street shopping alleys in Surfer's Paradise. We found it by luck because the sign at the front of the alley entrance only says 'Japanese Restaurant' and we went in on a hunch. Even the actual restaurant itself is plain and unlabelled. I didn't know we were at the correct place until I read 'Amimoto' on the menu.

Boom Boom Burgers, Gold Coast for Lunch

Boom Boom Burgers
http://boomboomburgers.com.au/

Marc and I spent the past weekend at the Gold Coast, our favourite spot for short trips away. Although the weather was less than desirable, we still had a merry time filling our bellies with food and drink. One of the activities we had scheduled was a visit to newly opened burger joint Boom Boom Burgers.

I recently received an invite to try the menu at Boom Boom Burgers and because burgers are one of our most loved food types, we were eager to jump on board. Boom Boom Burgers is located on Chevron Island just off the main thoroughfare street. It was easy to find and there was plenty of public parking available around.

New Rustico Base from Pizza Capers

New Rustico Base from Pizza Capers
https://www.pizzacapers.com.au/

A couple of weeks ago, I heard some exciting news. Pizza Capers was releasing a new thin base option in their rage, called the Rustico. I much prefer thin based pizza to thick and it always bugged me that my favourite fast food pizza chain, Pizza Capers, didn't offer that on their menu. Much to my delight, I was given a voucher to trial of a Rustico pizza of my choice.

Lunch at 218 Chinese Style Restaurant

218 Chinese Style Restaurant
218 Padstow Road, Eight Mile Plains

Although I enjoy cuisine from all walks of the world, homestyle mainland Chinese cuisine is my soul food. It's the kind of simple but tasty dishes that fueled my childhood and makes my heart sing to this day. Most of the Chinese style restaurants in Brisbane are Taiwanese or Cantonese so when I hear of restaurants with more of a mainland influence, my interest goes right up.

I first read about 218 Chinese Style Restaurant from another Brisbane foodie on Instagram and convinced my parents to come with me for lunch last weekend. None of us had been there before but it turns out that the restaurant is in a shopping plaza we drive past all the time to get to Sunnybank. There's a load of parking there and the address was (no coincidence) 218 Padstow Road. The Chinese name for the restaurant is more descriptive and it calls itself a noodle shop so I figure the signature dishes are the noodles.

Izakaya Goku for Dinner

Izakaya Goku
http://izakayagoku.com.au/

I can't think of an occasion that doesn't suit Japanese bar food and beer. Birthday celebration? Yup. Romantic dinner? Yup. Catchup with friends? Perfect. Weekday lunch? Why not. It's the style of food that anyone anywhere can be in the mood for, any time of the week. Japanese food can be as light or filling as you want it to be and you can match with beer or iced tea if you want to keep the night quiet, or elevate things with some sake or whiskey. It's all so versatile.

Some of my favourite and funnest places to eat in Brisbane include Wagaya and Moga, both of which have 'izakaya' in their title. Coincidence? I think not. In Japanese, izakaya refers to an informal drinking establishment that also serves food, primarily to accompany the drinks. That's basically all I want in a food venue, ever so it makes sense that places I enjoy eating/drinking at are all called izakayas. I was over the moon when I heard one had opened in West End.

Caramel and Walnut Brioche Scrolls

Caramel and Walnut Brioche Scrolls
Home Cooking

I can't even remember the last time I published a home cooking post. It's not that I don't cook at home anymore (although I admit that is a factor) but when I do cook, I'm very much a home cook and tend to chuck whatever I have in the fridge/pantry into a pot or pan at unspecified quantities. The end result tends to be quite tasty but nothing worth blogging about.