Halloween Donuts from Donut King

Halloween Donuts from Donut King
http://www.donutking.com.au/

Halloween is near! Over the years, I've gone from feeling resistant towards this very American tradition to gradually embracing it as a new excuse to dress up, party and eat tonnes of candy. This year, I'll be in Shanghai, unfortunately missing out on some awesome-sounding Halloween parties that friends are throwing. Even so, nothing can stop me from enjoying some cheeky treats.

Some of the gorgeous Halloween designs; this is the photo I saw on FB

Donut King recently contacted me to sample some of their new Halloween donuts. I had a look online and it just so happens that a friend of mine posted pics from her local Donut King onto her Facebook feed. I instantly fell in love with the adorable, mildly horror-themed designs. In particular, the man with a stab wound made me simultaneously say 'nawww' and 'ewww'. I couldn't wait to try them!

Hatch and Co (Garden City) for Dinner

Hatch and Co, Garden City
http://www.hatchandco.com.au/

Last weekend, I had a wild adventure at the newly renovated Westfield Garden City. Even before it started its renos, I hadn't been for years. When I got there last Sunday, I was lost and bewildered. I was meeting Kat for dinner at Hatch and Co but stupidly parked right at the opposite side of the building. It was fine when I got there because I simply strolled through the shops to the Town Square, where the restaurant was. After our meal, however, all the shopping centre doors were closed, and I was met with obstacle after obstacle. I ended up trawling the entire car park perimeter (which was deserted) for 30 plus minutes until I finally found my car. That sure isn't an experience I'm willing to repeat in a hurry!

Back to the fun stuff now... Hatch and Co's original location is in Newstead. For some reason I thought I'd been there before but I couldn't find an entry on my own blog (which serves as a back up memory for food) so I assume I haven't. It's got a good reputation though and several of my coworkers were excited about this second location so I too was keen to give it a try.

Little Red Dumpling for Lunch

Little Red Dumpling
http://littlereddumpling.com.au/

Next week I'm off to China for 5 days so there might not be much point in me using up the meal outings I have left in Australia on Chinese food. After all, I'll be gorging on the real authentic dosh while I'm there. My argument is that there's no such thing as too much dumplings and it's something I'm never going to get sick of.

I found out about Little Red Dumpling through Instagram and then told Jenny about it. She went with her dad and had a good experience so I arranged to go with my parents last Sunday for lunch. Little Red Dumpling is located in the Centro Pinelands complex. Jenny had described the shop fittings to me as "very communist" and I thought she was kidding but it is exactly that. I guess the Red in the name of the store is a clue to its stylistic theme. There's even a mural on the back wall that proclaims "dumplings for the people".

Brat Haus for Dinner

Brat Haus Authentic German Sausages
3/354 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley

I don't much like takeaway pizza but I love Italian-style thin based pizza. Similarly, whilst I'm not crazy about snags in general, German sausages are a whole different ball game. Our friend Britt brought our attention to an authentic German-style sausage purveyor in Fortitude Valley. Brat Haus started off in December 2013 as a market stall and can still be found at various market sites throughout Brisbane (including: New Farm, Mitchelton, The Gap, Cannon Hill, Bardon, Brookfield and Manly; check out their website for full list of locations). This venture was so successful that they were able to plant a permanent store in the valley and another one in Caxton Street.

A few weeks ago, we arranged to have dinner with Britt and Cajun at the Fortitude Valley location of Brat Haus on a Friday night. The restaurant has a cosy dining space and extended back courtyard that actually belongs to the neighbouring Mexican restaurant. Apparently you can eat Brat Haus dishes in this area but you can't bring your beers over.

Product Review - Ilias the Greek for Greek Sweets

Ilias the Greek
http://www.iliasthegreek.com.au/

One need only glance through my food log of Greece to see just how much I love baklava. It's one of my absolute most favourite desserts of all time, and I have tasted a LOT of desserts. There is definitely a difference between great and poorly made baklava and I'm always happy to taste test. Recently, the lovely folks at Ilias the Greek posted me a sample of some of their top products to try.

Kiss the Berry for Acai Bowls

Kiss The Berry
http://www.kisstheberry.com/

I'm sure I'm late coming into the whole acai bowl craze but as soon as I tried it, I got hooked. My first taste was at Kiss The Berry in the city and after that, I tried it at a few other places (in consecutive days) and even attempted my own smoothie bowl at home (made with banana, strawberry and blueberries rather than acai berries). My conclusion is that Kiss The Berry does the best job so I'm happy to be sharing my experiences on here.

The first time I visited this place was totally on a whim. I headed into town for breakfast and somehow the idea of an acai bowl entered my mind. They had never appealed to me before; something about a big bowl of blended fruit and muesli seemed like the kind of boring faux-dessert that only health fanatics find appealing. Well, let's just say that I definitely learnt the meaning of "don't knock it till you try it".

Red Hook for Lunch

Red Hook New York Street Food
http://www.red-hook.com.au/

There are so many new venues opening up in Brisbane all the time that it's hard to find something to get excited about. I was definitely excited about Red Hook. Something about the premise of Brooklyn-style diner tickled my fancies and everything on the menu sounded delicious. I find less reason to head into Brisbane city nowadays but I made a special effort to have lunch here last week.

Red Hook is located in Gresham Lane, which is fast becoming my favourite aspect of Brisbane city dining. The vendors all serve food quickly but it's not your typical, boring weekday work meal offerings of sushi, salad and sandwiches.

For instance, at Red Hook the menu contains such delicious-sounding items as lobster roll and duck taco, plus a range of burgers. Everything is served in takeaway containers but there is a space with seats and tables for those who don't have the patience to head back to the office to eat, or who like me, made a special trip there to try the food.

Cabassi and Co for Lunch

Cabassi and Co Artisan Butchers
Shop 1065, Indooroopilly Shopping Centre, Indooroopilly

I've been feeling extra productive this week in one aspect of my life, and that's eating. I have a casual rule for this blog that I more or less stick to. When I dine out alone and can thus only try one food item at a restaurant/cafe/whatever, I give it at least one more try before I publish an opinion. This means that my view doesn't get too skewed by one extremely good or bad experience and I can talk about at least 2 different products. Because I'm always trying new food venues, it's not as easy as you'd think to revisit a previous destination.

This week, I made a conscious effort to revisit 3 places that I had been to before but couldn't review because there wasn't enough to write about. Cabassi and Co was one of these locations.

Sunny Seoul for Korean BBQ

Sunny Seoul BBQ Restaurant
3a/95 Mains Road, Sunnybank

In continuation with my love for Korean, I passed my personal best by having Korean BBQ twice last weekend. Once was with family and the other was with friends. Jenny recommended that we visit Sunny Seoul because of its array of sides. I'm trying to increase my repertoire of Korean restaurants to beyond Brisbane CBD so I was happy to try this place in Sunnybank.

Sunny Seoul is located in a small complex of restaurants along Mains Road. We drove along until we spotted the sign and pulled in for a park. It's pretty hard to miss but parking is slightly competitive around dinner time.

Chur Burger for Dinner

Chur Burger
http://www.churburger.com.au/brisbane

Last weekend we celebrated a couple of friends joint 30th birthday at Up on Constance. I'd never heard of that venue before and Marc and I wandered up and down Constance street for a while before we figured out how to get onto the roof. Once we got there, it was beautiful. I was going to write a blog entry on Up on Constance but I can't think of enough ways to describe cocktails effectively and critically. Instead, let's focus on what I know best, and that's food. We got peckish partway through the party and went in search for a feed.

Being an avid social media junkie (especially when it comes to food), I am well aware of any interesting new venture to open in Brisbane. Chur Burger caught my attention right away because not long after it opened, everyone on my Instagram feed was eating there and all the photos looked delicious. It seemed like the The Cool New burger joint to eat at and being the sheep that I am, I wanted to try it for myself. Lo and behold, Chur Burger was right below Up on Constance and I took that as a sign from fate that we were meant to eat there that night.