For big, hearty sized italian meals head to family owned Manly Italian across the road from the ferry.

BBQ King has moved location in Chinatown and is now in Liverpool st.

Malaysian in the CBD..Mamak on Lonsdale..hawker style food..we went in there once..not bad..

we tend to go to Paparich (QV Centre) which is a chain..and have Assam Laksa and hot soya milk..laksa..skewers..or their noodle soups..

cloudpants..I've only got Friday as my free day..Saturday and Sunday I'll be at the seminar all day then fly back straight after on Sunday night..

Oriental Spoon..have not been there for years as we tend to go to Yami Yami now..it's another Korean restaurant that's nice to try as well..on corner of Latrobe and Elizabeth..

they have another branch on Elizabeth.

For coffee I just head straight to Brunetti in front of the Westin (old city square ) they have their main branch in Carlton with 2 walls full of fridges with cakes in them..

our old haunt before they became well known..

Coffee..was at an opening when I stumbled across this little one ..penny house cafe ..Burnley St Richmond near Burnley station ..not bad coffee..

Another coffee place on my walk about is Lumberjack Richmond..they serve breakkie as well..have only had coffee there though from the look of it breakkie is not bad either..

coffee in Surry Hills ..Sydney..saw that they opened quite early on a Sunday and lots of people in there so gave them a try..nice coffee and at $3.50 no wonder they've got a following

yummy breakfast at White Taro ..Surry Hills (Sydney) ..

I don't tend to go to Viet inspired places as they tend to be expensive and not traditional but thought why not..and was pleasantly surprised ..

Vy, these are amazing snaps of the foods you and your family enjoy. I actually DROOL every time I look! You are so fortunate to live in a city where you discover so many delicious dishes. I'm living in regional Victoria and there are not nearly the choices as in Melbourne. Sigh...! :(

Ann B..weekend escapes to Melbourne? not too hard to do..

I do love Melbourne..I'm half week in Geelong..I tend to get my Asian food fix when I go back to Melbourne..

the line is always long here in Chinatown Sydney..they are little puffs with custard inside..just $1 for 3 ..

this is what the puffs looks like..

photo from Internet..

Vy - white taro is right around the corner from our old office! Their watermelon salad is delish. How long are you in Sydney for?

Gioenne ..I tend to fly up yearly for my seminars ..fly into Sydney early Friday morning 8-9am then seminar on the weekend then home Sunday night..

next time I think I'll fly up Thursday morning and have two full days..not enough time this time around or else just fly up for a long weekend with no seminars

I was talking to the owner..there was a period when she lived in Melbourne..still got friends in Melbourne that she visits..couldn't stay to chit chat more as I was due to start the seminar at 830am

if you're like me and love junk..then this place is it..ummm not good for your cholesterol or heart but ummm..it's yum..

it's called SamSam and is located on Swanston St (Melbourne) between the mall and Chinatown

It serves chicken Korean style..deep fried..their fries are loaded..if you order one of these trays it feeds 4..

you can order split flavours ie have two flavours ..the chicken comes as whole pieces or boneless..

been meaning to take my kids here..still haven't gotten around to it..

Coffee..popped by a local place to grab my coffee this morning..not bad.. Reunion (Surrey Hills) ..they serve breakfast..lunch too..

You should have tried Organism for coffee on Crown St!

they weren't open when I needed a coffee Gioenne ..there's always next year..:)

This is my fav from White Taro, Vy! Papaya, mango and grilled chicken salad - not your traditional Vietnamese dish but still very tasty!!

Sushiiphoto..looks yum..will try for lunch next time as half the menu was not available for breakkie..

from the sound of them the owners are either Thai or Laotian..as I heard them talk..they are not Viet..

Discovered this little beauty when we visited Hellenic Republic in Kew..

I shared a Pleasure Dome with friend..hehehe

now if clicking on this link doesn't thrill you then I don't know what will

their cakes are yummo..

http://www.cocoapatisserie.com.au/cake-gallery/

Lune..yummy croissants ..we tasted the lemon curd..almond..coconut Pandan ..early Father's Day pressie for hubby from our oldest..I got the left overs :)

https://www.lunecroissanterie.com/

Mr Grubb part of Oakdene Vineyards (Ocean Grove) Geelong opens for breakfast..their waffles are quite nice

http://www.oakdene.com.au/assets/client/File/Menus/MrGrubb/Breakfast%20Menu%20-%2029.08.16.pdf

Box Hill (Melbourne)..this is my local haunt ...and if you love street food then you need to visit their food court..

the food court is located in the Centro..near the train station/bus stop exit and if you catch the tram then it's just in front of you when you step down ..need to cross the road and walk into Centro..

1/ steamed buns ..the best place for this and noodle soup is Grain Asia..they do breakfast as well..below is their combination chicken bun..$4.50..

2/ if you like crepes then you can't go past Pancake village ..they make them on the spot..Asian style ie with donut sticks etc etc..

Their menu includes soups..above is half serve of their hot and sour soup..$4/serve...there's also tofu soup..mushroom soup etc

3/ my junk stop would be Rainbow chicken..here you'll find deep fried chicken wings and drumsticks..then there's offal skewers..baked sweet potatoes in jacket..

https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/rainbow-chicken-box-hill

4/ For dessert..Grain Asia..opposite the big cafe sells anything from mango pudding..pork cruller..to egg tarts..bought hubby some durian dessert the other day..

5/ near their is Mr Kitchen..I don't buy much from there except their Chinese donuts..they have plain and ones filled with red beans ..

not as nice as the ones I've had in Box Hill or Richmond but still pretty good when I have one of my cravings

6/ Food Republik is a mini Taiwanese food court ..there you can find oyster soup..pan-fried dumplings and of course beef noodle soup ..I tend to like the beef noodle soup from Raramen near by better

7/ For all the Japanese would be Samurai..there's Samurai Burgers..they have rice burgers..and also these little triangles (Onigiri) with different fillings ..soft shell crabs..salmon..King fish .. spicy beef..pork floss etc

8/ If offals is your thing then Magic Cuisines is your stop..they are not in the food court ..rather in one of the turn off near by and best of all they have tasting bowls ..you can taste all sorts..

their buns are cheap and nasty so don't buy from them..they also sell pickles..

9/ across from Yang Yang there's a place that sells hontou pancakes with custard filling inside..a bigger version of the little custard puffs with all different flavours..

photo from Internet ..

10/ found this place today..have not sample looks like they are quite busy already ..that's the thing with Box Hill as soon as there's a new food place people flocks to it

that's why I love Box Hill lots of places to eat within Centro itself and the bear by streets ..Carrington St..the mall..Whitehorse Rd..Station Rd..

for cakes I tend to go to Carrington cakes..I find their cakes are fresher than Cake World..

I'd pop in for impromptu fruit salad sponge cake for dessert ..they sell by the pound..a 1 pound cake is about $19 etc

they do a wicked mango mousse cake on a chocolate base..

for birthdays I pre-order one with durian cream..

Another old favourite haunt is Grand Taipei Bakery ..they have the best pork floss rolls and also make their own soy milk..

if you like Bonbons or Breadtop then you need to venture here..

apart from the buns there's Taro sweet bread..and in their fridge little sponge rolls..coffee..taro ..durian..strawberry etc

I always leave with two bags full of goodies whenever I go in there..

my favourites are pork floss rolls ..custard buns..taro buns/bread ..durian rolls for hubby ..coffee..strawberry rolls for the kids and taro rolls for me..

then soy milk for the whole family

tried out a new place today Elkhorn Roadhouse in Ocean Grove

zucchini and halloumi fritter with beetroot and rockets..they serve it with poach eggs ..

Jonker St ..Jackson Court Doncaster East.

We tried out this Malaysian place for lunch on Sunday..their laksa and Har Mee was yummo..

Had a feeling I've been there before..it used to be owned by someone else so there's been a name change..

Dessert..took the kids into the city for dinner and we decided to try a new place for Asian dessert..The Dessert Kitchen

the jelly doesn't taste like anything unless ate with everything on the board..

their signature dish..wedges are ice cream filled mochi..

white balls are rice mochi..

grape flavoured shaved ice ..on top are grape flavoured popping balls

and of course grapes..

this was mine boring but very refreshing green tea with tapioca pearls rice mochi and red beans

We also went to Spanish..Simply Spanish..right where the Queen Vic Market tram stop is ..their goat cheese balls and beef cheeks are nice

the kids loved their chicken

as for the seafood paella I think it wasn't as nice as the ones I've had before ..a bit disappointing..to be fair the seafood was fresh ..not as flavoursome..

Hubby and I also tried out Pintoh the other week for lunch ..Laotian food

http://www.pintoh.com.au/

not sure how they will go in Melbourne..as was very quiet hopefully they will last..if they can hold out ..

hubby loved their soft shell crabs ..their stuffed lemon grass was not bad

we really wanted to try their whole fish but was reluctant to wait..

went driving today to Fresh Water Creek (Geelong)....a bit out of our way but their Passionfruit sponge is to die for..they do sell other cakes but this is it..yummo..

my steal from Springvale..

Gac sticky rice (colour comes from the Gac fruit)

http://talk.onevietnam.org/trai-gac-indigenous-vietnamese-health-fruit/

2 layer coffee jelly

pork mince pastry

pork mince and black fungus in rice flour base ( steamed ) wrapped in banana leaf

photo from the Internet

beefcake with dill and pepper

and of course Chinese donut though the Viet makes it a bit more nicer even though it originated from the Chinese :)

we went out to celebrate last night..

Amok (Windsor) a modern Cambodian restaurant ..loved it ..the food was delicious and service was top notch

then we journeyed on to Messina a few doors down for ice cream ..

my one was panacotta fig with Amaretti jam ..it was yummo..will definitely be back for more scoops..

Vy, have you considered doing a food blog now you've left your job? Think you'd find a good audience.

bigreader..I wouldn't know where to start ? :)

Have a look at Wordpress. You can set up a blog for free (apart from your time). Lots of free advice on Pintrest too if you're interested.

You already have a great topic. Cooking and eating out. And already have photos. Just a thought if you're in the market for a new hobby.

thanks bigreader :) will do :) I tend to wander off topic though :)

have signed up for it this morning ..only a free account..let see how I go..might be about life rather than food ..

not sure how to structure it as yet

Please link us, would love to read!

Gioenne still fiddling around totally new platform altogether ..I'll get there one day

Good to hear Vy. You could easily do lifestyle, your own food, your food reviews, photographs. Let us know when it's up and running.

bigreader ..will do..it will probably be a mix batch ..I can never stay on topic

I think I've figured out how to navigate now..next bit how to decorate it..I refuse to give up..a big big challenge..

https://dewyplace.wordpress.com/

this is a dish that I wouldn't contemplate making it's crepes that's made of rice flour..today wasn't so good..a bit disappointing usually the crepes are thinner..today's looked more like yum cha ones Chinese not Vietnamese ..our filling is usually spread evenly .

traditionally they would steam them..over a fabric stretched on a steamer..that way they are very thin..

these days there's lots of recipe to do them on a non-stick frying pan..it doesn't turn out the same..you really need a steamer..

thus that's why I don't make them..it's one of those dishes that you would go out to eat..

take away from Indochine..I wonder if they had a different chef today?