Candid Cuisine - Melbourne Food & Restaurant Reviews.. and More!

Thaila Thai

A group of friends and I had dinner at Thaila Thai on Saturday night - my selection, after looking at the reviews on http://yourrestaurants.com.au/guide/thaila_thai/

WHAT A LOAD OF SHIT. This would have to be the worst "Thai" food I have had in Melbourne, and there are some shockers. Authentic my arse. God knows how places like this survive, it must only be because of clueless people who have no idea what good food is supposed to taste like.

Least I agree with one thing in the reviews, the service IS atrocious. Like, our entree of spring rolls arrived just as we stood up to leave. Yeah.

Candid Update: 01/05/2010

We’re back! After a long hiatus, Candid Cuisine will be back up and running soon, providing you with all the gossip and delicious Food Porn you’ve been hanging out for! But wait there’s more… we’ll also be posting up some of our own delicious treats for you to try at home!

Shallot Thai

After our overseas adventures, our tastebuds were sorely missing exotic food. So we arranged with some friends to drop by Shallot Thai in Malvern, one of my long time favourites. I first visited about 6 years ago with some friends when I lived nearby, and since then i've been hooked. I've tried other Thai restaurants (including some rather expensive ones) but they still just don't match up. Now I live on the other side of town, but I still visit. It's worth it. It was an overcast friday night, but the familiar green neon sign sent out its warm welcome. Upon entering we were shown to our table, and each given a menu.

Kuala Lumpur: Purple Cane Tea Restaurant

After relaxing for a couple of days in Langkawi, we returned to the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur. We arrived in the early evening, but had arranged dinner on the way back with a couple of Louis' friends, Nick and Kelvin. They picked us up from the hotel about 9pm. We'd let them decide where to take us for dinner, and we soon arrived at a place called the Purple Cane Tea Restaurant. Nick explained that every dish on the menu has somehow been prepared with tea as a prominent ingredient. It sounded quite an interesting concept.

Langkawi: Lobster Palace

After all our mad shopping in Kuala Lumpur, we relaxed for a couple of days at The Andaman, in Langkawi. While we were there, the well proportioned concierge recommended a restaurant called Lobster Palace, if we were ever in the mood for seafood. This was a man who looked like he knew his food, so we needed no further invitation. The Andaman was quite a distance from Kuah, so by the time we arrived at Lobster Palace we were quite hungry. The menu was relatively simple, but when you have fresh seafood on offer, you don't really need much else!

Kuala Lumpur: Madam Kwan’s

We're on holiday! Greetings from Kuala Lumpur. More specifically, Midvalley Megamall, in a restaurant called Madam Kwan's. Madam Kwan's started out in a single shop along Jalan Imbi (one of the busiest main streets in KL), originally named 'Sakura Restaurant'. They became famous for their Nasi Lemak, Curry & Assam Fish Head. Then they rebranded and opened new outlets (with an upmarket modern decor) under the name of 'Madam Kwan's' which offered the favourites from the old Sakura menu plus new ones like the super yummy 'Nasi Bojari', aka '3 Colour Rice'. We met up with Jin, one of Louis' uni friends who was back in KL for the holidays, as well as another friend (and part time personal tour guide), Clayton. After a day of trawling through shops we'd certainly worked up a decent appetite, so there were no complaints when I suggested MK.

Seoul House

On Saturday night we went out with some friends for some Korean food. There are a surprising number of Korean Restaurants here in Melbourne, although lately I noticed a few have disappeared. After discovering Seoul Garden on Exhibition St is no longer open, (and the building has probably been flattened by now) we walked back a block and spied the sign for Seoul House, upstairs on the corner of Lonsdale and Russell.

Seared Steak & Seafood

Last Saturday, we spent the afternoon watching a movie at Highpoint, and then as it was already dinner time by the time it finished, we decided to drop by Seared for a lazy dinner. Situated outside on the lowest level (Level 1), occupying the space previously held by Kenny Rogers Roasters, Seared is fairly new on the block. We had the choice of eating inside or out, but as there were people smoking in the outdoor area, we chose to eat inside. There's nothing worse than trying to enjoy your dinner whilst breathing someone's secondhand smoke.

Okra Restaurant

Last night we visited Okra in Hawthorn East, for dinner with John & Robert. A couple of days earlier, I was once again scouring the net for a the ever elusive decent Malaysian restaurant. Miettas had a review from a couple of years ago for Okra, and I figured that if they were still around, they must have something going for them - so I recommended we take a look. Okra has narrow street frontage so keep a sharp look out, but when it gets darker of a night you'll be easily able to spot the neon sign. There was ample parking in the Dan Murphy's / Dick Smith carpark a few doors up, though with the amount of food we ate we probably should have planned a longer walk back to the car. ;)

Satay Inn Malaysian Restaurant

Last night we took a trip up to Satay Inn (opposite the Vic Market) in Victoria St, for dinner. From looking at their website, it looked like we would finally find some of the authentic Malaysian dishes we'd been searching for since we started this blog. Especially when I saw this claim - "...our cooking is done by a Malaysian chef who knows his craft well. Not a non-Malaysian who is doubtful about what the taste should be..." Their website isn't flash, but I hoped they put the real effort in where it counted - into the food. The pictures on the site had the feel of the kinds of dishes you'd be served at a Malaysian Mamak, so fingers crossed.