Sydney NYE fireworks 2008

Happy New Year!Thanks to Speedy, I scored a plum spot right beneath the Harbour Bridge at the VIP viewing area, Dawes Point. And if there's one thing that Sydney does best, it's putting on the most spectacular skyshow against the most beautiful harbour in the world (and who's biased, hey?).The themed party was Tropic Oasis, hence the blue flashing leis. A stage and dancefloor played host to

Sabbagh Patissery, Greenacre

So I don't have 20/20 vision, but I'm sure I can spot a patisserie sign faster than most people.Despite rolling out the door of Lebanese restaurant Al Aseel, our bellies distended with falafel, lamb skewers and garlic yoghurt chicken, we found renewed energy (and appetite!) by the time we had stepped into the sweet syrupy surrounds of Sabbagh Patisserie (spelt with an inexplicable 'y' on the

Lemon shortbread and ginger shortbread

In addition to little cellophane bags of iced gingerbread men, I also made up little packages of shortbread. These were made using a piping bag - the somewhat stiff dough means it's much easier to pipe small amounts of dough at a time. I made two batches - one with lemon, the other with crystallised ginger, but you could substitute with vanilla essence if you prefer them plain.Shortbread

Christmas feasting (and the mother of all dinner parties)

And how was your Christmas?For me, it involved two days of relentless (and totally selfless) gluttony. Two dinners were consumed on Christmas Eve, because I had to. First a casual affair at Mum's--leg ham, salads and roll-your-ownVietnamese goi cuon summer rolls.At 10.30pm, I'm at cucina Veruca for a feast of glazed leg ham (ooh yum, that ginger marmalade glaze works a treat!), bo tai chanh raw

Christmas gingerbread

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.My kitchen certainly smelled a lot like Christmas this past week, with batches of gingerbread and shortbread filling the air with the gorgeous smell of ginger, golden syrup, lemon and butter.A newly acquired icing kit finally got a workout on my gingerbread shapes, made using my usual tried-and-trusted gingerbread recipe. I think my royal icing was

Al Aseel, Greenacre

So I've always had a soft spot for Lebanese food. I think it's the simplicity of the cuisine: charcoal meats, zingy salads and downy soft quarters of fluffy Lebanese bread. Perhaps the deep-fried falafel balls (mmm... deep-fried) also have something to do with it. And I love the creamy decadence of toum, the dip with a fiery garlic punch.We head to Al Aseel in Greenacre to see if its reputation

Tokyo Ramen, Hornsby

Okonomiyaki pancake $4.50We're on a search for good ramen. K and M have been eating their way through a list of Top 15 Ramen Dishes in Sydney--printed recently in a Japanese local mag--and now we're at Tokyo Ramen in the bustling Westfield Shopping Centre at Hornsby.Tokyo Ramen is doing brisk business as well. In addition to the constant queue of people at the takeaway counter, there's a high

Eveleigh Christmas Farmers' Market

Oh yes, did your heart just skip a beat too?It's moments like these that I realise that food really does rule my world. Heart racing, smile playing on my lips, there's almost an urge to pinch myself. Surely this must be a dream!I'd forgotten that suckling pigs were advertised on the flyer for the Eveleigh Christmas Market. Just the idea of a Christmas Market in Sydney was novel enough to hook me

Menu for Hope V

Menu for Hope is back again.This annual fundraising event was created by Chez Pim in 2004, and since then has been hosted and supported by foodbloggers all over the world. This year, its fifth year of running, we will be supporting the UN World Food Programme, the world's largest food aid agency, working with over 1,000 organisations in more than 75 countries.If you are a foodblogger or a

Doyles on the Wharf, Watsons Bay

Too often I think we Sydneysiders tend to take our beloved Harbour for granted.Overseas tourists travel thousands of kilometres to see our sunny shores and yet too few of us take the time to really stop, stare and smile at our picture perfect city.The best way to appreciate Sydney's spectacular waterfront is by hopping on a ferry. We made a day trip to Watsons Bay on what turned out to be a

6 Random Things Meme

The dog ate my homework.Billy tagged me for the 6 random things meme, and it's taken me over three weeks to finally respond. It's reasonably similar to the 10 Random Things Meme I first answered in January 2006, but I won't let Billy down. And yeah, this blog and I do feel old.So here are 6 more random things about me. They're all food-related. Surely you're not surprised!My ideal breakfast would

Tender Value Meats, Hornsby

It's the start of summer, and that means barbecue season.Easiest thing to throw on the barbie? The humble sausage. It comes in edible packaging, already portioned and its generous fat content means guaranteed juiciness.Of course there's a big difference between good and bad sausages. And at Hornsby Tender Value Meats, butcher Adam Stratton knows his snags.It's a small and cosy butchery in Hornsby

Chez Pascal, Ramsgate

We're halfway through dinner when it happens again."IS EVERYBODY HAVING A GOOD TIME???"Chef Philipe Lebreux is standing at the entrance to the dining room, eyes alight, chest puffed, smile from ear to ear. His voice booms across the tiny restaurant. Our table is the closest to the kitchen and hence closest to Lebreux, and not only do we jump out of our chairs with fright, but our ears are still

Nippon Club, Sydney

I feel like I'm in Japan. All around me, the dining room is filled with Japanese businessmen, murmuring softly. Cheesey muzak is being piped through the speakers and behind me the sushi bar is a chaotic assault of souvenir trinkets, Hanshin Tigers baseball flags and towers of lacquered bowls and sushi platters.Except I'm not in hustle-bustle Tokyo or foodaholic Osaka, but in the basement of

32cm soft serve ice cream cones at Smile Korea Mart, Sydney

Now that's what I call an ice cream.As anyone who's ever read Chocolatesuze knows, Suze never eats anything by halves. Which is why, even as we're sitting down to a chocolate degustation plate at Guylian Cafe, only hours before we're due to down cocktails and canapes at the Vibe Entertains cookbook launch, she's pulling out a printed blog post from her handbag saying "We have to eat this! Look at

Kopitiam Malaysian Cafe, Ultimo

Roti canai with curry sauce $3.50

In spite of, or perhaps because of, the queues at Mamak, I still prefer to head to Kopitiam anytime I need a Malaysian fix. It's poky, small and simple in furnishings but that's partly why I like it so much.

There's no spectacle of roti production in the front window like Mamak, but a serve of roti and curry sauce is a steal at $3.50. And whilst the Malaysian

MasterChef Australia

Have you ever dreamed of becoming the next Gordon Ramsay? By some random glance at the TV guide, I serendipitously noticed last month's screening of MasterChef Goes Large, the UK game show where non-professional cooks battle it out for the title of MasterChef. I only caught the final five episodes (it was the 2007 season), but I did watch the final three contestants cook three-course meals for:

Guylian Belgian Chocolate Cafe, The Rocks, Sydney

Red delight $13.50 ($9.00 takeaway)Belgian chocolate buche filled with raspberry fruit creamFirst the Lindt Cafe. Now it's Guylian's turn to open its own chocolate cafe. Are these chocolate giants attempting to diversify, or are these cafes being leveraged as a branding tool, especially for the public's gift-shopping loyalty?With Chocolatesuze making the trek into town for the Vibe Entertains

Vibe Entertains cookbook launch, Vibe Hotel Sydney

Lychee and midori cocktailsWhat does a hotel have to do with a cookbook? I'm not sure, but I'm guessing that the new Vibe Entertains cookbook by the Vibe Hotel group is all about promoting a lifestyle that is one part party to two parts glam (try saying that after three cocktails).In order to find out more, Chocolatesuze and I attended the "exclusive launch" of said cookbook at the Vibe Hotel