Snacking in Sydney!

Hello, everyone!

Just got back from our Sydney Food Trip and still a bit knackered, to be honest. But great fun was had, and there's so much to blog about so I'm excited!

This trip would've been my third time to Sydney in four years. After my first two trips, I felt like I was pretty much done for a while... But after seeing/reading/drooling over all the food that I've seen on TV/Internet since then, I felt like I really have to make another trip up there!

After all, my first trip was spent pretty much doing all the touristy things. Second, was for the Hillsong Conference. Now, my third, has to be all dedicated to FOOD! This time, being a Food Trip, we really did eat non-stop from morning till night. That's why I've got so many "in between meals" snacks to share about, which I've compiled into this post.

And when we weren't eating, we were just lazing around in the sun, what a bunch of fatties. So anyhoo, I'm going to start off my first series of Sydney posts with snippets of the snacks we ate in between our meals. This wasn't all of them, but just the ones I thought worth sharing. Will get back to posting recipes and reviews from the other amazing restaurants I ate in Sydney, including Australia's current No.1 Restaurant, MARQUE!

Lots of scheduled posts from hereon, so don't forget to keep coming back! Have fun, everybuddy! =D

Mick's Bakehouse, Westfield CBD Gourmet Food Hall

We had trouble finding the place at first, but the Gourmet Food Hall is at the top floor of the shopping centre, at the opposite side of Myers

Some of the most golden pies I've ever seen

Classic Beef Pie

(I'd like to say Stroganoff cause of the cream??)

Pastry was just okay but filling was really nice. Good flavours and liked the thickness of the sauce, nice consistency. I could have a whole bowl of just the filling themselves. Yum

Surf 'n' Turf Pie

We found the mince rather salty and wished there were more prawns. But really loved the soft creamy cheese you get occasionally from each bite when eating this

Chatime, Westfield CBD Gourmet Food Hall

Passionfruit Green Tea

Refreshing. Totally quenched my thirst. Had this only cause according to them, was their number 1 drink. I had the Roasted Milk Tea with Pearls a few days later and thought they were fantastic. Do try

Website: here

Meet Fresh, Sydney Chinatown

Supreme Mango Crushed Ice

Huge portion and lots of mango, but I thought it was okay. Definitely makes for a refreshing dessert in Summer. I don't know, I still think that when it comes to Mango desserts, it really does come down to the Mango you use. And we all know that Mangoes aren't exactly cheap or in season in Australia all year round. Could do with a little less ice too. Just my humble opinion anyway, don't be hatin'

Taro Balls with Sweet Potato, Barley and Pearls

This, I enjoyed a bit more. Just like the glutinous rice balls or "tang yuan" you ate at home but with a faint taste of taro and sweet potato. I really enjoyed all the other ingredients and never had a dish with all of these together. Come to think of it, it probably would have been better to have this dessert warm instead of cold

Workshop Espresso, Sydney CBD

Quaint little cafe directly opposite of QVB on George Street. Immediately wanted to try it

Standard Latte and Hazelnut "Lobster Tail"

The beans tasted nice, but I couldn't help but find the coffee a bit thin and watery. But then again, I'm no coffee expert, no. My friends felt it too. But when we went back the next day, it was a different barrista, so.......

On the other hand, that "lobster tail" pastry was SO GOOD. It totally piqued my interest to try as soon as I saw it. I don't know what they used, but you could taste all the layers in each bite because it was so firm but insanely crunchy. The softened Nutella in the middle was such a joy. LOVED this! Nice, tiny snack with your coffee, too.

Bondi Surf Seafoods, Bondi Beach

I came here for one reason only and nothing else: Fried Mars Bars. I had this last time I was in Sydney and was HOOKED. Not sure if it's true, but this place was believed to be the pioneer of Fried Mars Bars in Australia. Though you can get it at many places in Sydney and some in Melbourne now, I still really wanted to revisit this place for nostalgic reasons.

Fried Pineapple Rings, Fried Banana, Fried Mars Bars

I did not care for anything else, but the Fried Mars Bars, to be honest. And they were actually better than when I last had them! Huh. Mainly cause the batter was so much crispier. I don't eat Mars Bars at all, but this was an exception. The way you bite into the crunchy exterior dusted with icing sugar to get to the soft, melted chocolatey filling..... Heaven

Please try this if you've never had this in Sydney before

Website: here

Hurricane Express, Bondi Beach

For me, I've been to the restaurant twice before this and there wasn't anything much I'd like to eat at the restaurant besides the ribs, which makes for a great snack too. So, I actually prefer buying them from their takeaway restaurant just next door. Also, it's about $10 cheaper for a full rack. Score!

Though I must say that the Bondi branch was significantly better than the Darling Harbour branch. Or was it just a once off bad experience I had there that time. There were just too many people, they were rushing us in and out and in the end, our ribs came out SO dry. This time at Bondi, it was great

Half 'n' Half: Lamb and Pork ribs

Sauce was delicious and ribs were basted beautifully. Tasted like southern, smokey BBQ with a hint of Ketchup and much more. Lamb was slightly tough, but I actually really liked it that way. Ribs was as you say, falling off the bones. GREAT snack, just eating ribs with your hands by the beach

Gumshara Ramen, Sydney Chinatown

Garlic Tonkatsu Ramen

Finally, another place I really wanted to try and glad I did. I liked that the soup was thick (from fats and collagen?) and that they didn't use MSG. Unmistakable pork flavour from first sip. Though to be honest, a bit too "porky" because it did have a bit of the smell as most pork in Australia tend to have. Hmm...

Not to sound pompous or anything, I couldn't help but feel slightly turned off by the hygiene of the food court. Would have enjoyed it more if I were eating at somewhere cleaner =/. Overall, pretty good and natural flavours

Baskin Robbins Ice Cream, Circular Quay

Edit: Loooool sorry, everybody. I was a complete airhead earlier and have mistaken this place for Ben n Jerry's, when it's actually Baskin Robbins. Thanks to my friend who actually brought it to my attention *shy* ;p

Berries Cheesecake and Caramel Pecan (???)

Sorry, couldn't remember the exact names of the flavours. But you'll know which it is if you see it. I liked the cheesecake one a lot and the flavours were fun. The other, not so much. Too sandy for me.

Website: here

Overall, it was a great trip filled with fun, food, laughter and I'm glad I got to spend my time with these amazing people.

Looking forward to my next visit back! Because, Sydney, your food and weather has been really incredible.

As mentioned, there will be lots of scheduled posts coming up. Next one will be a recipe, and then back to posting food from restaurants in Sydney, so do stay tuned! Take care, everyone!

Hope it was a fun post for you as it was for me! =)