Instafoodies Event - Glebe, NSW

We're back! Back again! And this is true in more ways than one! It really has been more than a while since our last blog post and there's very good reasons for that: unfortunately, our computer needed to be re-formatted. With the recent release of Overwatch, my old tower wasn't capable of running the game so I had to spend weeks figuring out how to update my computer to the point where I could play the game. No regrets though since it's been heaps of fun playing online with my friends and in the heat of the new game, I've completely forgotten to write anything about our recent adventures!

So we're back on the blog again! and this time, we find ourselves back at Hem Nine Nine! See, we had such a blast at Hem Nine Nine last time that when we got an invite to come back and attend an instafoodies event (organised by Robbie from it'd be rude not to), we knew we just had to come back. On the day, there were no markets on so parking was a bit easier to find than the first time we went. As we walked in, Robbie was there to greet us and it was so great to finally see him in person. The magic of social media is that you will get to know people rather intimately without ever having met them at all. I'd followed Robbie on Instagram for some time now but the event was the first time I'd actually met him. This becomes this sort of reoccurring theme throughout the event as I come to see a lot of people I follow of Instagram as well.

So as the place quickly starts filling up again, we found ourselves back on the table we sat at the last time. Since there were so many invitees and space was becomes scarce, we were seated with other instagramers and attendees (who we quickly got acquainted with...nice to meet you Erika, Mandy, Vee, Susan, Lily). As we get to know each other, the food starts rolling in dish by dish (which at that point was really exciting since we were starving!). Better still, we were presented with dishes that we didn't get to try last time! (we're only two stomachs...couldn't order that much even if we wanted to). Now, we were given a LOT to eat (we were SO full by the end of it) so I can't go into too much detail about each but I will give you a good run down of each dish (further descriptions can be found on our Instagram):

1. The duck rice paper rolls. Tasted like peking duck but with a little Vietnamese influence. I liked the addition of pickles!

2. Fish balls! you would not believe how happy I was when this arrived at the table. So reminiscent of my childhood trips to the home town of Hong Kong. Spicy, springy and delicious!

3. Wagyu Bo Luc Lac skewers. I mean, I love Bo Luc Lac (shaking beef) already but to make it with Wagyu and then put it on skewers? Ingenious! Super tender cubes of beef, char-grilled and served with sweet capsicum and slaw on the side.

4. Ox tongue: very tasty and savoury sauce that glazes these slices of tender ox tongue. A good squeeze of citrus really helped cut through the rich, beefy flavour and sauce.

5. A platter of soft, toasted bread rolls serverd with roasted bone marrow, chopped fresh chilli and pickled onions. Sort of like a...decadent and buttery do-it-yourself sandwich. Very delicious.

6. The grilled lemongrass pork skeweres we had last time. Still just as good! Still just as flavoursome and fatty.

7. Pork belly Baos. I believe these are also served on their "Mama Linhs" food truck and whilst the serving of pork belly in a Chinese bun is nothign new, Hem Nine Nine's rendition really stands out from the rest in that they pack in the sauce and the pickles that come with it are fantastic.

 

8. Crispy skin chicken! I mean, how can you not love this perennial Vietnamese favourite? Very crunchy deep fried skin that sits on top of the juicy chicken meat. It's really great how they chopped it all up and it had no bones in it at all so it makes for a great drinking snack.

9. Bo Kho...I can never pronounce it right whenever I try to order this at a Vietnamese restaurant but I love it all the same. Less sweet than most other versions I've had out there but definitely packing in the rich, meaty flavour. Love the addition of other cuts of beef and the general omission of the tendon (not a big fan of tendon).

10. By this point, I was well and truly stuffed...could not imagine handling more food. Then someone mentioned that the last dish was gonna be Pho...I almost freaked out! Luckily, it was Pho but not as we knew it. What we got was the Pho Banh Mi which was this bread roll stuffed with tender, fall apart beef that's been cooked in Pho spices and then served with generous amounts of sriracha mayo and other veges you typically find with pho. Very ingenious way of modernising one of my favourite noodle dishes.

Finally, after all the food that we gorged on, Robbie comes out to address the crowd. Kudos to Robbie for organising such a successful event! Additionally, for dessert, we got treated to a slice of the amazing cake from Desserts with Lynda! I've been a massive, MASSIVE fan of hers for a while and it turns out that she reads our blog too! Such a wonderful delight to know that someone you follow on Insta reads your content as well and it was amazing having met her...such a humble person for the amount of success she's accumulated in such a short time.

The cake was super moist and I loved the addition of the pandan cream! Would 10/10 love to eat something like this again! Overall, the Mrs and I had a blast attending this event. If I haven't said this before, I'll say this now: Hem Nine Nine serve up a fine Vietnamese fiest I'm honoured and glad to have been able to dine there twice already. I'm certain that things will only get better for them from now on and I do recommend giving them a try when you can! Thank you to Mama Linh, Chef Peter, Hem Nine Nine for the wonderful food and hospitality and thank you for inviting us to celebrate the birthday of the food truck! A special thank you to Robbie for organising as well!

Hem Nine Nine - Glebe, NSW

Momentum is a fickle thing...some days, you're on a roll and you feel like nothing can stop you while others, you've lost all motivation to continue. The task that you previously found fascinating and enjoyable has become monotonous and you find yourself procrastinating again and again. That's how I've been feeling lately with food blogging. I love eating and I love spreading news of delicious food and amazing restaurants but lately, that love has fizzled a bit and it's really reflected in the frequency in which I post content. It had gotten to the point where I'd actually considered quitting and just when I'd come close to calling it, something comes along and you're reminded again of why you do what you do. For me, this came in the form of an invitation to dine at Hem Nine Nine.



I'd first seen Hem Nine Nine's photos float around on social media and I'd always been intrigued by their food and I had personally set out to try their food one day but I hadn't gotten around to it. Lo and behold, an invitation reaches the Mrs and I sent from Hem Nine Nine themselves, asking us to come and dine with them! You would not believe how ecstatic I was when I received this email as not only had I wanted to try this place, this was also the first time we'd received and personal invite from the owners to come try their food! Of course, I booked us in immediately and anxiously anticipated the day we would go and try their delicious Vietnamese fare.

The name Hem Nine Nine or laneway 99 is a reference to the lanes in Vietnam where you can find delicious Vietnamese street food and their decor definitely reflects this. As soon as you walk in, the vibrant red walls and beautiful looking asiatic decor make the place really inviting and an interesting place to dine at. As soon as we sit down, we order two Vietnamese iced coffees to sip on as we casually study the menu. Whilst not as extensive as the Vietnamese restaurants you might frequent, from reading the description, you can really tell how special each dish is from the amount of thought put into the ingredients and the innovative ways in which they've been able to re-invent these classic dishes.

The first thing to come was our appetiser of grilled lemongrass pork skewers and boy, was this something to be excited about! You're served three skewers of lemongrass pork skewers with a side of slaw made of bean sprouts, cabbage, carrots, spring onions and this spicy sauce. The sauce that glazes the pork is sweet, savory and full of umami which really helps compliment how delicious the pork itself is. The outside of the meat is grilled to a perfect char and the aromatic lemongrass flavour permeates each bite. The meat is also super tender and juicy which makes it a joy to eat.

Soon after that, the Mrs order came: Squid ink bun rieu! As soon as this dish arrives at our table, my mouth starts to water as the smells coming off that hot, steaming bowl of soup is simply irresistible! The Mrs had never had bun rieu before but being more experienced with Vietnamese fare, I was actually really excited to see how this dish turns out. Squid ink can be a bit of a daunting ingredient to work with and even more so to eat (black is considered a rather ominous colour in relation to food) but it's a flavour that really works here and it's impact is very evident. The soup is warm, aromatic and flavoursome and you can really taste the umami that the squid ink adds to the soup. This is all made even better by the bits of crispy and softened noodles that cling to the sauce-like soup, the fried soft shell crab and the flying fish roe. A really interesting and delicious thing to eat and definitely a must try!

Shortly after the Mrs dish arrived, my order of super pho came! Hem Nine Nine have several pho items on the menu and I had originally been planning on ordering the special pho but when a dish is limited to 20 orders, you just have to get in on that action. When you're presented with a giant bowl of noodles topped with beef brisket, rare wagyu, herbs, onions and oven-roasted bone marrow all contained in this masterfully brewed beef stock...there is no way you wouldn't be impressed. I do consider myself a bit of a connoisseur when it comes to pho and I must say, I am very, very impressed with their rendition of the classic noodle soup. The stock had a bit of a stronger tartness (even without the addition of the citrus) which is instantly noticeable when you first sip the soup but as you continue to consume the noodles and soup, the tartness really comes in and helps cut through and bring balance to the whole dish. The soup is super, super rich in beef flavour...what I imagine it would taste if I ever took my love of beef and decided to make pho myself. The brisket and wagyu are tender and the delicate globs of toasted bone marrow just make it a delight to dine on.

While we would have loved to continue on to dessert (they have a unique Vietnamese coffee flavoured ice cream specially made for them by Hakiki Turkish ice cream) the both of us were so stuffed at the end of our meal that we just could not fit it in (pretty good indication of how much value you get for your money). Despite being invited to dine as guests, the Mrs and I were so impressed with our meal that we were perfectly happy to pay for our meal ourselves! I kept saying to the Mrs and even without the invite, I would have taken her there sooner or later and now that I have, I'm so, so glad that I did. Their wonderful hospitality and amazingly delectable food made it a wonderful experience for me and I'd love to return again and again in the near future!

Thievery - Glebe, NSW

Kleptomania...the urge to steal, usually without a need to or consideration of personal profit. I seriously had a intense case of this last night when the Mrs and I went to celebrate our 68th monthsary (yes, we celebrate the day we met each and every month). I'd been setting up this dinner for the better part of a month now and it's been really, really hard to keep a secret from the Mrs. However, I stood my ground til the end and as we walked through the doors of our chosen restaurant, I just couldn't contain the excitement I had for what we had ahead of us. 

Thievery is a modern take on middle eastern fare run by the guys who also pioneered the Sydney food truck scene, Eat Art Truck. I had dined with the truck before on two separate occasions and was thoroughly impressed on both occasions so I was expecting quite a bit from them. Their menu is also supposedly "stolen" from a very famous chef so that must mean they're good. The setup is like a middle-eastern themed wine bar which is really great because the small, cosy space lends a lot to the intimacy of the diners...almost like you're conspiring to commit a crime. The bar and the bartender was also legitimately in the room with you as there was no bar table separating diner from the establishment. The Mrs also really,really loved the background music (90's R&B and the like) which set our night off to a great start.

Upon arrival, each table is provided with a small dish of lupin beans which our waitress advised was "kinda like firmer edamame beans". The menu also clearly states that they can kill you (if they aren't cooked properly)...nothing like a little adrenaline from the fear of imminent death to spice up date night right? But, in all seriousness, it was a great snack albeit a bit harder to ngaw out of the skins than edamame is. 

The Mrs and I also ordered two cocktails: the Mo-Money Mojito and the Hotel Georgia. I had the Hotel Georgia which I found to be surprisingly good. Surprising because I liked all the ingredients when I read it on the menu but as the drink came, I smelt a strong whiff of almond. Now, the ingredients didn't say it had almond in it but I smelt it and usually, I can't stand the smell of almond but in this case, I was really taken aback by how great the drink was. Sweet yet tart, I could help but keep drinking away at it. The Mrs had the Mojito which she claims "is the best mojito she's ever had". Can't argue with her at all as the drink was really refreshing and well balanced.

The first dish to come was the Baba Ghanoush which was a smoked eggplant dip with pine-nuts, sheep's milk yoghurt and burnt butter. I was originally going to order the Hummus (as the menu clearly stated it had burnt butter and I'm obsessed with that stuff) but I did some research before hand and according to notquitenigella, the Baba Ghanoush also came with burnt butter. This had to be one of the best decisions I made that night as the dish was amazingly good. The smokey eggplant works really well with the nuttiness from the pine nuts and burnt butter but that sheep's milk yoghurt just wins. It is to die for...so intensely creamy and moreish.

We had almost succumbed to the suggestion from our waitress for more flatbread but we abstained which was a great decision because it gave us a small window to cleanse our palates for the next delectable arrival: the LFC or Lebanese Fried Chicken with Squid Ink Toum. The Mrs asked me what was so special about this chicken, to which I told her that this chicken was made with 72 spices. Yes...72, and you can almost taste all 72 flavour profiles as you bite into that crispy yet succulent and juicy chicken. The amount of spices may sound overwhelming but it really isn't. It's so well balanced that you can enjoy the taste of the tender fried chicken and still comprehend and feel the impact of the spices. The squid ink toum was lacking some impact (the Mrs and I are used to EJ's toum) but was added to the overall experience when added to your chicken.

To round off our dinner, the last dish to come was our orders of the Slow Roast Lamb Kebab and wagyu beef sharwarma kebab. The lamb kebab was really well packaged as the richly fatty roast lamb was complimented really well with that creamy sheep's milk yoghurt and the pickled garlic really helped cut through that creaminess and fattiness. It can get a little intense for those not accustomed to the taste of lamb which is why the portioning really helped keep it all in check. The beef is a entirely different case as I felt as though there just wasn't enough. The portion size was exactly the same as the lamb but because the beef was so damn good that I just wanted more. I cannot even put into words how good the beef was...the Mrs said I had a moment where I was in pure bliss and in all honesty, I genuinely felt like I was brought to tears with just how great it was. That spice from the harissa and smoked garlic, the kick from the pickled pepper and that herbaceous flavour from the coriander all compounded by the intense meaty flavour of the beef and complemented by that doughy flatbread....just heaven.

Sorry if this looks different from the other photos, other pic just didn't look great.

You get the idea that Thievery is a great place to dine and it really is. They execute each dish with so much finesse and balance that you find yourself wondering if you'll eat anything else as good. I can honestly say that I won't be able eat another mediocre beef kebab again...I wanted to steal that beef recipe from them so badly but alas, we'll have to wait till the next time we dine there. 

Brewristas - Glebe

Hello everyone!

Firstly, we'd like to thank each and every reader who comes by our little blog, we've recently been trying to blog more frequently (so that we can get a into the habit of posting and so that our list of places to blog about doesn't grow any more) and we're definitely noticing the increased views we're getting so that's good! It's such a humbling experience knowing that people come and find genuine interest in our lives so we definitely appreciate you taking the time to read about our adventures. We hope that we can continue to consistently provide good content regularly so stay tuned!

As Autumn begins to get into full swing and the weather become a bit colder each and every morning, it becomes increasingly harder to wake up. That said though, I still managed drag myself out of bed and take the Mrs on a brunch date. She's always been so lovely and supportive that I thought that she deserved a bit of treat. With that in mind, we got dressed in our Easter Monday best and drove all the way to Glebe to try out a place that's been on our list for some time now: Brewristas.

Parking really wasn't hard to find as there's plenty of street parking all along Glebe Point Rd and on the off chance that you just can't find any parking, Broadway has free 2hr parking so that definitely helps (it's not a far walk either!). 

Walk in and you'll notice that the place is rather expansive with a back area that looks very comfortable. We opted to take the first seats that became available. That wasn't any detriment though as we got to see all the people come and go. The unfortunate result of visiting on a public holiday was that the staff would be exceptionally busy meaning it took some time before our coffee and food would arrived. I didn't particularly have a problem with it as I personally like watching people do their thing but the Mrs wasn't nearly as patient. 

*Action shot!*

The Mrs had ordered her standard coffee which was done spectacularly however I opted for a pour over with the house beans.

Quality takes time and attention to detail. That I understood and so when my coffee came, I was all the more appreciative of it. Brownie points for the impeccably dressed Kevin and his wonderful explanation of the coffee and the way to enjoy it!

Our food eventually came (the staff acknowledged the wait and apologised for it so all was well in my books) and boy did the dishes look pretty. The cold eggplant and vegetable stack was delightfully fresh which made it an appetizing Autumn dish as the flavor of the pesto wasn't all too overpowering and there was the balsamic glaze there to cut through it all. The bits of chorizo (an additional $3) and boccocini also complimented the dish well.

Now, Kevin's balls...oh so delicious. The flavor that these four small balls pack is immense. The combination of the tofu and pork which is deep fried and encrusted with bits of Shin Ramyun and covered in a good amount of spicy mayo....a match made in heaven if there was ever a more apt description. My only wish was that there were more of it to go around. I don't think any adjective I label it with could give it the justice it deserves so if you're ever visiting, trust me: order one order for each diner. You will fight over these.....or you might be smart enough to order more, I don't know. 

Brewristas is definitely a place to come and spend an afternoon, ideally you'd shoot for a day where it's less busy but with how these guys are doing, I honestly don't think their popularity with the Sydney crowd is set to fizzle anytime soon. 

Would we return? For the balls? yes. Most definitely yes.

Recommendations? Order the balls...make sure you've ordered enough so you won't need to share. Oh and sit in the back so you have a clear view of the brewing station.

Areas of improvement? If they provided more balls for the price that would be great but I guess that's just an indication of how impressive they were.