Chocolatesuze - Sydney Food Blogger

Short Sweet Bakery, Parramatta

18 March 2013, 01:32

It takes a lot for the boy and I to roll out of bed early enough to make it for breakfast anywhere. Usually by the time we’ve stumbled out of the house it’s nearing noon and our craving for something with eggs is left unsatisfied buuuut Westies rejoice! Short Sweet Bakery (Shop 17, 162-172 Church St, Parramatta) to the rescue for all your baked goods and breakfast needs! They’re closed on Sundays but open from 6am week days for the caffeine deprived souls heading to work.


Follow the lively tunes of the band parked out front every Saturday near the Hungry Jacks and make your way up to the counter and drool with indecision. On Saturdays there’s a breakfast menu and hopefully soon to be during the week too.


Mini tarts just crying out to be held!


Golden, flaky pies at $5 a pop.


Scrambled Eggs, Avo and Toast ($9) is pretty damn incredible, the eggs are freakishly light and fluffy and I just want to bury my head in the cloud like pile.


I can’t resist ordering the Waffle with Honeycomb ($9) and while I love honeycomb and I love waffles I kinda wished they weren’t together? I like my waffle toppings to be either pourable or spreadable and I ended up just stabbing the honeycomb and saving it to the end to eat it separately. But hey it was tasty and sufficiently satisfied waffle craving I’ve been having for the past couple of weeks.


I was drawn to the breads counter and couldn’t stop staring at the piles of freshly baked croissants, carrot cake and banana bread loaves.


Emergency secondary stomach was activated as I couldn’t leave without trying the Vanilla Mille-feuille which tasted every bit as delicious as it looked with its layer upon layer of pastry sandwiching a velvety vanilla cream.


Noods loves a good lamo so one Panncotta Lamington was ordered. And yes I know you guys will ask if it’s better than Flour and Stone but honestly I reckon it’s two completely different lamingtons. Flour and Stone’s lamington is damn tasty but to me it isn’t a true lamington because I like sponge cake to be well, spongey and not so er wet. So I prefer Short Sweet’s lamo over Flour and Stone but I prefer Flour and Stone’s coconut shaving exterior :D


Unfortch all the hot cross buns had sold out before we’d rocked up and Noods had had his heart set on bringing home a bag of hot cross buns but luckily a lonely survivor was found and a light toasting with a pat of butter and all was right with the world.


We roll out the door but not before taking a quick peek at the shelf against the side window for packaged takeaway treats, from giant clouds of meringue to golden anzac biscuits and jars of cocoa powder.

If you spot her, have a chat with Leanne Beck of Sweet Infinity fame, she is an incredibly energetic force of nature and worked hard at getting Church St cleaned up and made beautiful with the addition of beach deck chairs in the mall. I’m glad to have found Short Sweet Bakery and will definitely be back to try out the tarts and pies!

ChocolateSuze + Noods received complimentary meals with thanks to Short Sweet Bakery

 

 

Fish Place, Surry Hills

11 March 2013, 02:35

Office locals in the Surry Hills area are always watchful for new places opening up especially if it’s something different to the standard sandwich or salad shop. So we rejoiced when word finally came that Fish Place (70 Foveaux St, Surry Hills) opened last week. Run by Adam de Launay previously of The Smokehouse fame, the Fish Place building is hard to miss, covered in shiny sardine tin print.


The menu is short and sweet, from fish pies and smoked salmon bagels to the classic fish and chips and the prices are pretty decent for the area.


Every morning salmon and ocean trout are smoked out back, ready for all your bagel needs. Man I wish I lived next door. Fish is pretty high on my favourite food list. With bacon. And fried chicken. And donuts. Oh and cake. But seriously I heart salmon! And cod!


So one sunny day saw some peeps from the hood meet up for lunch. I chose the Hot Smoked Salmon with a side of Potato Salad ($12.50) and it is beeeeautiful. Check it out! Slab of salmon? Check. Perfect in every way? 3/4 check. I minused 1/4 because I could totes eat 2 pieces. What? I get hungry at lunch thanks to my ‘must-not-snack-before-lunch’ self imposed rule. Afternoon snacking is a whole nother story.


Missklicious has chosen the Fish Pie ($8.50) which I forsee will be a winner when winter rolls around. It is super comforting with morsels of fish buried under a blanket of creamy mash. A side of salad was also procured but uh i have nfi how much extra it was nor did I try it doo di doo..


For Vxdollface it is the Smoked Ocean Trout with a side of Potato Bake ($12.50). While I preferred the salmon over the ocean trout the potato bake kicks my potato salad to the kerb.


Ramen Raff only has eyes for the Battered Fish with a side of Green Pea Mash ($12.50). The fish was pretty damn awesome. The batter is golden and surprisingly not greasy, and the pea mash makes me feel like I am a responsible adult eating my greens willingly.


Ah and there was some chips! The fries are fat and crispy and at $3.50 for the Chippy Cup it’s pretty reasonable and er dangerous for the mid arvo munchies.


There’s some window seats at the counter but head around the corner to the back to the super cute courtyard where herbs grow from treasure chests and ironing boards are tables.


Would be awesome if they were licensed but it’s all good cos I’ll definitely be back to try the bagels which I hear are out of this world!

 

 

Excelsior Jones, Ashfield

4 March 2013, 00:48

I HEART pancakes. Give me a stack of fluffy fat pancakes or thin crispy crepes, it doesn’t matter I’ll eat them all! Like donuts, I WILL travel for pancakes and yes I can very well make them myself but well it’s just not the same :P Then word on the twittersphere started whispering sweet photos of the Sourdough Pancakes ($13) at new kid on the block cafe Excelsior Jones (139 Queen Street, Ashfield).

So one rainy weekend the boy and I rolled up just before noon and nabbed the last table in the corner by the window. A much needed caffeine buzz from a pretty tops coffee was downed before moving on to a super sweet butterscotch milkshake. In no time the pancakes arrives and they are very fine indeed, freakishly light and ridiculously moreish with the scattering of plump strawberries and just a drizzle of vanilla custard. But woe only 4 tiny pancakes meant I was staring mournfully at my empty plate before deciding on ordering something else.


Noods is always a Bacon and Egg Sandwich ($10) kinda guy, and declares the sambo a winner with the crispy bacon, a gooey poached egg and sourdough bread. While I loved the dollop of aioli, Noods much more prefers the capsicum relish but still polishes off the sandwich with ease.


Aaaaand then because we were both still a bit hungry we couldn’t pass up the chance of the Grass-fed Angus Beef Cheeseburger ($16) cos c’mon, who doesn’t love a good cheeseburger! And this cheeseburger didn’t disappoint with an incredibly juicy patty with melty Gruyere cheese and a side of uber crispy smashed then fried potato wedges. I may have retrieved the lettuce from my half of the burger and deposited onto Noods’ half but hey he’s totally into salads in burgers.


Excelsior Jones is in this pretty nondescript building so keep your eyes peeled when in the mostly residential area. There’s heaps of parking which is always a plus but the cafe itself can be a bit loud and echoey so be warned if you have had a pretty hard night out prior :P

 

 

La Paula, Fairfield

25 February 2013, 01:23

Oh haiiii! So like, what’s up with this rain? I feel like I need to get an ark or something! With all the soggyness everywhere I had a mad craving for an empanada. A fried one. And one stuffed full of cheese. So off we went to La Paula (1/9 Barbara St, Fairfield) to warm our souls with empanadas and of course desserts.


Step inside, immediately look left and check out the dessert counter! YEAH BABY! Enough sweets to make my soon to be cavities drop out of my molars. I placed and paid for my lunch order at the counter and then decided to order a dessert to eat while waiting because I was bordering hangry aka angry and hungry.


A box of Flan ($3.50) is pretty close to perfect, eggy, light and with the perfect amount of golden caramelly syrup. It is my idea of the perfect comfort food/dessert and ended up buying another one to take home and eat while swaddled in blankets.


A fat wedge of Torta 3 Leche ($4) is also procured although it is not quite as tasty as the flan. The cake part itself is ahem moist and the layers of dulce de leche is of course sweet and smooth but the frosting on the outside weirded me out a tad, it was fluffy and white but had no taste! Not of cream, not of milk and not even of sugar! It was just.. white..


The first of the real food arrives: Pupusa ($3). The menu said ‘cheese and pork crackling filled tortillas” but er well I couldn’t taste any pork crackling just meaty pork nubbins making sweet sweet love with stretchy cheese and enveloped in what tasted like a corn pancake? Pretty damn tasty and hellooo charred edge goodness! The pupusa came with side bowls of cabbage salad and watery tomato sauce but didn’t really need it.


The boy has chosen the Lomito Completo ($9.80) a burger stuffed full of tender slices of pork, tomato, sauerkraut and a dollop of creamy mayonaise. I’m quite enamoured by the buns which are freakishly light and the mayonaise for some reason reminds me of kewpie mayo which isn’t bad because hey keypie mayo is awesome.


And of course, the Empanada de Queso ($3.40). Piping hot and fresh from being baptised in oil, the empanada pastry is golden and flakey and that home made cheese filling? Streeeeetchy!


Aaaand one last look at the holy land of sweets, with possibly a sweet round of Alfajorde ($2.90) for the road. I managed to not take a photo of it because it was crammed into my mouth before we had even left the store. I’m classy like that.


Parking yo. Park close to avoid the rain! Or you know, for less walking.

 

 

Graze, Pyrmont

18 February 2013, 02:23

Ever visit a restaurant because you’ve heard so much about a particular dish? Yep. So this is the famed Cauliflower Milkshake with Jamon & Cheese toasty ($12) from Graze (182 Harris St, Pyrmont). While most of the dishes on the menu are meant to be for sharing this is one dish I would not share if I could help it. And seriously, how freaking cute is that old skool milk container! It was very tempting to nick it and take home but I resisted. If the glass was a magical container that kept refilling then yes I would totally nick it because the cauliflower ‘milkshake’ was incredible. Smooth and oh so flavourful, it is perfect alternating sips with bites of the cheesy Jamon toasty and just feels like receiving a warm hug from the inside out.


Smoked Cod Brandade Croquettes ($14) are crispy golden goodness with the perfect crumbed exterior crunch to smooth creamy innards ratio. The smoked cod flavour is not as strong as I expected with the taste of potato being more dominant. But hey it’s deep fried and just salty enough to be moreish and paired well with the extremely large glass of cider I was consuming.


While the slabs of Confit Salmon ($18) are perfectly cooked and the pea mousse surprisingly light and fluffy, the cardamon flavour in the vinaigrette is a tad overpowering and I end up passing my portion onto the boy to finish.


The Sweet Potato Cigar ($14) is a textural delight, biting through layers of flaky filo pastry to the smooth sweet potato innards with a swipe of the neon green spinach and cream cheese sauce.


Baby Red & Golden Beetroot with Goats Cheese Mousse ($12). If you’ve read my blog at all you’ll know that I have issues with beetroot. Yes I know it’s un Australian but meh whatevers man it totes tastes like dirt. And not being a big fan of goats cheese either meant this was my least favourite dish of the night.


The two tiles of Smoked Free Range Chicken Terrine ($15) are meaty and tender but are no match for the eye catching dukkah spiced hens egg which is reminiscent of a scotch egg, breadcrumbed and fried but with barely set yolks.


The Slow Cooked Short Rib of Beef ($22) is hands down amaaaazing. Ridiculously tender meat with ribbons of creamy fat and bathed in a port glaze, oh em gee I could die happy right now. We dunk the planks of crispy polenta into the remaining sauce as my brain debates with my stomach on whether it could make room if I ordered seconds.


Aaaand there was a side of Crispy Truffled Potatoes with Parmesan($8) because hey we love our carbs!


Dessert time! I always have a soft spot for the Eton Mess ($14) and with super sweet strawberries, lashings of double whipped cream and shards of meringue, what more could a girl want? Ahem more meringue for one thing but that’s because I have a sweet tooth like no other :P


There was a vote by the table to order the Coconut Pannacotta ($12) but I have issues with coconut in desserts so stayed away from this which was lucky because it was demolished in a heartbeat.


Last but not least, the Treacle & Lemon Tart ($12). With a buttery base and a gooey lemony filling this dessert was my favourite of the lot, the dollop of creme fraiche brought the sweetness down a notch though a part of me thought a scoop of ice cream would’ve kicked this into sublime. But no matter, the plate was scraped clean.

Service was pretty awesome and while there were a couple of hits and misses that night I would definitely return for the cauliflower milkshake and the short rib!

 

 

Happy Valentines Day!

14 February 2013, 01:55

Dear Suze,
Baaaacon
Happy Valentines Day!
Love, Noods

 

 

Jazz City Milk Bar, Darlinghurst

11 February 2013, 02:37

OH HAIIIII! Oh how I love fairy floss! So when word on the street started buzzing that the awesome American style Jazz City Diner was opening an offshoot Jazz City Milk Bar (Republic 2 Courtyard, Palmer St, Darlinghurst) just around the corner and that there was an entire menu of flavoured fairy floss I knew I had to visit quick smart. I couldn’t resist ordering the fairy floss before looking at the rest of the menu and picked the Watermelon fairy floss ($5). It was freaking incredible! Slightly sour and sweet of course, but surprisingly not teeth achingly so.


It was ridiculously hot that day so we grab some beers ($7-$8) to start off, forgoing the Floats ($8) and Milkshakes ($8) on offer.


We order a round of hotdogs to share, the New Orleans Fried Oyster Remoulade Dog ($12) is the favourite of the lot, the soft bun holds a pile of shredded lettuce and a jumble of oysters which are fat and juicy beneath their cornmeal coated exteriors. There was the Texas Style Chilli Hot Dog ($12) which came loaded with cheese, jalapenos, onions and Texas style beef chili. We picked the Buffalo Wings Style Hot Dog ($7) mainly because of the blue cheese. Oh yes I have finally seen the light and moved over into the blue cheese loving camp! All the hotdogs comes with a side of fries with a choice of seasoning (Creole, Jamaican Jerk or normal) so we get a mix but the Creole is the winner of the bunch.


I had been craving for something deep fried so ordered the Buttermilk Southern Fried Quail ($22) which was very prettily presented with spheres of sweet candied yams, a pile of sautéed spinach, nubbins of salty bacon and topped with the cutest fried quail egg. The de boned quail was indeed very crispy with knobbly battered bits but alas! The size! I’m not the biggest of eaters and yet I scraped the plate clean and resorted to stealing bites of hotdogs and chips! It just felt so refined and well, not really diner or milk bar style? It was delicious but I guess I would’ve just loved a whole basket of quail piled high!


For dessert we share a slice of the German Chocolate Cake ($10). It is not your normal chocolate cake, wiki explains that it’s the common name of an American chocolate cake topped with a coconut-pecan frosting. It’s not bad but I was hoping for a more chocolatey flavour with the cake but it’s a tad lost in the frosting.


Aaand I decided to order one last fairy floss for the road so it’s back to the counter again to stare in fascination while it’s being made. I totally want a commercial sized fairy floss machine!


I chose grape flavour and it kicks the watermelon to the curb, it tastes exactly like grape Hubba Bubba bubble gum! The cloud of fairy floss is much bigger than the pic but because it was so warm that day it had started to melt everywhere eep! I will definitely be back to try the rest of the flavours of fairy floss (apple, vanilla, bubblegum, blue raspberry) and I hear the breakfast menu on the weekends is pretty damn awesome too.


Service was lovely and friendly but food did take a while to arrive. There aren’t many tables available so get there early or be prepared to wait!

 

 

Chinese New Year Pineapple Tarts

6 February 2013, 00:40

MY PRETTIES! I freaking LOVE pineapple tarts! I mean, what’s not to love? The buttery crumbly shortbread like base, the sweet pineapple jam with just a hint of spices. It’s my most favourite Chinese New Year snack! I haven’t made them before but it was surprisingly easy though it does take a while (like, 3 hours) to make which is why I didn’t name them ‘super easy’ haha I followed A Table For Two‘s awesome recipe but made a few adjustments because I was making open pineapple tarts not the pineapple rolls.


I could eat them all! But seriously, double or even triple this recipe! The amount of stirring means I tripled the pineapple filling and refrigerated the extras to bake later in the week. Oh and wear long sleeves- if any of the pineapple filling gets on you it will be very hot and it will burrrrrn!


Ingredients.
For the pineapple filling:
2 × 825g cans of pineapples (either sliced or pieces)
200g caster sugar
2 clove
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 star anise
150g (1/2 cup) liquid glucose
1 Tbsp plain flour

For the pastry:
250g salted butter, room temp
50g icing sugar
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
350g plain flour
50g corn flour


1. Strain the pineapple and dump into processor
2. Pulse until shredded.
3. Drain pineapple
4. Simmer pineapple in saucepan or wok until the juice has dried up.


5. Add the 200g sugar, star anise, 1/4 tsp cinnamon and 2 cloves and stir till the pineapple has thickened and dried.
6. Add the 1/2 cup liquid glucose and groan in despair as strands of liquid glucose goes absolutely everywhere. Stir until the pineapple filling is thick, sticky and dry.
7. DON’T DO WHAT MY PIC LOOKS LIKE I DID! I had to remake my jam because dumping in the flour will cause flour lumps so SLOWLY SPRINKLE the flour a bit at a time while constantly stirring the mixture. If you start seeing flour lumps don’t add any more flour and use a whisk to stir the lumps!
8. Continue to stir for about 10 minutes or until filling is dry and pulls off the sides. Place in freezer to cool mixture down while making the pastry or place in fridge if baking the pastry later.


9. Cream the 250g butter and 50g icing sugar together using an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
10. Beat in egg yolks one at a time, scraping the bowl in between and add the 1/2 tsp vanilla extract until well combined.
11. Add in the 350g plain flour and the 50g corn flour and beat until mixture is only just combined.
12. Roll out dough to 0.5cm thickness. Cut dough with pineapple tart cutter, if you don’t have one just use a flower cutter and indent the middle with your thumb where the pineapple jam can sit without rolling off. If the dough is too soft to handle when transferring the flowers to your baking tray stick it in the freezer for 10mins to firm up.


Preheat oven to 160C (fan forced). Line tray with baking paper and place pastry 3cm apart. Grab your chilled pineapple jam and roll tsps of jam into balls and place on pastry. Alternatively you can roll the balls of jam in one go so it’s faster for you when you bake them. I chose to not glaze my tarts but to glaze just whisk 1 egg yolk with some milk and brush the flowers. Bake for 8-10mins or until edges are JUST lightly golden. Makes about 50-60 tarts.


Aaand tray of tarts! Leave to cool before packing in air tight container.


You don’t want to know how many I can eat in one sitting…


But of course sharing is caring :P Happy Chinese New Year everyone!

 

 

Giant Snack Food Stadium

31 January 2013, 01:00

Sponsored Post. ING DIRECT was kind enough to provide $1000 to fund my experience, all opinions contained within this post are my own, and not that of ING DIRECT. The ING DIRECT Wave & Save Promotion has since wrapped up, but for more information about their Orange Everyday Bank Account, or Internet Banking in general visit the ING DIRECT website


Noods is borderline fanatical about his new soccer team the Western Sydney Wanderers FC (WHO DO WE SING FOR?) and usually he and the boys will go and watch the game if it’s in Parramatta and then grab a bite to eat afterwards.


The Super Bowl in America is coming up soon and a few of my fav U.S food blogs are posting awesome snacks they’re preparing for the game and a quick Google search led us to the idea of a snack food stadium! There’s just something about building a ridiculously large structure using food and then sharing the craziness of it with your best mates. So with a Wanderers game set for the Australia Day weekend we decided to build a stadium of food and as luck would seem I was invited to try out the ING DIRECT Wave & Save promotion and it sure came at a great time lol


First, getting ready our junk food needs. The time I’d get home from work is usually around the time that most supermarkets start to close so I hit Coles, Woolworths, IGA and Harris Farm on separate days, keeping my shopping trips under $100. Amounts under $100 meant I could use the PayWave Visa Debit Card which was awesome because I didn’t have to stop to sign a receipt or attempt to remember my pin! Aaand there’s 5% cash back of all contactless purchases under $100 until 30th of June 2013 for the first 30,000 new Orange Everyday customers! So it’s totes like I got a discount. Sweet. The Pay and Wave system is still pretty new but check out the Wave & Save Merchant Locations.


Ready to build? Step 1, enlist a minion who fancies himself a builder using foam art boards and cardboard boxes lying around the house.


Step 2, make sure structure is relatively stable to hold weight of snacks.


It took Noods about a week of slowly designing the stadium and a lot of trial and error pieces but here we go! All taped up! We also lined the insides with cling wrap and the top deck and hot food section were covered with foil.


Step 3, slowly fill up your stadium and arrange order of snack foods. I went the sweet and savoury side route and colour co-ordinated my foods.


Of course it’s always good to make sure your structure is sturdy otherwise you turn away for one second and the sounds of Jaffas falling everywhere will make your heart skip a beat! Nuuuuu Jaffas EVERYWHERE!


AAAAAAND TADAH!!!!!! One sexy food stadium ready and waiting for all your pre game needs with the Red and Black Bloc supporters!


My ‘healthy’ side of the stadium starting with the lower decks: smoked trout dip, carrot and cucumber sticks, good ol 80’s cubed cheese, twiggy sticks, a wheel of double brie, crackers, olives, Kettle Chilli Chips, Cheezels, corn chips & salsa aaaand pork crackles. Top deck had babaganouj, pistachio & blue cheese dip, shaved honey ham and prosciutto.


Other side of the stadium contained our hot food section with mini pies, sausage rolls and potato gems tee hee it’s been too long since I’ve had potato gems! The stands were filled with mini Oreo’s, Tiny Teddies, rainbow popcorn, Pods, Cheese and Bacon Balls, Chicken Twisties, pretzels and the top stand was layered with pepperoni and slices of Jarlsberg cheese.


Fields of green! Originally we were going to use guacamole for the grass but we were worried it would discolour so I whipped up a kilo of buttercream with a crapload of green colouring. Looking back we should have used gummy men for the players but eh. Wafers line the stadium as ‘advertising’, held to the sides with toothpicks.


Enough with the photos! ATTTTTAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCK!


With no end in sight we chuck the perishables in the fridge and glad wrap the whole shebang while we take a break for a poker game or two.


Breaking down the stadium we pack the leftovers into party bags to take to work. It will probably last us for the next month or so. Diabetes here we come!


Aaaand I leave you guys with a less junk food overloaded photo. We had leftover funds on the card so one last trip for groceries for the animals at the RSPCA Yagoona shelter of fruit and veg for the bunnies, dog food, kitty litter, treats and toys.

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Youeni Foodstore, Castle Hill

27 January 2013, 23:31

Westies! Youeni Foodstore of Surry Hills and Darlinghurst fame is now open at Castle Hill! Thanks to a tipoff from Everybody Loves Ramen on the wonderful world of Instagram, the boy and I managed to roll out of bed and arrive just in time at Youeni (250 Old Northern Rd, Castle Hill) for the tail end of breakfast. I chose the Pate Brisse Quiche Tart ($5), which is gloriously eggy with bits of caramelised onion providing the occasional sweetness and relief against the incredibly buttery base. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the side salad ($3 extra), the radicchio and watercress leaves are lightly dressed with a citrus-y dressing and ground pepper and I feel virtuous and healthy heh.


Noods has of course chosen The Breakfast ($16)- creamy scrambled eggs on toast, sausage, ginormous field mushroom and a fat vine ripened tomato. The pot of cottage cheese felt a little out of place and adding a side of bacon ($4.50) makes it a tad on the exxy side for a breakfast out west but everything on that plate tastes so fresh that we know we’ll return.


The following weekend and we’re back to try out the lunch menu. We overhear the waitress describing the Roast Lamb Sambo ($13) as bloody awesome so I give it a whirl. While delicious it just didn’t quite blow my mind away- the slow roasted lamb chunks were tender but were unfortunately a little on the cold side and with the torrential rain that day I was hoping for piping hot innards. And argh I hate to be a nit picker but I couldn’t discern any potato that the menu said the sandwich came with nor any of the sweet chilli in the sweet chilli mayo. The bread was awesome though, soft and pillowy in the middle and studded with grains.


Noods has chosen the Angus certified Beef Rump ($26) which looks and tastes glorious though he mourns the absence of the roast potatoes which was swapped with cannellini beans. The beans are forgiven though because there are ribbons of lyonnaise onions aka caramelised deliciousness which just makes everything incredible.


How could we resist the desserts on display at the front counter! A Lemon Meringue Tart ($4) and a Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart ($4) are the lucky winners of the day. The cloud of meringue is light and fluffy and biting through it reveals a layer of lemon which is just sour enough to be tangy but still refreshing.

But it is the salted caramel chocolate tart that holds my heart, the oozy top layer of caramel has me swooning- I want a bucket of the stuff and to be left alone with a spoon. There’s a rich dark chocolate layer on the bottom which balances out the sweetness and of course the shells for both the tarts are buttery perfection.


Other delicious desserts on the day were brownies, an intriguing looking caramelised banana muffin and a chai and chocolate eclair. Next time my pretties!

Glance upwards and you will spy staff hard at work baking.


Ok so it totally looks like Dan Murphy’s has a cafe but it’s Youeni’s which shares the same corner entrance and lift which conveniently goes to their car park so you don’t have to battle the horror that is Castle Towers car park! Service is a bit shaky though friendly and food that’s not ours occasionally arrives at our table but hey they’ve only been open for 2 weeks so cut them some slack! Definitely a welcome addition to the neighbourhood and open 7am-5pm every day with dinner soon to come!