Edit: LOTUS CLOSED OH HAI! Look it’s a giant lollipop! How was your weekend dudes? Thanks for all your lovely comments, my stomach is indeed much better now and recovered just in time for the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Lunch at Lotus (22 Challis Avenue, Potts Point). The sold out lunch was so popular that there’s another lunch set for next week which um is also sold out and has a waiting list if you want to try your luck.

Entering the restaurant we are greeted with the sight of jars of candy alongside a tall cylinder filled with red liquid which was bubbling away and creating puffs of smoke thanks to the magic of dry ice. It’s alliiiiive!

The restaurant was transformed into a chocoholics dream world, there were hats covered in candy lining the walls eee Jaffas! Smarties! Chocolate bullets! We so excited!

Vases filled with marshmallows, gummy candy and chocolate bars made the lucky kids in the back room squeal with joy.

The one and only Dan Hong

We begin with the Russian Spyder which is Coke and ice cream for the kids… and vodka and Kahlua for the bigger kids 😛

“Blueberry inspired by Violet Beauregarde” was sadly not a gumball haha I was really hoping for tomato soup and roast beef followed by a blueberry dessert which was what subsequently turned Violet into a giant blueberry. But the opening dessert was delicious, slightly tangy thanks to the apple consomme that was bubbly and fizzy and had all of us ooh and ahh when it was being poured around the perfectly shaped quennelle of blueberry sorbet. It also managed to turn our teeth, lips and tongue an extremely shocking shade of blue! We were all so sure that Dan was peeking out from some hidden window laughing as everyone in the whole room turned into mini blueberries.

Ice cream sandwich of awesome. Seriously it was just about the best ice cream sandwich I have ever eaten! Fudgy brownie biscuit sandwiching super smooth peach ice cream with slivers of strawberries in between and topped with a sprinkling of tart strawberry powder that we guiltily licked with our fingers. It made my heart bleed rainbows of joy.

‘Golden eggs’ aka LOOK AT DEM BALLS! See those 3 golden orbs hidden beneath the dehydrated chocolate mousse biscuit? Unsure of how to eat them I prodded the ball cautiously and ended up shoving a whole one in my mouth before biting down and squeaked in surprise when it exploded with a gush of mango liquid. Spherication surprise win! Loved the entertainment factor of watching the roasted white chocolate soup being poured at the table and then dipping the dehydrated chocolate mousse biscuit into it before my jaws masticated gleefully. Get your mind out of the gutter I said masTIcated!

Chocolate and Mandarin Surprise. Woohoo some chocolate and citrus action! We had been hoping pop rocks would make an appearance and appear it did! One spoonful and immediately the sounds of crackling and fizzing filled the air and we chortled with every pop and crunch. While the salt flecked dark chocolate gelato nearly pushed me over the edge into sugar coma territory, my spoon just couldn’t help but return and alternating between the light and fizzy mandarin foam and the sweet mandarin curd. I normally have issues with chocolate and citrus pairings in dessert but this was a knockout especially with the buttery biscuit crumbs.

Oompa Loompa ice cream sundae with Chocolate River. OOMPA LOOMPA DOOMPADEE DOO! WOOOOOO POUR ME A CHOCOLATE RIVER!!!! Sugar high wheeeeeee!

Two small scoops of pandan ice cream were a lovely fluro shade of green and surprisingly refreshing, I was super glad it wasn’t mint ice cream cos you all know how I haz issues with mint. The river of chocolate was what turned me into a jittery 5 year old who can’t sit still and the chunks of crispy honeycomb pieces sure didn’t help the sugar high! Loved the chocolate chip cookie chunks and the salty pretzel and peanut nubbins scattered around with the mini marshmallows swirled in raspberry sauce.

But I finished it! See that mess? That was my state of mind after 5 courses of desserts.

WHEEEEEEEEEE!
Chocolate Suze attended the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory lunch as a guest of Stellar* Concepts.

 

Happy birthday Richard! My brutha from another mutha! Ahahahaha sadly no b’day drinkie shenanigans as my gut was waging a war with my digestive tract but we shall return soon I promise! We were here at Stitch Bar (61 York St), Sydney’s latest, dare I say it, ‘trendy’ underground bar where sewing machines and spools of thread line the walls.

It may have been a school night and all but the place was packed! The throng of people at the bar was at least 4 deep and good luck trying to find a table to try their food! Our strategy of the night was to camp near a table which looked finished and stare beseechingly into their eyes until they got uncomfortable heh.

The main drawcard for us visiting Stitch was for their hotdogs. I admit I am a sucker for the good ol hotdog and with 5 hotdog offerings available (as well as quite a few burger options) I was struck by indecision. Had it been a normal day I would have tried to go thirdskies with the others for maximum tastetage but sadly my stomach was just not up for it ugh

I barely made it halfway thru my own ‘Mack Ducky Dog’ ($19) even though it was one of the tastiest hot dogs I have ever had. Super smooth and creamy ‘foie gras de cannard’ slices balanced atop the rich duck, orange & pistachio sausage were the star of the night. There was a tad too much lettuce (heh it’s green yo!) but otherwise it was a freaking awesome hot dog especially with the truffle sauce. The curly fries that accompanied the hotdogs were more like potato shavings, and covered in a chilli powder dusting, it had me quickly reaching for my lemonade.


And it case you don’t follow me on twitter, here’s an obligatory photo of KFC’s The Double ($7.95)- I chose to have Zingers sandwiching my bacon and 2 slices of cheese and tangy sauce. Honestly I didn’t feel as gross as I thought I’d feel after eating it though the bacon totally pushed it over the edge into oh gawd it’s so salty territory especially as I had bought potato and gravy to dip into… I reckon it’d be awesome with a hash brown in the middle 😀


And with the last days of summer slowly slipping away, get thee to Mizuya (614 George St, Sydney) for a $1 green tea soft serve cone! Make your way down the stairs and follow the cute soft serve drawings to the bar where they’ll whip up a cone topped with swirly green deliciousness for ya. Have an awesome weekend dudes!