Out To Pasture???

No posts for a while.......but definitely not out to pasture, nor in the long yard today [ Slim Dusty song about old horses].

Activity and travel has been restricted due to post operative dramas and an incomptent and uncompromising hip that has stubbornly refused to shape up after hip replacement surgery in Adelaide. That is where the hip operation took place and so the posts on Adelaide places in November happened then........a few weeks to really try them out!!

All is not lost however, as there have been some short visits to local eating houses in Darwin. That has had to happen quite a a few times during the hip replacement repairs - standing and preparing food has been an issue at times, as has some really crappy hot weather over the past two months. Can be very hot to stand and prepare and cook food with a gammy hip!

So, will post a few comments on some Darwin eateries, from a local.

Watch this space over the next week or so.

Caffe Primo - Mawson Lakes, near Adeaide

Caffe Primo – at Mawson Lakes

There is a campus of the UniSA at Mawson Lakes along with a nearby light aircraft and training airfield and the area has a developing Business and Technology Park with quite a few medium sized developing businesses. Mawson Lakes has also been a site used as part of the Tour Down Under international cycle race in January each year – sometimes as a criterium or a start location. It has a fair share of business visitors, who now have a few locations to stay, rather than in Adelaide itself.

While there are some eateries along the Promenade and overlooking the lake that have been the main location to service these visitors, location does not always ensure decent service and food.

A recent extended stay for several weeks at Mawson Lakes recuperating after surgery has meant opportunities for a more than one visit assessment of some of the local eateries, and at different times of the day. One is a bit vunerable when unwell, and a bit rickety on the legs, a time to assess how staff operate with people not as vigorous as normal.

The best of the bunch award would have to go to the local Caffee Primo on Main Street. This is a combination of coffee shop, bar and restaurant, with the prominence of the component s of the mix varying over the day and week. Hard to miss, with a very large outdoor sign draped across the upper building levels [ also serves to stop the western afternoon sun].

Coffee shop in the morning can become a bar at night, yet the food service is generally pretty good at all times, with a decent weekend buffet breakfast on offer too, although not during the week – it is a cooked breakfast style “to order” then, and that is a reasonable price, a lot better than a motel “breakfast pack”.

They offer a modest range of well priced lunch meals [about $13] including pizzas and a range of pastas as well as a la carte meals. The chicken Caesar salad is particularly good value and very tasty, and has been my number one choice. Wine is available by the glass [reasonable range] and bottle as well as beers and spirits.

Dinner has essentially the same range as lunchtime plus a wider range of more expensive meals including steaks and there is a complimentary pancake and ice cream dessert too.

Meals are a good size, and the pasta range especially is very filling. The pasta is of good quality, obviously fresh and very tasty.

Staff have been exceptionally pleasant and helpful, and pull a decent coffee too. That alone is quite important for a coffee shop – both the staff and of course the good coffee! All the staff have been tremendous - without exception; a pleasant smile, a "hello" and that is seen when they deal with other customers too -it does bring out the pleasant side of your customers, almost always.

Tables are more bistro style, and they have some outside as well. Some of the original leather chairs are a bit run down, but are obviously being replaced, since most have already gone, with similar style wooden ones as replacements.

Observations over several weeks would indicate a steady stream of regular customers for both meals and coffees.

A recommended good value choice for meals and coffee in Mawson Lakes.

Changi Airport Singapore - Food - Try Saboten

Changi Airport Singapore – Food

It is somewhat of a conundrum – you need food while travelling, but both airport and airline food notoriously has a reputation that is often well deserved for ordinary food - at best.

Unless you happen to be at the pointy end where food and service reaches silver service standards! That does not happen for most people!

Normally poor to ordinary food at both airports and airlines is a well deserved award – lack of choice, not to your personal taste and sometimes quite pricey [ even on some airlines these days] and catering to a market that is a captive one – you can rarely go elsewhere.

Recently had a meal with friends at Changi Airport in Terminal 1. Outside - that is on the Singapore side before entering the immigration and customs hall and transfer areas inside. This is a location you might consider to not be inspiring, catering as it does to departing travellers and friends, soon to move air side to a better range of options.

Quite a few choices now, mostly asian food with the local Singaporean and Chinese cuisines popular, and with a long line to enter the restaurants. We selected the Japanese Saboten chain – almost by default as it had the shortest – ie no wait time to sit down. That sometimes might have you wonder.........is it ok?

Food was really quite good, with the shredded cabbage [superfine shreds] and tonkatsu sauce salad excellent as an entree. All four of us thought the food very well presented, and tasty, with good service – and prompt, a bonus when you are needing to move off for catching the plane. We all chose one of the variations of the salmon fish dishes deep fried in fine bread crumbs, so cannot comment on the meat options, which were mostly based around pork. The salmon was excellent – tasty and flavoursome.

All dishes around S$ 20 -24, and service seemed to be prompt, even based on other tables. A real bonus for an airport meal choice. And it included ice cream for dessert too!

Would definitely recommend the Saboten as a good food option. A quick google search has also turned up some very positive reviews of the same place by local Singaporeans - try a search if you want.......but try the restaurant too.

Seems the renovation of Terminal 1 at Changi Airport, due for completion in 2012 has already delivered some good food eateries.

In reality, it was just as well we ate there – meals on our flight [ both dinner and breakfast] were both terrible, and many people [ including Asians] did not eat them- at all or many just partially. After all not everyone – not even many Asians - tolerates very spicy food and hot chillies in Asian food, and that was what the dinner meal was. And no choice. One of the worst ever airline meals – and that was on a Qantas flight – just awful food. It was just poorly presented and looked awful too. Breakfast was not much better.

Zam Zam Restaurant- Best Murtabak in Singapore

Little more than a hole in the wall opposite the Sultan Mosque on North Bridge Road, and not far from the Golden Landmark Hotel, this restaurant serves the best murtabak in Singapore. And they have won awards for their murtabak too.

Well known to locals, but rarely visited by visitors it has a great atmosphere and some good food too. Offers a take away too and the special "drive by", but you need to be organised for the drive by pick up - might be best left to the locals! watch out for it if you vist the place.

Chicken briyani is also good, but the murtabak especially in mutton is excellent, and represents top value for money. Have a fresh lime juice to go with it.

For visitors the food is prepared right in the front enclosed section of the streetside restaurant.

Upstairs is air conditioned, but most sit downstairs or even at tables on the street.

A great visual experience for visitors, as they throw the cover for the murtabak. A bit like throwing a pizza base.

It is halal, and the place is alcohol free. Should be expected in the muslim area of Singapore, I guess. But do not let that stop you from a great feed!

If Zam Zam is full, and it is usually busy, Victory Restaurant a few doors up the road is quite good too.

The photo is taken from Zam Zam - across the road showing the golden dome of the Sultan Mosque - an easy place for a taxi driver to find.

Christmas Dinner at Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur

Just as we were arriving at the restaurant for our Christmas Eve Dinner, the carollers arrived at the entrance, providing the right ambiance for the evening. They sang quite a few traditional carols and then moved on to entertain other guests in other venues. We were settled at our beautifully decorated table, which was placed right beside a window so that we could enjoy the night lights of the city. We were brought a very nice glass of wine and invited to help ourselves to the buffet. Well, it was more like buffets; as there were several “live kitchens” set up around the edge of the restaurant with chefs to prepare your requests. Separate areas for Malay, Japanese, Chinese, Indian and European foods were set up plus seafood, salads and the largest dessert buffet I have seen in a long while. Death by chocolate is a phrase which flows to mind.

All the while we were entertained by a wandering minstrel group singing carols and other music from around the world. They were ably assisted by a small group of children who were delighted to be asked to be part of the entertainment.

The presentation was magnificent and the food tasted excellent too. Any apprehension we may have had about celebrating Christmas in a non Christian country was definitely dispelled.

For some photos of the dinner at the Le Meridien Hotel click on the thumbnail photo below.


by oldfartz99