my name is Food.: Lunch

McDonald's - Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

breakfast December 16, 2018

Whenever and wherever we travel, we always seem to make a stop over in McDonald's. Either once or twice or even for a midnight snack. There isn't a specific reason why but maybe so that we can try the different items available that we won't be able to find in down under. A few items available in Hong Kong that is definitely different would be their twisty pasta. Imagine macaroni, eggs, a choice of sausage or grilled chicken or ham served in a hot chicken or tonkotsu broth with other greens. Gosh, that's definitely something you won't find..

Sausage McMuffin w Egg, a classic from one of McDonald's breakfast options. The patty however, was different to the one we're used to in Brissie. The spice in the sausage was more distinct than what I've tasted usually as a breakfast.

The black coffee was served with a side of fresh milk which we used to make ourselves a somewhat Flat White.

Hotcakes Deluxe Breakfast, three pancakes served with their spicy sausage patty, hash browns and butter on the side with maple syrup. I usually only use the butter but this time, I thought I'd give the maple syrup a go just a little bit. It did do the pancakes some good as the butter made the pancakes moist, but the maple syrup added a little bit of extra sweetness specially when trying to balance the spicy sausage when having your first, second and third bite and more.. A unique combination but somehow but it worked.

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Pineapple Express, Hamilton, Brisbane

Ascot March 11, 2017

Pineapple Express, even the name will you turn your head and wonder what it is. One word to describe it, Superfood. Imagine Cacao, Kale, Chia seeds, Cocowhip, Acai bowls, well, I shouldn't name it all so that it'll keep you guessing what they have on their menus. The bright yellow surfboard and the blue and white striped awnings with its wide open windows will show you to Pineapple Express. With breakfast options from Eggs Benedict to green breakfast bowls; smashed avo to protein pancakes along with a wide variety of smoothies, fresh juices and acai bowls, your tummy will be filled healthily.

With their range of drink options such as Coffee, Frappes or Smoothies, we decided to try their Frappe and Smoothie, one of each. At first, fresh fruits sounded much nicer for a morning start but in the end, we opted for something fruity and non-fruity. Basically, more variety.

'Mango Muscles' (AUD$9) was a combination of Mango, Passionfruit, Vanilla Coyo Ice cream, Whey Protein, Chia seeds and coconut water. It was definitely very fruity and you are able to taste the well combined mango, passionfruit and Vanilla ice cream however, though not sure what Whey protein would taste like on its own, the chia seeds were a nice touch that added a bit of crunch and a different texture in the drink. It was all topped with coconut chips and goji berries which was a nice complement but didn't really do much overall to the drink.

'Coffee Frappe' (AUD$8) was surprisingly a Double Shot coffee with Almond milk, Dates, Coyo Ice cream and Ice. Their frappe options wasn't as wide as their Smoothies range but they do have Watermelon Frappe, Matcha Frappe and Gold Tumeric Frappe available if you're not a coffee person. A strong coffee hit would definitely boost you throughout the day as well as open your eyes wider but what was interesting for me was that it was made with Almond milk and dates were added. Dates? No idea why but somehow I could not taste it and that's how I preferred it to be.

'Pineapple's Share Board' (AUD$44) was one of the options in their All day menu which was very convenient to share between two or even three and if you decide to add more to try, then you can do so to be able to try the other dishes they have on offer. The share board includes 2 mini breakfast bowls, poached eggs dusted with dukkah, black forest bacon, pulled pork, ripened avocado, beetroot relish, haloumi, housemade hash, all served on Rye Sourdough. Presented beautifully set out in a large wooden cutting board with a painted edge, Turquoise blue, to be exact.

At first when everything looked pretty, you start to find and pick out what's on the board. The beetroot relish was quite dry but had a nice texture when eaten with the slightly crumbed feta and chopped tomatoes. The haloumi was also quite dry, there was only one which was sliced into two.

The pulled pork and housemade hash placed on top of a bed of mixed greens, both were slightly charred but as for its taste the pulled pork was a bit bland but when combined with the other elements of the dish, it worked well. At first, we didn't realise that the housemade hash was the orange roughly sweet potato slices as I had hash browns in mind. The housemade hash was seasoned well and added a nice fluffy and soft texture towards the dish.

The avocado, sliced in half was topped with a pinch of dukkah and sunflower seeds, placed right next to well cooked poached eggs and fresh cherry tomatoes. Slices of thick rye bread was slightly buttered which was handy not having to butter your own bread provided a base as you go through each of the elements on the board. Top the bread with the housemade hash, a bit of avocado, a bit of black forest bacon and you got yourself an open toast.

By the time we decided to go through everything on the board, we knew we also had to taste these breakfast bowls as it was their signature dishes.

The share platter itself includes 2 mini breakfast bowls. At first, we thought that you get a choice of 2 Acai bowls but then we realised the the mini 'Breakfast bowls' was one of the options in their Acai bowl menu, meaning we were getting 2 of the same type of Acai bowl. Luckily we did not have to choose which Acai bowls as there was just a wide selection although with the share platter, we did decide to choose 2 different types in order to be able to try something different. The girl at the counter was nice enough to allow us to choose a different type of Acai bowl to try instead of having 2 of the same.

'Breakfast Bowl' consisted of Acai, Coconut water, Banana, Berries, Spinach topped with twice baked granola, shaved coconut and seasonal fruits.

'The Acai Nutter' was made with Acai, Banana, Almond milk, Raw Cacao and Peanut butter topped with twice baked granola, peanuts, Cacao nibs and Raw chocolate sauce. Although this was not the full size, it was packed full of flavour. It was actually quite delicious with a thick acai base which had the chocolate and peanut butter combo and that combo always works whatsoever. The granola clusters as well as the crushed peanuts and chocolate coyo gave it the right amount of crunch. If you do enjoy your chocolate and peanut butter topped with ripe banana, then you will definitely enjoy this.

*mynameisFood. was invited as a guest by Pineapple Express and Department Group to try the new menu, as always, all opinions are my own.

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Nikuya, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane

Alcohol July 09, 2016

Another visit to celebrate the birthday of my sister and I. There is a private room where you can book your group into in which we did which allowed us not only privacy but to also be able to enjoy each other's company as well as talk and giggle as much as we want, and of course, take as much photos as we would like without having the eyes of other diners looking upon you. Again, friendly and kind customer service never fails to make a dining experience better. Although it did take some time for some of the dishes to come out, the waiters would be very attentive and continuously letting us know if there were any delays. Although being in a private room sometimes has its ups and downs, as trying to get the waiter's attention for hot tea topup or water can also be a hassle as they don't always walk past your room too often until need be.

'Buta Gyoza' ($8) is a classic, Japanese pan fried pork dumplings and each serving comes with a light garnish and light soy sauce for dipping. A great way to start the meal and something everyone in the table would like. There are prawn and vegetable dumpling options available. Juicy and hot on the inside, lightly pan fried allowing it to have the golden look as well as steaming hot on the other side to allow for each of the pork meat to cook.

'Hire (Fillet)' ($29) is lean and tender pork fillet encased in agolden brown panko breadcrumbs allowing it to seal its natural juices and flavour. The dish comes with a bowl of white rice, miso soup, a small bowl of sesame seeds as well as a side of shredded fresh cabbage to add that extra bit of crunchiness and also veges side of things to balance your carbs and also protein as well as your vegetables. The shredded cabbage was fresh and remember to grind those sesame seeds and place it on top of the tonkatsu sauce allowing the pork fillet to be dipped and glazed all over by it. The Hire was well cooked, the panko breadcrumbs were just right not too thick and was crunchy. With every bite, you can taste the juices and the sensational flavour of the pork.

'Wagyu Cubes' ($36) are chunky pieces of MB6+ Wagyu beef pieces seared and caramelised served with a garlic and onion sauce with a few bits and pieces of rough cut veges such as potatoes, carrots, broccoli and pumpkin all on a hot stone plate. Although it may look messy, you should not doubt this dish as the Wagyu Beef melts in your mouth at the first instance you put it on your tongue, let the tenderness and let it sizzle away. The garlic and onion sauce is not too strong and I prefer it that way so that the true flavour of the Wagyu can be tasted more by itself. The veges were just simply complimenting the dish and also adding a bit of colour. What surprised me more was that the chunk pieces were actually chunky and the portion is definitely enough for one so don't be afraid of ordering this and thinking uggh, maybe this might only serve a few pieces of meat.. well, it doesn't.

'Una Don' ($22) is always a favourite of mine to have and I have tried the best to the worst in various different Japanese restaurants. At first, I wasn't sure how big the portion of the whole dish would be but most importantly, I wanted to really know how big their portion of the Unagi would be when served.

The Unagi itself was cooked perfectly and had its own huge punch of flavour which was great as it allowed the leftover sauce to drip all over the rice underneath it. What I loved about this dish was that the portion of the eel itself was not stingy, it was chewy and was thickly sliced allowing you to enjoy the whole dish fully. Sometimes, when ordering Una Don, you tend to get more rice and only a little bit of eel which kind of is a let down as you end up enjoying and eating the rice more and looking for more eel bits to eat.

'Katsudon' ($24) is another classic dish to have as not only does it make you feel warm, but the thought of having crumbed meat topped with an eggy onion sauce on top just gives you the giggles. A bowl of fluffy white rice topped with Panko-crumbed Kurobuta Pork Cutlet and loaded with a sumptuous onion and egg infused broth. As you can see from the pictures, the Pork Cutlet has filled the bowl entirely which is great to see as well as having the onion and egg infused broth poured over it, allowing the steam to rise when it reaches your table. The onion and egg broth is poured only to half of the pork cutlet which I do appreciates as sometimes over pouring can ruin the texture and also the taste of the meat especially when it has been previously crumbed, making it sometimes abit too soggy.

'Miso Rosu' ($32) is pork loin deep fried with a crispy panko breadcrumb drizzled with Aka Miso Sauce served with chunky potatoes as well as shredded cabbage to balance the whole dish. This dish also came with a bowl of rice, a small bowl of sesame seeds as well as miso soup. For this dish, you do not need to reach for the Tonkatsu Sauce on the table as you already have the Aka Miso sauce on top of the meat. The right amount of sauce has been drizzled on top and it did not cover the whole pork loin which allows only a side of the pork loin to be drenched in the sauce as well as get slightly soggy leaving the rest still crispy and hot.

'Kinoko Udon Noodle Soup' ($18) has a choice of two different types of noodles, Udon or Soba in which we chose Udon. This simple dish is served with your choice of noodles and a wide variety mixture of mushrooms ladled over with a broth. A very simplistic dish but will warm you up during winter and those chilly nights. Although there is no meat present in the dish, it allows you to enjoy the wide variety of mushrooms that it can offer and allow you to be able to taste the different flavours with the different textures of each different mushrooms. The broth was seasoned just right, not too salty nor too sweet and was a perfect broth to accompany the Udon noodles and mushrooms.