Hofbrauhaus, Market Lane

Where's the best place to have pork? Hofbrauhaus, of course! This German mainstay serves the best roasted pork belly, pork knuckle and pork sausages. Now that my childhood friend of a certain religion has ghosted me, I can sing the praises of pork all over this blog without being afraid of offending their feelings, in case they should read my posts.

 We had a platter of chicken schnitzel, roast pork belly, pork knuckle, two different types of pork sausages, sauerkraut, mash potatoes and salad.

The star is a toss between the pork belly and the pork knuckle. The pork belly was roasted to perfection. The crackling was crispy, the meat was tender and juicy. It was not too salty. I am salivating for more!

The pork knuckle was brined beforehand and retains it's juiciness and seasoned well at the same time. The skin was I'm sure deep fried and was so crispy. As you can tell, pork crackling can't get away fast enough from me.

The sausages were delicious but the mash potatoes were even more delicious. It is almost like a Paris mash - fat makes everything taste better!

The chicken schnitzel looked promising, but was dry. Luckily the rest of the food on the platter more than made up for it. There was even salad which were polished off, much to my surprise. I guess people these days do care about having a balanced diet.

The restaurant also serves a reasonably priced lunch special menu. Each dish is around $19 - $20. For those who enjoy a drink with your food, this place is a big attraction. There are various types of cocktails, shots, German beer and wine here. 

The dark interior of the restaurant makes one forget the time once they are in the place. One may need to set an alarm to get back to work on time if visiting the Hofbrauhaus on a weekday. 

Kebab Thyme, Ferntree Gully

I received a hand car wash voucher from servicing the car not too long ago. Before it expired, we headed to the car wash for my car's long overdue bath and pedicure (tyre shine). 

While waiting for the car, we had a snack in the form of a halal snack pack. I believe it was my first. It is a famous Australian 'thing'. Let's get a HSP, bro. 

We went to Kebab Thyme. A family run, clean and cosy place. We ordered the regular HSP ($15), no extra charge for mixed meats, and all the sauce you wanted. 

The chips were hot and crispy, seasoned with chicken salt. There was a generous amount of shaved lamb and chicken topped with garlic sauce and mustard. 

I loved the crispy chips,  the meats were moist but I did miss a good garlicky garlic sauce. 

 

Avoid this Seafood Stall!

We went to Queen Victoria Market last weekend to check out the library nearby. It is new, and has a magnificent rooftop garden that overlooks the Queen Victoria Market. I took a picture of the market, sat in one of the deck chairs to enjoy the sunny weather, read a short book, and had a wonderful time in the library. 

I love libraries for the books, the magazines and newspapers in them and the cozy reading spaces. But the floor space for books in libraries have been increasingly reduced to make way for meeting rooms and work spaces. It is puzzling to me why libraries are destroying their core 'business' that is stocking printed materials for sharing instead venturing into the business of co working spaces. Businesses that need a working space or meeting rooms can rent in one of the many empty office buildings in the cbd, a consequence of the working from home culture. Students who want to meet up have their schools, university spaces to use. So who are these floors of meeting rooms and working spaces catered to? If they want to provide services to the community, then maybe housing for the homeless would be more pressing?

 After visiting the library, we went to Queen Victoria Market to buy some veges and seafood. There I encountered a dishonest fishmonger, so this post is to remind me not to return to this seafood stall called 'Victoria Market Seafood'. There are many good reviews on Google under this name on the Internet but that is because people mistake it for Vic Mart itself. This is a specific stall within the market. It is located in the seafood section, one of the last seafood stalls from the entrance to the seafood area.

I bought a baby barramundi which the fishmonger weighed twice, both times of which I could see the price displayed on the electronic weighing machine in front of me. He then charged me more than the price calculated on the scale without batting an eyelid! I was already waving a note in my hand for cash payment but he typed in the payment on the card machine. There was a sign at the back of the shop notifying that there is a surcharge with card payments but did not specify the percentage. When I checked my statement, the surcharge was 1.13%. It is reasonable but I have two gripes:

- I was not given the choice of paying by cash so it is by coercion that I have to pay the credit card surcharge

- The fishmonger is dishonest by charging above the weighed price of the item

Note to self: Do not buy from Victoria Market Seafood ever again.