Tina's Noodles and 1000 Bread, Swanston St CBD

I came across 1000 Bread bakery on Swanston Street after a dinner one day and was captivated by the insta-worthy looking breads. The shop is tiny and there is no doubt that you will get into someone's way while browsing or picking up a baked good or two. 

I bought their specialty cube croissant ($8.80) and almond and chocolate croissant stick ($6.80) (no picture). The cube croissant is quite a novelty and makes me wonder if it is not a copy of the Italian cornetto (translates to croissant) from Farmacia del Cambio. The Italian bakery is famous for their sphere shaped cornettos and also makes them in cube shape. They have been on youtube showing the work that goes into making these wonderful creations. The amount of butter that goes into each piece of dough makes for the wonderful thousand layers (not literally) that is so deliciously fragrant to consume. 

Although 1000 bread labels their cube creation as a croissant, it is more like a loaf of bread with a harder texture and limited buttery fragrance. I can describe it as 80% bread and 20% croissant. 

There are at least 3 different types of cube croissant, like strawberry custard (which is the one I bought), matcha cream and blueberry custard. Each was decorated beautifully. The strawberry had nut sprinkles and edible flowers. The matcha came with half a stick of matcha Kit Kat lookalike. Very camera friendly although my photographing skills had let it down.. 

The cube is filled with custard and cream on the inside as the picture above would show. 

I also bought the almond flake and chocolate stick. It looked like a big Peppero stick but was chewy rather than crispy (it is bread after all). There were generous sprinkling of almond flakes but nearly not enough chocolate coating (only half stick)

I was actually on Swanston St for dinner at Tina's Noodles. It had been several years since I last visited. My go to is the lamb rib in their signature spicy soup ($18.80). Hot, numbing and potent are the right words to describe this noodle soup! I accidentally bit into a Szechuan peppercorn that rendered my whole tongue and mouth into numbness for a minute or two, a side effect tolerated for the thrill of eating something good!

The rice noodles were pleasantly chewy, the lamb ribs falling off the bone but not nearly as big or generous in portion as pre Covid. The portion is now just nice for 1 person, previously it was a struggle to finish especially in an hour on a warm day. 

My friend and I were there for an early dinner and it was already well patronised at that early hour. Perhaps everyone had the idea to dine early to avoid the crowd.

Besides noodles, Tina's also serve dumplings and snacks. We ordered the pork and chive dumplings ($17.80 for 12 pieces) to share. The flavour and size was standard and similar to what one would be able to taste in a good suburban dumpling restaurant so the price is on the higher side. This is perhaps understandably so due to their location in the city and the brand. 

Dipped in black vinegar, spiced oil and soy sauce, the dumplings take on a tangy and salty flavour. It is recommended to use the sauces to enhance the flavour of the dumplings.