August 25th, 2008 Nigel
Casual weekend as it is. As usual, our Saturday dinner location has been picked. We decided to try out the other usual Korean place we go, Seoul Palace.
The entrance of the restaurant seems alright, with glass shopfront and well lighted. Its quite a spacious restaurant with a nice bar right up front. There was not many customers and we are not suprised as it was pretty late for dinner as it was late half past eight. We were showed to our table and it was next to the bar. Restaurant decor was noticeable especially the wall next to us where they used a pretty sophisticated korean characters wallpaper. Apparently they are using rather expensive cutleries, tea cups, chopsticks and even the menu is very well done. However, we think that they have been overly done. Floor isn’t carpeted and the lightings seems like a little too bright. Well, not judging the restaurant without even trying their menu, its pretty unfair.
Anyway, we made our orders, a chicken hotpot and a stirfry pork belly and tea to start off. Tea comes in these cute little cups. As I have mentioned before, they looks expensive. They even came with a little cloth coasters. Not long after, our chicken hotpot was served. It was indeed quite huge. There were a variety of four sides and kimchi is one of them. We were told that we have to allow the hotpot to boil for 5 mins before we start feeding on it. The soup itself actually not bad at all, however, the chicken seems to be abit bland. They really taste like those chicken that just dipped into the soup.
As an overall I would not return for second go. Not recommended.
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July 9th, 2008 max
I had a sudden craving for something galatico last weekend, and straight away i thought of trying out the seafood buffet @ Redsalt. Off street parkings are aplenty even on a Saturday night and since i was around that area for work recently, i knew exactly where we should be heading for a parking. It was our 1st time @ Crowne Plaza, and without much hassle, we managed to find the restaurant, nestled right under the atrium of the hotel, and were greeted warmly by the manager who led us straight to our table. We waited no more once we sat down and took a tour of what was on offer @ the buffet section. Don’t expect an array of gigantic lobsters, prawns, crabs etc @ Redsalt. Though dissapointed at 1st glance, we decided not to let it affect our sumptious appetite, and we vowed to eat at least what we paid for - $59 per person! 
1st up was of course an appetizer. I went for the Tom Yum soup (wonder why there’s no seafood in it?) since i’m not an avid fan of salad. The soup tasted more like laksa since the chef had put so much coconut cream in it! Next was salmon sashimi, prawns and my fav - oysters! The oyster was no way can be compared to those we bought @ SFM but was still as good as it gets! After 2 rounds of entre, it was time to savour the mains - fried soft shell crab, seafood paella (no idea how it’s spelt), seafood fried noodles, wagyu beef (another weird selection in a seafood buffet restaurant!) + a few more that wasn’t very eye catching since i forgot what was on the buffet tray! The cold section offered more than the main since they had crab, prawns, oysters, eel salad, octupus etc. They even have more dessert variety than their mains and they even have chocolate fondue with marshies!
After endless rounds of walking from our table to the buffet section and back, we decided that we had enough. There’s no way we could ever consume $59 dollars worth of food. The hotel did their homework obviously and reckon what better way to milk us out of our money?! For those looking for a complete meal, then be sure not to miss out the tea / coffee. I had green jasmine tea and it was the perfect ending to a very filling meal. Overall, one could spend $59 in a better restaurant, and get better food. Not too bad, but not recommended for a second visit unless they change their menu buffet, but i doubt that would be the case anytime soon, would or wouldn’t they?
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June 14th, 2008 Nigel
It was a cold night and we have decided to grab a quick dinner in the civic. Feeling of some Italian, we try to get into La Scala but it seems that weekend nights are always packed as usual. That does not stop us from having Italian. We decided to give Mama’s Trattoria a go. It is around 5 shops away from La Scala. We was ushered to a table along the side wall and we both ordered a beer which i have a Heineken and Max had Hahn Ice.
We started with two entreé dishes. A mussels dish and a grilled mushrooms on bread. The mussels comes with bread too! They are cooked in a tomato based sauce which gives a good fragrant to the mussels. Those bread goes well with the sauce. Mushrooms on toasted bread with cheese sounds good. They taste as good as they look!
The atmosphere is pretty alright considering it is not a big or funky expensive type of restaurant. Lights are well dimmed to suit the ambience but lacking of some music. Oh, there’s one cute waitress working that night too. =)
Our mains come not too soon after. I had Chilli Prawns Fettucini and Max had Smoked Salmon Fettucini. They looks good but not really impressive. Personnally i think that its not salty enough. But soon after i added some table salt into my pasta, it tastes much better but again, its not impressive. We left the place soon after we hang around for a bit.
Generally the place is okay, ambience is alright, menu wise, not much offered, its the typical Italian Trattoria range. If there’s somewhere else to go, I might not return unless needed.
Sorry not impressive enough to take any photos.
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June 7th, 2008 max
Yummy yummy makes it 2Yummy (no, not 2 yummies) (yes, i’m not going to debate about english grammar here). Been longing for some roasted pork/char siew for quite some time now, and we’ve been told that there are 2 places in Canberra that serve absolutely good roasted pork & char siew - 2yummy in Belconnen and Chinese Kitchen in Woden. Since we stay in Turner, we chose Belconnen coz it’s a shorter drive. Driving to Woden on 2 hungry stomachs (Me & Nigel) is definitely out of the question! Ample of parking spaces along the road if you can walk, or you can choose to either park in Hungry Jack or Red Rooster which are just tucked next door. Typical australian Chinese restaurant set up, typical ambience - don’t expect anything hype here. The menu doesn’t look too extensive and since we already had our mind practically made up before even stepping into the restaurant, i decided to try their sour & spicy soup + mixed roasted rice while Nigel opted for a dumpling soup + roast duck & pork rice. The sour & spicy soup was way below my expectations but i must admit they serve really good dumplings - one of the best i’ve tried in OZ so far anyway. The roast pork and duck was absolutely perfect but not too much of a wow-factor on the chicken and char siew. Apart from the really good roast pork and duck (and oh did i mention they serve nice chinese tea), i couldn’t find myself coming back again - perhaps i’ll try the Chinese Kitchen in Woden before making my judgement?
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top to bottom: 2Yummy interior, Roast Duck+Roast Pork Rice/Combination Roast Rice, Wanton Soup, Me having my soup!!!
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May 27th, 2008 Nigel
I have a friend in Canberra studying and since my arrival from Adelaide, we havent been meeting up at all. Thus, I think its prolly good to get out and grab some good dinner somewhere. Legends, a Spanish grill in Manuka was picked from a couple of suggested restaurant. The restaurant is located on first floor and stairs leading up to the dining area, was decorated with best restaurant awards and some promotional live music performances.
We have pre-booked a table for four and we are given a table by the side wall and there’s this little opening where you can actually look out at the smoking dining area. We are served immediately. The menu doesn’t surprise me as i have been staring at them online for couple of days drooling over the rack of lamb. Well, we placed our order and we have ordered some entreé and mains. We are told that the lamb racks need 45 minutes to be ready. It is fine for us as we are not rushing for time at all, furthermore we can have a nice slow entreé and talk about life in Canberra while waiting. Both of us, max and myself ordered two kinds of prawn entreé and the girls ordered some octopus and mushroom salad sorta. Apparently, the mushroom thingy is quite famous and they indeed taste good.
Pez Espada - Oven baked swordfish steak served with roast garlic, lemon & chive pesto
They have quite a variety of seafood mains as well as chicken, lamb, beef and pork. It is pretty surprising to see so much variety. Many restaurants offer mostly beef, steaks and only a couple of seafood or chicken mains. If not mistaken, they are called Paella. Paella is described as a subtly flavoured saffrom rice dish originating from the region of Valencia. Every region in Spain has its own version of this particular dish, depending on the local produce available at the area.
I had a lamb rack and they are roasted to perfection. (Photo to come later)
We then had dessert. They comes in a set of three types, a crepe, sobe and chocolate mousse. They taste great, however, I would have thought it is a little bit expensive and overated. Other than that, Legends is worth a second and even a third visit. I will have to try their rice dish in my next visit but will try to avoid their dessert.
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Comment: Worth going again.
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May 7th, 2008 max
My first post! woohoo! 
Pardon me for my absence and no-show attitude all this while @ mambosact - what more can i say but excuses hehe - busy, no time, lazy etc. Anyway, recently Nigel and I decided to revive back the glorious day of this blog (if it ever had one) and we thought that it is best to start with something very close to everyone’s heart - the stomach (erm., i meant food). So what more suitable than having a food/restaurant review at our very own backyard eh? And since both of us like food so much, we are proud to announce that starting this May 2008, we’ll be posting (or we’ll be trying) a weekly review on food we had/places we had dinner in our lovely Canberra city. And since I had the pleasure to kick start the review, ladies and gentlemen (drum roll please), our very 1st review is …
Pho Phu Quoc Vietnamese Restaurant (Dickson)
This Vietnamese eatery is undoubtedly one of Dickson’s culinary calling cards, offering authentic meals at giveaway prices. Nestled amongst a collection of Asian supermarkets, Pho Phu Quoc is unpretentious and unassuming. The brightly lit room is simple, with round plastic tables and artificial palms, but it is the food that is the showstopper here. It’s the real thing, and the reason why Pho Phu Quoc has become such an institution in Dickson. The extensive menu boasts a selection of house specials, as well as dishes of beef, chicken, pork, seafood and vegetables. Favourites include campfire beef (which is presented in a clay pot over flames), crispy skin chicken with ginger and the salted squid. To wash it all down, try a coconut juice or one of the fresh fruit shakes available. Groups are also well catered for with a selection of banquets available, ranging from $15 to $25 per head (http://www.yourrestaurants.com.au/guide/pho_phu_quoc/) i can’t write this good….refer below for my crappier version of a review
Tugged just beside the tyre shop and vietnamese grocery shop in Chinatown Dickson, we only came across this restaurant after umpteen times driving past the shop. We had Vietnamese the day we arrived from Adelaide, and had none since then (about 9 months back now!) and after sratching our heads on what to eat for dinner on Saturday night, we decided to try out Pho Phu Quoc and rekindle our love for Vietnamese girls andfood. We stepped in to the shop and it was pretty crowded. First impression - bad deco and zero ambience! Not that i mind since i was with Nigel and too much ambience is just way too gay. Every table comes with a basket of free prawn crackers and the menu looks quite extensive. Service however was very poor as we waited quite long before someone finally noticed us! I can’t remember what we had so please look at the picture (hey, picture paints a thousand words! hehe). All in all, the food was not bad, the ice-coffee i had was good but service and ambience is a big no-no for me. Would i go again? Hell yeah, i would love to try the vietnamese noodle someday. Till we find some add-on for star rating, here are my temporary star rating tools:
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the menu
entre - prawn and chicken cold roll
special beancurd, squid with pickles & crispy chicken
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January 7th, 2008 Nigel
Time passes by too quickly that you cant even pause to catch your breath. Too many things happened since the last post. First and foremost, our Adelaide bunch of Mambos graduated recently. All of them are searching for a job while some are lucky to get one even they have yet to be conferred. To them, i would like to offer my heartiest congratualtions and good luck ! For the ones who are facing trouble in securing their starting path of their career, please dont give up. Have strong determination and confidence. The chances are there to come. On the other hand, for those who are still enjoying their holidays, make good use of it, you will need the pretty good rest before you spark off your career. A couple of the young mambos will be in their final year this year, so strive hard, study smart, and im sure you can leap over the challenges ahead and we will be there if you ever need us.
Not long ago, one of our dearest member came to Canberra to pay me and max a very much appreciated visit. Wen Chin flew over from Adelaide to stay with us over 5 days in late November. We had a great time and I apologize to her as we cant accompany her to go around much places due to workload in the office and unable to take days off.
Wen Chin, me and June right infront of the Parliament House
Max and Me in the House of Representative
Soon after she left, we had our company christmas lunch where I had my first rabbit main. Frankly speaking, I have three or four thoughts before max convinced me to try it. Well, it tastes like chicken. Not too bad i guess.
That is Robert & Josephine (wife), Max’s and my mentor, Senior Quantity Surveyor in the office.
Two weeks later, as Winter Solice Festival falls on the day I leave to Malaysia, we cook a few special dish to celebrate the festival humbly. Guess what? We had steamed chicken with homemade chillies, steamed fish and specially made cheese omellete.
Scrumptious meal
The very next day, off i go and leave Canberra for Malaysia.
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November 6th, 2007 Nigel
What are we up to nowadays?
Good question. Frankly speaking, we dont have much to update other than working extra hours to fulfill 50 hour-week schedule. We are pretty much stuffed up with projects in hand. Max has been really looking forward to his birthday and as for myself, I am looking forward to heading back home, although it will be an extremely short trip back.
Lots of planning has been on going for the trip back and we are so much of travelling the whole peninsula malaysia. Well, still hanging on there and the day will come soon. Other than that, my little career in my WoW is gaining altitude and heading up. Sounds quite convincing considering the limited time I have to play on it.
For those back in Adelaide, after knowing that our old haunt, Herbert Rd has been practically flattened , it is really saddening seeing our memories seems vanished away. Recalling so many events and activities held there, bday parties, festival gatherings, graduation gatherings, just-for-fun gatherings and all the ups and downs, I see us, have the longingness for the place. Good in a sense that we have proven we have the ties and something in common. Bad is, we will not be able to regenerate that kind of ambience around us in very near future. I hope someone could go back to Herbert Rd and grab an aftermath photo of that place. I would like to keep a piece of it. Feel it, be it, crave for it.
To buddies in Adelaide sitting for their exams, good luck and do your best!
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October 11th, 2007 Nigel
Although we have not been here for long, but I’m sure we are doing our very best to put ourselves into the pretty good driving seat.
This is my workdesk. Need much to say?
And this is Max’s workdesk. Why he has a pin-up board and i dont? Question.
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September 29th, 2007 Nigel
At this moment, most of our mambos in Adelaide are in middle of tussles and hussles. Anyhow, I know they can make it with ease eventhough without us being there for them.
Members of the mambos.
Two great girls (below) joined in our last few joyous moments in Adelaide. We did the visit-adelaide ritual, Barossa-Victor Harbour-Wildlife Park tour. Almost all visitors who have came to Adelaide will have the similar tour schedule for them. Those are the typical must visits in Adelaide.
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