Solo dining at Lobster Central

http://lobstercentralgroup.com/

I love that you can be wandering around a part of town that you thought you knew well, but realised that you didn't.  I had this feeling when walking down Stanley Street in Central a couple of weeks ago, where I noticed a new little 'hole-in-the-wall' restaurant that was right up my alley.

I'd developed a real taste for lobster rolls when visiting New York a few years back (see post here) and have been lowly tracking down all of the dining spots that have lobster rolls on their menus.  You can imagine my surprise and delight when I stumbled across a spot that specialised in lobster rolls!

Deciding that I'd check it out for lunch one day, I made a beeline for Lobster Central and discovered that the little hole-in-the-wall spot was a lot bigger than I'd first noticed.  There was room for about twenty or so diners to sit down and enjoy the simple joy of a lobster roll.

The menu at Lobster Central is pretty short and to the point, which is really what the team are trying to achieve, with a view to stripping down the roll to it's 'most naked form'.  What does that mean you might ask?  Well, it means that the lobster rolls at Lobster Central are stripped down and dressed minimally - there is a brioche bread roll, lobster and a light coating of a house made lemon butter with a secret spice mix.  No fancy salad and a generous amount of lobster.

Cheap Eats - Majesty Seafood Restaruant

Majesty Seafood Retaurant

It's easy to get carried away eating dumplings in Hong Kong, most Chinese restaurants seem to do dim sum during the busy lunch period.  My dumplings place of choice is Din Tai Fung (see post here), but there is not a Din Tai Fung close to work, so I've had to look for other places to dine.  You'd think that would be easy with so many restaurants, right?  Well, I'm finding it pretty difficult, mainly because most of the restaurants are not on street level, but on various floors in high rise buildings, so it's a bit hit and miss.

I've managed to find one restaurant nearby that is clearly marked from street level and is relatively easy to access...  I mean, you just have to go up a couple of floors in a rickety old elevator and guess at the right level because I can't quite read Chinese yet!

The Majesty Seafood Restaurant takes up the whole of level two (or three) and has pretty awesome views of Queens Road Central for a brief respite during lunch from the crazy crowds that make up Central HK.  On my first visit, I was placed right by the window and had a great view of the crush of crowds below.

Cheap Eats - Wilburs HK

https://www.facebook.com/WilbursHK

There was a time where the only burger I would eat in Hong Kong was from the Butchers Club, they're pretty awesome.  But as a food blogger, my blog gets pretty boring if I just eat in the same spot every day, so it was time to spread my burger wings.

Continuing the daily lunch exploration around my workplace in Central, I came across another spot in Wyndham Street called Wilbur's burgers-burritos-lobster and thought it was worth giving it a try.  It was easy to get a table right on 12pm on a weekday and was quickly surrounded by wait staff giving out the menu and a tall glass of cold water (a rarity in HK where the water is normally served hot).

As advertised from the street, the menu consisted of a number of burgers, burritos and lobster rolls.  I was sorely tempted to pick up a lobster roll, with memories still fresh from my 2013 trip to New York where lobster rolls were plentiful and superb...  But, I stuck to my guns and ordered the wagyu beef burger, which based on the photos around the joint would be pretty awesome.

Cheap Eats - Fringe Vault

http://www.hkfringeclub.com/en/venues/6-Fringe+Vault.html

There are simply too many restaurants in Hong Kong and sometimes wandering around, it's a matter of analysis paralysis on where to eat, especially for lunch.  I've taken to exploring the little part of HK near my work at Central, trying to find a great little place where I can fall back to when needed.  

I thought I'd found just the right spot when walking up the first part of Wyndham Street.  Fringe Vault looks pretty cool, located in a red brick building, it reminded me of the cool little cafes that you'd stumble across in Melbourne.  A sneaky look through the window reinforced that view, and a quick look at the all day breakfast menu convinced me that I was onto a winner.

Inside was cool, really cool.  Exposed brick walls with cool artwork abounding along with polished cement floors had me convinced my meal to come would be the goods.  I ordered my 'lusty big breakfast' and a hot chocolate at the counter, then made my way into the dining area for a seat to await my meal.  The tables and chairs further added to the feeling of cool, all were outdoor furniture pieces that combined to give a great vibe...  I felt really comfortable while sitting there, I really did.

Cheap Eats Lunch - Meat and Eat in Brisbane Square

http://meatandeatbrisbane.com/

The construction around Brisbane town continues with a brand new food development at Brisbane Square replacing the tired old food court.  If you've not been up to Brisbane Square in a while, you will surely be surprised, with a handful of new eateries opening up spiffy looking new venues.  It's been a slow transformation, with most of the old fast food joints closing down and the area looking like a bit of a construction zone for what seemed like an age.

Of course, once I knew that the space had opened up and the new restaurants were trading, I headed down for a sticky beak, which lead to a quick bite to eat at Meat and Eat, a sister venue of the Cutting Board (see post here) in George Street and Hive Coffee and Eat House over at Eagle Street (see post here).  General Manager of the group, Anthony Attard, has been a busy lad, not only opening Meat and Eat recently, but a number of other venues at Brisbane Square.  Anthony (great name by the way) is clearly a man who loves his meat, as each of his venues focus on different parts of my favourite animals (to eat, that is).

Meat and Eat is pretty much a carbon copy of the Eagle Street eatery Hive Coffee and Eat House, its nice and casual and it targets the lunch time eating crowd.  With a menu that focuses on meat based sandwiches and cuts of meat that come with salads, it's not a place that will be mistaken as a vegetarian hang out.  I guess the title of the cafe says it all....  Those of you that love your Reuben sandwiches will love this place, the Reuben takes pride of place as the first item on the menu.  Other sandwiches include the Watson (rare beef), the Spaniard (chorizo) and the Corporate (ham), each catering to a different animal.

Casual Dining - Dumpling Republic

http://dumplingrepublic.com.au/brisbane

I've always been a fan of Japanese dumplings, often called gyoza, with one Harajuku Gyoza being one of my favourite dumpling restaurants in Brisbane (see post here).  It was only recently that I started to see the benefit of other dumpling styles, most notably visiting Din Tai Fung in Singapore earlier this year. For those of you who don't know, Din Tai Fung originated out of Taiwan and specialises in xiaolongbao or soup dumplings....  Oh, Din Tai Fung also has a couple of outlets in Hong Kong that have been awarded Michelin Stars, so they're good!

While I was in Singapore, I developed a bit of a fixation on the xiaolongbao and found myself regularly dining at the Sentosa Island outlet of Din Tai Fung - I just couldn't get enough of those delicious soup dumplings.  They were exquisite, beautifully made and filled with the most amazing soup and highest quality pork.  Most amazing with the dumpling pastry, so thin yet so intricately put together, each one was perfection personified!

I was wandering around the re-developed Wintergarden recently and spied that a new dumpling restaurant had opened up right next to the now closed Wagamama.  Making a mental note to check it out, I decided that a lunchtime excursion would be required and it ended up being the week before Brisbane (essentially) shut down for the G20.  Making my way up the escalators that lead to Grill'd, I made a sharp right and found myself at the entrance to Dumpling Republic.  It was only 11:30am and the restaurant was pretty quiet, so quiet that there was no one at the front desk, so I had to stand around for a bit to try and catch someone's attention.

It didn't take too long before I was spotted and lead to the surprisingly large dining room, which was fitted out in very modern style with hints of Asian influences.  You'd never know how big the restaurant was from the entrance, I initially thought it would be quite small, but walking past the dumpling preparation room and kitchen area was eye opening.  I felt quite lonely at my table in the back of the restaurant with no one else around!

Melbourne Series - Hardware Societe

Facebook - The Hardware Societe

There is a cafe in Melbourne that seems to be the most popular spot in the universe!  I've been wanting to check out uber cafe, the Hardware Societe, the last two or three times I've been to Melbourne, but alas, its been closed for a while.  You can imagine my excitement then having been told that the cafe had re-opened after a fire had partially destroyed the premises.  I had to get along and check it out.

I only really had one morning available to me on my trip, which was a Friday morning.  When in Melbourne, I normally make my way to The European in Spring Street, which had been my favourite breakfast spot down south (see post here), but I was willing to make an exception. Knowing that Hardware Societe was pretty damn popular, I thought that I'd get up early and make my way over at around 7:15am, a little while before it's opening time of 7:30.  I was pretty glad that I did, there was already a decent queue forming and I managed to join it about twenty people deep.

Cheap Eats Lunch - The Charles Bean Bar

The Charles Bean Bar - Facebook

Sometimes I wonder if you can look too deeply into things.  

I've recently been going on solo travels around the Brisbane CBD, looking for great little lunch spots where I can fuel my inner introvert and enjoy quiet lunches on my own.  In most cases, there are heaps of cafes around that you walk by every day and just never step into, it's these types of little eating oases that I'm looking for.

The Charles Bean Bar is just such a place, squeezed into the foyer of one of the CBD's many commercial towers and next door to one of the many popular Sumo Salads around town.  It would be pretty easy to walk by and never notice, and if fact I did walk past countless times without observing.  It was only because I've been recently keeping an eye out for such gems that I even spotted the little cafe on Adelaide Street.

Which brings me back to my opening statement, have I made the right connections?  Charles Bean was quite a famous Australian that not too many people remember.  A schoolmaster, judge's associate, barrister, journalist, war correspondent and historian, Bean was instrumental in the establishment of the Australian War Memorial and of the creation and popularisation of the ANZAC legend.  The Charles Bean Bar is located just across the street from ANZAC square, so in all likelihood refers back to this legendary historical figure......

Breakfast Series - WickEd Cafe

WickEd Cafe Spring Hill

All day breakfast.....  It kind of has a luxurious feel about it.  It's a bold statement saying 'you don't need to rush, you can just take your time'.  I don't know about you, but I am a big fan of the all day breakfast, I love bacon and eggs on toast for lunch. It had been some time since I'd taken the time out to do breakfast at lunch, but it was something that I used to do quite often.

I'd been heading back to work after visiting my surgeon for a post shoulder operation check up and happened to be walking down Wickham Terrace on the Spring Hill / CBD border when I spied a sign announcing 'all day breakfast'.  I'd actually walked past WickEd in Spring Hill heaps of times and had wondered what the little cafe at the bottom of Observatory Tower was like.  It wasn't until I had walked completely past WickEd that it registered that the all day breakfast included chorizo, but once it did register, I found myself on auto pilot walking back up the street and into the cafe.

While I had never set foot in WickEd before, the name has always been a source of amusement for me, it's a pretty cool name, if not a little over used, but given the cafe is on the corner of Wickham Terrance and Edward Street, it kind of works.  I was surprised by how little the cafe was inside, there was room for a counter and kitchen, as well as a few seats with most of the seating outside, under a huge sun umbrella.