Mrs Kim's Grill

​Mrs Kim's Korean BBQ is a family owned business that has been delivering delicious meats marinated in their well-kept secret recipe for over 15 years.  It was only natural that the next step was taken, which led to the opening of Mrs Kim's Grill. Located amongst the plethora of other Korean restaurants in Carnegie​, Mrs Kim's has come in with a bang and is sizzling hot.

​Moo, Oink Baa & Cluck Cluck are the sets to choose from. Designed to cater for two people​, these sets are a brilliant way to sample a variety of their food without having to think too much.  All sets come with your selected meat, spring onion salad, kimchi, pickled onions, a choice of salad, soup of the day, butter and garlic potatoes & corn, and steamed rice. 

​For a family of five, we decided to order three different sets to cover all bases - Moo, Oink and Baa.

Spring Onion Salad

 Smoked Salmon & Onion Salad

Tomato and Avocado Salsa

Soup of the Day

Whilst waiting for our meats to arrive, we dug into the side dishes to settle our rumbling stomachs. There was the mandatory kimchi, which was fresh and crunchy but lacking in flavour and spice. There were also the unexpected, Westernised salads - a smoked salmon, onion, rocket and caper salad & tomato and avocado salsa which were a refreshing change from the usual suspects. Alternating on the various salads, we also enjoyed mouthfuls of the soup of the day.

Baa Set 

Soy Lamb Ribs 700g

The soy lamb ribs were sweet and succulent. In between chatting with us, the owner, Joanne also did an excellent job in cooking and serving the lamb . It was perfectly charred on the outside, yet still had that slightly-pink centre. My brothers thoroughly enjoyed gnawing on the lamb ribs, with no signs of wastage anywhere ! 

Moo Set

Famous Marinated Galbi Beef Ribs 350g & Skirt Steak 150g

We greatly appreciated the meats coming out progressively. This forced us to pace ourselves and allowed us to enjoy the flavours of each cut separately. Galbi is obligatory when my brothers are around. There is just something so satisfying about beef ribs, and Mrs Kim's were top notch.

 

 Butter and Garlic Potatoes & Corn

Oink Set

Chilli Pork Belly 250g & Pork Skirt Fillet 150g

Dad was a little hesitant when we ordered the Oink Set, though was singing praise at the moment he sunk his teeth into a piece of crispy chilli pork belly. Who could say no to pork belly anyway ? The smell, the sight, the sounds of pork belly sizzling away was saliva-inducing. The tangles of spring onion were sharp, fresh and welcomed between mouthfuls of rice and pork belly. Fortunately for my brothers, the chilli was on the down-low, though not so fortunately for me. I would have enjoyed a bit more kick in the dishes, but you can't please everyone.

Coupled with great food, Joanne and her team were enthusiastic and friendly. Having only opened for a few weeks, they have already built a loyal following of customers who dine there at least three times a week, and I can easily see why. With three previous unsuccessful Korean BBQs in that exact spot, the curse has finally been broken. Mrs Kim's Grill, you're on fire. 

Mrs Kim's Grill

136 Koornang Road 
Carnegie, VIC

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Ramen Ya

Some people take their ramen very seriously. Aside from your traditional ramen, think instant ramen, ramen burgers, ramen pizzas, ramen salad and pretty much ramen-everything. There's even a museum dedicated to ramen. For now, I'm happy with the classic deep bowls of broth, filled with oodles of noodles and fun. 

Nestled in the maze of Melbourne's GPO, you will find Ramen Ya - voted one of Melbounians' most loved ramen cafes.  Let's put them to the test, shall we ?

Chasu Ramen

Tsukune Ramen

Their specialty tonkotsu broth was rich, hearty and ​full of flavour - ground up pork bones slow cooked for hours and hours. The round bowls were swimming with bouncy noodles, and garnished with tender fatty chasu/tsukune (minced chicken), kamaboko swirls, bamboo shoots, pickled mustard greens & ginger, chopped spring onion and salty sheets of seaweed. Unfortunately for me, the egg was hard boiled and there was none of that gooey-goodness.  

Ramen Ya served up a mean bowl of ramen. Though they certainly hit the spot, I really did want that gooey creamy egg.  The best ? I can't say for sure.

Ramen Ya

Shop 25G Melbourne GPO 

350 Bourke St, Melbourne

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Operator25

Hello, this is Operator25, how may I take your order ? 

Now that spring has sprung, the warmer months of the year brings happy days exploring the lovely city of Melbourne and even more reason for brunching sessions. So I was pleased to be able to tick off Operator25 off my never-ending wishlist when A and I were invited to have a meal with them.

Devised by head chefs Valerie and Felipe, the menu is not shy to diversify from the everyday staples. The traditional options of Eggs Benedict and Big Breakfasts are present, but look a little further and you will find that they are not so ordinary - but brimming creativity and uniqueness. With so many drool worthy dishes on offer I happily welcomed Valerie to call the shots.

Skinny Flat White 

Let's start with the caffeine first though, food later. You know the drill. Operator25 uses Code Black coffee beans to please the masses. Switching it up every season, spring served up a seasonal blend of 50% Kenya Wakulima and 50% Guatemala El Pilar. My Skinny Flat White was sweet, smooth, silky and thoroughly enjoyed.

White Chocolate Mocha

A, not the biggest fan on coffee went half way. Luckily for her, a White Chocolate Mocha was on the specials board and was exactly what she was looking for. Creamy, rich and full of white chocolatey goodness.

Cold Smoked Tasmanian Salmon

The first dish that was brought out was bright, clean, and delicious. Such vibrant presentation ! The cold smoked Tasmanian salmon, beautiful and fresh, with a lovely texture was accented with a citrusy lemon crème fraiche. Other details of the dish included crouton reminiscent rye toast, tangy piccalilli, peppery watercress and addictive crispy lilliput capers. Though this dish was on the smaller side, it was definitely made up with big flavours.

House Suckling Pig Burger

Making its way to our table, the House Suckling Pig Burger stirred a Mexican wave. I can obviously see how this burger has been donned the "people's choice" since the opening of Operator25. A rich buttery brioche bun supported mouth-watering Balinese marinated pork, savoy cabbage, chilli mayo and coriander. The pork was fall-apart tender in a delicious marinade bursting with exotic lemongrass and other various spices. The savoy cabbage and coriander paired nicely which added freshness and rounded off the burger. Chuck in super crunchy sweet potato fries and pork crackling, and oh man was this dish magical.

Food and drinks were enjoyable and well executed. The company was lovely. The service was friendly and hospitable. What more could you possible ask for ? Connect me with Operator25 any day.

confessions of a little piggy was invited to dine as a guest of Operator25.

Operator25 
25 Wills Street 
Melbourne, VIC

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