Living Nerdy in Sydney

The Crystal Cafe in Waterloo has recently changed hands, so we decided it was time to check it out again. They've kept the chairs and tables, but the lighting and the counter has changed. The room is now dimmed and there's a bright decorative bar. I felt like I was in a bar's bistro. The menu has changed an now features a 100 day grain fed beef steak. The menu has a mixed of Modern Australian and Asian dishes. It ranges from steaks and pasta to curry and honey pepper chicken. Might be useful if you and your dinner party can't agree on having Western or Asian for dinner! Click to Enlarge Click to Enlarge Click to Enlarge There is a decent selection of beverages. There are the regular cafe staples of coffee, tea, juices and milkshakes. There are also spirits and beers, as well as a decent wine list. Click to Enlarge We went for a fresh fruit (orange, apple and carrot) juice and a glass of Shiraz. We ordered 2 entrees - Panko Crumbed Pr

Matoko, Sydney in World Square has been since its inception 15 years ago a highly recommended place to dine. This sushi train joint has been known for its well made and very fresh sushi. In its 15 years of business, there have been many competitors all around its vicinity which have come and gone. Prices of some joints have plunged to attract customers - and with that a drop in standard of its food. Some newer places have failed to drum up customers. But Matoko still draws a crowd. So on it's 15th anniversary, we decided to check it out to see what makes this place buzz! We made it to the restaurant as early as we could (5:30pm) to avoid the dinner queue. There was plenty of sushi of a wide selection stacked in a double deck on the train. We checked out the menu first.  There was most of the usual selection of hot food ranging from udon to tempura and other grilled food. The a-lacarte sushi menu was no lacking of options either. My husband went for the Wag

Bamboo Bibigo in Surry Hills serves a Korean take on Japanese Bento meals and Donburi. The restaurant is literally Bamboo themed with decor all in bamboo and food served in bamboo bowls. There are a 2 main options of what you can order. Bibigo - which is really Donburi. Dosirak - which is really a Bento box. There are the standard Japanese options of Chicken Katsu, Tempura, Salmon Teriyaki, Karage Chicken or Curry chicken. And there's the Korean fusion twist of Spicy Prawn, Spicy Salmon and Bolgogi. Food This is what I ordered - Miso Yaki Dosirak . There was seafood in miso sauce, a green salad, potato salad, takoyaki (octopus balls), pickles, fruit, rice and miso soup. The food was quite salty, definitely had to have the seafood in miso with the rice and wash down with water. Probably it wouldn't be too bad if it wasn't in miso paste. Value The food was indeed value for money. Prices start from $5 for a small Bibigo, $8 for a regular Bibigo to $13 f

With the recent discussion of paying $7 to see a General Practitioner (GP) in the budget, it seems it will be the demise of Bulk Billing. But what exactly is Bulk Billing? When do we pay extra and how much do we get back from Medicare? What does the safety net mean? And what's the difference between scheduled fee and Australian Medical Association recommended fees? What's the Medical Levy Surcharge? The system is indeed very complex. I hope this series about Medicare would help explain how it all works. In this post, I will focus on Bulk Billing. According to Medicare, " Bulk Billing is when a provider bills Medicare directly for any medical or allied health service that the patient receives." [1] What this means is that you allow your doctor or allied health service* to charge Medicare directly for the particular service they have provided for you. It also means they cannot charge you any thing additional for that service. Your doctor/ allied health

Home Thai Restaurant is definitely NOT your everyday Thai take away. There's something with this place which take your everyday Thai dishes to an even yummier level! Home is always bustling with non-stop business. During weekends, be ready to queue especially if you are after a bigger table, or arrive before 6pm to get a better chance. We visited Home Thai on a Sunday lunch. They do have a different lunch and dinner menu. If you are after curry, you'll need to come during dinner time. Lunch menu consist of the normal Thai fare such as Beef noodle soup, to the much loved Pad Thai and Stir fry chicken in cashew nuts with rice.  First the drinks. We had a Thai iced lemon tea and a Thai milk tea. The iced lemon tea was had a rich citrus flavour - they sure did not hold back on the lemons here! It was also well balanced with enough sugar so that the tea wasn't too sour. The Thai milk tea was silky smooth with lots of condensed milk and the tea was very aromatic.

Another great winter weekday night warmer. This is one quick very flavoursome recipe every busy family needs. This recipe serves 4. Happy cooking! Ingredients A: 1 small onion sliced 1 tablespoon garlic 1 teaspoon ginger B: 1.2 L vegetable or chicken stock 100g fried tofu buffs 1 jar Ayam brand laksa paste 1 tablespoon cooking oil 450g seafood marinara (can use chicken instead) ½ can 400L coconut cream 500g hokkien noodles Large handful of bean sprouts Garnish Shallots (spring onion) sliced vertically Coriander Sambal chili sauce (optional) Salt and pepper to taste. Method: Heat oil in wok or large saucepan. Add A in and fry. Add a little water to prevent burning. Fry till onions translucent   Add seafood marinara in (fry till 50% cooked) Add B. Simmer for 10 minutes While the soup is simmering, in a separate pot cook noodles as per instructions on packaging. After 10 minutes of simmering, add coconut cream. Stir in will,

Sydney is finally moving into the electronic age with the Opal Card. The Opal Card is the new fare card for the public transport system. This comes after years of saying the system is too complicated to move to a fare card system. In 2010, we saw a fare simplification move to the MyZone system. This much awaited move reduced the number of tickets which commuters needed to chose from. During this change over the fares for longer distances were reduced and medium distance were generally increased. Some said that this was a political move to capture the Western Sydney voters. This year (2014) we finally saw the system moving to fully electronic. This was after the failed Tcard trial in the late 1990s. Sydney is truely behind the 8 ball with moving to an electronic card. Other cities in Australia, such as Perth have already implemented an electronic card system. Most of Asia have embraced such electronic system such as the Octopus Card in Hong Kong (launched in 1996) and Ez-link Car

Kobe Jones Teppanyaki at The Rocks is really not your everyday show chef Teppanyaki. This is fine dining, Teppanyaki style. So if you are after the games or tossing of kitchen equipment at a show chef Teppankayi, this is not the place you are after. However, if you are looking for top notch food, this is one place not to miss. Kobe Jones Teppanyaki at The Rocks is located in one of the quieter spots at The Rocks. It is situated in what looks like an old shop house with a complete makeover. The front room has is luxuriously decorated in vintage style. Patrons are then brought into to one of two backrooms where they are served Teppanyaki style. There are 8 seats per table. Seating is allocated and you would likely have to share the table with 2-3 groups. These rooms are a far cry from the two front rooms. It was summer, and the room was very stuffy. Also, the room was very cramped and got quite squeezy when the table was filled. We were welcomed warmly by the establishment's