Mr Feedback

Store

Little India (Toorak)
308 Toorak Rd
South Yarra, VIC 3141
Tel:  (03) 9827 9455
Website: http://www.littleindia.com.au

First of all, my apologies for not keeping this blog up to date. I have plenty of material to write, but just have not had time to scratch myself since the birth of the new year. That sounds so long ago. I will shortly summarise our performance for 2008.

I had the opportunity to get to know Little India a bit over the last year or so. I first saw it about a year ago while driving down my favourite Melbourne road – where else, Toorak of course!

The service
I have gotten to know the manager there, as I am a regular. However he is not aware of Mr Feedback. Saturday nights can be very busy, and they only had 3 staff last night. This seems to be the normal for them. The restaurant is a decent size, and well decored. I waited about 10-15 minutes for my entree, and about 15 minutes further for the main. We did order a lot of dishes, so I was impressed with the prompt service. The waitress was able to cater for my special dietary requirements, without any major errors. They do have to be a bit more formal with their interaction thought, that’s my opinion anyway.

The food
I am a great fan of the Little Indian matter paneer. This is a regular for me. The dishes are well presented, particularly the entree platters. The serves are plenty, and justified. The cost of the food is surprisingly low for a restaurant in Melbourne’s prestige suburbs.

The ambience
The restaurant has certainly grown over the past year. It has gone from quite a bland interior decor, to promoting its outdoor spaces and also simple yet effective interior design. The tables and chairs are modern, and I really like the wall leather seating. The annoyance of having only one bathroom for each gender can be felt. The layout of the restaurant is easy to understand, and makes sense. The chef’s can be seen working hard on the dishes, and there seems to be a clear system of claiming orders.

I am bit disappointed at the lack of register technology. They really can invest in a PDA order systems transmitted wirelessly to the register (similar to many restaurants in Lygon St), and also a better cash register. I was surprised to see the waitress writing out my tax invoice by hand, this is bit backward in today’s day and age.

Summary – Rating (8.5/10)
I really like their online ordering system and their clean website design. A couple pointers to fix, but overall a great restaurant located in Melbourne’s finest roads.

Ok, I wrote a post on October 6, 2008 about suspending my optus mobile phone plan as it was not on a contract.

Guess what I received today? A bill for $49 for my optus mobile. LOL – this is just a joke. However, I shall never give up. I will call them up tomorrow and let you all know what happens.

I can’t wait to slam optus yet again!

Store
Villa Romana
252 Lygon St
Carlton VIC 3053
Tel: (03) 9650 7990
Fax: (03) 9650 2774
Web: http://www.villaromana.com.au/melbourne/

Lygon Street is well known of its Italian delicacies, however I had never been there for lunch. It’s pretty quiet during the week days for lunch. I have been to Villa Romana before, and on my recommendation I took a few of my mates there.

The service
I send my apologies for our poor behavior. I say poor because it took us ages to make up our minds for the food. In fact when the waitress came for the orders for the second time, we never bothered to look at menu. That’s pretty poor, and I am personally sorry. I get excited when I catch up with friends after a long time.

I can’t complain about the service. We had a three course lunch meal, and coffees and the service was prompt. Sure enough after our disastrous start, we didn’t bother the waitress too much about each of the dishes.

The ambience and venue
Villa Romana have three different seating arrangements. On a wintry evening, you can choose to sit indoors near the kitchen. This area is nicely decorated with pictures of famous people dining at the restaurant. You can see the photos here. Then, there is the portico area, which is where we chose to sit. This actually makes up the majority of the seating arrangements. Watch out for slight holes in the portico roof, I found this out when the rain water dropped onto my back. But that’s ok. Finally, the true outdoor setting literally on the foot path. They do have heaters located between each table, but I don’t generally like eating when strangers strut by.

The food
Personally, I enjoy the wood fired pizzas, and the gnocchi served in mushroom creamy sauce with a hint of sundried tomatos.

Suggestions
* Fix those small  holes in the portico to avoid customers getting “drenched”.
* I really like the google map integration, but you should consider having an online booking system.
* The menu on your website needs some serious work. Where is it anyway? It’s way too brief. It doesn’t take much effort to scan the menu and feature it on the site.

Summary – 7/10 (I liked it, but it’s not the best out there by a long shot)
I hope you guys take my pointers and revamp your website, and fix those holes in the portico.

This is a quick review. I went to Mushi Mushi Sushi Noodles (what a cool name), and boy was it busy. Lunch hour means office goers from nearby businesses descend on this small restaurant. The prices are very reasonable ($8.00-$10.00 per serve), and the servings are massive. Great place for quick lunch. I timed my order – 2 X Hokkein Mee Noodles, and it took them 6 minutes from start to finish. That is super fast!

Mushi Mushi Sushi Noodles
Pinewood Shopping Centre
Ph: (03) 98877660

Addit: Thank you to Mat and Yumm for correcting the phone number.

Store
Curry Club Cafe Richmond
394-396 Bridge Road, Richmond VICTORIA 3121
Tel: 03 9428 6455
Fax: 03 9428 0522
Email: info@curryclubcafe.com.au

I have been a long time fan of Curry Club and their brunch service on Sunday. They combine the cuisines or North and South Indian taste onto one easy price. For around $20 bucks, you and your family can enjoy a great brunch. It’s interesting however that they cop a lot of flak at Eatability.com.au

The service
There isn’t much service required during the Sunday brunch, but there are plenty of staff around to help you. It’s all self serve on Sundays. The restaurant is split into two sectors, so sometimes it’s not to get the attention of the waiter/s.

The ambience
The restaurant has had several make overs over the last 8 years that I have been a patron there. A number of management changes have occurred, and over the years the tables, chairs, and settings have changed for the better. The Sunday brunch attracts plenty of people, and the opportunity arises to have your own private function right at the back of the restaurant. The food is neatly displayed, and kept warm. The decor is appropriate, and the tables, chair outside is popular during summer. The setting of Richmond’s busy business district caps it all off.

The food
Like much of what people at Eatability have said, the food can vary a lot. I know over the years, I think I have seen largely a decline in food quality. North Indian food in Melbourne is abundant, so if you want reasonably good dosas and idlis, then the Sunday brunch is for you. They make it fresh for you, right in front of you. The service is prompt. There are two main varieties of dosas made – Plain, and Masala, but I have managed to scam a few more varities over the years. The north Indian food tastes good, as far as I am concerned, but some may disagree. Personally I love the hot rasam, and sambar dishes.

The carrot halwa is not my liking, but the gulub jamun is delicious.

Inside tips
* Bookings are essential on a Sunday.
* Brunch closes around 2.30pm, and starts as early as 11.30am. Check with them for exact times.
* Always have a competition on who can eat more on the day. LOL.

Suggestions
* I note the prices for vegetarians, and non-vegetarians is the same. This does not make sense at all. I would make it cheaper for vegetarians.

Summary – (7.5/10 – Many people have their beefs I guess)
I have been going here for many years on a reasonably regular basis, so I don’t think that’s going to change. I would be interested to hear your thoughts.

Apollo Bay (and Great Ocean Road) is a must see destination for all Victorians, and tourists from elsewhere. The pristine coastline, vibrancy, friendly people, excellent seafood and beautiful beach houses are a great start.

We went for dinner at a local restaurant called Buff’s Bistro. Its located on the main street (only street really) of Apollo Bay.

The service
It’s a popular local restaurant (modern Australian cuisine) so booking is essential. We couldn’t get any seats on the Friday night, so had to book for Saturday evening. The restaurant was busy, but there was no shortage of attention. It was a balmy evening, and quite stuffy inside. The waiter quickly noticed our discomfort, and seated us outside. It’s a brilliant gesture, and capacity to read non-verbal cues (not that I was aiming to give any).

The food arrive in good time, and our drinks were refilled regularly. When your drinks are refilled regularly, you know service is excellent. The left overs were offered to be “doggy bagged”. Explanation of the menu was appropriate. Overall, I was happy with the service. You would expect this given the touristy nature of Apollo Bay, and its significance in upholding the local economy.

The ambience
You can dine indoors or outdoors. We went on quite a hot evening, so we dined outdoors on the side walk. The big downside is that the restaurant does not have cooling facilities inside, so it can get very stuffy and hot. The ceiling fans make a valiant attempt to cool things down, but hot air does rise – so it can make you uncomfortable. Investing in coolers would be a smart move for the upcoming summer.

The good thing about the restaurant is that the kitchen, bar, and dessert bar are all within easy view of the tables. Even sitting outside, we didn’t find it hard to get the waiter’s attention (not that we had to, he popped over quite regularly to make sure everything was going smoothly).

The food
I went for the conservative vegetarian ravioli. It was slightly undercooked I though, and the sauce wasn’t mixed completely. The cheese hadn’t melted enough, but perhaps I cook my ravioli a bit aggressively. The portion was appropriate, and the price seem fair.

Suggestions
* Cooling solutions for customers is a must for the upcoming summer. Competitors next door (down the door) have cooling inside, and it would be a major disadvantage if air conditioners are not installed.
* Perhaps cook the ravioli a bit more aggressively, but I know this is very subjective.

Summary – Rating (8/10 – excellent service, but very warm inside)
Neat place to have dinner, but very warm inside. Do something about the heat guys, otherwise you may lose valuable customers.

The other day I ordered three large pizzas at Dominos Store in Flemington. This was on a Friday night at about 8.30pm. I got a call at about 9.10pm from the manager, who was very apologetic saying: “Sorry, we do not have any mushrooms, capsicum, onion, olives or tomato left in the store. The next vegetable delivery is tomorrow morning.”. So what did he have, I asked? Pineapple, chives and garlic.

So I received three large pizzas with just that. Unfortunately I had paid using my credit card over the phone, and wasn’t in the mood to argue for my money back. I just found this situation hilarious. The guy didn’t offer to give a discount, or perhaps send in some vouchers with the pizzas. I endd up paying the full price.

The plus side of this is that he did forewarn me, and was very “sorry” about “the situation”. I just found it a bit amazing that a pizza store at prime time on Friday runs out of vegetables. This has never happened to me before. Next time, I won’t be paying up front.

The pizza didn’t taste the best, as one can imagine. I tasted garlic for a couple days after that night (there were chunks of diced garlic on the pizza). LOL.

The Store
EQ Cafe Bar
Riverside Terrace
Southbank
P: (03) 9645 0644
F: (03) 9645 0733
Emails: functions@eqcafebar.com.au OR michaelc@eqcafebar.com.au

Ok, I will make this one quick. Iron Chef is on in about 10 minutes. You know you can’t miss Iron Chef, even though it is 10 years out of date. I love this show and its concept.

The ambience
Located in the heart of SouthBank overlooking the Yarra River, this cafe/restaurant/bar provides for fine dining and cuisine. Loved by Melbourne’s theatre crowd, especially after shows for a fine Mediterranean cuisine. I went on quite a windy day, so sat inside. The decor was excellent, and the bar is located centrally. There is plenty of glass to allow for natural light.

The service
We were quickly greeted as we approached the restaurant, and given suitable seating. They did forget to bring out the drinks though. Considering it is also a bar, this is inexcusable. There were not many patrons that day either, perhaps about 30 people in the entire cafe. They did split the bill which is something rare these days.

Insight
Catch a lovely day by sitting outside overlooking the Yarra River, and the many stalls just under the St Kilda Rd bridge.

Suggestions
* Err…try not to forget to bring out the drinks. What else can I say!

Rating – 7/10 (food was good, forgetting the drinks was bad)
Great location, setting, and interior decor. Undecided as to whether I will go there again. Mediterranean is not really my style of food.

Melbourne Central is fast becoming the night hang out spot for Uni students, and teens. I went bowling at KingPin located on the third floor of Melbourne Central – called 3on3.

Store
KingPin Bowling 30n3
3rd Floor
Melbourne Central
Ph: (03) 9694 1230
Fax: (03) 9694 1231
Function Bookings: (03) 9694 1208
E: lmilborn@kingpin3on3.com.au

The ambience
I went on a Saturday afternoon, and surprisingly it wasn’t crowded at all. I suspect evenings is their busiest time. The place is very nicely laid out, and inside they have a few options to choose from. The bowling alley of course, which is separated into an adults and kids section (I think, at least that’s what it looked like). The lanes are well polished, and I like the extensive graphics displayed neatly on the plasmas. Nice!

The place is a hybrid between a bowling alley, arcade games, and bar. Their other options include: Barcode (pool, gaming venue), Van Gogh Bar (drinks etc). I like the use of the fluorescent and UV lighting. I suspect other bowling clubs are doing this as well, even though its been ages since I last went bowling.

They also have live DJs, Karaoke, and disco bowling. Check out more features here.

The service
Can’t really comment much in this section. I went, got my shoes, paid, and bowled, and got my shoes back.

The cost
I paid $18.00 for two games. In this day and age, I felt this was reasonable. I don’t know the rates for AMF centres etc, but let me know what you feel. They have a number of special offers including:
* Monday Madness: Unlimited bowling, Arcade games & pool, Drink on arrival for $25 (min: 6 people)
* 2 4 1 Tuesdays: Buy one game of bowling, receive 2nd one free (from 6pm).
* Uni Night Thursdays: 2 games of bowling for $15, 1hr unlimited bar codes games card: $15, $2 pots, $4 basics

All of above can be found on their website: 3on3.com.au.

? Family events
I did see a couple of families having a good time when I was there. Generally speaking I think this place is not for families, particularly those with young children. Perhaps during the day it is ok, but definitely not after 6pm. The bar setting is not appropriate, not to mention all those UV lights (which will make the kids go crazy! LOL).

Summary
I enjoyed my experience, and had great scores too. Definitely recommended for students, teens, couples, and families (during day light hours). I would go there again.

This is a commentary. Find out more here.

I have been a major fan of Laurent Patisserie. It all started when I went to their Como Centre store in Toorak, and had my first salad baguette. Wow! Yesterday I went to their city store.

Store
Laurent Bakery
306 Little Collins Street
Melbourne, VIC 3000

A bit of history
The bakery is based on a French taste selection. This guy called Laurent Boillon started it in Australia, but prior he was working in Paris. You can find out about the history here.  They have 11 stores across Melbourne, the one in Como Centre is signature store. You go there any day of the week, he will see it packed with people enjoy their fine French breads. They also do wholesale, if you are a baker yourself.

The ambience
Their stores are very clean, and have a golden touch to them. By this I mean, you walk in you will see bits of golden colour here and there, but no over done. They apparently import their cups and saucers from France. The food is beautifully displayed for consumption, and they are made free.

The food
I ordered a salad baguette, and one of my friends ordered a chicken focaccia. She was very impressed as well. The avocado, and sauces were just right, not over done. The baguette was appropriate cooked, and the gourmet cheese was the icing on the cake. This had to be one of the best salad baguettes I have ever tasted. If you have anything better, I would love to hear from you.

Suggestions
I never noticed in their Como Centre store, but the city store has different prices for eat in and take away. In my opinion, this is not necessary. Prices should be constant. It cost about $28 bucks for our meal, with 2 soft drinks. A bit steep, but well worth it. The extra charge for eat in is annoying.

Rating – 8.5/10 (excellent food, the extra charge of eat in dragged you down)
I have been a long time Laurent fan, and will be. Probably stick to my favourite Como store. Excellent food, great service, neat display, nice ambience.