Anada Bar and Restaurant - dining room

Anada Restaurant
197 Gertrude St
Fitzroy, VIC 3065
Australia
Ph: +61 (0) 3 9415 6101

I love dining out in the city of Melbourne. As my folks were in town I wanted to take them to a Spanish restaurant. I had been craving Spanish since I’ve been back from Spain. However all the good Spanish Restaurants (including my favourite Movida) in the city were fully booked due to Christmas parties. Because of this I had to venture out to an inner city suburb of Melbourne called Fitzroy.

Anada Restaurant

I have been to Anada several times but never really blogged about it. Anada serves Spanish food, more particularly Southern Spain (Andalusian) which has a very strong Muslim Mediterranean style of food. It allows me to re-live my recent Southern Spain travel experience. The idea of dining in Anada is to order a variety of food to share.

Tapas is supposed to be made up of small dishes but here in Australia it’s an individual serve (per piece) while Raciones are a bigger sized dish. I really like Anada’s dining room with its big window overlooking the street. The seats are very close to each other but quite pleasant. I love the waiters here in Anada, they are one of the friendliest and non pretentious waiters you can experience dining out.

A happy dinner after cava, cocktail and campari

Here are a list of food we had -

Salted Cod and Garlic shoot Croqueta

Salt Cod and Garlic Shoot Croqueta - $3.50 each

Patatas tortilla with alioli

Patatas Tortilla with alioli (Spanish Potato Omellete with garlic mayonaise) - $11 / plate

To compare one Spanish restaurant against another, I order the Patatas tortilla with alioli (Spanish Potato omellete with garlic mayonaise). At $11 / plate to share, it’s worth paying because it’s simply delicious. I bite a chunk of perfectly cooked potato on a smooth egg omelet.

Charcoal Grilled Quail with Freekeh and Pomegranate

A warm smooth creamy filling of Salted Cod & garlic shoot Croqueta

This is a finger licking food. I can taste the charcoal grilled aroma and the quail is very juicy. My dad is not a big fan of quail but I witnessed him finishing a piece of quail here. The quail was garnished with freekeh (green wheat that resembles the texture of rice) and a surprise nice bite of pomegranate seeds. This has to be my favourite dish of the evening. 

Acorn fed Jamon Iberico de Bellota Joselito Paleta, organic pata negra (black-footed) jamon aged 3 years

Acorn fed Jamon Iberico de Bellota Joselito (Spanish Iberico acorn fed ham) - $18 / 20 grams

Having feasted on the real Jamon Iberico de Bellota in Spain (Spanish ham from a corn fed black footed pig that comes from a region of Iberico) costing approximately $20 / 100 gram I decided to order the Acorn fed Jamon Iberico de Bellota at Anada. It is the real deal with a smooth salty taste with a hint of acorn. However, the slices are too thin for my liking. I would prefer them to be slightly thicker and charge me more for the dish. The best way to enjoy the ham is by itself or with bread. I prefer the former.

Rabbit Empanadilla

Rabbit Empanadilla - $4.50 each

Returning to street food style of Rabbit Empanadilla (pastry filled with Rabbit), my dining experience continues. Flaky warm pastry filled with sweet rabbit meat is divine.

Cutting through the Rabbit Empanadilla

Charcoal grilled Shark Bay (WA) King prawns with salmorejo & crispy pancetta

Charcoal grilled Shark Bay (WA) King prawns with salmorejo & crispy pancetta - $20 / plate

I love seafood hence my next course of Charcoal grilled king prawns. This dish is really tasty and has a nice sauce. The combination of sweet prawn and crispy pancetta is delicious.

Charcoal grilled Sardines wrapped in vine leaves with pistachio orange blossom sauce

Charcoal grilled Sardines wrapped in vine leaves with pistachio orange blossom sauce

While I was travelling Southern Spain, I noticed that the culinary specialty of the region is Sardines. I decided to order a raciones (a plate) of Sardines. After feasting on the sardines I thought, this has to be my other favourite dish of the evening. The sardines have that char taste and the sauce is the star as it has the crunch of pistachio nuts with sweetness of the orange blossom sauce.

Otway Ranges (Vic) pork belly with fennel seed and smokey aubergine

Charcoal grilled Sardines wrapped in vine leaves with pistachio orange blossom sauce - $20 / plate

The pork belly was cooked beautifully. The meat was succulent and the skin was very crispy. Pork and fennel is a perfect combination and there’s the element of the smokey aubergine as a base sauce.

Paella with chicken, calamari, mussels and saffron

Paella with chicken, calamari, mussels and saffron - $30 / plate

The last dish for the evening (before dessert of course ) is a plate of Paella (Spanish rice) to share. We were told that it will take approximately 30 minutes which was fine as we had ordered some dishes to keep us occupied. The paella rice was perfectly cooked with lots of chicken chunks (including chicken wings on bone), calamari, prawns, fish and mussels. With a squirt of lemon, the dish took me down memory lane to my travels in Valencia. It was certainly worth the wait.

Dessert – Churros with Chocolate

My dessert - Churros (Spanish donuts) dipped in dark chocolate

I am not a sweet tooth person but some of my family members are. We decided to order the Churros (Spanish donuts dipped with chocolate). The idea of having long dough with sharp edges is to get the crispy texture and soft velvety inside. The texture also helps with picking up of a warm liqueur flavoured melting dark chocolate.

Churros (Spanish donuts) with chocolate - $12Churros (Spanish donuts) with chocolate - $12

The evening went really well and between four of us with drinks the bill came to $271 (not including tips)

My favourite beer - Alhambra 1928 Reserve YUM!

My purchases at Mathilda's Market

I am trying to do my Christmas shopping early this year. One big part of the list that I am dying to tick off are the Christmas presents for kids. My niece and nephews are all under 5 years old and they are spoilt with plenty of toys. I am trying to give them quality gifts that can last a long time, something that can be treasured and appreciated as they age.

My friend suggested a visit to Mathilda’s Market which is a market that sells unique, stylish and beautiful kids stuff. Most of the things for sale are handmade or come from a small production line. It is held every month in Melbourne and best to check Mathilda’s market website for dates and locations. Mathilda’s market is also held in Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide, Canberra and Perth. The one in Melbourne is located at the Caulfield racecourse which is approximately 12 km out of Melbourne CBD (approximately half an hour drive).

A vespa painting as part of the three series paintings I purchased at the Mathilda's Market

A rocket painting as part of the three series paintings I purchased at the Mathilda's Market

A Ferrari painting as part of the three series paintings I purchased at the Mathilda's Market

Some cards and christmas tree ornaments I purchased at the Mathilda's Market

They are so cute!

Who says Mathilda's Market is just for kids ?

I adore these wooden Christmas tree ornaments

Alba White Truffles - One of the most finest food in the world (the scale is for weighing before and after shavings)

If someone asked me “Mai, what would your last meal be?” I will reply, a simple risotto with shavings of Alba White truffle. Yumm, worth dying for right?

Truffles are mushrooms that grows underground next too tree roots. They, especially the white variety, are very rare and difficult to cultivate which is why it can be as expensive as caviar or gold. Alba White Truffles cost US$2000 / pound. Truffles are havested using dogs or pigs (also known as truffle hogs). While pigs can sniff our the truffles more naturally, dogs are prefered as they don’t eat them.

The two most common types of truffle are, black truffles which can be found all over France/Europe and white truffles which is found under the hills of Alba (Piedmonte, Italy). White truffles are only in season 2 months per year in October and November. They are the most aromatic truffle in the world and simply the best. Black truffles are less pungent (less aromatic) than the white ones.

The best way to enjoy truffles is with risotto or pasta. It can also be enjoyed with something as simple as fried eggs or salad. Truffles are served raw (shaven) as cooking them will dry it. Typically when serving, the truffles are weighed before shaving and then weighed again after.

Truffles Restaurant in  Melbourne, Australia

After months of nagging my favourite restaurant Il Bacaro, they finally called me about the arrival of the white truffles from Alba, Italy. Off course I made a booking right away! I highly recommend you make your booking early and savour these truffles as they are only in season for 2 months a year . Here is what I ate:

Scallop, Foie Gras, celeriac puree with shavings of Alba White Truffle

Scallops, Foie gras, celeriac puree with shavings of Alba White Truffles

Prawn tortellini with shavings of Alba White Truffles

Black Truffle flavoured Panacota with mixed berries,pavlova chips and shavings of Alba White Truffles

Standing at the Meridian Line in Greenwich, my iPhone compass is showing a Longitude of Zero (0° 0' 0")

When learning how to fly, the time referencing has been based on Zulu Time (Greenwich Mean Time / GMT). As this was of great interest to me, enroute home from Poland to Australia, I paid a visit to the starting point of the universe (The Meridian Line) at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, London. Since the 19th century, The Prime Meridian at Greenwich has served as the reference line for Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). I believe the French are trying to change this as they believe that GMT reference is an out of date display of the Victorian era. I was recently reading in the news that as of January 2012, there will be a world time convention to determine whether or not to change this GMT (as they have already changed it in the past to make the French and the rest of the world happy by including UTC – Universal Time Converter).

For a small fee of 7 sterling (or annual pass of 10 sterling), I was allowed to stand at the Meridian line and visit the Time Gallery which was equally as interesting as the meridian line itself. The view from the Royal Observatory was amazing where you can see the O2 arena / stadium which I have visited plenty of times in the pasts for concerts and sporting events.

O2 arena / stadium (a white dome with poles sticking out) - a venue for many concerts and sporting events

Yep - it's one foot

Meridian Line

It’s been awhile since I’ve showcased my shoes. Recently, my colleague made a comment on my wardrobe. She reckons I have all the matching shoes and bags for every one of my outfits and to be honest, I think there might be an element of truth there . Here are some of them

Miu Miu Banana Heels Pump

Miu Miu purple patent banana heels pump

These are the only pair of purple shoes in my wardrobe but they are one of the most comfortable high heels I own. Miu Miu does make nice shoes.

Miu Miu purple patent leather banana heels pumpMiu Miu purple patent leather banana heels pump

YSL Tribute Pump

YSL Tribute Pump in Nappa Leather

Gucci Black Booties with Tassles

Gucci tassles black booties

I bought these when I was in the United States. I was looking for a pair of simple looking booties that I can wear with anything and came across these platform Gucci black booties. I love the tassels as they swing while I walk . 

Gucci tassles black booties

Gucci tassles black booties

Gucci tassles black booties

Fendi Chamelon Shoes

I love male clothing. These Fendi shoes are a perfect combination of masculine and feminine. The brogue is very mannish while the heels are very girly. I have been wearing them with my pinafore dress, skinny pants and blazer, pencil skirts, black tights and secretary blouse. They are a perfect addition to my wardrobe but unfortunately I can’t really wear them all day as the heels are super high, too high for day to day walking.

Fendi shoes - love the pink snake skin heels

Fendi Shoes - Brogue man style with high heels

Fendi Shoes

Salvatore Ferragamo Shoes

Salvatore Ferragamo low heels black patent leather pump

These are my most comfortable shoes, I’m able to wear them all day and dance in them all night. The design of these shoes is timeless and simply classic.

Salvatore Ferragamo low heels black patent leather pump

A day trip out of Krakow to Zakopane (Winter Capital of Poland)

Since I’d hired a local driver, I decided to take a full day trip to Auschwitz,  Zakapone and spend a half day at the Wieliczka Salt Mine. There’s always the option to catch public transport or join a local bus tour to take you to all these places which is easy to book at a local tourist information office when you arrive in Krakow.

THINGS TO DO

Auschwitz Concentration Camp

The entrance of Auschwitz I with the Arbeit Macht Frei sign

As I arrived at Auschwitz visitor center, I booked myself into a guided tour. I had to wait approximately 15 minutes which gave me time to look around. The walking guided tour around Auschwitz gave tours to the prison cells and barracks with information about what happened around the camp, including the crematorium (gas chambers). It gave me a different perspective on how terrible the conditions must have been for all the prisoners. Anne Frank (from the Diary of Anne Frank) died in here. One of the exhibitions was a mountain of shoes, hair and prisoner’s personal belongings, I found it very overwhelming that I had to step outside and take a minute. The camp is also previewed in Steven Spielberg’s movie – Schlinder’s List.

Auschwitz II Birkenau - The final stop for millions of Jewish people (as depicted in the Steven Spielberg movie “Schlinder's List”)

Auschwitz Gas Chamber also known as 'shower room'

Zakopane

Zakopane native wooden architecture

The next day I took on my friend’s recommendation to go to Poland’s winter capital, a town called Zakopane which is a popular base town for mountaineering and skiing. You can get there by bus or train but I had my own driver to take me approximately 2.5 hours from Krakow. When I was there, the town was still preparing for the ski season so I was too early. That’s okay, I was there for Zakopane’s local arts and crafts market.

Zakopane Arts and Crafts Market

I started by taking a finocular up to the High Tatra Mountain for a bird’s eye view of Zakopane. Unfortunately it was really foggy so visibility was not too great.

Finocular up to the High Tatra Moutain to get a bird eye view of Zakopane

After having a quick warm mulled wine, I descended and headed straight to the arts and crafts market. Specialties such as Polish walking sticks, leather slippers, leather bags, wooden crafts were all on displayed for sale. The thing that took my fancy was the local Polish cheese, they were everywhere for sale in almost every single stall. There was cow milk, cheese and goat milk cheese in different shapes and sizes.

local cheese

More cheese

Zakopane speciality craft - wooden walking sticks

I had a very late lunch at a local fish restaurant recommended by my driver. It was very nice indeed. After that I had another quick stroll before returning back to Krakow just in time for pre-dinner drinks.

Wieliczka Saltmine

Wieliczka Salt Tunnel

A UNESCO (World Heritage) site is the quintessential day trip out of Krakow to an underground salt mine called Wieliczka. Wieliczka’s the worlds oldest salt mine which produced salt from the 13th century until 2007 by the world’s 14th oldest company.

I joined a tour that took me down 64 meters to the salt mine and paid a small fee to be able to take photographs. Alternatively you can purchase postcards. There’s an hourly tour and my group was made up of approximately 35 people. We took the lift down to the salt mine the tour taking approximately an hour and a half.

The main attraction here is the Cathedral where everything is made of salt such as the Virgin Mary statue, the Da Vinci’s last supper wall feature and an amazing chandelier.

Wieliczka Church - the altar, chandeliers, and everything made of salt

Chandelier made of salt - Wieliczka Salt Mine

Last Supper Wall Painting made from Salt

Walking through a park in Krakow (Poland) during their chilly Winter

A local Australian friend who has been living in Krakow for the past 8 years helped me to explore Krakow on foot.

Krakow is the second largest city in Poland. It was turned into the capital of general government of Germany after the Nazis invaded Poland during World War 2.

Krakow, Poland

THINGS TO DO

Krakow Old Town

Krakow Old Town Medieval Square

Another attraction at Krakow Old Town is St Mary’s Basilica. My friend pointed out the uneven height of the tower and how it resulted from a competition between 2 builders. I’m not really sure whether I should believe this story though .

St Mary’s Basilica with its uneven height tower

A square in front of St Mary's Basilica

Wawel Royal Castle

Wawel Royal Castle located at the historic Wawel Hill

Walking across to the other side of the Old Town, up to the historic Wawel hill, I ventured out to the Wawel Castle which has Gothic style architecture. It was built around the 14th century. There are plenty of things to see including its magnificent renaissance inner courtyard built in the 16th century

Kazimierz Jewish Quarter

The famous Ariel Restaurant at Kazimierz Jewish Quarter

My friend and I spent quite a great deal of time at Kazimierz (Krakow’s Jewish Quarter). Kazimierz has been the home to the Jewish from the 14th century up until World War 2. The jews lived side by side harmoniously with their Christian neighbours The region is also well known thanks to Steven Spielberg who shot a majority of the film Schlinder’s List here. In Kazimierz, I visited a synagogue and a historical Jewish cemetery.

At night my friend took me to various nightclubs to experience some evening Polish hospitality which made me love Krakow even more.At night my friend took me around different nightclubs for some evening Polish hospitality which makes me love Krakow even more.

Krakow (pretty foggy but still so pretty)

I explored the city of Krakow (Poland) and nearby attractions over four days. This time I travelled by myself and splurged by hiring a driver to take me around since the price wasn’t much more than hiring a car.

It really wasn’t the best time to go as the weather was getting really chilly but there is the advantage of travelling off peak without the crowds. My travel experience is more enhanced when I travel by myself and there’s always a book and my iPod to keep me company.

Here are the things to do if you happen to be in Krakow

1. Explore Krakow on foot with its main attractions of the Old City, Wawel Castle, and Kazimierz (Jewish Quarter)
2. Traditional Market Shopping at a Ski Resort town of Zakopane
3. A visit to an underground Wieliczka Salt Mine (World Heritage / UNESCO site)
4. A day trip to visit the Nazi Concentration Camp of Auschwitz (as shown in the movie Schindler’s List)

Polish cuisine of roast duck with pear and cranberry sauce (I found it quite heavy)

Pierogi (Polish Dumpling) filled with cottage cheese and raisins then drizzled in raspberry sauce

Yesterday a film maker was given some attention for wanting his movie which campaigns against mandatory helmets in Australia to be shown on television. Here is the campaign via YouTube.

Here is the helmetfreedom.org video.

First of all, I am going to make my stance very clear. I do NOT think that mandatory helmet laws in Australia should be abolished. Now I am going to cover each point of this 60 second advertisement (by helmetfreedom.org).

Cycling is not thriving in Australia, Utility cycling has ceased

Really? I’ll go by the example of my hometown Melbourne. I do not have the statistics but according to Bicycle Victoria cycling, both as a method of transport and recreation, has increased dramatically over the past few years. That is clear from just observing the street.

Many of the concerns that are raised in respect to cycling in and around the city have been related to safety, NOT because of the mandatory helmet laws. Where are those from the public realm complaining or rallying against these laws?

Australia’s obesity rate has more than doubled to lead the world

Wow, what a conclusion to draw. I’m pretty sure there are plenty of other things contributing to the obesity rate in Australia, like overeating! Clearly a lack of inactivity and exercise is also a reason, but because of mandatory helmet laws?

Only 2% of nation’s that impose unnecessary mandatory helmets, no difference in injury rates

Where do we get these injury rates from? I know plenty of people, including myself who have hit the ground with a helmet on. When wearing a helmet, the impact against the ground was somewhat minimal, but take away that helmet and my head with the concrete would have resulted in some blood at the very least.

The video footage of people riding the cobbled streets of Europe is hardly indicative of riding in Australia where the streets are overrun with traffic with little space for cyclists let alone strolling pedestrians. This is about cycling culture and our cycling culture requires helmets.

This campaign, it just seems void of logic to me. A bit like introducing government cycling schemes which would clearly be crippled by existing helmet laws (unless they make the scheme exempt. That’s another story). Is this film maker just trying to make his mark?

I don’t like the idea of being a Nanny state and stopping people from making choices but I think the helmet laws are as genuine and neccessary as seatbelt laws and I want all children growing up with helmets as the norm.

Back to back Albums from the following artists / bands -

• Broken Social Scene
• The xx
• Sufjan Stevens
• Nirvana
• The Flaming Lips