Efendy, Balmain

I had been planning on treating S to a nice dinner at Harvest for ages, and Christmas Eve seemed like the best time to do it. To my horror, Harvest decided to close that night for their summer break. So I had to quickly find somewhere else local that was a little bit fancy (but not too over the top), with a good amount of vegan food on the menu.

After a lot of research I decided on Efendy in Balmain. As a Turkish restaurant focusing on the mezze style of eating, I was confident I would be well served.

The restaurant is in an old mansion on the top of a hill in Balmain and has a really lovely courtyard out the front. The evening was fairly mild, so we chose to sit outside.

Because it was Christmas we decided to start with a cocktail. This was the first thing I liked about Efendy - their cocktail menu is just a little bit different, with all kinds of exotic & delicious sounding concoctions offered. I chose this Fig Martini - complete with candied fig in the bottom. It was mind-blowingly good.

While enjoying our cocktails I started to feel nervous about the food situation, because the menu only seemed to offer a couple of salads & one main that were vegan-friendly. After talking to the waiter however, we realised that there was a whole range of mezze on offer that weren't listed on the menu. We decided to choose a few things to share.

Including this red lentil mash.

A mung bean salad.

This absolutely divine capsicum-flavoured hommus.

And this plate off the dinner menu, which included a rice & tomato stuffed pepper, a rice-stuffed vine leaf, and a tomato & onion stuffed eggplant.

To help scoop up all the deliciousness we ordered some Pide. This was super tasty & fresh out of the oven - just beautiful. Word of warning though - the Pide dough isn't normally vegan - it's made with yoghurt. Luckily, they had some spare & were able to make a fresh batch for me, but it would probably pay to advise them you are vegan when booking to avoid any disappointment.

The waiter sadly informed me that nothing on the dessert menu was vegan, but I doubt I could have fit anything in anyway. So we decided to enjoy some proper after dinner drinks instead. I chose a Croation Cherry Liquer - yum!

I really enjoyed our dinner at Efendy - the service was spot on, vegan isn't a dirty word and the atmosphere is lovely. Most importantly, the food was delicious - so many amazing flavours, super fresh & obviously prepared with care & attention.

My only criticism (and it's a small one) is the lack of music. It would be really nice to have something traditional playing in the background to really boost the atmosphere.

Efendy
79 Elliott St (corner of Darling), Balmain
Tue-Fri, Lunch & Dinner; Sat-Sun, Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
www.efendy.com.au

3 Weeds Bistro, Rozelle

3 Weeds is one of the closest & nicest looking pubs to us in Rozelle, so it's a bit surprising it took us so many weeks to check it out.

But we got there, & I'm glad we did. The pub has been made over into the standard inner-city trendy affair, but maintains a really nice vibe. Out the back is the Bistro - the high ceilings & glass make it feel like more of an enclosed beer garden. As with most trendy bar menus these days, there isn't a lot of vegan choice on the menu, but happily they do have one fully vegan choice - the Spiced Chickpea & Pumpkin Salad with Spinach, Green Beans, Rocket & Lemon Tahini Dressing.

I really enjoyed this salad, but it definitely didn't live up to its description in the menu. No green beans for a start. The chickpeas weren't spiced (not that I could taste anyway), and most disappointing of all? No lemon tahini dressing! I suppose they had run out of the nice stuff, because the salad had just been dressed with olive oil & salt/pepper. Oh well, it won't stop me going back for a drink & it doesn't stop me recommending 3 Weeds to you as a nice quiet bar to while away a few hours with friends.

3 Weeds
197 Evans St, Rozelle
Tue-Sat 6-10pm; Sun 12-3pm
www.3weeds.com.au

About Life, Rozelle - Take 2

After a couple of weeks in Rozelle, I quickly realised that apart from Iku, About Life is the best place to get a yummy vegan lunch. And, having tried pretty much everything on Iku's menu over the years, I'm happy to keep revisiting About Life for now.

This time, I tried the Quinoa pie. It was tasty, packed with lots of vegetables & nicely seasoned. Unfortunately it was reheated in the microwave instead of the oven, so what should have been delicious vegan wholemeal pastry was basically just soggy pastry. The pie came with what seems to be the standard side serving of tomato relish, which is really tasty, so no complaints from me there.

As I mentioned earlier, there isn't really a lot of ambience here, given it's location inside a grocery store, but if you're after a quick, healthy & tasty lunch, you should give them a try.

About Life
605 Darling St, Rozelle (they also have another store in Bondi Junction)
Mon-Thur 6am-8pm; Fri 6am-7pm; Sat & Sun 8am-5pm
http://aboutlife.com.au

The Little Marionette, Balmain

One of the greatest pleasures of moving into a new area is exploring all the new cafes, bars and restaurants on offer. Luckily for me, Rozelle & Balmain seem to have an endless supply. One of the early places I checked out was The Little Marionette in Balmain. I took a girlfriend there for lunch after reading many many reviews about the best coffee & lunch spots in the area. A few mentioned a unique service - coffee delivery to the park over the road. And I reckon that's pretty cool.

When I got there, I could see why they might extend their business to the park - it's tiny tiny tiny. Only 3 tables. But oh so cute. The menu is also pretty tiny & there's nothing on the menu that is vegan by default. But when has that ever stopped us?

I ordered the Avocado & Mushrooms on Toast - I think this had feta or something like that, so I skipped that & asked for tomato instead. It was really enjoyable - the mushrooms were nicely marinated & rich in flavour & my coffee was strong enough to match them.

I wouldn't recommend you make the trip out of the city for the amazing vegan food on offer here, but if you're in the area, you should definitely stop by for a coffee.

The Little Marionette
1 Booth St, Balmain
Mon-Fri 6.30am-4pm; Sat 7am-4pm; Sun 8am-4pm

O Organic Produce, Surry Hills

On my quest for a vegan breakfast in Surry Hills, I happily stumbled across O Organic Produce - a recommendation from Mandee at Cupcake Kitteh. I have since discovered they have 2 other stores - at Bondi Westfield & Wynyard station.

O has that healthy, friendly vibe you get in most organic places. Lots of timber, lots of smiling staff and nice chilled music. We were there for breakfast, but I was sorely tempted by the array of takeaway lunch treats in the cabinet - the salads looked amazing.

I've actually been a couple of times now - it's the kind of place I know I will go back to again and again until I have tried every vegan thing on the menu.

On the first visit S got his favourite juice - apple, carrot & ginger. It was delivered quickly & was as fresh as you would expect.

I didn't have to think much about what to order for breakfast - the vegan french toast was a no-brainer. I was very curious to see how it would stack up to the Monk Bodhi Dharma version (see 1 & 2).

It stacked up well. The bread was super fresh, perfectly fried & topped with lovely sweet fresh fruit, toasted coconut & agave syrup. I still have a soft-spot for that vegan cream cheese at Monk Bodhi, but this version has to be at least equal for flavour.

There was only one hiccup - they forgot my coffee and when I finally got it after I had finished my breakfast the milk was burnt, which wasn't the nicest end to the meal.

Visit 2 went off without a hitch. This time I opted for savoury - organic baked beans on sourdough, with a soy banana smoothie.

The beans were really really good. The sauce had tons of flavour - based around their zucchini & tomato chutney and there were lots of nice fresh greens to balance the heavier, spicy flavour of the sauce.

O Organic Produce
487 Crown St, Surry Hills
Mon-Sat 7.30am-4.30pm; Sun 8.30am-3.30pm
www.organicproduce.com.au

Funky Pies, Bondi

Since I've been hanging around Sydney more I figured I may as well get out there explore this city's vegan offerings. While not quite as vegan-friendly as Melbourne, and with quite a reliance on Asian-inspired food (which I like, but don't love), I have been pleasantly surprised at what I have found so far.

On the day S & I completed the Coogee-Bondi walk, I made sure we timed it so we could visit Funky Pies for lunch. I have eaten their pies many times in Melbourne, but I was itching to visit the cafe after reading these reviews by Melbourne bloggers last year.

I was also happy to finally try the one pie I have never been able to get my hands on in Melbourne - the Eezy Chic 'n' Cheezy. I opted for the less-healthy option of mushy peas, mash & gravy (in place of salad).

As you can see, the pastry is super flaky & the pie was nicely browned on top. The filling delivered what it promised - chunks of 'chicken', broccoli & mushrooms in a creamy sauce. While I enjoyed it, it's not my favourite Funky Pie (that honour is still held by the classic Funky Chunky for now). I think the flavours probably weren't strong enough for me. The cafe itself is small, but has a great vibe with friendly staff. They also sell a range of vegan-friendly products alongside their own pies.

For dessert, I couldn't go past the brownie. Unfortunately, I left it in my bag all day and it melted a little bit. I realise that this photo doesn't look very appetising - but check out all that coconut oil! Cholesterol-free deliciousness!

I still haven't managed to get to Funky for their weekend breakfast, but I'm determined to try those pancakes, so stay tuned!

Funky Pies
144 Glenayr Ave, Bondi Beach
Mon-Fri, 7am-8.30pm; Sat-Sun 11am-8.30pm
http://funkypies.com.au

The touristy stuff

I had a really lovely weekend in NSW, not least because of the weather. It was blue skies & warm sun the whole weekend, with temperatures in the high teens - perfect winter weather!

Mum & Dad live on a small property & it was so nice waking up to the sound of birds in the morning instead of car doors slamming & people yelling at each other. Here's the view from the front verandah of the house. I really took these surroundings for granted when I was growing up.
Yesterday the family went to the Gosford Regional Gallery & Edogawa Commemorative Garden in East Gosford. Entry is free - the gallery contains 2 small rotating exhibitions & a foyer space that local artists can hire for displaying their work for sale. The gorgeous gardens adjoin the gallery. A few of my friends & cousins have been married here over the years & I can see why - it's very serene here. There are meandering pathways, small wooden bridges over the lakes & streams & a waterfall.I lay on this bench for quite a while & soaked up the beautiful sunshine.The 'Tea House'There is also a pair of resident ducks - I LOVE ducks - I think they're probably my favourite animal.After the gardens, we all went to Body Fuel cafe for lunch - in Gosford this time. I went with the veg Vietnamese Rolls again - and again forgot to take a photo! You'll just have to trust me - Body Fuel is awesome!

Gosford Regional Gallery
36 Webb St, East Gosford
7 days, 10am-4pm (gardens 9.30am-4.30pm)
www.gosfordregionalgallery.com

Bay Cafe, Toowoon Bay

I was in NSW on the weekend for my Dad's birthday. The whole family went out for dinner on Sunday night to the Bay Cafe in Toowoon Bay. This is a seafood restaurant, but the website advertises a separate vegetarian menu.

The veg menu has a fairly good range of entrees & mains, including the standards like Vegetable Stack & Vegetable Lasagne, but also Nasi Goreng & Stuffed Capsicum. I went with the stuffed capsicum & asked the waitress to make sure it wasn't prepared with any dairy products.

My stuffed capsicum was presented beautifully. It was on a bed of mashed something - it was hard to tell what it was because it was completely flavourless (it was orange & was probably a mix of potato & sweet potato). The capsicum was stuffed with rice (which didn't appear to be flavoured with anything) & topped with tempura asparagus & mushroom. Unfortunately the meal overall was a bit bland. And, unbelievably, despite having specifically requested no dairy products, it came out covered in melted cheese! I was dumbfounded, but really didn't want to cause a scene, and was able to cut the top of the capsicum & remove the cheese. Sometimes I really feel like banging my head against the wall & screaming!The service at the Bay Cafe is friendly & efficient & the meals came out quite quickly. It's a BYO restaurant, but they don't charge corkage, which is a nice change.

The Bay Cafe
141-143 Bay Rd, Toowoon Bay
Dinner 7 days, Lunch Thur-Sat
www.thebaycafe.com.au

Lunch in a country pub

Today we went to the Mountain Country Markets at Mangrove Mountain. The markets aren't that great - there were about 15 stalls, selling a mix of organic vegetables, crafts & cakes/biscuits. What is good is having an excuse to drive around the area - which has a stunning natural beauty. After the market we decided to keep on driving to St Albans, with the inention of visiting the Settler's Arms pub for lunch. We took part of the Convict Trail to get there. This is an amazing drive over a 35km dirt road - since I wasn't driving I was able to enjoy the views and imagine what it might have been like back in 1826 when the road was started.

Unfortunately when we arrived in St Albans, there was a line out the door of people waiting to get lunch at the pub. We weren't in the mood to line up, so decided to drive on to Wiseman's Ferry. You have to take a car ferry to get across the Hawkesbury River - it's free & even though it's a really short trip (only a couple of minutes), I enjoyed it.

Here are a some photos out of the car window - you can just see the second car ferry in the right of this one.

Eventually we ended up at the Wiseman's Inn Hotel. This isn't a vegetarian-friendly place, the options were limited to a garden salad or chips. To be honest though, you'd have to be pretty silly to expect great vegan food in a country pub like this one, so I'm not complaining. Trying to be healthy, I went with the garden salad. Now, what I do object to when I order a garden salad, is receiving a mix of garden & greek salads, including feta cheese! It was easy enough to pick the feta out (which I did, because I really hate sending food back). Here is the salad, already sans feta - as you can see it was all really fresh & was also a huge serving.
And here are a couple of photos of the outside of the pub - it's a beautiful building.

Watch out for more NSW adventures tomorrow!

Wiseman's Inn Hotel
Lot 1, Old Northern Rd, Wiseman's Ferry
www.wisemanshotel.com.au

Body Fuel in sunny NSW

I flew into Newcastle yesterday morning to spend the weekend with my family on the Central Coast & it's so sunny & beautiful here! I just have to keep reminding myself that I'm in Melbourne for the culture, food, shopping etc etc... I'm sure if I repeat it like a mantra it will sink in eventually.

We had lunch yesterday at Body Fuel in Terrigal. I used to visit the Gosford cafe regularly when I worked there because the staff are so friendly, there are a couple of vegan items on the menu & the coffee is about as good as you can get in Gosford. Since then they have opened cafes in Terrigal & Tuggerah. The Terrigal cafe is right around the corner from my old house - I so wish it had been there a few years ago! It's in a beautiful sunny spot one block up the hill from the beach, capturing the sea breeze perfectly.

Yesterday I went with my old regular Body Fuel dish - Veg Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls. This comes with a mix of (vegan) salads, soy mayonnaise & a sweet chilli-based sauce for the rolls. I was so hungry I ate it all before I remembered to take a photo :-( They also have a juice-bar & can do dairy-free smoothies. You can make other items on the menu vegan too - just talk to the super-friendly staff.

Here's a photo of Terrigal (taken just over the road from the cafe). It doesn't really do it justice, but you can see the lovely Norfolk Island Pines that line the beach (plus the unfortunate monstrosity that is the Crowne Plaza hotel on the corner).

Body Fuel
2/12 Kurrawyba Ave, Terrigal
7 days, 6am-4pm
www.bodyfuel.com.au