Treehouse – Byron Bay

Another day, another Byron Bay gem.

This is the way we walked to the treehouse…

It’s actually quicker than walking through town a whole lot prettier.

The restaurant looks quite big but the actual inside isn’t huge they just have lots of beautiful outside space under the shade of parasols and trees.

The treehouse is famous for pizza, and even thought that’s what we went for and my Husband is obsessed we didn’t manage one. The breakfasts are also supposed to be great.

Like I have already mentioned we ate very well in Australia, so this we really wanted a light dinner. We ordered some dips to snack on, but the sourdough bread was so delicious we ended up eating quite a lot of it.

We also shared this amazing goats cheese salad with butternut squash and lots of pine nuts, very much like one I eat a lot at home. And then we were done!

But do go to Treehouse if you visit the Bay… and have a pizza for me. And definitely walk along the beach.

***Have just been informed that at the moment it is closed due to a fire, bad news! Hopefully by the time you visit they’ll be open again, I wish them luck***

Sake – Brisbane

So this restaurant was one of our food highlights on the whole trip… Sake is an amazing Sushi – Japanese restaurant in Brisbane.

The space is amazing, they have private rooms as well as traditional booths and then a huge normal restaurant space with tables and chairs.

We booked ahead and got a booth, the kind you have to climb into.

We started with cocktails, and there were many. They were all great, they have a dedicated bar staff here and our waitress was great at talking us through choices and making up bespoke cocktails to our tastes.

There were 5 of us which was great as it meant we got to try lots of different things.

I love these, and have said this before, but I have to get them when I can. So simple and so good.

 
The plate of sashimi was definately the best I had ever eaten. Look at the colours on that fish. So fresh.

The steamed prawn dumpling. Oh my. I can still remember these. I really wish I could make them.

These are Miso-Barra lettuce cups. Little bits of miso marinated fish – barrimundi in this case.

We randomly ordered a mushroom salad but it was filled with so many exotic mushrooms cooked just so, it was brilliant and unexpectly something we all fought over.

These are crispy chicken pieces, just like KFC… joke. Served with three very different and tasty sauces. I cannot remember what they were except I like the cremy slightly hot one in the middle.

This is the Wagyu beef, marinated in ginger and soy with chives. This was intense and so so good, I ate so much of this beef I felt bad for everyone else.

My plate looks bad in this photograph but I had to show you the pink colour of the meat. It melted in my mouth.

 
Popcorn shrimp, so light and little tiny bite size pieces. Very dangerously good as I doubt it’s as good for you as it is light. The sauce served with it was described as a cremey spicy sauce and I think the same one I liked with the chicken.

Salt and pepper tofu was ordered purely because my husband is obsessed. It was great.

Everyones aboslute favourite and the restaurant famous signiture dish; sushi tacos served with a shot of sake. We got tuna and salmon and then ordered another lot. These were so good and the ritual of the shot make them so much fun. I loved these, and again the fish was insanely good.

This was a cocktail some of us had served with a ball of ice, they have a special machine to make this. I had to show you.

Desserts were also good but not in the same league.

I had a chocolate bomb which was so rich and nearly pushed me over the edge. The sorbet served with it was beautiful though.

A berry creme brulee.

And a make shift apple tart. Which was the best chocie I think.
 

If you go here all you need to know if take a big group so you can order lots, drink cocktails and sake and get the sushi tacos.

 

This is the view from outside. Pretty amazing huh?

Sake – Brisbane

Salt – Brisbane

One of my resounding memories of the food in Australia is its freshness and slight differences in similar dishes made for the sunny life…

Like this breakfast which I have been recreating. Instead of a fry up and very filling and tasty eggs, bacon and avocado. Amazing.

Salt is one of those places that make you want the lifestyle here, very open you sit out on the deck or inside the airy restaurant on hot days drinking huge glasses of juice, or wine and just enjoy the sunshine.

On a very hungover morning we made it here and I had so much trouble deciding as all the breakfast dishes sounded amazing.

Breakfast pizza anyone? Some great ideas on this menu, and nothing you need a recipe for.

Amazing strawberry smoothies.

In the end I just copied everyone else.

It was so amazing, the best avocado I ever tasted. And ordinarily I don’t like hollandaise but this little drizzle of light sauce was great, no gloopy think stuff here.

Some weirdo’s got salmon, I used to be a person who chose salmon over bacon… that doesn’t happen anymore.

 
 Salt – Brisbane

Harajuku Gyoza – Brisbane

Phew, it’s Thursday already? How did they happen? With my rammed up exercise regime (summer is coming) and decorating and moving rooms around at home plus a busy week at work my blogging has suffered.

Poor blog, it’s always the first thing to go.

But anyway back to Australia! And Brisbane was our first stop a city I loved, and so many great places to eat.

This restaurant is a great idea, and we so need this in Bristol. I would go there a lot that’s for sure.

It is all about the dumplings.

 They do serve a few other things as well…

But really all you need is this… grilled…

 

Or poached. We got several plates of different gyoza, from duck to prawn and vegetable they even had a special Christmas flavour (we were there in December).
 

We sat at the counter and you can see all the chefs cooking up the tasty little treats.

 
So where is the best place to get gyoza in Bristol? And who wants to open a restaurant like this? So easy, so tasty, so cheap and can be very healthy.

Near my office would be good. Thanks.

Harajuku Gyoza

 

Bravas

Last weekend for date night my Husband and I headed to Bravas, the newest hot spot in Bristol for tapas on Cotham Hill.

Bravas actually used to be a supperclub making this venture somehow even more impressive.

It is a beautiful space and was so busy, just like it should be, people eating at tables and the bar and every space possible.

The menu… all the classics are there

It was so packed I was so thankful I had booked and felt bad as we had to kick people off our table so we could sit.

They bring you bread right away, bonus points for the delicious butter pats.

We had to get some manchego cheese, husband wasn’t impressed but I like it and it wouldn’t be right not to, not when in Spain .

I loved the patatas bravas. I think I’ll order two next time. The presentation is too cute and also practical as your potatoes stay crispy. Love.

 
We also tried a delicious fresh salad with oranges, I do love a fruity salad. This was so good I’ll definitely make it at home.

Squid, my husband favourite. This was so fresh and barely cooked. Amazing with aioli.

We kept going with the lamb chop, which was beautiful. Cooked very simply and with a little taste of herbs this was great and even though I am still a little squeamish with bones we ate every last bit of the meat.

 
The grilled Iberico pork, looking a little sad on the plate but was delicious. Again could have eaten two of these, but then that wouldn’t be tapas would it.

I was stuffed at this point but since I really wanted to recommend Bravas to you all I had to have a dessert, since my recommendations are so often 1 course. So for you I tried a custard tart, not because I obsessed with them or anything.

I really need to make these! 

I love places like this, a sociable, lively place to have drinks and some nibbles of food. We were pretty full but not sleepy full like you are after a big meal. Definitely a great place to go with a group of friends too. I will be going again for sure.

Bravas