Rss Feed
  1. Table by S, North Melbourne.

    Sunday, June 29, 2014

    Helllloooooooo!!

    I am back! This time, with a restaurant review! Been meaning to get this posted up since a while back and actually had been empty promising the waitress in the restaurant that I'll do it but I was just too caught up with uni until I didn't have time.

    And because I went back for a second visit on Friday, I think it is more than about time for me to write up about this fairly new place because it definitely deserves a good ol' blog post on it!

    Location;

    Table by S on Urbanspoon
    It is about 5 minutes walk from the #8 Peel st/Victoria st tram stop if you go on the 57 tram OR stop #10 if you're on the 55 tram :) If you feel like "wait, I don't think there would be a restaurant here...", just keep walking, it is there!

    I first came across this place was about a month ago when we were out to dinner with Celine. She was the one who said, "you might like Table by S, fusion Korean, they're pretty good" when we were discussing about a whole bunch of other Korean restaurants around and deciding which one we should go to. And since I haven't been to Table by S and have never heard of them, I know I could count on Celine for some good recommendations so..., Table by S it was!

    And apparently Table by S is only a couple of months old. No wonder I have never heard of the place before! I was excited to try! :D


    It took a while to locate the restaurant initially but when you do get there, it looks like it is a pretty nice place from the outside. 

    Since dinner that night was for five, we were tucked comfortably at the corner of the restaurant because at the middle and the other side of the restaurant was only with tables for four or a large communal table that could fit around 16 people. And on this other side of restaurant, there were a couple of tables that could sit six people. It isn't a huge place I must say but the ambience was rather nice and cosy. The lights were a little dim and there were some music playing in the background.

    We were there on a Saturday night and there weren't that many patrons on that day. I think, only about three to four groups including ours. I guess because of it's location, there isn't much of a walking traffic on the street infront of the restaurant and it is one of those area where people will kind of doubt that there will be a restaurant located there.

    Anyways, once we were seated, we were greeted by a friendly and bubbly waitress, Corinne (:D I hope I spelled her name right!). She was explaining to us about the menu and their specials and also went through the beer list with us. Down to how each beer tastes like and where they were from.

    Most of us went ahead with this beer and it was not bad :) I would still say that I prefer Corona over this tho :D HAHA!

    Their menu.

    Corinne said that they have just gotten in their Premium grade 9++ marbling Wagyu beef and of course when I heard it, I was like "OK, we will definitely have that!" And she also suggested that we order about 2-3 tapas to start off then one stew dish and the Wagyu beef which is the Stone Grill Sal Chi Sal.
    So we went on ahead with....,
    *Tapas*
    Ddeokbokki!! Celine said that it is good and I have to try it. Anddddd it was really good! So different than the ones I usually eat. This was crispy on the outside and soft and chewy in the inside! SO YUMS! And those cheese on the top just made it taste a whole lot better :D

    These were some specials that I don't remember what they exactly were. All I remember is that they tasted pretty good :)

    The Sal Chi Sal! 

    It was cooked in an unconventional way. Using the blow torch and the stone grill together. At one point there was even some "firey thing" which is shown in a picture below. I guess it was more for presentation and performance purpose but also, it cooked the meat pretty fast!

    I don't have a picture of it's final cut-to-bite-sizes look.... ): I sat towards the inside plus everyone was already hungry so I didn't want to disturb the boyfriend to capture a picture for me. But on the brightside, during my second visit below, there is a picture of it!

    So instead, I just popped the meat in my mouth after dipping it into the sauces without even thinking how good can it be. And turns out, I was MIND BLOWN! Literally mind blown! 

    That first piece literally brought me to foodgasm! It was so so SO GOOD! I have never ever experienced a "OMG that piece of steak melts in your mouth and SO GOOD moment" before! Ever! And now I guess I finally know that that feels and tastes like!

    The meat was just OMG! And before I know it, it was almost all gone ): All I wanted was more more and MOREEE!! 

    Then then, the Spicy Beef Stew came! 

    A pot that could be shared among 5 people or so.

    This was just so so SO GOOD as well!! The meat was tender and so soft! Plus the stew was just so flavourful!! Literally, there isn't a single bad thing about this dish! Tastes good, more than just good, GREAT!

    It is one of their specials, so ask if they have it, and if they do and you like beef, ORDER IT! You will not regret!

    Those were the dishes we had that night for a dinner of five. I know I left the place with a very happy tummy and more than satisfied tastebuds! And also, I felt like we have made a new friend. The waitress, Corinne was just a really friendly person and made the whole experience @ Table by S that night felt even nicer :) 

    She even escorted us on the way out of the restaurant and held the door for us. I noticed that all their staffs do the same thing to the other customers too. I know this maybe a small gesture, but it really makes the customers feel extra nicer.

    Both me and the boyfriend felt like that night, we had the best beefs in our life. It was just too good! 
    So..., we then raved it on to the bf's uni mates. And because a farewell was coming up, they decided that they'll have it @ Table by S too!

    I was excited yet nervous because it was a dinner for 15 people and since it was sort of our recommendation, I don't know what the rest would think about the place.

    When we arrived, we were all comfortably seated on the longest communal table in the restaurant. This time, the place was busy. When we got there it wasn't really, but as we sat longer, the place started to fill up! So so much busier than the last time I was here! I think more and more people got the word of mouth! So glad that the place is getting the recognition that they deserve but also a little sad that if it gets busy means I'll have to fight for a table with the crowd and book way earlier than usual HAHA!

    Anyways, for the night, I was sorta "in charged" with ordering the dishes for the table because I have been here before. Of course I needed help, and I shameless kept calling out to Corinne for recommendations :D

    Since our table was a long table, I decided that it'll be split into three. Which means, we will have three of the same dishes throughout our table. And because some don't eat beef, I'll have to tailor the dishes around a little.

    But of course, at a korean restaurant that serves alcohol with the boyfriend means we will definitely start with some :P

    It has become the bf's favourite. Raspberry wine :)

    This little bottle could fill up around 8 little cups. It's sweet and easy to drink but me not being a wine fan to begin with, thinks that it is still too winey for me. But don't get me wrong, it does tastes nice!

    The side dishes. The only thing that attracted me to take this shot was this little blue polka dot baking dish! HOW CUTEEEEE!!! And anyways, the kimchi was pretty nice. HAH!

    On to the dishes for the night! All shared across a table of 15 people :) And of course, these are only the food on my side of the table. But the other two sections was pretty much the same as ours except maybe a salt and pepper calamari?

    Still the best ddeokbokki I have had!! Seriously was so so good! It makes the normal ones feels so normal...and this feels so extra delicious! :P It's crispy on the outside, soft and chewy in the inside and to make it even better, it is topped with cheeeeeeese!!! Oh I love this!! I can eat two trays of this to myself man while smiling like cray person :D

    One of the best scallop dishes I have ever ever had!! SOO GOOD!! Scallops with king oyster mushrooms and cream sauce and idk what other sauce and some potato mash! The scallops were cooked to perfection!! Yummmeeeehh! :P

    Then the boyfriend went on for somemore beer and another friend took a stout :) The beer was "ok" and the stout surprisingly tasted not as bitter as the stouts I have in mind..

    Then, onto the most exciting dish of the night for me! The Sal Chi Sal! I order three pieces of the premium Wagyu mentioned earlier for the table! Corinne was saying that they only have five pieces left for the night and the first thing I ordered was this so that I could snag three for our table first! IT IS THAAAAAT GOOD!!!

    *The way they cooked it*
    This is what I mean by the "firey thing" earlier :D

    Burn and cook away! TO PERFECTION!!

    The final outcome! THE BEST BESTEST PIECE OF MEAT I HAVE HAD EVERRRR!! Table by S equals to awesome premium 9++ marbling Wagyu beef (aka Sal Chi Sal)!!! You guys have to order this if you're ever there! It is just TOO DARN GOOD!! I never thought a piece of meat can taste like its life changing but this was to me! All I know is I wanted more and more and more!! :P #toodamngood

    But I did something horrible that night. I was luring the people who doesn't eat beef to try it =X And they did! Andddddd they said that it is really good! For someone who doesn't eat beef and to say that it is good, IT IS GOOD! Enough said.

    As I said I wanted more! But when I asked Corinne if they still have it, they didn't anymore... ): Nevermind! I am sure to be back for more of this in the future!

    Then....,

    The awesome spicy beef stew! I don't think I need to repeat how awesome it is! Just order it! This was sitting right infront of me and eventho the meat and vege were all gone, all I kept doing the whole entire night was spooning the stew soup into my mouth :D I just kept sipping and sipping! SO GOOD!

    Excuse the zoomed in picture. This was for the peeps who doesn't take beef. I ordered two spicy beef stews and one of this Octopus Bean Stew! Didn't really taste much of it but from memory, I like the spicy beef stew WAY MORE!

    Korean Fried Chicken. This was just okay. I have had better KFCs around Melbourne. But the wedges were awesome tho! :D

    Somemore BBQ meat for the rest of them who doesn't eat beef :)

    SOJU! I am a girl and I just love the taste of fruity sojus and rice wines! They taste SO GOOD!! I can just keep drinking and drinking and never think that it is alcohol! :D YUMMY! This was a Corinne mixed up soju for us :)

    All of us :D

    Overall, I must say kudos to Table by S! Really good service and really good food! No complaints whatsoever! I even went around surveying from the rest if the food was good and everyone I asked said the food was good! It was also to make me feel a whole lot better that my recommendation was more than alright! :D

    I can see myself coming back more often and definitely definitely bringing my mum here when she is in Melbourne next! 

    This place has officially become one of my favourite Korean restaurant in Melbourne! Although this isn't like a super authentic Korean restaurant, the fusion food is enough to convince me that Korean food with a twist can be this good!

    Wheeeeee I love doing reviews on places I love! Makes me feel extra happy writing this and salivate even more when I see the food pictures and make me want to go back and eat this instance. 

    Wokays, that's all for today! Hope you guys enjoyed it :)

    Much love,
    Shereena.

  2. #100happydays Part III.

    Thursday, June 26, 2014

    Hey y'all!

    OMG it feels like forever since I last blogged. Have always had the thought of blogging at the back of my mind but just somehow never have the time to or just procrastinate on days where I just don't want to do anything. Exams are over but I still have a submission due on the 8th.... =/

    Anyways, I am back to blog about on #100happydays which ended about a month ago. And I was only up until Day 40 in the last post? Here is Part I and Part II if any of you missed it :D I doubt I'll get into the rest of the days today in this post but maybe onto the 65th or 70th mark? We shall see how this turns out :P

    So here goes!

    Day 41
    Day 41// Our short term guest for the day, Dickson! Dinnered and coffee break with these two boys tonight  It's awesome seeing a close friend fulfilled one of his biggest dream career and because of that, he gets to fly over for visits! Even tho his stay is like super short, it's still nice to see a friendly face in a foreign land 

    The day started off by me hopping onto a bus to Airport West to meet up with Dickson. He had just flew in that morning itself and Airport West is only a 10 minutes bus ride from my house. So yeaps..

    Then we hopped onto the tram and headed down to the city because we were meeting Jia Shen for dinner that night as well. The city can be really boring when you're just walking aimlessly around and have nothing to do in mind. It wasn't Dickson's first visit so he didn't have anywhere he wanted to go. Plus I wasn't in that mood of being a tour guide and take him to touristy places and not like he wanted to do the touristy thing anyways...

    So instead, we went to Dessert Story and just sat there and chilled. 

    Have no idea what drink is this.. All I know, it was Dickson's treat! HAHAH!

    We talked and caught up about whatever that was happening and stuffs until it was more or less time for our early dinner at 6pm I think? Met Jia Shen halfway because we were heading to Huxtaburger (the CBD branch) for dinner.

    I personally wanted to take Dickson to eat a good meal but didn't want to think too much into it. And the burgers in Melbourne are pretty good anyways plus he is a burger fan. So Huxta it was! I still do reckon that it is one of the best burger joints around town!

    Both of them ordered the same thing. But.... I can't remember what it was HAHA! 

    And I ordered their mini burger because I was still full from the drink earlier. So all  did was add an egg into my mini burger and it was complete! I LOVE the brioche bun at Huxtaburger man! SO GOOD! Well..., the burger is very good as a whole too!

    But I think the CBD branch isn't the place to go tho.. It is too tiny and more like a takeaway place rather than sitting there and have a meal. Because all they have is bar tops and could sit 15 people max! Too small! Yes, their burgers are really good, but I also do like a good sitting spot to enjoy my meal with my friends. Not just sitting on the bar top alone and enjoy the meal alone...

    Then after dinner we went for coffee. Jia Shen and his coffee fixes.. So we end up at Sensory Lab for a cuppa.

    My mocha, heavier on the chocolate :D

    Dickson didn't even coffee. He had a hot chocolate. It was basically another catch up session for him. Because he hasn't seen Jia Shen in a long time. And talking about Dickson's piloting job more than half of the time :D

    It was a good catch up session! After drinks, we all just went separate ways and headed home. I headed back to Clayton and the whole day I actually had quite some things with me (laptop, clothes, etc.) but Dickson was so nice to actually help me carry my laptop in his bag the whole entire time while we were out together! I sure do have really nice friends :D

    Day 42
    Day 42// The boyfriend's D3 ROS achievement is making him so so happy until it is also affecting me with his happiness  His monk's DPS is ranked World 2nd and America's server No.1! 

    Day 43
    Day 43// Made oven baked Honey BBQ Chicken Wings! It was finger lickin' gooooood! 

    Day 44
    Day 44// having a nice cup of gelato on a hot hot day 

    Day 45
    Day 45 of #100happydays; watching Runningman with the boyfriend after a whole afternoon of crazy FYP stuff  it cracks me up almost every single episode and watching it with the bf makes it even funnier!

    Day 46
    Day 46// pizza delivery for dinner  After a long tiring day at uni, all I wanna do once I get back is nothing at all and so, that means ordering any sort of deliveries. Basically these boxes will cover our meals for two days haha 

    Day 47
    Day 47// having a proper lunch meal with a uni mate  idk if you guys know this, I almost NEVER eat with anyone in uni because all I do is go to uni and back and grab a sushi roll real quick while I walk to/from class... So eating out with a fellow uni mate is a rare scene! And I have no idea why I am only posting this past midnight when it happened during lunch HEHE 

    Day 48
    Day 48 of #100happydays; it's Suits day!!  "....Everybody wanna know how it feel, Everybody wanna see what it's like...... Me and Missy is so very busy busy making money, Alright... All step back, I'm bout to dance, The Greenback Boogie.."

    Day 49
    Day 49 of #100happydays; cooked my signature meehoon for our dinner  One of my favorite comfort food 

    Day 50
    Day 50// face pampering time! Feels extra nice when I smell nice and everything I am using smells niceeee! Maybe except te mint julep mask cause it smells like toothpaste  HEHE

    Day 51
    Day 51 of #100happydays; New York City! It'll always make me happy by just looking at pictures but in this case right now, I have just been watching some vlogs of YouTubers while they were in NYC and omggggg I wanna go there so badly!! It's my biggest biggest dream to be in New York City one day!! One day I shall and one day I will!!!  and I've decided, I'll be there during the Christmas season because everything will be lighted up prettily and I loveeeeeeee city lights!! Nothing else, no other sceneries makes me happier than city lights, especially the NYC ones! Top Rock, I'll be there one day! 

    Day 52
    Day 52// coming home and being surrounded by pictures of the people I love, brings a smile to my face regardless of how my day went down. These pictures on my wall makes life away from home easier and more bearable. I am truly grateful and blessed to be surrounded by such love and wonderful people 

    Day 53
    Day 53// after a long night and a rough start of the day, a nice plate of food that reminds me of home is the way to go. It may not be of nearly as good taste than the ones at home but it is still a taste from home 

    Day 54
    Since I missed a day two days back, I shall have two postings today  anddd.... technically I've had these on my nails since a couple of days back so it's counted  Day 54 of #100happydays; my accent nails! Wheeehehehehe I love the colours and very much into glitters accent nails right nao 

    Day 55
    Day 55// Had a nice dinner out tonight with the boyfriend and Jia Shen  anddddd ordered a nice yummy bowl of laksa but with yong tau fu "liu"s  It's been such a longggg time since I had this! It looks like I am on a home food hunt this week but this bowl is by far the best! 

    Day 56
    Day 56 of #100happydays; Made creamy spaghetti marinara from scratch!  andddd it's gooooood!! The boyfriend and I now have a very happy tummy!

    Day 57
    Day 57 of #100happydays; Junk food shoppinggggggg!!! I always light up like crazy whenever I am stocking up on junks! I'll first go like that......then like that... HAHAHAHA!

    Day 58
    Day 58// curry meehoon for dinner  was so quick and easy to make!

    Day 59
    Day 59 of #100happydays; the evening sky today was so colorful! It makes me smile whenever the sky has these pretty colours layered on top on and another  took this at about 5.45pm right outside of my house. The only downside is, I hate how short our days are right now.... Boooohoo... 

    Day 60
    Day 60 of #100happydays; Another mail day  anddddd I received these lip glosses all the way from UK! The pigmentation and the scent is amazinggggg!! So happy for @tanyaburr and what she has achieved with YouTube.. I am loving her videos!  Nowadays I've been very much into YouTube and it's beauty videos. It cheers me up! Btw, these are her lip glosses from the #TanyaBurrLipsAndNails line in the shades, Heart Skipped A Beat and Picnic in the Park :)

    Day 61
    Day 61// captured these pretty flowers in the backyard with my baby camera  Love the colour and I still loveeeee my baby a ton for taking pretty pictures!

    STILL LOVE MY CAMERA VERY MUCH!

    Day 62
    Day 62 of #100happydays; Smiling while dreaming about the Big Apple. The Empire State of mind *but in this case, the "Chrysler state of mind" * that's the packaging of one of the Korean brand's mascara! Love the packaging so much that I handled it with care and brought it back from Malaysia  The little charm on the top is my favorite Fossil Empire State Building charm with a red stoned apple  New York City day and night! Always.

    Day 63
    Day 63// Korean Fried Chicken for dinner with the bf!  I really love the Soy and Garlic Fried Chicken here!! So yums and so filling! 

    Day 64
    Day 64 of #100happydays; Going out for a brunch date with the boyfriend  In my book, anything that involves the bf and a good meal is a great date out :D

    More pictures of brunch that day are in another separate blog post. There's a small review of the food and place here :) 
    Day 65
    Day 65// did all the most lazy things ie. sleeping until 130pm and watched episodes after episodes of Arrow  andddd on a marathon of the Young and Dangerous(古惑仔) with the bf  I didn't document those down with a picture, so here is my #selfie from yesterday explaining my lazy but happy day! 

    Day 66
    Day 66 of #100happydays; Went on a long overdue kaiten sushi/sushi train dinner date with the boyfriend  Finally found a quite good one in Melbourne! Their aburi sushis are OMG 

    More pictures of the sushis we had that day are in another separate blog post. There's a small review of the food and place here :)  

    Day 67
    Day 67// One of my bestest friend, Jia Shen's birthday!!!  Celebrated over dinner together with good chatters and laughs! Thanks for the dinner treat eventho it was your dinner  He will always always be one of my bestest and oldest friend/bro and thanks for always being there for me regardless of what it is! *hugs*

    Day 68
    Day 68// Daisies makes me very happy! I am in love with this daisy snood at the moment!!!  

    Day 69
    Day 69// Recreating one of my favorite comfort food!  Take a guess what I cooked tonight?

    The boyfriend and I were invited to a potluck party at his friend's place and so, of course, I am in charge in cooking the dish we will be bringing over. Andddddd I cooked.... "Mun Yee Mee" (Braised Egg Noodles)!!!

    Looking at this picture right now makes me miss it!! I am pretty damn sure I cook up a pretty mean and awesome braised noodles! 

    The food we had that night :)

    And oreo cheesecake for dessert! Made by Janelle :) Somehow or rather, she is always the dessert maker in ALL the potluck sessions HAHA! Well except that morning of our Venus Bay trip, she was in charged of pancakes :P

    And after dinner we just lazed around and did whatever we could. Most of us played this Cards Against Humanity game which was utterly hilarious!!! And some was on the karaoke. Later on, the boys got into some Call of Duty on the Xbox and lastly some singing to the acoustic guitar :) Good but late night!

    Day 70
    Day 70// My dinner date  I love this guy lots!! My favorite boy ♥︎♥︎♥︎

    More pictures of food of we in TGIF are in another separate blog post. There's a small review of the food and place here :) 

    Phew..., that was a month's worth of update! Let's just leave it off here for now... Ok?

    Now that I am slightly freer, I SHOULD be back a little more often? I still have a couple of food reviews to get to, the continuation of "when my mum was here" posts and lastly my most recent Sydney trip :D 

    I am more determined to keep this space more alive because I know for a fact that when I do get into the corporate world, I would be neglecting this space completely. So I need to keep writing until I can't because I don't have the time to anymore..

    *Fingers crossed!* It would work out the way I want it to :D Bye for now! I'll be back soon!

    Lots of love,
    Shereena.

    Huxtaburger on Urbanspoon