"Can I get a doner kebab with extra mushrooms, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, hommus... oh, and just a little bit of the meat, because I am a vegetarian."

I stared at him in shock.

As the meat was getting sliced he was pedantic in ensuring there was only a few thin slices of the beef. But surely that is not what pure vegetarians stand for?

Dictionary.com defines vegetarian as -
A person who does not eat or does not believe in eating meat, fish, fowl, or, in some cases, any food derived from animals, as eggs or cheese, but subsists on vegetables, fruits, nuts, grain, etc.

But after extensive research, I found that according to the Vegetarian Network in Victoria, he is a 'Semi' or 'Demi' Vegetarian or Flexitarian. A person who occasionally eats meat!

There was a feast of fried wontons, spring rolls, scrumptious satay chicken skewers, a massive subway and a glossy, crispy-skinned sucking pig.

A special touch by Suze... she made us these lush cupcakes. Pink lips for the girls and blue bears for the boys.

Congrats on your engagement, Noods & Suze. And thanks for a yummy afternoon!

Over the years, Chinese Noodle Restaurant has fine-tuned its process to meet its peak hour demands such that by the time a table is available for you, the order you had placed outside is served almost immediately. The service is as quick as fast food and rather quirky. Cans of soft drinks are stored in eskies and like most Northern Chinese and Uighur restaurants, there are grape vines hanging from the ceiling and wall tapestries on all sides.

At Chinese Noodle Restaurant, there's even a tiny squared window for customers to view the kneading, whacking and stretching of handmade noodles.

One of my favourite dishes here, is the eggplant special. Chunky pieces of eggplant are fried and coated in a light crisp glaze... thankfully, they have never been overbearingly soaked in oil.

I was in a classic kind of mood, so we also order these steamed pork and chive dumplings which are scrumptious with a dash of chilli and vinegar. The serving size was plentiful with a 12 serve only costing us $8.50. Other variations include egg & chives, pork & Chinese cabbage, pork & seafood, lamb & celery, lamb & onion and lamb & carrot. The dumplings can also be boiled or tossed in a light pan-fry.

These pan-fried mini pork buns were piping hot and so filling! The crunchy base was addictive so I found myself finishing off more than I should have! But I think I'd still prefer the crab filling from Shanghai Night / New Shanghai in Ashfield.

Today, the signature Xinjiang handmade noodle stir-fry was heavier than usual but the combination of Chinese cabbage, tomatoes and capsicum provided relief.

Nothing beats a tasty, authentic and highly addictive midweek dinner at Chinese Noodle Restaurant.

Chinese Noodle Restaurant
Prince Centre, Shop 7 / 8 Quay St, Chinatown
(02) 9281 9051

The menu was practically identical to its rival except this place was cleaner, brighter and dare I say better?

Replacing the torn fluoro menu posters were LCD TV's... and the corner table and chair was transformed into a modern open kitchen. Throughout the night, I watched as the cook effortlessly kneaded the dough and wrapped trays after trays of dumplings and buns.

These are my absolute favourite. They're steamed mini pork buns, which are also known as 'xiao long bao'. I love how they're steamed to perfection... the first bite always lets out a squirt of steam and soup which is ofcourse full in pork, ginger and soy flavour. They were delish!

Soon after, these uber crispy dumplings arrive. They're exactly what we wanted. Piping hot pastry with tender juicy morsels of pork mince and coriander inside.

The Shanghai-style spicy noodle soup with bamboo, pork and beancurd was good too. Although I still preferred the handmade noodles at Northern Noodle House in Haymarket.

The bill came to $25. A bargain for 2 full bellies!

New Shanghai Chinese Restaurant
273 Liverpool Road Ashfield
Call (02) 9797 7284

The choice was easy... and E'cco did not disappoint.

Once seated, I felt an immediate warmth and ease. The staff were adorably dressed in blue and white stripped butcher aprons and buzzed in and out of the open kitchen. The restaurant's bare timber tables and clean cut glass panels were reminiscent of the former tea warehouse... glowing and lively. Soon, we were offered to choose a slice of bread from a rather huge basket. There was sourdough of all sorts... including this gorgeous olive blend, pictured below.

Zen opted for the seared prawns as an entree which were juicy and plump and were served with a fool-proof combination of potatoes and avocado. There was an unique twist with fennel, watercress and saffron.

My entree left me speechless. The grilled quail was so tender and flavoursome... the blue cheese souffle was aromatically delicate and the salad of pear, hazelnut and truffle honey was amazing. The three elements together formed one of the tastiest entrees ever! I might have even preferred double the servings as a main!

For main course, Zen had the wagyu which looked ever so hearty and delicious. I naturally selected the pork belly which was unusually sliced -although thankfully, the crackling still remained crisp on each piece. I loved the addition of pomegranate seeds which I believe is an ingredient not used often enough. It proved to be an impressive adaptation of the pub pork roast with apple sauce.

I also couldn't go without a side order of these golden crunchy chips and aioli...

Lastly... dessert. There was a generous shot of Frangelico in the affogato and I learnt that lavender was edible and a fabulous mix with white chocolate... although the pastry was thin and unlike those at Bourke Street Bakery, of which I am addicted to. But overall, I thought E'cco was great! A quality, genuine, no-bullshit type of bistro.

E'cco
100 Boundary Street (Corner of Adelaide Street) Brisbane
www.eccobistro.com

Here are a few I'd spotted:

If you're interested in painting a traffic signal box yourself, visit the Artforce website.