French

There's no escaping the Manu Feildel madness even if you're as far away as Fiji. Food lovers, women and kids everywhere have fallen for this charming chef. I was lucky enough to have him (almost) all to myself for a... Continue reading Fiji Friday: South Pacific Food & Wine Festival Dinner with Manu Feildel »

There's been quite a bit of kerfuffle in the world of restaurants lately, about turning away customers who are late (or aren't all present). While almost 100% of the time, I've always called in advance, if I was running a... Continue reading Macleay Street Bistro »

Over the last year, I have grown more and more in love with my new neighbourhood. A local café/restaurant that I particularly adore is La Grande Bouffe. It's a small corner French eatery that serves up scrumptious breakfast, lunch... Continue reading La Grande Bouffe, Rozelle »

If I ever open a cafe, it would be exactly like this. It would be casual and cosy with a romantic charm; there would be fabulous and affordable breakfast and lunch options served on pretty plates, and there would be... Continue reading The Hardware Societe, Melbourne »

There's so much to love about this relatively new addition to Glebe - the stunning Provençal decor, the aroma of just baked goodies, the baskets and wooden shelves of breads and rustic baguettes and the stunning display of delectable tarts,... Continue reading La Banette Patisserie Boulangerie »

Uncorked Restaurant, at the Union Hotel was recently awarded the top gong for Best Restaurant in a Pub at the Savour Australia Restaurant and Catering Awards for Excellence NSW 2010, so I went along to see what all the fuss... Continue reading Uncorked Restaurant »

There's something really likeable about eating lots of small dishes. From Chinese yum cha to Spanish tapas, the experience of sharing small plates of delectable morsels with friends and family is always an enjoyable one. Coda sits at the basement... Continue reading Coda Bar & Restaurant, Melbourne »

While this Melbourne trip was filled with lots of new foodie discoveries, I kept up my tradition of visiting Madame Sousou every time I'm in town. I haven't written about this favourite in a while so thought I'd share with... Continue reading Madame Sousou, Melbourne (Re-visited) »

Yesterday marked the last day of service and closure of one of Sydney's finest restaurants. I was lucky enough to have dined there not too long ago, in celebration of my seven year anniversary so here is a tribute to... Continue reading Forty One Restaurant »

A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to La Grillade's relaunch party. While I hadn't been to the restaurant before the revamp, I was impressed by its fresh French appearance and subtle rustic charm. La Grillade has been operating... Continue reading La Grillade »

Gazebo Wine Garden's girls' picnics are such a wonderful offering. They're exactly my type of thing -a picnic where all you have to do is round up the girls! The food and wine is catered for, there's no worrying about... Continue reading Girls' Picnic at Gazebo Wine Garden »

In celebration of the upcoming release of Julie & Julia, and thanks to Sony Pictures, I have one very exciting competition for JENIUS readers. If you don't know anything about this movie, here's the synopsis: Meryl Streep is Julia... Continue reading Julie and Julia: Mastering the Art of French food blogging Competition »

After a series of strange coincidences involving the random discovery of connections between friends, clients and the chefs at Marque, I just knew it was where I had to take Zen on his birthday. Thankfully Mark Best and Pasi Petanen... Continue reading Marque »

France to me, can be defined by a few things: Long days. Similar to the rest of Europe, Spring and Summer means that shops operate until late and it is generally still bright and warm at 9pm! People watching. I... Continue reading France: Paris, Nice & Cannes »

In the perspective of the boyfriend, this whole Europe trip has been leading up to our grandstand seats in the Monaco F1 Grand Prix qualifying race. The day finally came yesterday. The highlight for me was being so close to... Continue reading Monaco F1 Grand Prix Qualifying »

You know you're in Melbourne once you've eaten breakfast or brunch out, more than dinner. Madame Sousou is a Parisian cafe/restaurant on busy Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. They have an amazing breakfast menu which stretches from housemade toasted fruit and nut... Continue reading Madame Sousou, Melbourne »

Restaurant 373 is a relatively new restaurant that works. Local fresh produce, warm furnishings, great casual service, funky appetisers and a fabulous 8 course degustation. We started off with olives, garlic popcorn and chilli grissini... And then slapped on lots... Continue reading Restaurant 373, North Hobart »

Calinere's sophistication is evident upon a glance. The light bulb installation is a modern day chandelier. And the floral wallpaper completes the glamour of such a small restaurant. Continue reading Caliniere »

I've been waiting for the perfect excuse to spend $185 a head (plus drinks) on Tetsuya's 10 course degustation. And here it was... the first birthday of jenius.com.au, which also coincided with my very own birthday! As the countdown begun, I eagerly read up and drooled over every review online. The week before, I started fantasizing about Tetsuya's signature dish. How it intrigued me... the texture and taste of what lay beneath the crusty konbu (kelp). Continue reading Tetsuya's »

Rocket Restaurant is one of those places you always talk about revisiting. They've got a sophisticated menu and a relaxing yet stylish interior. However, there's nothing really much beyond that. The service seems to suit chatty regulars... and to my surprise, the amazing dukkah and olive oil has now been replaced with room temperature bread and butter. Continue reading Rocket »

What better place to celebrate Valentine's Day than at the top? Astral is a one-hatter from this year's SMH Good Food Guide. This was something we had booked months in advance. From within a glass elevator, we were greeted with 270 degree views of Sydney Harbour. Oooo... ahhh... the interior is also rather stunning. The furnishings were plush and sophisticated, the chandeliers were rich... and around us, couples in love admired the gleaming city skyscrapers. Continue reading a blast from the past... Valentine's Day 2007 @ Astral »

Last night, we were here to celebrate Tim's 22nd birthday... well... I was more or less there to take to take group photos for him. LOL. And surprise, surprise... Zen and I ended up indulging ourselves with a scrumptious 3 course meal. J'adore restaurant is all about intimacy. There's the fireplace, slinky booths and candlelit tables... However, with the Tuesday specials (2 for 1 mains), I was surprised to find that at 8pm, it was still relatively empty. Continue reading J'adore Lounge Bar and Restaurant »

It is always such a challenge to capture a great shot indoor, especially when it is dark. So I set my exposure... ISO at 400... turn off the flash, and on the macro, and thought I was ready. The photos turned out quite disappointing, but the food was too good not to post. So here they are... nothing a little bit of Photoshop can't fix right? Continue reading French Yum-Cha at Eat City »