Alright, so I admit, I know a lot of you are a wee bit older than I am, so you might think I do not have the right to be nostalgic yet! And I do totally understand where you are coming from!
I mean, just the other day, I heard some random, overdressed twelvies in the city, complaining about how they wish their weekends weren’t so busy, full of netball, then dance class and then GOD FORBID, yet another party. Where is the time to do your maths timetables homework? 😛
Classy location. Check.
Classy interior. Check.
Happily screaming welcome from the staff. Check.
There was no doubt in CCU’s mind that she most certainly had made it to the right restaurant. After all, IPPUDO was known for its unique atmosphere 😉
But just how unique, CCU pondered, was the food?
IPPUDO is located on the fifth level of the awesome Westfield shopping centre right in the heart of Sydney CBD. You meander through various cuisines all bunched up together, wondering where it could possibly be, before running into it a little to the side, away from the others.
And that is totally cool with everyone 🙂
I’m going to get real with you guys today. Ok, so I am not fake at all in my other posts but today, I have just got to let it out. Hard hitting, real life observation that I, and basically everyone else in the world, have made.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
You feed me well at breakfast, and I wouldn’t need to eat for the rest of the day until supper. Supper being fruit and milk of course. You feed me well at breakfast and I go out with a spring in my step, a smile actually on my face as opposed to pasted on, and a whole lot more positive vibes resonating from me! 😀
Breakfast is the best.
‘CCUUUUUUUU’ – her mother was screaming at her. Again. But could she really blame her? After all, she was sitting in her pyjamas not doing anything. Again. An empty carton of what used to be Chinese takeaway sat sadly on her bedside table.
Guess it’s time to reorder that, CCU mused. Her parents were out for the night so looked like she was getting takeaway again. I mean, sure baking is all good, but what even IS savoury food?
Just as she was about to find the restaurant online, her laptop began to fizz. It began to bubble. Her internet sparked. Suddenly, she was transported to a whole other site than the Chinese restaurant she was virtually going to!
She read it out loud to herself, a little perplexed. “Delivery at home… mumble mumble… fresh ingredients… mumble… homemade easy dishes…’
She found herself grinning, as her interest was piqued, and she threw the Chinese takeaway into the bin!
That did not really happen. Not at all. And disclaimer alert: I am all for Chinese takeaway!
Let me admit now, I am a staunch lover of takeaway and dining out.
I love it when I am out with my friends, and we are sipping cocktails and waiting for our tapas. I love it when I am coming home from uni and take a quick swerve into a very greasy driveway (in more ways than one) for satisfying trans-fats.
There are time when I get emails that don’t just make me happy. They make me grin, throw my hands around a little and get super excited! Well, I was getting off the bus after a slog of a day at uni, and BAM! What should light up my day… night… like an email from Denis Savelyev, owner of the Bezalel Art Shop @ Etsy.com.
For those living under their rocks. Etsy houses creators of all sorts, ranging from specialty outfit to customised iPhone cases, to just about anything artsy, hipster and beyond your usual ‘Homemaker’ shops. They bring ‘vintage‘ to a whole new level, often shipping worldwide.
Denis exemplifies this, by being the creator of not only handcrafted earrings and pendants in unusual, innovative designs, but of the vogue new trend;
What a match.
What a thrill.
What an honour to watch two teams go head on to bring home the glory.
Is it not heartbreaking, that only one team can win?
Honestly, without the dulce de leche oozing gently out of my alfajores, I don’t know how I would have made it through all that stress!
This morning, at 5am Sydney time, I was huddled in a blanket, surrounded by an overdose of testosterone, watching Argentina play Germany in the FIFA world cup finals of 2014. I wasn’t waiting for the sunrise, or passing time due to my insomniac tendencies, but genuinely hauled my butt out of bed at 4:30 in the morning, solely for the game.
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!
I’m sorry, why the HELL, was my alarm going off, when I am on holidays? I think I could have cracked my phone, seeing as I was basically bashing the snooze button. At 5:30am in the morning (yes, uni, I give up a LOT for you…)
CCU makes no secret of the fact that she is IN LOVE with Japanese cuisine. What started out as a small, harmless infatuation, grew into a desire for sushi every night instead of roti and curry. Sigh… the pains of separation.
But due to these limitations of eating Japanese food at home, she tried her absolute utmost to eat it whenever she went out. Oh for the taste of soy sauce dribbling down a jasmine-rice stuffed seaweed roll.
Sigh… But at this particular Sushi Train she visited, she got a whole lot more Japanese cuisine than she anticipated…
Enter Dee Why. A cute little town located on the beach a 1/2 hr drive from the city, and a solid 1 hr drive from my suburb. Quaint and cute, the majority of the town’s shops are located along one central strip. Bounce through them, going from Thai, to Indian, to Subway, and suddenly, you arrive at Sushi Train. Yes, I know the majority of sushi selling Japanese restaurants are sushi trains, but this one really was called just that.
You know sometimes I have to question why I am still blogging? Have you, all you wonderful bloggers out there, ever felt like that? Sometimes I feel like I am blogging not for myself, not for my love of baking, but to give the audience what I perceive they want.
I have to stop then.
I have to take a step back and survey my surroundings. Blogging for me is not a career choice, it is quite literally, a hobby. Some people pay for dance classes? I pay to keep a website running. Some people decide to go out every night. Some nights, I prefer my pyjamas and baking 😛
So why is it that sometimes, I feel pressured to post? I hate the feeling of forced typing, where my words don’t flow, and I don’t put my diary-talk into a post. Can you tell the difference? Though for the most part, I will be honest with you and provide a bigger slew of food porn than usual instead of words 😉
CCU was really starting to forget how to bake. She had thought ‘Holidays will end, and my kitchen shall come alive!’
Instead, what came alive was her car, stomach and wallet. Everyday, every night, whether it be for the world cup or for her friends, she is out.
Sometimes she wonders how she has the time to breathe! On her many adventures, in only the past week alone, one of the many places she has visited was Red Lantern On Riley. What even is Vietnamese food?, she pondered to herself.
She was in for a very pleasant surprise…
Red Lantern On Riley is a wonderful place. I cannot express how much I enjoyed this restaurant. It is neither pretentious, nor is it snooty in any way, despite its popularity and wonderful reputation. Unassuming restaurant, to the side of a quiet street (Riley St :P), you would not actually notice it much unless you knew you were looking for it.
Go Bake Yourself 
