I Don't Eat, I Devour

If I had to pick my favourite restaurant in Sydney, as difficult a task that is and as much as I might hesitate, I will eventually give you this name: Nel.  Headed by Nelly Robinson, Nel features an open kitchen where chefs combine intricate skills, quality produce and artistic creativity that turns each meal into an experience. Serving degustation menus exclusively, Nel updates its menu every few months to bring you a brand new theme to get excited over. Make sure you book early: seats, particularly the popular seating dates and times, are booked out months in advance.  To lift us from the gloom of COVID, Nel brought us a Disney themed dinner that's full of theatrics, served against a background of Disney music. The menu is a series of cryptic clues as to what will be served and which Disney film it references. Guessing is half the fun. In celebration of the Disney menu, Nel gas also created 4 cocktails to team with the theme. Alice in wonderland is a light gin based cocktail with

 In a city where authentic ethnic food is so commonplace, one cuisine Sydney is yet to fully embrace is African cuisine. I have only reviewed one other African eatery: Jambo Jambo in its old Crows Nest location (it has since moved to Glebe), and I had a splendid time. Jambo Jambo mainly serves Ethiopian food, whereas this eatery I'm about to review that is full of heart serves Nigerian cuisine.  Little Lagos started as a pop up in Earl's Juke Joint, a cozy, moody bar hidden behind the façade of a butcher shop. It became so popular that earlier this year, it got its own permanent location in Newtown. The clientele appears to be a mix of Nigerian ex-pats and curious food lovers. No matter our background and level of experience with Nigerian food, we are there for a good feed and a good time. Little Lagos, by the way, comes with its own in-house DJ. The atmosphere is decidedly lively and casual. Sometimes it can be a little difficult to hold a conversation above the noise, but ov

 Yes, it is finally here - my Kit Kat taste test. Japan has long been the home to unusual Kit Kat flavours - soy sauce, chestnut, pumpkin and apple just to name a few - and though some of these flavour sound bizarre, in my limited experience, they usually taste both realistic and delicious. On our supermarket shelves in Sydney, Australia, on the other hand, we usually only have access to a couple of chocolatey-flavoured Kit Kats with the occasional addition of caramel or cookies. Sugary and satisfying as those are, they are hardly adventurous. When I heard news of Sydney opening its very own Kit Kat "chocalatory" at Mid City, I was pretty excited. Clearly, others were too: visiting involves putting down your phone number and waiting at least 40 minutes. Fortunately, they text you just as it is your turn to visit, so you don't have to wait there in person and can run some other errands in between. There are lots of exciting things at the chocolatory, including some fancy m

Though it calls itself a cafe, this cute little eatery close to Redfern train station has some seriously good bites which are moe than enough to fill the belly. Its impressive but curated menu features all sorts of delectable dishes with distinct regional influences: some Middle Eastern flair here, some Thai heat there, but delicious food everywhere.  Little bit shellfish, $22 The cutely named "little bit shellfish" features a generous serving of plump, juicy scallops tossed in a Thai-inspired chili jam base, served with snow peas, Thai eggplant and fresh chili. All that goodness rests on a bed of squid ink pasta, which is cooked to perfection. I am a huge fan of this kind of fusion meal, and I was seriously impressed with the value.  Bangkok breakkie eggs, $18 What a way to spice up boring ol' fried eggs! 2 fried eggs are served with ham, chorizo cherry tomatoes, a lathering of sirracha sauce, and to help all that flavourful goodness go down, a couple of slices of sourdo

You can always pick an authentic Chinese restaurant by the incredibly regal names. Neptune Palace is no exception, its name emphasised by the bronze statue of its namesake, the god of the sea. It has an impressive menu full of delicious-sounding Chinese-Malay halal dishes. When faced with so many choices, what do we do? We pick a set menu.  Prawn cutlet fritter & vegetable spring rolls First up, spring rolls and fried prawn. If I had just ordered off the menu I would most likely have given them a pass, which is why I'm so glad they were included in the banquet menu. Fried goods are often overlooked by me when I order Chinese food, yet I am absolutely charmed by how delicious they are. The prawn is bouncy and fresh, the batter satisfyingly crunchy but not overly thick; and the spring roll has a celery and bamboo shoot filling that is refreshing, crunchy, and interesting. These are great when paired with the sweet chilli sauce, dark soy and sweet and sour sauce which accompanied