Snapped: Moonlight Cinema, Centennial Park

Moonlight Cinema, Centennial Park
7.20pm Saturday 29 January 2005

Snapped: Reclaim the Streets 2005

Reclaim the Streets march--Newtown, Sydney
2.30pm Saturday 29 January 2005

Sign my guestbook

And just a quick pointer... have you noticed my new guestbook?

Click on the link on the right hand side (underneath the flattering AugustusGloop pic).

Snapped: Here comes the bride...

Victoria Road, Marrickville
1.54pm Saturday 29 January 2005

Sweet Belem, Petersham

The pasteis de nata is the king of custard tarts... flaky buttery pastry, an eggy cooked custard interior and a caramelised golden-brown complexion combine to create the perfect mouthful.Chinese daan tart theories aside, the generally accepted birthplace of the pasteis de nata is the local pastry cafe Antiga Confeitaria de Belem on the seaside outskirts of Lisbon.Photo courtesy of

Ippon Sushi, Haymarket

EDIT 05/07/07: Ippon Sushi has now closedSushi train is one of those tricky places where if you're not careful, the stack of plates beside you (and the bill) can grow exponentially.Still, there's something mesmerisingly hypnotic about choosing your own perfect plate of sushi from the endless marching nori army.Ippon Sushi doesn't help the gluttonous cause by offering sushi plates at either $2.50

Snapped: lemon meringue pie

Lemon meringue pie--home-made by our new favourite workmate

So it's note quite a lamington or a pavlova but in the sweet and sticky stakes, this will suffice nicely as a satisfyingly sugary posting for Australia Day.

Happy Australia Day folks!
--and yes, it was very good!

Oscillate Wildly, Newtown

Oscillate Wildly is one of those few Inner West dining secrets which consistently lives up to the whispered hype. The menu is creative enough to intrigue, but honest enough to please the foodie purist.Owner and maitre'd Ross Godfrey is a self-confessed 80s fan, and it was The Smiths homage to Oscar Wilde which gave inspiration to the restaurant's name. It's a funky name which sticks in the head,

Lemon Mint Crush Cafe, Chippendale

The LMC Cafe is one of those friendly insider cafes--where you just know the regulars have their favourite tables silently reserved, and the waitstaff know exactly how they like their coffee.Tucked down a side-street off Sydney's bustling Broadway, LMC would be disguised in its converted corner terrace were it not for a couple of lime green signs and chairs outside.Inside a funky colorful wall

In the Kitchen: Sushi Mania

It was a combined chef effort in the kitchen for unprecendented sushi mania. We had freshly opened sea urchin, prawns cooked on skewers (so they stayed flat and didn't curl!), broiled eel, flying fish roe, sashimi salmon... it was a seafood bonanza!Clockwise from bottom left: gunkan-maki (battleship wrap) with flying fish roe; gunkan-maki with sea urchin roe; bara-maki (rose roll); inside-out

Symphony in the Domain

A regular highlight on the Sydney Festival calendar, Symphony in the Domain is the perfect excuse to pack the picnic rug, a hamper of gourmet goodies and lie under the stars listening to the Sydney Symphony.



The keen ones always camp out overnight to secure (tent)pole position. We've never been this desperate! By 5pm though, all tents must come down so everyone gets uninterrupted views of the

Snapped: Capoeiristas

Capoeira perfomers at Sydney's Pitt Street Mall.

This form of martial arts was originally developed and practised by West African slaves in Brazil as a covert means of both preserving their culture as well as maintaining fitness and self-defence knowledge. The elegant and graceful form of capoeira was easily disguised from the Portuguese as a form of dance and celebration.

With its combination

Forest Lodge Hotel, Glebe

The Forest Lodge is a bit of an institution. Popular with nearby University of Sydney students, backpackers from the Nomads hostel contained within, and local blow-ins, this is fair dinkum watering hole material.



The hotel is split into the traditional drinkers-at-the-front, bistro-out-the-back, although in reality meals and drinks can be consumed freely anywhere.


Chicken Caesar salad $8.90

Snapshot of the day: Broadway

Driving down Broadway, Sydney...
Broadway links George Street (the main dragstrip of the CBD) to Parramatta Road (the Great Western Highway).

Does my blog look good in this? #3

Check out the December photo nominations for the third instalment of "Does my blog look good in this?" kindly hosted by Is My Blog Burning. Vote for your favourite foodie photo and check out the accompanying stories.

Winner announced February 1st.

Snapshot of the day

Sydney Habour Bridge with sculpture installation and Bridge climbers.

Related GrabYourFork posts:
New Year's Eve Fireworks, 31 Dec 2004

The Dark Side of Hyde Park, Sydney

EDIT: The Dark Side of Hyde Park has now closed. You'll have to turn off the lights at home to recreate this experience."Welcome to The Dark Side", the maitre'd intoned with more than a hint of a smile playing on his lips.We had arrived. The time had come. Begone oh boring wholesome dining by illumination. We were here to feast under cover of dark. Pitch darkness.

Hoa Pasteur, Haymarket

EDIT: Hoa Pasteur is now closed.If the Sussex Centre foodcourt is up one end of the foodcourt spectrum in the decor and ambience stakes, then Dixon Street is usually down the other.I've heard that the Dixon Street foodcourt was the first one established in Sydney's Chinatown (to much excitement and fanfare) and although it did have a minor re-furb recently, it still has a ways to go. It's down in

Darkness be my friend

Who said Grab Your Fork doesn't indulge its readers?

In response to repeated clamouring, and with R as my confirmed dining companion, I can confirm that yours truly will be fumbling for mouthfuls in the dark sometime this weekend. I'll be Dining in the Dark for your... er... literary pleasure. Without a camera to capture any of the action (and I believe that all lights sources are banned,

Fujiya, Haymarket

Having seen before that perhaps some of the best restaurant finds are hidden upstairs, we thought we'd test the theory again.

We walked up a set of carpeted stairs to Fujiya, a few doors down from bustling George Street and the always-busy Delifrance cafe.

From ordinary boring carpet entrance to modern, warm and wooden decor, again I was amazed by exactly what hidden treasures lie on the first

Things that go chomp in the night

As any self-respecting foodie will tell you, the gastronomic experience makes use of all five senses. Apart from mere visual presentation, there are wafting promises, contrasting textures, sounds of crunching vs slurping and of course, the delicate palate of taste itself.

But how often do you take these things for granted? Gobbled half your lunch whilst barely pausing for breath... munched

2004 Food Blog Awards: winners

All the winners for the 2004 Food Blog Awards have now been announced. Alas, Grab Your Fork missed out on winning in its nominated category of Best Food Blog - City. Congratulations go to Seattle Bon Vivant--a worthy winner indeed, who is incidentally hosting the 4th Sugar High Friday: Let's Go Nuts.

Chocolate and Zucchini scooped four of the 16 sixteen awards, including Best Recipes, Best

Farmers Market, Fox Studio

With the Pyrmont Growers Market currently on hiatus, we headed to the Farmers Market at Fox Studio for some weekend gourmet goodness.Unfortunately not all the usual stalls were here, but there was still plenty of fresh produce, breads, organic meats and eggs and various craft and jewellery stores.Breads from Formaggi Ocello...Pumpkin and macadamia nut boule $6.00I grabbed this loaf which actually

Cafe Ottimo, Ultimo

A hop, skip and jump from the bustling Broadway Shopping Centre and traffic-clogged Parramatta Road, Cafe Ottimo is an oasis of calm and local hospitality.

There are a couple of takeaway/eat-in cafes along this stretch of Mountain Street, but this one is by far the busiest and most welcoming in decor and menu.



Inside the walls are relatively bare, and the chairs and tables are a simple but

Ashfield Hotel, Ashfield

Located on busy Liverpool Road, the Ashfield Hotel has its fair share of blue collar workers, local teenagers and blow-in yuppies. We've been to the Ashfield Hotel a few times for half-price cocktail nights and even a private function, which was held in the bar upstairs.The dining area is to one side of the ground floor and is fairly bistro in outlook, a little more upmarket in offerings. There's

New links added

Just a quick note to point out I have now added my favourite foodie and photography blogs to the side bar on the right-hand side.

Have a stroll and check them out. There is so much talent out there it's daunting yet kinda inspirational too :)

Enjoy.

Homemake: Goi Cuon

We love goi cuon in summer. When it's hot, sticky and humid outside, nothing beats biting into a cool rice paper roll bursting with salad, prawns and mint. Refreshing and healthy!

Goi cuon is sooo easy to make and is an easy formula for a relaxed DIY dinner party. About half an hour of prep beforehand is all you need.



GOI CUON (Vietnamese prawn rolls)

16 rice paper rounds (banh trang)
200g

More Takayama photos are up

Takayama Day 2 continues...

After morning market madness, we continued on to the Hida Folk Village, conducted our own sake crawl and then finished with a banquet dinner to end all banquet dinners *sob*

Click here to start from the Hida Folk Village.