Dex2rose

Dex2rose – Nitrogen Gelato – Melbourne

Dex2rose is a new nitrogen gelato place that recently opened in the city, down racing club lane (off little burke st). They have a team of creative people making some really interesting gelato flavours. They use only the finest ingredients and seasonal produce so you will find the menu usually changes every three weeks. In addition to great gelato they also do a tasty cold brew coffee, nitro brew (nitrogen charged) coffee and have bottles of cold pressed juice made in-house daily.

Dex2rose – Venue

They have a nice open space where you can hang out and enjoy your gelato. Rain or shine, gelato is always a good idea.

Dex2rose – Nitogen Gelato

This is the pre gelato mix churning away patiently waiting to evolve into real gelato.

Dex2rose – Nitro brew

To start I had a pot of nitro brew, which is cold brew coffee on tap charged with nitrogen. So awesome! It was really refreshing and surprisingly sweet. The nitro brew I had was infused with maple and brown sugar but they will be changing the flavours of the nitro brew every so often. They have an apple cinnamon one coming up soon. Yum! It had the appearance of a dark larger with a foamy beer head. It felt like I was drinking an ice-cold beer but it was actually coffee. Genius!

Dex2rose – Lazy dinner (sage, burnt butter & caramel)

The ‘lazy dinner’ gelato sounded intriguing from the get go. Sage, burnt butter and caramel gelato, topped with sticky caramel sauce. It was a winner. The sage and burnt butter makes you feel like there is a savoury component (I think it’s the herbiness from the sage) and then the caramel offers the sweet component. The savoury and sweet gave a good balance of flavours and worked gloriously together. It was an odd combo but the flavours worked well. Not hard to see why it’s a crowd favourite.

Dex2rose – Pink Flamingo (peach & rose moscasto)

Then I had the ‘pink flamingo’, which was a peach and rose Moscato sorbet with rosewater coconut cream. This one was refreshing and had more of an icey texture (it being a sorbet and all) but it still had an intense flavour. I personally prefer the creamy gelato more but a sorbet would definitely go down a treat on a scorching hot day. This particular sorbet was vegan, gluten free and non-dairy. And with Dex2rose’s ever-changing menu they always have at least 2 flavours that are GF, non-dairy and vegan friendly. They kindly cater for all gelato lovers.

Dex2rose – After Ate (Chocolate, peppermint & brownie chunks)

The ‘After Ate’ was milk chocolate gelato infused with peppermint oil. The gelato was chocolate and mint combined which was nice. I feel like I usually have mint gelato with choc chips so it was a nice change. Through the gelato there were crunchy chocolate brownie chunks and then it was topped with a vertical spiral or fresh vanilla cream.

Dex2rose – Honey Stash (pistachio & honey w honey nut clusters & raspberry cream)

The honey stash was the star of the day for me. It was pistachio and honey gelato with honeyed nut clusters and raspberry cream. It was incredible! The gelato was full of flavour, it had an intense creamy pistachio and honey flavour that was absolutely divine.

Dex2rose – Honey clusters!

Then it had a generous amount of surprise honey nut clusters scattered throughout the gelato which were delish and added good crunch. And then, it was topped with a fresh raspberry cream, which added an aerated texture and a subtle tartness. It was sensational.

Dex2rose – Fresh juice (strawberry, white grape & granny smith apple)

They also make their own in-house cold pressed juice that they make daily. I had the strawberry, white grape and granny smith apple juice. It was tart, sweet and crisp. Yum!

Dex2rose is an exciting new gelato store, which exudes creativity, innovation and imagination. The experimental flavours and fresh ideas from the team at Dex2rose are sure to keep you returning for more. The staff are absolutely lovely and make you feel right at home and the gelato speaks for itself. It’s a great place to chill with some good friends and some great gelato.

I heart Dex2rose!

Olives x

Dex2rose
Address: 377 Lt. Bourke Street, Melbourne (off Lt. Bourke, down racing club lane)
Website: http://dex2rose.com.au
Phone: 03 9078 0784
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dex2rose
Trading Hours: Sun-Thu: 12pm-11pm Fri-Sat: 12pm-12am

Note: Olive Sundays was invited as a guest to Dex2rose.

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Yong Green Food

Yong Green Food – Street view

Yong green food is a vegetarian/vegan restaurant created by people wanting to make a difference. It has a really nice vibe about it. The food is organic, eco-friendly and no living beings are hurt in the making of these incredibly delicious meals. My brother suggested the place (him being vegetarian and all) and I had some doubts at first (me being a meat eater and all) but I eat my words, I was pleasantly surprised.

Yong Green Food – Venue

It’s a humble space with oriental artwork on the wall. And it is perfect for people with special requirements or preferences because each dish on the menu states if it is raw, vegan, organic, GF, NGO (no garlic and onion) etc.

Yong Green Food – Purple So Mac, LLB & tumeric detox shot.

They have lots of drinks available, you can opt for a smoothie, juice or probiotic drink or alcoholic beverages like a beer, wine, soju or sake. My sister had an organic lemon lime bitters, which was delish. I’m not usually a lemon lime bitters gal but this one was particularly good. They also had detox shots in turmeric, sprulina and acai. We tried the turmeric one, which was really nice. I thought it would taste like curry or something (which would be weird) but no it almost tasted fruity like. My brother got the Purple So Mac, which was Soju, Mountain goat organic steam ale & green apple syrup. It was yum but it was strong. When we were leaving I noticed lots of people had jugs of cloudy white liquid which sort of looked like rice water. Turns out it was rice beer and apparently it’s milky, semi-sweet and tangy said the menu. Definitely on my list to try next time.

Yong Green Food – Nachos (chia chips w sunfried seed salsa, cashew cream & guac)

We had some nachos to start with, which were a little different to your usual nachos. Instead of corn chips they had chia chips. They had a good crunch and a grainy texture just like corn chips. Then they had the three classic nacho sauces, guacamole (really good guac), cashew cream (sour cream sub) and sunfried seed sauce (salsa). It was inventive and tasty.

Yong Green Food – Homemade kimchi gyozas

The homemade kimchi gyozas were marvelous. I loved them. The dumpling case was soft and a little sticky like fresh handmade dumplings and the filling was really tasty. It was served with a chilli soy sauce. So delicious!

Yong Green Food – Rawsagne

I was excited about the rawsagne. And yes rawsagne is a raw lasagna. It doesn’t have layers of pasta sheets because lets face it no one wants to eat raw pasta. Instead it had thin slices of layered zucchini w mushrooms, avocado, cashew cream (like creamy béchamel) & raw walnut bolognaise. It was really yum and somehow didn’t taste raw. It almost replicated the texture of lasagna. It was interesting concept and totally delicious.

Yong Green Food – Fried nori rolls

The fried nori rolls were filled with tofu, vegies, sesame leaves and mung bean noodles (kinda like vermicelli). They were wrapped in nori (which has quite a strong seaweed flavour) then dipped in a light rice batter and fried. It was nice.

Yong Green Food – Organic buckwheat crepes

The organic buckwheat crepes looked so pretty and colourful. The crepes were thick for crepes, i’d say they were half way between a crepe and pancake. They were nice and fluffy. They were filled with braised shitake mushrooms, cabbage and sprouts. It was accompanied by a wasabi soy mayo, which had a subtle mustardy bite. It tasted really earthy and healthy it was nice.

Yong Green Food – Tofu katsu

The tofu katsu was delicious! Everything on the plate went together well. The fried tofu patty was made w shitake, veggies and arame (sea oak). It was battered with organic quinoa and fried. Yum! And it was served w biodynamic brown rice, coleslaw and house made katsu sauce and pickle. It was really good.

Yong Green Food – Raw tiramisu

All of the desserts except the ice creams were raw vegan, organic and GF. The tiramusu was amazing. It tasted like tiramisu and somehow had the texture of tiramisu too. It didn’t have sponge fingers but somehow they managed to incorporate something that replicated the soaked sponge texture. It was exceptional. Loved it! It had organic spiced rum, espresso, brazil nuts, cashew, agave, dates, raw cacao powder and coconut butter.

Yong Green Food – Chia pudding

The chia pudding was really good. The chia seeds puff up which create an interesting texture. It’s sort of like little sago pearls with a chia seed in the middle. It was topped with a mixed berry coulis, which had a fresh berry taste. And a dollop of cashew milk, which had a similar texture to coconut milk. It was a good dessert.

Yong Green Food – Green tea ganache

I thought the green tea ganache might be like a thick fudge but it was more like a slice. The texture was coconutty like a macaroon with a slight green tea flavour. It was good. It was made with macha, brazil nuts, goji berries, coconut, agave and covered in raw chocolate.

Yong Green Food – Raw white choc cheesecake

The raw white chocolate cheesecake was smooth and creamy. It was more creamy than tart, it was delish. It was made with cashews, raspberries, agave, cacao butter, macadamia nuts and coconut flakes.

I was so impressed with the food. There were lots of surprises and it was an eye opener for me that vegetarian/vegan food can be so delicious. My brother may be onto something after all. It was so yum that I seriously left the place considering being a vegetarian. Hmm not now but maybe in the future. There’s that saying, ‘be the change you wish to see in the world,’ Ghandi had the right idea and I think this restaurant does too.

I heart Yong Green Food!

Olives x

Yong Green Food
Address: 421 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy VIC 3065
Website: http://yonggreenfood.com.au
Phone: 03 9417 3338
Trading Hours: Mon: closed, Tue-Sun: Lunch 12pm-4pm Dinner 5pm-10pm (except Wed closed for lunch and Sun dinner closes at 9pm)

The Kettle Black

The Kettle Black – Melbourne

The same dudes that gave us Top Paddock created The Kettle Black, so I expected great things. And as expected this place had a great atmosphere, great service and above all else, great food. They use good quality fresh produce and create interesting dishes. It’s great place for brunch.

The Kettle Black – Street view

It’s quite a large space and they also have a seated outdoor area.

The Kettle Black – Coffee

The coffee is really good. And they have a little coffee stand out front if you’re just passing by for a quick takeaway coffee.

The Kettle Black – Orange juice in a jar so cute

And the OJ is freshly squeezed and comes in a little jar, very cute.

The Kettle Black – Fresh kingfish w potato crisps, tomato, avo & leaves

We tried the kingfish w potato crisps, tomato, avo & leaves. The Kingfish was cooked perfectly and was absolutely incredible. It was definitely melt in your mouth. And it was complimented by generous chunks of avocado, fresh cherry tomatoes and super thin crispy potato crisps. It was a really lovely combination. Loved it!

The Kettle Black – Ricotta hotcake (sigh.. my bf has it with no seeds)

The hotcake was made with house-made ricotta. It was thick and fluffy with bursts of ricotta it was absolutely divine. It was topped with pure maple, fresh blueberries, double cream, flowers and seeds. It’s one of my fave items from top paddock, so I was pleased to see it migrate to this menu.

The Kettle Black – House made coconut yoghurt

My eyes were popping out of my head when the coconut yoghurt came out. It looked like a work of art. It was beautiful. There was a combination of fresh fruit and dehydrated fruit. And also a variety of seeds and nuts layered on top of the yoghurt. There was a dehydrated citrus crumb around the edge and puffed rice. There were so many textures, flavours, in all different sizes, just amazing. Every bite was exciting and no bite was the same. The actual coconut yoghurt was made in-house and it was delicious. It was luxuriously smooth and had a creamy coconut milk flavour.

The Kettle Black – Yumness!

The quality of everything was outstanding and I was really impressed with all of the food we ate.  They also had some sweet desserts on display. There was a banana & caramalised popcorn cake, a baked rhubard cheesecake sandwich, chocolate caramel tart etc. They also had some doughboy doughnuts on offer. It’s a great place for brunch and a great place for coffee.

I heart The Kettle Black!

Olives x

The Kettle Black
Address: 50 Albert Road South Melbourne VIC
Website: www.thekettleblack.com.au
Phone: 03 9088 0721
Trading Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-5pm, Sat-Sun: 8am-4pm

Naked for satan

Naked for satan – Melbourne

Naked for satan is a bar in Fitzroy with a history in vodka and a love for pintxos. Alongside their extensive vodka menu is a range of infused vodkas in interesting flavours like fig, cucumber, chocolate, pomegranate etc. They also have a range of $1 pintxos (tapas on toothpicks) for the peckish. You can grab some pintxos from the bar or from the roving staff.

Naked for satan – $1 Pintxos

Pintxos are little bar snacks on toothpicks that are adorable and delicious. In Spanish pinxtos or pinchos means ‘spike’ which explains the toothpicks everywhere. It’s similar to tapas but with toothpicks.

Naked for satan – Infused vodkas

They have a range of infused vodkas and they do tasting plates so you can try a few different flavours. The salted caramel one was really yum. They also had some cool flavour combos like lychee & ginger, opium & rose, Alpine chocolate & sugarcane, watermelon & mint and Naked bitch flavour lol which was chilli & cherry.

We ate upstairs at Naked in the Sky, which is the restaurant part on the top floor (level 4, the rooftop). The menu is a range of tapas dishes so sharing is the way to go.

Naked for satan – Gildas

We ordered the Gildas as a starter, which are green olives, white anchovy and pickled green peppers skewered on a toothpick. It was a tasty combination and if you like the sour salty combo, these are for you. We had thinly sliced ciabatta bread on our table, which went really well with these gildas.

Naked for satan – Fried cheese & walnut croquettes

The fried cheese & walnut croquettes w quince aioli were delish! They were crunchy on the outside and had gooey melted cheese in the center with bites of walnut. The quince aioli gave it a really nice sweetness. They were divine.

Naked for satan – Grilled beef fillet skewer

The grilled beef skewers had big chunks of juicy beef fillet and whole mini green peppers. They were tasty.

Naked for satan – Grilled prawn skewers

The prawn skewers were yum too. They were grilled prawns topped with bacon and red salsa.

Naked for satan – Pan seared scallops

The pan seared scallops were one of my faves. The scallops were cooked to perfection and then paired with all these ingredients I had no idea went so well together. There was a golden raisin puree, fennel, hazelnuts & capers. What a random bunch of flavours. It was incredible!

Naked for satan – Fried zucchini flowers

Zucchini flowers aren’t the kind of flower you want to put in a vase. They are the kind of flower you want stuffed with prawn mousse, dipped in a light tempura batter and deep-fried. And that is exactly what they do here. They were really yum.

Naked for satan – Baked camembert

The baked Camembert was baked with apple and celery which is an interesting combination and had a subtle flavour. It was served with the perfect side, thin slices of crunchy ciabatta. I particularly like the baked edges of the cheese.

Naked for satan – Txistorra (Basque sausage)

Txistorra are authentic Basque sausages. They were thin sausages served with a vinegary green tomato relish, which complimented them well.

Naked for satan – Grilled sirloin steak

The grilled sirloin steak on the bone came with green salad and pickled garlic. I completely underestimated this dish. It was so delicious. The meat was incredible. It was so tender, juicy, cooked perfectly! The pickled garlic was like a dipping sauce and was a good accompaniment to the amazing steak.

Naked for satan – Grilled octopus

The grilled octopus tenticles lay on a bed of potato puree w sweet smoked paprika. It tasted like the octopus was cooked on the barby. Perhaps the smokey flavour gave it that effect.

Naked for satan – Fabada (White bean stew w roast pork belly)

Fabada is an Asturian white bean stew. It had a piece of pork belly, a bit of pork & fennel sausage, a bit a morcilla (which I just found out is blood sausage) and braised ham hock. It tasted like a real traditional dish from Spain. Loved it.

Naked for satan – Migas (roasted veg & broken bread)

Migas was roasted capsicum, tomato, spinach w garlic & cider and rustic chunks of bread. The broken bread was good for texture.

Naked for satan – Slow cooked lamb shoulder

The slow roasted lamb shoulder tasted like someone’s mum cooked it. It was a hearty homestyle meal. The meat fell apart easily and was covered in tomato, roast capsicum, oregano & baby potatoes.

Naked for satan – Oreo trifle

We tried the oreo trifle for dessert. It had mascarpone, a layer of pedro ximenez (sherry) jelly, orange curd and vanilla ice cream. It was one incredible trifle. It was especially delicious when you ate a mouthful with a piece of fresh orange in the mix. Yum yum yum!

Naked for satan – Baked cheesecake w gingerbread & raspberry sorbet

We also got the baked cheesecake w gingerbread and raspberry sorbet. The flavours went really well together. The creamy cheesecake, the crumb and warming spices from the gingerbread and the fresh cold raspberry sorbet were a delight eaten all at once.

Naked for Satan is a great place to grab a drink, hang with friends and share some delicious food.

I heart Naked for Satan!

Olives x

Naked For Satan 
Address: 285 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy VIC 3065
Website: http://www.nakedforsatan.com.au
Phone: 03 9416 2238
Trading Hours: Sun-Thur: 12pm-12am, Fri-Sat: 12pm-1am