Having had a wonderful Rockpool experience the night before, we decided to make it a Neil Perry double whammy and have lunch at Spice Temple.

We walked over about 1pm ish and asked for a table which was easy. It surprises me it's never busier especially when other Crown restaurants such as Number 8 get pretty chocka on a sunny Sunday afternoon. I guess the fact that Spice Temple doesn't have an outdoor terraces is a factor.

I love the pink aura in Spice Temple and I hope that one day we can sit downstairs on a busy evening as I think it'll be a pretty cool party place too. Anyway today there were beautiful lillies in cages on display.

We ummed and aahed over the menu. Do we do the banquet or choose our own dishes? If we choose our own dishes, they'll be larger in size so we won't be able to get through as many and try different things...In the end we decided top DIY. We were also able to order smaller serves of main courses so that meant we could spread out our stomach room to cover more dishes!

• Lamb and cumin pancakes
• Tea smoked duck breast with pickled cabbage and Chinese mustard
• Caramelised pork spare ribs

The duck was the first dish that came out and it was surprisingly delicate. Duck tends to be quite big on flavour and we thought what with mustard and pickled cabbage it would be quite gutsy. However it was actually deliciously subtle. The thin slices of duck were soft and the pickle and mustard added a background flavour that was slightly sweet and fruity. The tea flavour definitely came out. Loved it! I really enjoyed the bang bang chicken last time which was another cold dish but this duck is really superior.

Next a huge dish of ribs came out. We had been warned it was a big serve in spite of it being on the "small plate" section of the menu. These pork ribs were chewy and sticky and caramelly and oh so tasty.

The lamb and cumin pancakes reminds me of naan bread stuffed with doner meat or a keema naan (is that the mince one?). Ok it was a better than that and the pancake bit was flaky and golden but it wasn't a stellar dish. One to miss next time.

Hot, sweet, sour and numbing pork with chilli, sugar, black vinegar and Sichuan peppercorn was our next dish. What a powerful punch this packed. The Sichuan peppercorn rendered our tongues useless. The sensation of drinking water and wine with this was a little strange - like lots of fizzing happening in the mouth! This is certainly a memorable dish - I'm not sure I enjoyed too much of it as it was all a bit tongue tingling but it's certainly one to remember and talk about. I'd love for our spice loving friends to try this and see what their reactions are.

We also enjoyed a fillet of beef with wok blistered peppers in black bean sauce. This was delicious and a really nice salty contrast to the pork. It was light and tasty version of the old Chinese takeaway favourite and it was far superior to the gloopy, gluggy, glossy black bean sauce that is served up. The beef fillet was tender and retained the beef flavour and the sauce was almost broth like that was great with the steamed rice.

Our veggie choice was fried green beans with minced pork and XO sauce. Also a really nice dish with rice.

Our tingling mouths meant we were keen for a cooling dessert and we decided to share mango pudding with condensed milk chantilly. The peanut brittle it came with had that delicious burnt sugar flavour, flaky crunch and then the flavour of peanuts came out. Yummy with the mango pudding that was creamy and sweet. Just what we needed to finish the meal.

I love the Chinese restaurants in Melbourne. I love the down and out places with fluorescent lighting and brisk service. I love the budget friendliness of these joints. I love yum cha too. I think though that Spice Temple, may just be my favourite Chinese restaurant in Melbourne. I know it's not cheap compared to the other places but if I had to score everything across service, ambience, quality of food, value for money, it would probably take first place.

Seven years of marriage celebrated with a good feed at Rockpool. Loved the decor as walked in - dim romantic lighting and a classy fit out. Service was friendly and we were warmly welcomed by front of house.

It's a great occasion restaurant. Spending time there feels a little bit decadent and a little but grand. I think it's because everyone else dresses up a little unlike Nobu where casual wear abounds.

Our waiter explained how the menu worked and how we could share options which is the way we prefer to eat so we can taste more. He knew his stuff, was friendly and enthusiastic and it was a delight to be looked after by him. He apologised when it took him some time to get to us and its this awareness of customers that make him a better waiter than others. Although he must have gone through the menu a million times with people he made us feel he was having a conversation with just us so we forgave the fact that on occasion he would be busy with other people and take a little longer to come back to us and fill our glasses etc. Other wait staff assisted though so overall, we never felt neglected.

We shared two cold starters:

• Crudo of Hiramasa Kingfish, Ocean Trout, Yellow Fin Tuna and Coorong Yellow Eyed Mullet with Horseradish, Coriander, Lime and Lemon Flavoured Oil
• Joselito Jamon Iberico, Siete Hermanos Serrano Jamon, San Daniele Prosciutto, Fratelli Galloni Prosciutto di Parma and Rodriguez Chorizo with Pickles

The fish was delicate and very fresh. Particularly enjoyed the kingfish and tuna. The citrus lime and lemon flavoured oil lifted the oily fish and the tiny bit of horseradish just had enough heat to be reminiscent of wasabi.

The cured meats were just so delicious. Lots of porky goodness and not oversalted. Served at the perfect temperature so the meat just melted in the mouth. Great start!

Steak wise we decide to share two different cuts from two different cows.

• David Blackmore Grass Fed Mishima (from a marble score 9 animal) Topside
• Rangers Valley Dry Aged 300 Day Grain Fed Rib Eye on the Bone

Apologies for the dark photos but I didn't want to used the flash. The two steaks were very different in texture and flavour. I never realised that beef could be so different.  The rib eye was very unctuous and rich. Texture was fatty and soft. The deep flavour resonated in the mouth. It's definitely one to share.

I actually prefered the Mishima which was a cleaner tasting piece of meat. Leaner and with more chew but still soft.

Condiment service includes different mustards as well as home made BBQ sauce and a homemade harissa sauce. Loved both the BBQ and the harissa. The steaks also came with some horseradish sauce and bearnaise. The bearnaise was light and fluffy but not too deep in flavour with little tarragon coming through so I stuck with the BBQ and harissa.

We also had some mac and cheese and a huge bowl of sauteed mushrooms as accompaniments. Both side dishes were super tasty but in hindsight may be we should have gone for something lighter and greener than mushrooms.

We had a long sit after our main course which was actually a welcome break. We couldn't resist a dessert though. Steve deliberated a long time between some cheese (Parmesan Reggiano) that he loves or fruit crumble which he also loves. He ended up going for the crumble and I went for the ciampino which was a chestnut meringue ice cream sandwich.

Thumbs up for dessert too. Steve's crumble came with ice cream and a lovely warm vanilla custard. The fruit was a mix of strawberry, rhubarb and he thinks pear. There was a smiley face as he finished the bowl. I enjoyed the chestnut ice cream sandwich. Very light meringue and not too sweet. I was also tempted by the even lighter blood orange sorbet with brandy snap and in hindsight think that perhaps that might have been slightly better. Having said that it just means we have to return to try it out!

Rockpool was the perfect place for us to celebrate our anniversary. Great food, lovely atmosphere and we felt looked after.

Thursday evening was date night with the delectable Miss. Tanya Miller. Tanya and I are work colleagues and have extended our work relationship to out of work friendship. We both wanted to try a new haunt which has opened in her neighbourhood.

Morris Jones opened in early September and this former furniture store is now a bar and restaurant with a courtyard. We arrived early for our 6:30pm reservation having share the train journey with our ultimate big big boss! We were shown a friendly welcome and we decided to take a seat in the courtyard and have a drink before going to our table. We were assured someone would come take our order.

We sat at a table and waited. No one came. We managed to catch a passing waiter and ask for a drinks list. One finally arrived. But no one came to take our order. So after a wait we just decided to head through to our table. Not a great start Morris Jones. The lady who welcomed us seemed a bit spaced out and frazzled. She apologised when we told her no one came.

Things started to improve when our waiter came and explained the menu. He was a likeable happy chappy who knew his stuff. Frazzled lady served us our drinks and spilt a good amount of Tanya's bottle of water and didn't offer to bring her a new bottle. One step forward, two steps back.

Lucky for Morris Jones, frazzled waitress seemed to disappear and good waiter looked after us. He convinced me to accompany my steak with a Cabernet Sauvignon which I enjoyed in spite of not being a Cab Sav fan so credit to him.

Tanya and I both went for a Black Angus steak. I can't remember the cut but the waiter said it was just amazing done blue and being one for rare beef; I couldn't resist. The steak came with bearnaise sauce, a mixed salad and shoestring fries. Oh the fries - they were yummy. Shoestring fries are a rarity in Melbourne.

The steaks were beautiful. Tender and flavoursome. Good value for $38 we felt. Really enjoyed the buttery texture. The salad was fresh and dressed with a lemony, vinegary dressing. I also had some cauliflower cheese which was delicious. Not overly sauced and just nicely coated and browned.

Dessert was a chocolate tart with a scoop of ice cream. It arrived doused in a pool of chocolate sauce. Not too sweet and there was some interesting spicing and a layer of caramel going on which provided another dimension to the chocolate. The pastry was light and crumbly; a good dessert but one made btter by sharing.

So admittedly there were some service issues, probably teething concerns rather than significant. The wood fired grill does wonderful things to steak and the accompaniments were all very good. Definitely a place to remember and return to. It's a great date place as it does the dim and moody lighting very well and is quiet enough for chit chat and deep and meaningfuls.

Sunday and what better way of doing lunch than a yum cha session? Having not booked Shark Fin House which is our usual favourite haunt for dim sum, we had to find an alternative.

I'd walked by the Oriental Tea House on Chapel Street the day before and there seemed to be a nice vibe going on so suggested we try the Little Collins Street one.

I have been here once before with Karly one weekday but it was early on and I my memory of how good it was, was a bit vague plus I don't think I'd done yum cha in Melbourne then so had nothing to compare it too.

My expectations were that it would be non Asian friendly and wouldn't have the manicness of angry trolley ladies and the general busyness of the Chinatown places. I also wondered if the dumplings would be less authentic but nothing ventured, nothing gained.

It wasn't very busy when we arrived - a few tables dotted around; the odd family, courting couple, girls catching up etc. It was pretty quiet and the ambience was relaxing unlike Shark Fin House. All quite zen like. We were seated at a table against the wall in the middle of the dining area. Service wasn't particularly smiley or warm but it wasn't bad either.

There are a good choice of teas as well as some fun looking cocktails in teapots. I guess this all appeals to the Western market. No trollies, just order from the menu although on a busy lunchtime I believe the waitstaff bring out trays of dumplings for people to take.

From left to right:

• Sizzling Pork Dumplings - pan fried dumpling with minced pork and chives on a sizzling plate
• Calamari in light batter tossed with spicy salt
• Chilli Wagyu Beef Dumplings - Wagyu beef, finely chopped and marinated with kaffir lime leaves. Wrapped & steamed in a thin wonton wrap and served with specially prepared chilli sauce

Everything was decent. The pork dumplings were tasty enough but I found the skin on them a bit thick and chewy especially the browned bit. The calamari was flavoursome and not greasy. Perhaps slightly overdone as the calamari itself was touch rubbery. The beef dumplings were probably the best out of these dishes - soft and slippy and nicely flavoured with the citrus lime leaf coming through.

From left to right again:

• Baby Pea Leaf Dumplings - baby pea leaves & prawns in a distinctive triangular parcel
• Malaysian Style Satay Chicken served with traditional satay peanut dipping sauce
• Chive Dumplings chopped chives and prawn in a translucent rice flour wrapper

The two dumplings here were pretty similar but I think I just preferred chive ones as the filling was just a bouncier texture. Once again they were pretty decent with good thin wrappers and non mushy fillings. The satay chicken was nothing special but good enough.

We also ordered spring rolls and sticky rice but I didn't take pictures. The spring rolls were above average with nice pork filling. Sticky rice was ok again but fairly bland.

Oriental Tea House is pricier than other places and the extra premium is not for better quality food. It's not quite a rip off as I can see the value in paying the extra. It'st for the nice ambience and environment. It's also a great way to introduce non Asian friends to the concept of dim sum. I can imagine people who have never done it before may feel a bit daunted by the crowds and trolleys and not knowing what things are without a written menu as would be the case in the other more traditional places.

It's a sunny Saturday and I'm meeting Sharen for some lunch and shopping on Chapel Street. Sharen is a school friend of my good friend ginger Rache and as luck would have it, we're both in Melbourne so Rachel introduced us. It's our second outing (second date so to speak) and really it's time for some commitment beyond Facebook messages so perhaps we'll get to exchange numbers!

Anyway before the shopping begins we decide we need to eat and given it's our second date it makes sense to go somewhere quite nice and romantic so we can get to know each other better! Sharen suggests Caffe é Cucina and it's a place we've both heard of but never been and that takes the pressure off. Nothing worse than suggesting a place and then it proves to be a disappointment!

Caffe é Cucina is quaint and very traditional Italian looking. We're greeted warmly by Italian wait staff with lots of "prego" and "signora". Oh I guess my signorina days are behind me now!

We're taken to a small little table at the front of the restaurant and our drinks orders taken promptly. We're informed of the daily specials and then left to consider our choices. This is tough as there are quite a few things that sound appealing.

The Polletto alla Cacciatora which is braised Barossa Valley free-range spatchcock with polenta and sugo alla cacciatora appeals as does one of the pasta specials with crabmeat and scampi.

In the end I go for Linguine Di Mare Al Cartoccio - pipis, prawns, mussels & scallops, garlic, chilli & tomato, baked in parchment paper.

Sharen chooses Calamari Sant’Andrea dusted in flour and shallow-fried, with rocket and house dressing. Upon the waiter's recommendation we also have a salad of wild rocket, pear, shaved grana, extra virgin olive oil and white balsamic vinegar.

Food arrives quickly and it's delicious. My pasta has that al dente bite to it and the tomatoes are sweet but not over powering. The seafood is fresh. Admittedly there's not that much seafood and a few more mussels, pips and prawns wouldn't go amiss. I think there were two thin slices of scallop in there.

Sharen said positive things about the calamari and I really enjoyed the rocket salad. The leaves were flavoursome and the shaved cheese a great accompaniment.

Overall it was a positive experience. We discussed that it was a pricy option for lunch but it is more restaurant than café so higher prices are to be expected. The flavours, ambience and attention from the waitstaff was all good so we didn't feel that we were ripped off and we didn't begrudge paying the prices.

Friday night and it's double date night with Ling and Noah. We decided to head East and meet at Simon's Peiking Duck which has a reputation for having the best Peking duck in Melbourne.

Noah made the reservation and had pre ordered two ducks for the four of us. Basically one duck is done into Peking duck with the pancakes, then the meat is stir fried with either noodles or beansprouts and then the carcass is used to make soup. 

It's $55 per duck with the beansprouts and $63 for the noodles and one duck feeds 2 people or 3 if you order some other stuff. They do two sittings in one evening so we went for the later one at 8pm.

We arrived and Ling and Noah were already there. We were slightly delayed as we stopped to help some guys in our basement car park jump start their car. Simon's was a full house! The tables were close together and there was a little bit of "excuse me, could you move your chair slightly" so we could squeeze by and get to our window table.

Before long the duck starts to come out and this is what every table is waiting for and every table orders. The homemade panackes come out first and the waiter does a quick demo of where to put your spring onion and cucumber.

The crispy duck makes an entrance and it's all golden and glistening.

It's pile it on time and add a slosh of sauce before fold, fold, fold and voila!

It's incredibly unctuous, tasty and I'm not sure whether to use the word greasy or juicy. Greasy seems to have negative connotations but there's no denying that it is. I guess the grease does stop it from being super crispy but then super crispy may make it dry. This is far from dry and it is very good. The pancakes disappear quickly but no fear as round 2 of duck makes an appearance along with another bowl of sauce.

The other great thing is the pancake wrapper. Definitely home made and it just has that soft chew good bread has rather than the dry stuff that is shop bought.

By this time, we're up to our elbows in grease and wiping our fingers all over the paper table cloth. We weren't given serviettes or napkins and our first request for them doesn't materialise. Eventually we get one napkin each which isn't really sufficient. Service at Simon's is brisk and apart from the napkin scenario, on the whole efficient. Our teapot is filled regularly and the food arrives quickly.

After our dishes are cleared away, the next course arrives. No photos though as my hands are still too greasy! We have the duck stirfried with handmade noodles first then with beansprouts. My preference is for the noodles but the beansprout dish isn't bad.  The stir fry dishes are not as good as the Peking duck but nice enough. I wouldn't travel out of the city just for this course but I would for the whole shebang. There are some shitake mushrooms and other bits in the noodles. We ask for chilli sauce or oil and get a small dish of freshly chopped chillies.

Final course is the duck soup which is the Chinese broth like consomme soup. It's clear liquid and has the taste of duck. There are a couple of pieces of tofu, some green veg and the flavours of dried mandarin peel, star anise and pepper. It's okay but not amazing.

So at Simon's, the first course is super yummy, the second course is pretty tasty and the final course just ok. Lucky for Simon the first course is good enough to ca

A Sunday lunch quandary and we needed some inspiration. Not sure where to go we thought we'd head to Crown and see if lightning would strike. As it's also Father's Day we tried to quell expectations that we'd be able to get in anywhere and that most places would be over run by kids!

Anyway we had a bit of a wander up and down the strip. We marvelled at the massive queue outside Lucky Chan's and wondered why. Decided against joining them as there were too many pushchairs and hand held infants.

I encouraged Steve to go with Spice Temple as we've been wanting to try it and it didn't look too busy. Plus spicy food may mean less kiddies...

We asked if they had a table for two and they acommodated us. Our waitress apologised she couldn't give us a window seat but they were all booked out. We didn't mind and for the majority of our meal we had our little corner to ourselves.

The air smells of incense as befitting to it's moniker. The lighting is dim and there's an aura of pink around. The decor is pretty classy - opium den meets temple meets China and I think it would be a really nice date place on an evening.

After much deliberation over the menu, we opted for the $49 per head lunch menu as it seemed to offer a good choice of dishes we'd want to try. We also went for an extra quail main course as Barley and I can't resist a good quail dish.

Service was friendly and efficent and our wine and water glasses were kept topped up. Dishes were brought out quickly and the rice bowl replenished when necessary.

First out the starting blocks was the bang bang white cut chicken which was a deboned chicken breast set upon what looked like a fiery broth of chilli oil, sesame seeds and shredded cucumber. It actually looked a lot scarier than it was. The cold chicken was tasty and not mushy retaining some bite and the sauce was more sesame flavoured with warm tingle than being fiery hot. The accompanying pink cabbage and radish pickles were a good palate cleanser.

The next little appetiser was king prawn wonton with aged black vinegar dressing. We got one of these each and I could have eaten more. Such a tasty little morsel with a thin dumpling skin, tasty filling and lovely vinegary and soy ish dipping sauce with some fiery chilli oil floating in it. Delicious.

Next up was my favourite dish of the day - the crispy pork slider but to give it a three word name doesn't do it justice! The brioche bun was soft, golden and ever so slightly sweet. The accompanying coriander and cucumber added crunch, coolness and that wonderful coriander flavour. The fatty crispy pork and it's juices soaked through the brioche providing mouthfuls of tasty porkiness. More please! I'm not sure I can go back to the Vietnamese pork sandwich (banh mi) at South Melbourne market!

Our main dishes soon followed and we were treated to our add on dish which was stir fried quail and peanuts with steamed egg custard spicy, crunchy, creamy. This was Steve's dish of the day and yes it was very good.

The quail was actually minced and to be honest could have been any meat at all as it didn't taste particularly quail like. Having said that the flavours were awesome in this dish and the crunch of the peanuts added richness. The savoury egg custard soothed away the fire of the chillies and added a moisture to the meat. This was great mixed in with rice - comfort food at it's best.

This was pretty spicy but we couldn't help but want to eat more. Maybe it was the chillis releasing endorphins. It's definitely a happy dish. The flavours are exciting and the challenging chillis stretched our spice tolerances to the edge but the edge was a fun place to be!

Our remaining dishes were far from bland but they did help cool down the tingling lips.

The three shot chicken was heated on a gas stove behind us. Our waitress showed us the three shots - Tsingtao beer, chilli oil and soy and suggested we go for half the chilli oil given we'd maxed out on the spice levels from the previous dish. She poured all three shots into the claypot and let it bubble away on the stove for a few minutes before bringing it to us. The yellow bean sauce was salty and savoury and soaked into the shitake mushrooms. Again, a great dish with rice.

Chairman Mao pork is brased belly pork cooked to tenderness and the fat rendered into a gelatinous pulp. Again highly flavoured, slightly sweet this time. The stir fried Chinese broccoli provided some much needed veggie intake and the crisp clean flavour of it was a welcome contrast to the the highly spiced flavours we'd had so far.

We could not eat any more and all we wanted to do at this point was roll out of there all the way home and to the sofa to sit! We asked for the bill and were also given two little almond cookies which we ended up eating in spite of not being able to fit anything else in and they were deliciously crumbly.

Thoroughly enjoyed Spice Temple - if any friends of our's say they like spicy food, we'd definitely recommend them to  come here.

Friday night was date night and we decided to have an early dinner at Mamasita. We ummed and aahed about going to City Wine Shop for a bottle of wine beforehand but then just thought we'd go straight to Mamasita instead to guarantee no wait for a table.

It was a beautiful Melbourne evening; a little blustery but we enjoyed a really pleasant walk down Collins Street. As we neared the Holy Grail, we could see hordes of people lined outside and it was only 5pm!

This was my second time here and Steve's first and I was really up for a good feed and a fun time!

We hoped the masses of people were lining the street because the door hadn't opened yet. As we joined the end of the queue the door opened and we moved from being 50 yards outside the entrance to the actual entrance. We paused for a while at the bottom of the stairs and there were a couple of brief stops as we moved up the stairs but before long we were there!
 
An exchange of smiles later, and we were shown to two pretty good seats at the back of the restaurant where we had a good view all down the dining room. I think the tip the waiter gave me back when I first came which is to be really nice, certainly didn't hurt and it made for great service and we had a good time. I think it means a lot to stressed out, hardworking wait staff when customers show they're happy to be there and having a good time. I know I certainly appreciate it when my clients want to work with me than demand things from me.

Anyway we settled in and ordered some drinks. Steve commented that he found the little bar stool to be a little uncomfortable but I guess I have insulation on my behind so was pretty ok. I ordered a grapefruit and tequila slush thing which took a little getting used to; a bit too salty but I began to enjoy it more towards the end when it was less salty.

We made our way around Mexico with tasting different bottles of lager. Yes me; I drank lager! I think with all the great flavours of the food, lager actually went really well with it.

Last time I came, we simply asked the waiter to feed us and that was great. This time, having tried a few things, I had a better idea of what I wanted to eat and not eat so Steve and I made our own choices.

We started with a shot of pozolito which is a spiced pork soup with strip of tortilla chips and a wedge of lime. We were given little forks to pick out the pork meat and then share the broth that was left. This was ever so satisfying with warm, peppery flavours that made the tongue tingle. Perfect on a cold Winter's night and pretty good on a Melbourne Spring evening too!

Next were the amazing elotes callejeros which is effectively "street style" chargrilled corn ont he cob, queso, chipotle mayonnaise and lime. South America must be a happy place if everyone is roaming the streets eating corn on the cob on a skewer! This is Mamasita's signature dish I think and I love it so much. I can't eat normal corn on the cob anymore. I love the way every bite gets the cheese and the mayonnaise and the citrussy lime. Admittedly the cheese smells a bit like feet but it tastes so good.

And here end my pictures because I was told, in a very nice and friendly way I must say, to turn off my flash and subsequently the rest of the pictures didn't come out as lighting was not great. You'll have to rely on my descriptions instead.

Next up were the tostaditas which are little tortilla crisps with a topping on it. We went for de maíz which was more corn, black beans, epazote, jalapeño sals and queso fresco and also the pollo ones, chargrilled chicken, avocado, queso fresco and chipotle mayonnaise. Toppings were generous and these mounds of goodness along with a crispy tortilla crisp were a delight. I love the black beans even though they're vegetarian and the chicken ones were also so so tasty.

The lamb quesadilla that came next was actually nice and light and not too heavy. The tortilla wasn't greasy and the filling was just right.

We shared a small ceviche - ceviche de atún which was yellowfin tuna, blood orange, avocado, pickled jalapeno, lime, coriander and toasted sesame seeds. The flavours weren't as complicated as the description sounds. Tomato and tuna were the overriding tastes and it was fresh and tasty enough. It's like a poor man's take on the tuna and tomato dish at Jacques Reymond and I'd probably not bust a gut to have to order this one again but it was pleasant enough.

Our main course was the estofado de cabra - chipotle braised goat, roasted sweetcorn paste. The portion was generous and the meat tender. It came off the bone very easily and was rich and dark. Wrapped up in some tortilla it was rich and meaty. Got to admit though that the goat flavour wasn't particularly strong and it could have been lamb that we were eating.

We had absolutely no room for dessert and had to waddle our way back home. Upon reflection, the food was great at Mamasita and if the waiters treat you well it's a fun place to be. Our seats were a great viewing platform for people watching. I'd love to come here with 6 friends and Steve and just ask to be fed. It's fun to watch people eat with their hands and share the dishes - all very convivial and sociable. Sadly I know that Fridays and Saturdays are booked out till January and booking a table for February now seems a bit too premature even for me and I'm a planner.

When we return, the corn and the tostaditas are a must. I'm then open to trying different things and extending the repertoire. The rest of the dishes although very good, aren't mindblowingly so that they have to be experienced again. However the standard and quality provide me with the reassurance and confidence to try everything else including more beer!

We set up a double date to celebrate Ling's birthday. I wanted to get a reservation at Coda but was unsuccessful so we headed to Red Spice Road and decided to go with banquet 2 mainly because it was easier to order a set meal and it had lamb ribs on it.

We'd arrived a little early so enjoyed a drink in the courtyard under the heaters before heading to one of the giant communal tables. It's good that the tables are wide enough for all the dishes but you end up sat quite far apart so I felt I had to shout a couple of times to make myself heard by Ling and Noah.

Noah is allergic to prawns so we mentioned it wondering if they'd change the prawn curry but instead they assumed he was allergic to all shellfish so pretty much gave him a different menu! He didn't get a scallop or smoked salmon leaf and got a little tray of other things. The starters on the banquet menu included:

• Scallop with Cucumber, Crispy Turmeric & Green Nam Jim
• Betel Leaf with Smoked Salmon, Chilli, Kaffir Lime & Coriander
• Lamb Ribs with Chilli Salt, Cumin, Coriander & Lemongrass

The scallop was cooked really well and the tender sweet meat went well with the sharp lime flavours of the nam jim. The lamb ribs really stole the show though and were so good, Steve ordered another serve as one rib each was not enough. These lamb ribs are one of his favourite dishes in Melbourne! They have this wonderful blend of textures - crispy, tender and the coriander and chilli flavours are really zingy.

I didn't take pictures of the main dishes which were:

• Chicken, Saw Tooth Coriander, Tomato, Chilli and Red Onion Salad
• Pork Belly with Apple Slaw, Chilli Caramel & Black Vinegar
• Beef Slow Cooked With Black Pepper Sauce, Basil and Sugar Peas
• Prawn Green Curry with Baby Corn & Eggplants

We've had these dishes or similar the other times we've been to Red Spice Road and they were all flavoursome. Our rice bowl was re filled regularly. There was a bit of a time delay between the courses so by the time the beef and prawns arrived we were quite full. Noah received some vegetarin dishes in place of the beef and prawn courses. Apparently the beef dish does contain shellfish - we suspected it might be belacan or some form of shrimp paste.

The chicken salad was refreshing and light. The pork belly was as always, delicious. Steve commented that it was even better than previous times! The remaining two dishes were good but not as memorable as the previous offerings and really, everything pales into insignificance when compared to the lamb ribs!

Dessert was passionfruit cream with peanut praline, puffed wild wice & coconut ice cream. It's a nice and light end to the banquet. The coconut ice cream was a little too toasty in flavour for me and the wild rice although crunchy looked a little off putting - reminiscent of maggots.

Overally we really enjoyed the banquet. The food was plentiful and tasty and the ambience buzzy. It's a fun place to come for a double date or with friends.