Bazaar Marketplace

Cuisine: Buffet
7 Staghorn Ave
Surfers Paradise, QLD 4217

http://www.qtgoldcoast.com.au/food-drink/bazaar/

We arrived a lot earlier than our 7pm reservation as we were both very tired of walking around Gold Coast and just wanted to sit down and relax. We went in and asked if we were able to get seated and the fellow at the front was just extremely nice and accommodating. He brought us to our seats which went past all the scrumptious delicacies and he gave us a rundown of the dishes available for the night and how the marketplace concept works. (Buffet $69 per person)

The Bazaar Marketplace has a unique concept where not only can you grab your own food but they also encourage interaction with the chefs behind the counter just like a marketplace.  All dishes are not labelled which gives you the opportunity to ask the chefs and they will take down your table number when you ask for their made to order tasters. We really love the open kitchen and hanging food really sets the theme and also allowing you to peer in and watch the chefs at work.  

Salad station

Seafood station

Slow cooked roast station

Antipasti station

We ordered a 250mL Brown Brothers Shiraz to start off with which came in an adorable small decanter and our waitress for the night professionally poured into our pristine deep glasses. 

Then off we went to dig in starting from the very front of the line of stations. We were given our plates and was immediately asked whether we wanted to start off with their tasting plate which consisted of deep fried mini tortilla with beef and spicy sauce, croquette and prawn with black bean. Of course we did! Our mission was to try EVERYTHING tonight. He noted down our table number and we continued on and got our first round of fresh seafood. 

When we got back to our table, the tasting plate was already set down and waiting for us and a bowl of lemon water and empty bowl for our seafood shells. We loved the presentation on the wooden board great portioning allowing us to try bits without having to commit to a large plateful. 

Seafood was definitely fresh and sweet. The prawns in particular were my favourite as they were thick and meaty. The mussels only had a small crack open to peruse the meat out so it was extremely hard which I gave up and had to get Michael to help me. 

Some hot foods here with gard fish which we would not recommend to those who do not like small bones.

Usually we would not touch the vegetarian selections but we decided to give it a try for our readers. Vegetarians do not have to worry as they have an assortment of vegetarian dishes available which are just as delicious. 

Sirloin steaks were made to order with choice of rarity and side of smoked paprika salt. We opted for rare and it was so tender and juicy with lightly seared edges, we had to go for seconds.

There is an Asian food station which has prawn crackers, beef curry, chicken curry, dimsims like char siu bao, har gao and siu mai as well as other mainstream Eastern dishes. 

Part of their Dessert station

We love desserts so we took one of everything which included: popping candy chocolate, rhubarb crumble, mini chocolate muffins, custard, lemon cake, mud cake, meringue, macaroons of different flavours, lamingtons and more (in no particular order). The sizes were small and perfect giving us the opportunity to enjoy each piece while still allowing room to try everything else. 

Overall

Michael and I had an amazing dining experience with their table service buffet concept. The staff executed exceptional service especially noted by their consistency in neatly refolding our serviettes every time we left our table. It is best to go there with the intention for an experience rather than having a lot of variety.  Atmosphere is classy yet casual which would be perfect for any special occasion for any number. 

Food: 8.5/10
Service: 10/10 
Cost: Higher Priced
Overall dining experience: 9/10

RockSalt Modern Dining

Cuisine: Modern Australian
Shop 12, 20 Albert Avenue 
Broadbeach, QLD 4218
http://www.rocksaltmoderndining.com.au/ 

This 1 chef's hat restaurant was voted Best Contemporary Restaurant for South East Qld 2012 as well as their own Executive Chef and Owner, Matt Jefferson, winning Gold Coast Magazine's People's Choice Awards for Chef of the Year 2009, 2010 and 2011. This place has quite a few awards up their sleeves since opening in 2008.

Typically, we would not expect a restaurant of this calibre to be fully open facing the streets. It is a contrast to the more enclosed fine dining experience in Melbourne but it really works in their favour with the warm weather in Gold Coast, keeping it casual yet classy.

There was so much we wanted to try so we went for the 8 course degustation meal ($125pp or $200pp with matching wine) to allow us to try a variety of the chef's specialty. 

1. Pacific Oyster: Vietnamese dressing, pickled vegetables

We were wowed at the assortment of colours and beautiful presentation. The oyster was fresh and cooling however dressing lacked flavour. It sat on a bed of seaweed salad, propping the shell stably and adding another element to the plate. What we most adored about this dish was the colourful scatter of pickled vegetables complimenting each other perfectly. 

 2. An Exercise in Seasonal Spontaneity: A course decided by the chef at the time of ordering, spontaneous and fresh. 

This spontaneous dish consisted of prosciutto, scallop, lobster salad, Brazilian root tapioca (the small green balls) and pickled daikon slice showcasing the chef's creative flare. There were quite a few different flavours and textures in this dish. Every element was beautifully done however we were unable to appreciate the root tapioca.

 3. Pave of Tasmanian Salmon: Jerusalem artichoke puree, almond and caper polonaise, sauce cert, spanner crab croquette. 

Not only is the dish plated with care, the plate itself adds interest for the eyes. Crisp skin for both croquette and salmon with a complementing sweet puree. 

After the third course, we have used up all our cutlery and was presented with another 3 sets for the next ones to follow. Every piece of silverware was placed neatly and precisely which shows their care for detail. 

4. Slow Cooked Beef Cheek: Master stock, lemon perfumed parsnip skordalia, sprouts, radish, sea tangle and sweet ginger. 

The beef cheek was tender and topped with some seaweed salad ('sea tangle'), enochi mushrooms and onion, it balances the heaviness of the meat. The meat was however a bit too sweet for our palate's liking. 

Palate cleanser: Watermelon and citrus fruit ice

Although this wasn't an actual dish per se, we really enjoyed this palate cleanser. It had just the right blend of fruits and was very refreshing. It is also very cute that it was presented in a 'bent plastic cup' figured cup. 

 5. Rare Seared Venison: Juniper, smoked celeriac puree, bacon and granola, black trompette, shiraz jus

Another very interesting plate. Tender, bloody, just lovely. The addition of bacon felt very unusual to us as it didn't seem to match the the other ingredients. Who would have thought granola could be incorporated in a savoury dish like this, yet it added the perfect texture with the meat. 

 6. Epoisse: Melted, dehydrated tomato, apple balsamic, torn basic, pickled mustard seed

The male waiter we had for the night was very well informed, explaining to us the dishes in detail for every plate he brought out. This one, the epoisse (cheese) is aged in orange wine. It has a very strong taste resembling blue cheese. The tomato and citrus flavours help cut the strong taste. When the cheese was tasted with mustard seed, it brought out the strong cheesiness even more. 

After this course, we had a very long wait before our dessert courses were served. The wait seemed just too long... But the after seeing the first dessert we can definetely overlook it!

 7. Callebaute Milk Chocolate Creameux: Peanut butter powder, chocolate soil, hazelnut dust, Frangelico jelly, brown bead ice cream

This was definitely our favourite dish of the night. Chocolate cookie crumbs, the smooth, richness of the chocolate ice cream and the squishy jelly and nuts. Everything together was was like heaven in our mouth. 

 8. Strawberries and Cream 2013: Madagascan vanilla and rose parfait, textures of strawberry, dust, cloud, leather, thyme powder and rose mastic

After our favourite dish of the night, we ended with our least favourite dish. A few rose water gummy candies tasted strongly of rose. Leather strawberry fruit reminded me of the dried fruit roll up snacks we used to have when younger. Strawberry cloud was a light and fluffy as the name would suggest. This plate had flavours of rose and strawberries in different textures that I can imagine we would have liked if we enjoyed rose flavoured delicacies.  

This was a very light flavour after the chocolate. Our preference would have been to have the lighter dessert first and end in the rich chocolate. But we can understand the reason why the menu was done this way as the strawberries and cream is a good palate cleanser. 

Overall

The service was impeccable with the gentleman, however the waitress of the night lacked in terms of food knowledge and ignored the sound of broken glassware on another table. We would have rated the service higher if not for the inconsistency between the two waiters as our waters were always filled and asked if we wanted anything else when we finished our wines. The food was beautifully presented with unique plates showing the chef's creativity. Downside to the night was that we were not holding our stomachs after 8 courses however the degustation meal was a memorable experience that we enjoyed.

Food: 7.5/10
Service: 7.5/10 
Cost: Higher Priced
Overall dining experience: 8/10

Muso Ramen Noodle and Gyoza Bar

Cuisine: Japanese 
Shop 2B/2484 Gold Coast Hwy, Mermaid Beach 
Mermaid Beach, QLD 4218

When waiting for our ride home after dinner from Itoshin, we saw that next door was a ramen place that was fully packed. In our quest to search for the best ramen (outside Japan) we decided to should go to the place, Muso, the next day. 

Inside, we were impressed how clean the place was and a peek into the kitchen you can eye their noodle-making machine that makes their fresh store-made noodles. They have few selection of ramen and 2 rice dishes and gyoza (dumplings). All ramen have a choice of miso/soy for soup base, thin/thick noodles, extra topping (eg minced garlic, pork fat belly are free while others come at an extra cost). You order and pay at the counter then receive a table number with self-serviced lemon water. . 

Muso tonkatsu spicy miso ($14) with extra garlic, thin noodles

When our food arrived we were impressed with the portioning. There were lots of toppings of seaweed and spring onions. The texture of the noodles were on the softer side but that may also be because we ordered thin noodles and I eat very slow allowing more it to absorb the soup base. The soup was exceptionally thick and mildly spicy. Halfway through my bowl we realised we could adjust the thickness of the soup with dashi stock available in a flask on the counter. This made it much more enjoyable without the thick gunky feeling going down my throat. 

Tonkatsu black ($14) miso soup, thin noodles

As was with the tonkatsu spicy miso, the soup was very thick and flavourful. We recommend if you want chewier ramen ask for thick noodles instead of thin. The normal sized bowls were already generous serves but if you extra famished you have the option to upsize to large and order extra noodles.

We ordered the Mini braised pork rice bowl ($4) as it looked interesting on the table next to us. We were told to add their "ramen punch sauce" for extra flavour and mix it in. After mixing in the egg into the rice, it gives an overall wet sticky consistency. The braised pork has a light Chinese char siu flavour and with the small portioning it is a good entree dish. 

Pan fried pork gyoza ($6) was juicy and full of filling with thin skin. Skin was not crispy enough for our preference however the light humble dumpling flavour is delicious. 

Overall 

A laidback atmosphere with friendly staff, you will be enjoy this place even more if you are a fan of rock music as it appears the owner has an appreciation for this genre with Pink Floyd and ACDC posters decorating the walls and rock music playing. It is the richest soup base we've ever and can nearly taste the hours it must have taken to get that flavour intensity. 

Food: 6/10

Service: 6/10 

Cost: Reasonable

Overall dining experience: 7/10

Black Coffee Lyrics

Cuisine: Tapas 

3131 Surfers Paradise Blvd Shop 41 Centre Arcade 

Surfers Paradise,QLD 4217
www.blackcoffeelyrics.com.au 

Food: 6.5/10
Service: 5/10 
Cost: Reasonable
Overall dining experience: 5.5/10

Checkout from our apartment was at 10am, so we decided not to make breakfast for our last day and indulge in some brunch. We had long ago decided upon Black Coffee Lyrics as our brunch destination due to their impressive feat of placing #1 on Urbanspoon for Gold Coast Restaurants and conveniently this month started opening for lunch during the week.

Nestled upstairs in Centre Arcade, we arrived around 10:30 to realise they weren’t open until 12pm on the Friday. Slightly disappointed we went to kill time until opening hour.

At 12 we arrived and quickly got seated outside. We started off with our much needed coffees that the restaurant personally roasts. My cappucinno ($4) was oddly bitter as there was not a strong coffee taste. Michael’s latte ($4) again did not taste of coffee but very milky. The only thing we can commend about their coffee is the well done smooth froth and coffee art.

We ordered their lunch specials tapas board - 2 medium ($25) to get some variety and a single dish as we worried the portion would be big. We chose the yellowfin tuna and pork belly for the tapas board and the Hens egg separate. We should have realised that the place specialising in tapas, the quantity would not be substantial. 

Yellowfin tuna ($19) – Mooloolaba yellowfin tuna marinated in house –soy miran dressing with white miso eggplant puree, crab meat, daikon, shiso, spring onions and bonito flakes 

The tuna was very fresh with a sweet puree and texturised 'salad' mixture on the top adding a delicate touch. Although, I myself felt that the combination was to good proportion, Michael felt the puree sauce was too overpowering that it detracted from the fresh fish; to each their own. 

Pork belly ($16) – 5  hour slow cooked pork belly served with house made kimchi, seared scallop on a pear chutney and pear reduction

What tastes like glorified chinese pork belly, the skin was crisp and meat tender. Served on top of a bed of kimchi and broadbeans, the 'kimchi' was just pickled cabbage. It did not have the red punch of colour nor flavourful spices that usually associated with the term 'kimchi'.  The scallop on the side (apologies the scallop was not photographed at this angle) was nicely seared and sweet. The dash of sauce too salty and overpowering on its own but coupled with the pork belly it creates a harmonious touch.

Hens egg  ($15)– 1 hour slow cooked free range egg, on a wild rice cake, pickled bamboo, daikon and shitake mushrooms with miso glaze and sprinkled herbs (or with tempe) 

We decided to try this dish as we wondered how a '1 hour slow cooked' egg was different to the typical methods of cooking an egg. Much to our disappoint, the egg was just like a very runny poached egg. And as Michael and I both come from an Asian household, the ingredients in this dish did not impress. The bamboo shoots likely came from a can purchased from an Asian grocer, the shitake mushroom was very salty and rice ball had no flavour. When attempted in eating all the elements together the mixture of flavours was an improvement and the mint and parsley added a nice touch. 

Overall  

It is hard to tell if the place is a coffee shop, restaurant or bar. We were disappointed that their menu was not what we had expected (fault in our part due to lack of research) as we expected typical brunch plates such as eggs benedict and so forth. I believe the weekend would be different as they do have their own separate breakfast menu however I will not be ordering coffee there again. 

It seems this would be a better place for dinner or drinks rather than lunch as they have a large assortment of beer, wine and cocktails and the interior decoration makes you feel you have been whisked away to a Melbourne laneway; very chill and relaxed.