Der Raum, Richmond - exclusive bar with character

The last time I visited Der Raum (and also the first) was about 5 years ago for a friend's 21st birthday. I've never been nor am now a big alcohol drinker so bars had never really been my kind of thing. I remember back then, Der Raum's frontage was fully open and you could see into the bar from the street. Customers could enter freely and the bar was very busy.

Last Friday, I had a drink there with Winwin and to my surprise, Der Raum has become completely exclusive! Even with Googlemaps, I had to question whether I was at the right place as the exterior was completely dark and there were no signs to be found, not even its name! It turns out that Der Raum has introduced a membership policy where you can join the limited and exclusive members list in exchange for $250 a year and you get a keypass where you can swipe yourself in freely during all trading hours. It also comes with benefits such as priority bookings for large bookings, a birthday treat (a signature punch bowl worth about 15 full size cocktails), discounted drinks on Monday nights, discounted spirits and many more. Sounds like a good deal for Der Raum fans. However, non-members do not fear as they still accept bookings although that's based on availability (obviously members come first).

Just remember to ring the intercom when you're at the door and a friendly waiter will open the door for you. Apparently if you haven't made a booking beforehand and you ring the doorbell, you will not be let in even if there is space.

It was nice to see that they still had all the hanging bottles at the bar counter which was a beautiful and fascinating sight to see. They do actually use these to make the drinks which shows that they have quite a comprehensive spirits list. My photo doesn't do the counter justice since the bottles hang all around it. The menu changes by the season and this is the current one.

As soon as we ordered our drinks, the waitress came up and offered us a small complimentary drink. What a nice little surprise and look how beautiful it was! I'm terrible at remember names, especially alcohol ingredients but I did catch lavender and Bianco (vermouth) with what I assume was dry ice vapour inside. The dark lighting made the drink even more mysterious. It was good that this drink didn't have too much alcohol in it since I can't take alcohol at all and even finishing the one drink I ordered would have been difficult.

I took the top one without lighting assistance but I wasn't sure how it would turn out so I got Winwin to turn on her iPhone 4G's back light for me. Silly me forgot to adjust the white balance back and the photo turned very blue. So blue that I actually quite like it so here it is! :)

I ordered a Zombie which includes pineapple, citrus, apricot, caramelised passionfruit, spices and of course Bacardi rum for $25. I couldn't really taste the individual fruits apart from the obvious passionfruit as there were many seeds and large pieces at the bottom of the drink. However, it was definitely fruity and has a non-overpowering but sweet flavour. The rum was at a bearable strength which I was glad about.

The drink was also topped with half a passionfruit shell which had caramelised sugar inside. The sugar can be added to the drink at the drinker's discretion depending on how sweet they like it to be. I found it to be about right so didn't need to add anymore sugar. Although I did add some in at the end just to test it out and see if it made any different. Maybe I was so drunk already but I couldn't really tell.

Winwin ordered the Latin Threesome for $22 and includes smoked fruits, sugarcane, grape, citrus, Sagatiba Pura Cachaca (a Brazilian rum), Pisco Control (Chile) and Havana Club Anejo Reserva(Cuba). I'm not certain whether these are the exact alcohols used but as they weren't listed anywhere, I took the liberty of searching it up online and came across afoodstory.com.au which I presume listed their old menu items. Latin Threesome is a classic and I believe stays on the menu while some others change with the season. It was quite a lot stronger in alcoholic taste compared to mine as the cup was smaller and the ice wasn't all that melted. I think I preferred mine more just because it wasn't as strong. Ok, alcohol experts, I admit I'm not good with drinking, but it's in my Asian blood and runs in the family. I seriously die with only 1-2 drinks. Life isn't fair!

Belgian Beer Cafe Bluestone, St Kilda

Have you ever felt utter frustration for something that can't be changed? Even worse, having to endure it for many times over. Getting visas for China is one of those frustrating tasks that I loath but must do. The visa application centre used to be part of the Chinese Consulate in Toorak but in recent years changed to a privately owned company in St Kilda. The wait in line became twice as long and the application prices were almost twice as much. Nevertheless, if you want to go to China, you must apply for one. My most recent dilemma was when I dropped off my friend's passport along with mine and as she had never been to China before, they asked for her birth certificate which I didn't know was needed. So, I had to go to the visa application centre 3 times during one week and had to wait 2 hours at both drop-offs and about half an hour for the pickup. It's a sad life it is!

I almost forgot the moral of the story. If you also find yourself stuck in the visa dilemma, fear not because you can take out your anger and frustrations by having a hearty meal and/or a drink or two at the Belgian Beer Cafe Bluestone just across the road from the Visa Application Centre. It was the only thing I looked forward to and we ate there twice in that one week.

It's a nice beer drinking environment with seating both inside and outside. They have a good collection of spirits, wines and flavoured beers for you to choose from if the regular beers don't take your fancy as well as different menus for beer food and proper meals. However I was told only beer food and drinks are allowed to be consumed outside.

First day lunch

We went to the Belgian Beer Cafe the first time I dropped off the passports when it was already 3pm. Lucky it doesn't close in the afternoon like some restaurants do.

We started off the meal with beer of course. Well, to be specific, Yuye had beer. It was a Cheeky Rascal Raspberry & Apple Cider for $9.50 by Rebello Wines, which is a branch of the famous Sunny Ridge strawberry farm in Mornington Peninsula. A few friends and I are actually planning a strawberry and cherry picking day there tomorrow so I will be writing about our adventures some time later. It was a refreshing and sweet drink that tasted like summer, a perfect start to our long awaited meal and soothed our worn souls quite well.

Cheeky Rascal Raspberry & Apple Cider (Mornington Peninsula) - $9.50

I was going to drive home and since I was so tired already, I didn't want to drink anything alcoholic. What do I choose when I don't want alcohol? Lemon lime and bitters of course ($3.50). There was quite a lot of bitters and syrup in the drink but was still thirst quenching enough to keep me happy.

Lemon Lime & Bitters - $3.50

Complimentary bread and butter were served and interestingly enough they're served in paper bags. I love surprises so when I see a bag full of things, I will always smile even if I know what the content is. The bread was fresh and yummy, but I find I always stuff myself with too much bread at the beginning and can't finish my actual meal.

Complimentary bread served in a paper bag

A lot of people go to the Belgian Beer Cafe just to eat their mussel pots and drink the beer. It's weird but it seems that the Belgian Beer Cafe had in fact cured my previous dislike for mussels as Yuye loves them and orders a pot every time he eats there. This time was no different. He ordered his favourite Mariniere pot which is mussels cooked in white wine, celery, onion, leek and thyme for $28. As always, the mussels were perfectly cooked and seasoned. We were licking our fingers and lips and sucking those mussels out of their shells like there was no tomorrow.

Mariniere mussel pot with white wine, celery, onion, leek & thyme - $28

Mussel pots also come with a bowl of chips and homemade mayo. I love fatter chips so these were great with our meal. The mayo was so rich and creamy that I couldn't eat too much of it in one go. It was one of the better mayos I've had in restaurants.

Chips and mayo that came with the Mariniere pot

You get a separate lid like pot to throw all the empty mussel shells in and the waiter will come around every so often to change it when it overflows. The mountains of shells always impress me.

Empty mussel shells ready to be taken away

Look at that white wine sauce at the bottom of the pot! Yuye and I were scooping it up and drinking it like a soup. It was so buttery and rich it actually made me quite full.

I had wanted something different so I chose the pork belly which was twice-cooked with chilli caramel, apple, fennel and salted prawn salad. The skin was perfectly crispy albeit being slightly on the burnt side. The meat I found a tiny bit tough although quite tasty. Obviously it had been cooked long enough for the flavours to enter. It also went quite well with the salad which was sweet and minty. It managed to turn the somewhat heavy meal into a lighter, healthier feeling dish. I know, it's all in my mind…

Twice cooked pork belly - $29

It doesn't look too impressive from the front but boy the dish was huge! It was two whole pieces of pure meat. I thought I was going to fit in dessert afterwards but I was wrong.

Second day lunch

We came here again when I finally picked up the passports a few days later. It was like a celebration for finally getting the visas done. Celebrations can't do without some form of alcohol, especially when the weather was great, so I decided to join Yuye by ordering a beer of my own. I don't really like regular beers so a flavoured one was chosen. It was the Grisette Cerise for $9.50, a cherry flavoured beer that's only 3.5 percent alcohol. It's an imported beer from Belgium that is very sweet, refreshing and not that beer tasting. It was perfect for me since I don't like beer, but avid beer lovers might not give this drink a thumbs up. I thought it looked very pretty too with the bright red colour and huge layer of white foam on top.

Grisette Cerise (cherry flavoured beer from Belgium) - $9.50

Yuye felt like being a bit girly too and chose Monteith's Crushed Pear Cider for $9. This one was not as sweet and stronger in alcohol, which I thought was more refreshing and nicer tasting. Monteith's is an old brand from New Zealand and also includes the crushed apple cider and traditional beers. Their ciders are made from real fruit, not concentrate. This beverage is available from Dan Murphy's if you fancy drinking it at home.

Monteith's Crushed Pear Cider (NZ) - $9

Yuye, not surprisingly again ordered a pot of mussels. This time it was the Espanol with chorizo, green olives, smoked paprika, tomato and red wine also for $28. It was so much more filling than the previous pot because of the chorizo and olives but we both agreed that the Mariniere was better. It was in no way bad, in fact it was quite delicious as I love tomato based dishes. The only flaw about this dish is that it had less sauce than the Mariniere so the mussels themselves were sometimes a bit bland. Eating the mussels with chorizos and olives helped but that made us very full.

Espanol mussel pot with chorizo, olives, smoked paprika, tomato & red wine - $28

I wanted to be smart this time round and 'order less' so I could finally fit in dessert. I really wanted to try the waffles. Was I smart? Not at all. For some stupid reason I thought ordering three beer food dishes would be less than a main. It totally wasn't. Regardless of this, I was still very satisfied with what I ordered since they were all very nice and I managed to taste many different dishes at once! The first dish was steak tartare or what's called Fillet Americain for $14. It came with hand-cut raw steak tartare, croutons and horseradish cream.

Fillet Americain (steak tartare) - $14

The first thing I noticed was the lack of egg yolk on top which was a disappointment. The second thing I noticed was the sheer amount of gherkins and capers mixed into the steak tartare. It was way too much and made it too sour. I think an egg yolk would have softened the sour taste and made it a lot nicer. I did like the pickled onions although I probably preferred to eat them by themselves.

The croutons I believe were made from the same bread as the complimentary ones we got at the beginning of the meal. They were very crunchy and easy to pick up the steak tartare with. The croutons were also very filling, another reason why we shouldn't have ordered this dish even though they were nice.

The second dish I ordered as recommended by the waiter was the crispy chicken ribs marinated in cider, honey and mustard for $9. It came with 4 pieces of fantastic chicken ribs that were heavenly to bite into. Yes it was a bit oily but hey, I wasn't there to eat healthy! The batter was so crispy they crumbled as soon as I sank my teeth into them. The meat inside was a perfect contrast of tenderness and juiciness that I could have eaten them all day. The ribs disappeared instantly. The sauce was nutty, almost like a satay sauce and went well with the chicken, although I preferred a bit of lemon on it to make it less oily (I used the lemon from the croquettes).

Crispy chicken ribs - $9

The last dish of the day was the manchego cheese & smoked cod croquettes for $8.50. This came with 5 small cheesy fried balls that were tasty although a little bland. The lemon helped and so did the nutty sauce from my chicken ribs. Maybe they should include the dipping sauce for this dish too to give it a bit more flavour. It was so creamy though that it was hard to finish, especially with so many other things to eat too.

Manchego cheese & smoked cod croquettes - $8.50

3 Double 2, Prahran

Prahran Market is one of my favourite fresh produce markets to visit. Although not that big, it has a large variety to browse and choose from, not to mention, it houses the awesome Essential Ingredient shop. I obviously can't afford to buy a lot of the things in the store (such as fresh truffles…), but just wandering through the store makes the girl in me giggle with joy. There are so many interesting ingredients that I wouldn't know where to buy otherwise.

I also love Fujimart, a Japanese grocery and house goods store right next to the market. This store is a definite visit every time Yuye and I are in the vicinity. You can pretty much purchase all the ingredients for making a great Japanese meal here as well as any plates and bowls that take your fancy, or even a bottle of sake to go with dinner!

Prahran is not only good for the market but also for the variety of restaurants and cafes in the area. Across the road is a cafe called 3 Double 2 where we enjoyed a very late lunch last week before rushing to the market. It is obviously named after the number of the store on busy Chapel St which I thought was ingenious because we would never forget where it is located. Although the decorations in the cafe were minimal, it still had comfy seats with soft velvety cushions that I could lean back on and interesting chandeliers to take my attention away from ordering my meal. I always take a long time deciding what to eat because I get distracted by my surroundings. Not a good thing this time as we were rushing to go the market before they close at 5pm.

Across from where we were seated was a DJ area with a turntable and music event posters stuck on the wall. I can just imagine this place full of livelihood and loud music at night when the crowd rushes in for after work mingling and late night drinks. Although their bar isn't the biggest around, it has all the essentials.

I started with a lemon lime and bitters ($3.50), my usual non-alcoholic drink when I can't decide what else to have. It was cold and refreshing, but perhaps needed a little more bitters to give it that extra bit of flavour.

Yuye ordered a dish off the specials board, a T-Bone steak with wedges and salad ($15). For such a cheap price, I was expecting something small and unappetising. However, I was surprised. The meat was well cooked and still rare in the middle (like how we wanted it) and there was plenty of meat and pepper sauce to keep Yuye happy. The wedges were crispy and well seasoned, however the salad was slightly oily, perhaps because of too much dressing.

I ordered lamb fillets with feta cheese, spinach, tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, grilled potatoes and topped with tzatziki sauce for $22. It was a plate full of fresh vibrant colours and made me salivate just looking at it. The flavours were wonderfully complemented by each other and I actually felt healthy eating it. I also loved the textures that the feta, salad and potatoes had which made this dish very interesting. Although the lamb was well cooked as you can see, still red in the middle, it was a little too tough for my liking. However, this was a very minor issue given how good the dish was overall. I would have loved just that tiny bit more tzatziki sauce though, without the sauce, the lamb became a little on the bland side.

The Alchemist Cocktail & Tapas Bar, Fitzroy

Whenever I think of alchemists I think of people in cloaks drawing weird circles on the ground, creating fire from thin air, reviving the dead and making weird and wonderful things out of whatever are lying around. The influence was, of course, from watching too much Japanese animations, especially the one called Fullmetal Alchemist where two kids go on a journey to find the Philosopher's Stone in order to retrieve body parts that were lost in a failed attempt to revive their dead mother. I would never dare to revive the dead. How scary is that? If I was an alchemist, I would be the world's best pastry chef where I can make perfect desserts every time as long as I have the ingredients in front of me and what's better than doing it instantly by clicking my fingers together? :D. Oh, I might also make myself pretty clothes and handbags so I'd never have to go shopping again. Ah…I'm daydreaming…

The Alchemist Cocktail & Tapas Bar, situated in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Brunswick St Fitzroy, which is also a neighbour of Naked For Satan, is another bar that I've recently visited and liked. Prior to this adventure, I've never really fully enjoyed going to bars. I believe this could have been the influence of my Asian flush genes which renders me unable to drink more than one standard drink at any one time.

I liked the name and the idea behind the bar. The decorations are fitting although the open space in the middle of the room makes the place seem a little less mysterious. Maybe they should draw some alchemist circles on the ground! What I definitely liked was their website. If you haven't already done so, check it out at http://www.thealchemistbar.com.au/, it's very unique and a bit of fun to look at. I felt like I was casting spells!

They have a nice collection of alcohols available. Cocktails on average cost around $20 a glass. For the quality and size we got, I didn't think it was all that fantastic. It was by no means bad, maybe I'm just not used to such expensive drinks as I'm reasonably new to the drinking scene.

The cocktail I got was The Fifth Muskateer for $20 which is described as 'a beautifully balanced, punch-style cocktail with dried fruit and citrus flavours, made with Appleton 8yr old rum, classic muscat, Aperol, house-made pomegranate syrup and lemon. This is a hearty drink to enjoy at anytime.' The grapes were fresh so I'm not sure where the dried fruit comes in. It was definitely rummy in flavour but the citrus didn't stand out. It wasn't my favourite drink ever. Mind you the photo below is a bit deceiving because Yuye took a sip or two from the glass already.

I was there to catch up with Winwin and meet her friends so we got a few plates of bar food to share. The night was still young and the truth was, I was very hungry. Maybe I should have just ordered some mains and eaten dinner there! The snacks were nice though and freshly cooked. I didn't get to try the salt and pepper squid ($12). By the time I realised, they were already gone! Shows how good they were I think.

Naked For Satan, Fitzroy

There's something about the name 'Named For Satan' that intrigues people, at least it intrigues me. I think it's the kind of imagery that are conjured up in our sinful minds when we think of those words, and of course, the sinful cravings for something vodka and something pintxo.

The tapas bar that is situated on busy Brunswick St in Fitzroy has been the centre of attention since its opening in October last year. The word Pintxo comes from Basque Country in Spain, a popular tapas enjoyed mostly in bars and taverns while accompanying glasses of wine or beer and is the main attraction of this trendy, shiny bar along with its many flavoured vodkas. But of course, they also serve coffees and non-alcoholic beverages for those more able to control their sinfulness.

I'm not sure what Satan has to do with all the coppery tubes and ornaments that is so prevalent throughout the bar but it sure gives it a touch of extra funkiness.

This place works on an honour system where you grab a plate from the front counter and load it up with as many pintxos as you fancy and take it back to your table. Make sure you keep all of the toothpicks stuck in each pintxo as these are used to count how many you had. At the end of your meal, bring all of the toothpicks to the cashier and pay for your meal. They are 80 cents each for lunch monday through to friday as well as dinner from monday to wednesday. They are $2 for all other times. Quite reasonable if you ask me. I know they used to be 50 cents each during off-peak, however, it seems they had recently increased their prices. 50 cents was just too crazy of a price, even 80 cents is enough to get me running over during weekdays. If only I lived a bit closer :(.