I went to Bivouac for a night out with a group of friends. Bivouac means a temporary camp without tents or cover, so I’m not sure how that is related to a cool restaurant in Northbridge that uses free range, organic and local produce. In fact there were a few things that didn’t fit with the theme of the restaurant. The setting was quite casual and relaxed. I was interested in trying something from the ‘Secret Menu’, which was in fact just the specials. They also had a quirky menu naming system, large plate and small plate for entree and mains, for some of the beverages, there was grapes, apples & pears, for wine and cider!

We shared some of the dishes, and the food was excellent quality. We tried Haloumi salad (gri lled haloumi, rocket, pine nuts, sour cherries and grilled zucchini), goat chops (gin gin goat chops with chermoula rub), freekah chicken (freekeh, cinnamon poached mt barker chicken, almond & pine nuts), porchini croquettes, manoushi, quattro formaggi (4 cheese and mushroom) pizza, greek lamb pizza, mechuoi lamb (moroccan mechoui lamb, eggplant puree, date & preseved lemon relish), and to finish up we managed to squeeze in the panna cotta, baklava, and the secret tart (dark chocolate tart with turkish delight). Hmm …all were scrumptious, but my favourites were the croquettes, the haloumi salad and the morrocon lamb!

The service was quite slow, which fit with the relaxed feel of the place, but very friendly and helpful.  There was also a selection of art work for sale around the walls, interesting pieces but not something I would hang at home.  We had quite a bit to eat and shared a couple of bottles of wines between us and it still was only about $50 each, pretty good value.

Other Things You Should Know

• open Tuesday to Saturday late
• no bookings taken
• licenced

Location & Contact

• address: 198 William St, Northbridge, WA 6003
• phone: 08 9227 0883
• web: bivouac.com.au

It is the very unusual menu items that drew me to Novembar, though it is the attention to producing a fun and quality hamburger experience that makes it such a great place to eat. If you are a food adventurer or burger aficionado, there are quite a few burgers on the menu you should try, and it will take you quite a few visits to sample them. Some of the burgers were created just for fun, the owner not rally expecting people to actually buy them, but he has been surprised that there have been some takers for the $1000 Hello Burger.

I feel a bit like a cheat only ordering just the Lot Burger, but it enabled me to compare it to other burger joints. The bun was nicely toasted, the patty handmade and moist, and containing a good amount of bacon, cheese and egg. It certainly would rank as a great burger. Now that I have had the standard, I’m going to return, and maybe even try the Fatboy!

The ‘Fatboy’

Another reason to come back to this place is the owner Minh Van, it is very refreshing to be served by such a genuinely friendly person.  He is happy to tell you all about his burgers and the issues he has with the health police! If you don’t agree with super-sized high kilojoule takeaway food, don’t go there. If you don’t agree with risking hospitalisation with a hyper chilli burger, choose something milder on the menu.

Here are some of the menu highlights:

• Fat Boy ‘Man v Fat-Boy challenge – pay $1/minute for this 7-pattie burger
• Red Face and Runny Nose Burger: chili burger that uses the Bhut Jolokia, the worlds hottest chili. You have to sign a disclaimer and risk hospitalisation if you try this one. This is free if you finish it in less than 10 minutes.
• fried ice-cream burger
• Hello Burger – 101 patty burger for $1000
• Beach Girl Burger – a real bikini clad beach girl between a couple of buns
• and my favourite – the scent burger, so small it is basically the scent of a burger.

Other Things You Should Know

• they also have chips, pizza, pasta, chicken, steak, seafood and coffee
• open every day except Tuesday
• make sure you are hungry before you go

Location & Contact

• address: 4 Bayley St, Dianella, WA 6059
• phone: 08 9275 7788
• web: none

We only went here as it was pouring rain and we jumped out of a taxi and walked straight into this restaurant. It is located conveniently at the end of the restaurant strip on Jalan Alor. This place looked inviting and clean, is busy, but the food is nothing special and the service wooden. The food is overpriced, you are much better off heading just next door or any one of the many places along the road actually. On the menu is a mix of Chinese/Cantonese dishes, Malay dishes and other Asian styles.

On arrival there is a small bowl of peanuts on the table, presumably complimentary. You wont find out that they are not until you get the bill and find you have been charged RM3 if you have eaten them. You are not told there is a charge for the peanuts, so be wary.

Other Things You Should Know

• the restaurant is located on the corner of Jalan Alor and Jalan Changkat Bukit Bintang, underneath the View Hotel
• there are a few other Dragon View restaurants around, maybe not related

Location & Contact

• address: Changkat Bukit Bintang | Golden Triangle, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• phone: (03) 2142 4111
• web: none

I didn’t expect much from this place as I have struggled to find decent food around Epping area, but I was very surprised by both the quality and price. My wife and I were not too hungry so we decided to get one dish and share it. We ordered Chicken Tikka Masala, which came with a serve of rice, and also got a piece of naan bread. This was more than enough for us. The staff were very friendly and the service quick (we were the only ones there).

Other Things You Should Know

• open for lunch and dinner
• takeaway only, though there is a few seats for sitting and eating your food there

Location & Contact

• address: Shop 6, 2 Lyndarum Dr, Epping, VIC 3076
• phone: 03 8405 3530
• web: none

This is what I call authentic Italian pizza, much better than the stuff you get in Italy! The ingredients are fresh and generous. The staff are very friendly, and the prices very reasonable. The Santa Lucia is one of our favourites – tomato, cheese, capsicum, perperoni, mushroom, fresh tomato, ham, olives and anchovies. We always get the pick up deal with two family pizzas for about $28. We have not tried their pasta dishes.

Other Things You Should Know

• open every evening
• dine in possible

Location & Contact

• address: 221 Scarborough Beach Rd Mount Hawthorn, WA 6016
• phone: 08 9443 4435
• web: www.aurorapizzaandpasta.com.au

I always get a surprise eating Korean food, always a bit better than expected. My daughter and I just dropped in to get out the rain, go to the toilet and even have a snack. We ordered only from the entree menu as we just wanted to sample some Korean food. I ordered spicey and that is what I got. I’ll have to go back and sample more off the menu.

Other Things You Should Know

• open 7 days
• fully licenced, BYO wine only

Location & Contact

• address: 127 Barrack Street Perth Perth, WA 6000
• phone: 08 9225 4260
• web: none

Nandos are famous for their Portuguese flame-grilled chicken, which is quite nice, and a good alternative to the deep fried KFC. The best thing is the perri perri sauce, which I buy form the supermarket and use at home. Thankfully you can choose the level of hotness. The chip are pretty good too. The only problem I see is that the price is too much, particularly once you order drinks and sides.

Other Things You Should Know

• there are many other stores around town
• open lunch and dinner every day
• their sauces are available for purchase

Location & Contact

• address: 375 Hay Street Subiaco, WA 6008
• phone: 08 9381 9797
• web: www.nandos.com.au

Overpriced. Simple as that. If you just order the salad bar option, there is quite a bit to choose from and you can get a decent feed. We found that if you hang out waiting for the fresh stuff and pounce when it arrives, you can get some decent salads. Kids will like it here, especially all you can eat dessert. For the price you pay, though, you should go elsewhere for a good freshly cooked meal.

Other Things You Should Know

• open for lunch and dinner every day
• Sunday breakfast available

Location & Contact

• address: Stockland Shopping Centre, High Rd, Riverton
• phone: 08 9354 2208
• web: www.sizzler.com.au

We were very surprised and thankful to have found such a wonderful place. On this site a bakery first opened in 1892 and they have succeeded in recreating old world food, quality and service. On a cold day you can sit inside the old cottage, but we made the most of a sunny Autumn day in Melbourne and enjoyed the country ambiance in the garden setting. There is a nice selection of home made pies and breads made in their original Scotch wood fired oven, though we went for a chicken schnitzel roll and a beef salad. The kids had a couple of mini pies. All the food was great. The kids had fun exploring the veggie and herb garden, and checking out the chickens out the back. The friendly owner even gave then a guided tour of the herbs. We’ll definitely be back (next time we are in Melbourne!).

Other Things You Should Know

• closed Mondays
• takeaway bread available

Location & Contact

• address: 107 Schotters Rd Mernda, VIC 3754
• phone: 03 9717 5834
• web: www.bakerycafemernda.com.au

Naked for Satan is a vodka bar serving pintxos, which are small snacks mostly served on a piece of bread, the Basque equivalent to tapas.  You can pick from a selection of pintxos at the bar or wait for some others that are brought around to the tables.They are only $1 each at lunch times during the week, which is unbeatable value. Two of us pigged out and only was $10 each. I love my bread, and there were enough choices to find something that was appealing. Not all of them were, but that is OK. There are even some sweet ones that you can save for the end. Even if you went at a time when they were $2 each, you would still get great value.

Other Things You Should Know

• make sure you read up on the legend of Leon Satanovich after which the restaurant got its name.
• open every day from 12 noon, and closing 12 midnight and at 1am on the weekends.

Location & Contact

• address: 285 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
• phone: +61 3 9416 2258
• web: www.nakedforsatan.com.au