butterfingers.

I feel like I'm renouncing a bit of my Australian-ness as I say this, but I do not exactly delight in finding a great pie store.  I'm just not really a pie person, you know? But exceptions must be made for Butterfingers especially since they've been touted as the best pie store in Adelaide.  A sunny day lured myself and another out to try this apparently amazing place and we were definitely not disappointed.  It's a little hidden away by next-door Cibo's overreaching outdoor seating but you'll find it next to Chocolate Taperia and opposite the Lion Hotel.

bread & bone wood grill.

Peel Street, get it on your foodar stat, with the little lane off of Hindley Street and Currie Street becoming home to some of the newest and hippest eateries in Adelaide.  Bread and Bone Grill is no exception and the best thing is that they're open from lunchtime until late everyday so there's no excuse not to go try it out! Lunchtimes are generally more quiet but it can get really packed at night and there's an awesome combination of conversation and food flowing freely through the warehouse-style restaurant.

the stranded store.

After enduring a whole week of grey and rainy Adelaide after coming back from Sydney a few weeks ago, the weekend miraculously turned out to be bright and sunny - the perfect weather for brunch catchups at The Stranded Store.  Despite it's rather introverted location in Colonel Light Gardens, the popular eatery was filled to the brim with all tables taken both inside and out.  

cherry darlings bakehouse.

Gluten free and vegan? I am intrigued.  Cherry Darlings Bakehouse is a new bakery that has popped up in Forestville near the tram station.  Despite being such a tiny store, they're already making a few waves among the food community and are earning rave review from both vegan and non-vegan eaters alike.  The opportunity came for me to go have a look to see what the fuss was all about when my stomach was craving for some cake one afternoon.

steven ter horst chocolatier.

There is chocolate, and then there is chocolate.  One step into Steven Ter Horst and you know they are the latter.  Situated in between Yiros House and Aurum on Rundle Street, their sleek black and white interior and carefully set out dessert displays really set them apart from your average choccy shop.

cafe troppo.

More birthday food for me, yay! My dad and I woke up early (well, early for me) to get a table at the popular Cafe Troppo, right on one of the corners in Whitmore Square.  It was a good thing we got there at the time we did since it started filling up incredibly quickly as soon as we sat down.  It has quite the lush, market-place look with hanging pot plants and woody embellishments, indoor and covered outdoor seating and the promising smell of coffee and baked goods wafting through.  

the rolling pin bakery & patisserie.

Birthday time! In celebration of me becoming older and wiser, this wise girl decided to forego the traditional cake and bought three delicious sweets from The Rolling Pin instead.  The Rolling Pin is a small bakery on St. Bernards Road almost opposite of Norwood Morialta Middle School.  It's nestled among four or five other small shops so look out for their sign as you drive past.  

the himalayan kitchen.

Cold, cold nights call for warm chicken curries and buttery roti to help ease the freeze.  A friend and I made our way to the Himalayan Kitchen on Melbourne Street a few nights ago to pop our Nepalese food cherry once and for all.  It was fairly empty the night we went and for some reason it felt like we were being stared at by customers and staff as we walked in, like it's somehow weird for two Asian girls to be eating at a Nepalese restaurant?  

matcha house.

Who loves green tea? I do! So when Matcha House finally opened up its doors on O'Connell Street, it didn't take long for my friends and I to hurry down and see what it was all about.  The story is that the owner, Deb, travelled to Japan a few years ago specifically for taste-testing different kinds of green tea and brought back her favourites to put on the menu.  You can see the effort put behind her choices as soon as you look at the menu (half the menu is dedicated to just tea alone) but I, as usual, was more curious about the food!

public.

The life of a graduate seeking employment can be depressing sometimes.  But here's the silver lining - midweek birthday brunches! No need to wait for the weekend and join the queues.  Instead my friends and I celebrated one of their birthdays at PUBLIC, a fairly unmissable establishment on Franklin Street just opposite the Victoria Square park.  It's generally bustling with suits and office ladies around the early morning coffee and morning tea times and lunchtimes are quite popular too.

coffylosophy.

Coffylosophy.  What a name.  The grammar nazi in me is crying out "No! How could you!" but the foodie side of me is going "Suck it up.  Who cares as long as the food/coffee is delicious."  So there you go, the inner turmoils of my brain.  Moving on.

Having opened up relatively recently (March, I believe) near the middle of Hutt Street, Coffylosophy came to my attention when dear mother mentioned she had bought some online vouchers a while ago and that they needed to be used quickly.  Clearly I wouldn't be doing my Chinese heritage justice if I didn't use them so off me and a friend went to try it out.

five little figs.

Adelaidean mums, welcome to kid-friendly cafe heaven. For the rest of us, Five Little Figs is definitely worth the hunt for a delicious, nutritious, organic-alicious meal.  It wouldn't be a stretch to say that the cafe is completely hidden inside suburban Payneham, but luckily it's bright lime signage is eye-catching.

penny university.

You may have heard about the new 'retro salad' place that's popped up opposite Burger Theory on Union Street, but if you haven't then let me make the formal intros - Penny University, you, you, say hello to Penny University.  Loads of fresh baguettes, wraps and salads adorn the front of the small (and I mean, small) cafe but dine-ins are welcome so long as you don't mind sharing the table with other randoms.

lucky lupitas.

Being quite a fan of its sister shop ULC, it was high time to venture down south to the original Mexican shop that got everyone talking: Lucky Lupitas.  Situated between a cluster of other little restaurants just down from Flinders Hospital, it's easy to miss it completely.  Luckily the blasting sound of Mexican music should be enough to signal that there is indeed something wonderfully Mexxy going on inside.

the pantry on egmont.

It's holidays! Well, for most students anyway.  A friend and I made our way down to the much-talked-about The Pantry down in Hawthorn, not far but not exactly close to our usual food haunts.  It's on a very small road, right next to the train tracks, so conversations can often be interrupted by the loud tooting and ding-ding-ding from the train.  Nonetheless it's got a cheerful, quirky atmosphere and makes a great spot for casual eats.

koko black.

Koko Black's in town! Hailing from Melbourne, the chocolate shop has finally opened up its doors in Adelaide Arcade and I was super excited to try it out.  Uber chic and glossy-looking, the shop has a similar vibe to Steven ter Horst on Rundle Street with a black and gold accented interior design.  The shop has two levels for its coffee and dessert shop and a separate section for individual chocolate buying, so there's a bit of something for everyone.

bar 9.

Bit of Bar 9 to start the day?  Don't mind if I do.  It's been a long time coming, but last week I finally managed to get my bum down to the ever-popular breakfast place for a quick brunch with my parents.  It was a Wednesday afternoon but was still plenty bustling with the sounds of people chatting, coffee machines grinding and Michael Buble in the background.

Blue Swimmer Crab: green curry scrambled eggs with Asian greens & chilli ($17.00)

This was a lot chillier than I expected.  My poor dad, who is a chilli novice at best, took one bite and tears, yes tears, almost came out.  Morale of the story - don't order this unless you can handle a hot curry.  I, on the other hand, quite like my spices so I found it easy on my palate.   The scrambled eggs were deliciously creamy while the chunky crab pieces soaked up all that curry goodness.  I did find the curry a bit too salty though.

Creamy Truffled Mushroom Ragu: with poached eggs on toast & truffle honey ($18.00)

All I hear about Bar 9 is the amazingness of their truffled mushroom ragu, so this was a must-order.  A mountain of truffled mushrooms in a not-so creamy sauce made their way to the table and I was ready to pounce.  Pounce I did, marveled I was not.  The mushrooms were definitely well-flavoured, but to the point where both I and my dad found them too salty to eat by themselves.  A stronger sweetness from the honey and creaminess from the ragu sauce was needed to balance out the heavy truffle, although the perfectly poached eggs did help in that regard.

Speck Meets Avocado: speck, avocado, caramelised onion & dark rye ($16.00)

This was lovely.  Smoked pork (speck), creamy avocado and sweet onions covered in parmesan shavings make for a delightful combination.  Everything kind of just melted in the mouth and barely required any chewing, save for the dark rye which served as a great base to it's toppings.

It's cool and funky and I wish I could have loved this place, but it was kind of disappointing after hearing such rave reviews.  Service was great though, really friendly and food came out promptly.  I hear this place is also good for coffee-lovers, so try it out if coffee is your thing.

la bonne table.

Graduation celebrations at La Bonne Table! I've been eyeing this place for almost a year now but since it's relatively expensive (for me) I've never been.  Opposite to the fire station on Wakefield Street, it's hard to spot as you drive by since it's not particularly flashy.  It's former life as a carpet/tapestry salehouse can be seen only by the high stone ceilings and the big carpets hanging in the foyer but other than that it has been Cinderella'd into a romantic, candle-lit modern day restaurant.

devour cafe patisserie.

Yay! The new Devour Cafe & Patisserie is finally open.  I've been waiting for this for months now and was not disappointed when a friend and I came to try out their new lunch menu.  It's all the way down in Richmond (near South Road), quite the distance between its sister dessert bar in Prospect, but luckily for me it's close to my church which means....weekly visits?  Hmmm, my wallet won't like that much.

eggless: march '14.

Mad March is technically over since all the festivities have left Adelaide, but that doesn't mean the madness has left the Eggless kitchen.  If anything, the night we visited for the March menu was even more packed than usual.  I don't really know how that's possible but it was.