Unblogged Files time! September was quite a bit quieter than the crazy event-filled August, but there's still heaps of great foodie adventures to share!

We started the month with a family dinner at the new Chrysanthemum House (23 Andersons Creek Road, Doncaster East, VIC 3109), and I'm pleased to say we liked it just as much as the old location. It's much bigger than the old location, and despite it being a Monday night, it was packed. Definitely need to book! Hot tip: vinegar pork ribs, the yong tau fu (prawn-stuffed tofu), and salt & chilli chicken ribs are The Best!

Chrysanthemum House

I attended the launch of Dish'd, a fancypants frozen food home-delivery service backed by Jacques Reymond. It was a really fun night, with loads of food and lots of champagne! We also received a voucher to try the service out ourselves. Based on the food we sampled at the launch event and the items I tried with the voucher, the best items are the desserts, fresh meats and the ready-made side dishes, like the baked giant beans, cauliflower bake, and the potato dauphinois. (You may remember I served the potatoes at my Fathers' Day Lunch).

Dish'd Launch

Breakfasts this month were primarily avocado based!

Top row: Sliced avo & poached egg on toast; Giant beans (from Dish'd) & sliced avo on toast Bottom row: Smashed avo / peas w poached egg on toast; Blueberry oatmeal; Sliced avo on toast

I also made waffles.

Waffles, peanut butter, maple syrup, bananas, strawberries

We took my friend Jess to Merchant Osteria Venezia (495 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000) for her birthday - it's one of our favourite restaurants! It's also a really great option for coeliac diners - heaps of the entrees and mains are gluten free, and they even bake complimentary gluten-free bread to order. (See bottom right in the below pic - see how fluffy it is! Jess was sooo impressed!)

Merchant Osteria Venezia

Some dinners were on the healthier side...

Top left: Polenta-dusted chicken pieces (homemade), Mexican rice (Dish'd) and Steamed vegetables (Dish'd) Top right: Fillet steak, spinach salad with pine nuts, lemon juice and parmesan Bottom left: Sirloin with anchovy garlic chilli butter and brocollini Bottom right: Salmon, Couscous / chickpeas, avocado salsa, brocollini

...while others were more comforting.

Top left: Ham and cheese tortellini alfredo with bruschetta Top right: Egg & chips, perinaise Bottom left: Mushroom sou p pasta bake Bottom right: Open faced toastie with ham, cheese and a fried egg, avocado salsa

Most of the above dishes though, didn't produce leftovers, so I was pretty naughty this month and bought work lunches really often. Whoops. Here are my favourites... (and if you can't tell, I'm obsessed with Emporium!)

The Dan Dan Mien at Dumplings Plus was seriously hot - I was breaking a sweat and totally struggling to keep my Asian-girl cred in front of my coworkers, haha!

Dan Dan Mien, Dumplings Plus at Emporium

Chicken Vermicelli at Pho Nom, Emporium

Kara-age Don at Ramen-Ya, Emporium

Vegan Deliciousness from Supercharger

Xiao Long Bao, Pan-fried mini pork buns, bacon/shallot pancake at Shanghai Street

My friend Kim came back from Canada with loads of awesome French-Canadian Cadbury chocolate for me! Hooray!

Canadian Cadbury!

I was invited to attend the launch of the new spring cocktail menu at Brooks Bar and Restaurant (115/117 Collins St, Melbourne, VIC 3000). I really enjoyed the "French 75" cocktail (top left in the picture below) - Beefeater gin, lemon, sugar and champagne; and the famous chicken parfait pillows.

Brooks Cocktail Night

Final thing I wanted to tell you about today: dinner at Attica (74 Glen Eira Rd, Ripponlea VIC 3185)! We took my friend Adri there for her birthday and it was a fantastic night! Blogpost to come, obviously!

Wallaby Pikelets at Attica

And that was September! In October I've got just a couple of events coming up, a couple of catch-ups with friends and an overseas holiday! Yay!