Machine Laundry Cafe @ Salamanca Place, Hobart

Here's my review on the great breakfast served in Machine Laundry Cafe. We dropped by this cafe to have breakfast before starting our shopping spree at the well-known Salamanca Market, only happens on Saturdays, so be sure to drop by if you're around town. Really a good place to buy lotsa stuff and see so many special handicrafts. - see the photos I've posted here.

The concept of this cafe is unique - the cafe shares place with a laundromat, so you get to see your laundry spinning in the washing machine while having your breakfast. :)

We were there early, at about 8.30am, so we do not need to wait for a table. I have seen reviews saying that the place is really crowded later in the morning.

the machines

the menu

 flat white - one of the best so far :)

 hot chocolate (AUD3.50)

Free range eggs with multigrain toast (AUD9.50)

Added sides: mushrooms and machine-baked beans (AUD6.00)

Machine packed roti bread (AUD14.00)

Added sides: machine-baked beans (AUD3.00)

Plain machine packed roti bread (AUD14.00)

I had the free range scrambled eggs - the eggs were perfectly done. Machine laundry cafe uses the famous Jackman & McRoss's bread, so the wholegrain toast was good as well and the mushrooms are really big and juicy. Last but not least, the special baked beans by their cafe. The baked beans definitely tasted different from the normal tomato sauce-based beans as these have tastier spices and herbs in it and they have a rough texture.

The hot chocolate is thick and chocolaty - just the way I liked it. Perfect for a cold morning :)

The other dish we ordered, the roti bread is filled with herb scrambled eggs and chilli jam. The chilli jam's not spicy, slightly on the sweet side. It is like wrapping fragrant herb scrambled eggs in our very own Malaysia-roti canai. Tasted good- I've been so tempted to try out with the roti canai here in Malaysia - which means I need to make my own scrambled eggs so let's see if I'm hardworking enough. :P

I am really amazed with the cafes here in Hobart as each has their own identity and serves really good breakfast. It's so hard to find one which serves breakfast as good here in KL. *sigh*

Address:

12 Salamanca Square, Hobart 7004, Australia

Tasmania trip - Part 2

A continuation from previous posts:

Day 3 - Woke up early today for the Bruny Island Adventure Cruise. We drive down to Kettering to meet up with the tour group. We had to take the ferry across to Bruny Island, this is the ferry which carries you together with your cars across. :) Some rental cars' companies might not allow you to take the rental car along on this ferry or go on unpaved roads. so you can check it out first before proceeding.
For those who are interested, do book this cruise online before hand, as they are most of the time fully booked.

Through this cruise, we're brought to some of the beautiful, unspoilt coastline of Tasmania. I am not sure if we're allowed to cruise to this area on our own, but I always prefer to leave it to the hands of the experts, since they know which is the best time/angle/spot for you.  We managed to spot dolphins, however I can't find a nice photo to put up. They're so fast (well maybe we're too slow :P), so the pictures only shows the waves they created, the best only has their tails disappearing into the water.

We also get to see seals up-close!~ Really close, they stopped the boat next to the rocks where the seals are having their daily 'sun-tanning'. LOL. We also got to go so close to the sea cliffs, and also the blowholes. They actually turned the boat 360degrees to allow everyone on the boat to feel the blasts of water, so we sort of waited there for the next blast to come.

However, this whole journey was quite bumpy, gets worst when we gets into the middle of the ocean where the waves on that day were quite strong. But it is worth the experience (They hand out ginger pills before they start off - to me I think it was just a  psychological effect to calm us down).

These are some of the photos taken before & during the cruise - we need to hide the camera every now and then coz the water do splash into the boat often.

 Kettering pick-up point

 our coach entering the ferry

 views from the ferry

 all bundled up - and in the middle of the ocean it is still freaking cold..

 the monument

 the blowhole

seals

The Kettering pick-up cruise costs AUD125 per adult - you have an option to add on lunch and morning tea with an additional cost. Do check out their site.

In the evening, we head to Mount Wellington - the journey up to the mountain takes about 1 hour. The roads are windy and they do post up warnings on rainy days and you may not be able to access the top. We did not make it to the top, mainly cause the winds are so strong and it is already snowing (very small, light snow flakes) - we turn back when we're about 1.7km away from the top :( (I was too paranoid to continue :P). sigh.

We went down, snap some photos along the way and went for dinner at Ball & Chain Grill at Salamanca Place.

 from the highest point we went to

 freezing cold

 a glimpse of the rainbow

 Ball & Chain grill

 grilled sausages

grilled steak

lamb shank

The dinner was forgettable. I would say not bad but there's nothing to shout about. There are much better places that I've been to so this explains the lack of information about the main dishes I ordered :P ( I can't actually remember the exact taste or what exactly I've ordered). I'll try to look for the receipt so that I can at least put up the prices. 

Day 4, 5 and 6 in upcoming posts.. I can't wait to blog about Swansea town , I regret I did not stay longer here, Swansea is a lovely town with beautiful sceneries and home cooked cuisine.

Back to my coding and more readings. ......

Tasmania trip - Part 1

Came home early from gift and CNY shopping today, so I thought I could blog a little about my recent trip to Australia. Been quite some time since I came back, but had no time to write about it.

So here it is, a summary of my trip in Tasmania, just the first few days. :)

Day 1 - Arriving at Melbourne Tullamarine airport. Connect to domestic flight with Jetstar to fly to Hobart, the capital of Tasmania. Bear in mind that there are certain restrictions on the interstate quarantine from Australia mainland to Tasmania. They are quite strict with these (I didn't know about this before my first trip to Tasmania back in 2010 and upon arriving in Hobart airport, I had to throw away all the fresh fruits I brought in from Melbourne =.=), so check this out before planning your shopping and trip. :) -Australia Domestic Quarantine-

Arrived in Hobart at about 5pm-ish, got my car rental settled, and since it's the end of spring, the sun sets quite late at about 7-8pm. We head up to Mount Nelson which offers beautiful views over the city and it only takes about 20mins from the city to get up there.

from Mt Nelson

 me & mummy

 views of the city

 the signal station

Had my dinner at Fish Frenzy, Sullivans Cove. "Arguably the best fish and chips in Australia", that's their tagline. This place is open till 9pm.

 views of the pier, next to Fish Frenzy

 Beer battered-fish AUD16.50

 fish frenzy for AUD17

 fish and chips - the chips are separately ordered. AUD14.00 and chips AUD5.00

opening times

the counter for ordering

The fish are really fresh and the portion is big (well, for me and my mum, it is). If you're opting for something less oilier do try their grill fish. I personally thinks that the batter for the fish is a bit on the thick side, but the fresh fish fillet makes up for it. The view at the pier during sunset is also amazing. There are also few other eateries at the Elizabeth Street Pier apart from Fish Frenzy.

Day 2 - Since it's a Saturday, I head down to the famous Salamanca market. There are so many things to see and buy - you'll probably lost track of time. Everything you want to buy from souvenirs to dairy products, desserts, handmade items.. etc are available here.

So many amazing things to see here and the stall owners are so friendly too. Some of their crafts are just fantastic, pretty little things. Had a wonderful time at the market.

Breakfast at Machine Laundry Cafe. A small shop at Salamanca Square which serves good breakfast and coffee. This place is very unique, you'll see why in my posted photos here. ^^

Coincidentally on the same day, Myer is having their annual Christmas Pageant parade, there are so many participants ranging from school children to government bodies like the Fire Department.

cute~

In the afternoon, we head down to Port Arthur Historic site. The journey to Port Arthur took about 1.5hours from the city. It is one of the must-go attraction in Tasmania, where it features the history of Australian convict site. We took the Bronze pass - good enough for a half day tour of the place which include a walking and a cruise tour.

By the end of the tour, you'll get a lot of information on the history of the convicts in Australia, lot of beautiful scenery and get to see the ruins of buildings which remained.

The tickets can be reserved earlier or can be bought directly from their tourist centre.
For more information: www.portarthur.org.au

Here are some of the photos taken:

We stayed about 3-4 hours at Port Arthur which should give you sufficient time to join the walking tour and the cruise plus some additional time to walk around on your own. We went to the Eaglehawk Neck on the way back to the city. Here, we saw the Dogline and the Tessellated Pavement.

A line of ferocious dogs and detachment of military guards once kept a constant watch along the narrow isthmus at Eaglehawk Neck. They were on the lookout for escaped convicts from Port Arthur. Any break of the scrub, movement or slightest noise would set the hounds barking and alert the sentries. Dogs were also placed on stages out in the water to detect absconders attempting a sea crossing. They made an impassable barrier. (information from http://www.eaglehawkneck.com/history.htm)

no more dogs there

I cant help but to feel sad for the dogs who are tied along this 'neck' to be on guard at all time.

And at Eaglehawk neck, I also get to see a rare type of natural erosion - a formation of  a regular pattern of rectangular boxes usually called the Tessellated Pavement. These pieces of rocks looked as if they were man-made but it is not. This erosion only occurs near sea coasts and it is found only in very few locations across the globe. One of the popular and accessible one is in Eaglehawk neck.

 amazing creation

There is a walking track with signs leading to Tessellated Pavement and thereafter there are steps leading down to the rock. 

For dinner, we head back to the city and had our meals at Burger Got Soul on Sandy Bay road. A very good place for burgers :)

 I remember added an egg to my Soul burger

 Breezy Brie (AUD 12.90) - chicken breast burger

I think it was Soul Burger (AUD10.50) - beef burger

They used 100% lean beef and their chicken burgers are pure free range. We get to choose the type of bread which comes with out burger - they have wholemeal, Turkish, traditional white and gluten free ones. The burger is big and satisfying - really good. They serve pretty good milkshakes too.

Ahh.. looking back at all the yummy food makes me hungry. ^^ 

Time to catch some sleep.. 

....to be continued.....