Melbourne might be famous for laneway cafes, but Melbourne's rich culture is easily its next best feature. For a foodie like myself, I was lucky to be there at a time when the Luna 1878 was held. Every Wednesday night at Queen Victoria Market visitors to the market are greeted with an amazing smell right from the door step.
Walking in, I was super excited to see all the different vendors come to promote their nationality. Naturally, as a Malaysian, my first stop was at Mamak. Fresh from the kitchen was a serve of Roti Telur and an Ayam Goreng.
The fried chicken was a reminisce of my eating trip with my ex-colleagues to Sydney last year. Superbly more-ish especially in the chilly weather! Have it together with the Roti Telur and some curry. So damn good!
Walking on, I was got all excited again when I saw a large pig getting all crisped up over a charcoal grill. Initially, I mistook it for the Indonesian Babi Guling, but quickly realised it was a Filipino vendor called Hoy Pinoy.
Regardless of what it was, the roasted pig is always worth a try. Thankfully, the pork was crisp and the meat was flavourful. It came with a nice pickled vegetables. The same delicious kind you get with the HK Barbecued restaurants in town. All together it was quite a joy. But I have to say, the rice was wet and I did hated that.
Next stop was a cup of mulled wine. Hearing so much about the drink, I wanted to try it although I am no big fan of alcohol. This did not differ. Despite the notes of orange peel and spices, it was still every bit bitter!
But it was ok. XL wandered away and unexpectedly returns with a serve of Italian grilled squid from 400 Gradi. Weird choice but it was pretty nice. Could have been a lot more tender! But I had come to terms that these were not calamari tubes. Instead, they were little octopuses which are chewy as usual!
Wanting to finish our night with something warm, we ended up at the soup factory for a bread bowl filled with potato and leek soup. Yummy!
Slowly scrapping the little bits of soup from the corners of the bowl was simply joyful. Soaked with the soup it sits in, the bread made the whole experience very moreish. Put Melbourne's chilly winter into the equation and the wonders that come is nothing you would not expect. :)!
Apple strudel was our dessert that night. The Austrian strudel is denser than the usual Corica strudel but pack an amazing flavour to its crust. But the fillings of custard and apples were a little lacklustre. Ultimately, there are no better strudels than the one from Corica's in Perth!
Strudel for dessert anyone?
By the end of the night we were so full we could barely walk across back to the apartment. The Luna Night Market was an exceptional host for dinner last night. So many different types of food were on and the pictures I took were barely half of the vendors that participated in the event. There were tonnes of other Indian, Mexican and American establishment that were setup for business. Whilst I definitely enjoyed it, many people might find the prices here a little steep which it really is by Melbourne standards. But if you want a place that has it all and is looking for a great festival feeling, definitely come to Luna 1878 at Queen Victoria Market.
WenY
