Markt: Schnitzel, Martin Place, CBD Sydney (28 Sept 2016)

Shop 2, 52 Martin Place, Sydney NSW 2000
https://www.instagram.com/marktschnitzel_

Schnitzel game strong

A foodie tip from a Mr Anderson brings me to check out this schnitzel eatery. Brekky Schnitty - schnitzel, eggs, bacon, homemade bbq sauce wrap + water ($10) is cooked to order and comes with free range eggs, tasty rindless bacon, very good schnitzel that's tender and moist with nice crumbing served in a nice soft thin wrap. I didn't really need the water so a cheaper option without bottled water would be preferable. Housemade BBQ sauce is tasty and goes well with the rest of ingredients. Quite a large wrap so will definitely fill you up till lunch. There's a decent amount of seating inside which is good as I find the foodcourt can get a bit challenging to find a table during lunch time. Hoping to try more of the menu including the hot chips which are served in a European style cone. Plenty of different housemade sauces available from the free sauce bar to pour over them as well. I spotted they also do a housemade vegan schnitzel with chickpeas, corn, fresh mint and spices. Banana Boom on Oxford St used to be my favourite chicken schnitzel fix but unfortunately closed so these guys could be my next favourite in town.

'How to peel a hard-boiled egg in less than ten seconds' by blowing it out of its shell (13 Nov 2011)

http://www.ecoeggs.com.au

A mind blowing eggsperience

Are you an eggspert in peeling a hard-boiled egg?

I love discovering crazy sounding techniques that solve a mundane task like How to peel garlic in less than ten seconds. This time while checking out the ecoeggs ChookCam I spotted on their blog a video about Peeling an egg just boil and blow. The video has since be taken down but a copy of it exists here for now. I also found this video of someone who didn't quite get it right but it definitely worked for me. And the video by Tim Ferriss is pretty good too. You have to make sure you blow pretty hard and there probably shouldn't be any gaps inside for it to work. Just crack a hole in each side of the egg and blow it out from one of the ends.

Other handy kitchen techniques discovered:

• 13 Nov 2011 - How to peel a hard-boiled egg in less than ten seconds

• 5 Oct 2011 - How to peel garlic in less than ten seconds

Copy of original video


A failed attempt

How to instructional video by Tim Ferriss

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Simple technique that saves time and effort, Should work with any chicken egg but probably not an emu egg or quail egg

CONS: Other people might not appreciate you using this technique on their egg, You need to blow pretty hard

MUST TRY: Making my own video and finding more crazy simple techniques

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Start with a hard boiled egg

Crack the shell off one end

Then crack the shell off the other end

Hold in your hand and blow hard — egg will pop out

Hard boiled egg ready to eat

Remains of shell

ecoeggs packaging

ecoeggs are certified free range and antibiotic free

Menya Mappen: Sydney's first self-serve genuine Udon restaurant, Japanese (18, 24 Nov 2010)

Shop 11, 537-551 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000
http://www.menya.com.au/mappen/index.html

Cheap noodles and tempura

A little slice of Japanese seems to have arrived on George Street inside the Skyview Shopping Plaza next door to Pepper Lunch and 85ºC Bakery. Its popularity is quickly evident as you step inside and see the busy lunch time devotees of mostly Asian heritage snaking from the tempura station past the noodle cooking pots and through the restaurant in an orderly manner. As a first timer the long wait in the queue will allow you to work out what you'll want to order amongst the many tempting options. Seating doesn't seem to be too much of a problem as meals don't take too long to eat and by the time you have your tray of food there should be some seating available — although it would be hard to find a table for a large group to sit together. Once your finished just return your trays to the cleaning station to allow for other customers to find a seat.

On my first visit I try the obligatory cold version of Zaru Soba ($4.90 small) which comes in a bowl on top of a bamboo drainage tray. It has a light healthy flavour but I prefer my hot version of Ontama Bukkake Udon ($4.90 small) which comes with a perfect half boiled egg to add some protein richness to the udon noodle soup. To help fill out the meal I go for the tempting Vegetable kakiage tempura ($2.80) which is mostly shredded onion and cooked to a nice crispy texture. It can be a little hard to pull apart if you're intending on sharing and perhaps a little oily but still worth trying. The Beef Ramen ($6.90 small) with egg ($1.50) has a nice depth of flavour which I'd happily try again. Fishcake tempura ($1.90) isn't my favourite today and the Shrimp and vegetable kakiage tempura ($3.30) has the added ingredient of small prawns but the prawn taste isn't particularly strong and is overpowered by the oniony vegetable tempura.

On my second visit I try the Mini Beef Don ($4.90) served with rice and Sukiyaki wagyu beef. Even though it's a mini size it might be enough for some as a small light lunch combined with an egg aka ontama ($1.50) and some Vegetable kakiage tempura ($2.50) which seems to have gone down in price by 30 cents but the serving size actually seemed a little smaller as well. The Beef Don ($6.90 small size) has the same ingredients as the mini but just more of it. I think it's probably enough combined with some tempura of your choice to fill you up. The Sweet potato tempura ($0.80) is a good choice which combines the goodness of sweet potato to counteract the fattiness of tempura. Wanting to try everything I order a Sausage tempura ($1.90) and Prawn tempura ($2.50) this time. I prefer the prawn one with its perfectly cooked crispy light tempura and the prawn has retained some its flavour and is decently sized.

Other food blog reviews:

• Gastronomous Anonymous

• Street Food

• Grab Your Fork

• Yummy Food Nom Nom Nom

• Absolutely Ayana

• Generation Food

• Love My Foods & Sugar

• Brisbane Bites

• Music Munchies Review

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Friendly service, Reasonably priced, Lots of noodle and tempura options, Quite authentic, Orderly system for ordering and seating

CONS: No public toilets available even though signs point to them around the corner — they're locked, Queuing can take a while when busy, Hard to get a table for a large group

MUST TRY: Ontama Bukkake Udon Hot, Vegetable kakiage tempura, Prawn tempura

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Visit #1 – 18 Nov 2010

Zaru Soba served with wasabi, chopped seaweed and dipping Tsukedashi soup ($4.90 small), Ontama Bukkake Udon Hot ($4.90 small), Zaru Soba served with wasabi, chopped seaweed and dipping Tsukedashi soup ($4.90 small)

Zaru Soba served with wasabi, chopped seaweed and dipping Tsukedashi soup ($4.90 small)

Ontama Bukkake Udon Hot ($4.90 small)

Beef Ramen ($6.90 small) with egg ($1.50)

Fishcake tempura ($1.90), Shrimp and vegetable kakiage tempura ($3.30)

Vegetable kakiage tempura ($2.80)

Visit #1 – 24 Nov 2010

Gyu Don: Beef Don ($6.90 small size), Mini Beef Don served with rice and Sukiyaki wagyu beef ($4.90) with ontama ($1.50)

Mini Beef Don served with rice and Sukiyaki wagyu beef ($4.90) with ontama ($1.50)

Sweet potato tempura ($0.80)

Vegetable kakiage tempura ($2.50) — Second visit seems to be smaller and slightly cheaper

Sausage tempura ($1.90), Prawn tempura ($2.50)

6 steps to eating happiness

Menu

Free toppings — pile it on but you only get one scoop

Tempura bain-marie — choose your sides wisely

Extra sides and toppings

Miso soup $1.50, Tempura sauce is free

Wall seating with a poster view

Tray return

Free water

Trading hours

Japanese movie posters

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