When it comes to bustling dining hubs in the South Eastern suburbs, Kingsway in Glen Waverely takes the cake by a country mile. The subsequent problem that eventuates in Kingsway is sifting through the raft of outlets on offer to find the true hidden gems. Precariously, we here at Hashtag decided to embark on such a daunting task.

First stop?

Straits of Malacca which specialises in Malaysian hawker street food.

The first thing that strikes you as you walk in is that this is certainly not a date night restaurant. Straits of Malacca may be a franchise but the interiors are struggling, the service is leaning on irreverent but we didn't come here for fine dining. We came here for the food.

The waiter wasn't messing around so we didn't either, going straight for the rice dishes with assorted fried goodies that were neither good for the heart nor keeping a clean set of hands.

As expected, the dishes came out both in an unceremonious manner and in a reasonable time.

The traditional wrapping and seaweed pouches for the vegetable cakes were a nice touch garnering some sort of semblance to the actual Straits of Malacca plastered grandly on the walls.

Of course, the fried stuff was good (Let's be honest, generally most things fried taste good). The accompaniments including the beans, chutney and other assorted vegetables were decent and rounded the dish off well albeit in an extremely oily one. (The rice and the pappadum were the standard fare)

Portion sizing was good and reasonable for the price but this certainly wasn't in the sub $10 'cheap eats' category.

Our 'cash-only' exit was brisk and utilitarian which funnily surmised the experience as a whole. Straits of Malacca is decent but easily lost in the sea of other eateries in the Kinsgway strip.

Shopping centres are traditionally home to exhausted consumers and an array of common place fast food outlets but Emporium Melbourne in the heart of the city's CBD attempted to turn this notion on its head. Filled with premium casual dining franchises and restaurant pop ups, Emporium quickly gained traction as just as much a destination for food as it is for shopping.

We regularly pop in to shopping centre so you'll see more of these reviews soon but first off the block is I Love Pho Express.

For us, Vietnamese is a tried and tested favorite so Rice Paper Rolls are one of our favourite snacks on the go and hence we couldn't go past the 4 Chicken Rice Paper Rolls ($9) at I Love Pho Express.


The ordering system was typical of many up-market food courts with a buzzer system in place. The wait time was reasonable which I assume meant the rolls were being made fresh for our consumption.

4 Chicken Rice Paper Rolls ($9)

Follow Hashtag On Social Media:

Tweets by @hashtagblogau

Capitalising on the rising trend of Korean food in Melbourne, Suda presents a quirky mix of Korean fusion that seems to be spreading its tentacles across the city. Nestled in the confines of Healeys Lane in the heart of the city's legal district, Suda serves a steady stream of office workers during the busy lunch hours and a more select crowd for dinner.

Given it was lunch time and we were on the hunt for an interesting take on Korean, Suda was a perfect match. The restaurant itself was fairly busy but the waiter was eager to please and the service was quite good overall and we appreciated the fact that they were hasty to meet all our needs.

We didn't have much time on our hands with just under 25 minutes till our next meeting so we opted for the Bulgogi K-School Lunch Tray ($10.00). 

Bulgogi K-School Lunch Tray ($10.00)

The food came out at a reasonable speed and we were quick to tuck in. Overall, the food seemed a little underwhelming and nothing special really. The bulgogi was nothing to rave about and same could be said about the rice and the accompaniments. Perhaps, we didn't have a go at the true stars of the fusion menu, but for now, Suda just seemed to miss the mark slightly which doesn't bode well given the wealth of Korean and Asian options around it.

Follow Hashtag On Social Media:

Tweets by @hashtagblogau

Lakshmi Villas is somewhat of an institution in Dandenong and has been lauded for years for its cheap and authentic South Indian cuisine. At any given time in the day, it appears that this alcove of vegetarian cuisine is bustling with people of all walks of life and the kitchen is working like a production line pushing out dish after dish.

The food here is consistent, affordable and authentic which guarantees a steady stream of patrons and the large contingent of Indian diners indicates that the food must be spot-on. (Pro-tip: If there is a large crowd of people of the same nationality as the restaurant's cuisine then the food's authenticity is likely to be fairly accurate).

We didn't have much time to dawdle so we opted for the trusted Thali Special ($10) and the Lunch/Dinner Special ($8) with steamed rice, papadum and a selection of three vegetarian curies each, while the Thali came with an additional chappathi, yoghurt and dessert.

Thali Special ($10)

Service was friendly but slightly industrial at times with a merry-ground of staff rotating around the small space. We didn't have to wait long for the food and it was a reasonable portion for the price.

Lunch/Dinner Special ($8)

The South Indian flavours were true and consistent but lacked a bit of spicy kick to lift the dishes to the next level. The curries themselves were a nice mixture of textures with the dahl, tofu and potato sure to satisfy the need for variety but again would have been memorable with a little more spice.

Despite this, Lakshmi Villas is still a sure bet for a reliable and affordable vegetarian feed in or around Dandenong.

Follow Hashtag On Social Media:

Tweets by @hashtagblogau

At the very heart of it, Zambrero is a brilliant concept as healthy Mexican food chain dreamed up by Dr. Sam Prince that donates a meal to the hungry in a developing country or Australian community every time a meal is purchased with over 7 million meals donated to date. However, any food outlet has to deliver tasty food to survive in the fearsome CBD food scene that is Melbourne so we had to try it out.

Black Rice Powerbowl with Beef ($13.90)

A quick glance of the nutritional information from the Zambrero website says that all is pretty good if you stay away from the sauces (the sauces could send the sodium content soaring to an alarming percentage of your recommended daily intake).

The bowl itself is well balanced with well cooked rice and a variety of tried and tested Mexican flavours. The beef is flavoursome but the meat is little too minced for us and we would definitely prefer a few more substantial pieces. Further to this, the Jalapeños add a nice kick and are must to get those spice senses tingling but the portion as a whole could be on the lighter side for someone with a large appetite especially for the price.

Nevertheless, not a bad way to get a feel good Mexican fix, albeit on the slightly pricier side.

Follow Hashtag On Social Media:

Tweets by @hashtagblogau

Gazi was the first feather in George Calombaris' now giant Greek casual dining empire that encompasses the Hellenic Republic chain and Jimmy Grants souvlaki outlets. Taking over the prime position of the Press Club on Exhibition Street, Gazi was certainly a bold move at the time.

Now, Gazi is entrenched as a go-to-destination for casual Greek dining in the CBD and we had to check it out for ourselves.


Arriving in the midst of peak time on a Wednesday night, we were lucky enough to snag a seat at the bar and we wasted no time getting down to ordering from the reasonably curated menu (the menu changes often so unfortunately we couldn't recall the exact names of all the dishes we tasted after some research online). The spit roasting meat situated on the wall of the open kitchen was too hard to resist so we had to grab the Chicken with White Beans, Tyrokafteri and Walnut Dressing ($28.00) and Beef. Additionally, we ordered two salads to accompany our meal as well as the Fish with Walnut Dressing ($23.50) and not forgetting the popular Chicken Souvlakakia with Chips, Parsley, Onion and Mustard Mayo ($9.50). 

Chicken with White Beans, Tyrokafteri and Walnut Dressing ($28.00)

Fish with Walnut Dressing ($23.50)

Chicken Souvlakakia with Chips, Parsley, Onion and Mustard Mayo ($9.50)

Despite being in the mid-range tier when it comes to price, all the dishes did not disappoint and the flavours managed to beautifully complement each other in traditional hearty Greek fashion. With pleasant service to boot and a beautifully quirky interior, Gazi may be a trailblazer but it's certainly here to stay.

Follow Hashtag On Social Media:

Tweets by @hashtagblogau