Seafood Combination Chow Mein from Kings, Warilla Grove

One of the many budget meals available from Kings Chinese Food Takeaway at Warilla Grove Shopping Centre is Seafood Combination Chow Mein. Only $5 it includes prawns, seafood extender, fish balls, squid and fish as well as delicious vegetables sauted perfectly with delicate flavours of seseme oil. The noodles are cooked separately and have a slight chilli warmth. The perfect meal for the cold rainy weather we've been having today.


Seafood Combination Chow Mein from Kings, Warilla Grove:Vanessa Pike-Russell

King Chinese Food Take-Away NSW

Category >Takeaway > Chinese

Shop 4 Shellharbour Rd Warilla 2528
ph: (02) 4297 5717


Taken with a Pentax K20d




Photography by Vanessa Pike-Russell

www.vanessapikerussell.com.au

Restaurant Review: La Marina Tapas Bar and Restaurant, Wollongong

One of my favourite restaurants of Shellharbour, La Marina Tapas Bar and Restaurant has moved to Keira St, Wollongong. If you like Spanish food then you'll love La Marina.

Below are some of the meals we enjoyed at La Marina when they were still located in Shellharbour. I hope to visit their Wollongong store very soon. Don't forget to buy a carafe of their sangria. It makes the Spanish dining experience even more authentic!

It was Australia Day and we were also celebrating a friend's birthday. We had a table of four diners and decided to start with Parilla de Mariscos, a BBQ'd seafood platter A selection of grilled seafood including fish, scampi, king prawns, squid, pippies, and mussels served with chips and salad on the side.($36.00 - Min. 2 persons). Next, several tapas were chosen including tasmanian scallops, pippies, whitebait and a very enjoyable chorizo sausage in dry sherry. Delicous! It almost makes you want to scream out 'Ole!'

After we were seated, we were presented with some free almonds, nicely spiced and a great start to a wonderful meal.

Free almonds

Parillada de Mariscos (Min. 2 persons) - BBQ'd seafood platter.
A selection of grilled seafood including fish, scampi, king prawns, squid, pippies, and mussels served with chips and salad on the side. 36.00pp

Seared Tasmanian Scallops - In chilli & roasted sweet paprika with garlic & white wine 11.90

Everyone had a taste of the scallops which were superbly cooked and the sauce was amazing.

Almejas - Pan cooked pippies with white wine, garlic and parsley 11.50

A very morish dish which we all enjoyed a sample off. It brought back memories of collecting pippies on the beach, looking for the tell-tale bubbles in the sand. A definite favourite.

Chanquettes - Lightly floured white bait deep fried, served with lemon wedge 10.50

Not really to my taste but the men at our table really enjoy the crispy whitebait, although after sampling the scallops and pippies I can't see the attraction.

Chorizo a la Jerezana 10.90

This potent Spanish sausage was cooked in a dry sherry and onion sauce, served in a sizzling dish which caused everyone to lean forward with expectation. The smells alone made our appetites revive. The sherry sauce was amazing and complemented the sausage well. Not for the faint of heart, though. There is always the chance that spicy sausages will repeat on me later and this was no exception.

I loved the decore of La Marina. It is like you have been transported to Spain. The warmth of the rich red tones and colourful decorations. A joy to visit and while away an hour or two with good food, conversation and share the experience with friends and family.

Tapas menu ranges between $10.50 and 11.50
Main meals range between $17.50 and 36pp for the seafood platter

La Marina Tapas Bar and Restaurant
130 Keira St, Wollongong NSW 2500
Phone: 02 42 271033

http://www.lamarina.com.au/index.htm


Photos by Vanessa Pike-Russell for Illawarra Food Reviews
http://illawarrafoodreviews.blogspot.com/

Ciao's Mediterranean Family Restaurant & Pizzeria

A few years ago when I was living in Keiraville I convinced my friends to head into Ciao's Mediterranean Restaurant and Pizzeria. It soon became a fortnightly favourite, especially after we purchased a Rewards Club Card online which offers a 2 for 1 on small pizzas.

Two of the first pizzas we ever ordered were the Greek meatballs pizza and my favourite, the seafood pizza. It opened my eyes to what a true gourmet pizza experience could be. It's only ten minutes from Wollongong and well worth the visit! I am happy to say that Ciao's has been nominated for an award from the Restaurant and Catering 2009 South Coast Awards

With the quality of food, service and wonderful ambiance it is easy to see why!

Greek meatballs pizza


Seafood pizza - absolutely delicious!

Get directions

Jordans seafood restaurant

Australia Day lunch at Jordans was delicious. A seafood platter for two with a view of thousands of Australians walking past, enjoying the sights and sounds.


Jordon Hot Platter for two - $105.00
Deep fried perch fillets, salted spiced calamari, BBQ Octopus, spiced prawns, chips, spiced soft shell crab, baked scallops, kilpatrick oysters (we requested mornay but usually bacon), mussels steamed and tossed in a tomato sauce

[Australia Day lunch at Jordans was delicious. A seafood platter for two with a view of thousands of Australians walking past, enjoying the sights and sounds.]

[ Lovely wood paneling in the bar ]

[ Crowds flock to Darling Harbour for Australia Day ]

Harbour View Thai - Shellharbour Village

Shellharbour is one of my favourite spots in the Illawarra. Only an hour and a half from Sydney (100km) and half an hour south of Wollongong, it has a lovely seaside village feel with gourmet food and speciality shops certain to please.

It was my birthday and I was celebrating with friends and family. We decided to try out the new Thai restaurant that had opened across the road from the Ocean Beach Hotel and the harbour. I love the fresh flavours of thai food and when I saw that mussells were on the menu I just had to try them. And thankfully I wasn't disappointed!

Mussells Hotpot ($15.90) Tender, juicy mussels in a hotpot with basil, lemongrass, chill and sweet chilli sauce. Amazing! Mussels can often be overcooked and chewy or stringy but these just melted in the mouth and the juice was so good not a drop went to waste.

The next dish selected was Pad Kra Tium ($14.90) - Stir fried pork with garlic sauce, mushroom soy, dark soy and pepper. It was a very light meal for someone who had requested nothing too heavy and again was cooked to perfection. This is another favourite meal that will be purchased again.

Next was a meal for our curry lover, masaman curry (mild) with cubes of beef with potato, onion and peanut curry gravy. I had a taste of this meal and the flavours of peanut and a mild curry flavour were very pleasing. This is my favourite thai curry dish and great for diners who have trouble with the spicier curry meals.

Musman curry $14.90

Last was my Mum's seafood salad

Seafood Salad ($19.90) Steamed seafood cooked with red onion, fresh chilli, cucumber, lime juice, mint & cherry tomato

Lovely fresh flavours of the mint, cucumber and live affording a cooling zesty feel to this dish. The seafood included mussells, squid, prawns, fish and scallops and was cooked to perfection. Another favourite dish that pleased my seafood loving family.

And a delicious Fried rice for everyone to share

The service at the Harbour View Thai was fantastic. Our waitress kindly allowed me to photograph her by the specials board. I love the vibrant colours of the decore and the view just can't be beat.

7 Addison Street
Shellharbour, NSW 2529

(02) 4297 7033‎

Shellharbour is easy to get to from Sydney along the Grand Pacific Drive and Sea Cliff Bridge