The Hungry Bunny

Nam Nam Noodle Bar may not be our first port of call whenever a Vietnamese food craving hits, especially since they make you pay for the usual accompanying herbs (seriously, what's that about!), but it is convenient, minimally fussed, and budget-friendly. The Hubs was starving like a marvin while we were out shopping, so we made a quick pitstop at the self-serviced bistro. The food's substantive and churned out fast, so we didn't have to wait very long to satiate (and soothe) the Hubs' hangry pangs. The Pork Ham Snack Platter ($5.90) was pretty decent, texturally interesting with crunchy black fungus and chilli weaved into smooth mashed-up pork. A lovely bite and lively flavours. I suspect it's a proprietary blend made in-house. A signature and our favourite appetizer here, the Crispy Imperial Rolls ($5.90) were wonderfully crispy on the outside, and bursting with a juicy medley of carrots, black fungus, glass vermicelli, beansprouts and pork. A little less

I've resisted going to Chopsuey Cafe for a while now. I've never really been a fan of P.S. Cafe ( methinks they're overrated ) and the idea of adulterated Anglo-Chinese cuisine wasn't particularly appealing. But a friend wanted to visit, as he'd missed his Chinese takeaways from the SF Chinatown when he lived there some time back. Turns out, the food isn't half-bad. Commendable even. Huzzah! I've finally found a PS Cafe group restaurant that I actually like! As oxymoronic as it sounds, Chopsuey Cafe is as authentically bastardised as it gets. So judge it on its own, as a commingling of American culture and Chinese cuisine, and temper your expectations of Chinese food as you know it. Service was faultless: upbeat, efficient, and sincere. And knowledgeable about the menu enough to make excellent recommendations. The Crispy Duck Pow Pockets ($17) of pillowy-soft steamed white buns jammed with sliced duck confit, pulled roasted duck, julienned vegetable

Arbour was our most exquisite meal in Marlborough. Located off Blenheim town center, the largest township in Marlborough, the standalone restaurant is remote and intimate. Summer will find the restaurant opening earlier, at tea-time, to thoroughly relish the warm weather ("warm" may be a stretch, as Summer temps go up to only about 18C). Grab a bottle of NZ finest Sauvignon Blanc, order a few nibbles, then park yourself on the outdoor patio, which is bathed in sunlight, and while the languid afternoon away. Until the sun sets, at least, when you return indoors for the dinner service. Save for Summer tea-time bites, Arbour is a dinner-only restaurant. A seasonal degustation of 3, 5, or 7 courses, locally sourced of course, is the only offering on the menu. I suggest getting the full 7 courses, (NZ$98). Each course is pretty petite, so 7 courses aren't exactly gut-busting, and at just under a hundred bucks, it's about the cheapest degustation ever. Arbour 's f

We'd just returned on the red-eye from Seoul and needed sustenance. It was in the middle of the night, we wanted local fare, and needed a place somewhere centralised so we could grab a quick bite before crashing to get some shuteye. Mount Faber Nasi Lemak was three-for-three, and although nasi lemak isn't on our list of most-missed foods whenever we travel, there's something about it being supper food that's just so deliciously indulgent. Previously hawkering its wares at the foot of Mount Faber in Telok Blangah, the stall is now at Chinatown round the corner from Restaurant Ember and Burnt Ends . There's a hodgepodge of accouterments to top up your rice with, apart from the usual fried egg, ikan bilis, and fried fish accompaniments.  Mine was loaded with cabbage curry, a fried chicken wing, fried egg, and luncheon meat ($5). The rice was intoxicatingly fragrant but delicate in flavour. I would have preferred it more flavourful. That said, the grains were fl

Marlborough is the preeminent wine-growing region in New Zealand largely credited for putting New Zealand wines on the map. I'd mistakenly thought Marlborough was a town, but it's actually a region, made up of several towns, the biggest of which are inland Blenheim where most of the wineries are at, and waterfront Picton, the gateway into the Marlborough Sounds. Many Marlborough wineries run their own in-house restaurant, mostly serving lunches, and with a smattering additionally offering the occasional dinner service. The food at these winery restaurants are, for some reason other than intoxication, generally fantastic, and you'll do well not to miss out lunching at any of them. Wither Hills marked our first lunch in Marlborough. I'd heard that the young royals dined here, and thought that if they found it good enough a refueling pit-stop for their recent tour of the Commonwealth, it should be good enough for plebeian folks like us! The modern New Zealand cuisin

If you want to get a bird's eye view of the local produce, the farmers' market is where it's at. It's a veritable trove of the season's best and freshest, all of the "heirloom", "farmstead", and "free-range" buzzwords. I love farmers markets. It's about the only thing I'd wake up early for, save for dolphin swimming. I love strolling through the open-air setup, the sampling of vendor offerings, the small town feel, the local sense of community, the convivial celebratory vibe, the grazing through seasonal cuisine. It's through farmers' markets that I get inspired to cook. Which may explain the 12 bottles of artisanal olive oil, a collection of specialty marmalades, and a cache of handcrafted spice mixes in my pantry. All organic and sustainable, of course. We spent 4 days at Marlborough, the premier wine-growing region of New Zealand, and our first stop was the Marlborough Farmers Market at Blenheim , the main townste