Melbourne's Chocoholic Tours

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Gastrology bloggers went on the Bittersweet Chocolate Delights tour courtesy of Chocoholic Tours.

Chocoholic Tours and its team of Chocolate Experts have been exploring the laneways and arcades of the Melbourne CBD for the past 20 years, discovering the best places to indulge that chocolate craving in the city’s many laneways and boutique arcades.

The boutique Chocoholic Tours run daily tours, seven days a week, stopping at up to six chocolate cafes for tastings and samples of their sweet wares.  

On these tailored and themed quirky intimate tours around Melbourne’s hidden laneways and arcades- chocoholics can meet the makers behind the chocolate havens of Melbourne, take advantage of Chocoholic Tours’ special offers and discover flavours and styles of chocolate they never even knew existed – and of course indulge in tasting Melbourne’s best chocolate product on offer.

Gastrology recently went along on the Bittersweet Chocolate Delights tour which caters for those who crave the bittersweet cacao bean bite…

First stop: Cacao Lab

Cacao Lab is passionate about making fine crafted chocolates, macarons, éclairs and pastries.

Led by acclaimed pastry chefs Laurent Meric and Tim Clark the café boasts an exquisite and extravagant sweet creations are hand crafted in our Melbourne kitchen by skilfully balancing flavours and textures into fine works of art.

We enjoyed the chocolates we sampled and in particular the decadent dark chocolate chilli hot chocolate.

Second stop: Alison Nelson's Chocolate Bar NYC

Alison Nelson's first Australian store offers cacao goodness in a modern vintage setting with a touch of NYC style. Chocolate truffles, signature cakes, brownies and bonbons are complemented by a theatrical view of chocolate making in the bar area. 

We enjoyed sampling their red velvet brownie which is a lighter fluffier take on the traditional.

Third stop: Koko Black

Koko Black is one of our favourite chocolate haunts in Melbourne. We were pleased to visit the store where it all started in Royal Arcade. 

Since their first Koko Black salon opened in December 2003 it has turned into a local Melbourne enterprise proudly employing over 350 people.

Fourth stop: Haighs Chocolate

Haighs store is an inviting place where you’ll find that chocolate tasting, gift wrapping and personalised attention is all part of the service.

We enjoyed a selection of their milk pastilles, dark chocolate pastilles and artisan chocolate. 

Fifth stop: Gânache Chocolate Lounge

Our final stop was Gânache Chocolate Lounge. Located in the heart of Melbourne's CBD, on fashionable Collins Street, Ganache displays mouth-watering selections (all delivered daily), together with coffees, hot chocolates and light lunches.

We enjoyed their delicious hazelnut fan slice over a cup of coffee. The slice comprised of hazelnut sponge with whole roasted hazelnuts, covered in a layer of hazelnut praline and Paillete feuilletine, then a layer of soft milk chocolate mousse. Glazed with a milk chocolate glaze and decorated with milk chocolate curls and freshly roasted hazelnuts, it was a sight to behold.

What: A range of themed chocolate tour experiences. There is something for every type of chocoholic: if you like both milk and dark chocolate, try The Melbourne’s Chocolate Wonderland Tour, which takes in six different Chocolate cafes, including Haigh’s Chocolate; the Chocolate Lovers Tour is strictly milk chocolate; while the Bittersweet Chocolate Delights tour caters for those who crave the bittersweet cacao bean bite. 

Costs: $49.00 per person

Inclusions: Every person on a Chocoholic Tour is given a bottle of water, an “I’m A Chocoholic” badge, a map of the tour and a tasting bag for the chocolate goodies picked up along the way.  Each tour ends off with a decadent afternoon tea (more chocolate, if you can handle it) plus a coffee.

To check out the range of Chocoholic Tours available, visit their website: www.chocoholictours.com.au

Discover Footscray

Gastrology bloggers were taken on a foodie tour of Footscray recently as part of the 'Your Footscray' campaign which brings together all aspects of life in Footscray including safety, transport, holidays and most importantly—food...

Coffees @ Cafe Cui

Location: 58 Leeds Street, Footscray 

Phone: 03 9687 6967 

Link: http://www.cafecui.com.au/

Cuisine: Breakfast/Brunch, Modern Australian 

We met our chaperone, Jack at Cafe Cui (pronounced Café Q). Located just opposite Footscray Station, the café sources all its vegetables and meat from the Footscray Market.

Having only opened its doors in June last year, Café Cui has already gained a loyal following as a result of its location and freshly sourced produce.

The menu boasts a variety of delicious brunch options including the popular Shakshuka eggs bake, the chef’s own invention, with braised capsicum, tomato and middle eastern spices.

The cafe's modern and relaxed fit out makes it a perfect spot for a caffeine hit. Our coffees contained a perfect layer of silken froth, complete with a flawless rosetta, and tasted terrific.

 
Footscray Market

Melbourne's best cannoli @ T. Cavallaro & Sons

Location: 98 Hopkins Street, Footscray

Phone: 03 9687 4638 

Link: http://www.tcavallaroandsons.com.au/

Cuisine: Coffee, Bakery 

As soon as we stepped through the doors of T. Cavallaro & Sons, we were immediately swept away by the aromas of baked pastry, roasted nuts and sweet syrup. 

A Footscray institution, T. Cavallaro & Sons was founded by Tommaso Cavallaro in 1956 and proudly catered for the Melbourne Olympics in the same year. The cafe proudly represents the European migrant families who made Footscray their home in the ’40s and ’50s. Since 1956, the cafe has been open every Easter and every Christmas, making sure their customers are well taken care of. 

Today, Tommaso's sons, Tony and Carmelo (who has worked on the premises since its inception in 1956) continue the legacy. 

Behind the shop front is where the magic happens. There, endless trays of freshly baked sweet treats and pastries are being made. The contents of which scream only one thing – decadence.

With recipes that have not changed since 1956, use of time-old techniques and fresh ingredients, the proof is in the tasting...

The sweet treats at T. Cavallaro & Sons are baked to perfection and we can confirm that T. Cavallaro & Sons' certainly serves the best cannoli that Melbourne has to offer.  Every bit is handmade and absolutely moreish. The cannolis are filled with either patisserie cream or ricotta and dusted with a sprinkling of almonds. The cannoli casing was perfectly crisp and we fell in love with the traditional ricotta filling. It was decadent, creamy and had a beautiful citrus finish. 

Although it is very easy to over sweeten ricotta fillings, it seems that T. Cavallaro & Sons have found the perfect balance. Their cannoli is truly divine. 

If you have a sweet tooth, we certainly recommend taking the trip down to Footscray to see what the fuss is about. 

Sugarcane juice @ Vy Coffee Bubble Tea

The sugarcane juice is made before your eyes!

Location: 44 Byron St, Shop 4, Footscray (near Little Saigon Market)

Cuisine: Sugarcane juice, coffee, tea, bubble tea

We were immediately transported to the streets of Vietnam as we explored Footscray's Little Saigon Market. What better way to enhance that experience than a refreshing sugarcane juice by the vibrant bustling streets.

The juice was deliciously sweet and refreshing. We loved the addition of kumquat in the juice which added a delightful acidity and balance to the beverage. 

Ethiopian cuisine @ Konjo Cafe & Restaurant

Location: 89 Irving Street, Footscray 

Phone: 03 9689 8185 

Link: http://konjo.com.au/

Cuisine: Coffee, Ethiopian/Eritrean, Vegetarian 

A recent addition to Footscray’s Ethiopian food scene, Konjo Cafe and Restaurant already has a cult following. A welcoming ambience and delicious Ethiopian food mean that this eatery is popular among young and old alike. 

If you're not sure what to choose from, Konjo does an amazing platter which consists of 2 vegetarian dishes, 2 lentil dishes, 1 mild lamb stew, 1 spicy lamb stew and 2 beef dishes served on a tray of injera and an extra basket of injera.

We enjoyed how flavoursome each dish was. The beautifully made injera which we used to pick up bites of the little dishes was the perfect canvas for the rich and spicy flavours.

The platter was the perfect introduction to Ethiopian food and was simply delicious. 

We also tried Konjo's specialty dish (which you will not be able to find anywhere else) which is a finely-minced beef dish called Kitfo which owner, Abdul prepares by hand and serves with a special clarified butter.

Footscray Train Station

Our tour of Footscray was a culturally rich and eye-opening experience. It was amazing to see how passionate the small business owners we met along the way are about their suburb and hear their stories. We look forward to returning to Footscray and experiencing more of what this amazing suburb has to offer.

Special thanks to Jack Walden from The C Word for being a brilliant chaperone.
Gastrology bloggers discovered Footscray courtesy of Regional Rail Link.

Harry's Ice Cream Factory Tour

Award-winning Australian ice cream maker Harry’s Ice Cream opened its factory doors for an exclusive experience where guests got up-close and personal with the artisan ice cream makers and were also given the opportunity to create their very own bespoke ice cream flavour to take home.

The Factory tour

Run by brothers Lawrence and David Harris, and ice cream expert Tony Grech, Harry & Larry's has been crafting award-winning artisan ice cream for the Australian retail and gourmet market since 1994, culminating in the launch of their new business; Harry's Ice Cream in 2012. 

The factory tour showed us how far the Harris family's frozen dessert operation had come since its inception back in 1994. Back then, the ice cream was made in small batches of 5 litres at a time, all mixed by hand and sold from a retail store. 

Tony Grech showing us how it's done!

Today, Harry's Ice Cream uses the latest technology in ice cream production and highest quality ingredients to create its award-winning frozen delights. 

With an expertise in developing complex dessert ideas into commercial flavours, Harry's understands that new product development is a continuous activity, with its production team, including specialist Product Developer, undertaking annual overseas travel to examine trends first hand. 

Harry's Ice Cream sources all of its cream, milk and sugar from local suppliers, as well as the majority of its specialty ingredients, including syrups and ripples where available.

Everyone's favourite part of the tour was finally here - the tasting

Drawing inspiration from classic Australian desserts, Harry's Ice Cream offers a range of distinctive and iconic flavours: Pavlova; Sticky Date Pudding; and Raspberry Cheesecake.

Sticky Date Pudding

The delectable Sticky Date Pudding was our favourite Harry's Ice Cream flavour. The Sticky Date Pudding is deep in flavour complete with toffee ripples and fudge pieces, it was incredibly indulgent.

Raspberry Cheesecake

The Raspberry Cheesecake flavour possessed a light lemon tanginess and has buttery chunks of biscuit pieces sprinkled throughout. It is a well-balanced and beautiful ice cream.

Pavlova

We also tasted old-timer, Harry’s Pavlova which is a delicious vanilla ice cream with a tart passionfruit ripple and crushed meringue pieces. The texture of this ice cream is wonderfully smooth.

Flavour requests unveiled

The following were the 6 flavour requests: 

• Pistachio, Honey & Rose water by Food Made With Love;
• White Chocolate, Mars Bars, Hazelnut & Peanut Butter by Never Too Sweet;
• Caramel Chocolate & Biscuit Bits by Melbourne Girl;
• Coconut Cheesecake with Biscuit Bits by Gastrology;
• Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese by My Poppet's Window; and
• White Chocolate & Berries by Six Inch Heel.

We were provided with some hints and tips about how ice cream is judged by international ice cream judges and the competition for the best flavour request was on. 

Points were given based on flavour & aroma; texture & body; and presentation.

And the well-deserving winner was... 

 Congratulations Food Made With Love on that delicious 'Pistachio, Honey & Rose water' ice cream! 

It was a wonderful time had by all. Thanks to Harry's we now have tubs of Sticky Date Pudding, Pavlova and Raspberry Cheesecake ice cream on top of our very own Coconut Cheesecake ice cream as a dessert option at our Christmas table!

Get your hands on some Harry's Ice Cream  - All three flavours are available at Woolworths and selected IGA stores throughout Australia.

Melbourne Dumpling Tour

Last week, Gastrology was invited by Walk Melbourne to attend one of their Melbourne dumpling tours. Being keen dumpling enthusiasts, it was an offer too good to refuse.

We visited 4 dumpling venues and tried 4 different styles of dumplings over 2.5 hours - the group receives a sharing plate at each of the dumpling houses.

North East China Family

Shanghai Street Dumplings, Wontons and Noodle

Dolan Uyghur Food Heaven

The tour was designed by Monique (the brains behind Walk Melbourne) to show a range of different dumplings at some of Melbourne's best dumpling restaurants - some venues are more budget conscious, others more upmarket, but all are authentic.

Along the way we also learnt a little bit about Melbourne’s history and how the Chinese have influenced Melbourne.

Gyoza Douraku

Walk Melbourne offers eight different walks from dumplings to coffee to luxury weekend food discovery packages. All groups are small with a maximum of 10 people, so there is plenty of opportunity to get to know the others in your group. 

Gastrology joined the dumpling tour courtesy of Walk Melbourne