{NYC} Soul food at Melba's in Harlem

Soul food is something I've only ever read about or seen on tv - it's not something that registers on the Australian or Asian food radar, given its American-centric nature.

To the uninitiated, soul food can best be described as fare rooted in African-American traditions, emanating from America's south with African influences. Vegetables like collard greens feature, as do grits (like polenta), crab cakes, catfish, fried chicken and down-home comfort type foods like mashed potato and onion rings.

Chicken and waffles at Melba's, served with maple syrup and strawberry butter

One thing we were curious to try was the supposed nirvana of all soul food dishes - chicken and waffles. That's fried chicken and huge spongy waffles served TOGETHER with maple syrup poured all over the two(!) In search of this artery clogging grease fest we headed 'across 110th street' (love that song!) to Harlem, the heart of Manhattan's African-American community and home to several well-known soul food restaurants. Top of my list was Amy Ruth's, but after meeting up with some Upper West Side dwelling friends who are in the Harlem know, we were persuaded to try Melba's instead - a classy little restaurant representing the new, more upmarket style pervading Harlem.

Happy to go with sleek and chic over down and dirty diner, we caught the subway to Melba's - with a walk through Harlem's streets at night not nearly as adventurous or dangerous as I was perversely hoping!

Melba's had the look of a classy brasserie or bistro, with dim lighting, a cosy, buzzing atmosphere and a jazz bar vibe, given it was open mic night when we attended. Of the four of us, two opted for the famous chicken and waffles, which was accompanied by not only maple syrup but strawberry flavoured butter(!!!). Two of us ordered a plate of sides to sample the mash, onion rings, collard greens and more, and we also tried the catfish strips and crabcakes - both delicious. So how were the chicken and waffles? Surprisingly - they weren't as disgusting as they sound! The maple syrup somehow tied the two main ingredients together in a warm, deep fried, comforting, sweet and savoury, complimentary kind of way! I'm not sure I'd place chicken and waffles in the 'dishes I regularly like to eat' category (not having a death by obesity wish) but I'm glad we expanded our eating horizons with a side trip into soul food territory - and what better place to do it than Harlem!

Saigon escape: a month in Bangkok, Sydney and NYC

Hi! I'm back in steamy Saigon after an amazing month away, and luckily, rather than suffering post-holiday blues am feeling happy to be back (first stop was the new Quan An Ngon restaurant on Pasteur - if you're in Saigon check it out, the building's beautiful and the food is the same delicious menu as the original).

Our time away began with a long weekend in Bangkok, reacquainting myself with the Siam neighbourhood (read: shops, shops and more shops, cough cough...). Oh and food. Lots of great food. We also caught up with some friends who have moved there which was lots of fun.

Next - a week and a bit in Sydney, which was alot of catching up with family and friends and friends' new babies and old babies (and unborn babies!). We went to some of our favourite places - Zumbo's in Balmain, Sulfaro's (for pizza & coffee) and Colefax Chocolates in Haberfield, Berkelouw Books and movies at the Dendy in Newtown, restaurants and bars in Crown Street, and our old suburb, Dulwich Hill, where I was very happy to discover a new cafe has opened at the end of our street which will be pretty convenient in future! We also went to some of the new 'small bars' popping in Sydney (a la Melbourne or New York - yay!) like Pocket Bar in Darlinghurst and The Hive in Erskineville.

Then, bidding little Z adieu, we headed off on something of a post-babymoon to New York City!!! The feeling of walking through an airport without being encumbered by a pram and a big bag full of baby paraphenalia was the best feeling! And being able to read, watch movies and listen to music on the plane was bliss. I didn't even care that it took about 22 hours to get from Sydney to New York, and felt a bit sorry for the tired, haggard mothers disembarking at the end with screaming baby in tow (in a 'so glad it's not me' kind of way!). Our New York stay featured 10 days of eating, drinking, shopping, art galleries and wandering all over. It was one of the best holidays of my life. Lots of gushy posts to come featuring our favourite neighbourhoods and food finds!