The sun is shining in Sydney, and we’ve been out and about these past few days. Thankfully, the iPhone camera means I get to share it all with you!
On Saturday, Pete and I took a stroll down Hercules Street in Ashfield…
The unassuming Ashfield Café next to the station produces quite decent Malaysian food, including Hainan Chicken Rice every other Saturday…
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On Sunday we went to the Haberfield Primavera street fair. This annual event has a distinctly Italian edge, with the restaurants and shops setting up stalls in the closed off main street. This year, there were animatronic dinosaurs promoting an upcoming exhibit at Taronga Zoo…
Our friends Johnny and Dot were working hard at the Paesanella stand. Johnny told me he needed his sunglasses, because “the glare off the bocconcini was unbearable”…
Joe was cooking up vats of pasta…
There was lots of Italian produce for sale, including these squid ink and chilli pastas..
Along with the jumping castles and slides, there was also a carnival booth. It’s been years since I’ve seen one! And yes, that’s ABBA playing on the small screen at the back…
Remember these clowns? I’ve never won a thing on them in the past, so I didn’t try my luck this time…
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In between popping in and out, I spent a bit of time over the weekend tempering chocolate. These dark chocolate roasted almond bars were very moreish…
And these Valrhona milk chocolate cane toads were a hit with the kids…
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Our neighbour Julian brought over his homemade croissants. He’s only 26, and a brilliant baker already! He was appalled when I told him I planned to eat them with Vegemite…
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And finally, I had an hour to catch up with my dear friend Terri, over a cup of herbal tea. The Tea Drop Australia brand is a new one to me, and their Fruits of Eden blend is divine…
It was a lovely soothing conclusion to a fun few days…
I hope you all had a lovely weekend as well!
Loving your photos – thanks for sharing:) Happy Monday!
Thanks Renee! Hope you had a great weekend too!
What a lovely weekend Celia!
I have woken up today with an awfully sore throat but I think a big bowl of gnocci and a cup of that beautiful tea might fix me.
Claire, I’m sorry to hear that! I hope you’re feeling better soon! x
Great photos- looks like a great time.
And the croissants look absolutely lovely. I’m a little appalled at the idea of adding vegemite to that loveliness- but hey- whatever floats your boat! I like bacon sandwiches with fried green tomatoes- although I don’t think I’d serve it on a croissant. :D
Heidi, I really like savoury croissants – ham and cheese are a popular croissant filling here! :)
Mmmm, chocolate.
Spent most of the weekend running my daughter around – again. ;-)
I guess that’s our job, Amanda! :)
Looks like a nice weekend – never been to the Haberfield Street Fair but it does look VERY yummy! Do you have a chocolate making business?
Mel, you are very kind, but no – the chocolate is just a serious hobby! :)
Celia, I hate ABBA, they bring me out in a rash. Apart from the glimpse of the dreaded 4, I love your photos.
You hate ABBA, darling? How can anyone hate ABBA? Hehehe…
Oh my God Celia, it is so easy. My greatest sacrifice was to take Maus to Mamma Mia for her birthday. We were in San Francisco. I couldn’t understand a thing that the guy who was playing the Australian was saying. I kept asking Maus, “What did he say?” He clearly didn’t do his research for he didn’t sound anything like us.
Ha! I shall have to sing my ABBA songs with Maus then. My neighbour Michelle was over, and she said to let you know that ABBA makes her break out in a rash too. Honestly, I don’t understand you people.. ;-)
It seems like you had a great weekend. I love ABBA; it takes me right back to my pre-teen days and I remember how long it would take me to save up for their records. They were $3.00 each! You are so good at tempering chocolate xx
Thanks Charlie! I’m such a diehard ABBA fan, it was hard for me not to sing along, even in a public place. I know, tragic. :)
So many vibrant, lovely things in your photos Celia! Those croissants looks SO good. I have been reading about sourdough croissants lately; have you ever seen them or made them? Those roast almond bars look amazing as do the frogs :)
Jane, hopefully you’ll get to try that almond bar soon!! I’ve never made croissants – yeasted or sourdough – so it was such a treat to be given some homemade ones!
vegemite and croissant! wow! a good croissant shouldn’t be too sweet, in my books, but wow – i’ve never thought of vegemite!!! the italian market food pics are making me hungry.
E, the food at the fair was delicious! And I agree – I’ve never been a huge fan of the overly sweet croissant! :)
I agree with Shady Baker. Vibrant, gorgeous and those croissants are amazing
Thanks Sally! Julian will be getting a big head, reading all these compliments! :D
those croissants look absolutely amazing!
Wish I could make them! :)
A beautiful weekend in your parts, Celia. I see what you mean about the clowns! Delicious looking chocolate and those croissants, wow!! How lucky are you. :)
Honestly Chris, I did wonder if your guy drove straight up here for our fair! :)
What a great day. I love how you and your hub go on adventures. Makes the world a better place, doesn’t it? Maz.
Maz, that’s nice – although they always are quite little adventures. Still, there’s always so much to do here in Sydney!
Wow! I am so much an underachiever!
Hardly, Clark Kent. I know what you get up to when you’re not in your secret identity. :D
The food at the street fair looks delicious – I wish we had something like that around here (and the sunshine). Croissants with vegemite? Interesting combination.
Hehehe…I wish we could make our own cider and test it out on our inlaws! :) Croissants with Vegemite are delicious – thank you for not dismissing it outright! :)
Tea drops teas are nice indeed. For some reason I’ve mostly had them when staying in places in Queensland-perhaps they’re based there :)
Lorraine, they were absolutely delicious – Terri had the green jasmine one. I went to their website – not cheap – $45 for 100 bags!!!
I wish we had these sort of markets in my area but we don’t. We have to drive a long distance to find them. And now that autumn is here, there are fewer and fewer. Can’t wait for spring to arrive again!
Misky, these local fairs only happen once a year, but more and more suburbs are putting them on now. It’s a nice feature of innerwest Sydney!
What a fantastic fair.. all those colours and that food! YUM! glad you had a super weekend.. c
Thanks Celi! I hope you found some time on Sunday to put your feet up! xx
Celia, I cannot stop laughing…. the chocolate toads, I looked at the photo before reading the caption, and guess what I saw? Chickens, ready for the oven, but with big breasts…. I mean, real, bra-requiring breasts…
oh, man… what has gotten into me today? ;-)
great post, loved it all!
Trussed chocolate chickens? Too funny – someone should make a mould! :)
Great images… The bocconcini was bright! The Haberfield street fair looks great although I’m somewhat of a wooss as I love them but hate the crowds… I love the photo of the clowns. I never have any luck with the either but when I see them I remember how fascinated I was by them as a kid. I also prefer vegemite on a croissant, with a cup of tea :) I hope no Frenchman reads that or I’ll be strung up I’m sure :)
Oh, the glare was blinding! Johnny had me in stitches with that comment. :) It wasn’t too crowded, although we did go down a bit later in the day…
definitely next years Primavera. Although I do like seeing all the photos of what I missed out on.
Your 26 year old baker is exactly the kind of neighbour I would like. Celia really, I think you may have the nicest street in Sydney!
(ps. I think vegemite is good on most things ;-))
Brydie, we do have the loveliest neighbours! Although Julian is only renting, and he’ll be moving on soon, which is a great shame!
What a wonderful, casual weekend. This is my favourite way to spend time with John – wandering around and eating. I want a neighbour like yours and I agree with him on the vegemite. :)
Hehehe…you purists! :) Brydie above is right – vegemite is good on most things! :)
Great photos..loved the squid ink pasta adn I am sure you had a wonderful time.
Norma, I love that we can now buy squid ink pasta so readily! We’ve used it a couple of times, and it’s been great!
Love your photos, thanks for taking me along on your trip, it was great fun. Your Valrhona milk chocolate cane toads would be a hit with me too.
Thanks for joining us, Norma! It’s the least I could do after you took us to that fabulous sky garden with you! :)
I’d love to have wandered around that fair with you.. the food looked delicious.. But those chocolate toads would be my number one favorite!! I tried making croissants at that age.. and failed, so that is quite an accomplishment! xx
Barb, I hadn’t even baked a loaf of bread at 26! And I still haven’t attempted croissants twenty years later! :)
But.. do you ever make amazing chocolate!! :D
Ha ha, I’m partial to a bit of Marmite with my croissants. I should have known I was in good company :D
Ha! I won’t tell Julian, Choc! :)
What a wonderful weekend indeed Celia! How lovely too have so much going on in your area :)
Thanks Becca! It was nice – the Inner West has been a-buzz with activity of late!
A lovely post Celia, nice and busy and fun. And I’m with your neighbour – tut tut at vegimite and croissants :)
Surely not, Claire? I thought my peanut butter and vegemite eating buddy would be with me on this one.. ;-)
a lovely weekend and such great frogs!!!
Cane toads, darling. I’m bringing some tomorrow! :)
Dear Celia,
I love Ashfield because there are so many northern style Chinese restaurants serving all kinds of dumplings and stir-fried noodles at prices I would struggle to do at home. LOL I would have loved to see Julian’s face when you told him about eating his croissants with vegemite!
Chopinand, he wasn’t impressed. :) The Shanghainese food in Ashfield is pretty good..
Lovely photos Celia. Did you know that Julian has been making croissant since high school where he used to sell them to the teaching staff at lunch time?
[…] Sydney neighbourhood festivals and street fairs although occurring at usual times of the year and well advertised daytime events, are similar to The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern*, in that they are “an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements” but temporary, and if you miss them, you have to wait until next year, as happened to us with this year’s Haberfield Primavera street fair. […]