Last night my gorgeous friend Jess and I had dinner at Tom Phat in Brunswick.

I have eaten at Tom Phat many times previously and it’s one of my favourite restaurants in Melbourne. It’s well priced, really tasty modern Asian.

Maybe it was because the food became secondary to our conversation – it’d been ages since we’d seen each other – but I was not as impressed with the food as I usually am.

We shared an entree of rotii with satay sauce – my favourite dish of the night. Tom Phat’s roti is impressive.

We also shared corn cakes which were deep fried and crispy. We don’t think they were vegetarian – they tasted seafood like – crab perhaps?

My pear cider – very nice.

I had twice cooked duck with Asian greens and mandarin and caramel sauce. It was really tasty and the duck was tender and juicy, but it was so difficult to eat. Te caramel sauce was a lot like toffee, and my cutlery often became caked with balls of this sticky toffee. My teeth were coated with toffee too, so I had to drink water between each mouthful. It took me ages to eat – a combination of the amount of talking I was doing, and also the toffee. I didn’t finish my meal, which is unusual for me, and Jess worried I’d be hungry.

This is Jess’s pumpkin and tofu curry. She did eat it all so I guess it was nice (and easier to eat than mine!).

Tom Phat is a great place to eat at, so please don’t let this review deter you from eating there. In the past I’ve had fish, curries and pork belly which have all been delicious and encouraged me to return. Definitely give it a go.