I was excited about another carvery joint opening up this end of town. I think we only have three now in the whole city of Geelong? I wanted SO much to love these guys because they offer roasts and less than 5 minutes from where I live.

At first, I was pleasantly surprised by the price of the large & small dinner packs. Our favourite roasty resto 'Ripper Roasts' charge nearly $20 for a large dinner pack, so to see the prices at Donnybrook at around the $12-$13 mark, I was grateful. Until.... we got home with our takeaway pack.

I was shocked to open up the polystyrene lid only to find very stingey portions of everything. Let me tell you, Ripper Roasts offer a lot more in their small packs than these guys do in their large dinner packs. Not enough carrots and pea's or cauliflower and white sauce and definitely not enough scalloped potatoes. I actually can't believe how small the portion of potatoes was. The meat portion (in our case, lamb) was .. I'd say acceptable for the price we paid ($13.50.. it's $1 extra for lamb.. all the other meats are cheaper).

I can't not mention their 'zucchini & tomato' offering. I forget its official name but it just looks like a baking tray full of tomato paste. I love all things tomatoey and I love zucchini but this concoction.. I'm sorry... was horrendous. It's as someone thickened a couple of litres of tomato paste with flour.. and then stirred in some shaved zucchini strips. You could not describe that sidedish as anything edible. And I have a wiiiiiiide palate.

The cauliflower and white sauce was dreadful... the cauli tasting watery and like it was old.. or boiled from a bag of frozen cauli that was passed its use-by date. Peas and carrots were not good.. The barely-there scalloped potatoes were flavourless ..as was the mashed pumpkin. Ripper roasts adds cheese to their pumpkin mash.. but at least it has a bit of body. Donnybrook Roasts version was watery.. and tasteless.

Regarding the lamb.. Some bits were 'ok'... perhaps could have done with some extra seasoning.. But other bits were way too dry.

I can get two meals from one Ripper Roast 'small' dinner pack.. But I have not got even one meal out of this large Donnybrook Roasts dinner pack. It's just inedible.

There wasn't enough gravy either.

When we walked in.. the place was desserted... and the owners/staff were chatty and friendly. As I said.. I really wanted to love them.. and support them. I took two of their business cards and two of their magnets and I told them I'd spread the word about their business. I envisioned positive words.. and a glowing review.

Sorry Donnybrook roasts. I see you have a decent coffee machine and advertise 'Piazza o'Doro' coffee.. but I'm not willing to gamble on your drinks after the roast experience. And I'd much rather pay Ripper Roasts prices but receive generous portions.. and some very tasty food.. regardless of the fact that its cash-only (no eftpos) too.

The lack of eftpos is Ripper Roasts achilles heel.. But I keep travelling to Latrobe Terrace for more carved meat.

Approximate cost: $12.50

Bicycle Superstore Geelong is under-staffed. They struggle to deal with customer enquiries & repairs, as promised, in a timely manner. They didn't phone back as promised. A deposit was left with them for a bicycle part. We had to chase them up about it. They knew the bicycle was needed for a race. In our experience they also charge a lot more than they originally quote and are non-committal with forecasting labour costs. Slack and disappointing.

I've been going to Fujisan for well over 10 years now. My teenager was in a pram actually and their location was in Moorabool st.. where they were largely ignored, trying to break new ground in the sushiless CBD. Their sushi is of reasonably good quality (I have tasted better), however, what lets them down is their poor, impersonable service. I once caught out one of the owners in a lie. She didn't realise she was talking to one of her regulars over the phone. Ever since she has acted like I owe her money. She never says please or thank you (.. it's pretty much 'rudeness' I have to say). She won't make eye contact and says things to her employees that make them stare at me and giggle or just STARE. But it's not just her. Service is rushed and unfriendly. In fact I find most sushi joints in Geelong have the lions share of unfriendly staff who give the impression that they hate everyone or their jobs.. or both. It's almost funny the amount of times I've boycotted Fujisan and then go on to boycott other sushi joints too. What do you do when you love sushi yet nobody seems to deserve your business? I could go to Sushi 8 a couple of doors away - but the female owner their too is seriously fake and doesn't know how to look after her regular customers. What do you do when they promise you a birthday booking and you arrive to find they've given it away to a much larger group?

Fujisan don't deserve my business... and they remind me of episode I've seen on 'Frasier' and 'Seinfeld' .. where the characters can't stand the proprietors.. but really want the goods. I guess it's 1- 0 Fujisan.. but I hold onto hope that friendly people will inherit the Japanese joints of Geelong one day... ?

Approximate cost: $14

One thing I've definitely noticed (visiting both Waurn Ponds Muffin Break and the one in Westfield, Geelong) - is that the Westfield franchise serves far better coffee. Being barista trained, I know that quality of coffee depends on many factors that include how you store beans, how clean you keep your coffee machine.. and also the coffee maker/barista plays a part too. As far as food at Waurn Ponds goes.. I don't buy from them anymore... not since my hubby and I saw several flies hovering around the muffins.. and yes, grazing on the muffins while we tried to select a box full. Not one fly... but many. It was sad to leave the shop.. because I really wanted muffins..but not with all of the flies. I've since noticed that Waurn Ponds Muffin Break is being sold (it was advertised in the Geelong Advertiser a number of weeks ago). Savoury food like wraps are overpriced in my opinion.. and the staff at Waurn Ponds have always acted like they don't like their job much. I'm not saying everyone there.. but 80% of the time I've had indifferent staff. Slow to clean tables for customers too.

Approximate cost: $For coffee & a muffin.. about $8

I'm a foodie and LOVE dining out. I'm also willing to go back to a restaurant or cafe even when they disappoint me, once or twice.. or even three times. But I can't justify going back to Hogs Breath again. Over the last 18 months.. with the last 3 or 4 visits being consistently disappointing.. I'm afraid they don't get anymore chances. My list of complaints include: Waiting a long time to be served, cold coffee always.. hard to get staff attention when needed. I've had to send food back because it's been poorly cooked or of a poor standard in general. My teenager (who is less of a foodie) even implore's me to not give Hog's Breath any more chances because we keep being disappointed. Food is of poor quality. I had the manager come out to our table last time I sent back our steaks... because she wanted to know what the problem was. She admitted that they were the last two steaks they had.. and not up to their usual standard (they were sinewy.. and not melt in your mouth.. also not cooked as ordered as it happens). She replaced our meals with mediocre prawns.. and all up we spent 2 hours + on a disappointing dinner.

Approximate cost: $25

Went to Sofia's for the first time as part of a group of 20+ on a Saturday night. I was worried about how long it would take for orders to be taken and our food to arrive considering how big this restaurant is and how full it was. I needn't have worried. Our food came much quicker than I expected. The cappucino I ordered (and asked for it to be hot & half strength) was the best I've had almost anywhere and only cost $2.90! The portions as everyone else says here are BIG. Some of us ordered entree size pasta's and when the waiter handed out doggy bag SIZEY plastic containers to our large group.. we had plenty to fill it with. So much food.. which I appreciate because you really get the feeling that you're getting your money's worth. Our waiter was fantastic.. very friendly and accommodating. When I asked for my pasta sauce to have white wine in it.. he said it wouldn't be a problem. It was obvious, by looking around..that there were repeat customers here.. digging into their enormous portions of food. I saw huge servings of gelato too.

Approximate cost: $15-25 on average

On the day we visited The Chocolate Room it took 40 minutes for our two hot beverages to be served. One staff member was working (present) only and she was serving people in the order they arrived. The table before us ordered 3 chocolate fountain-things and hot & cold drinks with icecream in them etc.. so we had quite a wait. At one point we seriously thought she'd forgotten our order.. until a new customer (we overheard) was being told how long the wait would be for her coffee. The C.R. employee was working slowly from what I could see. She wasn't stressed about all the orders she had to fill.

The Chocolate Room in the city (Ryrie Street) has more space.. this one is a little too claustrophobic & makes you feel like your conversations can be overheard by people near you. I don't like hard, wooden chairs that don't seem 'strong' either.

Beverages good, cakes too.

Approximate cost: $4 to $5 for a hot beverage

Some of the homemade dishes are bland (eg. fried rice) -even the dimsims freshly made don't taste nice. I wanted chips once but saw there was only a small amount left (& a previous customer waiting on two full meals of lasagne and chips.. was waiting too). I asked if the chips were still warm. The man behind the counter offered me a taste. When I said they weren't warm enough for my liking he seemed to "crack it" and put on a fresh batch of chips. No eye contact from that point and he almost threw the chips at me when they came out (not drained long enough). The ladies that work here are less moody and make nice big salad rolls to order for around $4.50. I was "put off" by the chip experience and think I will take my business elsewhere.. like around the corner on Torquay Rd where there are a string of other eateries to choose from.

Approximate cost: $90 cent dimsims, $2 chips, $4.50 ham & salad rolls

My husband and I stayed at Arnica Views for three nights during winter. Our little suite or 'cottage' was gorgeous. Our spa was filled when we arrived (this was available on request) complete with fragrant oils and floating flowers, and a tranquil CD playing in the background (ie. they like to know what time you're arriving so you can get these special touches). We loved our fluffy bath robes and our little kitchenette with generous country breakfast basket provisions. At night we snuggled on the love seat and watched a DVD before or after a lovely spa or a lovely dinner out at a local restaurant. The surroundings at Arnica Views are fairytale-like. Look out your window and you think you're in a story book -the gardens are so lush and lovely! There wasn't an ironing board in our suite but the hosts brought us up one upon request. DVD's are free to hire and are are available from reception..which looks like a fairytale house from the outside too. Perfect for a romantic getaway and I hear they are offering cooking classes now in conjunction with the nearby 'Wild Oak' restaurant which sounds exciting for foodies like us!

Approximate cost: $from $175 a night including English breakfast hamper

I initially liked that this business was near where I lived and they seemed to undercut their competitors, price-wise. Over time I learned just how bad this salon is. The nail techician's husband and another male often observe as she teaches them the trade. The husband thinks nothing of picking his nose for a good minute or two and then touching clients hands or feet as he 'preps' them while his wife finishes with a client. I had to put my foot down and ask that he not work on me at all which didn't make his wife happy. I also learned that they lied to me from day 1 saying I was getting gel nails when in fact they were always giving me acrylic. They also 'sanded down' my nails so much with some electric equipment, so much so that my nail beds have 'rings' in them which are actually burns I was told. Every time I went back for infills my nails looked quite horrendous...with splits and chipping of the enamel. Nails were never infilled properly either. They don't use tables that have a 'vacuum' system to suck away all the fine, powdery nail residue that flies about. The nail technician has a face mask but you are left to breathe in whatever flies off or around your nails. There is a huge language barrier here. Hard to understand the staff and they have trouble understanding you too. I often felt rushed out when the lady was running behind and clients came in and were waiting. I noticed obvious shortcuts during those times.

Approximate cost: $35 infills