We arrived in Sydney after a ten hour drive from Victoria, keen in the expectation of an enjoyable weekend in the New South Wales capital. Our choice of accommodation for this getaway weekend was Quest Serviced Apartments, Rosehill. Some of our group had not been to Sydney before, and as it turned out, the Quest Rosehill is the sole reason some of us will likely not return.

Upon arrival, we ventured into the reception office to check in. Here, we were greeted by a number of reception staff in a polite and friendly manner. No, wait. That was what we expected. The reception staff were unfriendly, unhelpful and largely incompetent, to the extent of not being able to book us a taxi, nor point out locations in the area where we could dine. Check-in did not come without it's share of surprises either, where Quest Rosehill debitted $95.00 as a 'security bond' from one of our group, then $115.00 from another in the same style of room, on the same day. Their website mentions in their 'Booking Terms & Conditions' that such a deposit may be required if paying for the room in cash. This was not the case however, as we had paid on Credit Card. We are yet to receive our security deposit back several days later.

I am by no means a racist, but not one member of staff at the Quest Rosehill was of Anglo-Saxon descent. The staff consisted primarily of Indians, with a few Chinese on reception duties. I have no issue with this, but feel it should be pointed out for those that may feel uncomfortable around different cultures. As we were checking out, a British woman was applying for a position at the Quest. I am of mixed opinions around this, as she seemed friendly and polite. For the establishment's sake, I hope they hired her. For her sake, I hope they didnt.

We chose to stay in the Studio Apartment over the one-bedroom apartment due to an unnoticable difference between the rooms. Another member of our group chose the one-bedroom option as it came with a free 'Continental Breakfast'. Upon arrival, it was apparent that the there was absolutely no difference between the two options, aside from the breakfast, which came in a small white box. There is a cafe a few blocks down the road from the Quest. If you have the misfortune of staying there, I suggest you skip their breakfast and take a stroll down there. The staff are friendlier there too!

The room itself was not too badly furnished, although one of the rooms was missing light fittings, and another had an airconditioner that seemingly wished it was a water feature. 'At least they have airconditioning' you may say, but unless you plan on sleeping on the couch downstairs, this will do you no good. The airconditioning unit is positioned on the wall on the lower floor of the apartment, and as cool air falls, the hot air is forced upstairs. Where the bedroom is. The bedding itself is rock hard, and I feel as though it may have affected my back in some way. You really may as well sleep on the couch. It will be softer.

The Quest is situated opposite the Rosehill Racecourse, which is great whenever the racing is on. A train station is nearby as well. Perfect! Except that the train runs largely on days where the races are on, and is not part of the normal rail network. The Quest also backs onto a main road, and due to the paper thin nature of their walls, you can not only hear the people in the next room engaging in pre or post marrital activities, you get to drift off to sleep to the sound of sirens, road traffic, and that Skyline with his subwoofer set to 11. Sleep well, if you can.

To conclude, I would rather lop off one of my arms than stay at the Quest Rosehill again. The Rydges is just up the road. Do yourself the favour and stay there.

Approximate cost: $249/pn

We recently ordered takeaway from Mr Rice, after reading positive comments on WOMOW. The experience was all good, that is until we opened the food. The food was quite oily, and seemed quite disproportionate in the sauce to product stakes. Upon consumption, the food left an oily film that coated our mouths, and made us all feel slightly queasy as a result. We dismissed the bad dining as a learning experience and agreed collectively not to buy from Mr. Rice again. We thought this would be the end of it all.

We were wrong.

The next day, Mr. Rice got his vengeance. A battle that Mr. Rice chose to spread out in anywhere from 3 to 6 waves. Each of us spent the best part of the next day in agony as our bowels rejected the Mr. Rice food.

I can honestly say that Mr. Rice is THE WORST Chinese food I have ever eaten in Ballarat.