I brought my partner to Sake for our anniversary after checking out their menu, and being a fan of Japanese food. It was a really great experience - it's an upmarket restaurant, with amazing service and an extensive and interesting menu.

We had a couple of delicious cocktails to start, and got some edamame, shrimp popcorn and arancini to begin, after which we shared the salmon and the pork belly with daikon.

All of it was amazing, but the pork belly was probably the highlight. The pork was so flavoursome and melted in your mouth, and the broth was incredible.

We had some dessert too - the chocolate cake and the strawberry cheesecake. Both were good, but if I had to pick one it would be the strawberry!

I don't know when we'll be back since it's a special occasion kind of place for me, but I mean if you love Japanese food, you'd be hard pressed to have a bad experience, I'd say. Lots of staff, who are really friendly and attentive, which really makes the experience

Approximate cost: $175

I booked in here for an anniversary celebration with my partner, surprising him with the romance package. It was a pretty underwhelming experience to be honest. Our room was great, and I'd booked it knowing we'd be overlooking the botanical gardens, but being only on the third floor meant there wasn't much of a view.

The romance package specified sparkling wine on arrival and a full breakfast in bed the next morning. After arriving, and waiting 10 min, I called down asking about the wine. After it didn't show for a further 30, I had to call again after which it finally arrived with our room service. Bit disappointing.

Similarly, there wasn't much guidance on how to order our breakfast, and whether it was set or we had to specify what we wanted and so we were woken at 8am in the morning to find out what we wanted - that was annoying.

Aside from this, it wasn't too bad. Our room was spacious and our bed comfy. The hotel itself is pretty affordable too. I think the location is good too - nice and close to the gardens, Eagle St Pier and only 5 min into Queen St mall etc.

I think I would recommend Park on the Royal to any visitors looking for accommodation when visiting Brisbane, but maybe not if they were considering the Romance package.

Approximate cost: $298

Fonda has been in the neighbourhood for a while now and I've been meaning to try it for probably since it opened. Finally got the chance last weekend - I went down with the family for a late lunch on a Sunday.

This place is pretty cool, and had a tempting menu that made it hard to make a decision. The grilled corn is amazing, nice and smoky and served with lime and coconut. My fish taco was similarly delicious. They were a bit small though and I could definitely have gone too. If you're looking for something a bit more filling, the burritos I saw on others people's tables looked like they were up to the task.

We ate plenty of the chips and aioli too but they weren't anything groundbreaking. I also tried the horchata with tequila which was...interesting! But then again I'm not a huge tequila fan so that could have been a case of carpe diem for me.

I would definitely come back again especially seeing as it is just down the road from where I usually stay when I'm visiting Melbourne.

The staff were friendly but definitely carried that oft-found-in-Melbourne aura of 'too-cool'. But hey, if the food is good and it gets to you reasonably quickly, I don't see any reason to let that stop you.

Approximate cost: $10

Mister Raymond is apparently new on the scene in Sale and has a great location on the main street. It is spacious and airy, and cute decor. Staff were possibly a little over attentive but they cafe was very quiet (it was a Tuesday morning) so that's forgiveable.

Prices were as expected. Coffee was nice and strong. My eggs benedict was very yummy, and my dining partner got the ricotta pancakes which made me pretty jealous. I tried them and despite being a bit too sweet (over done with maple syrup) they had the most wonderful texture that I want to be able to recreate. The combination of ricotta, blueberry and lemon was amazing.

Don't know when I'll be in Sale next but this is a great place to try out if you're in town. They do tapas and drinks in the evening too.

Approximate cost: $16

I would say the Proprietor has definitely established itself as the best cafe in Albury. Having not been to Albury for almost 6 months, I was really excited to have the chance to visit this cafe, having been following their progress on Twitter in the lead up to them opening. I think it is safe to say it was worth the wait.

The cafe layout and design is simplistic, homely and spacious. It was flat out when we went there on a Sunday morning but it didn't feel overcrowded at all. The staff were friendly and attentive, despite how busy it was.

The Proprietor prides itself on sourcing all it's food and produce locally and supporting the region's farmers, growers etc. You would think this translates to expensive prices, but it's quite the opposite. Everything is affordable and sounds absolutely mouthwatering. My buttermilk bircher was delicious but I had serious food envy at my boyfriend's hash browns with chorizo, poached eggs and hollandaise. It was so filled with flavour.

I also had a great chai tea.

Visiting the Proprietor made me genuinely sad that I no longer live in Albury. They have exploited a long time gap in the market for a cafe that is comparable to some of the best in the capital cities, in my opinion, and with much less self congratulations and snobbishness.

10/10!

Approximate cost: $9

The Junk Bar seems to be somewhat of an institution in Ashgrove and I'm sure their longevity is a testament to their success. I had a friend bring me here last week for an after work cocktail and I liked it so much I wanted to bring my boyfriend back to sample more of what they had on offer!

The cocktail menu is exciting and different from your run of the mill listings. It's also not TOO big; sometimes fancy cocktails joints have menus with dozens of pages which makes it so difficult to choose - I like how Junk seems to have picked a 'greatest hits' from each of the cocktails types, like sweet, sour, traditional etc. They also have non alcoholic cocktails, a comprehensive wine list and tea and coffee.

My personal recommendations would be the Junk Delight (tastes like a turkish delight!) and the Chilli Chocolate Martini. They also do a delicious chai tea brewed with milk and served with creamed honey!

I believe the petite blonde lady who is always there is the owner and she is a delight. Super friendly and warm, with a great knowledge of all the drinks. She will look after you all evening.

I also can add that they now have a food menu, with options like a cheese plate and Asian-style finger food, and according to the website you can still order in from nearby takeaway restaurants.

Price wise, I think it's pretty standard for good cocktails, but it feels like amazing value here with the cosy decor and fantastic service.

LOVE Junk Bar, almost makes me want to move to Ashgrove

Approximate cost: $16

My boyfriend and I decided to eat here upon recommendation from a friend, and I am SO glad we made the trip to Ashgrove for it. Thai Chinpala is a homely and cosy Thai restaurant, with lots of great touches like Thai-English phrases on the walls and authentic Thai decor.

Sopha, the hostess, really is what makes the experience at this restaurant so worthwhile. She is a complete sweetheart, and is friendly, engaging and clearly enamoured with their little business at the heart of Ashgrove. It was such a pleasure to be looked after by her. We arrived for dinner quite late (8.30pm) and although we were the only people in the restaurant (it was a Tuesday evening), at no point did we feel like we were being rushed, or that the service was too attentive.

The food here is clearly prepared with love, with lots of painstakingly carved food garnishes (my Year 9 Food Tech teacher would have been so proud!). Our Massaman curry and ginger pork stirfry were both really flavoursome and not too oily, which can sometimes be a downfall of a great Thai dish.

If we lived in Ashgrove, I can say without any hesitation that this would be our new Friday night takeaway go-to. It feels so good to support small local businesses who so genuinely love doing what they do, and love their customers. Ten out of ten!

Approximate cost: $15

Primal Pantry has a great vibe and decor, with really friendly and helpful staff. They had a great breaky menu with lots of different options to choose from, making the decision pretty difficult. I should say from the start that Primal Pantry (as you might be able to infer from the name) is a cafe whose menu is based around the Paleo diet. I'm not into fad dieting or food trends much, but I was eager to try this place based on a recommendation from a friend.

Really, you can't tell that it is following any particular food dogma, and it means the menu is full of healthy and full flavoured sounding options. I got the espresso frappe made with coconut milk and the omelette. The frappe was a little bland and bitter for my liking, but still yum. I'm sure that is how it is supposed to taste, I can probably blame my sweet tooth.

Happy with my omelette, but would have been nice if it had come with some kind of greens - a tad underwhelming for $18. But very tasty - lots of mushies and shallots.

It's a little pricier than I usually like but I do not think, by any means, that it is necessarily overpriced. I've certainly been to other places that charge similar prices for food that is nowhere near this quality. I'd certainly come back to sample some other options on the menu.

I grabbed one of their brownies to takeaway and it was big, sweet and delicious! Satiated my sweet tooth much more effectively.

Approximate cost: $18

The banh mi at Miss Luu's is TO DIE FOR. For $6, you would be hard pressed to find yourself a filling lunch full of this much flavour. They do banh mi, bun (Viet salad), spring rolls - most of the Vietnamese staples. There's always something on a specials board too but I couldn't tell you because I never want to deviate from my beloved banh mi!

It gets crazy busy in here at lunchtime - chockablock full of all the business people from the surrounding offices but you never have to wait too long. The staff are friendly and courteous.

Cannot wait to go back! My go-to Vietnamese in Brisbane!

Approximate cost: $6

Ho Chi Mama is pretty new on the scene and was a welcome choice for someone who is a big fan of Vietnamese food. I love how fresh and flavoursome it is. This place has great decor and a cute little set up. Staff were friendly and helpful.

Food is good, definitely value for money. They have a solid range of Vietnamese staples, such as spring rolls, pho and banh mi. I got the chow, which was large and filling for $13. My friend got the pho and it didn't look like the best one I've personally had, but he said it was really good. I can also say their fried rice is delectable.

Ho Chi Mama is BYO, making it a great chilled out dinner option. Half our meals took a good half hour to make it out but sometimes a restaurant is just having one of those nights, I never like to judge it too harshly based on one experience.

Would be tempted to come back for sure if I find myself in the Valley anytime soon!

Approximate cost: $10