Cameo judge - Alex

Beautiful setting!

Milkshakes after a stroll

The last day of school holidays, what a nice day for a stroll in Parramatta Park, followed by a milkshake at the Parramatta Park Cafe with Alex and James! Parramatta Park is definitely one of my favourite spots for a bike ride, run, walk, picnic, game of cricket and now I can add "having a milkshake" to that list! It was a nice thick milkshake, but I have to admit the flavour was a little weak. The cafe closes at 3pm each day - and we didn't get there till 3:15pm, however, they were kind enough to serve us some take away and let us sit down (typical "get out" signals were still given, for example, mopping the floor and stacking the chairs around us, so we didn't stay too long).  I have been to this cafe many times now though, and the service has been lovely, always a great spot to sit by the river and relax.

The cafe is found in a very picturesque spot in the park named "Little Coogee" which has been a very popular swimming spot in the past, in 1905 the local swimming club were given permission to use the area, proving they built a dressing shed and conformed to the bathing rules of the time. The park is packed with interesting history dating from 1788! Things to take a sneak peak at as you walk through the park include Old Government House, The Dairy Cottage, Government Farm and The Bath House.

 Old Government House 

 The Dairy Cottage (how appropriate)

 Government Farm

 Little Coogee

The Cafe

nostalgia

OAK Strawberry Milk was on sale today while I was shopping at Coles. I saw this as the perfect opportunity for a bargain, a treat and "research"! OAK claims to solve the feeling which they recently named "hungythirsty". Pretty self explanatory, this term refers to the feeling of being hungry and thirsty at the same time.

OAK Milk always reminds me of road trips, if you are a Sydney Kid who travelled up the North Coast for holidays, you will know why. For every Sydney family who endured a road trip up the North Coast, a stop off for an OAK Milkshake at Hexham was always on the agenda!

In conclusion, my state of "hungrythirsty" was satisfied and I always enjoy the trip down memory lane which comes with OAK. 8/10 - pretty good for a mass produced drink!

This website gives a good history of the Milk Bar. http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2011/05/02/3205765.htm

Memories?

Every cloud has a silver lining...

We had a suggestion from a friend to try a ‘Super Mog Shake’ at Tom’s Eats in Katoomba. As James is in Katoomba this week for a conference, he saw this as a perfect opportunity to give the shake a go. Much to his disappointment, Tom’s Eats is now closed down.

Café Zuppa, however, came to the rescue and was no let down! For the bargain price of $4 you get a milkshake which James rates as a 7/10. A top spot to stop off after checking out the 3 sisters! Click here for information on the beautiful area.


I'm sure we will visit the Blue Mountains again before the tour is over as I have such a love for day trips there, so if you have any suggestions let me know! 

Future "research"

After asking some cultured friends and doing a little google research about some top spots for a milkshake, here are some places on the wish list for our next milkshakes. If you know a good spot, let me know and we will try and get there!

1. Olympia Milkbar, Stanmore

2. Varga Bar, Newtown

3. Tom's Eats, Katoomba

4. Zencafe, Lane Cove 

5. Gallery Cafe, Annandale 

6. Big Daddy's, NYC (unlikely...)

7. McDonalds (...more likely)
8. Cafe Laurella, Wahroonga
9. Chat Time, Round Corner
10. Cafe Jolly, Leichhardt
11. Parry's, Caringbah
12. Nut n' Fancy, Parramatta 
13. The Boat House, Palm Beach

Taken in 1946 - Milk Bar at Central Station, Sydney. 

Go West (life is peaceful there).

With some time to kill in the Rooty Hill area we decided to stop by at Rashay's - the cafe with the most friendly staff and the highest amount of flat screen TVs I have ever seen on the walls of a cafe! We felt a bit like we were in America - everything is giant sized so you certainly get your money's worth! As you can see from the photo below, the milkshake was bigger the James' head and one shake was definitely enough to satisfy both of us! We had a strawberry milkshake which had a "fake" flavour that even James, the lover of "fake tasting milkshakes", almost found too much.

Although this cafe is at least an hour from the ocean, with all the large windows open and a nice cool breeze, we felt like we could be the beach - with no seagulls to fight off from our chips!

Milkshake Tour hits the NSW South Coast.

One of our favourite spots so far - Minnamurra General Store. After a gorgeous walk from Kendalls Beach to Minnamurra (part of the Kiama Coastal Walk) we stopped at this old general store, now cafe, for a well deserved beverage! James ordered a strawberry milkshake and I decided it was already time for the "milkshake tour" to expand our horizons and try a "berry bliss smoothy". The name didn't lead me on and it truly was "bliss" - one of the best smoothies I have ever had!

The coastal walk was lovely, you can find more information here: http://www.kiama.com.au/pages/walking-trails-cycling-routes/

PS - The pistachio cake is incredible! (photo above)

Sirocco - Copacabana

Here we ordered a strawberry and a lime milkshake. We just had a game of tennis up the road so it was perfectly refreshing and a great reward. The cafe is just across the road from the beach, you can stroll in after a swim for a treat! Dog friendly!

click here for information on booking the tennis courts at Copa.