August 14, 2025
Following our sodden long weekend in Sydney, we moved onto south-east Queensland, where the blue skies smiled down upon us. (The photo above was taken spontaneously while waiting at a bus stop - even this pedestrian activity was a pleasure.) We were focused primarily on spending time with family and friends, which meant mostly home-cooked meals or cafes chosen for convenience over cachet. Here are two exceptions.
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When I grew up north of Brisbane, North Lakes did not exist. Now it's a suburb of two decade's standing and my mum is plugged into the local council's events, including yoga in the park and a science week panel discussion that we went along to together. Even more surprising, North Lakes has a Thai restaurant with a dedicated vegan menu! Thai Ginger Express and Vegan! Thai-riffic are effectively the same business, though I assume the separate names help their SEO.
Between three of us, we shared tofu satay sticks ($9.50), dense little drumsticks ($8, not the layered yuba version I expected but still good), a very spicy basil and chilli stir-fry ($16.50) with mock chicken ($4), and a smoky Pad See Ew ($15.50) with tofu ($2). It wasn't quite a match for Sydney's YOD but it far exceeded my expectations for a neighbourhood I had to move out of to experience Thai food at all.
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After we dropped our luggage in our Brisbane hotel, we headed immediately to Sendok Garpu for lunch. We had a tasty meal that nonetheless confirmed we ordered best on our first visit a year earlier. Bakwan jagung (corn fritters, $9.95, pictured above left) were sweet and crunchy and teamed with a smooth peanut sauce. An Es Kopi Hitam (iced black coffee, $6, pictured above right) served Michael the caffeine he craved while I chose the Es Kopyor ($9, pictured above right), a super-sweet milky rose concoction stacked with coconut jelly slices.
My gado gado ($16.95, pictured below left) was a trusty, mild medley of tofu, steamed tempeh and veges (including heaps of bean sprouts) under a blanket of peanut sauce, and sides of boiled egg and crackers. By contrast, Michael's nasi kampau komplit ($29.95) was very spicy! Sendok Garpu thoughtfully replaced beef rendang with jackfruit and chicken curry with more corn fritters; the cabbage green bean curry and excellent chilli eggplant came standard.
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There's plenty of other good veg*n eating to be had in south-east Queensland but we didn't mind missing out this year - it's much more important that our other meals were shared with the people we love spending time with, year after year.
