Happy Buddha Retreat, Blue Mountains Retreat

This is a delayed blog post. So after feeling quite burnt out, a friend of mine recommended heading to a Happy Buddha Retreat which is a yoga retreat in the Blue Mountains. I have not done any yoga for years but the idea of spending a few days in the Blue mountains sounded nice.

The Famous Berry Donut Van, Berry

Fresh made donuts are warm, slightly crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside and full of cinnamon, sugary flavours. The Famous Berry Donut Van delivers this in Berry. The donuts are very tasty but are probably comparable to fresh donuts from Donut King.  Both are very delicious.  But the difference is that the Famous Berry Donut Van guarantees fresh donuts even if that means a long wait.

But it's all about supply and demand and given there are no other competitors; the famous Berry Donut Van is famous!  People are willing to line up and wait for these donuts!  I only bought one donut for $1.20 with a lime drink.

Wiseman's Ferry Bowling Club, Wiseman's Ferry

Wiseman's Ferry is a quiet little town that has its own charm. Your car will love going on the ferry.  I always stop by for a nice pub meal at the Wiseman's Ferry Bowling Club. I had a great meal in the little charming bowling club.

Now don't be deceived by aesthetics; you're in for a treat if you are a parma fan. The generously proportioned chicken parmigiana ($23) was smothered in cheese and sat on a bed of chips with a side salad. Look at that oozing cheese! What a pub meal!

Or you can go for the neat and stacked steak sandwich ($15) with a generous side of chips. The sandwich bread is thickly cut and toasted. I washed the meal down with a pub squash.

I then went for a very scenic drive through this little town and the car had a ball on the ferry.

Prices: $15 to $25 for mains

Location: 5560 Old Northern Rd, Wisemans Ferry NSW Sydney NSW 2775

Figtree Churrasco, Mayfield/New Castle

My Irish friend highly recommended this restaurant.  For $79, you can go crazy for the full Churrasco experience. A nice bottle of Argentinian wine to accompany the meat is a must.  It's a slightly dearer Brazilian experience but something you must try if you are in the area.

Beginner Tapas -Crumbed Feta with Blueberry, Mushroom, Sea Chowder sample or Cous Cous alternative

To start you off; try a few of the tapas to activate your taste buds. The crumbed feta was tasty with blueberry compote. The mushroom was slightly dry. The cous cous was tasty. (all pictured above).

Try not to load up on the bread but the tomato, goats cheese dip was pretty tasty.  Trust me though. Do not eat too much of this. You will need the stomach space.

Tomato and Goats Cheese with Bread (it's a tough spicey)

Grilled Haloumi 

The haloumi was slightly dry and plastic like to be honest.

OMG potatos with a side salad. Sauces include apple cinnamon dip, BBQ sauce and fig jam sauce

So instead, I tried to overcome my tastebuds with the tasty potato and some side salad. Little did I know, some of the best courses are coming through.  Firstly, there was the prawn then one of my favourite dishes of the night was the blue fin tuna which was slightly seared (pictured below). It was light, fresh and did not taste awfully fishy for those non-fishy fans.  My tastebuds then went into overdrive with the course of pineapple which was intended to cleanse the palette (pictured below).

Seared Blue Fin Tuna (Sashimi Grade of course)

Highlight - Pineapple

For all you meat eaters, you are now wondering how was the meat and how well was it cooked?  The beef was perfectly cooked. The meat melted in your mouth and accompanying sauces were amazing. The lamb was good, the chicken and pork were good and the chorizo was average.

I got seconds on the tuna and a small slice of pineapple to dessert my little butt away.  I ate way too much. It was a good experience though. Give it a go if you have some mula to spend.

Wagyu Beef

The Lamb

Chicken

Pork and the last course is Chorizo (not pictured)