Night Noodle Markets

As mentioned in an earlier post, Melbourne is an impressively multicultural city. The successive waves of immigrants have left their mark on the softer vowels of the Australian English spoken here, but have mostly influenced the kitchens of this city's restaurants. We experienced this first-hand when we wandered over to the Night Noodle Markets last night. In its third year, this event is part of Melbourne Good Food Month and is open for 18 nights until 29 November. Fifty-six food stall and trucks light up the banks of the Yarra River (the river that bisects Melbourne) at Birrarung Mar.

We arrived at dusk and stood in long lines to sample Filipino meat skewers from Hoy Pinoy, Vietnamese noodle bowl from Nem N' Nem and Spanish-influenced Phad Thai from SpanThai. We were fascinated by Lady Carolina, the stall that redefines "fusion" food. Here one can choose from Wok Fried Quinoa or a Nikkei dog (Huachana sausage with Nori and Amarillo salsa).