Halo Halo

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The menu boasted a plethora of Asian dishes, from Thai to Chinese to Vietnamese cuisines, and it took us a while to decide and agree on what to get. Craig, our friend-chef, cautioned us on not ordering too much as he wanted to try out a couple of recipes on us. Awesome. When we had finally decided, we kicked back with our BYO wines and hungrily waited for our dinner.

Despite ordering quite a bit, our dishes soon sailed out from the kitchen.

Salt and Pepper Squid ($12.50)

There’s something quite compelling about salt and pepper squid with my friends. I notice that more often than not, when they see it on the menu, they have to order it. I suspect I might be the same, but nonetheless, I’m glad they ordered this dish as the perfectly seasoned squid was perfectly chewy and soft. Just thinking about it now makes me horribly hungry.

Combination Seafood Omelette ($11.50)

By the time I could put down the camera to start eating, this omelette was pretty much gone! A testament to its deliciousness. I only managed to grab a small piece, but that morsel hit all the right tastebuds (all thanks to that sauce I think!). Eating it with fried rice just seem to make it even more flavoursome.

Sizzling Mongolian Lamb ($13.90)

I love a good sizzle in my food, especially when it’s still sizzling when it comes out. The lamb was liberally saucy (just the way I like it) and was perfectly seasoned. This was another dish that disappeared quite quickly.

Deep Fried Bean Curd with Salt, Pepper and Chilli ($9.50)

I tend to favour steamed tofu over the fried bean curd for some reason, but that’s not an excuse not to try any (though admittedly, I did eat everything else before turning my attention on to this dish). I was surprised at how much I liked it: its soft, crispy shell gave way to a hot and silky inside. Despite the pepper and chilli components, I was pleasantly surprised (again) to find out that it wasn’t spicy at all! Woohoo! Then again, I did studiously choose a piece that was furthest from the chilli bits.

Chicken Pad Thai ($10.50)

Being pad thai fanatics, this dish didn’t last long at all with my friends. I’m not quite a pad thai fan (more a pad see ew person myself), but I thought this dish was pretty decent.

Fried Rice (Small, $5)

As much as I love rice, I simply adore fried rice – especially if it’s a combination! It never gets old, regardless of how much I have it. Some places are a little stingy on the proteins and veggies, so I love the fact that Tamarind is quite generous with the Chinese sausage and seafood. Yum.

Singaporean Chilli Crab

This was Craig’s first test dish and although it was a little different to the Singaporean Chilli Crab I’ve had (not as spicy being one of them), it was still very, very tasty.

I loved how the dish also came with bread to mop up all that delicious sauce.

Blackbean Mussels

Craig’s second test dish, I have to admit, I didn’t taste at all. I’m not a big fan of mussels and while I sometimes do try to at least taste mussel dishes, often times I don’t feel quite up to it. It was one of those times that night, but the girls seem like they liked it!

Shang Dong Chicken

The last test dish was Shang Dong chicken. The girls also loved this dish and I couldn’t wait to bite into that saucy chicken… until I did and found out just how spicy it was. It was almost incomprehensible, as it didn’t look spicy at all! No tell-tale chilli bits or chilli redness… Sigh. But before the chilli ran rampage in my mouth, I did get to taste its saucy goodness. It’s not a wonder that no chicken pieces were left.

Ube Cake!

S graciously provided us with dessert: a Filipino ube cake, which I learnt contains taro and coconut pieces.

We’re so spoilt! The cream was light and the coconut pieces dotted between the taro sponge layers were utterly scrumptious.

Inside Tamarind

Tamarind is in its early days yet, but it’s definitely a restaurant that has a lot to offer. The extensive (maybe too extensive) menu most probably would be streamlined in the near future, as Craig and his team figure out what their customers prefer (insider info! Ooo).

From the wonderful test dishes he’s made for us, I don’t doubt that Tamarind will go from strength to strength (biasness aside).

Tamarind
Shop 6, 368 Hamilton Rd
Fairfield West, NSW, 2165
Ph: (02) 9609 6605
Web: www.tamarind-asiancuisine.com.au

© squishies for eatshowandtell, 2011. | Permalink | 19 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: favourites, poultry, Seafood

Going to a Korean BBQ restaurant means the rest of your night is pretty much over. There is no chance you can make it to that trendy bar for a few cocktails while smelling like burnt charcoal and having kim chi breath.

Before I go into how great Se Jong is (not to be confused with Se Joung which is also in Campsie), here are my commandments of Korean BBQ :

• Thou shall not plan on going on a hot date after eating at a Korean BBQ restaurant
• Thou shall not overdose on potato noodles and fried food and getting full before the main course, the meat.
• Thou shall not be greedy and take too much meat and not being able to finish it.
• Thou shall not wear a brand new outfit to a Korean BBQ restaurant
• Thou shall not think it’s cool to recite Kim Jong Il Team America quotes at a Korean BBQ restaurant

Anyway, Campsie is re-known for it’s Korean restaurants. Much like Ashfield is with Dumplings and Granville is for Lebanese charcoal chicken, there are no shortage of Koreans and Korean restaurants in Campsie. It’s a good sign when over 50% of the restaurant is full of Koreans, I feel at ease that it’s going to be a good night because of this. It’s a poor measure, but good enough for me.

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Read the rest of Se Jong, Campsie and a home spring BBQ (582 words)

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Post tags: spring bbq

The logic is simple – the quality of the dumplings is just as good out west and the prices easily 2/3 of what they would be in the city. A few emails later and we’ve got a group of 5 tagging along with us to our favourite Ashfield restaurant, Taste of Shanghai. It’s been a while since our last visit and the restaurant has been renovated in our absence, the counter top is sleek and the menus are now sadly missing all photos, but the food remains as good as we remember.

Xiao Long Bao, 8 for $8.80

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I’m here tonight with Astroboy and Rin because of rumours that the newest Korean restaurant on the Burwood Rd strip is actually a spin-off of my favourite Strathfield Korean restaurant, Ceci. Rin’s been filling our ears with tales of how she saw a commercial for the restaurant on the Chinese Community Channel and how very similiar the decor is.

The moment we step inside, we know the rumours have to be true. The decor is identical, from the 70′s style booths, the wallpaper and faux french wall decorations, even the placement of the cashier bench at the back is exactly the same as Ceci’s. What confirms it all though is our sighting of the owner of Ceci sitting calmly behind the cashier, gazing over her domain.

The owner of Ceci!

“It’s her!”

The owner of Ceci is a remarkable woman, she’s seemingly always behind the counter of Ceci, with her hair artfully curled and make up touched up to a tee. She’s become my constant for Strathfield Korean restaurants and it’s actually a bit of a shock to see her seated here in Burwood Korea House.

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Read the rest of Burwood Korea House, Burwood (891 words)

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We’ve been meaning to get together for a feed here for a while now, I’m still adamant that Lao Village is ‘better’. But after eating at Star Laos, it’s clear that both restaurants are different and have are excellent in their own little way.

Green curry, tom yum soup, bbq duck

I arrive late and the boys have already ordered and the first dish comes out even before I sit down. I should arrive late more often!(...)
Read the rest of Star Lao Thai Restaurant, Fairfield (532 words)

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I was in danger of doing it again, but it’s a good thing that I’m eating with people who’s assertive with what they want to order. It didn’t take us long, then, to decide on what to order and for Lynda to order (in Vietnamese, no less) to our waitress. I listened enviously as she confidently ordered our dishes. Whenever I attempt to order in Vietnamese or Cantonese, I’m so conscious of how stilted and Aussie-fied my pronunciation is so I sometimes stick to pointing and saying the dish’s English name.

Braised Scallops with Snow Peas ($17)

F couldn’t pass up this dish when he saw it on the menu – he literally gasped and stated that we were ordering this dish in a tone that brook no argument. I have no arguments here, I adore scallops with snow peas – a dish that my father used to make all the time at home.

It’s been a very long while since he’s made this dish, but with one bite, it all came back to me in a rush. The well-seasoned scallops were soft and juicy, while the snow peas provided a fresh, crisp, crunchy counterpart.

Crispy Skin Chicken ($13)

They say that the skin is where most of the fat is on the chicken; they say that when you’re dieting to fit into a dress for an up-coming wedding that you should forgo eating that skin and go for the leaner option of eating just the flesh (if you must eat it at all that is).

Clearly whomever said this hasn’t seen just how deliciously and invitingly sinful this crispy skin chicken looks. Surely they can’t resist something that looks like this. The chicken is pretty much WYSIWYG: totally crispy skin barely draped on succulent, juicy meat.

Sigh. It was totally worth the amount of exercise needed to work off the piece I ate.

BBQ Beef in Lemon Sauce ($13)

This is David’s and Lynda’s favourite dish from My Thuan; they order it every time they come here. F thought it was so tasty and different with its perfectly-seasoned, tender beef that has a slightly acidic tang.

Don’t be fooled by that big pile of beef though: most of the dish is butter lettuce.

Soft Shell Crab ($20)

The amount of soft shell crab was amazing for the cost – comparing it to the barbecued beef, there seemed to be a lot more crab than beef for a fraction more.

I think this is the first time I’ve had so much meat in a soft shell crab dish; bite after bite, my mouth would be filled with soft, well-seasoned crab meat. Nom nom nom. I think F and I hoovered up this dish, unable to resist from coming back for more.

Stir Fried Morning Glory in Salty Bean Curd ($9)

I was expecting to see chunks of salty bean curd peppering this dish for some reason and I so was a bit disappointed that there weren’t any. The salty bean curd flavour was definitely there though, as was the ginger flavour. What I originally thought were strands of noodles were actually terribly thin slivers of ginger. I half marvelled at how they got it so thin and was half annoyed that I would have to meticulously pick them out before eating the greens.

I wasn’t going to have dessert, but F was the devil sitting on my shoulder and I found myself ordering two che ba mau, a “three-coloured” sweet bean dessert with coconut and shaved ice. I was so excited about eating it that I totally forgot to take a photo of it until we had cleaned out our tall glasses.

My Thuan is located at the corner of the perennially busy artery that is John Street and Hill Street. The service is slightly better than your average Chinese restaurant and a lot more attentive too.

I was determined to reach my goal by the weekend that followed this dinner, only to be foiled by the simple, delicious food… but my goodness, it was worth every bite.

My Thuan
117A John St
Cabramatta, NSW, 2166
Ph: (02) 9728 9843

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Post tags: beef, Seafood

Due to a series of unfortunate events (I got stood up by Minh haha), F and I fortunately got to finally visit this mysteriously frequented restaurant.

The menu is quite extensive and it took us a while to decide what to order. Sometimes it sucks ordering for two people – you want to eat/try more dishes, but you can’t because you’re physically constrained by your stomach real estate. Much sadness.

Crostini - Mixture of Wood Fired Bread topped with Tomato, Bocconcini, Basil, Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Spanish Onion ($15)

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Right. That tells me lot… and so I remained a little unconvinced just how good these waffles could be, as I’ve had some pretty awesome waffles. Sadly, his cravings weren’t to be sated any time soon.

It was almost half a year later that F’s cravings came back in full force (due to a friend gleefully posting of their visit to Jas My Waffles on Facebook). It just so happened that we had a free Sunday for F to finally indulge in his waffle cravings and I to finally experience it.

L to R: Maple Syrup, Pistachio, Flake, Hot Dog, Cheese Waffles (Sampler Pack, $11 for 5 or $2.50 for 1)

These waffles are not your typical waffles you would expect to get from say, Max Brenner. Instead, these waffles-on-a-stick have a dense yet fluffy and doughy inside surrounded by a crunchy exterior. The maple syrup waffle was simple and delicious. Due to the more doughy waffle the generous helping of maple syrup almost seemed too little as I found F wiping the paper ‘plate’ it was served in clean.

The melted chocolate is given a unanimous thumb of approval. Rich and velvety, it is the perfect base for the rest of the toppings. While the chunky pistachio bits added a nice crunch, it was somewhat overshadowed by waffle itself and the lush chocolate sauce.

The Flake on the other hand was a lot more successful as the chocolate sauce complimented the shaved Flake bits. This is a chocolate lovers’ chocolate heaven.

L to R: Cheese, Hot Dog Waffles

The melted cheese waffles ooze with flavour when bitten (or cut) into. The cheese is playfully stringy and stretchy – a perfect match with the waffle itself. This was the favourite of the picks where F actually contemplated buying another.

The fat frankfurt-hotdog waffle was a delight. The sausage flavour worked ever so beautifully with the waffle where not one flavour was lost to the other. F told me that this brought back memories of eating food in the Philippines, as this was quite a common pairing to see at breakfast.

While these waffles lost their fluffy, doughy interior to their savoury counterparts, they still retained the scrumptious crunchy exterior found with the sweet waffles.

Watching the Game... I mean, Fight

Jas My Waffles is a husband-and-wife operation with pretty friendly service and serves waffles in quite a few different forms and sizes. From what I saw, they also serve normal-styled waffles, generously accompanied with fruit, chocolate, or whatever combination the proprietor, Jaspher De Leon, has dreamt up. The waffles we had were pretty good and I have found myself thinking now and again that a cheesy/chocolate-y waffle on stick would really hit the spot.

This post is ultimately dedicated to Pacman – not the circular, yellow, ghost-eating childhood game – rather, the Filipino boxing superstar Manny ‘Pacman’ Pacquiao. Due to his defensive title fight (or so F tells me that’s what the game fight was all about), Jas My Waffles normal Sunday trading hours of 9am – 1pm meant our 2:00pm arrival would not be greeted with closed doors. Instead the store was teaming with people, though I suspect the majority there just for the fight which was showing live and complimentary to the public.

While Rooty Hill might be quite a trip for some, it is quite worth the travel out west to try the spin Jaspher has spun on the humble waffles.

Jas My Waffles
6 Rooty Hill Road North
Rooty Hill, NSW, 2766
Ph: (02) 9575 4814
Web: www.jasmywaffles.com.au/

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I needed a weekend out of the house, and not just on the soccer field. After a few days of emails, we decided to go for a bushwalk in the Blue Mountains. It was 29 degrees and hot in Sydney, but 20 degrees and raining in the Blue Mountains. Factor in humidity, wet surfaces and leeches, some of us wished we had stayed back at home.

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Read the rest of Megalong Tea Rooms, Blue Mountains (1,094 words)

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Post tags: cake, coffee, tea

I’ve found when eating out west that Canley Vale and Canley Heights are actually much more convenient when looking for a late night eating location, the majority of restaurants on the Cabramatta strip are closed by 9pm making late dinners impossible. I get a bit worried that no one else has arrived yet, I’ve sent them the address and none of them are familiar with the area, relying on google maps to lead the way. I’m told they start to wonder if they’ve got the right location when a bright red neon sign and a fluro green faux waterwall window dressing light up the pathway – thats when they know they’ve found Hai Au.

Ca phe sua da (Vietnamese iced coffee)

A glass of this makes me wonder what life in Vietnam would be like. Sitting on a tiny stool by the road side and sweating in the humid temperatures while drinking an ice-cold Vietnamese coffee comes to mind. This stuff is strong and I’ve seen people finish the coffee in ten seconds and saying there isn’t enough coffee in it, only ice. This is true, but the idea is to let the coffee slowly melt with the ice.

Steamed Oysters w/ vermicelli noodles and xo sauce

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Read the rest of Hai Au, Canley Vale (753 words)

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“Since you’re the food blogger,” he said. “You can choose where to eat. You must know lots of good places!” I sighed. It’s hard to think of a place to eat when there is no preference for cuisine, location and definitely not price. With such high expectations and no defined constraints (besides “just not a spicy place”, which I can definitely do), I fretted. So much pressure! What if I chose a place that he didn’t like?

As the day drew nearer, I vaguely told him to meet me on the corner of Pitt St and Phillip St – hoping to find some last minute inspiration of where to eat when we got there. Puzzled, he asked, “But Phillip St doesn’t cross Pitt St?” Oops. I meant Church and Phillip St. “If you didn’t want to meet up with me you could just say so!” he joked. Ugh. Even though I have every intention to meet up with him, I felt bad anyway… I’m so easily guilt-tripped.

I got to our meeting point a few minutes before he did and looking around, I noticed massive banners declaring that Liana’s is under original management. Hmm, interesting. I’ve noticed over the years a decline in patronage (or perhaps I’ve just visited them at odd times?), which I found a bit sad as I’ve always liked Liana’s. I suggested the restaurant to Chung and mentioned how they make pretty good risotto there, which I always ordered in the past. Perhaps foreseeing a lot of aimless wandering around if he didn’t, Chung agreed to try Liana’s.

Roma Salad - Fresh Sliced Vine Ripened Tomato, Bococcini Cheese, Olives, Basil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Balsamic with Crusty Bread (as a side, $13.90)

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Read the rest of Liana’s, Parramatta (907 words)

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Post tags: chicken, Dessert, Seafood

Just over an hour later the es&t team (sans Linda who has abandoned us for the greener pastures of Yum Cha) are gathered outside of El Jannah, and things are looking promising judging by the lively crowd inside and the strong scent of Charcoal wafting out. The menu is actually divided into two with wildly differing prices for takeaway and eat in, takeaway is definitely the more economical choice being half the price of eating in, but as we all have varying plans for that night we decide to keep it simple and eat in.

Homos $5.50

Being greedy we’ve ordered the majority of the menu, including all of the dips available and they’re the first things to arrive on the table. The dips arrive in brightly coloured plastic bowls and I’m delighted by the brilliant red and yellows of the Homos, the first to arrive on the table. They’re soon joined by eye wateringly bright pink and green salted pickles which make me squint in salty satisfaction at my first bite, the sensation is oddly similar to eating Li Hing Mui, they’re definitely not loved by all but I adore the crunch and salt of it all.

Baba Ghanouj $5.50

The Baba Ghanouj soon follows and the smoky eggplant mixture is quickly attacked by the table, I usually prefer Homos over Baba Ghanouj enjoying the sesame taste more but on this occasion find myself swayed by the Ghanouj thanks to the moisture ratio which allows for easy scoopage. The Homos while tasting great has a texture which is thick enough that we find ourselves reaching for knives to assist in spreading.

Tabouli $5.50

I’m not usually a fan of Tabouli, nothing about its tomato green salsa appearance has ever appealed to me but this vivacious zesty rendition has me reaching out with my fork time and time again. Call me a tabouli convert! I suspect is the extra dash of lemon which this batch has been made with which is making it so appealing, especially with the heavier dishes surrounding.

Falafel $1.50 each

As a concession to Teresa (who to her credit is beginning to turn away from the dark side and occasionally consumes meat) we also order a few of the Falafel for the table, the 3 pieces are just enough for each of us to have half and is served with a small tub of Yoghurt dipping sauce. I find the Falfel are a little too dense for my liking and end up half drowning them in the dipping sauce to get some much-needed moisture.

Charcoal Chicken $21 for whole

The star of the party has finally arrived! We’ve been snacking on all the various dips while we’ve been waiting but they’re immediately forgotten as the giant platter of chicken heads towards our table. There’s a moment of glee before we’re all attacking the chicken, don’t be fooled for a moment by the crispy charcoal appearance as the chicken was easily one of the softest most tender pieces of chicken I’ve had in a long time.

I find myself with a bit of a dilemma when it comes to eating the chicken. Do I wrap it in the Lebanese bread and smother it with Tabouli, Homos and Baba Ghanouj? But how to deal with the troublesome bones without having to tear apart the entire piece at once? In the end I take the lazy man’s route and simply go cave man style, chicken grasped firmly in my left hand while I attack each of the dips alternatively between each bite of chicken. Oh my, I just had to wipe away a bit of saliva at the memory…

Garlic Dip

Of all the dips we’ve ordered, the Garlic Dip is the last one I’d expect to blow me away but it’s the clear favourite of the table. The dip is made strong and you can feel the garlic breath accumulating with each mouthful but the creamy dip adds a tang to the chicken which is addictive. The sheer amount of garlic it must take to make each batch boggles the mind.

Howard is actively eying the counter and contemplating buying a small takeaway serving for later on, however the line at the counter has been continuously busy our entire visit never less than 3-4 people long and he gives up this thought. Our table is immediately seized by another group as soon as we stand up and we make our way to the door only half-joking about stealing the remainder of the Garlic dip! I’ll definitely be back to El Jannah in the future, but think next time I’ll be getting takeaway to enjoy all that lovely charcoal chicken in the comfort of my home.

El Jannah

4-6 South Street

Granville, NSW 2142

Ph: (02) 9637 0977

Web: http://www.eljannah.com.au/

Open daily from 10am – 11pm

© Minh for eatshowandtell, 2010. | Permalink | 23 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: charcoal chicken, favourites, Lebanese

When I saw Holy Basil open on Canley Vale Road, I wasn’t sure how well it would do. Here we have a fully decked out restaurant which wouldn’t look out-of-place on Crown St in Surry Hills. The decor is modern and moody with wood furnishings,warm lighting, shiny statues and an open kitchen. They even serve Toby’s Estate coffee which is unheard of in this neck of the woods. With such an authentic variety of Thai and Lao food in Fairfield,You’ve got to give them credit for having a crack at trying something different.

This evening I am dining with six good friends of mine, who’ve been around the traps in terms of trying Sydney food. Overall, we ordered just the right amount for six people and the bill came to about $30 per person with a drink each. It’s definitely on the more expensive side for the area, but you’d be hard pressed to find contemporary Thai anywhere else in the Fairfield/Liverpool/Cabramatta area.

Chicken feet salad - Yum Lab Meau Nan ($9.90)

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Read the rest of Holy Basil, Canley Heights (949 words)

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I know what you’re thinking: “Sushi? In Penrith?!” I had my misgivings as well the first time I went, but thought I shouldn’t really judge until I tried it.

Surprisingly, I really enjoyed it and several weeks later found myself oddly enough craving for sushi… in Penrith. Only it took me months to come back here, this time properly armed with a camera. Yay!

We ate quite a bit, so I’ll try to keep comments short and sweet.

Salmon Sashimi ($7)

I adore salmon sashimi and while I might not know how to spot a good sashimi cut like Howie does, I know what I like and I fancy that I can decently gauge its freshness. That said, this salmon sashimi was quite fresh and we finished it embarrassingly quick.

Crumbed Ebi Tempura ($5)

Nice and crunchy though there wasn’t nearly enough sauce as there should have been. *sigh*

Pink Lady - Fresh Salmon and Orange, Tuna and Avocado ($3.50)

I grabbed this because it looked a bit unusual. There was a nice zest to the sushi roll where the orange touched it and the tuna was wonderfully creamy. I wanted another one straight away, but thought I should save my stomach for other goodies.

Salmon with Avocado and Flying Fish Roe ($5)

Tastes pretty much how it looks: yummy! The roe (I quickly learnt) was only there for show as when I picked up one roll, most of it fell on to the plate. I resorted to squishing my roll over the fallen roe to pick them up. Hehe

Unagi - Marinated Fresh Water Eel ($5)

F’s never had eel before and was feeling game enough to try it “just this once”. While he didn’t dislike it, it’s not something he’d voluntarily pick up again citing that it tasted a bit too “fishy and weird”. I liked it though with the sweetish marinade and soft-yet-crispy texture.

Sweet Corn Salad ($2.50)

What wasn’t on the train could be ordered from the menu. F had to have the sweet corn salad and while I love corn, this didn’t quite hit the spot for me as I felt it was missing something but couldn’t quite put my finger on what.

Lobster Salad ($3)

The lobster salad wasn’t too bad, but it didn’t taste as fresh as some of the other ingredients in the previous dishes we had.

Egg Salad ($2.50)

What you would expect from an egg salad (only in a sushi roll form): creamy from the mayonnaise and egginess! Mmmmm yum.

Crumbed Chicken and Avocado ($4.00)

The chicken was a bit hard, but the flavours were really complimentary to each other.

Tobikko - Orange Flying Fish Roe ($3.50)

I remember the first time I had fish roe: it freaked me out and only ate it to shut my goading friend up. I’m glad for his goading though as I fell in love with the popping sensation when eating roe followed by a light salty taste. F, on the other hand, thinks that eating roe is too weird and I happily ended up eating both.

Takoyaki ($3.50)

People who have been to Japan keep telling me just how amazing takoyakis are over there. I still haven’t been so I have to make do with what Sydney has to offer (or in this case, Penrith hehe), which I thought tasted pretty darn good.

California - Crab Stick, Avocado, Cucumber, and Flying Fish Roe ($3.50)

I hate it when the avocado pieces or slices are hard in sushi rolls – I find it a bit unpleasant to eat. So I was glad that the avocados I have had here have been soft and wonderfully buttery. Though I think I mainly like california rolls because they look pretty – all that colour!

Grilled Hotate (Scallop) ($4.50)

The scallops were barely grilled so they were almost raw (and last time I had scallop sashimi, it didn’t quite agree with me), but I think the sauces saved it. It was so good. I wanted to have seconds, but I was feeling rather roly poly by this stage. I think the sauces used were Japanese mayonnaise, wasabi mayonnaise (or mustard? There was a sharpness to the sauce) and that dark sauce you get with takoyakis.

Crab Claw ($5)

I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad crab claw and this is not an exception to the case. Mmm deep fried goodness, though again I wished there was more mayonnaise to go around.

The damage

I twisted around to look at how much the plates were priced (they had hung them on the back wall) and noticed that the group of four behind us only had about 6 plates between them. I turned back to our table and was a tad bit embarrassed when I realised we went through about 15 plates between just the two of us.

Outside Sushi Bay

One of the dishes I was looking forward to eating again was the croquette. Sadly, we were informed that they had run out for the day.

Sushi Bay is a franchise with 8 restaurants in Sydney (mostly located out west) with one in Chatswood being built (or so their website says, I’m not sure how up-to-date it is). I don’t think there’s many sushi places way out around the Penrith area and I’m glad that there is at least one decent place to sate one’s sushi craving.

Sushi Bay
Shop R1, L01 Westfield Penrith Plaza, Riley St
Penrith, NSW, 2750
Ph: 02 4731 8788
Web: http://www.sushibay.com.au/

© squishies for eatshowandtell, 2009. | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Seafood

I don’t find myself in Windsor all that often, but when a restaurant that’s only been opened since late last year has been getting quite a word-of-mouth praising by their customers, I thought I might pop over there and see what’s the go.

We were promptly shown to our seats when we arrived and served water soon after as we perused the menu. I had taken the initiative to pick out my main beforehand from the online menu (yeah, I was kind of overly enthusiastic), but noticed that the menu was slightly different, which kind of threw my plans into a slight disarray.

Finally though, after some “I’ll get this if you get that” dealings, we worked out what we both wanted.

Side of Wedges and Aioli ($8)

Hand-cut Wedges... So massive!!

When F’s entrée of wedges with aioli came out, we both thought they had gotten our order wrong and had given us a main! The huge bowl was filled to the brim with hand-cut wedges, which were lightly seasoned with some spice. They were also cooked to perfection: crisp on the outside and soft and moist on the inside. The aioli was okay (F took a shine to it actually), though I liked eating the wedges on its own.

Slow Roasted Pork Belly with Wasabi Coleslaw and Pork Reduction ($16)

I was glad that my entrée wasn’t as ginormous when I saw it approach the table – I hate wasting food because I can’t finish it. The pork belly was pretty nicely done; I liked how crunchy the skin was and how succulent the pork was underneath. I didn’t care much for the coleslaw though. I felt that the cabbage taste, made sharp by the wasabi, jarred and overwhelmed the delicate flavours of the pork a bit.

Lamb Backstrap with Port Jus on Rosemary and Olive Polenta with Wilted Spinach ($35)

F’s main looked so scrumptious and hearty – and I looked on with envy. The lamb was beautifully cooked and deliciously well-seasoned. The lamb was so incredibly tender that F’s knife slid through it like a hot knife through butter. F loved the polenta and I was told that the components all complimented each other very well.

Side of Caesar Salad ($8)

When his “side” order of caesar salad came out, we again thought they had our order wrong… It was gigantic! We couldn’t help but check out the receipt afterwards and realised that it truly was a side serving. The salad was your average fare, though it did spark a bit of a debate between us: was that fried bacon or fried prosciutto? I thought it was fried/dried bacon or something because it was a bit too thick to be prosciutto and it wasn’t as salty.

Beef Tenderloin on Volcanic Rock with Mashed Potatoes, Bernaise Sauce and a side salad ($35)

I don’t know what it is, but I love cooking my own dish at the table. Hearing the sizzle as the beef cook on the volcanic slab and having to turn it over, making sure it doesn’t burn, was a lot of fun. Though for some reason, when I read on the menu that I’d be cooking my own meat on a volcanic rock, I thought that I’d be literally cooking on a rock, draping my meat over it and all that. I was a bit disappointed that it wasn’t because the volcanic rock-slab was so… civilised. Heh.

I found that I had to take the tenderloin off the slab before it cooked too much – the slab stayed hot for quite a while. I really liked the beef; it was perfectly seasoned with thyme and pepper and it was so jucily tender. I’m a total wuss with anything spicy and that also extends to pepper – terrible I know. Anything that has “too much” pepper in it makes me reach for a glass of water, spluttering. I was surprised that even though it looked like there was a lot of pepper on the beef, it was pretty mild.

I had a choice of roasted potatoes, chips, or mash. Much of the reason why I chose mash was the curiosity of how they make it (and see how it compares to the french-style mash I’ve grown to become overly obsessed about). The mash was quite good: heartily thick and creamy with a few lumps (I actually like my mash a bit lumpy).

Garden Salad that accompanied the Beef Tenderloin

To be honest, I didn’t get to eat much of the salad that accompanied the beef. I was pretty full by this stage (I totally blame those addictive wedges) and was mindful of the dessert we were to have later. I did pick at it (mostly the tomatoes and cucumber) and managed to finish about half of it.

Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta served with Balsamic Reduction Strawberries ($12)

Ever since we had Jonah’s panna cotta at the Taste Festival, F likes to do the “wobble test”: if it wobbles like Jonah’s did, then there’s a high probability that it will be good (see chocolatesuze chuck a wobbly). The Vault 146′s panna cotta did wobble like Jonah’s and it was delectably creamy. The strawberries and balsamic reduction were a nice touch too.

F still raves on about the panna cotta and said that if he didn’t know any better, he would have thought the chef that made that Jonah’s panna cotta works here.

Creme Brulee with Toffee Shards and fresh Strawberries ($12)

The toffee shards had me a bit worried that the creme brulee would not have that famous hard caramel to crack (I love cracking it), like it was some sort of fancy de-constructed creme brulee. It wasn’t, but it wasn’t very thick either to have that satisfying crack as you tap the top with your spoon (it cracked rather meekly and quietly as it was so thin). Despite that, it was actually pretty good, even though it had a hint of ginger in it (and I don’t normally like ginger in anything).

I loved the toffee shards though. They were fun to eat and when combined with a nibble of strawberry and a spoonful of creme brulee… oh! It was a deliciously fun party.

Looking into the Kitchen

More often than not, we seem to be seated near the kitchen and it’s always interesting to see how the kitchen and wait staff out in front work together.

The chef would ding his bell to signal a dish ready to be served and the wait staff would come up to collect and serve it appropriately. With one of the dishes served that night, the chef dinged once, noticed that the waitress was already heading his way and dinged the bell a couple more times in a well-known rhythm, which the waitress seamlessly finished off when she got there. Cute!

Outside Vault 146

Vault 146 is established in a building that used to be a bank, which made me realise why it looks grandiose. Inside, it is a spaciously shiny restaurant/wine bar with a relaxing atmosphere. I was surprised to find that even though it was a Wednesday night it was decently filled with customers – mostly by couples, although there were a couple of families.

The service here is brisk and efficient – the wait staff friendly and direct. Both F and I really enjoyed our night at Vault 146 with their super generous serving sizes (we were so full, we practically rolled back to the car) and equally wonderfully flavoured and textured dishes. We would definitely come back for a satisfying meal.

Quite frankly, I think this is one of those restaurants that gives the stereotype that there isn’t any nice, affordable, “fancy” food in the west the boot.

Vault 146
146 George Street
Windsor, NSW, 2756
Ph: (02) 4587 8146
Web: http://www.vault146.com.au/

© squishies for eatshowandtell, 2009. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: beef, Dessert, lamb

This is actually our third time to Se Joung, we do love it so much. Our first two trips actually had more people and more dishes, but unfortunately I didn’t have my camera with me. On this occasion I did have my camera, but it was only Linda and I and we only ordered a few dishes. Epic fail.

Anyway, Se Joung is quite a popular Korean restaurant in Campsie. It is quite hard to spot, tucked away in an awkward position near Woolies. Everytime we come here, it is usually packed with Korean’s of all demographics. You will find families, couples and rowdy young groups enjoying their food over a few drinks. 

Banchan (side dishes)

Soon after we sit down on the floor (we chose to sit on cushions cross legged), we are offered complimentary side dishes. I love these for two reasons ; 1. They are free and 2. There are unlimited refills. What makes it even better is everytime I come here, they tend to mix up the variety of side dishes on offer which is great.

Seaweed

This is some sort of marinated seaweed. I wasn’t a big fan of this one, lacked a bit of flavour but the texture was great. 

Kimchi

If you could fail a breath test due to anything with a pungent smell, it would be because of eating kim chi. The kim chi at Se Joung is wonderfully seasoned and crunchy. It goes particullaly well with the bbq/grilled meats.

Potato

Boiled potato is marinated in a soy type sauce. 

Kongnamul (Beansprouts)

These beanspouts havbe a nice crunchy texture and have a dash of sesame oil for flavour

Mains

Pajeon Seafood and shallot pancake ($12)

One of my favourite dishes at Se Joung. For $12, this is excellent value as the sheer size of it is quite impressive. The pancake is always crunchy on the outside and delicately soft yet chewy on the inside. The seafood portions are not as generous as they use to be, but it doesn’t stop us from finshing this dish in a flash. On a side note, it’s good to see that price has only been increased by $1 since grabyourfork’s visit in  2004. 

Bi bim bap

Bi bim bap is usually something I have for lunch, but Linda hasn’t tried it before so we decided to give it a go. There are various versions of bi bim bap, but we opt for the hot version cooked in a stonepot. Once the waitress puts it on your table, make sure to mix it thoroughly and let it cook for a few minutes. Also make sure when you get to end, scoop up the crunchy rice bits at the bottom as they taste so good. Come to think of it, I think I have a soft spot for burn bits as I always go for the burnt bits at the bottom of the wok when cooking fried rice and noodles as well.

I’ll try my best to remember the ingredients ; egg, lettuce, beef mince, spinach, beansprouts and mushroom.

You can’t go wrong with bi bim bap and Se Joung’s version doesn’t disappoint. Make sure you drown your rice in the special chilli sauce they give you as well, it takes the dish to another level of copious amounts of joy.

Marinated beef

Spicy marinated chicken

All the meat at Se Joung is perfectly marinated and consistently tender. The beef and chicken is no exception, the flavours are delicious and spicy. Usually, the waitress happily cooks your meat for you. However if the restaurant is packed it’s best to cook it yourself to avoid overcooking the meat, especially beef. 

Se Joung is one of my favourite Korean restaurants. It’s a good place to kick back and relax, the food is authentic and has a nice homely feel to it. I think it must be due to the cushion seating. However there was only one downfall to our visit which didn’t happen previously. We were given our bill before we even finished eating which is something I frown upon. I kind of understand if the restaurant is about to close, but it was a Friday night at around 9.30pm and the restaurant is advertised to close at 11pm. I’m not sure who’s idea it was, but it looks like not much has changed since grabyourfork visited in 2004 where she saw people being turned away even though they still had 1 1/2 hours before close time. Despite this minor blemish, I’ll still come back to Se Joung because of the food.

Se Joung

68-72 Evaline Street
Campsie NSW 2194
Phone (02) 9718 4039

 Dessert (detour to Woolies)

500 ml for $6.99

Having stuffed ourselves to the brim, we still had room for dessert. When it comes to ice cream I usually look no further than the Homer Hudson range. My favourite is cookies & cream but I heard the choc fudge isn’t too shabby either. I am so glad that Homer Hudson has made a comeback into the Australia market because apparently it was discontinued at some stage, only for it to be re-introduced sometime in the early 2000′s.

What makes Homer Hudson so good ? It’s thick, creamy, chunky and full of flavour. They don’t skimp on anything here, it really does taste like a ‘premium’ ice cream. Mind you, it isn’t exactly cheap. Be prepared to pay $7 for 500ml, but it’s worth it. If I could compare it to something else, it would be perhaps Häagen-Dazs.

It really does taste like they threw in a cookies and cream cake into the tub

Homer Hudson ice cream is stocked in Coles, Woolies, Caltex Servo’s and Domino’s Pizza.

© Howard for eatshowandtell, 2009. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: campsie

On a cold Saturday night, being devoid of my dose all week, I forced W, K and H to join me in my battle against other chocoholics at Max Brenner. Once there H and I joined the throng of choc-starved people, while W and K scoured the premises, eyeing patrons who were lucky enough to be seated and finally pouncing on an empty table.

After what felt like forever (about half an hour to be exact), our friendly waiter brought us our orders.

Warm chocolate souffle ($9.50) with strawberries ($2.50)

oozing melted chocolate yumminess

I’m one of those people that usually orders the same thing EVERY time. I don’t like having to deal with the uncertainty of whether it’ll be good or not. Every time I go to Max Brenner, regardless of whether it’s at Paddington, City or Parramatta, I always order the souffle. Strawberries goes very well with the souffle as it helps cleanse the palate of the creamy chocolate.

Tutti Frutti Waffle with ice cream ($12.00)

This is the first time that we’ve ordered waffle from Max Brenner, and unfortunately I was disappointed. The waffle was very hard and dry, making it very difficult to eat. We put it down to the night being too busy, hence the waffle was overcooked (not sure if that’s possible).

Usually when only H and I go to Max Brenner, I’m free to be a pig and basically lick the melted chocolate off the plate. However, this time I had to control myself and avoid embarassing H in front of W and K.

Max Brenner
Shop 2187, Level 2, Westfield
159-175 Church Street
Parramatta, NSW 2150
Ph: (02) 9635 7566
Web: www.maxbrenner.com

© Linda for eatshowandtell, 2008. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: chocolate

We spot an empty restaurant at some dodgy corner, succumbing to the idea that a deserted restaurant serves less than ideal food, then finally trudge to Bangkok Thai Cuisine, which is admittedly the busiest food stall located inside the hustle and bustle of BKK shopping Centre.

We quickly take our spot in the queue then eye the extensive pictured menu displayed above our head. This time since I wasn’t as hungry as usual, we decided to share a dish.

Shrimp Paste Fried Rice $9.00

After waiting patiently at our communal table for about 20 minutes, a nearby diner nudged us and indicated to the waving restaurant owner, who handed us our dish. To be honest, we’ve had this dish countless of times and fortunately the quality and taste has always maintained its standard. The rice fried with a good quantity of salty shrimp paste which ensures that the flavour doesn’t overwhelm the dish, combined with the grilled chinese sausage, sweet char siu pork, pan fried prawns and omelette proves to be a burst of flavour in your mouth with each bite. To cool down the palate, the chef kindly adds crispy and sweet spanish onion, cucumber and slices of green mango.

Addictive spicy Satay to go with the fried rice

Bangkok Thai Cuisine

Shop 4b/ 53 Park Rd
Cabramatta 2166 NSW
(02) 9727 6891

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Post tags:

Green Duck Curry

Sadly, my inability to take spicy food kept me away from this dish, but from what (little) I had it was quite nice (though it was still awfully spicy).

Seafood Pad Thai

It was your typical, round-of-the-mill pad thai. It was rather different to have it with seafood (I’ve only have had chicken) and I think I like it better! It wasn’t too sweet nor was it bland. Almost just right; something was missing, but I wasn’t too sure what it was. Then again, I’m more of a pad see ew person so that may have worked against me.

Chilli Basil Chicken

Quite delicious, but also quite spicy after consuming quite a bit. I had to regulate my intake of this dish, sadly enough. (Yes, I need to work on my chilli tolerance)

Mild Paw Paw Salad

I’m always amused by the different standards of “mild”; obviously it differs between person to person and so dish to dish. One of my friends is my chilli barometer (she has a slightly better tolerance to spicy stuff than me) and after taking a bite of the salad she gave me the Look, which I took to be “daaaaang, my tongue is on fire” and so sensibly avoided the dish.

Deep Fried Ice Cream with Caramel Topping

I didn’t have this dessert, but those who did seemed quite pleased with their choice. (Not a big fan of deep fried ice cream, I always feel like I’m going to have a heart attack when I eat one)

Sticky Rice with Mango and Vanilla Ice Cream

I love this dessert. It’s such a juxtaposition between warm and cold, sweet and almost savoury. Some of my friends didn’t quite like it as it was too odd, but I think it’s something that definitely should be tried, if not loved.

I normally eat at 12 Spices with a friend outside “peak hour” times (e.g. 9pm on a Saturday night). This time I had about 6 people and on a very busy Friday night. It’s this mad rush to try to accommodate so many hungry and demanding people that service wasn’t as attentive as I had come to expect. The food, though, was still quick in being served.

A few things happened that kind of made us go “hmmm”.

Our Chilli Basil Chicken was somehow mixed up with Chilli Basil Beef and had to sent back (one of us is Indian).

We saw one very annoyed and disgruntled customer walk up to one of the waitresses and complained about his fried ice cream: it was cracked opened and all of the ice cream had melted. She apologised and tried to appease him by offering a replacement, but he just shook his head in disgust and told her not to bother before walking out.

We also had the unpleasant experience of finding a tiny dead cockroach floating in our water jug after we had poured out water into everyone’s cup and was drinking it. This was quickly rectified, but it was still kinda gross. No one got sick though, which was fortunate.

Although the overall experience during their busy period was marred by these mishaps, the food we had were above average and it is quite good value for money – reasons enough for me to come back to 12 Spices really.

12 Spices
197 St Johns Rd,
Canley Heights, NSW
Ph: 02 9609 1465

© squishies for eatshowandtell, 2008. | Permalink | 12 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Canley Heights, curry, poultry, Seafood