eatshowandtell

Song Fang Khong, Fairfield

Howard — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 00:57:38 +0000

I’ve been all over South East Asia and as a result I’ve developed a deep appreciation for food from these areas. Whether it be Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam or Thailand nothing beats the food you can get from their respective street stalls. There is something about pulling up a milk crate on the side of a street and eating freshly charcoal grilled meat or a boiling hot bowl of noodles with the locals in 35 degree heat while wiping the sweat off my forehead. Not exactly the most charming image,

One country which I have not been to in south-east asia is Laos, though it’s a cuisine which I find myself constantly going back to. Much of this is due to me growing up south-west Sydney and it’s abundance of no frills and ‘real deal’ restaurants run by immigrants to Australia. In Fairfield which is about a 5 minute drive from Cabramatta, you’ll find a few Laos restaurants. One of these is Sang Fong Khong which has been in the same spot and with the same decor for as long as I can remember (at least 10 years).

Sang Fang Khong is situated right next to Laos Village, my favourite Laos restaurant. I figured it’s about time I break the mould and try something different, but does it live up to expectations ?

Crisp fried quail

We figured the best test would be to order the same dishes we usually order at Laos Village next door. We start with the piping hot crisp spiced quail. We can tell it’s freshly fried after I burn my mouth by being too keen to dig into my piece. It’s crisp and lightly salted on the skin with tender meat, not dry. There is a bit of lemon, salt and pepper dipping sauce on the side which is welcoming.

So far so, so good.

Khai Luk (fertilised duck egg)

Some people may find this disgusting, eating a still fertilised duck egg with its embryo still inside. Truth be told, I find it more of a beer snack and not something I’d order during lunch or dinner but many people order it as entrée in Laos and Vietnamese restaurants. Either way we order it so our guests can see what the fuss is all about. We eat the boiled egg with lemon, salt and pepper and fresh herbs such as Vietnamese mint. Fortunately there wasn’t a duck beak sticking out this time.

Nam khao (crisp rice salad)

Fried rice is one of my favourite dishes in the world. I’d be happy eating fried tomato rice with egg and lap choung . I like nam khao because of its different textures and flavours. There is the deep flavour of Laos sausage and then the crunch of deep-fried rice balls and chopped peanuts. I usually eat nam khao wrapped up in lettuce leaves with fresh herbs and a bit of Laos fish sauce. This type of food is my ideal comfort food, nothing too complex but packed full of flavour and textures.

Lao papaya salad

Laos papaya is a bit different to Thai papaya salad in that it’s less sweet and a bit more pungent. It’s got brined crabs in it and has a darker colour as a result. I prefer it over the Thai style because of it’s more pungent taste and smell. The salad here isn’t too bad but lacks the ‘punch’ of what Lao Village serve next door. However I’m not going to write it off just yet because we did a request for a slightly milder version with less chili. I’ll have to try it again one day to make a fair comparison.

Lao sausage

A lot of countries have their own versions of sausage and Laos is no exception. It’s usually made with a mixture of coarsely chopped fatty pork seasoned with lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, shallots, cilantro, chillies, garlic, salt and fish sauce. The sausage here is packed full of flavour but is a bit dry for my liking, but some people would disagree. Either way it tastes pretty good especially wrapped in lettuce leaves and herbs dipped in fish sauce.

Grilled ox tongue

Another one of my must order dishes is the ox tongue. There is nothing special about and the variation of taste doesn’t vary too much between each restaurant, but it’s a great accompaniment to dishes such as the nam khao (crisp fried rice). The tongue here has a deep beefy flavour and slightly chewy. I think it is slightly seasoned, perhaps with just salt and pepper. You’ll need to dunk it in some fish sauce otherwise it can be a bit plain.

Chicken feet salad

Chicken feet, you either love it or hate it. I love the Laos version of this salad because the chewy texture of the chicken feet goes so well with the different herbs, red onion and fish based sauce. I find the version here a bit on the sour and sweet side. I think I’m just too use to what Lao Village offers.

Judging by the crowds on Sunday during lunch, Song Fang Khong has no shortage of loyal customers. I notice a predominantly Lao customer base which is always a good sign. I’m not a Laos food expert by any means, but if you are after an introduction in Laos food you should hit up one of the many restaurants in the Fairfield and Cabramatta region. Song Fang Khong wouldn’t be a bad choice.

Song Fang Khong

7 Anzac Ave

Fairfield NSW 2165
Ph : 9728 4552

Souk in the City, Surry Hills

squishies — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:00:35 +0000

Sisiely is nothing but tenacious… especially when it comes to food.

Despite not being able to attend the dates she suggested, she persisted and we managed to schedule dinner a couple of weeks ahead… only to have the dinner cancelled right on the day we were supposed to meet! Oh alright, more like postponed, as a week later, we all finally congregated at Souk in the City (I’ll just call it Souk from now on, shall I?).

Souk is a restaurant I’ve been meaning to come back to for ages, while Sisiely seems like she’s been dying to try the food here ever since she went past it one night (and it was too busy to accommodate her party for dinner).

We arrived at Souk at different times, so I missed her expression when Omar, the owner, showered her with rose petals and a very warm welcome upon her entry. I know for me I was quite embarrassed and awkward with the attention, but deep down inside it made me feel rather special.

Souk in the City

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Hello From NYC #3 – The Short and Sweet List

teresa — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 14:00:28 +0000

The past few NYC posts have been rather long, so this time I’m shortening it! Less photos, more eateries!

Here I am writing short features for different categories of eateries. As these places are ones I’ve found on-the-go, I had to use my iphone to take pictures, unless I had my camera with me that day.

This post is broken down into 3 features:

Food-ist Attractions
Snacks-On-The-Go
Street Food

FOOD-IST ATTRACTIONS

#1 Lombardi’s

Lombardi's margherita pizza

New York style pizza is world famous, and what better to try some than at NYC’s first pizzeria, Lombardi’s. Located in Nolita, we ordered the classic style, “Margherita” pizza, a tomato based pizza topped with buffalo mozzerella cheese and basil.

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Post tags: food trucks, Hello from NYC, street food

Daring Bakers Challenge, Pandan Bombe Alaska with Durian & Coconut Icecream

linda — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 01:08:12 +0000

The August 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Elissa of 17 and Baking. For the first time, The Daring Bakers partnered with Sugar High Fridays for a co-event and Elissa was the gracious hostess of both. Using the theme of beurre noisette, or browned butter, Elissa chose to challenge Daring Bakers to make a pound cake to be used in either a Baked Alaska or in Ice Cream Petit Fours. The sources for Elissa’s challenge were Gourmet magazine and David Lebovitz’s “The Perfect Scoop”.

I’ve always wanted to make a Baked Alaska since having it for dessert at Bistro Ortolan. For those who don’t know a Bombe Alaska is a Meringue based dessert that has ice-cream layered with sponge cake, which is then topped with Meringue before being torched quickly to let the Meringue harden. For my version I used a Coconut and Durian ice cream, paired with Pandan flavoured meringue and layered with Brown Butter Pound Cake.

Durian Bombe Alaska - Looks like a durian, right ?

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Taste of Shanghai, Ashfield

Minh — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 14:00:54 +0000

Squishies and I share a fatal weakness for dumplings, especially on Mondays – our old schedule used to be to hit up the gym for an hour then reward ourselves with a dash over to Chinatown for our dumpling fix (yes, I know that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever). With our gym closing down we suddenly find ourselves deprived of our dumpling schedule, it doesn’t take much to convince Squishies to come along with me for a dumplings fix in Ashfield.

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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Sushi Class, Surry Hills

squishies — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 14:00:49 +0000

F’s sister called me up out of the blue last year and asked, “If I buy F a gift voucher for a sushi making class as a Christmas present, would you go with him?” Unhesitatingly, I said yes. I adore sushi and I thought understanding the work that goes into making it would make me appreciate it more when I’m inevitably nom’ing it down.

Also, having a bit of a competitive streak, I wanted to see who could make better-looking sushi (despite knowing fairly well who’s the more adept cook).

It took a while to get into gear to book in the class, as there was always something cropping up, but every time I tried, the class was always booked out! Finally, I managed to secure a date… way out in August.

Waiting for class to begin

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Burwood Korea House, Burwood

Minh — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 14:00:04 +0000

“It looks exactly the same, this has to be owned by the same people!” These are the first words out of our mouth as we walk into Burwood Korea House.

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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Hello from NYC #2 – My Food Trail

teresa — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 14:00:15 +0000

Ready for some more NYC eats?

Happy Belated Independence Day!

Yes I know it was back in July and now it’s August. Independence Day in the US reminded me of how we spend Australia Day. It started off with a breakfast of homemade margaritas (with my new blender), sitting on the rooftop with my feet burning on the hot roof, beer and rice paper roll lunch then a night of burgers, cheese, wine and fireworks! As you see in the photo above, it feels like NYE in Sydney.

So for the past few months, I have been hard at work eating my heart out. Luckily I don’t own scales so I cannot say whether my body size has been affected by this, but I’m pretty sure it has. That’s one thing to watch out in NYC… the heaviness of the food!

Happy Independence Day!

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Cloudy Bay Wine Dinner, Glass Brasserie, Sydney CBD

Minh — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 15:55:42 +0000

It’s 6pm on a weekday and the sun has just set, I’m currently stepping into an elevator right off the middle of George St to be taken directly up into the glassy cavern that is Glass Brasserie, the flagship restaurant of Sydney’s Hilton hotel. I’m here tonight for the Cloudy Bay Wine Dinner – a 5 course dinner designed by Luke Mangan to showcase the upcoming wines from Cloudy Bay, one of New Zealand’s top wineries.

There’s a feeling of decadence that comes over me as the doors of the elevator opens, it’s rather easy to be impressed by the lavish furnishings of Glass Brasserie. The interior design of the restaurant is all concentrated around showcasing the impressive wine collection, while providing small intimate areas for the diners. Not an easy task in a space where the ceiling is easily 30 meters high, but the combination of dim and concentrated lighting as well as the contrast of timber and glass creates an almost comfortable atmosphere.

Glass Brassiere Interior

The first thing that catches my eye is the multi-storied racks of wine behind the bar, fit-out in a sedate timber finish they tower up behind the bar for a good 20-30m with wine bottles gently lit from behind all the way up to the ceiling (top left image). Somewhat doubtfully I ask if the bottles are for show and am reassured that it is indeed a real wine rack, staff members are hooked up to safety harnesses and winched up the stacks to retrieve bottles.

I’m not surprised that I’m so enamoured of the interior decorating, Glass Brasserie shares the same designer (Tony Chi) as Zeta Bar, one of the most gorgeous bars I’ve had the fun of photographing.

The diners awaiting their meal

It’s a relaxed atmosphere tonight, the guests are mingling around the tables sipping on glasses of Cloudy Bay Blanc de Blancs, it’s a light bubbly concoction which is easily going to my head. Cloudy Bay Winemaker Sarah Burton is the guest of honour tonight, a small snafu with the microphone system has our table tapping all of our wine glasses in unison to get the attention of all the diners tonight. Sarah is a nervous but passionate speaker, her pride in her wines is clear as she speaks introducing each of the wines we’ll be tasting tonight.

Salmon Gravlax, Dill crème fraiche, beetroot, egg dressing & melba toast

Our entrée is a beautiful array of orange, yellow and red scattered about the plate. The salmon is sliced almost thin enough to become translucent and paired with the sweet squares of beetroot and savory creme fraiche is a refreshing start to the start. The melba toast is a strange condiment on the plate, the toasted slices are a little too crunchy making them awkward to eat with the salmon and I end up abandoning them on the side of my plate.

Paired Wine: 2008 Cloudy Bay Pinot Gris – The style is best described as a true expression of the variety with aromas of pear and mandarin, abundant flavour and texture, and a touch of residual sweetness.

Tempura Spencer Gulf Prawns, Thai style salad, tamarind dressing

I adore anything with a Tamarind flavour and have seeing the Prawns on the menu it’s easily my most easily anticipated dish for the night. The prawns arrive in a beautifully arranged haystack of greens and prawn, all encompassed by a ring of sauce, the batter is done to perfection and is lightly crunchy while taking away none of the delicate flavour of the prawns.

Paired wine: 2006 Cloudy Bay Gewurztraminer – A distinctive style, first made in 1997 from a trial block planted at Cloudy Bay to assess the suitability of various clones of gewurztraminer in Marlborough. Cloudy Bay Gewurztraminer is aluscious, textural wine made from very ripe, hand harvested grapesgrown at the Mustang Vineyard in the Brancott Valley.

Roasted Duck Breast With Honey & Lavender, Peas

Our meal progresses by moving onto the red meats, it’s been a relatively light meal so far but the Roasted Duck breast is enough to put a sigh of satisfaction into anyone. The generously portioned slices of duck are cooked to a perfect texture, easily coming apart at the touch of a butter knife and is presented simply enough with Peas in a honey sweetened sauce. It’s proof that a dish can be placed out with only a few condiments and still be memorable.

Paired wine: 2008 Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir - Cropped at very low levels from prime Marlborough vineyard sites, Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir is rich in regional fruit character. Typically it has an intensely varietal palate that reveals layers of dark red fruits, savoury dried herbs, charry oak and silky tannins.

Petit tarte tatin

Surprisingly, by the end of the Duck dish my stomach is ready to call it quits for the night but the arrival of the Tarte Tatin lays those plans to rest. Our plates with the naked Tatin are placed on our table only to be smothered in a rich creamy sauce which smothers the entire dish, ice-cream and all. It is at its heart, a decadent apple pie and on this chilly winter night is exactly what I’ve been craving.

Paired wine: Cloudy Bay Late Harvest Riesling - A limited release wine first made in 1989 and since only in the vintages when optimum conditions prevail. Sapped almost dry bythe botrytis fungus, individual bunches are selected and hand-picked from bare canes in late autumn. The style is lusciously sweet and fruity with a crisp natural acidity that balances the sweetness and gives the palate length and freshness on the finish.

The view from within the glass

We’re left to finish off the night with tea or coffee as well as petit fours. It’s been an interesting night of food and conversation, with topics whirling from Masterchef to the travesty that is the Twilight series. The diners despite being strangers at the beginning of the night have warmed to one another after a few glasses of wine and even as I’m leaving there are still tables of diners chatting away.

Eat Show & Tell dined as a guest of Hilton Hotel.

Glass Brasserie
Level 2, 488 George St
Ph: (02) 9265 6068
Web: http://www.glassbrasserie.com.au/

The Juicy Lucy Burger Experiment

squishies — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:00:27 +0000

Ever since F discovered the TV show Man v. Food, he’s been obsessed with it and all the food that host Adam Richman gets to devour such as giant burritos/tacos/burgers/sundaes/sandwiches/pizzas and super chilli chicken wings. He also gets to sample dishes that’s touted to be “best of”.

Naturally, F’s a drooling mess by the end of the episode and is insanely hungry for something (anything) as satisfying as what Adam’s just eaten.

In one of the episodes (episode 18 from season 1 to be exact), Adam visits Minneapolis in search of the birth place of the Juicy Lucy burger – the burger where the cheese is on the inside. There’s been of a bit of a debate on how to spell the burger’s name, one restaurant claims “if it’s spelled right, it’s done right!” and another: “if it’s spelled wrong, you’re at the right place!”.

Anyway, after watching the Minneapolis episode, F could not get the Juicy Lucy burger out of his mind. Not being able to travel to Minneapolis to try the burger, he did the next best thing: plot and plan on how to reconstruct it.

The Juicy Lucy Burger Experiment

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Durian & White Chocolate Cheesecake Recipe

linda — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 02:35:53 +0000

WARNING – Not for the Faint Hearted.

You know the saying, “Two wrongs don’t make a right”? Well I think I just disproved that with my durian cheesecake.

Cheese is not something everyone can wrap their brains around, essentially it is a block of moulding milk by-products. Whether it be buffalo or cow milk you cannot argue against the fact that all cheese imparts quite a strong smell, really I think the only thing that is smellier is the Durian.

What can I say about Durian except that it is hands down the only fruit that really divides people, you either really like it or detest it. Never in the history of all things food related has one fruit been banned from hotels and public transport. I especially love reading about people’s first encounter with durian, I don’t think I’ve read anything funnier than, “It’s odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock“, as expressed ever so eloquently by Travel and food writer Richard Sterling.

Durian Cheesecake

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Element Bistro, Sydney

squishies — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 14:00:09 +0000

Although I’m quite slack in organising a catch up with my friends, I somehow managed to find a day that everyone was free and a day I actually had some money (damn snow! Why are you so expensive?!).

I was a bit at a loss to where we should eat, but then inspiration struck me.

M took me here one night last year and I remember the atmosphere of the restaurant being really cosy and eating wonderfully delicious food that grabbed my attention despite how much of a sad sack I was that night. I also remember thinking, “I have to come back and blog about this one day… when I’m not so emo”.

I just didn’t realise it would take me so long. Haha.

Ocean Trout Fish Cake with Remoulade Sauce ($18)

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Adriano Zumbo V8 Cake, Masterchef Recipe

linda — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 00:53:57 +0000

You would think that after my last encounter with an Adriano Zumbo cake, I would know enough to make it my final try. However, I’m not one to shy away from challenges and I decided to go one step further this time tackling the V8 Cake.

So what is the V8 cake for those who have been living under a rock in the last couple of weeks? For the Masterchef finale week, the first pressure test challenge was an insane cake made by Adriano Zumbo. The cake takes its name from the 8 different vanilla layers, each presented textually differently. The contestants were expected to complete the cake within 4 hours.

4 hours in the kitchen, how hard could it be?

The finished V8 cake

Boy how I had underestimated the V8. By the time I had completed the cake I was cursing the crazy person that initially conjured up such a torturous idea. Gellan, titanium dioxide, patissier glaze WTF!

Let’s take a look at how I spent collectively SIX hours in the kitchen.(...)
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Malaysia Mondays – Kuala Lumpur, Part 2

Minh — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 14:06:43 +0000

It’s hard to leave the brilliantly blue oceans of Thailand but somehow we find ourselves on yet another flight winging our way back to Kuala Lumpur. We’ve been flinging ourselves around Malaysia for the past two weeks and after all the commuting of the past week in Thailand I’m (somewhat ironically) looking forward to relaxing in Kuala Lumpur and enjoying some of my Malaysian favourites one last time.

We’re in Kuala Lumpur for 2 more nights, but with all our commuting in the end it’s just one full day – just enough time for us to tackle the depths of a few Malaysian shopping malls and to meet up with Billy’s college friend Christine for a few last meals. Rather than stay in Bukit Bintang we’re moving outta the city and into Petaling Jaya (PJ) for easy access to food and the megamalls (we’re so close that our hotel is actually built into a megamall!).

Dinner – Wong Poh

We’ve got a hankering for crabs (the good kind yo), Christine has organised dinner with a few of Billy’s mates and she’s taken us along in the bar to Wong Poh, where we’re promised crabs and a good night out. It’s a return to the familiar with plastic bowls and cutlery, handwritten menus on the wall, wet towels in plastic bags and ceiling fans spinning lazily above us.

Pickles for all

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“This and That” Dessert, My Bistro CBD Experience

linda — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:58:46 +0000

Weeks of researching, planning, organising and countless sleepless nights later, now it’s all over. The food bloggers dinner hosted by Merivale was held on Wednesday night. What a night it was. For this post, I’ll give you a run down of my experiences working in a commercial kitchen and an overview of the initial planning process down to plating up our courses.

Fouad the mastermind behind a couple of secret dinners and SIFF dinners wanted to do something a little more challenging, so he enlisted the help of Billy, Karen and myself. We were told that the idea of the Food bloggers dinner would be each of us individually coming up with a meal to be served in a 5 course meal at Bistro CBD. With this in mind, we were instructed to have a meal plan ready by our next meeting/taste testing session.

Prepping in the Kitchen

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Star Lao Thai Restaurant, Fairfield

Howard — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 23:36:30 +0000

On yet another rainy night in Sydney, I find myself continuing my love affair with laotian food. Tucked away from the heart of Fairfield on Hamilton road is a charming restaurant called Star Lao. It’s one of many Lao/Thai restaurants in the area, and a favourite of my good friends Donnie and Jase.

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!(...)
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Malaysia Mondays, Phuket, Thailand

Minh — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 15:35:04 +0000

It’s been a crazy week and a half, but we’re taking a break from our eating holiday in Malaysia and hopping it over for the beautiful blue oceans of Thailand, Phuket. The most torturous part our Malaysia holiday is all the planning and waiting for it to finally begin, I’ve become more than a little obsessed with finally making it to back to Thailand – massages, seafood and beaches? Bring it on!

It’s a hectic journey from Malaysia to Thailand, a 5 hour drive from Penang to Kuala Lumpur before running off to the Airport to make it in time for our flight. It’s our last day with Brian, who has decided to head up to the northern border of Malaysia and is staying in the country to meet up with family, and a reunion with The Pom who has been exploring the Philippines and is eager to show off his naughty purchases. It’s a late flight into Thailand, and by the time we check into our rooms we simply collapse after a long day of commuting.

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Guillaume at Bennelong, Circular Quay

squishies — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:26:49 +0000

We’ve heard quite a few friends singing their praises about the food at Guillaume at Bennelong, one of whom is a chef (I thought, if anything, that carries some weight). So on a total whim (despite having numerous of snow trips planned) we thought, “What the hey, why not try it out?”

I’ve always wondered what restaurant was situated in the Opera House itself, where the brown-tinted glass allowed both inside and outside parties to view each other – like a fish bowl, but with more angles… and with an enormous sail on top. When we arrived at the top of the stairs, it struck us quite suddenly that we did not know how to get into the restaurant.

We circled around once, trying not to peer into the glass windows in an attempt to see if we could spot the entrance from the outside. Feeling a bit ridiculous, I thought perhaps we should see if we could enter the restaurant from underneath.

Bingo! We managed to stumble into an elevator that took us up to the floor, where taking a sharp right took us through a narrow vestibule – its walls decorated with Guillaume’s achievements and awards. Being suitably impressed and awed, we stepped further into Guillaume’s domain and were quickly seated.

Guillaume at Bennelong

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Bayon Noodle, Cabramatta

Howard — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 23:17:51 +0000

Every now and then, a new restaurant opens in Cabramatta. Being a local, immediate doubts are cast over it. Will it succeed? Or will it end up being just another average restaurant? You see, regular visitors of Cabramatta are extremely loyal to their local eating holes. It’s not enough to be a jack of all trades and master of none if your restaurant is in Cabramatta. Most restaurants, if not all, have a ‘franchise’ dish. The dish which every purposely rocks up for. At Bayon Noodle, I’m searching, but do I succeed?

Bayon Noodle looks like a new Chinese and Cambodian restaurant. Cambodian food is difficult to find in Sydney, however if you are in Cabramatta, there are atleast half a dozen decent ones.

Green papaya salad

This is the Vietnamese version with a generous array of fresh papaya, mint and basil, fresh prawns, crushed peanuts, pork belly. The best way to eat this is to pour in the bowl of fish sauce and toss the salad altogether. In terms of taste, it wasn’t too bad, lacking a bit of ‘kick’ but then again I am comparing it to Thai/Lao papaya salads which are extremely pungent and flavoursome.

Khmer bbq herb beef w/ pickles

Tender beef grilled with unidentified herbs and spices and a side of cold pickles, what more could you ask for ? It’s the perfect contrast of smokey warm beef with the cold and crunchy pickles.

Nom Ban Jok (Khmer herb fish paste w/ vermicelli noodles)

This was surprisingly one of my favourites. A spicy coconut based soup with copious amounts of pungent fish paste and other ingredients touched every one of my taste buds. What makes the dish is probably the side of salad with it’s different textures. Off the top of my head I spotted cabbage, cucumber, bean sprouts, and chives.

Salt and pepper squid

A very light batter compared to other versions I’ve eaten, which is great. I could spot and taste huge bits of freshly cracked black pepper, definitely putting the ‘pepper’ in salt and pepper calamari. Though one thing I did notice was a few prawns on the fish, maybe they ran out of calamari ? But I’m not complaining too much. This was another dish served with a side of their house pickles, great combination. The sourness of the pickles offsets the saltyness of the calamari perfectly.

Chive dumplings

I don’t have a picture of the internals, but imagine a sea of green chives and not much else. Being of Teo Chew descent, we live and breath chives (literally). While they are detrimental to our breath, they are bloody good. Pungent chives are encased in a dumpling and then lightly pan fried to give it a bit of crunch and texture.

Salor Gor Gor (Khmer hot pot)

This was another traditional khmer dish and one of my favourites as well. It’s a soup based dish with braised vegetables such as eggplant, tender pork belly and some berries/beans which I’ve seen in some Indian dishes. It’s a hard dish to describe, but flavourwise it’s full of different herbs and spices which touched every corner of my taste buds. It’s a dish you’d be hard pressed to find anywhere apart from a Cambodian restaurant.

Stewed duck noodle soup

The perfect winter dish, fall off the bone stewed duck in an amazing soup full of duck flavour. The duck leg is braised in different herbs and spices, I can taste star anise, cinammon and 5 spice amongst others. On the side is a crunchy piece of prawn cracker, it’s all about the textures.

Bayon Noodle is the new kid on the block in Cabramatta. There are about 2-3 very good Chinese Cambodian restaurants within the vicinity and you’ll see locals dressed in their home clothes slurping away at noodles or hearty rice dishes. It’s going to be tough for Bayon to differentiate themselves, but I think they are on the right track. The decor inside is a lot cleaner and modern than the other places and they have the advantage of Merrick Watts and his family eating there a few months ago!

Bayon Noodle
233 Cabramatta Road, Cabramatta NSW 2166
Tip : It’s in an alleyway off John St, on the same side as Commonwealth Bank and Gloria Jeans.

Löwenbräu Keller, The Rocks

squishies — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 15:19:14 +0000

The first I ever heard of “Christmas in July” was a couple of years back and thought it was such a daft concept.

However, once it had some time to sink in, I thought that maybe it wasn’t such a daft idea after all. I mean, it would mean there would be two Christmases in the one year… that’s two sets of presents!!

Well no, not quite (as I found out), but it is definitely another excuse to stuff ourselves with food that would make us forget about the chilly temperature not at all helped with an equally chilly wind.

And that’s how we all came about to Löwenbräu Keller to taste-test their perfect-for-winter dishes.

Garlic Bread

The garlic bread came out first, thick and dripping with melted butter. I don’t know if you were supposed to, but I ended up dipping my slice into my mushroom soup. Bliss.

Mushroom Soup

My eyes goggled when the soup bowls came out – it was huge! The soup was super creamy and it made think of Minh: she would have totally loved it!

Great big plates and Short Logs of Wood... all part of your everyday dinner table

The now-empty bowls were replaced by even larger plates… and oddly enough, stumpy logs too. We looked at each other and giggled, perhaps inappropriately.

Venison Stew with Sauteed Mushrooms and Servietten knoedel steamed bread dumplings

The venison stew was hearty and delicious with a generous helping of mushrooms and steamed bread dumplings.

Braised Lamb Shanks with Mashed Potato

The lamb shanks were quite tender and flavoursome, made even better by sitting on a massive bed of creamy mashed potatoes.

Franziskaner Bier Goulash

I quite liked the goulash with its tender beef cubes and crunchy deep-fried onions.

Slow Roast Beef Short Ribs with Mashed Potato and Sauerkraut

The meat from the short ribs was wonderfully tender and simply fell off the bone when we cut into it. I realised that I’ve missed the combination of beef, sauerkraut and mashed potatoes… sooooo scrumptious!

Wine Marinated Slow Braised Beef Cheeks with Mashed Potato

The slow braised beef cheeks were incredibly succulent and soft; it was a sure hit with everyone at the table.

I was quite gleeful with the large portions of mashed potatoes on each of the plates, which meant there were more to share around… and on my plate! Hehe.

Garden Salad

I always am glad for the obligatory garden salad that accompanies such hearty dishes, as it never fails to bring a refreshing component to the meal.

Schweinshaxn - Oven Roasted Pork Knuckle with Sauerkraut and Mashed Potato

If all those special Christmas in July dishes weren’t enough, we also ordered the pork knuckle. Yum yum.

Eeep!

Chocolatesuze was kind enough to divvy up the goods. Teehee

Some time during the dinner and the night’s hilarious entertainment, several rounds of delicious schnapps were ordered. Always being the default designated driver ever since I earned my license meant that my alcohol tolerance isn’t as… hmm, robust?… as most people’s. Which meant I was quite merry during the night and may have been tipsy-texting. Oops.

Heheh

Darcie and Chocolatesuze volunteered to be part of the cow-bell rendition of Edelweiss, while Lisa came a close second in the (alcohol-free) beer skulling competition!

Marco Jacobs, Head Chef

I felt quite honoured that we got to meet both the executive and head chef of Löwenbräu Keller, who popped out from their busy kitchen to briefly greet us.

Lowenbrau Kaiserschmarrn with Cinnamon Vanilla Ice Cream

As our massive dessert plate came to the table, most if not all of our eyes lit up. We were informed by Marco that it’s Bavarian-style pancakes with rum raisins and honey, served with a cup of vanilla ice cream sprinkled with cinnamon. The pancakes on its own was a bit dry (I would have personally loved to have more honey on mine), but with the cinnamon on vanilla ice cream – it was the perfect way to end such a hearty and robust dinner.

Christmas in July at Löwenbräu Keller has a couple of different traditional speciality dishes each week with the Kaiserschmarrn, soup of the day, Gluehwein and Alte Witte available throughout the month.

Eat Show & Tell was a guest of Zing Australia and Löwenbräu Keller.

Löwenbräu Keller
Corner of Playfair & Argyle Streets
The Rocks, NSW, 2000,
Ph: (02) 9247 7785
Web: http://www.lowenbrau.com.au/