Padi Indonesian Restaurant

Padi
76 Devonshire St
Surry Hills
NSW 2010
Ph : (02) 9211 8777

Situated in the middle of a line of cafes, takeaway places and next to the obligatory Surry Hills Thai is Padi Indonesian restaurant, with its focus on Sundanese food from West Java. This stretch of eating places’ primary business is the Monday to Friday lunchtime crowd, and for those not familiar with the area, it is the more high profile places nearby, like District Dining, which seem to be the drawcard. There may be restaurants and cafes opening up in Surry Hills every other week, but there are also those which just do their thing, are not subject to fad or fashion and, happily for us all, manage to stay in business.

With a small window seating section looking out towards Devonshire St, this is a small low key restaurant that has been around for a few years. I last visited it about two years ago, it’s too easy to forget this stretch of Devonshire. As well as the a la carte menu, there is an additional lunch menu, including a list of half a dozen items priced at $10. 

Yellow fragrant rice with beef Rendang and potato fritter ($10)

The fritter’s interior was soft, the exterior could have been a little more crispy. The Rendang was slightly sweet with a nice depth of flavour, the meat tender but not quite enough to yield to the fork. There was an incongruous addition of a couple of kidney beans, which I would have happily done without. They didn’t ruin the taste or experience, but neither did they add anything to it, and I didn’t quite understand them. The crackers were a welcome crunchy textural addition. Pickles were not large in quantity and quite mild, I’d have enjoyed a bit more of these.

Fried rice with prawns, fried egg and chicken skewers ($9.50)

Although the quantity of prawns was understandably negligible, at this price, what would you expect? The rice was piping hot, with a soy-based taste but with a slight spiciness to it, and quite addictive. The chicken skewers, nicely grilled, were tender and juicy, the egg perfectly fried.

With a short alcohol list, some well-priced ‘group’ meals and a large dinner menu, I hope to return one evening. These two lunch dishes were enjoyable and good value, and for those in a hurry, meals are served pretty promptly. I’ll be back.

[AP]

Khan Baba - Taka Tak, BBQ & Shisha Garden

Khan Baba
453 King St
Newtown NSW
Ph : (02) 8065 0712

It had taken me a few months to get to Khan Baba, and after this evening, I wondered why it had taken me so long, and vowed to return as soon as I could.

Don’t be mislead by the informal appearance of this Indian and Pakistani eatery, with its takeaway looking front section (and a courtyard at the back). They serve up some fantastic food. For this first meal, however, we went ‘light’, in the sense of focusing not on meat, but on vegetables and seafood.

One of the things that you’ll get at Khan Baba which you probably won’t find anywhere else are the “Tak Tak (Tawa)”. Cooked in an almost wok-like traditional hot plate at the front, you can order heart, liver, kidneys, testicles or brain, which will be served sizzling. For the innards fans.

To start, we had the vegetable pakora and vegetable samosa.

Which of the two you prefer will be fairly much subjective, and we were split on this. I enjoyed them both – the pastry on both was crisp and not heavy, but the extra punch of the spice in the samosa, liberally coated with the raita, made it my favourite.

Now for the seafood.

Goan Fish Curry

A huge serving with the most generous amount of fish I’ve been served in a fish curry, this was a mild curry (suitable for young children), a wonderfully creamy tomato and coconut gravy finished with lemon. The flavours are light, and don’t overwhelm the fish.

Prawn Karahi

In contrast, the prawn Karahi, marinated (chilli, cumin) prawns cooked in a fine tomato gravy, had a bit more spice and heat to it, with scattered matchsticks of fresh ginger visible. Again, they were not parsimonious with the prawns, there were enough for a few of them for each (3) of us. For those who like a gutsy sauce with a bit of body to it.

We ordered both plain naan and Terka rice (which none of us had eaten before) to eat with the mains

With a bit of mixing and matching, we worked out that the Goan fish curry worked best with the naan, as its plainness allowed the more subtle flavours of that sauce to maximised, whereas they were somewhat drowned out by the more pronounced flavour of the rice, which worked far better with the prawn. As testament to how addictively good both the curries were, we cleaned out the Karahi sauce, and almost managed to finish all of the Goan one as well.

This photo of the rice just doesn’t do justice to the size of the serving. There was a lot of rice (and we finished it).

The final item was the vegetable Martabak (or ‘murtabak’ if you’re in Malaysia). There are a number of fillings available for this stuffed pancake, but we were glad, when it arrived, that we’d ordered the vegetable option, as we weren’t sure whether we were going to be able to finish all that we had ordered. The exterior was light and flaky, the filling not too overwhelming in proportion or flavour, and a good snacky item. Also, it was huge. Of all the items we ordered that night, this was probably the one that I’d not feel compelled to immediately order again, even though I enjoyed it. 

Just as we were about to leave, a complimentary dessert came out. Gajar Ka Halwa. This is a very traditional type of dessert made with carrots and milk. Any initial doubts from the non-dessert person, were turned around with the first bite. Served warm, it is sweet, comforting, and no, you can’t tell that it’s carrot.

If I lived near Newtown, or at least within their delivery area (you can order on the website above), I would go there regularly. Khan Baba is amazing value, with generous servings of food with great depth of flavour, and friendly and engaging people who are keen to know whether you like each dish, and who really seem to love being there and sharing their food.

Go.

[AP]

Lemon tart milkshakes, Reubens and more at The Forresters

The Forresters

Corner Foveaux and Riley Streets

Surry Hills

Sydney NSW 2010

Ph : (02) 9212 3035

Lemon tart milkshake. These three words, tweeted, were what convinced me that I needed to visit The Forresters. Despite having visited numerous pubs in Surry Hills over the years, for some reason Forresters had never been one of them. What I didn’t realise was that this milkshake was, on the date of my visit, less than a week old, part of a new menu and new ownership.

The pub is carved out into several sections. We sat in the covered courtyard next to the entry area. There is a larger area behind the courtyard, and still more room on an upper level. 

Ordering consists of going up to the bar, paying for your food and drinks, and taking your number. As well as a weekday $10 menu, there is a much longer menu that can be ordered from at all times, covering a daily rotisserie (whose meat ends up in the Cuban sandwich of the day), snacks, salads, pizza, pasta, mains (short, but covering everything from a cheeseburger to salt cod parmigiana), sides, and two desserts (one being the lemon tart milkshake).

A Reuben ($10) was on the menu, so in line with last year’s sandwich theme, a Reuben I ordered. It may well be the final Reuben for a while, as it feels as though I’ve eaten too many. In the Reuben Spectrum that was my 2011, I’d put the Forresters one in about the 75th percentile. A decent enough filling (pickle inside), slightly let down by the bread. The chips were above average, and a decent serving. For $10, it was pretty good value.

The other sandwich was the meatball ($10). Although I didn’t try any of it, I’m told that the meatballs were tender and juicy. Again, a pretty decently sized meal.

The pizzas - dear Forresters, it’s ‘Margherita’ not “Margarita”.

Pizza Margherita ($15)

When it arrived, the first thought was that it was huge, too much for one person to eat for lunch. Fortunately, it was light - thin, crispy, with some nice slightly charred edges. Covered in tomato with chunks of melted fresh buffalo mozzarella, it was a pretty good Margherita that I’d be happy to eat again.

Onto the desserts.

First up, the lemon tart milkshake, my reason for being here.

Lemon tart milkshake ($7)

With some pastry crumble on the top and in the shake itself, this tastes exactly as you’d expect it to taste – like a lemon tart in a milkshake form. As if someone had put a tart into a blender, along with some milk, and pressed the button. Tasty, filling, and I’d drink it again happily, but it’s definitely no substitute for an actual tart.

The Tiramisu Knickerbocker Glory. That wasn’t.

Tiramisu Knickerbocker Glory ($12)

A knickerbocker glory is an ice cream sundae that is served in a large tall glass, particularly in the United Kingdom. It is typically served in a large sundae glass (tick) and contains ice cream, jelly, cream, possibly fruit, and even meringue. There are alternate layers of each of these, and it can be topped with a syrup, nuts, or whipped cream.

I ordered it because I didn’t know what to expect – some sort of clever riff on an old-fashioned sweet, I guess. It turned out to be tiramisu. A huge serving of tiramisu that I could barely finish. As a tiramisu, I found it quite heavy, as a Knickerbocker Glory …

The revamped Forresters is still a casual, welcoming type of place. Good for both small gatherings and groups, the food simple, flavoursome, and bang for buck. I’ll be back soon.

[AP]

American Doughnut Kitchen

Queen Victoria Market
Melbourne
VIC 3000
Open : Tues, Thurs – Sun
Ph : (03) 9417 6415

Although not exactly a dining ‘destination’, a craving for freshly made jam filled doughnuts (a rare beast in Sydney) lead me to the American Doughnut Kitchen at the Queen Victoria Market.

Operating since 1950, and now being run by the second generation of the Boening family, on this Saturday there seemed to be a short but consistent queue in front of the small van, waiting for their bag of half a dozen old-fashioned raspberry jam filled doughnuts for $6. 

Coated with sugar and made in a kitchen at the Market but finished off in the van, they are moderately sized, quite light, and hit the nostalgia mark for me as a doughnut. Unfortunately, the raspberry jam component was a slight disappointment. Whatever the reason, the amount of jam in the doughnuts was negligible, and in two of them, so negligible as to be almost like an accidental bump with the edge of a jam jar (I jest not, there was no jam inside, only a smear on one side). Given that it was a jam-filled doughnut that I'd queued for, regardless of whether I enjoyed the outer layer...

Not only do they have a website, but they are on twitter and facebook as well. Despite having become a part of Melbourne for so long, they are clearly not complacent, and keen to continue to publicise their wares.

A little while after returning from Melbourne, flour and stone added an apricot jam filled doughnut to their repertoire. Now THIS, is a jam doughnut; every mouthful filled with thick fruity jam and the surprise addition of custard. 

[AP]

Sofra

Sofra
35-39 Auburn Rd
Auburn
NSW 2144
Ph : (02) 9649 9167

One day I woke up and realised that I had a 'need' to go to Auburn for an Adana kebab. I then realised that the time elapsed since my last visit to Auburn was embarrassingly long, and amounted to  something along the lines of two years.

No time for procrastination. Back to where I had my first Adana kebab – Auburn institution Sofra, for lunch.

Adana Plate ($11)

Named after the fifth largest city in Turkey, Adana kebabs are hand-minced lamb that is shaped around an iron skewer measuring 0.5cm thick, 3cm wide, and anywhere from 90 to 120cm long. The shaped meat is grilled on an open BBQ over charcoal.

The cooked kebab is served on top of flatbread, typically topped by onions, diced tomatoes, parsley, cumin and sumac. It can also be eaten wrapped in a roll.

What’s the appeal? Freshly charcoal grilled meat served with bread (itself lightly grilled) that tastes of the kebab’s juices. The bread is fabulous to eat on its own, even without meat. Sofra’s Adana is juicy, tender, slightly spicy, and even better with a squirt of lemon.

Sometimes, all you need is grilled meat that is full of flavour, good bread and sides.

The chicken kebab ($14) was served with the usual salad sides, and a Turkish pilaf and orzo. The serving was too large, so I helped out. The chicken was decently cooked and flavoursome, but a little on the salty side. The side of bread was virtually uneaten, as the rice was more than sufficient as an accompaniment.

There are plenty of similar cheap and cheerful kebab eateries in the Auburn area. Which is the best? I can't say, as I have only ever tried Sofra, but on this particular day, of the dozen odd that I walked past, this was the most popular.

[AP]

Yok Yor Thai Food Factory

Yok Yor Thai Food Factory
Shop G06, 323 Castelreagh St
Haymarket
Sydney NSW2000
Ph : (02) 9280 0013
Sun – Thu: 1100-0100
Fri – Sat: 1100 – 0200

Yok Yor has one of those misleading type of addresses. If, as I did, you launch yourself up that general vicinity of Castlereagh St, expecting it to be immediately obvious, you’ll not find it. Number 323 is a large well-known building, with frontage on three streets. It is on the Campbell Street side, opposite Chilli Cha Cha, that you’ll find this small eatery, its front completely obscured by building work paraphernalia on the day of our visit.

The first thing that strikes you about Yok Yor is its small size. Not uncomfortably so, as tables are decently spaced, but some furniture rearranging would need to occur if there were a number of  even medium-sized groups dining there.

Situated at the ‘far’ end of the plethora of Thai restaurants in the Pitt and Campbell Streets area, it is open for quite long hours. The space is informal, and the large menu, with most items clocking in at under $10, reflects this.

I met up with a friend for a lunchtime catch-up, and realised that at least three-quarters of the times we meet for a meal, he orders pork, and if there are dumplings involving pork, he’ll order those.

Twas ever thus…his first pork choice was Kanom Jeeb ($4.50), steamed pork and prawn dumplings with fried garlic and soy sauce. They looked rather like Siu Mai to me, but he enjoyed them thoroughly, particularly the sauce, which added a piquancy which lifted the dumplings.

Kanom Jeeb

One of my favourite dishes is the Vietnamese savoury pancake, Bánh xèo. The presence of Kanom Beaung Yourn ($9.50), Thai crispy crepe filled with shredded prawn and coconut, served with cucumber and red onion relish, left me no choice. I had to order it.

Ruby & Rach - the Reuben

Good Living Growers' Market
Pyrmont
Sydney
3 September 2011

One of the things about twitter is that sometimes, the pace of your tweetstream is so rapid that without bookmarking it, it can be hard recall where you read about something.

In this instance, it was Tony Gibson's venture "Ruby & Rach", a new sandwich stall at the monthly Pyrmont Markets serving only two items - a Reuben sandwich, and a Rachel sandwich, and with its inaugural appearance on 3 September. I cannot for the life of me remember who tweeted about it.

The Reuben is what drew me there, as well being intrigued by the idea of someone being dedicated to producing only two sandwiches.

Inevitably, I chose the wrong way to do the market circuit in search of the Reuben, and it was one of the last stalls I came to. By that point, all you could hear from me was "WHERE IS IT?!?"

Examples of both sandwiches sit at the front of the stall for illustrative purposes. The Reuben ($9.50), described as "corned Wagyu, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, Russian dressing on Rye", is made from 72 hour brined Wagyu.

As each order is placed, the bread is toasted, the corned beef hand-sliced and then warmed up, the cheese melted etc, and the completed sandwich wrapped in a what appears to be butcher's paper, which is great, space wise, for sandwich consumption.

Hotel Clarendon

Hotel Clarendon
156 Devonshire St
Sydney NSW 2010
Ph: (02) 9699 6001

We weren’t meant to be at the Clarendon, but ended up there through a combination of factors mainly relating to parking issues. Parking problems? In Surry Hills? Perish the thought!

It was either the Shakespeare or here, and of the two, the Clarendon was much quieter, so inward ho we went.

This is the sort of local where you drop in at lunch or after work and hang out. The downstairs area is fairly generic, but renovated in the last couple of years to give it a more contemporary feel, with a spacious main bar area leading to a smaller area with a pool table which in turn opens out to a courtyard, the most attractive of options on a sunny day

The Clarendon’s bistro has a menu that covers standard pub grub, from pasta, burgers and steaks to pizzas and Chicken Parmigiana, but there’s also a kids’ menu. Amongst the items in their bistro menu are ten “all day specials” for $10 each, and we both ended up ordering items from the $10 section.

 

Beef burger - lettuce, tomato, caramelised onion, cheese and bbq sauce ($10)

My choice : Steak Sandwich - lettuce, tomato, caramelised onion, cheese and bbq sauce ($10).

The sandwich was a fairly routine affair, I don’t tend to expect all that much from a $10 pub steak sandwich, but this one was decently sized, the amount of filling good, and the chips were, oddly, probably one of the best things about it. It would definitely have been improved if the bread had been lightly toasted.

The burger was a success both size wise, and taste wise. The exterior of the patty was charred, the taste solidly orthodox. I think that I would have preferred the burger which, yes, I forgot to taste.

When you go to a local watering hole style pub, and this one has been around since 1876, you go in there knowing what to expect – decent filling fare for a reasonable price. Cheap and cheerful. This is what we got.

[AP]

Katong Laksa

Katong Laksa
G/F, 8 Mercer St.
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong
Ph : +852 25434088

Another branch at :
Shop D1
G/F, Kam Sing Mansion
155 Jaffe Rd
Wanchai
Ph : +852 3168 2478

Sunday lunchtime in the depths of Sheung Wan. A quiet time, and in the corner of Sheung Wan in which I found myself on this day, a surprisingly few number of places open at lunch time. I was in the area to meet up with my father, and the search for lunch ended taking up 15 minutes of walking around with very little in sight apart from two rather dubious looking places, a shop selling live snakes for the grocery shopping crowd, and two Malaysian restaurants.

And so it was that I found myself at Katong. It was there, it was open, and the exterior was bedecked with copies of reviews assuring passers-by of its place amongst the top Malaysian eateries in Hong Kong.

Katong is a small place with an open kitchen (there was only one chef cooking on  the day of my visit) and it also does deliveries and takeaways. The menu consists of 29 main items, four "afternoon tea sets" that are popular amongst old style Hong Kong "Westernised" cafes (Cha Chaan Teng) in particular, plus various non-alcoholic drink options.

Chee Kei Wonton Noodle

Chee Kei Wonton Noodle 
84 Percival St
Causeway Bay
Hong Kong
Ph : +852 2890 8616
Open : 11am - 1130pm daily

Other Locations:
Shop 10, Level 4, Langham Place, 8 Argyle Street, Mong Kok
G/F No.37 Lock Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
Maritime Square, 33 Tsing King Road, Tsing Yi
Shop No.F27, Telford Plaza, 33 Wai Yip Street, Kowloon Bay
52 Russell St., Causeway Bay
70 Stone Nullah Lane, Wan Chai

As you can tell from the sheer number of branches listed above, this is a popular chain of  purveyors of noodles, wonton and the like. Clean and modern, but with old-fashioned traditional decor, they are seen as providing good quality and well-priced noodles and wonton in particular, though their crab congee is also well-known. I didn't realise it at the time, but it appears that they are also in Michelin's list of recommended Hong Kong eateries.

If the two branches I visited are anything to go by, they are very busy. So busy in fact, that queueing is mandatory at peak periods, though turnover is rapid, so you will never have to wait for too long. They are crowded, but not uncomfortably so, and be prepared to share tables if necessary. Pleasant though they are, they are not to places where you sit, eat and enjoy tea for a few hours.

Whilst everything is in Chinese, an English menu is available upon request. Ordering is a very efficient process, with the bill being placed under the plate of glass that covers the table as soon as you place your order.

My first visit here was on a family recommendation which, funily enough, turned out coincidentally to also be the recommendation of @ljLoch, who had told me that I must try the crab congee.

So I did.

Crab Congee ($60). Special deal with Gai Lan (total $75)