U.E. Chinese Restaurant, Cabramatta (Secret Sydney)

UE wins the title of hardest restaurant to find in Cabramatta and that's saying something because there's a few hidden eateries in Cabra town.  Entry is via a street off the main drag, there's minimal signage and you have to go down a tiny, dark alley, dodging abruptly swinging toilet doors and you finally reach U.E. Chinese restaurant.  Watch this noodlies Sydney food blog video and you get a feel for the tomb raider adventure you go through to get to this restaurant.



I've got no idea what U.E stands for, but the restaurant serves Chinese style egg noodles (Vietnamese go for the rice noodles called pho).  We weren't given a menu but a quick scan of the hand written signage stuck to the walls (check out the video) confirms that egg noodle soup is there specialty.  And it's traditional Chinese egg noodles so wonton and boiled duck or beef are all catered for, the relatively version of crispy skin chicken made famous by restaurants like Tan Viet are too much of an innovation.

Walter ordered the wonton version, which was strong in prawn flavours, so be warned if you're not a fan of seafood.  The soup was clear and sweet, shallots and garlic chives adding additional bite.  I recommend adding some fresh chilli for that extra kick.  Remember to dip the wonton into the provided chilli sauce if you want extra spice.

The soup in my duck noodles were darker, no doubt coloured by the meat, which was a tad over cooked and making the skin soggy and flesh a little tough.  My bowl also contained extra offal which made the whole experience rather busy.  The egg noodles were thick and strong, very much to my taste.

Tan Viet and other noodle places can relax, while U.E. may win the crown for the most impossible restaurant to find, it's not quite there in the best restaurant when it comes to the noodles.  On the plus side, it's a fun adventure just getting there and might be a good choice when all the other places are packed.

It's been around for a couple of decades by my reckoning, so it must be doing something right.

This is another Secret Sydney post. Secret Sydney is a new noodlies Sydney food blog project to uncover authentic, diverse food and culture all around Sydney.

U.E. Chinese Restaurant
4A/117 John Street (Enter via Hill St)
Cabramatta
9727 0014