Vietnamese Pork Roll Cabramatta: Viet Hoa

Banh mi thit - Vietnamese pork roll: school kids munch on them, footballers are spotted grabbing one for a snack, old people chew slowly and carefully (the crisp bread rolls don't mix easily with dentures).  Even food bloggers love them, Marrickville, Mascot, you can get them just about anywhere in Sydney.

Are they the ultimate in fusion? French influence in crispy, crunchy bread, pate, mayo combined with Vietnamese ingredients, meat, chilli and fish sauce or maggi.

Last night, I bought two pork rolls in Cabramatta at Viet Hoa hot bread shop for dinner.  I reckon they sell one of the best pork rolls in Sydney.  I love Viet Hoa because they're open late, I've driven past at midnight and they're still serving customers.  And it seems like the same old lady is there 24 hours, which means the rolls are made consistently good!

Watch the video and see my banh mi thit being made. Fresh bread, pate, mayo, three types of meat, vegetables and chill and sauce.



I remember when they were $1.50 (many, many years ago)... last night they were $4.. it's still pretty good value, what sort of sandwich would you get for $4 these days.  Pork rolls use fresh bread, 10 different ingredients and made to order, can't argue with that!

noodlies Sydney food blogs loves a good banh mi thit!


Viet Hoa Hot Bread
John Street (Hill street end)
Cabramatta

Al-Dhiaffah Al-Iraqi Restaurant, Fairfield

Step inside and you could be any where in the middle east, the walls are adorned with faded posters of what looks like old Baghdad, the formica tables are an odd marble colour.  In the fridge there are exotic drinks, including the not exotic, Coca Cola bottles imported from the middle east, complete with Arabic packaging.



But of course, we're in Al-Dhiaffah Al-Iraqi Restaurant in downtown Fairfield, where they make the most wonderful fluffy bread on premises.

Given the climate in Iraq, it's not surprising that the vegetables are mostly pickled and the main source of protein is a lot, and I mean a lot of meat.  To feed our clan, we ordered just about all the kebabs on the menu, lamb, chicken, beef and even the mixed plate.  While seasoned, it's light, leaving the flavour of the meat to shine.

My personal favourite, although it's close, is the chicken kebab (top right above), nice thick pieces, well cooked on the outside and tender, soft inside.

To cut and compliment the heavy meat dishes, there was the smoothest hummus (homos, spelt a thousand ways).  As well as fresh, crisp salad, that was ever so lightly marinated.  Wrap the kebab with warm bread smooth on some hummus and add salad to taste, plus some local hot sauce.. and you have a delicious meal.

Another personal favourite of mine is the lamb stew below.  It's cooked so that the meat almost falls off the bone together with the vegetables, including what looks like a whole cumquat.  Extra consistency is several layers of bread soaked in the stew.  It's stodgy and is our favourite on a cold winter's evening, although I have to say it didn't taste to bad in hot weather either.  The soup from the stew makes a nice change to the rest of our order.

Al-Dhiaffah Al-Iraqi Restaurant is a local institution, it's not brash and they don't promote themselves too widely, but it's excellent authentic, honest food. The food here is for sharing, so come with a group of friends, you can get a better feel of the middle east in south western Sydney.

Al-Dhiaffah Al-Iraqi Restaurant
13 The Crescent, Fairfield
(02) 9755 0870

Mak's Noodle, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Anthony Bourdain discovered Mak's Noodle a few years back and this little eatery has a pretty high profile since.  Bourdain loves the shrimp wonton, he says it works particularly well in the stock, giving the wontons a strong solid flavour.

And these wontons are different, they're smaller than the usual type.  In fact the 'bowl' of noodles you see above is smaller than usual, it's actually the size of a smallish rice bowl.

But there's no denying the delicious taste of both the wonton - strong prawn taste and the equally tasty clear soup.  The egg noodles themselves deserve credit too, they are strong, firm and fresh.

The only thing that's not small is the prices, the publicity has obviously done Mak's noodles good, the rice bowl of noodles will set you back HK$29, on the upper end of the scale, especially for a small bowl.

Established since 1960s, but Mak's Noodle has been in several different locations. I ate at their Parkes Street shop in Kowloon... twice.

Mak's Noodle
57 Parkes Street, Jordan
Kowloon, Hong Kong

Lung King Heen, Four Seasons, Hong Kong

Lung King Heen's Executive Chef Chan Yan Tak has the honour of being the first Chinese chef to be awarded three Michelin stars, the highest honour.  And after chatting to Chef Tak I can see why.

While not a tall man, physically, he's still a larger than life character with a voice and presence to match.  You can see in his piercing eyes that he's a quick thinker and precise attention to detail.  He strikes me as someone who is focused on delivering the best without compromise.

Chef Tak says he works with his purchasing department to source the best ingredients in the world.  And we see that in the menu he served up for noodlies:

One of Chef Tak's signature dishes baked whole abalone puff with diced chicken.  Chef has selected abalone from South Africa for it's size, taste and texture. And it is amazing, the meat is strong but not at all tough is balanced with the hard, yet crumbly light pastry.  The light sauce binding both together.  Also interesting is the Asian mixing of different meats, here it's abalone and chicken.

The king prawn is the star attraction of this dish: simmered king prawn in crystal sauce. It was was sourced from Malaysia because of the unique huge size of the prawns produced; this one was almost the size of the plate.  The presentation was stunning, for me it was an expression of reaching for heaven, the soft vegetables as the ocean, golden noodle as land and the king prawn helping us to reach the golden heavens.

Steam star garoupa fillet with ginger and spring onions is a dish you can find at many restaurants, it's quite a popular way to steam fish.  But at Lung King Heen, the fish is superior quality, bright white, firm flesh, tight skin, fresh flavour.

It's clear that Chef Tak is relentless is delivering the best quality food for his customers and he doesn't compromise, no wonder he's maintained the three Michelin stars for four years in a row.

Oh, and he doesn't compromise for Western customers either, Chef Tak says one of his goals is to give non-Chinese a taste of fine, authentic Cantonese food.

I asked Chef Tak, should customers eat his fine food with wine or tea? And while he believes customers should go with their preference, ideally, he says Cantonese food should be consumed with a good Chinese tea.

Lung King Heen, it's located in the very, very plush Four Seasons Hotel in Central district of Hong Kong.  The hotel was purpose built around five years ago and it connects with the Ifc towers, shrines to capitalism and finance.

Right on the harbour, Lung King Heen commands sweeping water views and benefits from wonderful natural light that light up the crisp white linen and earthy wood tones used throughout the restaurant.

Chef Chan Yan Tak and noodlies

With the new year and the coming Chinese New Year, Chef Tak is close to finalising a new menu (he generally changes his menu each quarter).  noodlies will keep you posted on the new menu which will be out in the next week or two.

Oh, and a few noodlies readers wanted to know what Chef Tak cooks at home:

• soup with any seasonal vegetables, Chef thinks soup is such an important part of a Chinese meal
• steamed fish
• simple meat and seasonal vegetable stir-fry

noodlies Sydney food blog dined as a as a guest of Lung King Heen and Four Seasons Hotel, with thanks to Chef Tak and Angela.

Lung King Heen (View of the Dragon)
Four Seasons Hotel
8 Finance St, Central
Hong Kong

Tim Ho Wan, Dim Sum/Yum Cha, Mongkok, Hong Kong

The cheapest Michelin star restaurant in the world has the crowds flocking.   Open 10am-10pm, the queues start from the morning right through to the night.  And they come from all over the world, next to me were three Japanese girls, next to them a Spanish couple, and a few tables further an American couple.

I came at 4pm to miss the crowd but there was still a 10 minute wait, sped up by the fact that I was one person and could share a table with an odd numbered group.

Tim Ho Wan is headed by chef Mak Pui Gor formerly a sous chef with the Four Seasons hotel working under Chef Chan Yan Tak, the first Chinese chef to be awarded three Michelin stars.

But Tim Ho Wan is after a totally different market to the Four Seasons crowd, the yum cha here is genuinely cheap, my selection ranged from HK$12 - HK$19 each, that's actually cheaper than the relatively average yum cha place I went to recently.



I ordered the usual popular yum cha fare, har gao, siu mai, steamed vegetable dumplings, rice noodles and something another guest suggested, baked bbq pork bun.. apparently a Tim Ho Wan specialty.

And the hype is true, everything was delicious, high quality ingredients, great balance of flavours.

Despite everything I read about the staff being surly, my experience was anything but.  They were polite, helpful and were patient, within reason, it's a very busy place.

A few tips:

• Use the photo above as reference as there's not large English signage outside the shop
• It's open 10am-10pm, to avoid queues go at off peak dates like early in the week and times, I went at 4pm and the wait was only around 10mins.
• Make sure you get a number from the lady outside the shop and at the same time the piece of white paper to fill out your order.  She's likely to give you the Chinese version, ask for it in English
• Once inside, the place is SMALL so don't come with bags of shopping or make too many wide, sudden movements

Tim Ho Wan

Shop 8, 2-20 Kwong Wa Street, Mong Kok

Kowloon, Hong Kong

Ming Court, Langham Place, Mongkok, Hong Kong

There are hundreds if not over a thousand restaurants in Mongkok, so what does it take to set yourself apart? You get yourself two Michelin stars of course!  And it's no fluke, he's maintained the two stars over the years.



Tsang wows with an innovative take on good old fashion Cantonese fare, the spices are subtle to let the primary ingredients take centre stage.

Ming Court's clientele are predominantly local Chinese both families and business people, with about 30% being tourists. Interestingly he says the Western tourists are similar to young Chinese in that they are particularly adventurous, which he appreciates.

While he may appear formidable on the Hong Kong Masterchef episode, Tsang is incredibly affable and charming. He has over 30 years cooking experience and nominates seafood and pumpkin as two of his favourite ingredients because they're so versatile.

Versatile is something which we will see demonstrate amply in the dishes which noodlies will be reviewing.

The Yunnan cucumber and salted duck egg yoke combines two ingredients which I love but can rarely get in one combination.  The cucumber is crunchy and the yoke holds flavour but doesn't dominate, in that Cantonese way!

I really can't work out my favourite dish from the remaining three..

Chef Tsang nominates stir-fried fresh shrimp with egg white as one of his favourite dishes and one which he would order if he came to Ming Court to dine.  It's so incredibly delicate, the fluffy egg folds in several layers over the freshly fried shrimp and provides texture contrast, heavenly light egg with strong shrimp prawn flavour and texture.  For further effect, the dried green vegetables crumbles in your mouth leaving an ever so delicate salty taste.  You'll have to watch the video below, it's the only way I can think of to do this dish justice.

Or do I like the wagyu beef with black truffle and pumpkin... 

The pumpkin, mushroom and beef are all cubed and stir-fried with a generous amount of black truffle, which fuses them together so that you don't know which cube you're eating until you put it in your mouth, a cheeky innovation.  The whole dish is presented wonderfully in a kinda fruit of the loom arrangement.

Or maybe my favourite is the pan fried minced chicken and black truffle stuffed in chicken skin accompanied by sliced pumpkin.

One bite and you get an explosion of taste of chicken and some fish, in a wonderful play on the ingredients the chicken is prepared two ways as well as the pumpkin.  Watch the video and you see what I mean, it's simply stunning.



The jury is still out for me, it's so hard to pick my favourite dish, they are all so different, yet delightful in their own way.

Oh and I have to thank my wonderful waitress for suggesting a light but stunning dessert which capped the night perfectly, shark fin crystal extravagance, yes shark fin dessert... watch and be amazed.



I was left speechless by the sheer cleverness, there's a real sense of spectacle but also humour about this wonderful dish.

While Chef Tsang is affable and sweet, he still holds a passion to go further and further, next year he's embarking on new challenges, tackling white truffle as well as wine/main course matching.  He teases me with a new creation he's cooking up for 2011: melted white chocolate, truffle and wagyu beef... I'm so, so intrigued.

Oh and he's set his sight on getting that third Michelin star, I promised I'd send him a congratulatory present from Australia if he manages to achieve it in 2011.  Cardith was a witness and with this post, the promise is in writing for all the world to keep me honest.  Good luck Chef Tsang!

noodlies Sydney food blog dined at Ming Court as a guest of Ming Court, with thanks to Chef Tsang and Cardith.

Ming Court
Langham Place Hotel
555 Shanghai St
Mongkok, Hong Kong

Izakaya Arigato Japanese, Eat Street, Chatswood Central

The next stop on our Eat Street progressive eating tour takes us to Japan.  Izakaya Arigato is an intimate Japanese eatery that fills up quickly during our visit.  Calligraphy, wood cuts, tea pots abound and creating a lovely setting.

The Udon Tempura set was pretty reasonably priced, and presented beautifully.  The tempura batter was a tad too thick for my tastes and in particular, the sweet potato a little under cooked.  Udon noodle was fresh and strong, lovely broth which was more on the salty than sweet side.

The highlight for me was the Unagi Teppan which looked stunning as it glistened in the cast iron pan.  The eel had great texture and perfectly cooked.  I loved the ever-so-tasty sauce which was divine with rice.

The green tea soju was an unusual but very pleasant drink and kind of green tea shake.

This Noodlies Sydney food blog experience was courtesy Wasamedia and our kind host, Izakaya Arigato.

Izakaya Arigato
5 Railway St, Shop P7, Chatswood
(02) 9411 6596



Eat Street Progressive Dinner, Chatswood Centre
Entree and drinks: Bavarian Bier Cafe
Mains: Izakaya Arigato
Dessert: Rocket Restaurant

Uchi Lounge, Japanese, Surry Hills

For years, Uchi Lounge was at the forefront of modern Japanese, a radical departure to the ubiquitous sushi and sashimi fast food establishments at the time.  Now there are plenty of other innovative modern Japanese restaurants about the place.

But Uchi Lounge has aged particularly well.  The grounded earthy, wood decor feels familiar and instantly comfortable.  And like any ageing beauty, the lighting is subdued and mysterious, but unmistakeably inviting.

She's both challenging and stimulating.

Garlic miso camembert on crispy lotus root, this is not fusion, it's Japanese cuisine evolving and the contrast is stunning, what's more East than lotus root and is there a better symbol of the West than cheese.  Both flavours are subtle but distinctive and they work amazingly well together.

There is of course, a nod to the traditional, there's nothing I love more than good agedashi tofu and Uchi Lounge doesn't disappoint.

Char grilled seared tuna with enoki soy mushroom sauce sounds traditional enough, but lurking under underneath is steamed squash and carrot.  The fish is well done with slightly burnt outer, while I find this delivers a pleasant surprise, it may not be to everyone's taste.

The snapper sashimi is bold and minimalist at the same time in that unique Japanese way.  Everything is wafer thin, the snapper fresh and tight.  The fan of tomato slices is a surprise as is the marinated shallots which holds the most flavour.  The dish is subtle but also amazingly intricate - my favourite dish of the evening.

It would be just wrong to enjoy wonderful Japanese and not have sake, but even here we're challenged with a wonderful array of choice.  Downstairs Uchi Lounge is also a wonderful bar and we selected warm sour cherry sake with entree and chilled pear and goji sake with mains.  Perfect compliment to the meal, they too offer subtle yet complex flavours, Ms KLui preferred the pear and I fall for the crimson sour cherry.

We also disagreed on our favourite dessert.

Ms KLui's azuki strawberry rhubarb ice cream was almost perfect in execution and I think both a playful poke and paying respect to the traditional red bean ice cream.

But I'm a sucker for the Fuji apple, ginger and star anise compote served with soy milk ice cream.  The ice cream here really hits the spot, not so sweet but strong in bean curd/soy milk aroma - oh so delightfully cheeky and sophisticated.

We shared two pots of tea with dessert, Japanese green tea and the most potent, tangible genmai cha I've ever tasted.

Uchi Lounge is that stunning beauty that you think you know so well, but the closer you get to her, the more intriguing and mysterious she becomes... she beguiling, bewitching and before you know it, she makes you fall in love with her again and again.

This Noodlies Sydney food blog experience was courtesy Wasamedia and our kind host, Uchi Lounge.



Uchi Lounge
15 Brisbane St, Surry Hills (Darlo end)
(02) 9261 3524

Sydney Beijing Restaurant, Chinese, Ashfield

What's so different about Sydney Beijing Restaurant when it's in a strip of so many others, all with red signage with bold Chinese writing? Firstly it's Beijing style while the flavour of the month seems to be Shanghai Chinese that is popping here and everywhere - noodlies Sydney food blog has seen quite a few!

For me the main difference is that they are all so nice from the waiters to the owner!  You wouldn't go to a Chinese restaurant expecting to be served by sweet lovely people, but it was such a pleasant surprise.  Admittedly they had just finished rush hour (because there were a few tables still not cleared) so it was relatively quiet, but I'm sure I was greeted with sincere smile by the young waitress.  And the owner too, seemed to be genuinely smiley and happy with everyone, me included when I got up to pay.

The Beijing hand made noodle beef soup was hot (as per the waitress' polite warning).  It was a relatively straight forward affair: beef - a lot of beef with tendons, noodles were thin a little too consistent to be handmade me thinks, but it was starchy (I like that) and hearty, bok choy and a lovely chilli hot sauce (as opposed to peppery spice you'd get with Xibei noodles).

I've fallen in love with this place - it's not any more efficient or amazingly better standard food than some of the better Chinese restaurants, but the staff were just so sweet.  It's reminded me that good service does make a world of difference

Sydney Beijing Restaurant
355 Liverpool Road, Ashfield
(02) 9716 5523

Taste of Shanghai, Ashfield

Taste of Shanghai has been on this Sydney food blog's radar for a while simply because it's always packed... and the fact that it's on the site of the old Chicken Express; a fast food chain that had a particular fondness for added MSG.

The first surprise for a Chinese restaurant is that the young staff were relatively friendly and helpful, there's even a staff member to open the door for you.  True to form, at 7pm on a rainy night, Taste of Shanghai was busy, clientele were all Chinese, of a wide cross section and ages.

There's a good variety of Shanghai and some Sichuan dishes from cold entrees, hot pots, vegetarian, home style dishes and of course, dumplings.

I order the enigmatically named wined chicken, which was chicken in rice wine, simple but with high octane flavour.

The Shanghai steamed mini pork buns came in eight (of course) pieces, pastry nice, tonight the filling was a little watery, but still very enjoyable.

I'll be back.

If you can't get out to Ashfield, Taste of Shanghai is also in Sydney's World Square and Eastwood.

Taste of Shanghai
264 Liverpool Rd, Ashfield
(02) 9798 2877

Masuya Japanese Seafood Restaurant, Sydney

By Noodlies, Sydney food blog guest reviewer, KLui. 

Masuya Japanese Seafood is a great place to eat with friends! Plenty of spaces between tables! The food served is fresh and delicious!

Entrée – Sea Urchin Sushi Boat: people either love it or hate it. It all comes to the creaminess and freshness of the urchin.

Hai Au Vietnamese Restaurant, Canley Vale

Hai Au has been consistently on my Best Restaurants in Cabramatta list.  We came back tonight because they have this new roast chicken which is done at the entrance to the restaurant (see above).  The chicken is wrapped in banana leaves and cooked over an enormous flame (below).

 

Korean Restaurant (Dai Jang Gum), Cabramatta

We've blogged about the only Korean restaurant in Cabramatta before.  But I thought we'd try a video to give you a better feel for the atmosphere: it's noisy, hectic and fun!

Sunday Life, Sun Herald/Sunday Age 7/11/10

"...Thang Ngo explores Asian food in his home territory of south-west Sydney [through] noodlies.com" Sunday Life, Sun Herald and Sunday Age, 7th Nov 2010.

Bon Mua, Vietnamese Canley Heights

Bon Mua (four seasons) did pretty well in the recent noodlies Sydney's Best Pho poll so we decided to give it a try.  It's one of the newer restaurants in Canley Heights and Bon Mua is at the Cumberland Hwy end of the restaurant strip. 

Best Restaurants in Cabramatta (updated)

Wanted to do a day trip to Cabramatta but don''t know where to eat? What are some of the best restaurants in Cabramatta?  What dish should I order to get the most of my Cabramatta adventure?  Are there any vegetarian options?  What is Pho noodle? How do I eat Pho?

All these questions and more are answered below... as we say at noodlies, happy eating!

Last updated Saturday, 7th November 2010.

Banh uot

It might sound flippant, but food is one of the main reasons we chose to live in Cabramatta. My partner and I are rarely home by 7pm - who has time to shop, cook, eat and wash up? Why cook, when we’re surrounded by good, honest, delicious food.

Over the years, so many friends have asked me to recommend places to eat in Cabramatta. So if you're wondering where to eat in Cabramatta, this blog is devoted to my favourite local restaurants; my version of the best restaurants in Cabramatta.

But first a disclaimer, which might save me from being lynched by restaurants who didn’t make the list: it’s a competitive market in Cabramatta – diners are fussy, if a place is not good, it won’t last. So just by being open, the restaurant is pretty good already!