Home Thai (CBD South/Chinatown)

Hear ye, Hear YE!
I have RETURNED!


Actually: not yet. So I graduated as an Optometrist (finally) after 5 years and one repeat year of study - and my first posting is 10 hours away from Sydney in a large regional town called Toowoomba. For those who can't be bothered looking up a map - that's in Queensland, a different state, and situated 2 hours west of Brisbane (90mins for the lead-footed males) =P. Don't ask me how I know - officially I am a good driver =D

Four months into my posting, June has come around - an excuse to return to Sydney and catch up with friends and family. MOST importantly: to walk down the hallowed halls to receive my Degree: Bachelor of Optometry and Bachelor of Science.

Enough of the background: you're all here for the review, and so it begins...
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Disclaimer: all images belong to me (Saleem Ha Photography), and is reproduced unedited from my iPhone5: what you see is what you get (and what I ate!)
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There's this one friend of mine, whose company I enjoy immensely. (It can't hurt to mention that I've missed her terribly either... not seeing your close friends for months on end isn't nice). It also helps [for me] that she always seems to have a list of places to try - inevitably I don't have to rack my brain too hard to come up with a place to dine.

Although I wouldn't say I've got a great ability for spotting people, our meeting point at Town Hall station at 5pm meant that I had a hard time trying to spot her amongst a homeward-bound crowd: and my official excuse of not having seen her in four months is the reason why she found me rather than the other way around. Oops :P

We caught up on what's been happening, exchanging tales and gossip whilst meandering down to Sussex Street on a chilly winter evening. Getting there early by 5.30pm meant that we got a table straight away, though the place was already half full - looks promising.

You do the usual: sit down, appreciate the menu, with the tacky old-laminate drinks and dessert cards, then wait for the waitress to come around to take your order. I do have to warn you now: be prepared to keep an open ear out for accents - my friend had a fair bit of trouble trying to decipher what our waitress was saying. Me... no worries on that front - I get criticised for trying to mimic the same accents!

=== Verdict ===
The night went smoothly, and I did enjoy the experience and my company. But to be fair to the blog, I wouldn't rate this place highly compared to where I've been in the past. The food was good but not outstanding. The bill came to $71 for the 2 of us - seems steep at first, but fair considering we ordered two entrees, two mains (Salad and Noodle dish), two Steamed rice, two desserts dishes and two drinks. Bits and comments of each dish you will find below.

Value: not inexpensive
Yummyness: sating, but had better
Quality: no complaints

Overheard: "There's always Chat Thai..."

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Entree: #2 Kao Kreab Pak Mhor ($6.50/6pc)

Intriguing little dumpling containing peanuts, palm sugar and a vegetarian substitute (either that or the pork edition, which I avoid).

I'm neutral on this one: dumpling skin is soft, with a crunchy mix of core ingredients. However, nothing about it gives you the little "wow" feeling of wanting more.

Entree: #17 Fresh Spring Roll ($10)

Now I don't eat pork (as many may know), so the opinion isn't quite mine. My friend liked it, no complaints... but not many comments about it either.

Containing Lap Cheong and other odds and ends, it was nicely fried but crumbled from slight chopstick pressure - either poorly made, or stuffed to the brim with goodiness - find out for yourself!

Main: #86 Banana Flower Salad with Prawn ($16)

Impressively served with three (four?) large prawns overlying a mix of lemongrass and yummy delights. For the full list - go look up their menu at this link.

Love: interesting mix of flavours coming together
Hate: (not my hate) "There's too much chilli - it burns"

Might not be for the un-chilli-able folk =)

Main: #109 Gravy Noodle Flat rice noodle ($12)

With most traditional South-East Asian fare, a "wet noodle" dish (friend noodle in thick gravy sauce) is divine when the noodles are well cooked, and a thick gravy that is flavoursome and balanced just right - not always easy. So as you see, thin stalks of Chinese Broccoli floating amongst chicken pieces over a bed of hor fun (rice noodles) was done quite well. Not brilliantly though - I've had better, but I'm happy they don't ruin one of the basic staples of an Asian kitchen.

Dessert: Deep Fried Banana pieces

Comment: WOW! Perfectly fried with no crumpling of the outer layers, soft gooey delicious banana slice inside.

A must have if you've no concerns about grease, oils, or "yeet-hei" (Cantonese for 'too much fried food')

Dessert: Sticky Rice Sliced Mango

Pass! Next!
I presume they'd use fresh mango in the Spring/Summer season - you can definitely taste the difference with the tinned mango used tonight. And the sticky rice... unfortunately something to pass over. I hate wasting food, and my friend even more so... but we both put down our spoons on this dish: the sticky rice had some flavour infused in it, but was too cold on serving.

Coupled with the knowledge that the girl (smaller) and boy (larger) (appetites) had shared two entrees, two mains, two bowls of rice, two iced drinks and the fried banana earlier... we had to let this one slide rather than stuffing every last morsel into a bloated stomach.

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Home Thai (CBD South)
299 Sussex St (Street-front entrance, Shops 1&2)
Town Hall, Sydney 2000
P 02 9261-5058

Hours:
Lunch 11-4pm
Dinner: 4.00-10.30pm
No booking for dinner: stand outside for a ticket and wait up to an half-hour

Bathers Pavilion (Balmoral)

My last day in Sydney for 2012 - tomorrow, I fly out for a 6 week trip across Europe and Hong Kong. Yay me! Unfortunately, it would be the last chance that I'll get to spend with my closest friend before the New Year - so we went exploring again.

Bathers Pavilion at Balmoral is a place she has wanted to try, and it is a lovely place tucked inside the Pavilion. A bustling restaurant with lovely scenic views of the beach, and quite cute napkins too (see below)!

The menu on offer was quite interesting, so we agreed on trying the following: Cranberry Cocktail (non-alcoholic $7.80), Kingfish crueche (some salad-y thing) and the seared fish-of-the-day on parsley risotto.

I'm sorry for keeping this post rather short - I'm actually on my travels at the moment. Overall it was a mixed response - we loved the fish-of-the-day, and the parsley risotto was delicious. The kingfish was cold, which I was disappointed to sample - but apparently it IS meant to be served cold... so I have much still to learn. Taste was quite nice - but we loved the fish/risotto much more. Cocktail - very small portion for the price.

Overall, that reflects our perspective - for what we paid ($72.50 for an entree, a main, the cocktail and a soft drink), it wasn't good value. However, the experience of enjoying a decent hot meal indoors with seaside views is something to treasure.

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Bathers Pavilion (Balmoral)
4 The Esplanade
Balmoral 2088

How to get there: the 257 bus from Chatswood will take you there eventually, but driving yourself is recommended. Going south-bound along the M10 Spit Rd, turn left into Awaba St and head to Balmoral. If you're coming from the south, Awaba St has a no-right-turn limitation, so turn left away from the beach and do a legal U-ie, before heading down to Balmoral. The Pavilions themselves is impossible to miss - either find a 2P residential parking and walk, or pay for the 3P parking right in front.

Value: Entrees $20++, Mains $30++

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/70/750210/restaurant/Sydney/Mosman/Bathers-Pavilion-Balmoral"><img alt="Bathers' Pavilion on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/750210/biglink.gif" style="border:none;padding:0px;width:200px;height:146px" /></a>

Opera Kitchen: Cloudy Bay Fish Co.

So following on from our delightful lunch at Balmoral, we spent the afternoon mucking around and enjoying life, living in the moment.

Anyways, back to the food: dinner tonight was back in the City, exploring Opera Kitchen. This collection of four eateries combine to handle the pre-drinks/pre-dinner crowd for any performances in the Opera House, or in our case, Friday night after-work drinks. Arriving at 7pm, the place was packed in the 'downstairs' sit-down dining sector, likewise in the 'upstairs' area with many a fist clutching a beer, glass of wine, nibbles, a smoke, or something else.

If you haven't noticed, I'm enjoying this freedom to explore and eat out at different areas of Sydney, and this was an interesting experience in itself. A cross between casual eating with fine food is what I perceive... but isn't what we got.

Selection tonight, after excluding the Japanese and the Vietnamese/Asian eatery, was with the Cloudy Bay Fish Co., with a decent range of Australian food: fish and chips, burgers, etc.

Above is the Duck Pancake from Misschu (the Viet stall). For us Asians, $4 per pancake is pricey, and we've had fresher tasting ones elsewhere. For those who haven't had it, or don't want the associated mess with boning and cleaning up after a roast duck selection, then this is something to try at some point.

What I liked about it: hot and greasy (the duck, that is). A cold duck pancake does not do this dish justice.
Dislike: 'relatively' stale, compared to the fresh-out-of-a-Chinese-kitchen ones I've lived with.

Above is the Cajun Chicken burger, decent for $19.50 and the to-table delivery, but pricey for the portion sizing. I had no expectations, but my friend expected the Cajun to have a bit of a zing with it: this was essentially a simple chicken burger.

Below: the Cloudy Bay Fish Co. Tasting Plate. At $26 it wasn't cheap... And could be a lot better too. Four small mounds of assorted fish, served on an okay salad, with bland potato crisps... There are better dishes to sample.

Opera Kitchen: Cloudy Bay Fish Co.

Lower Concourse Level, Sydney Opera House
Bennelong Point, 2000

Hours: Evenings

Mains: $15-35 for most items.
Drinks: best purchased separately from the bar

Bay Vista (Brighton-Le-Sands)

Now my friend suggested this place to me... SUGAR HIGH!

Bay Vista is a dessert cafe located opposite the beach at Brighton le Sands in southern Sydney, just south of the Airport. If you're in the mood to share a sticky sweet dessert, then do what we did. For all other desserts... come here anyway!

That last picture sums it all up: the Canadian Crunch ($18). Three scoops of their soft ice cream, served with whipped cream, maple syrup, sliced banana, pecan nuts and choc honeycomb.

I have to say: very sickening sweet. For a sugar lover like me... even this pushed the limits of my sweet tolerance: the caramel fudge ice cream, whipped cream and maple syrup combined to form a cloyingly sticky delight. Unfortunately for my friend, her limit isn't as high.

Verdict: Definitely a location to enjoy the views whilst licking away at an ice cream cone. Or pop inside to share some waffles, dipped chocolate fruits, or some other form of guilty goodness. Prices may seem on the higher side, but you get your money's worth of 'fat' =P


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Bay Vista
83 The Grand Parade

Brighton-Le-Sands 2216

Location: just directly off the Brighton beach, with plenty of 1hr street parking. If you don't mind walking 2+ blocks, then plenty of untimed residential parking within 5-10mins of the shopping sector and beach.

Hours:

Pricing: $8-25, with the majority of decent goodies hovering at $15+.
Portion size: hard pressed to finish one alone - a 'must-share' place.

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/70/750222/restaurant/St-George/Bay-Vista-Sydney"><img alt="Bay Vista on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/750222/biglink.gif" style="border:none;padding:0px;width:200px;height:146px" /></a>

The Grounds of Alexandria (Alexandria)

Another day, another outing. Although I didn't get to visit the Grounds last time, I had a brilliant chance to go today - and made full use of it =)

Finding parking isn't easy, and we walked the long way around the block to get to the Building-7A entrance... but we found our way in the end. And what a sight greeted us: a relaxing shaded garden, a chook shed, organic veggie patch, with a delightful shopfront! In 30 degree heat... any shade was a delight. Being seated required a five minute wait, but into a cool shady interior.

The menu was quite interesting and varied, and pricing was quite reasonable too. Our decision: the chicken confit, and the lamb salad. However, definitely there were other things to select... it wasn't easy.

Verdict: Hmmm... mixed reaction. I loved the chicken confit, with a succulent chicken maryland tenderly cooked, and presume it was grain fed too, judging by its yellow hue. However, it was quite salty - which I liked, my friend didn't. The lamb salad, however, left a little to be desired - there is quite a bit of meat, which is good - but we didn't like the texture (rather lumpy). But I can't quite fault the dish - done reasonably.

Service was attentive, no complaints at all. Definitely a place I would revisit, but try other selections instead.

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The Grounds of Alexandria
Building 7A, 2 Huntley St
Alexandria 2015

How to get there: Huntley St, just near the Bourke Rd intersection. Off-street parking is hard to find, otherwise politely park in the proper guest spots on 4 Huntley St. Entrance is on Huntley St, close to the Bourke Rd intersection. Or... walk the long way behind Building 7B, 7C and 7D.

Hours:
Open daily 8am - 4pm.
Sundays 8am - 3pm.

Pricing: $$
Mains between $12-20.
Specialty and organic drinks available for $$.

Bread & Circus (Alexandria)

My Supplementary exams are over! Finally!

I was forced to re-sit this Clinical exam as a formality - for a low mark acquired back in March this year, when I was (rather) untrained and unpracticed. In any case, I made it through, and now I can relax!

*ear to ear grin*

So what to do with myself? For this first day out (for the rest of my life, as an Optometrist instead of a student), I met up with a friend, enjoying what little time I have in Sydney (before a Europe trip, then starting a job in Queensland in 2013).

Getting back to what's important in this posting: the food! So it was about 2pm when we started feeling peckish, and we were around Ikea Tempe... so why not a short hope over to the Cafe district over in Alexandria? We were considering Grounds of Alexandria, but they close at 3pm on Saturdays - a bit rushed. Next on the list: Bread & Circus.

This organic cafe is tucked inside the open warehouse at 21 Fountain St, behind Don Campo's coffee at the front. We managed to get here just in time, placing our order shortly before 3pm. Our waitress told us they were out on quite a number of items... so I'm not surprised that they chose to wrap things up early by 3, instead of their usual 4pm closing time.

Despite having a number of items crossed out, we still liked what we saw on the menu... and the choice wasn't that easy, to be honest. Eventually, we decided on the following:

Smoked Turkey with Agave Blue Cheese dip (Sandwich box, $15). Or, as my friend called it - a deconstructed sandwich.

For the Asians (and non-Asians) out there who have tried Stinky Tofu, you should agree with the old saying "there are 2 types of people in this world: those who love the stink, and those who don't". Applies equally to the Blue cheese in my opinion: it stinks. And I had a cheese platter last night (with Blue cheese), so that didn't make things any better.

Next: the Smoked chicken with Dijon-chive-yoghurt dip ($15, Sandwich box) - much the same as the turkey above.

To wash things down, we tried the berry-banana smoothie, with kefir ($12). Now this seems costly for a glass of 'fruit-milkshake', but that's a premium you pay for decent organic food. And if you don't know what kefir is... look it up like I did. Something about healthy lumps of milk-like things... I'll let you form your own opinion about it. Mixed into a smoothie, it was rather nice overall.

Verdict overall? We loved this place. $42 for a lunch is rather pricey... but I write that off as a social expense.

Breaking it down - she loved the Turkey box, I loved the Chicken. For different reasons too - remember I mentioned 'stink' earlier? She likes Blue cheese - I don't. So that split us up... but likewise, I loved the tang of the Dijon mustard in my yoghurt dip... and she didn't. Oh - and the hint of chives just rounded things off perfectly for me... so it was almost ideal with one lunch box each. Turkey vs Chicken... each to their own - I liked the chicken breast, she didn't... turns out she loves turkey as well.

(Some things are just meant to be... =P)

And the smoothie: yummy. Hints of berry and banana, and the kefir didn't overpower the whole thing. Pricey though. Very pricey.

Definitely worth coming back here... after I save up a bit first. =P

Bread & Circus
21 Fountain St
Alexandria 2015

How to get there: Find street parking if you're lucky, otherwise try the Dan Murphy's carpark directly opposite. If you can't seem to find 21 Fountain, then look for the Don Campo's coffee, and follow it through to the back of the warehouse.

Hours: 8am-4pm daily, a new menu every day
Cost: Mains mostly less than $20. Enjoy the organic food =)

Le Pain Quotidien (Westfield Centrepoint)

So I've been off the blog for a bit: preparing and undertaking my final exams... I'm going to be an Optometrist!!

Well... soon: been recalled for further assessment regarding a placement from back in March. Stupid policy. Oh well... so next week I'll let you know how I went =)

In the meanwhile, I've let myself relax. After all the cramming and stressing and sleepness nights... (not the latter for me, thankfully), there was light at the end of the tunnel - a celebration! Congratulations to Britt and Michael - two wonderful optometrists (a few years above me) who tied the knot today =)
All the best, and blessings, to them both!

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So after the wedding, I caught up with a friend of mine - for an afternoon of catching up, relaxing, and simply while-ling the time away... navigating up and down George St in the Wynyard-Town Hall sector. Lunchtime came around, and she remembered this little place we walked by last time...

Tucked away on 4/F Westfield Sydney (or the skybridge via 2/F Myer), this quaint little cafe has a homely feel to it. Atmosphere - a lovely place to have a coffee or tea.

<Sorry for the lack of a location photo: today was more a catch-up rather than a food-exploration expedition - my fault>

Deciding to share was the easiest decision to make... but share what? We debated a bit, eventually opting for the Soup of the Day and a Tartine.

Soup of the Day: today's specials was either the Carrot (above) or the Cauliflower soup. In either a 'Cup' portion ($7.95) or 'Bowl' size ($9.95), we chose the latter to share - and you'd get about two small bowlfuls in the 'big' bowl above.

Although this place boasts about its bread... I have to admit I found nothing special about it. So it was a miss for that. Soup itself was rather nice - definitely would consider a second bowlful or more =P

Tartine - this is the Grilled Chicken and smoked Mozzarella with rocket and basil pesto. In order: ?,  ?,  'rabbit food' and 'tasty garnish...wish there was more'. It's hard to fault grilled chicken, but it didn't have any 'wow factor' about it - and either did the cheese. I need not say more about the salad, though the pesto dressing did redeem this dish. Presentation ... was better than the food. =(

Overall... it's an experience. Service was good, fast and attentive, nothing to fault there. For me, however, I miss :(

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Le Pain Quotidien (Westfield Centrepoint, Sydney CBD)
86-100 Market Street, Westfield Sydney, Level 4
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Location: via Myer Skybridge from 2/F, or the Pitt St side of Centrepoint, 4/F

Food: Mains up to $20. Desserts ~$7-10ish (didn't try - we picked up a few macarons from Laduree, then headed over to Hyde Park).

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/70/1564034/restaurant/CBD/Le-Pain-Quotidien-Sydney"><img alt="Le Pain Quotidien on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/1564034/minilink.gif" style="border:none;padding:0px;width:130px;height:36px" /></a>