Categories
Chinese

Pancake King 煎饼王 – Burwood NSW Restaurant Review

This was a good meal which was made slightly more difficult than it had to be due to language barrier and a terribly translated menu.

We had this handmade tofu brain (手工豆腐脑), $5.50 which was quite good. The only actual Tianjin style doufu nao I’ve had in Australia, reminiscent of early childhood memories that are only barely hanging on. It was the savoury variety with soy sauce, pickles, and shallot and even though it wasn’t what my partner grew up with (her people seem to have a sweeter gingery variety), both of us enjoyed it.

The Tianjin pancake, also known as pancake fruit 煎饼果子 ($8), depending on which version of the menu you look at, was not bad and quite inexpensive for what it was. It was no better or worse than other jianbing guozi in the local area. The deep fried dough stick/ fuel strips/ youtiao 油条 ($2.50 supplement) are of course a necessary addon to any jianbing guozi order, while we chose not to add heat the dog / hotdog / 热狗 for $2, both because I was already warm enough and the man explained it was just a sausage from Costco.

The the leek egg pie 韭菜鸡蛋馅饼 ($3) was not bad, though had less egg than I would have liked and also a less strong chive flavour than local competitors. The wrapper was also thicker than those available at for example Jinweigu in Campsie, so overall I would not get it again.

The pork pie 猪肉馅饼 ($3) was otherwise relatively good, here with the same filling to wrapper ratio as the leek egg pie, but more appropriately so given the saltier filling.

Overall
A reasonably good, well priced outlet for Tianjin style food. The banner translations are very silly and need to be updated to what’s present inside on the tables (helpfully enough only visible once you’ve already ordered your meal.)

Pancake King 煎饼王
Burwood Plaza, Shop 61/50 Railway Parade, Burwood NSW 2134

Categories
Bakery Filipino

Tita’s Cakes – Rooty Hill NSW Restaurant Review

My semi-itinerant working situation led me to Rooty Hill and Mt Druitt’s high density of Filipino restaurants and cafés. One such example is Tita’s Cakes, which offers a variety of Filipino-inspired cupcakes, cakes, and slices.

I originally intended to have only three cupcakes, however, I was talked into having four ($22) because they were “a lot cheaper”. Not having the adequate mental capacity after a harrowing PAC to analyse the cost difference, I agreed to have the 4 suggested by the woman working there, even though the overall saving ended up being only 50 cents each.

It was a true cupcake omakase experience, as I agreed to have all four that the lady (I assume she was too young to be the actual Tita) recommended. The Ube Cheese Macapuno was pretty good, in that its topping was relatively varied, with ube-flavoured cream frosting, cream cheese frosting, and a coconuttopping centre, though sadly everything under the topping was simply cake.

This theme carried through the Mango Royale (our favourite), and indeed every other cupcake on offer. Only the toppings added any excitement, whilst the rest of the cupcake was an unexciting and unspecial sponge.

This is the Buko Pandan. By this point, I don’t know why I kept bothering to cut them in half for photos.

The Ube Overload was similar to the Ube Cheese Macapuno, except that the topping was all just ube.

Overall thoughts
I have some regrets that I was talked into getting four cupcakes that were essentially the same with different food colouring under the top 20%, but it was a true omakase experience and one does not complain.

Tita’s Cakes
6/2 Rooty Hill Rd S, Rooty Hill NSW 2766, Australia

Categories
Bakery Chinese

QW HuaXing Bakery 華興包點 – Ashfield NSW Restaurant Review

I’m surprised I hadn’t already written a post about QW HuaXing Bakery 華興包點 , a place that I had visited on the recommendation of a colleague and PICU registrar of the month JL.

The place runs as a normal Chinese bakey, with a pick-your-own structure with tongs and trays, but with one exception. Unlike most Breadtop-style Chinese bakeries, QW HuaXing Bakery 華興包點 has quite a nice selection of dim sum snacks, ranging from egg tarts/蛋撻/dan ta to glutinous rice fried dumplings / 咸水角 / xian shui jiao , steamed buns, and other puff pastry delights.

I haven’t had anything out of the freezer yet (frozen shao mai, mostly), but everything I’ve had has been reasonably priced and of good quality, especially if you catch them when they’re still warm. Good for a quick bite.

QW HuaXing Bakery 華興包點
297 Liverpool Rd, Ashfield NSW 2131

Categories
Indonesian

D’Penyetz & D’Cendol – Burwood NSW Restaurant Review

We avoided the hustle and bustle of D’Penyetz & D’Cendol Burwood’s grand opening, only to land there a few months later during Ramadan, an equally peaky time.

The wait to order was a little bit longer than your average Asian restaurant on Burwood Road, but eventually we were greeted with the Iced Cendol Original ($5.90), a sweet, coconut milky drink which we did not love. The green wormy jellies on top, made of rice flour, had a mouthfeel and texture that was enjoyed even less than the drink itself. I am informed that this drink is quite popular in South East Asia, so perhaps it is just not for me and my partner’s East Asian-Australian palates.

We had the ayam penyet sambal mild ($12.90) and a more saucy version as well. Ever the lover of fried chicken, I can’t fault D’Penyetz’ rendition, though neither the fried nor saucy ones were as enjoyable as at ATL Ayam Tulang Lunak in Mascot. The side of fried tofu was fine, but I did not love the tempeh, which reminded me too much of natto, even though it did not taste as strong.

We rarely order fish out, but the ikan bakar aroma special (mild) ($25.90) caught our eye. It was moist and flavourful, with extra tanginess added by a liberal application of lemon wedge juice. Eating it felt like something my parents would approve of, ignoring for a moment that it was deep fried. This stood out to me more than the chicken, but was not reason enough for me to go back any time soon.

D’Penyetz & D’Cendol Burwood
183C Burwood Rd, Burwood NSW 2134
(02) 8526 0199

Categories
Thai

Holy Basil – Parramatta NSW Restaurant Review

I came here with work so I couldn’t really take the time to individually review each dish and write down and collect my thoughts. If I remember I will queue this post as an extra in the middle of the normal post cycle, as it really is quite low effort.

We basically had a work dinner at a local Western Sydney restaurant and ordered the banquet menu to absolve individuals of tyranny of choice.

The spring rolls were vegetarian and not bad.

The curry puffs, also vegetarian, were even better.

The Thai beef salad was quite nice – tangy and meaty.

The pork belly in Thai basil was good.

We had a vegetarian Pad Thai but had enough meat to go around from the other dishes that I did not miss the protein in the pad thai itself. I have no photos of it.

I did not fancy the grilled prawns and squid dish which I felt was not that flavourful unless paired with the difficult to administer sauces it came with.

Holy Basil Parramatta
Shop 5/330 Church St, Parramatta NSW 2150