The contents of this blog are matters of opinion formed over one more visits. There has been some artistry applied and metaphors and similes should not necessarily be taken literally. All meals are independently paid for - the author has no conflicts of interest to disclose.
Wow! So yummy! I’ve been a banh mi fanatic ever since I was a young child living in Burwood. My grandparents would occasionally treat me to some pork roll on the way home from school, from the Vietnamese bakery across the road from the park.
Vina Bakehouse in Royal Randwick brings me back to memories of those early banh mi days, as well as memories of further banh mi days from Wentworthville mall.
The bread is soft rather than crunchy, which I prefer as it doesn’t cut your mouth. The fillings are standard and the quantity of butter and pate is generous. The flavours come together perfectly to make an exemplary pork roll.
What’s not generous however is the price, and at $7.50 for a standard pork roll this is one of the most expensive banh mi I’ve ever had, especially from a legit Vietnamese bakery.
I would not hesitate to recommend Vina Bakehouse and I think it is likely that it will become a common haunt for me.
Vina BakehouseRandwick Royal Randwick Shopping Centre, 73 Belmore Rd, Randwick NSW 2031 (02) 9399 6760
So fresh! So clean! After having an awful time the previous week at No.1 Malatang in Kingsford, we went just 190 metres up the road to Yang Guo Fu Malatang. The difference was immense.
Malatang, for the uninitiated, is basically a form of hot pot where you choose your own raw ingredients, pay for it by weight, and have them boiled for you in a soupy and generally spicy broth. There are a number of vegetables, meats (lamb, beef, chicken, pork), tofu, mushrooms, quail eggs, and seafood on offer, so it’s quite easy to build yourself a bowl that suits your own preference.
We’ve had malatang from Yang Guo Fu in Hurstville, Burwood and Eastwood before and have generally enjoyed it. The ingredients have always been fresh, the soup tasty, and we’ve kind of made their our go-to. Keeping in mind the general good quality of YGF MLT, their Kingsford location was even better.
Yang Guo Fu in Kingsford is a larger location than its more suburban counterparts. There was ample distance between tables, and it didn’t feel as claustrophobic as some of those other restaurants do.
The ingredients were very fresh, even as we were making some of the last orders for the night. We also got the option of several different broths, which isn’t available at some of the smaller YGF Malatang stores. Unlike some of the other stores, the responsibility of saucing our meals was put on ourselves via a self sauce station. This was nerve-wracking (what if I put in the wrong ratio of ingredients!) but ultimately paid off.
A special mention needs to go to theses housemade meatballs. I haven’t seen these at any of their other stores. Their texture and taste are quite good, and I would recommend you try them. They also had ham hock, also a good and rare feature.
One weakness of Yang Guo Fu Kingsford is that they are connected to a bubble tea shop called Hey Fresh, which I have briefly written about before. Hey Fresh tends to underperform, but the restaurant staff voiced no objections to us bringing in Beautea from down the road.
I would definitely recommend Yang Guo Fu Malatang Kingsford for any malatang or hot pot lovers. They really elevate the standard.
Yang Guo Fu Ma La Tang Kingsford 520/522, Anzac Parade, Kingsford, NSW +61401035858
Formerly a collection of food trucks and now a real life restaurant, Nighthawk Diner in Alexandria delivers a collection of exciting pa-American flavours. This review will be for delivery via DoorDash, given our attempts to minimise outside contact during the COVID-19 respiratory pandemic.
Nighthawk Diner Nachos
The Loaded Nighthawk Nachos ($12) were fresh and delicious. We thought the tortilla chips were crispy and maintained good structure throughout the meal. The cheese and salsas were tasty but not too tasty. Can recommend.
Nighthawk Diner Beef Taco
The Slow cooked Beef Brisket Taco ($8.50) was absolutely brilliant. The fresh tortilla added a really premium component to the meal, and the mixture of vegetables, beef, and chilli and red pepper salsa was optimal. Can really recommend this one.
Miami Cuban Sandwich
I thought that the Miami Cuban Sandwich ($18) with citrus pork, bacon, pickles, American cheese and chipotle mayo was far too heavy and salty. The sweetness of the hoagie roll and the saltiness of the fillings worked well in harmony but every bite was so filled with salt and oil that it was ultimately ruined for me. I understand that salt and oil in excess is a hallmark of American food but even then I don’t think this was objectively good.
Ultimately I think Nighthawk Diner has a diverse menu of pan-American dishes. I would not hesitate to order here again. 4 taco cats out of 5 taco cats.
3 Ronin is a new Asian-fusion cafe in Spice Alley (Central Park Sydney) with a limited but exciting menu.
The Quinoa & Rice Congee with Poached Salmon, Slow Egg, Shallots & Radish was the highlight of the meal. It was a successful exploration of umami, combining both Winter and Spring themes. We really felt like the congee warmed us up from the inside out, while the coriander and cripsy sour radish provided a fresh Spring feel to it. The salmon reminded us of thick cut, raw smoked salmon that was lightly poached in the warm congee soup, and provided a well balanced protein load for the rest of the dish. The “slow egg” was a highlight of the dish, and something I had never experienced before. The egg yolk was not cooked, but firm and didn’t spill. Absolutely perfect.
I’ve been off baos ever since I had my first baos from a food truck in New Zealand last year, a very bad collection of oversauced disasters. The Waygu Bao ($17.50) was however very good. The brisket was nicely cooked too hard and not to raw. The meaty flavours mixed well with the pickled cabbage and aioli. An overall hit.
This cheesecake style thing was just fine.
Overall i can recommend 3 ronin. I’m a sucker for Asian fusion brunch and the congee is definitely worth a try.
My partner has been trying to get me to go to Kurtosh for a good six months. I was never keen as I’ve had a lot of baked goods in my day, but one day we found ourselves at Kurtosh after we travelled to Albee’s Kitchen only to find it closed.
Kurtosh’s slab cakes are cut from the slab and sold by weight, which is handy because it means you can get a few small pieces of different cakes to try at any time. These were reasonably good but not memorable enough for me to even remember what they were. I think the white one was tiramisu.
The smashed potato roll ($3.80) was good.
One thing that was memorable about Kurtosh was the extra-slow extra-poor service. There were two people working in the store that day, and I think we definitely got the less capable one (although it may have just been an off day for her). It felt pretty unusual being asked to repeat our order 3 times while we were the only people being served.
I think that if you work in Randwick you will eventually find your way to Kurtosh at some point. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but if you’ve just done a 12.5 hour night and the person who’s serving you has too it has the potential to get pretty dicey.
Kürtősh Randwick 20B/20C St Pauls St, Randwick NSW 2031 (02) 9314 5353
