Tag: good

Categories
Chinese

Like Noodle (多来面) – Hurstville NSW Chinese Restaurant Review

We had a really busy Wednesday recently. We kept trying to get lunch but unfortunately factors outside of our control meant that we weren’t able to, and our first meal of the day was at 5PM.

I had previously had Like Noodle at Wolli Creek, and enjoyed it. There’s a post somewhere on Zomato (which may get transferred here) where I made specific note of the gymnasium style interior design.

The Spicy Diced Pork Noodles ($13.80) was well priced and well portioned. The taste was good, but I put too much of the chilli in the noodle and wasn’t able to drink the soup. We also had this around the time when the break room was full of nursing colleagues and I felt pressured to eat quickly.

The pan fried pork buns (sheng jian bao – $11.80 for 6) were an abject disappointment. Not crispy at all, and the dough was not the right consistency. I only ate 2 of the 3 allocated to me. We didn’t finish this dish.

I think overall Like Noodle Hurstville is well priced, and a safe option for a cheap noodle lunch. I wouldn’t stray too far from the noodles however.

Don’t get the buns. 4/5

Like Noodle Hurstville (多来面)
251 Forest Rd, Hurstville NSW 2220
(02) 8068 6618

Categories
Japanese

Izakaya Goma – Maroubra NSW Restaurant Review

Izakaya Goma in Maroubra is one of my go-to restaurants for delivered sushi and Japanese food before a night shift. They have a good price to product ratio, and have yet to fail to hit the spot.

The Kaisen Chirashi Don ($19.80) was excellent. A good serving of all our favourite sea animals on top of top notch sushi rice. The salmon roe was yum.

The Wafu Mentaiko Cream Pasta ($14.80) tasted as you would expect and was priced well for what it was. I know I’ve definitely paid more for mentaiko pasta in the past.

Abura Soba

The Abura Soba $14.80 was delicious and made my colleagues jealous when reheated in the tea room microwave. Don’t be fooled like I was though, it already comes with more than enough Chashu – no need to add more!

Sushi Moriawase Shiro Goma

I rarely get assorted sushi packs but took a leap with the Sushi Moriawase Shiro Goma ($13.20) and was rewarded. The serves of fish were thick and generous, and even though I don’t normally like tamago I enjoyed this one.

Pork Katsu Curry

The Pork Katsu Curry ($17.80) was not memorable for me. My girlfriend enjoyed the potatoes.

I enjoy Izakaya Goma and can recommend for some quick and well priced Japanese food. It’s down the road from and perhaps overshadowed by Kokoroya, but ends up being a better value proposition., while making no sacrifices.

Izakaya Goma
693 Anzac Parade, Maroubra NSW 2035

Categories
Japanese

Sushi Rio – Haymarket NSW Restaurant Review

We went to Ho Jiak in Haymarket last night, and happened to see Sushi Rio next to it. The promise of $3.50 sushi drew us in and made us unfaithful to Sushi Hotaru.

Overall Sushi Rio was great. I’m not going to do a detailed review of 14 different items so I will instead review the vibe. It was a very cosy restaurant with a small train around a central sushi preparation area. There was only one sushi chef, who was very responsive to us and the 3 other parties who were dining at the same time. It felt very intimate, like in Japan, to have the one sushi chef catering to us individually.

The fish was fresh and the servings were generous. There was definitely more fish per piece of nigiri than at Sushi Hotaru and at numerous other similarly priced restaurants, and the price was very good for what you get. The two hand rolls we got were both great, and of good size and value too.

All of the nigiri and sushi we had we enjoyed. We also had the kingfish and salmon mixed sashimi (not pictured) which was good too. While the quality of fish was good, the range was slightly limited. It was odd to have kingfish, scallop and oyster and not have tuna, so I suspect that they may have just run out for the day.

The ikura gunkan was saltier and less creamy than I would have hoped. Still, there was a very generous quantity of roe for the $3.50 price for a plate of 2. The taste was probably a function of their supplier rather than a fault with the restaurant themselves.

Sushi Rio did not have uni (sea urchin), however this is commonly missed on Sydney sushi menus.

The green tea is a must have, and if you’re in the mood for alcohol BYO is only $2 per person. This is a sharp contrast to Ho Jiak next door, where BYO is $10 per bottle.

Overall comment: I really like Sushi Rio. It feels like the staff really care about their restaurant, and it comes across in their service and their food. The food is well priced and high quality, and there are a number of other lunch options (for example aburi salmon don, chirashi don) for under $ 10 which would be great if you work in the CBD. I would strongly recommend Sushi Rio to anyone looking for a sushi train in the Sydney CBD.

Sushi Rio
90 Hay St, Haymarket NSW 2000
0411 047 996

Categories
Asian Fusion Café Japanese

Meet Mica – Surry Hills NSW Restaurant Review

I think I have a type. Meet Mica is another Asian-fusion cafe in Surry Hills.

The Breakie. Rice. Bowl ($18) was extra good. Don’t let the name fool you though, it’s more of a congee than a normal bowl of rice. The wetness was very welcome, and in fact I think it could have done with a bit more soup. The Chashu melted easily in the mouth. The onsen egg was perfect, and the mushrooms added an extra dimension to the dish. Overall a legitimate 10/10 dish which I would recommend to everyone.

The Teriyaki Dog Roll ($12) was not bad. A lot of okonomyaki-style toppings and an egg omlette over an Arabiki hot dog sausage. The bread to filling ratio was reasonably good, however still weighted a bit heavily on the bread side. The excess bread was used to mop up the matcha from the dessert dish.

The Matcha. Lava. Toast ($20) is perhaps iconic to this cafe, and indeed iconic to the brunch section of Zomato where it holds the lofty position of thumbnail of a number of recommendation lists. The wet matcha lava is certainly aesthetically dramatic (you can probably find a video online), however in our opinion falls short on the taste component. The bread and matcha itself was somewhat bitter, not at all sweet. I can only describe the texture of the matcha sauce as dry, despite it being reasonably wet. The dish was saved by the condensed milk, gelato and especially fruit, which added a crisp wetness to an otherwise arid dessert.

Meet Mica Hot Chocolate

The sunrise ($8) was yum but not much fluid with a lot of ice for the price. The Hojicha soy latte and hot chocolate were also good.

I would come back to Meet Mica and eat the Breakie Rice Bowl again. The other two I would skip.

Thanks for listening to my TED talk.

Meet Mica
Shop 5/492-500 Elizabeth St, Surry Hills NSW 2010
(02) 8018 7370

Categories
Asian Fusion Café Japanese

101kissa – Chippendale, NSW Restaurant Review

This is a story about a lobster roll and a spicy crab omelette in an inner-West restaurant with chairs for smaller people than myself but an adequately sized booth bench to compensate.

Peg will tell you that I often have trouble deciding where to go for breakfast, or lunch, or dinner. The choice for breakfast this time around was between 101kissa and some other Asian inspired brunch place in Chippendale which I obviously can’t tell you about because I didn’t go. What ultimately won me over was 101kissa’s promise of a lobster roll, which wasn’t on the menu but which was advertised on their Facebook page. After having been baited for so long by Bare Witness whose lobster roll disappeared from their menu just as I wanted to eat it, I knew I had to try.

The Lobster Roll ($12) ended up being a bit of a disappointment. The bread was soft but there was just too much of it. The egg was warm and fluffy and delicious, but the actual lobster component was cold and it was hard to distinguish any presence of lobser by taste or texture. It felt to me like it was just cold sauce with some solid bits, and I had to take their word for it that it was lobster.

The spicy crab omelette was a real treat. Not content with serving just a delicious, fresh soft shell crab, they have also added a generous amount of blue swimmer crab meat to the mix. The egg was again fantastic, the brocollini fresh, and the nori and croissant worked together to provide a stable background. I was glad that the dish was not oversauced, which was a problem I have come across a few times when having seafood at brunch. Overall it was just perfect.

A special mention needs to go to this matcha soy latte. While I didn’t expect it to come iced, I’m glad it did. They actually frothed it and iced it at the same time, which is not something you see frequently. The flavours of the matcha mixed up with soy were very complex and need to be tried to be understood. I got it without sugar but I’m sure a little touch wouldn’t ruin it if you need it. The dual paper straws were a nice touch as paper straws don’t always last long enough to finish the drink.

The service and overall vibe of the place was also very good. The one guy in charge called all his customers ‘bro’ and creater a very friendly, chilled-out environment.

Would I recommend 101kissa to a friend or colleague? Definitely. I’m recommending it to myself. I want to go back as soon as possible.

101kissa
94a Abercrombie St, Chippendale NSW 2008
0412 246 338