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.
I saw on the news that Toi Shan in Bendigo has closed its doors two days ago, ending its streak as the longest-running Chinese restaurant in Australia after 133 years, and I did not feel a single shred of sadness. Reading through the praise online from individuals as well as outlets like Fairfax’s Good Food really makes me doubt these people have actually eaten there, or if they’ve ever eaten Chinese food anywhere else.
I’m not generally in the habit of ragging on places I went to 9 years ago, but I remember the visit distinctly, have photographic evidence to back me up, and I figure that now that they’re closed forever it’s fair game.
I’m pretty sure we had the Shandong chicken, which doesn’t exist on the menu at the current time, and so may have been the Northern Chicken instead. It arrived served on a sheet of aluminium foil (why?) and looked nothing like what we expected. In a move of 2016 humour, we even took a photo comparing it to a photo of Shandong chicken from Google Images.
I don’t have a good recollection of the flavours but judging by the visual appearance, my general vibe of the memory of the meal, as well as a silly selfie of my then-girlfriend (now-wife) and myself making sad faces in the restaurant I can safely say it is was not the best.
I don’t think their closure is a great loss to the culinary arts.
This has been an unauthorised eulogy for:
Toi ShanBendigo 65/67 Mitchell St, Bendigo VIC 3550
This is not our normal behaviour, but we found ourselves at a formal Chinese seafood restaurant for dinner, just the two of us. We ordered a number of classics, at least one of which our parents would’ve been proud of.
The braiseds scallops with sugar beans and funguses with XO sauce ($38.80) were a total Chinese parent order. Super responsible, reasonably healthy, and a bit expensive. Clean feeling and delicious.
You tiao / fried dough cruller does not fit with the dinner meal thematically, but were a craving. They were fine, not mindblowing as they might have been straight out of the deep fryer on the side of the road.
We’ve been looking for zhenjiang pork ribs ever since our favourite Parramatta Chinese restaurant closed down in 2021 (RIP Taste Gallery), and Golden Oceans’ Pork Spare Ribs with Black Vinegar Sauce ($28.80) finally, finally hit the mark. I’m so glad we came here and I got to eat this again.
I like a good Shan Dong Chicken ($27.80), and though this one was a bit wet and a bit saltier than I like, it was still quite good. I imagine it would’ve been good with rice, but the you tiao were carb enough to compensate for the overflavour.
Overall I enjoyed. Take your family here.
Golden Oceans Chinese Seafood Restaurant (文興海鲜酒楼) 461 King Georges Rd, Beverly Hills NSW 2209 (02) 9580 0918
My visit to Noodle & Dumplings Chain in Kingsford wasn’t the worst meal I’ve had in Kingsford (that honour would go to Chinese Dumpling and Noodle Restaurant, located next door), but also very far from the best.
Kingsford’s reputation for good, value-for-money Chinese food stems from its position as one of Sydney’s few “college towns”, with a population consisting largely of Chinese international students as well as price-conscious local students. It is unfortunate, therefore, that Noodle & Dumpling Chain did not live up to the hype set by its neighbours.
The Shengjian Bao (6 for $9.80) were not bad. While I would rate them below other restaurants both near and far in terms of their soup content, they were one of the most passable dishes of the meal.
The Xiao Long Bao (8 for $10.80) were also okay, though really nothing special. I think what you’re really paying for here is not having to break out the steamer at home and steam your own very similar Asian-grocery bought frozen XLBs. Quite cheap, but otherwise nothing to write home about.
I don’t think anyone who orders Shandong Chicken expects to get this brought to their table. An easy recommendation to avoid.
The Battered Egg Combination Rice Noodle ($14.80) is large and well priced, though I wasn’t a fan of the flavours, and thought that it relied too heavily on seafood extender over meat.
COMMENTS I wasn’t impressed by Noodle & Dumplings Chain, though looking at the prices I wonder how much of that is due to the sheer volume and quality of Chinese food I’ve been lucky enough to eat since my uni days. While I wouldn’t come back, I could see how Noodle & Dumplings Chain would be a reasonable place to eat for a struggling uni student.
Sun Ming’s been around in Parramatta for as long as I can remember, with my parents frequently buying shāo kǎo (烧烤) from this and nearby barbecue restaurants throughout my childhood. Though frequenting the BBQ counter, I had never been further inside the restaurant until now.
Complimentary soup was served with our meal. It was light and a bit sweet with a bit of pork bone, similar to many entree soups at larger Cantonese restaurants. I certainly wasn’t expecting this from a neighbourhood BBQ restaurant at 3PM in the afternoon, but it was a nice surprise.
This chicken congee was warm and delicious, with light flavours of chicken and ginger, and crispy fried wonton bits on top. I feel like I could drink one of Sung Ming’s congees every day – they just feel so wholesome.
While it’s not strictly against the law to have congee without Fried dough sticks – Yóu tiáo (油条 – $3.70), it’s definitely unwise to forego them if available. Sun Ming’s dough sticks are freshly fried, warm throughout, and crunchy on the outside with a softer inside, perfect for dipping into congee. Whilst nothing out of the ordinary, these sticks are special just for being ordinary – a perfect rendition of what they are meant to be.
I had my first taste of Fujian (Hokkein) Fried Rice as a child in the early 2000s, in a small Chinese diner in Burwood called Canton Noodle House. Since then, I have travelled the world trying Fujian Fried Rices from all over Sydney and Melbourne. Some have been better, many have been worse, and out of all of these Sun Ming’s ranks within the top tier. The fried rice component of the Fried Rice Fukkien Style ($17.80), as it is known at Sun Ming, is less fried than its counterparts across Sydney, more resembling a normal rice that has been tossed in oil. The size of the toppings is greater than what I’ve experienced elsewhere, with both vegetables and seafood coming in larger chunks rather than minestrone-sized pieces – a point of differentiation rather than a point of advantage or disadvantage. The toppings themselves were warm and full of umami flavours – not too heavily salted but salted just right to add flavour to the rice, and of adequate quantity that no grain of rice was left untopped and boring.
The beef brisket in hot pot ($18.80) was exactly as stated on the label. It is a more strongly flavoured dish, with a huge amount of nice, fatty beef brisket and wombok cabbage in a hot pot. It’s a bit too salty to eat on its own, but just perfect with rice, which is how it is designed to be eaten. I liked this very much – I only wish that there could’ve been an option to mix beef brisket and tofu within the same hot pot.
I’ve recently discovered that most BBQ meats from Chinese BBQ shops aren’t actually made on site, due to the significant difficulties in small spaces and therefore the significant advantages of economies of scale when it comes to roasting entire ducks and huge slabs of pigs. Whilst I can’t confirm where Sun Ming Parramatta gets their roast duck from, (or perhaps they actually do do it in house), I can confirm that it is very delicious, plump, juicy, and not too salty.
Char siu is char siu. There is generally a good mix of fatty and lean pieces.
I’ve always wondered what these sausages were, and it took the help of my girlfriend speaking in Cantonese to actually order a little bit to try. Though I still don’t know what they’re called (the English-speaking internet is divided on this topic – perhaps siu cheong), I can describe them for you in reasonably good detail. They are a thick sausage with a soft internal structure and a sweetness similar to that of cha siu or your standard dried lap cheong. The thickness and softness however give it much more presence in your mouth than just chewing a twiggy-stick-esque lap cheong, and while I enjoyed it by itself I think it would also be great with rice.
UPDATE MARCH 2023 We went back. Of course we did.
The combination and bean curd in hot pot ($22) hit every single mark it was meant to, with a generous serving size, jam packed with fried soft tofu, beef, chicken, some prawns, vegetables, and roast pork belly. This is a universal classic dish that the restaurant pulled off with no problem.
I have been searching for a good Sang Tung Chicken (Shandong Chicken – $20) for what feels like many years now, and none has come as close to what I remember and enjoy as Sun Ming Parramatta’s. This chicken was crispy skinned on the outside whilst remaining moist on the inside, with a deliciously sour, sweet, and savoury sauce and topping of chillis, garlic and shallots. This was exactly what I was looking for.
The BBQ Pork and Roast Pork with Rice ($16) was sadly not as good at the end of the day as when we usually get takeaway from them, with only a limited portion of roast pork still available by around 8PM. I also didn’t love the char siu this time around, which I found to be more fatty but also with a bit of a porky aftertaste – not as good as what they usually have on offer.
UPDATE MAY 2023
Between stroke calls at the end of the day when essentially all other nearby restaurants had closed their kitchens I inhaled this Roast Pork and Soy Chicken with Noodles ($16), which wasn’t particularly spectacular (especially the noodle soup, I think rice might be a better option), but came with this excellent complimentary soup of the day.
This soup of the day, free, was unlike any other I’d ever had. Though the day was generally bad for me (7 stroke calls in a 24-hour period), the soup of the day was good, with a nice tomatoey and slightly spicy flavour. I liked it much more than the noodle soup that I actually paid for.
UPDATE, in retrospect, May 2021
I just found this photo from a delivery order 3 years ago on my computer. (writing now in October 2024). It’s a photo of Baked New Zealand Rice ($20), although that pricing is probably historical and might not be accurate any more due to rampant inflation since peak COVID-19 times. The rice, as I remember was delicious. Super cheesy and creamy, lots of umami flavour from the seafood and ham, and overall a terribly unhealthy delight. Maximal HK-Portuguese fusion.
VERDICT Sun Ming BBQ in Parramatta is a centre of excellence for authentic, well-priced Chinese food in the heart of Parramatta. They are my pick for Cantonese/Hong Kong BBQ meats over the nearby Mr Ping’s, which in my opinion is not as nice and also a bit more pricey. Recommend.
Sun Ming BBQParramatta 145-149 Church St, Parramatta NSW 2150 (02) 9689 2178
It pains me to not be able to write a proper review for The New Dong Dong Noodles in Kingsford, it having been almost a year since I last had their food.
The overall theme for this restaurant was good quality, authentic Chinese food at good prices. I will provide you with some photos of takeaway meals but unfortunately not much commentary.
I’m a big fan of Hokkein fried rice ($17.80), and The New Dong Dong does it well.
The brisket in the beef brisket and dumpling dried egg noodle soup ($16.50) was plentiful and authentic, though I was not a fan of the egg noodle’s flavour themselves.
I think this Shandong (Shan Tung) chicken ($19.80) was OK, though I have had both better and worse.
I’ve never been able to keep my girlfriend away from salt and pepper pork chops ($18) and The New Dong Dong Noodles’ were no exception.
The beef with egg gravy and fried rice ($16.30) was good with good flavours, though I think the balance would’ve been better with just a little bit more topping or just a little bit less rice.
CONCLUSIONS Overall, very good and very satisfying place to order Chinese food from in the Eastern Suburbs.
