Category: Cities

This is a category for cities. All about food have reviewed restaurants in cities like Sydney, Singapore, Bali Island, Surabaya, and Bandung.

Zen Japanese Restaurant and Sushi Bar

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Unfortunately, Zen Japanese Restaurant has closed its doors.

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Rating:

6.5 / 10

Taste: 6.5/10

Price: $13 – $29

Place: 7/10

Review:

We decided to try this restaurant because we’ve always been impressed with its layout when we passed by. Zen Japanese restaurant looked very sophisticated, yet at a glance, the price was modest.

Our first menu of the day was supposed (at least that’s what I remembered my friend ordering) to be Nabeyaki Udon. However, when the dish arrived, it didn’t look like the usual nabeyaki udon. It looked kinda like a beef soup with Udon and fully-boiled half an egg.

Moving on, there was also Tempura Udon. This time, it looked like the usual tempura udon that we find anywhere, clear soup udon with four pieces of Tempura. Nevertheless, it was an ok dish.

Chirashi Don was definitely the better dish of the day. It looked jam-packed with nice goodies. The serving of the slices was also quite generous. Strangely, the slices looked fresher than the main dish of the day.

There’s no denying that Sashimi & Sushi Boat was both massive and incredibly eye-catching. They were the usual assortments of Salmon, Kingfish, Tuna Sashimi, Sushi and Rolls. However, taste wise, I think the Chirashi outdid it.

The final verdict: The good thing about this place is its layout and interior design. It is not your average under $20 restaurant. The presentation of the dishes was also nice. However, in terms of taste, unfortunately it’s just an average Japanese restaurant.

Did you know?

Zen is located at the heart of Randwick’s infamous The Spot. There’s a cinema that’s much loved by the students because of its price called Ritz. It was an art deco cinema, built in 1937, and is considered one of Sydney’s heritage buildings (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spot,_New_South_Wales).

Next to Zen there’s a beautiful cake shop called The Sweet Spots. You should try their Vanilla Slice and Raspberry Mousse. Yummy!

Details:

20 Perouse Road, Randwick, NSW 2031

(02) 9326 3855

Aug 14, 2011
Corner 75

Rating:

7 / 10

Taste: 7/10

Price: $20 – $25 main dish

Place: 7/10

Review:

Our review this week was based on a recommendation from our reader. It was a Hungarian restaurant, named Corner 75. The restaurant looks like a traditional Central European restaurant, with its table cloth and overabundance wall decors.

We ordered two servings of Langos and Lecho (Lecso) Frankfurter. The Langos was massive and it was accompanied by garlic oil. Towards the end of consuming it, we remembered that we didn’t get the sour cream and should’ve ordered one. However, if the langos was crispier it would’ve been perfect. For the frankfurter, we were only served two pieces with a lot of lecho salsa.

For the next three, I couldn’t really give you the whole picture since I only tried a small portion of it. They were Veal Brassoi, Veal Fillet with ‘Lecho Salsa’, and Fishpaprikash. Brassoi was the nicer option of them three, and the lecho in veal fillet tasted exactly like the frankfurter starter.

The next two dishes could easily be shared by four people due to their sheer size. First, it was Crispy Roast Duckling with the additional Cherry Sauce. It was half a duck with two scoops of mashed potato and red cabbage. The duck was crispy and very tender. The sauce complemented the savoury taste of the dish. It was slightly too sweet.

The one I ordered was Veal Knuckle. It was one gigantic knuckle of veal. It has the same sides as the duck, but the veal had a different seasoning. Despite of the size, it was actually thoroughly seasoned and incredibly tender. If I were given only a fork, I could easily rip the meat off easily without the help of a knife. You might consider sharing this dish, since I think only a few people can actually finish this on his/her own.

We then moved on to dessert. Our first option was Cherry Strudel. The strudel was very well-presented. It looked appetising and the pastry was crispy. The second one was Gundel Pancake, two walnut-filled crepes with chocolate sauce. The sauce was packed with booze, but the crepes were pretty standard.

The final verdict: Their duck and veal knuckle were the best dishes of the day and I strongly recommend those two. They were incredibly yummy and big. However, I was pretty content with the rest of the dishes. My Hungarian friend pointed out that those two are not ‘Authentic’ Hungarian. The brassoi and lecho were as close as you can get from the ‘real Hungarian cuisine.

Did you know?

This is the second Hungarian restaurant that I reviewed. Both presented ‘home-cooked’ style dishes and had pretty good standards. However, there was an authentic dish missing from this restaurant, Stuffed Cabbage.

There are a lot of exotic restaurants to try in Randwick, from Indonesian to Nepalese. There is one two-hat restaurant in the suburb.

Details:

75 Frenchmans Road, Randwick, NSW 2031

(02) 9399 5712

http://www.corner75.com.au/ (this website is no longer operational)

Aug 4, 2011
Bondi Pizza Bar and Grill

Rating:

7 / 10

Taste: 7/10

Price: $24 per pizza

Place: 8/10

Review:

At first, we didn’t have much confidence for this place since some restaurants have resided here and none succeed. However, there was a beacon of hope when I saw that the restaurants were actually almost full of patrons. As an added bonus, we happened to know the waitress, thus she took care of us beautifully. The restaurant itself was quite family-friendly and spacious.

Without further ado, our first dish of the day was Trio of Dips (Hommus, Eggplants Salsa, and Beetroot). Everyone loved the bread. It was in nice cuts, slightly crunchy. I personally liked the beetroot between the three dips. Shortly after, our second dish arrived, Stuffed Grilled Mushrooms. It was stuffed with Goat cheese and coated with parmesan and balsamic glaze. The issue with this dish was, there was only ONE mushroom. Other than that, the combination of flavours was really nice on this one.

Our salad for the day was Rocket, Pear & Parmesan Salad. Although I’m not a big salad fans, rocket is one of the few vegetables I consider nice. The combination of the three was refreshingly nice. Chilli Prawn Linguini was the only ‘average’ dish of the night. There was hardly anything to remember on the dish.

For the pizzas, we ordered Grilled Atlantic Salmon and Chargrilled Eye Fillet Steak. I assure you, this is not your average Domino’s Pizza. The pizza base was nice and there was an abundance of toppings. I like the steak one better because of the nicely grilled red meat.

Since we enjoyed a decent dinner, we decided to sit around a little longer for the desserts. For the first one, we aimed high and ordered Warm Belgian Waffles, knowing that across the restaurant was chocolate place famous for its waffles. It looked pretty appetising, but the waffle just fell short of my liking. The chocolate was quite good tho. The second one was Our Famous Chocolate Brownie Oven-baked Swirls (or Mini Swirls). It came in three flavours, but we chose banana swirls. It came with vanilla ice cream and melted chocolate. These bite-sized swirls were the best dish of the night.

The final verdict: Except for the pasta, everything else seemed to be alright. The restaurant was reasonably priced – considering it’s in one of the nicest malls in Sydney. I also recommend you to try the mini swirls.

Did you know?

Up till now, I’ve written four out of the five restaurants located on this floor at Westfield Bondi Junction.

Location:

Shop 6009 Level 6, Westfield Centre, Bondi Junction, NSW 2022

Website:

www.bondipizza.com.au

Jul 19, 2011
Jordons Seafood Restaurant

Update: Jordons Seafood restaurant is now closed

Rating:

7 / 10

Taste: 7/10

Price: $40 per person

Place: 9/10

Review:

As you might already know, Darling Harbour was the best to be when it comes to enjoying the night. Jordon’s Seafood Restaurant is located at the heart of it and right on the corner with 270^o view of the harbour.

We went thru the aquatic-themed menu and we saw vast assortments of dishes. If you’re stuck there and you don’t like seafood (why do u come in the first place?), you can still get steak or even vegetarian stuff. But today, the review will be all about seafood and we were interested in the items specially highlighted in a box.

Our starter was a simple Mixed Leaf (with Persian fetta, marinated olives, roasted tomato and capsicum). It was a nice and colourful salad.

For our first share plate, we ordered Sushi / Sashimi Combination (main size). When the platter arrived, we were pleased with how it was presented. On the plate there were 10 assorted sushi, 9 sashimi slices, seaweed and something yummy (that brown thing on the left corner of the plate). Upon our tasting, I discovered that the sashimi wasn’t as fresh as I’d like them to be (but don’t worry, they’re still edible).

Our second platter of the day was Jordon’s Deluxe Seafood Platter (for two). We were quite shocked with the size of the dish and thankful that we did not order the bigger one. It was a massive two-tiered platter full of seafood. We were advised to finish the top tier first since they were the ‘hot’ dishes.

We had a bowl of mussels, then a couple of marinated Balmain bugs laid on a big square of nori. Next to the bugs were some cooked oysters. We also got a whole lobster. In the middle of it were 4 sticks of deep fried seafood with fish and chips on the bottom. The lobster and the bugs were cooked perfectly. You could rip the meat off the shell without too much effort, but the mussels weren’t the best I’ve ever tasted. And that’s only for the first tier.

For the second tier, we have an assortment of cold dishes. You wouldn’t miss a couple of Blue Swimmer crabs sitting in the corner. Then there were four fresh oysters and some chilled prawns. On the other corner, there was a bowl of Singaporean Chilli crab with some fresh fruits. Lastly there was a bowl of marinated squid and mussels with cocktail and tartare sauces.

For most part, they were yummy. There was a strange note on the Singaporean Chilli Crab. I have never tried them cold and unfortunately I didn’t like it. If only the crab was freshly cooked then that tower would be great.

The final verdict: Jordon’s is the kind of restaurant that has much better settings and ambience than the food itself. It’s quite pricey if you compared the price per its taste, but if you add the scenery factor, then it kind of made sense. Nothing really stands out on this occasion but they were satisfying.

Did you know?

The restaurant is located in the prime location of Darling Harbour. Few restaurants beat its scenic harbour/city view. Darling Harbour is also known as one of the few places in Sydney which stores open until 9 PM for most nights. FYI, stores normally close at 5 or 6 PM on all days, but Thursday.

We chose this restaurant because of the Entertainment Book. This book contains 1000s of discounts on restaurants, amusement parks, cinemas, even Coles! They are only sold at participating foundation (I bought mine at Cancer Council) for $65 – portions of it are donated for the cause. I strongly recommend you to buy this book and have a bit of adventure yourself.

Location:

197 Harbourside, Darling Harbour, NSW 2000

Website:

www.jordonsrestaurant.com.au (Jordons Seafood restaurant is now closed)

Jul 5, 2011
Chikyu-Ya Japanese Cuisine

Update: Chikyu-Ya has closed its doors for good and I haven’t heard about the Chef reopening somewhere else / some time soon.

Rating:

7.5 / 10

Taste: 8 /10

Price: $15-$20 per dish

Place: 7/10

Review:

This week, we’ll travel to a restaurant next to my office, Chikyu-Ya Japanese Cuisine. I’ve known this restaurant long before I started working here and it has been my personal favourite. I think they have the best Karaage in Sydney! (and.. no, I don’t get paid for saying this!)

One of the good things about this restaurant is the simple menu. You are not faced with the dilemma of choosing from 100s of things. Simple pictures of dishes that you’d expect to get are shown there and another list of ‘Today’s Special’.

For the entrée, we went for the Sashimi. 12 generous cuts of Salmon, Tuna, and Kingfish were arranged beautifully with sides of seaweed, pickled ginger and wasabi. The Sashimi were as fresh as getting it from Fish Market, comparable to expensive Japanese restaurants.

For the main course we ordered three different dishes. The first one to arrive was Mini Udon and Karaage combo. Two small bowls, Chilli Karaage and Shiitake Udon, were the perfect dish for carbs-minded people. The udon was flavoursome and you can put chilli powder on it to enhance the taste.

The second one was my Karaage with Teriyaki Sauce (dinner size). Generous servings of karaage deep fried into golden brown of perfection. The teriyaki sauce created an added glossy effect and sweet taste. What I like about it was the crunch and the taste that came afterwards. For small eaters, there was also a friendly donburi size or even an entrée size.

The last one was French-inspired Demi-glace Hamberg. It was another classy display of plating. The hamberg was so tender and juicy. It was a dish that was seriously worth considering if you fancy beef more than chicken and/or fried stuff.

As a proof that I’ve always enjoyed their Karaage, here’s my happy face after eating it…

The final verdict for Chikyu-Ya Japanese Cuisine:

What else can I say? Karaage! They have sauces according to your preference: Teriyaki, soy-vinegar, chilli and even curry! You can ask for the entrée, dinner, or donburi size. In addition to that, the Hamberg was also nice.

Did you know?

Some of my friends prefer their curry dishes. They said it was one of the better Japanese curries in Sydney. Unfortunately, I am not a big curry fan.

This restaurant is very famous amongst Indonesians. Discounting myself as one, there is always a group of them in the restaurant every time I visited the place for dinner.

Location:

106 Ebley St, Bondi Junction, NSW 2022

They don’t seem to have one but this is the closest that can give you detailed information for the restaurant: http://www.sydneycafes.com.au/chikyu-ya.html

Jun 21, 2011
Madang Restaurant

Rating:

7.5 / 10

Taste: 8 /10

Price: $15-$30 per dish

Place: 7/10

Review:

This week, I will take you to one of the famous Korean restaurants in Sydney, Madang Restaurant. There is always people waiting in line at ANY dinnertime except when they just open or possibly late at night (they open past midnight). Sometimes the queue can be quite intimidating and it can also be seen as an indicator of how good the restaurant is.

We ordered five dishes – with the free-flowing Kimchi – and I think it was a little too much for the five of us. Had I been able to withdraw one of my orders, I would really have difficulties in choosing one. Unfortunately this review will have a freely translated dish’s names.

For our first dish of the night, I remembered the Korean name since this was the only dish that I constantly ordered here. It was Ggan Pung Ki (Deep Fried Chicken with special Korean sauce). I really like this dish – sweet and crunchy what else do you want? On top of that, the serving was really generous. Then came the Soft-Shelled Crab. Smaller in size when compared to the first one, the crab was cooked perfectly. The yellow sauce created a different dimension to the crab.

The next dish to arrive was also a ‘staple’ order in Korean restaurants, Seafood and Shallot Pancake. The pancake was flavoursome and jam-packed with seafood. Everything was perfect but one minor detail, it wasn’t crunchy enough for me. I know it might be a personal taste, but I like my pancake slightly crunchy. We also ordered the always-challenging Cold Noodles. It was noodles dipped in ice-cold broth with vegetables, eggs, and beef slices. Very rarely people would love to eat this dish. I quite enjoy its uniqueness.

For the big main event, normally you can choose between barbecue and soup. This time, we opted for the soup – Beef and Mushroom Soup to be exact. No less than four different types of mushrooms were served along the beef, vegetables and glass noodles. I believe in wintertime, this was the perfect dish to warm up our night. Its gigantic size might proof a little bit intimidating for some people. I love the different textures of mushrooms in this pot.

The final verdict: Every dish served that night was flawless. They weren’t mind-blowing, but enough to warrant a better than average score. In regards to the dishes,The chicken would standout against the rest.

Did you know?

Madang’s BBQ is also an option you should seriously consider. The dishes were slightly more expensive than the options in this review and for me personally, I have another place cheaper that I can go to for a nice Korean BBQ.

Location:

371A Pitt Street, Sydney, NSW 2000

Jun 15, 2011