Huang Ji Huang Simmer Pot, Haymarket

Tucked away in an inconspicuous alleyway is Huang Ji Huang Simmer Pot. Relationship to this chinese 黄记煌 chain is uncertain, but does appear they sell the same sort of thing. I've been eager to try this place out since the JJ Lin concert last year!

The first thing I noticed about this place is how 'non-english friendly' this restaurant is i.e. highly advise you come here with a Mandarin speaking buddy. From calling out our number, to ordering, explaining the menu and paying the bill, we did not get one word of English out of the staff. I question whether their hidden location in the Chinatown haven has sheltered this restaurant too much from the reality of 'most-of-us-speak-English-in-Sydney'.

The restaurant had a similar feel to a hotpot joint, with a similar menu and ordering system too. There's two way's to go about ordering. Either order a chef's recommended ingredient set OR choose 6 ingredients from long list of hotpot ingredients to make up your simmer pot.

We kept it simple and simply selected the most popular Chef's preprepared selection (I apologise I was not able to catch the chinese name).

Mixing the veges that line the base

A selection of chicken wings, squid, prawns, duck giblet

Instructions on how to enjoy HJH

The idea is you order, your selected ingredients are placed in a pot with special spices and sauce, this is then simmered for 15-20 mins. The staff will do all the cooking for you though. So it's nice and easy. Then you just dig in!

 After you're done with this saucy pot of goodies and picked out everything you want to eat, its time for phase 2 - when water is added to make a hot pot. You can choose additional ingredients you want to eat here and it is just like having hot pot. I highly recommend having their handmade noodles though. They are divine!

Handmade noodles

Addition of noodles to the reserved broth.

The final bill came to $88 for 4 people including drinks. It was a meal we thoroughly enjoyed and I would consider returning with family. 

I do recommend groups of ≥ 4 people, simply due to size of the simmer pot.

Taste of Shanghai, Ashfield

Only 20 mins from Sydney CBD is our city's own Shanghai. Well, maybe that's not quite true, but this suburb has had a long standing reputation for the destination for a 'Shang' meal. We're pretty tired from shopping, so Uncle G and I decide to grab a quick meal at Taste of Shanghai.

Xiao Long Bao - $9.80 (9 pieces)

Wonton in Red Chilli Oil Sauce - $9.80 (10 pieces)

Szechuan Style Braised Barramundi with Fermented Rice Balls and Chilli or with minced Pork. $24

Spicy Dan Dan Noodle Soup- $9.80

So maybe we were over-ambitious for just 2 people, but it felt like ages since Uncle G and I had eaten out, so we splurged. No harm done as we just got take away for the left over wontons.

The XLB were ok. Probably what I would expect from most 'run of the mill' dumpling joints in China. So for Sydney, its probably commendable. Certainly nothing to complain about yet not quite as good as New Shanghai's (at least in my opinion).

The wontons were again average. They remind me a lot of the '大云吞‘ I get in Shanghai (again, at your run of the mill local shop). Stuffed full of pork and shepherd's purse - these guys are filling but the veges didn't suit Uncle G's appetite. In fact they somewhat disappointed as well. I had such high expectations following the Taiwanese editions I ate recently. Unfortunately these did not nearly match those standards.

The spicy Dan Dan noodle was not quite as I anticipated. I imagined a sheet of red chilli oil, aromatic from numbing chilli & dark soy coloured pork mince. As you can tell from the picture - not quite what I had envisioned. But it sure was spicy!!!! Not for the faint hearted - although Uncle G liked it and mopped it all up.

And finally the fish! I was expecting glutinous rice balls in with the sauce, but didn't see any. It was, heavy, loaded with fermented rice grains. The fish itself appears a little overcooked but the flavours were enjoyable.

What's your favourite chinese eatery in Sydney?

Four In Hand, Paddington

To make a friend's dream of eating "Mr Pork Belly" a reality, a group of friends organised a pork belly dinner at Four in Hands as an early celebration for Christmas. All of us were uber excited by this opportunity for pork belllyyyyyy!
 
We were originally asked to get a majority of the people there by 6:45pm for a 7pm start but they were happy to delay serving the food until 7:15-20pm to cater for the few late-comers.

Finally, the time had arrived and our pork belly was delivered to our table:

Pork Belly Platter - Pork Belly + Ribs with Onions (Halved), Roasted Carrots,
Roasted Potatoes, and Broccoli, served with Gravy

The wooden platter (more like a plank!) was enormous and required two men to carry it. We were all amazed by the sheer size of the platter and spent the next 5 min taking photos of the food and the dinner table.

Close Up of Pork Belly *drools*

Eventually, we started serving out the pork belly and accompaniments to everyone:

Pork Belly Dinner on a Plate

Overall, I was extremely satisfied with the meal. The pork belly skin was crispy and well-seasoned, and there were ample sides - there were 13 of us and we depleted everything except for half the bowl of potatoes. Everyone was stuffed by the end of the night and one of my friends has already commented that they would be coming back on their birthday next year for another pork belly dinner. The service was also good - waiters were friendly and were constantly checking up on us to ensure that we were happy with our food.

If you want to partake in a pork dinner, you'll need to call up in advance (at least 48hrs notice) and reserve a pig ($800 for 10+ people) or pork belly ($350 for 10+ people).

The bar/restaurant is accessible by car (park on nearby streets) and public transport - either train to Edgecliff station, or get off at bus stop on Ocean Road/Trelawney St along the bus route to Bondi Junction, and then hike 600-800m via the 'bush' or the streets of Paddington to the bar/restaurant.
The place is hidden within a quiet residential area but you will notice it from the noise generated by the pub clientele. The bar (where we ate our dinner) adjoins the restaurant and has a separate dining area on the side.

Four In Hands at Night

The Rag Land, Waterloo

On route to the Finders Keepers market held at the Australia Technology Park, my friends and I had a pit stop at The Rag Land cafe.

Hidden in the streets of Redfern, the cafe has a rustic/industrial feel - it's filled with quirky/vintage accessories decorating the walls. Food and drinks are served in mis-matched plates and cups although, surprisingly, the iced mocha and milkshakes were presented in plastic cups:

Iced Mocha (and Coffee in the background)

Milo Dinosaur (i.e. Milo Milkshake)

Food - glorious food - was served a while after the drinks:

Spicy Smashed Eggs and Avocado, served on Sourdough

I would have expected the eggs to be more "smashed", rather than cut up as shown in the picture. The chilli mixed into the egg/green salsa provided the dish with a bit of a kick, but the dish could have been improved with a bit more seasoning with salt/pepper.

Pea Fritters with Poached Egg, Rocket and Salsa

Unfortunately, there were random metallic specks (like sparkles from a christmas bauble?) in the pea fritters so I had to return the original plate... hence, a second plate was served:

Pea Fritter Take #2

The pea fritters were (deep) fried and over-cooked past the ideal golden-brown stage, which let down the dish as the pea fritters had a bit of a burnt aftertaste. However, the poached egg was cooked perfectly and the fritters were accompanied by a nice tomato-based salsa.

You're probably better off sticking to drinking their coffee (which they're famous for) and eat the food at your own risk.

Elbow Room Expresso, Chatswood

Following on from my early bakery run, I met up with Moose's Digest and headed to our brunch pit stop at Elbow Room Espresso in Chatswood.

Situated on a side street off Victoria Avenue, the cafe is brightly lit from the external sunlight through the use of glass/windows along the external wall. It also offers an array of items for purchase including organic sticky chai.

Items Available for Purchase, e.g. Organic Sticky Chai, Coffee Beans, and Jam

Cashier Counter with Pastries on Display

When we arrived, we were fortunate to come across a spare two-person table and promptly ordered:

Chocolate, Pretzel & Peanut Butter Milkshake ($7)

Green Freak (Spinach, Chia Seeds, Avocado, Lemon, Mint, Almond Milk, Honey) ($8)

The milkshake was awesome - there is a distinct peanut taste in the choc milkshake and heaps of salty pretzel bits mixed into the drink, which gave it a crunchy texture (at least before the pretzel drowned for a while and became soggy). Accordingly to Moose's Digest, the Green Freak tasted better than the green smoothie from Element 6 (it certainly had less froth!).

Then came our food:

Grilled Asparagus and Prosciutto Bruschetta (with Poached Eggs, Minted Broad Bean
& Pea Mash, Rocket, topped with Lemon Juice and Toasted Pumpkin Seeds) ($18)

The highlight of the dish was the grilled asparagus, which were individually wrapped with prosciutto, and the eggs were poached perfectly with an orange gooey centre. I found the sour dough bruschetta a bit tough and hard to cut with a knife and fork (I ended up eating with my fingers) although it may have been an issue with the knife, rather than the bread.

French Toast with Grilled Banana on Brioche (topped with House-Made
Cinnamon Ricotta, Pistachios and Maple Syrup) ($14)

The french toast - made using brioche so had a cake-y texture - was light and fluffy, and the berry compote was a surprise (though not specified on menu?). However, the grilled banana was a bit overcooked (too squishy/mushy) and therefore a bit of a letdown.

Overall, Moose's Digest and I were very happy with our meal. The quality and presentation of the food was top notch and certainly exceeded my expectations (which were basically non-existent) - kudos to Moose's Digest for selecting this cafe!