Picky Piggies

A new exciting Japanese bakery Azuki just opened their doors in Sydney's most popular eatery suburb Newtown. The bakery is owned by a young Japanese couple who are bringing European style baked goods with a Japanese touch to Sydney.

Curry Pan $3.80

To most people curry and bread may sound like a strange combination, but in Japan this so called "curry bread" is a popular snack to buy at a bakery. It is literally a soft airy dough stuffed with curry flavoured meat then coated with breadcrumbs on the outside, and deep-fried. When eating this bread, it is almost as if you were eating a savory donut filled with curry.

Sausage Roll - Wasabi Pork (forgot the price ~$5)

The filling was so flavourful and juicy, and the pastry was as buttery as you can get. Last but not least, a wasabi curry sauce was poured over the top to emphasis a Japanese flavour.

Yuzu Cheesecake $5.5

Just like the name suggested, this yuzu cheesecake also had it's Japanese twist. The cream cheese was creamy and smooth, and the subtle yuzu had a refreshing fragrance. The candied lemon brought a degree of acidity and bitterness, which balanced the heavy cream cheese. However, we were a little disappointed when we discovered this was not a Japanese cotton cheesecake but more similar to the American style cheesecake.

Black Sesame Tiramisu $5.5

Some more Japanese twist in this sesame layered cake. The chocolate sponge was soft and moist and the cream had just the right amount of sesame flavour. Even though it doesn't resemble the usual tiramisu look, tastewise it was delicious.

Matcha Roll Cake $4.5

Nothing better than a classic matcha roll - this delicate cake was light and airy and had a nice subtle sweetness.

Matcha Mont Blanc $4.5

This Mont Blanc was made of strings of matcha white chocolate with a matcha sponge base. We found the matcha flavour in the chocolate a little light comparing to the matcha sponge.

Food: 8/10
Service: 6/10
Atmosphere: 6/10

Highlight:

Curry pan
Sausage roll

Lowlight:

Cheesecake
Mont blanc

Website: https://www.azukibakery.com.au/
Address: 3/63/71 Enmore Rd, Newtown NSW 2042
Hours: Mon - Tue Closed
Wed - Sun 9am - 7pm

Phone: 0403 491 209

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Located in the heart of Sydney's CBD, Mr Wong offers a premium yum cha experience for lunch. Here you won't see any traditional trolleys being pushed around, instead you order a la carte. The menu offers a mix of traditional and creative dim sum, while the restaurant is decorated with an oriental inspired look across two floors.

There was a truck load of duck ready to be roasted in the kitchen, however the duck isn't for Mr Piggy and I. We found the skin wasn't as crispy as we were expecting when we ordered it during a previous visit (so we stayed true to yum cha this time, except for dessert 😝).

Lobster & Scallop Dumpling $15

Despite an impressive set of ingredients, when ordering this dish, we were prepared for the worst. Cooking lobster requires technique and skill. When overcooked the crustacean can be rubbery and tough. The good news was these lobster dumplings turned out to be succulent and full of flavour, we couldn't have asked for more.

King Prawn & Bamboo Shoot Dumpling $12

Prawn and bamboo shoot dumplings are something that is always on the menu at every yum cha restaurant. Mr Wong's version was on point, the prawns were beautiful and fresh.

Wild Mushroom Dumpling $12

These mushroom dumplings weren't as good as the ones we had last time.

Prawn & Crispy Dough Rice Roll $16

I'm in love with this prawn cheung feng roll. The rice skin was smooth and silky, it was almost as thin as paper. In contrast the deep fried prawns and dough gave it a nice crunch, so you get the best part of both worlds.

Wagyu & Truffle Puff $15

This was a winner for us, the flaky puffy pastry falls apart in your mouth. The wagyu meat was so tender and was packed with a peppery and truffle aroma.

Steamed BBQ Pork Buns $12

If time could go back, we wish we hadn't ordered this dish. The bun was soft and fluffy. However, the filling was dry and lacking in flavour. It didn't live up to the traditional BBQ pork bun that is filled with saucy tender BBQ pork.

Golden Swan $15 (special of the day)

These swan pastries were just too pretty to be eaten, but we did what we had to do (we did serve them justice by taking lots of photos). Like the waygu puffs, each layer was well defined and perfectly crispy. The duck meat filling was soft and tender.

Green Tea "Tres Leches" Cake $17

What we liked about this cake was that the matcha and yuzu flavours went really well together. The sponge was soaked with liquidy matcha, that made every bite enjoyable. What we didn't like was there was way too much yuzu cream on the top that made the cake a little too heavy.

Food: 8.5/10
Service: 7.5/10
Atmosphere: 9.5/10

Highlight:

Lobster dumplings
Wagyu puffs
Prawn rice roll

Lowlight:

BBQ pork bun

Website: https://merivale.com.au/mrwong
Address: 3 Bridge Lane Sydney NSW 2000
Hours: Mon - Wed 12pm-3pm, 5:30-11pm
Thu - Sat 12pm-3pm, 5:30-12am
Sun 12pm-3pm, 5:30pm-10pm
Phone: 9240 3000

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Nested in a small alleyway in Chippendale, Ester serves seasonal local produce with some that are prepared in the old fashioned way using a wood fire oven while at the same time embracing modern flavours.

Fried Chickpeas (Complimentary)

While waiting for our food to arrive, we were offered some fried chickpeas to snack on. The rosemary gave the chickpeas some nice flavour, but overall they were a bit oily.

Fermented Potato Bread $22

Fermented potato bread is not something that comes across the menu often, and I'm glad we got it! The wood fired bread was airy and springy, and when pulled apart every inch was covered with air pockets. The best part was when you spread on the kefir cream, every pocket was filled with goodies. The trout roe added a surprise element when they pop in the mouth. We also liked the dashi jelly, an interesting and delicious paring.

Calamari & Lardo $16

This tentacled fellow was cooked to perfection, but the magic didn't stop there. By adding lard to this dish it made it unbeatable, the aroma of the lard gave the calamari so much flavour - dish of the night for me.

Kingfish Head $38

When this monster of a dish arrived at our table, we were speechless...It was humongous! The fish had a beautiful char on the outside, and the butter sauce was creamy. However, we found the flesh a bit mushy.

Moreton Bay Bug $52

This bug tail was succulent, and the pepper sauce was packed with flavours. The only downside was that it would have been nice to have some bread on the side to mop up the sauce.

Choux with White Chocolate $15

The choux was nice and crispy, but comparing to some of the savory dishes that were really good the white chocolate filling was a bit standard and didn't live up to our expectations.

Three Milks $16

Each layer consists of a milk element. From the glossy sheep's milk yogurt that carried a hint of sourness, to the golden dulce de leche that was thick and rich, to the creamy panna cotta - no wonder where the name comes from. However, the dessert was quite heavy and we felt like we were having a fancy breakfast bowl of cereal.

Food: 8/10
Service: 7/10
Atmosphere: 7/10

Highlight:

Calamari & potato bread were both amazing

Lowlight:

Three Milks' execution didn't live up to the creativity

Website: http://www.ester-restaurant.com.au/
Address: 46/52 Meagher St, Chippendale NSW 2008
Hours: Mon-Fri 6pm-late
Sat 12pm-12am
Sun 12pm-6pm

Phone: 02 8068 8279

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