Picky Piggies

Sichuan style hot pot is something that many Chinese show great fondness towards. It's a great way to enjoy a meal with friends, particularly because of the lively atmosphere - there is something special about cooking your own food in one big pot.

It's pungent fragrance of chilli oil and Sichuan pepper is the soul of this particular style of hot pot, and it's scent can be detected from miles away. If this is you cup of tea then without having to travel to China, Great Dragon is one of the places you can enjoy authentic Sichuan hot pot in Sydney.

Before the feast begins, the first step is to pick the soup base. The classic way to go about it is to go for the half chilli and half white broth (usually made with chicken or pork). For the chilli half you can choose the level of spiciness - slightly spicy, moderately spicy or super spicy.

Just a friendly reminder, we usually have a high tolerance for spicy food, and we got the slightly spicy soup. Honestly, even the lowest level of spiciness was still extremely spicy - the heat was face-melting. If time can rewind I wish I'd taken out some of the chilli and peppercorns before the waitstaff poured in the broth. This is your last chance to save yourself 😨.

Nourishing Fungus soup (L & M) Traditional Spicy Broth (R) $28.80

We got the three flavour soup with just two flavours, the chilli and peppercorn in the spicy broth created a numbingly-hot sensation for the tongue, and at the same time set our faces on fire. On the other hand the mushroom soup provided a soothing relief that had a traditional Chinese medicine aroma.

As to what goes in the pot, there are plenty of choices to pick from the menu - just indicate your desire number of servings in the box. A selection of raw meat and vegetables are available, and the cooking time required for each ingredient is shown on the menu.

Crispy Pork $12.80

These fried pork pieces are great to nibble on while you wait for your food to cook. They can be enjoyed as they are or cooked in the hot pot, we prefer them crispy. These pork bites can be addictive, beware of the hidden peppercorns! Once you have too many of those buggers you might not know where your lips are for a while.

Frozen Tofu

Shiitake Mushrooms $8.80

Celtuce $7.80

Yam $6.80

Lamb Slices $12.80

Barbie Beef $36.80

What's fun about hot pot is that you can enjoy a wide selection of food and watch it cook in one pot and then dip it in your own DIY sauce. When it comes to hot pot it's all about the experience, and it's something worth trying.

Sauce Table

The sauce table has more than what you'll need, there is no right or wrong. Just let your imagination run wild and give to your friend who was too lazy to make his/her own 😝.

Ice Jelly $3.80

After all the heat, we were desperately in need for something to take away some of the fiery heat. This ice jelly worked well as a cooling aid, with a sweet brown sugar syrup and some crushed peanuts, dried hawthorn, goji and sultanas as toppings.

A Cute Little Can Of Chilli Oil

Food: 6/10
Service: 6/10
Atmosphere: 7/10

Highlight:

A true hot pot experience - fun and full of surprising elements, although the ingredients could be better

Lowlight:

Quite pricey for the standard of food and service
The Chinese herbal taste of the mushroom soup base might not be for everyone
During peak hours the queue can be over 30 mins

Website: https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/152883352002314/great-dragon-traditional-hotpot/?hl=en
Address: 20 Goulburn St, Sydney NSW 2000
Hours: Mon-Thu 11:45am-11pm
Fri-Sat 11:45am-12pm
Sun 11:45am-11pm
Phone: 0451 996 288

No comments

Just off George Street in the heart of the city Mr Piggy and I found this little restaurant called Muglan serving authentic Nepalese cuisine. We were excited to try it out as we haven't had much experience with Nepalese food in the past.

One of Muglan's specialties is their momos. These humble dumplings are an essential part of the Nepalese culture. The use of various spices mixed in the filling is what gives these dumplings their unique character comparing to Chinese dumplings, Japanese gyoza and Korean mandu.

Teel Ko Jhol Momo - Goat $16.90

Momo can be enjoyed in many ways, including steamed, fried or served in soup. The most common way is steamed momo with a side dipping sauce called golbheda ko achar (a thick tomato chutney) to enrich the overall flavour.

At Muglan the momo is available in chicken, lamb or vegetarian fillings. We got the steamed goat momo in a spicy hot soup. When biting through the goat momo, it immediately released a pungent flavour. It was pretty "goaty". The sauce was heavy in spice, and the level of heat was kept minimal. The sauce does balance out the "goaty" flavour.

Steamed Momo - Chicken $15.90

We also got the steamed chicken momo that came with a tomato chutney dipping sauce and a soup. The chicken momo had a much milder flavour. When dipped in the chutney it gave the dumplings an acidic and spicy punch.

Butter Chicken $20.90

Nepali style butter chicken - the chicken pieces are cooked in a rich tomato sauce with a dash of cream on top. The chicken was tender and juicy, with a sweet overall taste.

Cheese & Garlic Naan $5.50

The cheesy garlic naan was the highlight for us, it was soft and fluffy.

Masala Chai

A perfect way to finish the meal with a cup of masala chai that had the right amount of spices.

Food: 7/10
Service: 6.5/10
Atmosphere: 7/10

Highlight:

Authentic Nepalese and Indian cuisine
Affordable pricing

Lowlight:

The goat momos were a bit of an acquired taste for us

Website: https://www.themuglan.com.au/
Address: 1/116 Liverpool St, Sydney NSW 2000
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am-11pm

Phone: (02) 8068 2759

2 comments

Situated in one of Sydney's touristy hot spots, La Renaissance makes no compromise to the quality of ingredients they use in creating fine French pastry. This is one of the places we always come back to when craving for sweets. Don't miss this one when you are taking a stroll through the weekend The Rocks Market.

Monet $9 (T/A) $9.5 (Dine In)

A cake that is simply divine - we were never enthusiasts of white chocolate, but this cake is one of the reasons why we always come back to La Renaissance. With a centre of creamy bavaroise, lychee jelly and soft sponge cake, each element brings a textural sensation to the tongue. Fresh raspberries embedded in the cake release a fruity note while keeping the richness of the white chocolate under control.

Tranche Au Chocolat $7 (T/A) $7.5 (Dine In)

Moving onto something richer, this Tranche Au Chocolat had a fuller body. The smooth chocolate mousse, and the nutty dacquoise made with walnuts and pistachios are sandwiched together to create a beautiful layered cake. It was soft and moist with a dark velvety tone to it, each bite had a lingering aftertaste.

Food: 7.5/10
Service: 6/10
Atmosphere: 6/10

Highlight:

There's always a big selection of cakes available
The cakes are consistent in taste every time

Lowlight:

The dine in environment is not as polished as the cakes

Website: https://larenaissance.com.au/
Address: 47 Argyle St, The Rocks NSW 2000
Hours: Mon-Sun 8am-5pm
Phone: (02) 9241 4878

No comments

There aren't many good Middle Eastern restaurants in Sydney's CBD. This changed when Cubby's Kitchen relocated from their Surry Hills venue. Cubby's showcases traditional Lebanese cuisine with a new twist. If you missed their pop-up restaurant on Crown Street, don't worry, they have kept some of the classics including miso baba ganoush, hummus with edamame and fatoush salad, whilst adding exciting new dishes to the menu.

Baba Gannoush $14

This baba gonnoush was bang on, the chunky eggplant and the sweet miso were such a wonderful pair - the dark caramel taste brought so much flavour and texture to the smooth smoky dip. The eggplant was so good I could eat it all day long.

Pita Bread - Plain & Fried (came with the baba gannoush)

Pita bread two ways - I prefer the plain pita with a beautiful soft texture, the fried pita was super crunchy, almost like chips. It was an interesting way to enjoy pita, but I probably wouldn't have it everyday.

Lady Fingers $14

Despite the name "lady fingers", this isn't the kind of lady fingers you find in a tiramisu. In fact it is a classic Lebanese's dish made from minced meat wrap in filo sheets. Middle Eastern lady fingers also come as a sweet dessert. This particular one was stuffed with minced lamb, with a taramasalata dip on the side.

Chicken Shish $17

Here comes the chicken kebabs on metal skewers, just from looking at them made us drool. The chicken was perfectly grilled leaving the meat juicy and tender.

Lamb Kafta $18

The lamb kebabs were equally good, with a Lebanese's touch of traditional spices, the meat was packed with flavours. A dollop of yogurt dressing on the side provided a refreshing lift.

Knafeh $12

Knafeh is a traditional Middle-Eastern dessert that comes in various forms. This version here was served on a hot metal plate with the base filled with gooey clotted cream, and topped with a layer of finely shredded filo that was soaked in rose scented syrup. The knafeh was buttery, creamy and sweet, and unlike most knafel we had in the past it wasn't as sweet, which we liked.

Food: 8.5/10
Service: 6/10
Atmosphere: 7/10

Highlight:

Great food at an affordable price
Quiet & chilled atmosphere

Lowlight:

Protein heavy menu
The char on the spring onion with the chicken shish was taken a bit too far

Website: http://www.cubbyskitchen.com.au/
Address: Corner Young Street & Loftus Lane, off Bridge Street, Sydney NSW 2000
Hours: Mon-Thu 12-3pm, 5:30-10:30pm
Fri 12-3pm, 5:30-11pm
Sat 5:30-11pm

Phone: (02) 9252 9648

No comments

Thai cuisine is well known for its love of celebrating big flavours, emphasising textures, colours and taste. Thai people are passionate users for fresh greens in the making of food. Muum Mamm exemplifies at its restaurants in Barangaroo and Surry Hills.

Prawn Chips (Complimentary)

It's prawny...the chips had a very strong prawn flavour, we found them really nice. It was crunchy and made a good snack before starting our meal.

Sen Jan Pad Thai noodles w Chicken, Dried Shrimp, Tofu & Crushed Peanuts $17

I don't think too much explanation is needed for this dish. There was the signature flavours of sweet, sour and savory. The raw chives, bean sprouts, fried cracker, chill flakes, lime and crushed peanuts were served on the side to help to add more punch and textures. Everything was good, except for the sauce was a little too sweet for us.

Shredded Banana Blossom Salad w Prawns, Cashews, Coriander Coconut Chili Jam $28

It is our first time trying banana blossom, and we found it very exotic (in a good way). There was a strong and pungent flavour from the sauce, the raw blossom had a distinctive aroma plus a nice crunch. I think the sauce did the trick of bringing a harmonious finish to the salad, the only downside was the sauce being a bit too salty - we had to reach out for water halfway through.

Monkey Balls – Coconut Pandan Gelato, Nut Toffee, Sesame, Honey Comb $15

Pandan (Left); Coconut (Right)

Ice cream proved a soothing way to conclude the meal and wash down the heat. The pandan had a natural sweetness and a soft unique aroma, the coconut was milky and creamy - and best of all both ice cream had a peanut and toffee centre.

It's hard to pick a favourite, because both flavours were really good. Toasted coconut and sesame were cleverly used as a coating for the ice cream, a generous amount of coconut milk was poured on top for more coconut goodness.

Food: 6/10
Service: 6/10
Atmosphere: 5.5/10

Highlight:

We really enjoyed the banana blossom salad (apart from being too salty)
Good ice cream

Lowlight:

The dining space is co-shared with many other restaurants so you have to speak at the top of your lungs

Website: http://www.muummaam.com.au/barangaroo/
Address: 23 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo NSW 2000
Hours: Mon-Sun 11:30-10pm
Phone: (02) 8252 0121

No comments

Newer Posts

Older Posts

Picky Piggies

Pages

About me

Labels

recent posts

Blog Archive