Picky Piggies

Away from the dazzling CBD, you can find Neutral Bay on the Lower North Shore of Sydney - a lively suburb packed with characteristic restaurants. Firefly showcases modern Australian tapas inspired by Italian, Spanish and Asian flavours, with an extensive drinks menu. The warm lighting and modern decor helped to set the mood for a warm welcoming place.

Wild Mushroom Arancini $4ea

The arancini is a must get, the crusty rice ball is made with porcini, truffle and filled with melty mozzarella. Every bite was delicious and satisfying.

Crispy Drunken Chicken Pancakes $6ea

The appearance of this dish reminded me of Peking Duck wrapped in a thin transparent pancake. In a way they are very similar, the only difference was there was no duck but fried chicken instead. The chicken was crunchy and paired with sweet hoisin sauce, along with some fresh bean sprouts. The only thing I wasn't sure about was the 'drunken' part, which wasn't obviously noticeable.

Truffle Fries $10

A big bowl of truffle fries, the truffle flavour was quite subtle.

Zucchini Fries $9.5 (S)

These zucchini fries were super crunchy on the outside and really moist on the inside. Almost like thick cut chips but better.

Truffle Mac & Cheese $16

For mac & cheese, it's really all about the oozy creamy cheese sauce, and there's hardly any in this mac & cheese apart from the tiny amount on the top. The macaroni was bland, it was our least favour dish of the night.

Slow Braised Pork Belly $26

Here is a mouth watering dish, twice cooked pork belly. The meat was ultra tender whilst keeping a nice chew to it. The best part was the super crispy crackling! At the bottom, there were some pickled rhubarb, roasted Granny Smith and hazelnuts. The tartness from the rhubarb and apple helped to cut through some of that greasiness of the pork belly.

Puff Pastry Pizza $19

Just like the name suggested, this pizza was made using puff pastry. It wasn't bad at all, the base was flaky and buttery. The toppings included little bits of sticky pork belly, bok choi, mozzarella and hoisin sauce. Everything worked well together, except for the toppings were a little skimpy.

12 Hour Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks $32

Here comes something more substantial - slow cooked beef cheek. The beef cheek was cooked until tender, with a dark rich flavour and a hint of red wine that left a mellow bitter-sweetness on the palate. Underneath the beef cheek were some seasonal roast root vegetables and a smooth parsnip puree with a sweet nutty flavour.

Food: 6/10
Service: 8/10
Atmosphere: 7.5/10

Highlight:

All the dishes are ideal for sharing
A big selection of drinks

Lowlight:

Mac & cheese is really not their thing

Website: https://fireflybar.com.au/
Address: 24 Young St, Neutral Bay NSW 2089
Hours: Mon-Thu 5-10:30pm
Fri 12am-12pm
Sun 12-11pm
Phone: (02) 9909 0193

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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

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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

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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

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