Pork belly seems to be on the menu of every second Sydney restaurant these days, as it was at Kingston & Co., a newish eatery at Chatswood Westfield. My boyfriend and I both have a soft spot for pork belly so of course we ordered it. One bite of the pork belly and I was in food heaven. The skin was super thin and crispy, and actually reminded me of the skin of a roast suckling pig found at a Chinese restaurant. The meat was wonderfully tender and melted in your mouth. Conversation ceased as we just savoured each bite. However, it did get a bit heavy towards the end so I would recommend sharing this dish. The housemade apple sauce was delicious and the coleslaw rounded out the dish well.
Wagyu 'n' cheese sliders - the beef patty was juicy and tender and I loved the mustard sauce which cut through the fattiness. Am definitely going to come back and try their other burgers on the menu. For an entree, the portion size was very generous.
Our other dish was the Haloumi cheese, Turkish bread and figs. It was a great combination of flavours - the intense sweetness from the figs, the saltiess of the cheese and turkish bread to soak it all up.
For drinks, we tried the Frozen Bounty - just as the name suggests, it tasted like the Bounty chocolate bar (a combo of coconut flakes, chocolate, ice cream).
I enjoyed sitting in their quasi outdoor section, observing the hustle and bustle of Chatswood. The dessert looked very appetising but we simply could not eat anymore, so will have to come back next time!
Based on reader feedback, I am trying out my new rating system - assessing each individual dish for its tastiness and lightness. Let me know what you think!
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Having recently been crowned with one hat in the Sydney Morning Herald's Good Food Guide, what better time to try out this modern Korean joint than Father's Day with my parents. First step was finding the entrance, which is not easy as there's no clear signage apart from a printed menu by the front door. The fit out is sparse and minimalistic, but does its job. There a $65 banquet menu but we decided to go with the a la carte option.
For entrees, we started with the sea urchin and black garlic on seed biscuit. Sea urchin is an acquired taste. I love the gooey, melt-in-your-mouth texture of sea urchin. The sesame crisp complement the strong sea urchin taste and is offset by a yummy black bean type sauce.
Next was the smoked eel with puffed wild rice on shiso leaf. The puffed rice looked like little caterpillars on a leaf! This reminded me of the betal leafs from Longrain. The eel was the highlight - it had a touch of smokey flavour and had quite a meaty flesh. The chilli sauce gave it just the right amount of kick.
The dishes at Moon Park were wonderfully presented, none more so than the confit trout with pickled carrot and kimchi. It was almost too pretty to eat. Kimchi can sometimes be overpowering but it was beautifully balanced within this dish.
Can't go to a Korean restaurant without having the bimbimbap. This was not your standard bimbimbap though - with oxtail and walnuts as its main ingredients. It was not served in a traditional stone bowl so didn't have those crusty bits which I love. The servings of this dish was a bit small for three people. However, what was served was really tasty. All the ingredients worked well together and the ox tail was very tender.
I ordered the Dotorimuk because it sounded like an interesting combination: mushroom, tofu, acorn jelly and fried Brussels sprouts. The textures worked well together but it lacked the punchy flavours in their other dishes.
Our last main was the Wessex pork belly with diamond claims. The pork belly slices were generous in size and well cookd. Clams were a bit salty as it had soaked up all the sauce. Would have loved some extra bibimbap to go with this!
For dessert, we scanned the tables around us and opted for the most popular option - the Moon pie, Moon Park's take on its American namesake. This was a much more gourmet version with prunes, ginger jelly and white chocolate pudding. Again, it looked like art on a plate. I loved the texture of the soft, pillow-y marshmallows but it was a bit too sweet for me - the ginger jelly was refreshing and provided a hit of spice.
Overall, it was a great introduction to modern Korean food. Don't come expecting your typical Korean fare. Instead, be entertained with unusual flavour combinations in beautifully presented dishes.
On my search of unusual cuisines to eat, I came across Queenie's, a Caribbean restaurant in Surry Hills. The place was lively on a Saturday night with music beating along in the background.
We started with the Spiced lamb with green chilli yoghurt bammies - a Jamaican type of flatbread, reminded me of a tostada. Although the serving was small, it packed a tonne of flavour and was absolutely delicious.
For mains, we went with the Jerk Chicken with jungle slaw. The serving was very generous. The spice coating was tasty and the meat very juicy. The red cabbage slaw had a tangy dressing which complemented the chicken well. One of the chicken wings was slightly undercooked which was a bit of a downer.
We also ordered the special of the night, which was a jerk beef curry with dirty rice and naan. Flavours were good without being spectacular. I was interested to know what dirty rice was - turns out it is just normal rice cooked with some chicken livers and peppers to give it that 'dirty' colour. Again, the serving was ginormous so there was no way we could fit in dessert.
Great atmosphere and a good introduction to Caribbean cuisine.
Welcome to my first post! I intend on posting new content regularly and sharing with you my eating adventures.
My bf and I ventured to Newtown on a rainy Saturday to try out Brewtown Newtown - mainly to try out the famous cronuts (or Brewnuts as they are known here). I had been warned that the wait could be as long as an hour but luckily, after about 20 mins, we were seated on one of the communal tables. Before getting our cronut fix, we shared two items from the Brekky and Lunch menus. Brioche is one of my favourite breads so couldn't go past the Mini Eggs benedict on brioche roll. The egg was cooked perfectly with an oozing yolk and the brioche was soft and buttery. We also tried the Curried Israeli cous cous with wood smoked salmon, kale and poached egg. I had recently discovered Israeli (or Pearl) cous cous - it has got a puffier texture than the traditional cous cous, more like risotto. The dish was sensational, flavoursome without being overpowering. The salmon was soft and flaky. Could have easily had a second serving of this!
Feeling satisfied with our savouries, we ordered the Passionfruit jam brewnut/ cronut. I have read and heard a lot about this croissant/ donut combo. I don't usually like donuts, but I love croissants so I was interested to see what I would think of them. Verdict: a resounding thumbs up. The outside flaky pastry reminds me of a croissant. When I bite into it, the denser texture reminds me of a donut. The tang of the passionfruit offset some of the sweetness. It was so good my bf and I decided to order another one - this time, we tried the Chocolate crumble brewnut - which had a thick layer of rich chocolate on top. I can see why these fly out the door - there was a continual stream of takeaway customers, all getting their cronut fix.
Service was friendly and attentive, without being overbearing. Would definitely be back again!
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