8.30 on a Saturday night, Frango's was packed. Tables were full and the takeaway line was nearly out the door. Wanting to try their more extensive menu, we decided to wait for a table which took about 20 minutes.
For entree, we ordered the Marinated Calamari with wine, lemon and olive oil. The calamari was succulent and coated in a very flavoursome dressing. It reminded me very much of a similar dish I had in Lisbon.
We also ordered the Cod Fish and Tomatoes with sliced hand cut potato. I love the texture of cod fish which is quite meaty but the star of this dish actually turned out to be the hand cut potato chips. With crispy edges and a soft centre, they were a great alternative to normal french fries. Accompanied by the homemade chili mayo, they were even more moreish.
Wanting to save room for dessert, we ordered only a quarter serving of their famous Portugese charcoal chicken. Crispy skin and succulent meat - can't ask for much more than that. And it went wonderfully with my glass of Portuguese red ($7).
For dessert, we got the Creme Caramel and the Portuguese tart. The creme caramel was wonderfully silky and the coconut shavings was a nice addition. I would have preferred the Portuguese tart to have been served hot and it was a little too sweet for me.
Frango's also has branches in Petersham and Smithfield.
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Taiwanese food is not something I have had too often in Sydney so I was excited to try Taipei Chef in Artarmon for a colleague's farewell. Smoked chicken is one of their signature dishes and it's easy to see why. The flavour was spectacular - it had a distinct smokiness from the smoked tea leaves without being too overpowering and the meat was so moist and tender. A small tip: there are only a limited serving per day so don't go too late! Sweet potato fries with plum powder was completely addictive. I had to exercise a lot of self control to not gobble down the entire dish. Crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, the plum powder gave it an extra flavour boost. The slow-cooked pork belly is melt-in-your-mouth soft. The broth consisting of star anise, garlic, chilli and soy packed a ton of flavour and went wonderfully with the white rice. The Mongolian chicken on the sizzling plate was very aromatic and tasty. The salt and pepper tofu had a great crispy texture but was lacking a touch of seasoning. More satisfying was the soft shell crab. A generous serving, the batter was light and crispy. The deep fried mushrooms were so juicy that a couple of us nearly burnt our tongues when we bit into it. The crunchy basil leaves were a nice touch to the dish. Friendly service, delicious food and good value - Taipei Chef is definitely a neighbourhood gem. I will definitely be back for the smoked chicken and sweet potato fries!
Having tried the lobster roll at Johnny Lobster recently, I was keen to try out other versions of this Boston classic in Sydney. This time, we went to Burger Liquor Lobster in Paddington. Above the London Hotel, Burger Liquor Lobster has a funky interior with colourful graffiti adorning its wall.
The menu is simple and comes under the 3 headings of - no surprise - burgers, liquor and lobster.
We tried the Soft shell crab burger with chilli Singapore sauce and Asian slaw. My mouth was watering when this landed on our table with the crispy legs sticking out, waiting to be devoured. The soft shell crab was delicious - crunchy and soft at the same time, and the Singapore sauce added a spicy hit to the dish.
The Salt and pepper lobster roll with lemon aioli, chives, red onion and iceberg lettuce was really why I came to BLL for. It's not the normal steamed lobster that I adore, but was a very tasty alternative. Being deep fried, the meat was still succulent and the lemon aioli went superbly with the lobster. In terms of lobster content, I felt this was slightly more generous than Johnny Lobster.
Operating as a pop-up, get here for your lobster fix before it's too late!
I was very excited to hear that a casual eatery serving lobster rolls has recently opened in Crows Nest. Ever since I went to NY and Boston in 2011, I have been in love with lobster rolls.
The interior is modern with a red and blue theme, definitely a notch up from your standard fish n chips store. Of course, I had to order the lobster roll. Johnny Lobster's version contained chunks of lobster with tomato, cucumber, potato, dill and mayo, all inside a brioche roll. The toasted brioche roll was divine, one of the best I've ever had! I was hoping for slightly more lobster, but knowing how expensive lobster is in Sydney, it was more wishful thinking. The lobster meat was nicely cooked and went well with the dill mayo.
We also ordered the Fish Roll with Pico de Gallo Salsa. The fish was wonderfully crispy on the outside, nicely complemented by the fresh and zesty tomato and cucumber salsa.
The Haloumi salad with fennel, radish, pickled carrots, rocket and orange was another very fresh and colourful dish, though could have done with a bit more dressing.
Great place to grab a bit to eat, am keen to try the soft shell crab roll next time!
Devon on Danks is an extension of the very popular Devon Cafe in Surry Hills. Visiting on the opening weekend, we were lucky to get a seat without waiting. However, we were informed that the kitchen was closed for 20 minutes to catch up on their orders.
Feeling rather hungry, we decided to skip straight to desserts and ordered the mini donuts, which sat on the pastry bar, demanding to be eaten.
These weren't ordinary donuts. The flavours change day to day and today's selection was Raspberry sugar, Milo and Matcha with red bean. We decided to get one each and weren't disappointed. The raspberry one came with a syringe, for you to inject your own raspberry coulis into it. The matcha and red bean had really authentic flavours and had a great texture.
Breakfast With the Sakuma’s is one of Devon Cafe's most popular dish. It consists of salmon, a smoked eel croquette, a gooey 63 degree egg and kewpie mayo. The salmon was perfectly tender, the croquette was crispy tho I could not really taste the smoked eel.
Lucky Duck is an exclusive dish at the Devon on Danks branch and consists of crispy duck leg, French buckwheat crepe, a fried duck egg, duck liver parfait and blueberry preserve. The parfait was rich yet not overly so. The duck was crispy and well seasoned. The saltiness of the duck egg was balanced by the sweetness of the blueberry preserve, with the buckwheat crepe the perfect accompaniment to this very flavoursome dish.
We debated whether to get our second dessert of this meal given we were fairly full. The pork floss cronut was just too intriguing to pass up. It tasted exactly like the pork floss buns you can get at Asian bakery stores but with a crunchy pastry - love it. The pastry at Brewtown Newtown is a tad crispier but I love their Asian inspired flavours here.
There are still so many things I want to try from this menu, will definitely be paying Devon on Danks another visit.
Zucchini chips? It was just too intriguing to pass up. We were at The Lodge for brunch on a sunny Saturday morning.
The zucchini chips were quite large and chunky. It was covered in a tasty spiced tempura batter. Texture-wise, the chips were crunchy on the outside but still a bit wet on the inside. I felt quite healthy eating these as it resembled more veggie than chips...I still prefer sweet potato fries any day.
The tea smoked duck salad with fig, Gorgonzola, pear and white balsamic reduction was beautiful. Can't really go wrong with that combination of flavours!
The mushroom arancini was gooey on the outside and had a nice crunch on the outside.
Service was quick and friendly. The place turns more into a tapas bar at night, will be back to try it!
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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