Dooleys, Lidcombe

When the subject was first raised that we were to have dinner at a "club", I was concerned that our entourage, consisting mainly of young kids, their parents, and mild-mannered wallflowers like myself, would feel (and look) slightly out of place. Thankfully, my worries were unfounded, and we found many large families like ourselves dining in complete comfort and enjoyment at the Dooleys club in Lidcombe.

But since it was a "club" after all, we ordered a round of beer to occupy us while our dinners were being cooked. The food at Dooleys is traditional bistro fare: steak with chips, fish 'n' chips, pasta dishes, burgers, etc. I was quite hungry, and ordered the 350g T-bone steak (done medium rare) with chips and salad:

T-Bone 350g (gluten-free), $24.60 ($20.50 for members)

I personally don't like my beefsteaks with sauce, preferring to season it myself with salt and pepper, but the steaks here usually come with a sauce of your choice out of the four: dianne, mushroom, pepper, or gravy. Someone else in our group ordered theirs with mushroom sauce:

I'm sure I specified that I wanted my steak done 'medium rare', but maybe the only options are 'well done', 'medium' and 'rare'? When I cook steaks at home, I usually eat it rare, red juices flowing and all, but I'm a bit more cautious when I dine out. I needn't have worried about bacteria and such, because my steak turned out 'well done'. It was like eating shoe leather. My molars ached with the effort. I think I should have ordered it 'rare', because then it would have turned out 'medium rare', like I wanted ;P

Hacking away at my shoe, I mean, steak.

The 250g scotch fillet done 'rare', which I ordered to share with two others, on the other hand turned out to be perfectly juicy and tender. And looked...'medium rare'! Guess it's worth it to pay the extra for a better cut of meat.

Scotch Fillet 250g (gluten-free), $28.20 ($23.50 for members)

Fish 'n' chips (I didn't get to take a picture) and chicken schnitzels were ordered for the kids. Both were well received. In particular, 'DOOLEYS Famous Fish and Chips' looked really good. The deep-fried batter was a beautiful shade of gold, and the fish was steaming hot and flaky on the inside. I should have taken a photo of it!

Kids Chicken Schnitzel, $7.50

In addition to the traditional, 'Western' options, Dooleys has a selection of dishes "From the East", according to its own menu. These included a ginger prawn and bento box, chilli chicken with steamed rice and bok choy, curry with naan bread, and sichuan pork chops. Two pork chops were ordered, and I got to have a taste. The pork was very tasty! It came with a sweet and chilli sauce, which went well with the lean pork. I like the spring onion and red chilli garnish on top. 

Sichuan Pork Chops, $19.80 ($16.50 for members)

My cousin, a growing teenage boy and lean as a beanpole, was still hungry after wolfing down his steak and chips, and went back to order something else. He got the chicken linguini arrabiatta, which looked really good and was covered with melted cheese. He didn't share, the greedy boy xD

Chicken Linguini Arrabiatta, $18.60 ($15.50 for members)

With every five meals purchased, you get a free piece of cake, and with every ten meals, a free meal up to the value of $12.00. We had ordered enough meals to get two complimentary pieces of cake. There was the sticky date pudding which was very sweet and covered with a thick layer of frosting:

Sticky date pudding

And a pretty mini Mars Bars cheesecake tart:

Overall, the food was decent and the atmosphere family-friendly. There's a nice play area for young children, and the option of courtyard seating. Our meals took a while to come out, and there is a notice at the ordering counter stating that 'well done' steaks require a 30 minute wait. The club does have a strict policy on clothing and foot-ware; my aunty, who was wearing her stylish rubber thongs, was refused entry. In the end, she paid $3 for a pair of glittery sandals from the reception, and accompanied us inside while we all heaved a sigh of relief :D

Dooleys

24-28 John St, Lidcombe, NSW 2141

Phone: (02) 8745 6100

My Chinese Kitchen, Burwood

Happy Year of the Dragon! I have just returned from a trip to New Zealand, and this is the first opportunity I've had to write up a new post. While touring NZ, we alternated between admiring the truly amazing scenery, and doing outrageous stuff like jet-boating this close to the cut-throat rocky protrusions over a river in Queenstown. And hand-feeding alpacas:

 And posing in vast, open fields:

I have heaps of great photos so I may very well do a write-up of my trip, even though we had very little in terms of interesting eats. Come to think of it, I don't think we had any interesting eats. Thanks to the fact that we signed up for the trip as part of a Chinese tour group, we were forced to eat cheap, bland food for the duration of our time there. Stuff like steamed catfish (which looked deformed and off-colour), fried eggs, and stringy, stir-fried vegetation. Urgh. Therefore, it was with relish that I devoured dinner at My Chinese Kitchen in Burwood. It was the first decent meal I've had in over a week.

We've been here on many, previous occasions, and enjoyed the food immensely on every visit. The dishes are interesting, and the prices reasonable. We always order the Nanjing Duck. Don't be put off by the pallid appearance of the dish. The flesh of the duck is flavourful (and salty! very salty!) with shaoxing wine, soy sauce and sesame oil, and the skin is quite addicting. 

 

Nanjing Duck, half for $13.80 (1/4 for $7.80)

The Pan-Fried Fish with Soy Sauce is our second cold dish. The fish has been fried, and then soaked in a mixture of soy sauce and sugar. Again, a dish we order every time.

Pan-Fried Fish with Soy Sauce, $9.80

Rationalising that I've been living off of catfish for the past week, I insisted that we order the Spice Salt Soft Shell Crab, which arrives piled in a golden heap. The crab has been battered and deep-fried, and is wondrously crunchy without tasting greasy at all - the mark of a deft hand at controlling the temperature of the frying oil. "I've been eating steamed fish all week", I repeated in my mind, as I helped myself to what seemed like half the plate.

Spice Salt Soft Shell Crab, $18.80

The Yangzhou Meat Balls held a high fatty to lean mince ratio, and were very moist and flavourful as a result of it. The braising liquid had infused deep into the meatballs, as well as into the bed of vermicelli lining the dish.

Yangzhou Meat Balls, $15.80

 The Boiled Beef in Spice Chilli Sauce was the only miss of the night. Much too salty and peppery, not to mention positively swimming in thick, starchy sauce.

Boiled Beef in Spice Chilli Sauce, $15.80

If there is a single dish that you must order at this restaurant, it is the Stir fried eel Huaian style. Each, tiny eel has been deep-fried, and then coated with a sticky, sweet and salty sauce. The combination is irresistible.

 

Stir fried eel Huaian style, $22.80

We ordered three steamers of Juicy Buns (aka. xiaolongbao) because they're my siblings' favourite. These ones were juicy indeed, but the wrappers were too thick, in my opinion. 

 

Juicy buns, $7.50 for 8 pieces

The Crispy King Prawn Egg Rolls were beautifully presented, but unfortunately were nondescript in flavour.

Crispy King Prawn Egg Rolls, $18.80

The Steamed Duck with Prawn Dumplings, by comparison, is something I would definitely order again. The duck is covered with the same thick, sticky, and slightly-sweet sauce as many of the other dishes. A ring of prawn dumplings in egg wrappers encircles the generous serving of duck.

 

Steamed Duck with Prawn Dumplings, $24.00

As usual, our eyes were bigger than our stomachs and we had over-ordered. We were beyond full by this point, but we still had a few dishes to go. Next to arrive was the Pork Ribs in Special Shallot Sauce. The pork turned out to be so succulent and delicious that I polished off a sizable portion despite my ready-to-burst stomach. The ribs are brought to us wrapped in foil, and the waiter pulls apart the meat and soaks it in its own cooking liquid (the "Special Shallot Sauce", I presume) at our table.

Pork Ribs in Special Shallot Sauce, $18.80

 The pork after being pulled apart

Some of us were groaning "no more!" by now, but we still had one more dishes to go. Our final pick for the night was the Steamed Egg Plant with Salted Fish. The salted fish was somewhat stinky. I was honestly too full to appreciate the dish.

 

Steamed Egg Plant with Salted Fish, $15.80

Oh wow. I feel bloated simply writing all that down ;P

All in all, a highly recommended restaurant!

My Chinese Kitchen

195A Burwood Road,
Burwood, NSW 2134

Phone: (02) 9715 6699

Golden Treasure Chinese Seafood Restaurant, Granville

It may be that I've simply become conditioned through habit to associate certain cuisines with specific areas of Sydney, but it struck me as somewhat incongruous when I was informed that we would be dining out at a Chinese seafood restaurant in Granville.

"Er...what about the usual places in Hurstville or Beverly Hills?" I asked my parents.

"It's time to try something new!" Said my mother.

And that was that. Off we went to Gold Treasure Chinese Seafood Restaurant, located within the depths of the Granville RSL club.

The occasion we were celebrating was my grandfather's 74th birthday, and my mother had rung ahead to put in our orders for the very special Buddha Jumps Over the Wall (fo tiao qiang) soup. Described as "da bu" (highly nutritious) by the Chinese, the ingredients most typically found in the soup inclue shark fin, abalone, chicken, ham, sea cucumber, and ginseng. Not exactly your old chicken broth, eh? Apparently, the most expensive rendition can be found in some restaurant in London, at £108 per serve.

Ours wasn't quite that expensive, but it did look like it had quite a few expensive ingredients packed inside. I identified fish tripe (an all-time favourite offal of mine), abalone, shark fin, sea cucumber, and a lot of chicken pieces. The broth was rich and flavourful, and was an appropriate starter to a night of indulgent delicacies.

Digging through the bowl to find all the ingredients felt like treasure-hunting!

My sisters always insist on ordering the ru ge (baby pigeon) whenever we see it on the menu. A plate of two pigeons, the skins a burnished bronze and the plump flesh bursting with juices, soon followed the starter soup. They are accompanied by a dish of soy sauce, and another of salt and seasoning. Our visual appraisal proved to be accurate; the birds were indeed tender and succulent, and the thin layer of semi-melted fat beneath the crispy skin was absolutely addictive.

The delicacies continued with this next dish: braised sea cucumber and mushroom.

Sea cucumbers are an acquired taste, methinks. My dad detests the gelatinous, rubbery texture, while I absolutely adore it. The sauce was a bit gluggy (too heavy-handed on the corn starch, perhaps), but we all liked the shrimp meat-stuffed mushroom. And the presentation was...interesting ;P

The lobster sashimi turned out to be of the pink-fleshed variety, which is said to be of an inferior quality to the white, pearlescent one. And it tasted it too, with a rather wet and stringy mouthfeel compared to the firmer texture of the white-fleshed species.

You can see the pink flesh beneath the pile of ice on top.

The lobster was served two ways; our second lobster course came with noodles and was cooked in a garlic sauce. Tasty! Wish there'd been more noodles, though.

Time for some greens! The stir-fried abalone with snow peas came with a pungent shrimp paste, which again is an acquired taste. I happen to like smelly foods (durian!), so this was right up my alley. It was a pity that the abalone was over-cooked, as they became tough as nails.

The Japanese-style tofu (a curious designation) appeared to be deep-fried silken tofu doused in a sweet and sour chilli sauce, with tiny balls of shrimp meat. I really liked this one!

Our final savoury dish was the Zhe Jiang-style (Dongpo) pork. Except maybe I misheard, because our pork was deep-fried and had a sweet and sour flavour. And I think Dongpo pork is meant to be a thick, fatty piece of pork steamed and braised. Never mind, it was still delicious, and I couldn't help but go back for seconds and thirds.

As is always the case with dining at a Chinese restaurant, we were beyond stuffed somewhere in the middle of the savoury dishes. But since dessert is almost always complimentary, and usually very good, we never mind stretching our stomachs just that littlest bit more. A plate of fresh fruits and another of those delectable lardy cookies were brought over after our table was cleared. Along with bowls of sweet red bean soup.

And, of course, there was the birthday cake I made for my grandpa, which you can read all about in my previous post.

Golden Treasure Chinese Seafood Restaurant

Granville RSL Club, 5 Memorial Drive, Granville NSW.

Phone: (02) 9637 8899

Sea Bay Hand-Made Noodle Restaurant, Burwood

Despite its name, Sea Bay Hand-Made Noodle Restaurant has very little in way of seafood. "Sea Bay" seems to be a homophonic play on its name in Chinese "xi bei", which translates into "North-West". And indeed, North-Western Chinese cuisine is what is served here - big, hearty portions of it, at very reasonable prices.

The restaurant was completely filled when we arrived (without a booking). The staff politely informed us it would be about a 10-15 minute wait until an available table, so we entertained ourselves in the mean time by perusing the impressive menu on diplay in the window.

Soon enough, we were ushered in and seated , the eight of us hunched over a table intended for a much smaller party. Never mind. We were hungry, there was still a long queue waiting outside, and we were just grateful to be out of the cold.

 An artistic self-portrait, taken on an iPad 2 - the perfect answer to when a food blogger forgets to bring her camera to the restaurant (doh!)...

We rattled off a selection of hot and cold dishes from the laminated menu, and within minutes they arrived at our table...all at once!

The jellied pork ear was perfectly crunchy and chewy with cartilage. I kept going back for more despite the searing heat from the tiny, red chillis.

Think the following one may have been tripe. It was very spicy. We Northerners sure love our chilli...and offals!

Some hot dishes to warm the gut: dumpling noodle soup, and mutton broth with 'mo' (a type of Chinese bread)



Sweet and sour lamb (I think...or maybe pork?). Absolutely loved the sauce. I was mopping it up with my share of the 'mo' :D

We ordered some green shallot wraps, not really sure what to expect. They turned out to be filled with cooked vermicelli and thin slices of fatty beef. A bit tasteless, really. It could have done with some sort of sauce, or seasoning. Guess that was why there were squeezie bottles of soy sauce at each table.

And, my personal favourite of the night: hand-made noodles, the "xi bei" way! Tiny, springy pellets of gluten-rich dough in a rich, meat sauce - yum!

The bill came to around $20 per person. Yes, the seating was really cramped, and there was a baby screaming constantly from the left-hand corneer, but you know what? It's dining experiences uch as this that bring back the fondest memories of my home land. I'll take unpretentious, quality food over a Michelin experience any day!

(Well, may be not if someone else paid for me to eat at the latter :D)

Sea Bay Hand-Made Noodle Restaurant

181D Burwood Road, Burwood 2134 NSW

Phone: (02) 9745 2238