Tan Viet Noodle House

There is no other place to go to for Crispy Skin Chicken with Tomato Rice. 

Enough said because nothing I say will do justice to the crispiness of the chicken and the satisfied "ah, so full" feeling when the plate is bulldozed to nothingness. Go try it yourself. You know you want to.



Tan Viet Noodle House
209 Rowe Street, Eastwood, NSW 2122, Australia
Tel: +61 2 9858 5167
Daily 10:00am to 10:00pm

Cafe Centro

Cafe Centro, a cafe I have walked past for so many years. It was a hub of activity when we walked in. I was immediately taken aback by the furniture they used. There were unique wire lampshades, recycled church benches and a bicycle.

I noticed that their theme colour was red, as their lampshades, the bicycle and their signature French doors up the front were red.

We often say that to draw us back to a place, they would have to serve good food. However, in addition to the food, the service also makes a difference. And this was what impressed me - their service. Although it was really busy, Henry (the cheeky and friendly chap flashing a peace sign in the photo below) made sure we had enough time to decide on our order and made sure that he delivered the orders quickly. We did not wait long at all.

The whiff of aromatic caffeine from the Mecca coffee beans they use was irresistible - I loved my cup of mocha. Was so tempted to get a second cup but was held back by my flatmate.

We both had Benedict but I had the Salmon Benedict ($15.50) instead of the normal one. Yes, I love my salmon and egg. The poached egg was done to perfection and I got all excited when I saw the Hollandaise sauce. I little thick but I love Hollandaise sauce - my three loves in one dish, I can have this every day.

Eggs Benedict ($14.00) had all the same ingredients except that instead of smoked salmon, it was bacon.

It turned out to be a very satisfying brunch. And I hear they have new items on the menu - time for another visit.



Cafe Centro
139 Rowe Street, Eastwood, NSW 2122, Australia.
Tel: +61 2 9874 9624
E-mail: dm@cafecentro.com.au
Monday to Friday 6:00am to 5:00pm
Saturday 7:00am to 4:30pm

Roast duck rice @ BBQ One 阿一烧腊

I am a big fan of the dish you see in the picture above. In fact, almost every time I dine at this shop, I order this dish. XW would always takeaway half a duck to bring to her uncle's place.

In my opinion, this is still the best roast duck rice I have ever eaten in all my 11 years in Sydney. This huge plateful of tender duck with crispy skin and can-never-have-enough sauce (wonder if it is a secret recipe they use because I could just have plain rice drowned in that sauce!) used to cost only $8.00 when I first stepped into their original tiny shop on the main street. Now, I visit their branch located inside Eastwood Centre and the same plateful costs $10.50. The newer branch is more spacious and consequently, more comfortable. The queue is also shorter.

The service at their newer branch is slightly better than that at their original. However, still be prepared for typical Asian waitstaff attitude - not so friendly if you do not know anyone working there. I like the lady manning the cashier at the newer branch though - very polite, helpful and quick.

Where to find this awesome dish? Only at BBQ One! Dining in would also include a complementary bowl of soup (non of the bland, tasteless stuff, they serve flavoursome soup here!) and free-flow Chinese tea.



BBQ One 阿一烧腊 (original)
181 Rowe Street, Eastwood, NSW 2122, Australia.
Tel: +61 2 9874 5332



BBQ One Kitchen 阿一烧腊 (branch)
10-11/160 Rowe Street, Eastwood, NSW 2122, Australia.
Tel: +61 2 9874 5323

Mr. Han's Traditional Restaurant

First of all, I have to apologise because I did not take down the names of these dishes. However, I did make a mental note that they all tasted quite good.

All the orders were served piping hot, especially this plate of brinjal. This was full on veggie with capsicum, cucumber and potato. Just a tad oily but we had to be careful with the heat when we bit.

Then there was a chicken dish. I think this was Shandong chicken, which was done well. Not too salty and the meat was juicy and tender.

The steamed fish had thumbs up from us, too. Sometimes, simple dishes are sufficient for a hearty meal.

The only (and our biggest) setback - we do not read Chinese. Thankfully, I am conversant in Mandarin, so that helped.



Mr. Han's Traditional Restaurant
261 Rowe Street, Eastwood, NSW 2122, Australia
T: +61 2 9804 0288

Welcome BBQ

Do not be fooled by the humble appearance of this restaurant. There is more than meets the eye.

The Korean ahjuma that runs this place is super friendly. She leads us to the back of the shop where more tables were. Yes, the deception includes a comfortable open backyard, too. And promptly after taking our orders, those little dishes are served.

The seafood pancake is fragrant and not too oily. Like.

The most fun part comes in the form of the barbeque. Have to admit that they have the cleanest barbeque grill I have ever seen in a Korean restaurant!

We all eye the spicy ingredients to wrap with the meat...

... and to down all that Korean solids, a bottle of Korean liquid!

Welcome BBQ
94 Rowe Street, Easwood, NSW 2122, Australia
Tel: +61 2 8065 9881
Open daily from lunch till late

Pho Nam Viet

In all honesty, this place was an accidental venue. We were craving for something Asian and no where else was still open. We were glad we gave them a try because otherwise, we would not find out that Eastwood had not too bad Vietnamese.

Prawn and rice noodle roll

My favourite: Beef pho

Vietnamese fried chicken

Pho Nam Viet
142 Rowe Street, Eastwood, NSW 2121, Australia
Tel: +61 2 9874 0929

Zenya Noodle Bar

Zenya Noodle Bar is an authentic Japanese restaurant operated by experienced Japanese chefs, who have had a great deal of experience preparing Japanese dishes here and abroad. One of the owners is local angmoh, though, which confused us when they first opened.

Although specialising in ramen, which they serve in delicious soy, miso or salt-flavoured broths, Zenya also has an extensive a la carte menu. Their menu includes side dishes, mains and scrumptious bento boxes. They also offer a selection of non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks, and also allows BYO but only for wine.

We always start with a sashimi dish and it normally is a small serving of fresh salmon sashimi ($11.80). Melt in your melt goodness.

My all time favourite is their unagi chirashi sushi ($15.80), eel, omellete, beans and pickles served with sushi rice. I like their version of eel rice because they give a generous serving and the eel is chopped into cubes. All I need to do is mix everything together with the pickled ginger, nori sesame and sweet soy sauce and tah-dah!

Karaage don ($13.80) includes a bowl of miso soup and is a bowl of rice with delicious pieces of Zenya fried chicken in their special sweet and sour sauce with chilli mayo. Wonder what is the recipe for their special sweet and sour sauce. Yums.

The chef's selection crispy skin grilled fish served with ponzu, lemon oil, grated radish, citrus pepper and beans ($15.80) whets the appetite with its fragrant aroma. However, the crispiness of the skin and tenderness of the meat would depend on the chef.

Garnished with pickled ginger, nori and sesame, the salmon ikura don ($14.80) is a bowlful of sushi rice atoped with fresh salsmon sashimi, ikura and seaweed salad. Highly recommend this.

And to help digest our food, what better than a steaming hot pot of green tea? 

 

Zenya Noodle Bar

217 Rowe Street, Eastwood, Sydney 2122, Australia

Tel: +61 2 9874 2122; E-mail: info@zenyanoodlebar.com
Monday Closed 
Lunch 11:30am to 3:00pm
Dinner 5:30pm to 9:00pm (Sunday to Thursday), 5:30pm to 9:30pm (Friday & Saturday) 

Caffé Bom

Caffé Bom is strategically located just across the road from the train station at Eastwood and right where the 545 (Chatswood to Parramatta direction) bus drop off is. When they first started, they only had a handful of home-made gelato flavours, the usual coffee and tea, as well as waffle on the menu.

I found it interesting that even their furniture and fixtures are for sale, too.

Now, their menu has grown to also include full meals of Korean and Italian fare. However, to me, it is still a dessert place. Here are some of the many combinations of dessert that we have tried:

Churros fondue

Waffle gelato

Twin Waffle Gelato

Green tea frappe (Stellina's favourite)

My top three favourites would have to be the ginseng latte, Belgian chocolate waffle and yoghurt gelato. Oh, and their friendly service.



Caffé Bom
15 Railway Parade, Eastwood (Korean side), NSW 2122, Australia
Tel: +61 2 9874 3363