Chin Chin Restaurant – Melbourne CBD - Melbourne, Australia

A visit to Melbourne is not complete without going to Chin Chin Restaurant. It’s one of the most famous restaurants in Melbourne and the ‘IT’ place to be. There is a lot of hype surrounding the restaurant, being one of the most reviewed on Zomato. 

Chin Chin Restaurant is a walk in restaurant and only takes reservations for groups of 10-12 people. We arrive on a Saturday night at around 8pm thinking it won’t be too crowded given that its past busy dinner time but no, we were wrong. It’s so busy and fully packed out. We’re told there is approximately a two hour wait for a table. That would mean having dinner at 10pm!

Since we were in no hurry for dinner having just consumed a waffle from Waffee and being rather full from lunch, we decide to wait. Now you may think we’re crazy waiting at those odd hours but since we’re already in town and having heard such rave reviews we had to try it. Our expectations were set high. 

Getting side tracked a bit but the waffles from Waffee are worth a mention. The plain waffle is wonderfully warm and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. 

You have the choice of waiting at the bar or they can call you once a table is available. We opt for the latter as there is still plenty to see in the CBD including a visit to the Gingerbread House and watching the Christmas lights display.

A hour and a bit in, our phone buzzes and they advise a table is available. That was indeed much quicker than we expected. I’m glad we waited as it wasn’t that long after all. At past 9pm it's still a full house and there are still customers waiting to go in.

Located on Flinders Lane, Chin Chin Restaurant is a casual eatery serving modern Thai street inspired dishes with a South-East Asian twist. It’s dimly lit and rather dark but that gives it the nice ambiance. There is that constant lively buzz from the chatter and 80’s music pumping in the background, giving it a very cool vibe.

We find our neighboring tables extremely friendly. They are locals from Melbourne and they greet us once we take a seat, not something you would expect to see in Sydney.

The menu is elaborate and there are plenty of options to choose from. All sound visually appealing even though there are no pictures. We struggle to pick only a few dishes to share but eventually decide on them after much deliberation.

We start off with the ‘Handmade Crab and Pork Cakes ($15.00)’ served with a salted duck egg and tamarind sauce.An odd sounding combination but flavours worked well. The cakes are deep fried to a lovely golden texture. Wrapped in the leaves and then dipped in the sauce, it was delicious.

The ‘Smashed Green Papaya Salad ($16.00)’ with red chilli, prawn floss, peanuts and black beans is SPICY. For a chilli lover like myself, it was fiery. The sweet, sour and hot balanced well together and the papaya was just so fresh. A simple dish, yet packed with a whole lot of punch.

Next up was the ‘Pad Seuw Beef ($24.00)’ made up of stir fried rice noodles with wagyu beef, gai lan and shallots. A popular dish at regular Thai joints but the version here was superb.  The beef wasn’t chewy and the noodles were wonderfully coated with a dark soy sauce.

The ‘Hot and Sour Steamed White Fish ($29.50)’ was the last dish to arrive. We were expecting a fillet of fish in a lovely sauce. However, it was more like a soup. Pieces of fresh fish in a tom yum style broth with chilies and baby corn. I personally found it a bit sour and compared to the other dishes this was our least favourite.

How could one leave without dessert? The ‘Palm Sugar Ice-cream Sundae ($16.50)’ with salted honeycomb and lime syrup was delightful. A scoop of the honeycomb with the robust flavours of the palm sugar ice-cream was a satisfying way to end the meal.

If you’re in Melbourne do give Chin Chin Restaurant a try as I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. It does live up to its hype. The large portion sizes, fresh ingredients and scrumptious food makes up for the higher prices and long waiting times. A memorable experience.

Next destination is Singapore (again) and Hong Kong. There is so much I want to eat in these countries I don’t think I’ll have time to try everything. I can’t wait!

Look out for upcoming posts after April.

Where

Chin Chin Restaurant

125 Flinders Lane

Melbourne VIC 3000

Australia

Phone no: 03 8663 2000

Waffee

1/77 Swanston St

Melbourne VIC 3000

Australia

Phone no: 03 9041 4594

Opening Hours

Chin Chin Restaurant

7 Days a week

11:00am – 11:30pm

Waffee

7 Days a Week
Monday - Thursday: 7:45am - 7:00pm
Friday: 7:45am - 11:00pm
Saturday: 10:00am - 9:00pm
Sunday: 10:00am - 6:00pm

Websites

http://www.chinchinrestaurant.com.au/

http://www.waffee.com.au/

Operator 25 - Melbourne CBD - Melbourne, Australia

Operator 25 is a fairly new cafe in the Melbourne dining scene, having only been open since May last year. It has already garnered a following, seeing a surge in its popularity, witnessed by a myriad of online reviews and publications .

Located near Flagstaff Gardens, this restaurant is tucked away in a little alleyway. It occupies a heritage listed building in the CBD fringe serving breakfast, lunch and everything in between including brunch.

We arrived early on a weekday morning, the week where most have just returned to work following the long weekend and lucky for us it wasn't busy. The customer base was mainly corporates, but when we went past on the weekend it was packed with a diverse group of people.

The interior is modern and rustic, giving off the cool industrial and warehouse vibe.

They appear to have two separate menus, one in summer and one in winter. We tried the dishes from their 'Summer 2015' menu. The selection available is interesting with a creative twist on the traditional dishes, and not like items from the typical standard breakfast menu.

The 'Cappuccino ($3.80)' was spot on. They use the finest beans from a local producer called 'Code Black Coffee Roasters'. The coffee was strong, rich and creamy. A great way to start the morning.

We started off with the 'Coconut Sago Cup ($10.00)', made up of fresh berries, pineapple salsa, coconut chips and mango foam. An interesting option for breakfast as it sounded more like dessert, but it was well received by all of us. The mango mousse was incredibly smooth, and the coconut sago was refreshing. The best way to eat this is by scooping up all the elements together and you'll experience that flavour explosion.  This was our favourite dish as it was so good.

The 'Breakfast Tortilla ($17.00)' is filled with chorizo, scrambled eggs, mixed mushrooms, aged cheddar cheese and green harissa sauce. The mixture of perfectly cooked scrambled eggs, slightly salty chorizo and finely chopped mushroom, all encased in a lightly grilled soft tortilla, was delicious. We would have preferred the grated cheese to be melted.

We were most excited about trying the 'Hot Cakes ($16.00)'. Matcha and white chocolate flavoured hot cakes served with black sesame mascarpone, banana chips, toasted hazelnut and cherry sauce. The hot cakes were chunky and round, but it was still moist with a faint green tea taste. It wasn't too sweet and with the cherry sauce, while an unusual addition, balanced out the sweetness with a slight sourness.

'Smoked Chicken, Vegetable Hash and Tomato Chutney ($16.00)' with a poached egg looked striking with the contrast of different colours. While it was visually appealing and the flavours worked well together, it didn't have that wow factor as compared to the other dishes we had.

Operator 25 surprised us with their food combinations and it actually worked. The food was amazingly good and it surely left a lasting impression. If we're ever in Melbourne again, I would love to try out their lunch menu. The 'Balinese Pulled Pork Burger' sounds very enticing.

Where?
25 Wills Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
Australia

Phone no: 03 9670 3278

Opening Hours
Monday - Friday: 7:00am - 4:00pm
Saturday - Sunday: 9:00am - 4:00pm

Website
www.operator25.com.au

Dainty Dumpling House - Miranda - Sydney, Australia

Dainty Dumplings 

With the makeover of Westfield Miranda in process, a number of new eateries have started to open or are due to open soon. Stage 1 of the renovation is now complete and it looks amazing. Westfield Miranda has been in need of a restoration for a long time as it has been a while since it was last re-done. I would imagine that the rent for shop or restaurant spaces would be exorbitant, hence the higher prices for the food that is charged to compensate for the rent.

Dainty Dumpling House is well, a Chinese dumpling restaurant. An unusual name I would probably associate with a tea house of some sort.  Located on the lower floor of the complex, this restaurant occupies a large corner space with an open kitchen and fresh dumplings prepared daily.

They also have items other on their menu such as handmade noodles and roti, but as they haven't been open for long, these are yet to be made available. There are a substantial number of items on the menu but they have been tagged 'coming soon' unfortunately.

From the outside, you could see the chefs busy preparing and cooking. Can you see those colourful dumplings? It's one of their speciality items.

On a Sunday morning, we arrive before 12pm and the restaurant is at full capacity. We join the queue and get a table shortly.

We notice that service is slow and disorganised as there are only two waiters to take the orders. I find myself having to go to the waitress to ask her if I could place my order as she is preoccupied with other things. The patrons on the tables next to us look frustrated as their orders haven't been taken, having arrived way before us. The main problem here is the restaurant is new and they are adjusting to the new environment, so do give them time.

I do like their cutlery.

We start off with 'Xiao Long Bao ($10.80)', described as steamed pork dumplings with soup. The dumplings are made in house so they are as fresh as they can be. Eight morsels of delicate, nicely pleated skins encloses a glorious soupy and juicy mince pork inside. We ordered two trays of this and it still wasn't enough.

'Shaomai stuffed with Abalone and Pork ($10.80)' sounds fancy doesn't it? It's the usual Shaomai you would find at Yum Cha restaurants with the addition of a thin slice of abalone on top of each. We found the prawn and pork mixture to be tough and dry.

'Fried Rice with Chinese Mushroom and Diced Chicken ($13.80)' is last to arrive. A mound of rice is stir-fried with Chinese mushroom, diced chicken, egg and shallots. We liked that it wasn't bland but we felt the rice was ultra soft and lacked that wok flavour one would usually associate with cooking fried rice.

The 'Xiao Long Bao' was delicious but the other items weren't as good in comparison. Service can be improved as a lot of diners were left angry at the slow and at times, non-existent service. It's not a cheap place to dine but for those living in the Shire, it saves having to travel to Hurstville or the City for a fix of dumplings. I can't wait till Din Tai Fung opens in Miranda, one of my favourite dumpling restaurants in Sydney. Do give Dainty Dumpling House a chance as I'm sure once they're open longer, service will pick up and more menu items will be available.

Where?
Shop 1012/600
Kingsway Miranda NSW 2228
Australia

Phone no: 02 9188 2589

Opening Hours
Contact restaurant for opening hours.

Website
http://www.daintydumplinghouse.com.au/