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/

Green Peppercorn - Fairfield - Sydney, Australia

Green Peppercorn

 

Green Peppercorn Restaurant is a very popular Lao / Thai restaurant in Fairfield. It has been mentioned in numerous articles and newspapers, and I've also heard that the queues are very long for dinner, so be prepared to wait if you haven't booked ahead.

Today, my mum and I met up with Toto and her mum for lunch. Toto is my very close cousin and we spent most of our childhood and teenage years growing up together. Ah the fond memories. But now that we have both grown up, we don't see each other as much anymore due to work, study and life commitments in general. We do however, try to meet up when we can.

 

 

 

Today, we were at Green Peppercorn Lao & Thai Restaurant in Fairfield, which occupies a space in the Fairfield Hotel. We arrive at 11:50am, but it doesn't open till 12:00pm so we end up being one of the first customers there. It gets pretty full by the time our meals arrive.

 

The 'Salt and Pepper Squid ($16.90)' looks beautiful on the plate. Accompanied with two dipping sauces, mum's special sauce and sweet chilli sauce, the deep fried battered squid is fried to perfection. So addictively crispy and crunchy. Oh so yummy! I find myself dipping the squid into mum's special sauce because it tastes so good.

 

The 'Laos 'Style Papaya Salad ($11.90)' is a hit amongst the table. It has the right mix of sour, spicy and salty flavours. I like the crunch of the papaya and it goes well with the side of cabbage and cherry tomato. One word, refreshing.

 

'Panang Curry Chicken ($12.90)' is a good curry dish consisting of red curry, chicken and green beans. I like it when they have the bamboo shoots in Panang curry but unfortunately it is missing this time around. I'm not a fan of the green beans in general ,so none for me. 

 

The 'Pad Cashew Nut Chicken ($12.90)' is not bad but not the best either. Chicken is stir-fried in a chill jam nut sauce with vegetables. We've had much better elsewhere. There is a lot of chicken and not enough vegetables but that's just me as I like my veggies.

By this time we were so full but we soldiered on.

 

Dessert was no other than the famed 'Fried Ice-Cream ($13.90)'. This is not your average ice-cream coated in flour and coconut, and drizzled with chocolate sauce ,but the modern version. Ice-cream is wrapped in a pastry and then served with caramel sauce and coconut muesli. I suggested we share one between four but Toto exclaimed, ''I'm not sharing one between four!''.

A spacious place and a great atmosphere to eat and dine with family and friends. Great Lao and Thai food at reasonable prices.

Where?
1 Hamilton Rd
Fairfield NSW 2165
Australia

Phone no: 02 9724 7842

Opening Hours

Lunch12:00pm - 3:00pm (Mon - Sun)

Dinner5:30 - Last orders at 9:45pm (Mon - Wed)

5:30 - Last orders at 10:45pm (Thu - Sat)

5:30 - Last orders at 8:45pm (Sunday)

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

Sitney Thai Restaurant - Canley Vale - Sydney, Australia

Sitney Thai Restaurant

When this restaurant opened a while back, I did have the chance to try out the food once, for lunch. I recall the food being absolutely delicious and was expecting the same this time around. It was Miss A's birthday last week and she chose to go local for dinner, usually opting to eat in  the City instead, but was lazy to drive out.

We always over order and this time around we 'tried' to not order as much as we usually do. That idea failed as we did have some leftovers but nonetheless we did very well at attempting to finish everything. Well done girls!

A Thai inspired interior with soft, mellow,  music playing in the background. Not many patrons when we arrived but a packed house by the time we left.

 

Who doesn't like an appetiser fried golden and crisp to perfection? The 'Money Bag ($7.90)' is a serving of 4 with chicken, chestnut and prawn encased in a pastry outer shell. I really liked the crunchiness of the chestnut and the accompanying dipping sauce.

I tend to have cravings for this once in a while. The 'Lao Sausage ($9.90)' are grilled pork sausages filled with herbs and spices, and looked absolutely divine. A few places don't grill their sausages very well as it is still lacks in colour, but here, the few extra minutes sure make a difference.

 

The 'Som Tum Laos ($9.90)' is a shredded green papaya salad with a crab paste and anchovy dressing. A mix of sweet, sour and spicy, which hit the spot. An abundance of papaya on top of a bed of cabbage leaves.

'Panang Curry Chicken ($16.90)' is a favourite of ours and a curry we seem to order time in and out. A sweet tasting, yellow curry packed with a lot of coconut cream and strong, aromatic flavours. Tastes great on top of steamed, fluffy rice.

'Pad See Ew Chicken ($10.90)'  is cooked well here. Flat rice noodles are stir fried in a dark soya/ oyster sauce combination and topped with vegetables. Disappointed with the lack of green vegetables and the portion of leaves to stalks but we still thoroughly enjoyed it.

'Medium Steamed Jasmine  Rice ($4.00)'.

'Cashew Nut Sauce Chicken ()' was an average dish. Homemade chill jam stir-fried with chicken and an assortment of vegetables. Was missing my favourite Chinese broccoli.

We all had 'Coconut Juice ($3.90)' and it was either from the plastic bottle or the packet. We knew this prior to ordering as most Thai places don't serve fresh coconut juice. Tin Tin and I found it overly sweet, sweeter than how it usually is.

No dessert here as we opted to move to another place which shall be posted next.They do, however, make some excellent desserts like the famous fried ice-cream from Holy Basil!

This year, I came back with the same expectation I had previously, but unfortunately it wasn't met. Food was mediocre and nothing stood out. However, prices are very reasonable as there is a lot of competition around. They were generous with their portions and food is  authentic. Service was friendly and the boss did come around and ask us if we enjoyed the food.

Good place to try authentic Thai food at reasonable prices. Their food is much better than a lot of the Thai restaurants in the area and they also have another restaurant in Parramatta if you're interested.

Where?
10-12 Canley Vale Rd,
Canley Vale NSW 2166
Australia

 Phone no:  02 9728 3531

Opening Hours
Open 7 Days
Contact Restaurant for Opening Hours

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

Chilli Jam - Parramatta - Sydney, Australia

Chilli Jam

If you haven't been to Chill Jam, then you definitely have to go! It's got to be one of the best Thai restaurants that I have been to by far. Not only is the food authentic, great tasting and decent priced but the portions are huge compared to the standard.

The original Chilli Jam in Concord has got to be one of the best Thai restaurants in Sydney. We've have been many times and they have never failed to satisfy our Thai cravings. It is extremely busy on Friday nights and the weekend so book ahead if you plan on going.



Today, we're at Chilli Jam Parramatta for lunch which is located at the end of Church St. It's not too busy at lunch and thats how we like it. The interior is very modern and the music is soothing to the ears.
 

 





We start off with the drinks. J has the 'Thai Milk Tea ($3.50)' and says its a must have. W has a 'Pepsi ($3.50) and I go with the usual 'Lemon Lime Bitters ($3.50)'.




W has her usual 'Pad See Eww Chicken ($15.90)' which is again a very large serve which terrifies her at first but manages to finish at the end.



J and I order from the lunch specials and opt for option B. ' Chilli Jam Chicken Box Set ($15.90)' which is ginormous with a money bag, two spring rolls, dipping sauce, stir-fried chilli jam chicken, salad and rice'. I'm extremely full after the satisfying meal.

 

It's a bit far for me to get to now days but will be dropping by very soon for lunch or dinner if in the area.

However, I hear that the food is not always very consistent here and depends on which day of the week you go.

Where?
325 Church St
Parramatta NSW 2150
Australia

Phone no: 02 9687 3300

Opening Hours
Refer to website

Website
http://www.chillijam.com.au/index.php