Friday night dinner with friends was at this restaurant serving modern Asian food. We booked here as both the food and drinks menus appealed to us. The venue was very buzzy, with an open kitchen. Noise level was quite high because of hard surfaces and background music but not so much so that I couldn’t have conversations with my dining companions.
We thought this was one of the best restaurants we’ve been to all year. We over-ordered but managed to finish everything. What we ordered (sorry for the all caps but it was easier for me to just copy and paste from the website!):
Drinks:
CRAZY MANDO [SPRITZ] - UNICO MANDO, BIZZARO APERITIVO, TANGERINE, SPARKLING PINOT CHARDONNAY + SODA
WISE JASMINE - HOUSE JASMINE GIN, ELDERFLOWER, TANGERINE, PEAR, LEMON + AQUAFABA
PEACH, PLEASE! - HOUSE PEACH TEA BRANDY, BLOOD ORANGE, ELDERFLOWER, PEACH, LEMON + BITTERS
LYCHEE & NASHI VIRGIN MOJITO
BLUE ROSE LAGER
Food:
Small plates:
GG’S SALT AND PEPPER EGGPLANT -
GONDOLA-GONDOLA’S CRUNCHY BATTER, TOASTED GINGER, SPRING ONION, CHILLI
GOLDEN EGGS (3 EGGS) - PARBOILED & DEEP FRIED, TAMARIND, PALM SUGAR, CHILLI JAM, CRISPY SHALLOTS
PAPAYA SALAD - POACHED PRAWNS, GREEN MANGO, SOUR APPLE, PEANUTS, SWEET CORN, CHERRY TOMATOES, VIETNAMESE MINT, ROAST CHILLI, POMELO + SERVED W. PRAWN OR GARLIC CRACKER
YIN-YANG PORK - CRISPY PORK BELLY, SICHUAN PEPPER SOY GLAZE, TURMERIC PICKLED CAULIFLOWER, BEETROOT PICKLED NASHI + CAULIFLOWER PUREE
KINGFISH SASHIMI - FRUITY MISO GEL, SHISO LEAF, TOBIKO, RED ONION, PONZU + GRAPEFRUIT
KHUN CARPACCIO - WAGYU, FRIED GARLIC + PEPPERCORN OIL, FRESH CORIANDER + NATIVE KHMER DRESSING
Large plates:
STIR -FRIED KWAY TEOW - FRIED TOFU, BOK CHOY, FRIED SHALLOTS + CHINESE CHILLI PASTE
CRUNCHY SQUID - WOK-TOSSED IN SPRING ONION, CHILLI, TOASTED GINGER
LEMONGRASS LAMB CHOPS - MUSHROOM STICKY RICE, CARAMELIZED FISH SAUCE, CRISPY CHICKPEAS
IKAN BAKAR GRILLED BARRAMUNDI - WHOLE BABY BARRA, IKAN BAKAR SAUCE, APPLE, RED ONION + ASIAN HERB SALAD
Sides:
A MOTHER’S LOVE - FAMILY-FARMED CUCUMBERS, BLACK VINEGAR, MUM’S CRISPY CHILLI OIL, SESAME, PEANUTS
TRUFFLE MI GORENG - EGG NOODLES, TRUFFLE PASTE, GARLIC OIL, FRIED EGG
EGGY FRIED RICE - EGGS, SPRING ONION, SECRET SEASONING
I had the Crazy Mando spritz which was refreshing and contained a mandarin liqueur I had never come across before. The other things I had were the eggplant and golden eggs to star. The eggplant was cooked perfectly with super crisp batter. The golden eggs were such a revelation we ordered a second plate for the table - perfectly soft boiled eggs with a crispy exterior, dressed with an addictive sauce. I can’t eat a huge amount, so my ‘main’ was actually the truffle mee goreng which is listed as a side dish on the menu. It was fantastic - the truffle paste, soft-yolked egg and noodles went so well together. I tried a bit of the kway teow, which was unusual in that instead of the usual flat noodles it had mini rice noodle rolls which were perfectly cooked so they were not mushy. Everyone else at the table loved their food, with special mentions for the beef carpaccio, kingfish sashimi and lamb chops. I didn’t manage to get photos of everything.
Golden Eggs:
Lamb chops:
Mee goreng:
Crazy Mando:
The bill came to just over $400 (for 5 diners) before tax and tip. Service was friendly and efficient. Highly recommend this restaurant.
