AU2012 - House of Thai

It seems that Baan Krua Thai have just had a management change, and the uniquely-housed restaurant is now known as The House of Thai.

 

 

After browsing through their menu, we decided to try two of their Chef’s Specialties. First up is the Roti Chicken Green Curry.

 

 

Unknowingly, it was just a slice of roti pratha, commonly found in Asian groceries, served with green curry. I reckon that it would have tasted better if they had served it with red curry. Then came the BBQ Chicken, …

 

 

… marinated grilled chicken fillets in garlic and black pepper served with steamed mixed vegetables and homemade chilli sauce.

 

 

Accompanying the Chef’s Specialties is the Seafood Salad.

 

 

I actually think that the chef did a better job with the salad than the specialties. LOL!!

 

 

But I guess, what stood out the most between this restaurant and the rest in Wollongong is the provision of a stand for rice. While that is quite common in Asia, it is quite rare to see that being implemented in Australia.

 

 

House of Thai Cuisine
125 Keira Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
+61 2 4228 8371

AU2012 - Hanoi Vietnamese

Conveniently located next to the Wollongong train station, Hanoi Vietnamese is quite popular for something quick and cheap.

 

 

That is, if you don’t mind the Westernised Asian food of rice or noodles, mixed with meat and sauce. Examples include Lemon Chicken …

 

 

… Sweet and Sour Pork …

 

 

… and Mongolian Chicken.

 

 

Other than the rice paper rolls, looks like Hanoi is a Vietnamese takeaway that is not quite Vietnamese!!

 

 

Hanoi Vietnamese Takeaway Food
Shop 3, 341 Crown Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
+61 2 4226 3379

AU2012 - Taj Mahal

Calling itself the Taj Mahal, we never thought that we would one day step into the restaurant, since we had expected the meal to be very mahal!!

 

 

So, when JumpOnIt offered a deal to experience the taste of authentic Indian cuisine with Taj Mahal at a 58% discount, we happily Jumped On It!!

 

 

For entree, we had a mixed platter of Vegetable Samosa, Prawn Pakora and Chicken Tikka.

 

 

Then came the two main courses, the Chicken Vindaloo …

 

 

… and Butter Chicken, …

 

 

… both served with rice.

 

 

We also had the garlic naan bread to complement the curries.

 

 

And guess what?

 

 

We had both Santa and Rudolph joining us for dinner!! LOL!!

 

Note: mahal in Malay means expensive.

 

 

Taj Mahal Finest Indian Restaurant
166, Keira Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
+61 2 4227 4388

AU2012 - Sakura Sushi

A new addition to Wollongong’s Corrimal Street food precinct, Sakura Sushi is rumoured to be opened by an ex-employee of Roppongi.

 

 

Since they called themselves a Sushi restaurant, I guess, it is a must to try out their assorted sushi tray, …

 

 

… and the interesting Mini Maki Tri-Color Roll.

 

 

While there, we also managed to try their Chicken Cutlet Curry Rice, …

 

 

… Chicken Teriyaki Udon, …

 

 

… Chicken Teriyaki Bento Box, …

 

 

… and Deep Fried Chicken Cutlet Bento Box.

 

 

Other than the slow service and a very limited seating space, I think Sakura Sushi did quite well. And with their recent gain in popularity, it is getting harder and harder to secure a seat without any reservations!!

 

 

Sakura Sushi Japanese Restaurant
Shop 8, 121-125, Corrimal Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
+61 2 4226 6282

AU2012 - Thai Carnation

Although Thai Carnation has been around for quite some time, we never really tried it. So, this time, we decided to check it out!!

 

 

Spotting contemporarily-designed interiors, the restaurant had a relaxed ambience. If it had been quieter, like in Crystal Thai, it would be perfect.

 

 

For something slightly different, we had the Pumpkin Curry Chicken, one of the Chef’s special, which consists of chicken breast cooked in red curry sauce with pumpkin, capsicum and basil.

 

 

We also had the Gai Lao Dang, a dish of pan fried lightly battered chicken breasts, topped with red whisky sauce, cashew nuts, water chestnuts and dry chilli.

 

 

And when we thought that we would have tried almost all of the Thai restaurants in Wollongong, a few new ones had just popped up!!

 

 

Thai Carnation
50, Crown Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
+61 2 4228 4102
http://www.thaicarnation.com/

AU2012 - Ha Long Bay

Besides Mylan, another Vietnamese restaurant that is extremely popular with the locals is Ha Long Bay.

 

 

Named after the magnificent World Heritage Site in Vietnam, we wondered if the food tasted as magnificent too?

 

 

While there, we had the Crispy Spicy Pork Chop, which unfortunately, wasn’t crispy at all, and the Lemongrass and Chilli Chicken, which is literally just chicken and a whole lot of lemongrass sauce.

 

 

I guess, if one is looking for an Asian restaurant that caters to the Western palate, Ha Long Bay may be a suitable candidate. But for something more authentic, I would suggest they give it a miss.

 

 

Ha Long Bay Vietnamese Restaurant
52, Crown Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
+61 2 4225 0338

AU2011 - Sugar Cube

We are back to Sugar Cube again for some freshly made to order Belgium Waffles!!!

 

 

But this time, its for some late night snacks with the Wafflepops, a.k.a waffles on a stick!!

 

 

Offering a total of 12 flavours including Milk Chocolate, White Chocolate, Rainbow, Coconut, Strawberry, Passionfruit, Icing Sugar, Cinnamon Sugar, Toffee Sauce, Maple Syrup, M&Ms and Nutella, we were really spoilt for choice.

 

 

So, we ended up with, in clockwise direction from the bottom, M&Ms, Rainbow, White Chocolate, Toffee Syrup, Passionfruit, and Nutella. On hindsight, we should have ordered all 12!! LOL!!

 

 

The Sugar Cube
13, Crown Street, Wollongong, NSW 2500.
+61 2 4227 3888
http://www.thesugarcube.com.au/