When you look around a restaurant to get inspiration for what to order and you can see that almost every table has the same dish, you might as well go with the flow. Walk into Tan Viet Noodle House as we did on a late Sunday afternoon, though I’ve heard there are always 20-30 minute queues during peak hour, and you will find yourself at Sydney’s perennial favourite crispy-skin chicken haunt. Though it is late in the afternoon, the restaurant is still packed and we quickly order as we’re famished.

Mi Ga Don – ‘Wet’ Egg Noodles With Soup and Side of Crispy-Skin Chicken

I start off sipping the soup broth ‘to set the mood’ as Seph instructs as this is my first time at Tan Viet, the chicken stock is wonderfully invigorating and has a comforting flavour. Scattered shallots, lettuce and fried garlic lazily float on the broth with a generous serving of egg noodles.

The pièce de résistance is the crispy-skin chicken: the meat is so soft that is falls off the bone, leaving my meticulous bone-cleaning ritual easy. Every piece of skin has a consistent crunch that is deliriously good. I tried every eatery that serves crispy-skin chicken in Sydney, but I can say that this is certainly the best out of the lot that I’ve tried.

Sauce for Crispy-Skin Chicken

Crispy-Skin Chicken With Tomato Rice and Pickled Vegetables

I try some of the tomato rice and it tastes a bit bland and dry. The quality of the serving of crispy-skin chicken is on par with my own and just as good.

Tan Viet Noodle House
Shop 2-3 100 John Street
Cabramatta, NSW
P: (02) 9727 6853

Posted by D

When I posted about Hong Ha Hot Bread; Jimmy, one of our readers, recommended Big Georges Cafe just a little bit up the road and since he claimed they were better than Hong Ha I just had to give them a go! The problem is I do not go to Botany Rd that often so it took me quite a while to try out this place (about 3 months haha). Thanks to Jimmy, I have discovered a truly more flavoursome chicken roll than Hong Ha! When I first saw the outside I was thinking “Is this the wrong place?” cos I thought it looked more like a Western style cafe with burgers and roasts etc, instead of Vietnamese rolls.

I was rest assured when I saw this little whiteboard with Vietnamese rolls on it… and of course the shelves of crispy rolls and serving station of ingredients.

After confusing the Bánh mì Lady, as we were ordering 4 rolls for 3 people (I was having 2 for research of course!), we could tell straight away as she was making that they were tasty Though the service time was considerably longer than at Hong Ha, the taste will be the real test of *insert sombre piano score* which Bánh mì remains supreme!

Vietnamese Pork Roll ($4.50)

These rolls were packed to near-exploding so they are very generous portions for what we pay. I also like how they have a block of the cucumber and radish instead of a little slice as this way you get a nice crunch and more flavour. The pork used here is also different to the one at Hong Ha, being leaner so there wasnt that fatty piece so lost in flavour. Also the mayonnaise/lard isn’t as strong so not as flavoursome as Hong Ha.

Vietnamese Chicken Roll ($5)

Wow… not only did these explode from the bread roll but each bite carried a flavour explosion in the mouth! The chicken they used were actually bbq chicken so there was the sweet and tasty roasted aroma and the addition of grilled onions definitely wins over the raw onions used at Hong Ha.

Overall the chicken roll at Big Georges Cafe is the winner easily and I will definitely coming back here for the chicken rolls but for the pork I might need to do a bit more comparison as I am still leaning towards Hong Ha for the pork. Big Georges Cafe has also got the pork + chicken which I want to give a go but then again I would prefer to buy a pork AND a chicken hee hee.

Other Bánh mì times:

Hong Ha Hot Bread – Mascot, Sydney

Big Georges Cafe

414 Botany Road

Alexandria

Ph: (02) 9319 2653

FFichiban

Hello all!

Welcome to our new home (yay!), sorry about the mess but we still need to finalize the details with a team meeting haha. But anyhoo, to kick off the new site I decided to start off with some light posting before I dig into my Taiwanese travels. I hate flying, all the tight uncomfortable seats, smelly airplane smell, crying babies and the horrific airplane “food” is certainly not my cup of tea but one thing I love is going to Sydney airport because it usually meant a stop off at Hong Ha Hot Bread. This is a cozy little bakery that has become renowned for their Vietnamese rolls or Bánh mì and if you come at the wrong times you can end up queuing up for quite some time even with their 5-6 servers who are all very speedy and efficient and probably win any Bánh mì making competitions.

Even though it says cakes, pies, pastries, sponges, I think most people are here for the rolls!

Look at the cart full of freshly baked Vietnamese baguettes mmmmm

New Red Roll store in Winter Garden Plaza

Pork ingredients to make the delicious Pork rolls

Chicken ingredients

Here Comes the Food

Chicken Spring Roll ($1.40)

Their chicken spring rolls are another item which I sometimes indulge on when I am there. They are very oily though so beware for the cholesterol-conscious. The oiliness does give it a great crunch and flaky exterior which is balanced by the soft filling of chicken mince and some veges.

Vietnamese Pork roll w/ cheese ($5)

The spring rolls are pretty good but this is what we came here for! These rolls are bursting with flavour with a great contrast in texture and flavours. The crispy, crunchy roll has a soft fluffy interior while the other ingredients of 3 different types of pork slices, creamy pork pate/lard, carrot, onions, a sprig of coriander, spring onion, slice of cucumber and cheese all meld together to form the perfect concoction of instant gratification. A perfect snack for any time of the day or as a meal, anytime it leaves a feeling a satisfaction.

Vietnamese Pork roll w/ cheese

I find it hard to take appealing of half-eaten food so I apologize for these ones haha. Trust me in saying that they are much more tasty than what they look like in this photo. The highlight for me about these rolls are the 3 smooth and tender slices of pork with just enough fat on them so they are full of flavour but not too much to give it that ever greasy feeling, mixed with the creamy mayonnaise-like sauce and pate.

Vietnamese Pork roll ($4)

Another winning factor about Hong Ha Bánh mì is their beautifully crispy baguette bread which creates a melodic crunch with each bite.

Next time I shall cut it in half to create a more photogenic roll -__- but this time I must have been too hungry and started wolfing it down before the photos.

MMmmm 2 rolls each seems a bit much? Nahhhhh nyum nyum nyum!

Note: Right now I am very wtg at the codes of Word Press cos I am HTML n00b so please bear with me while I learn kthx haha -__-”

Hong Ha Hot Bread

1151 Botany Rd

Mascot, 2020

Ph: (02) 9667 2069

FFichiban

If you name your restaurant Pho Ngon (“yummy noodles”), you are clearly adducing a standard that your customers should expect when choosing this restaurant instead of the others that line this strip of Hornsby. This restaurant falls short of the expectation by disappointing and failing on the quality of food served, service by its waiters and leaving you with a embittered aftertaste.

Sizzling Chicken ($14.50): A sizzling mess.

I respectfully disagree with Julie Huffer’s review (the only review online) who praises and readily recommends this eatery to the readers of Hornsby Advocate. Please research about your ingrediants before you lay them out Julie: “The rare beef noodle soup was a meal in itself, with a divine broth, pieces of meat and egg noodles”. I’m certain that pho contains rice noodles – not egg noodles, which are distinctively yellow in colour. Also, the broth should not describe as “divine”; it was watery, bland and tasteless.

Beef Pho: it looks good – but tastes bland.

Had to request 5 times for a straw.

Julie, I’m also calling you out on: “I predict Pho Ngon is going to be the talk of the town for some time. With its fabulous food, refreshing interior and reasonable prices, we’ll all be coming back for more”. Sorry, I think it will be negatively talked around the town and you probably won’t be coming back for more. Drinks are served without straws. You have to ask for a waiter at least 5 times before they serve you. Tea isn’t refilled after request. Beef Pho is served without the usual accompanying platter of bean sprouts, hanh and lemon (we had to ask for it?? what the…); and the staff are untrained – they actually stand at your table as soon as you are sat down, waiting for you to order…I mean come on seriously?!

I actually looked this restaurant up on eatability and there was one review, which should be the only review. Who are you “chrisquared” – you are truly an inspiration to me. A few of my favourite parts of this user’s review were: “It was shocking from the moment we were seated” and “We ended up waiting over 40 minutes for food, so we just left. I will never go back, and I don’t recommend that anyone else should try this place, their layout of the restaurant is far too complex for the waiters to work in and their takeaway stand just makes it worse!”. I could not agree any more.

I’m guessing this the manager Helen Hoang? If so, why did you stand behind the cash register the whole night? Please do something else besides handling the money- like checking up on your patrons and ensuring a better running of this eatery.

Please save yourself money, time and ensuing disastrous dining experience by avoiding this place.

Pho Ngon Vietnamese Restaurant

8-10 Florence St
Hornsby NSW 2077

Phone (02) 9477 6300

Lunch
Mon to Sun 10am – 4pm
Dinner
Mon to Sun 4pm – 10pm

D

Going to Chatswood on a Saturday for lunch is already not a very clever idea due to the ludicrous amount of people all trying to squeeze into the commercial area. After spending twice as much time on the road as necessary we were very lucky to quickly find some parking in Chatswood Chase. Tossing between some food places we finally settled on Vietnamese which meant going to de_Pho in Lemon Grove. As soon as we entered the building the heard the hustle and bustle of a packed restaurant and a line of waiting customers as expected.

de_Pho has been a popular place to dine for a while now and for good reason too. The food is tasty, healthy and cheap. I must admit that it is not as tasty or cheap as the Vietnamese food you can get out west like at Flemington or Cabramatta but for a place like this to exist in the North Shore is a gift to us.

Rainbow Drink. Whoever invented this drink is a genius! The mixture of colours, textures and flavours turn this drink into an absolute delight that cools you down in summer but still irresistible in winter-time. It is a combination of mung bean, red bean, green jelly, coconut milk and ice.

Pho is the traditional rice-noodle soup dish of Veitnam. The broth is the vital part of this dish and the quality of the broth determines whether this is a good or bad pho. I think the one at de_Pho has good flavour to it and the beef and garnishes (coriander, basil and bean sprouts) are very fresh which add to the flavour.

Spring roll Vermicelli
The pho maybe be tasty but wait till to you try their vermicelli with spring rolls. There is a range of different topping for the vermicelli dishes and they are all good selections but I personally go for the spring rolls or the 3-flavoured vermicelli (pork chop, shredded pork and egg). For the vermicelli, a small bowl of fish sauce is also given and this is usually poured all over the noodle and then mixed.

When de_Pho first started becoming popular, their vermicelli started off with generous servings of veges and garnishes but sadly as time went on they have sneaked in more noodle and less veges/garnishes but it is still very tasty! A extra nice touch is the fried garlic which adds a nice crunch to the dish.

Crispy skin Chicken
I am not sure if this is a traditional Vietnamese dish as I did not see any at the restaurants when I went to Vietnam for a few days but this is another highlight of the meal. The crispy exterior and the tender interior is just a magical combination.

This place is a must try for all North-Shoreans who have not ventured into the west in search of Vietnamese food.

de_Pho
Shop 21 Lemon Grove Shopping Centre
427-441 Victoria Ave, Chatswood

Mon – Fri 1030am – 600pm
Thurs 1030am – 800pm
Sat 1030am – 400pm

Ph: 9904 8870

FFichiban