Night Noodle Markets 2009, Sydney

Sir D and I headed to the Night Noodle Markets last night on the prowl for some yummy food. Having been there in previous years, we went early to avoid the horrendous crowds that build up through the night, and also to redeem our SMH subscriber free drinks vouchers from the SMH stand! We got there at exactly 5pm and had time to walk around all the stalls to see what was on offer before there were too many people.

The early bird catches the worm... people at the Noodle Markets at 5pm
 

There were all the usual Malaysian and Thai places selling noodles and curries as well as a few yum cha stalls selling dim sum. Notable newcomers included Din Tai Fung who were offering dumplings such as their famous pork soup dumplings (xiao long bao) and also some mini dessert buns like red bean. 

Offerings at Jackie M

We decided to grab the char kway teow from Jackie M since we could see them frying each batch of noodles separately to order. The smell wafting from their stall was mouth-watering, and we could see that it was already drawing some early noodle-market goers to their stall.

Chicken Char Kway Teow - $12.00

Sushi Rio, Sydney

My sister Charm and I are both love our sushi. We ventured out to the city one Friday afternoon for lunch and we stumbled across Sushi Rio's lunch special where all sushi was $3! With a bargain like that we couldn't resist and so we abandoned our original lunch destination to eat at Sushi Rio.


The place was quite full but luckily when we went there was no line and we were seated promptly. One thing I like about Sushi Rio's setup is that their plates are grouped into categories according to the type of seafood/meat in the sushi. So all the salmon, prawn, tuna, chicken etc has its own little section of the train preceded by a sign saying what the section is. Pretty good for those unfamiliar with their sushi.

Raw salmon onion nigiri (normally $3.00)

We started off with the salmon onion nigiri which was very fresh and zigzagged with wasabi mayo.

Grilled eel nigiri (normally $3.50)

The eel nigiri is sweet and tender - the most tender eel I've ever had I think!

Raw scallop nigiri (normally $3.50)

Lindt Chocolat Café, Sydney

One Friday afternoon in the city, Charm and I were in the mood for sugar. We headed over to Bacco Pasticceria in Chifley Plaza but alas, we'd come too late and they were pretty much sold out of their cakes! So the backup plan for our sugar hit ended up arriving in waffle form at Lindt Cafe.

Lindt Waffle: freshly made and served warm with Lindt vanilla white chocolate ice-cream and Chocolate Fudge sauce - $15.00

Let's Do Lunch @ Sean's Kitchen, Pyrmont

October has got to be every Sydney foodie's favourite month because it's the month of the Sydney International Food Festival (SIFF)! Having trawled the SIFF website for all the fantastic food-related events on this year, Sir D and I kick-started the SIFF with a visit to Sean's Kitchen for Let's Do Lunch.

Interior of Sean's Kitchen

With a name like Seven Deadly Sins, I could not resist finding out just how deadly the Let's Do Lunch offering was at Sean's Kitchen. It was quite hard to navigate ourselves to the 2nd floor of Star City where the restaurant was located since they were renovating sections of the casino and many of the escalators were closed off - so frustrating because I was hungry! We got there eventually and we requested the Let's Do Lunch offer, and our friendly waitress promptly offered us a choice of a Brown Brothers red wine or a Coopers pale ale.



We also got a slice of bread which was warmed up but the crust was a bit too chewy as though it had been out for a while. I was hungry so I ate most of mine with the lovely creamy butter (which was covered with a cute cow print!) but Sir D left his behind.

Seven Deadly Sins - $35 including a glass of wine, beer or mineral water

Miro Tapas Bar, Sydney

One of the things I love about tapas is that you get to share everything - which for me means no pleading with people to have a little taste of their meals! Tonight we're at Miro Tapas Bar to farewell MB who is jet setting off to Europe for 2 months - lucky him! And by some divine miracle from the food gods we get seated at the only well-lit table in the whole place. Not so good for the ambiance but definitely good for my photos =D

Sangria - $20 for a jug

We start off with a jug of sangria for the table, which is sweet and fruity. Very drinkable.

Calamares al Sol (strips of calamari, golden browned on the hot plate with a special salsa) - $12.00

We order a whole lot of tapas to share depending on everyone's preferences and luckily we end up with lots of different dishes. First up is the calamari with salsa verde which is a simple yet delicious dish. The calamari is also very tender.

Champignones al Ajillo (garlic mushrooms) -$11.00

Next is the ubiquitous tapas dish: garlic mushrooms. These are juicy and have a great garlicky flavour.