Aspley Oriental, Aspley, Brisbane

This Chinese restaurant has been open since as long as I can remember and with a variety of dishes from A La Carte to Yum Cha, everyone is sure to enjoy. Coming here on a Sunday lunch is always the best time but yet the most crowded time to have Yum Cha. One of the best Chinese restaurants to dine at the Northside..

'Chicken Feet' is a staple dish to order during Yum Cha. Some may be frightened of the fact that it is Chicken's feet while some just can't look at it. The aroma that these feet has been marinated in is definitely giving you that delicious smell and feeling. It does get quite tricky in trying to eat the meat off it as you do have to take your time and is usually best to be eaten by hand. However, if you are wanting to know the taste, it simply just tastes like chicken to be honest just very less meat and much softer than your usual chicken breast texture.

'Minced Pork w Coriander and Peanuts Dumpling' is a dumpling that packs many different flavours in one all based on the minced pork with the hint of coriander and peanuts for extra crunchiness allows this dumpling to be delicious.

'Xiao Long Bao', also know as Shanghai Dumplings which is famous for their soup inside the dumpling which is the main highlight. The flavoursome and hot steaming soup will come out everytime you try and pop this into your mouth. An advice would be to not bite half way and instead try to put it into your mouth as a whole. By biting halfway, you will be sacrificing the soup pouring out and not being able to taste it. Eat it as is or dip a part of it into the soy sauce before eating it.

'Steamed Prawn Dumplings' isn't something I would choose to be my favourite but is always chosen everytime we go out for Yum Cha. Not sure if it's just because it is filled with prawns inside covered in a thin dumpling skin steamed to hotness or what..

'Bok Choy in Oyster Sauce' was just like what it is called, asian greens slightly cooked and served with oyster sauce. One thing I have to point out was that they should really cut it more proportionally as some stalks were way too big and you definitely won't be able to chew nor bite it in any way. 

'Steamed and Pan Fried Pork Buns' was your typical pork bun with the mouth watering sweet Pork Char Siu filling however as you can see, the main part of the bun has been steamed with the top being slightly pan fried which allows you to enjoy the bun with the tad smokiness.

'Tripe' isn't something everyone will love because of its texture however its flavour is something you will love if you like your simple seafood being cooked and steamed in chilli and ginger as well as garlic topped with spring onions.

'Lo Mai Gai' which literally means Chinese sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaf filled with Chicken, mushrooms, Chinese Sausage and scallions while some places also have them with all that plus salted egg and/or shrimp. A staple Yum Cha dish to order yet again, gives you a delicious goodness all wrapped in a lotus leaf all steamed up. When it arrive on your table, you are able to smell and have the aroma coming out as well as all the steam.

When you slowly open the lotus leaf up, be careful as it may be very hot and the steam may just heat it so ever more. This dish usually comes in 2 as one portion when you do order and is usually isn't placed on the trays but instead you would need to tell one of the waitresses if you would like to order it. If you want to have a bit of dishes here and there but not sure if they will fill you up, then be sure to order this. The only thing that people may not be used to is one, the sticky rice with fillings in them and two, the fact that this is all wrapped in a lotus leaf. But I do assure you, when you have tried this at least once, you may come back and have it again the next time you do have Yum Cha with family or friends.

The filling of minced chicken and chinese sausage works well along with mushrooms allows it to be a light dish but feels heavy afterwards. The flavours of the meat is quite aromatic having a soy sauce based and the sauce has also been absorbed by the sticky rice allowing the rice also having a subtle flavour.

'Chee Cheong Fan' is always one of my favourites to order when having Yum Cha, especially the BBQ Pork filling It is basically soft thick rice noodles with fillings such as BBQ Pork or Beef or Prawn or Vegetables and soy sauce poured all over it. The way you eat this is not by eating it as a whole but instead try and cut them up into let's say 2 or 3 pieces each to be able to eat it conveniently and easily shared.



'Egg Tart' is always a favourite amongst diners when having Yum Cha. There are also Mango pancakes or Coconut puddings available for dessert if you're wanting something cold. The Egg tart wobbles as it should and the pastry has dozens of layers which I do prefer rather than those densed pastry.

Genkotsu Ramen, Eight Mile Plains, Brisbane

Sometimes in life, you may want to eat out at fancy restaurants or maybe the newly opened restaurant that everyone is hyped up on. However, there will always be that comfort food whether it may be a good ol' burger or just your mother's cooking or even just a big bowl of fried food. Now, a big bowl of ramen may not suit everyone but trust me, during winter or rainy days, you would definitely want to put your hands around a hot bowl of ramen filled with goodness. Genkotsu reminds me of the Ramen eateries in Japan, petite but cozy serving up good classic comfort food.

'Shio' (AUD$9.5) was a Ramen with a salty base soup which allows those who aren't a big fan of the Soy Sauce based soup but would still like the original Tonkotsu without all the extras. Served with Pork Chashu and shallots, very simple but I do believe that the salty base soup can be too salty for some. There are also chilli powder and sesame if you would like to add or alter the original soup to your liking.

'Black Garlic' (AUD$11) has a Shoyu (Soy sauce) base soup which combines perfectly as it blends together well. Served in a large black bowl with Chashu pork, bamboo shoots, shallots and the main star of the dish, the black garlic oil. The ramen itself was thin and cooked well, it was chewy and not overcooked until it was soggy. The slow cooked egg had its own flavour as it has absorbed all the goodness it has been cooked in. The soft Pork Chashu melts in your mouth and basically is another highlight of the dish however, I have to say that after mixing the black garlic oil with the soup, it definitely will blow your mind and tastebuds and allow you to experience something different than the normal Ramen you usually eat. The soup was very rich and had a strong depth of flavour which was comforting.

Just a note before you do come in, seats are very limited and there are usually a queue at peak hours with people waiting outside the door. It is a very tiny place with probably only fitting about 20 or so people hence the fact that they have bench seats which sometimes you may just need to share with other diners. The good thing is that the service is fast and after ordering and finding a seat, the next thing you know, your Ramen is ready..

Nest, Hotel Jen, Roma St, Brisbane CBD

Situated conveniently at the second level of the Roma Street Transit Centre as well as Hotel Jen being in the same building, Nest offers an all day dining with a mixture of heavy Asian influences from Chinese to Indonesian to Vietnamese. Having their own organic Sky Garden allows them to pick daily Aromatic herbs allowing guests to enjoy the meals knowing its freshness.

Both lunch and dinner menus offers a range of classic Asian dishes that even maybe we could find them when we go to street stalls in Asia. From their entrees or shared plates to their Wok or Grilled even to their sweet plates, they all are infused with a touch of Asian fusion and creativity involved.

'Twice Cooked Pork Belly' (AUD$16) was an entree we shared which caught our eyes as we have had other twice cooked pork belly before which since then, still topped it for us compared to the others we have tried. Though this was an asian fusion, we knew it would have a unique taste in a way that it had Chilli Caramel, Grapefruit and peanuts. Presented nicely on a black round plate allowed the dish itself to have a bright pop of colour and contrast when it arrived on our table.

It was somewhat sweeter than I'd originally thought it would be, having the chilli caramel at the bottom of the dish with roughly chopped nuts sprinkled on the plate for both texture and look. There were also mint leaves as well as freshly sliced red chillies and thinly sliced long strings of grapefruit giving it all a pop of colour once again. Having the mint leaves allowed us to cleanse our palates after every bite yet it also did add abit of freshness too.

The pork belly had a distinct sweetness and was cooked well having a slightly charred exterior but soft on the inside and surprisingly having the grapefruit acidity balanced it out nicely. I wonder how they made this dish work as I wouldn't have thought of combining grapefruit with chilli caramel. The hint of chilli was there amongst the caramel sauce but was not overly strong. The grapefruit gave the dish a nice punch while the peanuts gave a crunch here and there.

'Crispy Pressed Duck' (AUD$34) was a grilled dish that caught my eye when I read the words, Crispy Pressed. Other than Peking Duck, I don't frequently order duck dishes when out.. Not that I don't like it, I do believe me, but usually something else on the menu do attract me more that makes me not choose it as a dish to have. Crispy pressed duck with caramelised mandarin sauce, ginger and asian soy greens was presented beautifully again with the different elements and colours to shine with a black oval plate as a base.

The asian soy greens were well cooked, not too well done until it becomes soggy and still had their crunch. Four pieces of Mandarin gave it a pop of yellow as well as thinly sliced red chilli skin on top of the duck. The caramelised mandarin sauce was quite strong in terms of the mandarin which is great but I thought that it did overpower the duck itself abit.

The crispy pressed duck had a crispy skin with a slight charred at the top which I appreciated, showing the smokyness of the duck meat being pressed. What was great was that there were no bones attached so you could just eat it as is. The caramelised mandarin sauce had smothered the crispy skin of the duck but did not make the skin any less soggy but instead absorbed it well allowing the duck itself to have the aroma of the caramelisation.

'Pad Thai' ($22) is a classic Thai dish consisting of thin rice noodles, chicken, prawn, tofu, eggs, garlic chive, tamarind sauce and peanuts. Having had a long thought of whether we should be ordering a Pad Thai here took a while but we decided to give it a try anyway.. who knows, it might surprise us. When it arrived on our table, it seemed as if it was the only coloured plated on our table with a bright yellow round plate for the dish.

What got me having the errr moment was the fact that I was fine with having the chopped peanuts, a lemon wedge on the side of the pad thai but having the raw chilli flakes being all placed alongside it made it very hard to scoop out cleanly when I, myself isn't a big chilli eater. Of course, if you like your Pad Thai spicy, then you can go ahead and mix it all up, sure, but if you're not, you would need to use your spoon and try to move the chilli flakes out of the plate which would mean having to ask for another small plate to put the chilli flakes in. What was hard was that no matter how neat or how much you try to get them out of the plate, there would already be chilli flakes sticking onto the noodles which would make you having to eat it as is with the tad of spicyness anyway in the end when you do mix it altogether. So somehow, that was one of the biggest downside of this dish for me. What would be great would be that they could seperate the chilli flakes to a little side bowl or so which allows diners to take as much or as little chilli as they possible would like to suit their own wants.

Overall, the dish lacked the punch of the usual Pad Thai kick, not the chilliness but it may have needed abit more of that tamarind sauce as well as the soya sauce. The combination of tofu, eggs with the chicken and prawn were great together and I would have to say that the meat were in chunk portions too.

Having a proper dining area as well as a lounge area allows everyone to dine and relax with having great views of the city skyline. Don't forget the unique decoration in the restaurant in which when you look to your left or right would be something different and won't bore your eyes while having a chitchat or drinks or even while waiting for your dishes to arrive.

Fat Noodle, Treasury Casino, Brisbane CBD

Conveniently located in the Treasury Casino building, it allows easy access for events or gatherings even just for a quick lunch or dinner with family and friends. Luke Nguyen has created this restaurant to be a place where people can come and enjoy the traditional family recipes from South East Asia to the table although the main dish of the restaurant would be their 20 hour Fat Pho Noodles, their Fiery Laksa and Vietnamese Chicken Salad.

'Crispy Calamari with Thai Salad' (AUD$14) was a light and simple dish to order when you're not feeling to eat quite as much. Panko fried crumbed calamari served with shredded cabbage, tomato with a Sweet and Sour dressing. Although it did seem like a good idea at the time to eat less that night, the dish itself actually came bigger than I thought it would be.

There were about 5-6 large panko crumbed fried calamari topped with crushed peanuts and there were also fresh chilli cuts on the shredded cabbage. Most of the sauce did lie at the bottom of the bowl so make sure you give it a good mix before eating it. If not, it will seem like eating a plain no dressing salad. If you don't like chilli as much like myself, do try and take as much of the fresh chilli slices out of the dish itself and place it on the paper menu place mat or elsewhere you see fit before mixing the salad. The Panko fried calamari was definitely the highlight of this dish being thick and nicely thinly crumbed.

'Chicken Pad Thai' (AUD$18) is a classic Thai dish that consists of thin rice noodles with chicken breast, peanuts, bean sprouts and eggs. What intrigued me was that it wasn't as dark as the other Pad Thai dishes I have had before as well the crumbed peanuts and the bean sprouts were placed on top and on the side along with a wedge of lemon. Usually, they would all be mixed together while it is being stir fried in the pan.

As for the Pad Thai itself, I did think that it lacked the punch even if it did look pretty in its presentation. By squeezing a little of the lemon onto the dish and mixing it altogether along with the peanuts and bean sprouts, it felt that it needed abit more soy sauce to enhance its flavour. Overall it was alright but not extraordinary..

One thing I do have to say is that sometimes trying to get the attention of the waiters to top up your water or refilling your tea is a bit hard as they sometimes wander around other areas of the restaurant and I have had experiences where they seem to walk past you or avoid eye contact.

Marugame Udon, Grand Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia

What this restaurant reminded me of was Mappen here in Brisbane. So, when we decided to eat here, I was intrigued and was very interested in trying and how it would match with the ones I've tried in Aussie. A very similar concept is used such as the food selection and the way you pick your own Tempura and having free tempura flakes and chopped spring onions available. The only difference was that in Indonesia, since everyone loves their chilli and spicy food (except me that is..), they also have finely chopped red chilli to allow for those spicy eaters to be able to adjust their own spiciness level and add chilli to their own dishes.

'Ontama Udon' (IDR40k = ~AUD$4) is one of their classic serving their Udon with Bukake Dashi broth with your choice of the broth being warm or cold. It is then topped with spring onions and half boiled egg as well as a scoop of tempura flakes.

'Tori Baitan Udon' (IDR45k = ~AUD$4.5) is quite different in a way that instead of using Bukake dashi broth or pork broth, it uses Chicken broth which surprisingly was quite thick and creamy which I wasn't expecting. Topped with 3 pieces of chicken meatballs as well as spring onions. These chicken meatballs simply reminded me of Bakso, the traditional Indonesian Meatballs but these were smoother and tender in terms of exterior which means that they used more cornflour or flour to make them.

The meatballs itself was flavoursome, working well with the creamy chicken broth. It will suit any chicken lovers definitely. The chicken broth was quite salty but not overly salty but the fact that the chicken meatballs had some sweetness in it, there was balance between the two.

As for the Tempuras, you simply pick the ones you want and place it on your plate and when you are finished choosing what you would like, the person in the counter will simply add up what you have on your plate and add the prices of each Tempura with your Noodle or Rice dish. As for us, we didn't want to order too much as we didn't want to get too full afterwards. With around 10 kinds of different Tempura available, it will suit anyone who wants vegetables or beef or chicken etc. They do differentiate the usual regular Tempura selections with their Premium selections. 

From L to R as follows; Kakiage, Beef Croquette and Ebi Tempura.

'Kakiage' (IDR11k = ~AUD$1.1) which is a deep fried vegetables tempura shaped into a ball for easy grabbing as well as shaping it into a bunch. Though it can get abit hard when you do try to bite into it. Having a mixture of carrots and onions as well as some greens, it allows you to feel somewhat healthy eating fried food. Don't forget to dip it into your soy sauce dipping sauce. 'Beef Croquette' (IDR12k = ~AUD$1.2) is different than what the usual potato croquette or crab croquette you would get in other Japanese restaurants. This was a croquette filled with beef which I found to be quite delicious as well although it matched better with the original and plain Udon and not too much of the Tori Baitan Udon since that itself already had a strong chicken flavour. The croquette was nicely cooked and was very hot when we grabbed them to our plates. It definitely would suit better with a less thick and less creamier broth udon as it is quite heavy by its own. 'Ebi Tempura' (IDR15k = ~AUD$1.5) is always something you will be able to find in most Japanese restaurants, if not, all restaurants. The overall taste was okay, just the typical Shrimp Tempura.

Again, similar concept with after you have finished eating, you are told to return your used trays to the designated area. I think these kind of self-service restaurants allows diners to have a sense of cleanliness as well as a common sense giving a helping hand to the society. Of course, there will be waiters to clean your table or to wipe any access or mess but then, it is nice to see that maybe the Indonesian community are able to learn a thing or two in regards to etiquette, cleanliness and respecting workers. As most other countries may be very familiar with this concept as an everyday thing, in Indonesia, many are spoilt with the help when it comes to eating or service as it very uncommon for diners to have to take back their used bowls or trays.