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.

Old Street Bak Kut Teh, Galaxy Mall, Surabaya, Indonesia

Bak Kut Teh has always been a popular chinese soup served in Singapore, Malaysia or even Mainland China or Taiwan.  One of their specialties is actually their Dry Bak Kut Teh but I do feel that the traditional Bak Kut Teh with its complex broth and aromatic soup is the highlight of this dish. What is interesting in this restaurant is their Ipad  ordering system using a tablet stored on each table in a pull-out drawer which allows you to order and add anything you feel like without having to continuously looking and waiting for the staff. Very convenient indeed.

There is a table that has various condiments and sauces (Soy Sauce, Chilli, Garlic, Ginger etc) that allows you to help yourselves in anything you want. We decided to order some sides such as these lovely and so delicious 'Peanuts' (IDR32k = ~AUD$3.2), braised well and compliments all of the dishes and even delicious when eaten with just warm rice. 'You Tiao' is fried doughsticks which is very common to eat with most chinese dishes or even as a side, sometimes many would buy them just for snacks. It was quite fresh but not as fresh hot as I thought it would be. However, it was still crispy on the outside and when you dip it into the soup, that's when it is eaten best. Preserved Vegetables' (IDR38k = ~AUD$3.8) was not bad, not too salty either.

Traditionally, Bak Kut Teh is eaten accompanied with brewing a pot of chinese tea. On each of the tables, there are built-in induction cookers where they will heat up your Bak Kut Teh. The name of the dish actually literally means 'Meat Bone Tea' which consists of meaty pork ribs which is simmered in a broth of various herbs and spices for hours. However, despite the fact that there is no tea present in the dish, the name simply refers to a very strong Oolong Chinese Tea which is usually served as I have mentioned previously, alongside of the soup. In a way, it simply allows one to be able to eat the pork filled dish and dilute or help the throat and after eating effect.

'Pork Ribs Soup' (Small: IDR75k, Large: IDR100k = ~AUD$7.5-10) is always great eaten with a bowl of warm rice. I was rather surprised that the Bak Kut Teh bowl didn't have only a few pieces of meaty ribs but it was plenty, enough to share around and am pretty sure if I had to finish a bowl all by myself, I would be full to the max. The soup has always been the highlight for me when eating this dish, it had the wholesome, herbal and peppery soup as well as very tender meat that that easily falls off the bone. It was very flavourful and zesty at the same time. There was a decent amount of combination of both soft bones and spare ribs. For those who may think that it may have those porky smell, it actually didn't as the smell of the soup and the broth was more distinct than the minimal pork smell..

Another great thing about the Bak Kut Teh here is that refills for the soup/broth is free, so you are able to top up as much as possible. So don't forget to ask for refills!

'Braised Pig's Trotter' is something I do love to eat other than Bak Kut Teh but of course, when you dine at a Bak Kut Teh restaurant, obviously it would be the main dish to order. The flavour of the braised meat seems as if it has been made with love and watched over for a while as it should be. The meat again was easy off the bone but do know that the soy broth is quite strong in terms of flavour and taste.

This was a small bowl of braised tofu, beancurd as well as egg although I forgot what this was called. However, simply the soy broth allowed the different elements come together to make an aromatic braised tofu and egg. Another great condiment to have when eating Bak Kut Teh.

I do need to advise you that chopsticks and spoons are stored on one side of the table where there is pull out drawer, since many may not know this, it may be hard during your first time when dining here. Especially with the Ipad ordering system also in a pull-out drawer. Now Surabaya do have more than one branch which is great for those living around the other side of town, but I do have to say that this is probably the only place in the city where I would get my dose of Bak Kut Teh..

The Old Malaya Cafe, 313@Somerset, Singapore

A humble restaurant on the ground floor of 313@Somerset in Singapore. Here you are able to experience old traditional and classic dishes of Malaysian, Chinese, Indonesian dishes. Although all these cuisines are incorporated to how Singapore food is today. A humble restaurant offering an olden vintage tables and chairs, a more cafe feeling let's say.

 'Popiah' (SGD$2.8) is a must try dish when you're in Singapore. It may not look like much but the filling will make you like it even more with every bite. Usually in every restaurant that serves up old type of dishes, you would find this in their menu.. Oh, and also in every food court you would definitely find this in one of the stalls. The popiah itself was quite big in portion which would have benefited for the price you paid. The skin was not too thick but it was quite hard to bite into which would make the skin break easily and so, the fillings would sometimes come out. So a tip would be, if you can fit it in your mouth in one big bite, then do so and just don't worry about the big cheek munching face you'll have on but try to enjoy it instead. The filling inside consists of bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, fried egg omelette, lettuce, spring onion, stir fried turnip, fried shallots, tofu and sometimes prawns are also included. The healthy part is that it isn't fried when you order this dish so it's kind of similar to like a Lumpia in Indonesia, or a non-fried spring roll really.

'KL Sar Hor Fun' (SGD$5) is a popular hawker style noodle dish however at every state of Malaysia, there are always different versions and adaptations. It consists of thick rice noodle (Hor Fun/Ho Fan), beansprouts, pork, prawns, squid, vegetables, fish fillets, fish cakes, fish balls are some examples and topped with freshly sliced chilli and fried shallots. The soup or sauce you may call it, is somewhat both savoury but has some sweetness in it as well. There are of course dried noodle dishes and also noodle soups, but if you haven't given this a go, then you should.

PappaRich, Wintergarden, Brisbane CBD

Papparich has finally stepped into Brisbane and finally we'll get a taste of Malaysian cuisine in our own Wintergarden Shopping Centre, CBD. Established in 2005 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, ten years ahead from when they started, they have established a total of 70 outlets worldwide and still growing. Having an open concept, you are able to see their Pappa White Coffee or Roti Canai being prepared on the spot, its interior design are also to give a warm earthy colours giving diners a cosy and clean ambience to enjoy either with family or friends.

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Fat Noodle, Treasury Casino, Brisbane CBD

It's not that I fancy this restaurant so much until I keep revisiting it, but sometimes, it is rather quite a convenient place to dine, the environment and the ambience as well. It wasn't that busy during lunch time so it was rather nice to dine at a more peaceful and not so noisy environment. If you like your Asian hawker style food, then give here a try since you may just find what you're missing on from back home or from your previous travels. The food ranges from Vietnamese cuisine to chinese, Indonesian to Thai and so on. The place is quite spacious with seatings available inside and out, bar seatings as well, oh and did I mention private function rooms too? It's nice to see restaurants that can cater for various needs and likes.

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