Hot Star Large Fried Chicken, Sydney CBD

Having a love for most foods deep-fried, it was only a matter of time before I made a visit to Hot Star Chicken. Originating from Taiwan, it makes me question what the Taiwanese consider as a street snack - this chicken is the size of my face!

Queue at Hot Star

You can find Hot Star Chicken right near World Square. Their menu is small and is made up of deep-fried items such as mushrooms, chicken bites, sweet potato and of course the omega chicken which comes in spicy or non-spicy. There is normally a queue but service is efficient as they fry batches of orders at a time. Just not welcoming when you have to stand around in the cold during winter!

Sweet potato, normally $3.90

I went for the Hungry Combo ($10.90) today which gives you a slight discount compared to buying the chicken and a side separate by themselves. Sweet potato is one of my favourite carbs and super good for you. These were really addictive with that additional sprinkling of plum powder. Sigh, if only there was more. The serving size was quite small for the price.

Spicy fried chicken, normally $7.90

And now what we were all waiting for. Would you look at the size of that chicken! Am I wrong to say that it's pretty much a meal by itself? We all know how chicken breast tends to end up super dry but that wasn't the case here at all. Succulent? Tick. Tender? Tick. Deep-fried crunchy goodness? Tick. It started getting quite spicy by the end, but you may as well power through for delicious chicken. It's super hot after just coming out of the fryer and there are also bones and cartilage throughout the chicken so be a tad careful when chomping on it!

If you have a craving for fried chicken in the city, this may be the place to go. It's cheap and they use real ingredients which is reflective in the juicy chicken. The sheer size of the chicken being the size of your face will probably make your day if anything :P

Hot Star Large Fried Chicken
96 Liverpool St
Sydney NSW 2000

Opening Hours
Sunday - Thursday: 10:00am - 12:00am
Friday - Saturday: 10:00am - 2:00am

Ramen Hunting in Sydney

If there's one dish I have just a little bit of a slight obsession with, it's got to be ramen. I am not kidding you when I say I really love ramen. Probably not as much as Naruto (anybody else ever watched this anime/read the manga?) but close enough I'd say. I did eat it for breakfast, lunch AND dinner on one of my days in Tokyo these past holidays. Yet I come back to Sydney to eat more of it! The hunt for excellent ramen in Sydney continues.

I would never really make an extra trip up to the Northern suburbs if I didn't really have to but one night I found myself in North Sydney and a quick search up on my phone told me Ryo's was nearby in the area. Ramen for dinner it was!

Ramen in tonkotsu soy sauce flavoured soup with roast pork, nori, egg and shallots, $13.50

I believe tonkotsu soup is always the way to go :P This one had a touch of soy added to give it that extra kick of saltiness. The noodles retained a good amount of bounce and I really couldn't get enough of the tonkotsu soup - the broth is the most important element in a bowl of ramen! It wasn't as thick as the likes of Gumshara (which is definitely on the heavy side) so it was very easy to down. I always get an egg if it doesn't come with the ramen but luckily this one did! Still soft and gooey so nothing but positives about it. I would have to say it's one of the more authentically Japanese ramens in Sydney.

When we left, there was a massive line waiting outside so that says wonders about its popularity!

Ryo's
125 Falcon St
Crows Nest, NSW, 2065

Opening Hours
Monday - Sunday: 12:00 noon - 2:00pm and 5:00 - 9:00pm



Another one that has received raves from the blogging community resides in the humble food court of Sussex Centre in Chinatown. Who says you can't get good food in food courts? This food court has undergone a renovation and is actually surprisingly clean compared to what it used to be. You'll find Ramen Ikkyu huddled in the far corner so it could be easily overlooked if you don't know what you're looking for.

Pork rib ramen, $20.00

For twenty bucks, you're sure getting your fair share of meat. JUST LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THAT PORK RIB. It was amaaazingly soft and tender with lovely fatty parts throughout, and they cut it off the bone for easy eating but don't fret! The bone is still given to you for some caveman chowing :P (We all know the meat on the bone is the most flavoursome). This broth here has a mix of chicken, pork and seafood and is very discernable on the palette. I have to say that my preferences lay with the classic all pork broth (tonkotsu all the way!) but this one was still very delicious. And of course, if you haven't heard of the kaedama, I'm sure that this free extra serving of noodles will tempt you for a visit to Ramen Ikkyu! I would go back for that pork rib alone :D

Ramen Ikkyu
Shop F1A 401 Sussex St
Haymarket, NSW, 2000
Sussex Centre Food Court

Opening Hours
Monday - Sunday: 12:00 noon - 8:00pm

Chur Burger, Surry Hills

If there's one thing you cannot eat gracefully, it's got to be the burger. But there's just something about burgers that always hit the spot. Definitely not the healthiest thing in the world, but if you're gonna splurge on your health kick, it may as well be on something amazingly delicious like a good old burger right? Alas, I love food too much to ever think about dieting (as do my fellow food lover friends) and that is how my fellow friends Chef Meathead, Miss Dentist-In-Training and I end up at Chur Burger on a Tuesday night - lured in by the promise of $10 burgers.

Pulled pork, Chur BBQ sauce, red slaw & fennel mayo burger, $10.00

There was one burger and one burger only that I was going to order. I only had eyes for the pulled pork. It comes to you looking deceptively small, but this baby's packed to the brim full of pulled pork. Would you like some bread with your pork? Would I ever! The pork was incredibly juicy and wonderfully sweet and simply just worked with the slaw and mayo. Some flavour combos are just meant to be you know?

Crumbed fish fillet, pickled cucumber, lemon mayo & dill burger, $10.00

Miss Dentist-In-Training was ever so kind enough to give me some of her fish burger and I was pleasantly surprised that it was quite nice because I am not normally a lover of things reminiscent of fish fingers. However, my heart was stolen by the pulled pork burger very early on in the night. I gotta say, I think Chur's winning mayo is what makes their burgers so awesome.

L to R: Sweet potato fries, $5.00 / Crumbed fish fillet burger, $10.00 / Strawberry milkshake, $8.00

If you love that artificial strawberry flavour like you can get at those old school milk bars, go for the strawberry milkshake! I personally love it, though I know some people are quite against it, so I really loved drinking the milkshake and feeling like a kid again. Chef Meathead's salted caramel milkshake was also pretty good but he did say it started getting a little bit too sweet the more he drank it.

Sweet potato fries, garlic & lime, $5.00

I'm an avid fan of sweet potato, and I love them baked just plain BUT if I'm going to order them at a restaurant, I would expect more than just the same kind of sweet potato that I make myself at home. I was excited about the garlic and lime but unfortunately I didn't get a taste of either. And I know there's something nice about home style chunky cut chips, but some of the pieces were huuuge. I'm talking half a sweet potato per single chip...

Chips & chilli salt, $5.00

These were much more crispy than the sweet potato fries and don't worry if you can't handle your chilli because the chilli powder wasn't very hot. My friend ended up chucking on a whole tonne of tabasco sauce for that chilli kick he was looking for.

Chef Meathead happily demolishing his pulled pork burger

Seriously do not underestimate the size of the burger! It looks so small but there's so much filling that we all left Chur Burger in a semi food coma-esque state. But we also had a lot of potato to get through (with Chef Meathead ordering a whole batch for himself). I think our eyes are too big for our stomachs - I always want to order everything on the menu! And especially with my friend Miss Dentist-In-Training who has eyes equally as big... We are a bad combo :P

I really wanted to try the chicken wings here but we had nowhere near enough stomach space to do so. Ah, next time. So tell me, do you guys have issues with wanting to order everything on the menu like I do?

Chur Burger
48 Albion Street
Surry Hills, NSW, 2010

Opening Hours
Monday: 11:30am - 5:00pm
Tuesday - Saturday: 11:30am - 10:00pm
Sunday: Closed

Takumi, Haymarket

The one thing I really do love about sushi trains is how quick and convenient they are. The sister and I stopped by Takumi inside Market City for a quick feed before our shopping spree. The sign that mentioned $2.50 special for students was what lured us in. This discount also applies for those who park inside Market City. For $2.50 per plate, how could we resist? Just flash your student ID and you're good to go!

Chicken cream cheese, $2.50

This was a pretty solid start to our sushi extravaganza. The sweet chilli sauce was a surprise but one that we didn't mind.

Grilled salmon, $2.50

 Mm, there really isn't anything that could go wrong with grilled salmon, a sweet teriyaki sauce and mayo.

Grilled scallop, $2.50

Like salmon, grilled scallop is hard to fault. Unless it is overcooked but that wasn't the case here. The scallops were still soft and silky and absolutely delicious.

Takoyaki, $2.50

I have a penchant to order these deep-fried octopus goodies! Yum as always. And you get a serving of four for just $2.50. Is that good value or what?

Chicken kushiage, $2.50

While these were enjoyable to eat with their crisp crumb coating, the chicken was just a tad dry (probably because of the small size of these chicken pieces) and I couldn't help comparing them to the chicken karaage we ordered at Sushi Hotaru, which were double the size at only $3.00 for the plate.

Salmon tobikko, $2.50

Loved the texture of this - silky salmon, creamy cheese, the slight bite from the rice and the salty burst from the roe. I did notice however that the salmon on both these were cut unevenly with one piece being significantly thicker than the other which you don't get from skilled sushi chefs who have trained in mastering the technique of cutting raw fish. I however, cannot do much better and it's not a big deal for me as the salmon tastes the same however thick it's cut :)

Prawn fry, $2.50

Yay for deep-fried prawns! The rice wasn't packed together very tightly so it fell apart as soon as I picked it up with my chopsticks which makes it harder to eat... What was very different was the tartare sauce on top - I've never had tartare sauce served with prawn tempura at Japanese restaurants.

Crab cheese, $2.50

My sister and I both thought there is nothing that could ever go THAT wrong with sushi. This one dish proved us wrong. Alarms should've run when I saw them take this out from the griller. It wasn't cream cheese they used but cheddar. The crab stick also became extremely fishy and rubbery from being cooked in that particular manner. The flavour combination didn't sit too well with us both and it wasn't very pleasant to eat at all.

Other than the crab and cheese sushi, my sister and I had a pleasant enough experience at Takumi. The staff were friendly however their English was very limited so there were a few communication mishaps at times. Though if I were to choose a cheap sushi train to dine at, Sushi Hotaru would be my pick. Serving sizes are more substantial and both the quality and execution is better. Takumi isn't bad, but I would avoid the crab cheese sushi at all costs!

Takumi
9 -13 Quay Street, Level 3 Market City
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Opening Hours
Open daily 11:30am - 9:30pm

The Forresters, Surry Hills

This oncoming winter has been so very cold, and to keep ourselves cosy, a friend visiting from Melbourne, Casanova and I hit up the Forresters of the Drink and Dine Group. Having already visited The Abercrombie previously, I knew we were up for a solid feed.

Deep fried cauliflower cheese, $8.00

This was ordered to make us feel like we were consuming our daily amount of veggies and not just stuffing ourselves with junk! The cauliflower had a crisp exterior and was quite lovely by itself despite the lack of seasoning. I like eating cauliflower like this as I mostly eat it boiled at home with no additional flavour. I avoided the cheese dip on the side though as it was a bit watery.

The choke hold, $24.00

I loved the base of this pizza which was thinner than normal yet retained a nice fluffy chewiness. So much cheese! It had quite the chilli kick which I was not expecting but it was welcome all the same. We demolished this delicious pizza very quickly :P

Fries deluxe, $12.00

Yay more more things covered with cheese! It was covered with the same chilli sauce that was on the pizza as well as pulled pork which was a tad dry but made the fries a substantial meal in itself!

BBQ pork from the pit, $30.00

This dish had to be what we were looking to most and it sure was the highlight of the night! The pork was amazingly tender and smothered with a gorgeous sweet and smoky bbq sauce that is the stuff of dreams. The Korean slaw was also a very welcome addition to the plate as it provided crunch and also left a refreshing feeling in your mouth. Loved how they mixed through mint leaves!

We were nowhere finished with all the food as we sat back and consolingly rubbed our stomachs. Ordering four dishes between the three of us was not a smart idea! But it sure was worth it. I will definitely be back for the bbq pork or even some pizza :)

What would be your favourite meat to be BBQ'd? And do you like it accompanied with a lot of sauce?

The Forresters
Corner Foveaux and Riley Streets
Surry Hills, NSW, 2010

Opening Hours
Monday - Wednesday: 12 noon - 12 midnight
Thursday - Saturday: 12 noon - 1:00am
Sunday: 12 noon - 10:00pm 

The Abercrombie, Chippendale

 
Who's heart stops just thinking about a deep-fried Golden Gaytime? As if the Golden Gaytime itself was rich enough, the crew over at the Abercrombie just had to dip it in batter and chuck it in the deep fryer too! My friends and I decided to catch up over a super late lunch after uni, since this hotel is very close by.

They have specials during the week as well as tonnes of lunch specials from 12-4pm for just $10! CHEAP AS.

Korean fried cornflake chicken, $10.00 lunch special

Who doesn't love fried chicken? I've never had one with a cornflake batter, but this was just as good with a nice crunchy exterior, succulent meat and damned awesome with a squeeze of lime and dunked into the spicy mayo on the side. The ketchup heart was a cute touch don't you think?

Deep fried mac n cheese, $10.00 lunch special

Mac and cheese is already comfort food at its finest - creamy, carbolicious and heavy. With a crunchy batter on the outside? Even better. Not something I'd have every day of course :P And definitely goes down with jugs of beer and cider - get them at only $10/jug from 12-10pm Monday to Friday which is insanely good value!

Double reuben dog, $10.00 lunch special

I normally have enough trouble finishing one hot dog (damned being a small Asian girl) so when this huge as double dog came to the table, I was stunned. How was I to finish this? It was bigger than all my guy friend's schnitzels and burgers! They were definitely generous with the mustard,sauerkraut and dill pickle sauce. And squeeze on the ketchup they give you on the side and you have a solid hot dog. Waaay too filling for me but hell yes to getting your bang for buck!

Deep fried chocolate brownie, $7.00

Yes, they now have a deep fried brownie. Whaaat. A bit too heavy for me - I think I'll stick to traditional brownies thanks :)

Deep fried golden gaytime, $7.00

To be honest, I wasn't particularly overly keen for this as it has been hyped up by the food bloggers all over the blogosphere. It was good, but not something so fantastic I wouldn't be able to help myself but rave about it to everyone. It really is like the deep fried ice-creams you get at Asian restaurants but with a Golden Gaytime centre instead :)

All in all, the Abercrombie has solid pub food that is great for uni students on a tight budget. Relaxing vibe, cheap booze and as long as you have good company, you're set for a good time.

The Abercrombie
100 Broadway (Corner Abercrombie Street)  
NSW, 2007, Chippendale

Tenkomori Ramen House, Sydney CBD

Who doesn't love a good bowl of warm, steaming ramen? There's something about slurping the noodles that's so comforting. Ultimate winter food don't you think? Even though it's not winter yet, Sydney's had some pretty crazy weather that's been all over the place lately and despite it currently being summer, there's been some cold wintery days too! Though it has been heating up this past week... What is with that?

Tenkomori is the brother store of Menya Mappen and Oiden where you line up cafeteria style, pick your ramen base and add on anything else that takes your fancy from the hot bar or cold dishes!

Tonkotsu butter corn ramen, large $7.30

I love tonkotsu based ramen! Mm, pork collagen... This was particularly good because the butter made it that much richer. Look at the pool of yellow the melted butter left behind! I also loved hunting for those little pieces of corn.

Chicken kara-age, $2.20 & takoyaki, $2.00

Fried chicken! It tasted good but for some reason it was cold :( I always can't help but grab myself a stick of takoyaki. Love that stuff!

Tonkotsu curry ramen, regular $6.30 & mushroom salad, $1.80 (I think)

I was really interested in this ramen because I've never eaten curry with ramen before and I wasn't sure how the two would pair. It actually tasted good! If you like Japanese curry, you'll love this :) And those mushrooms that have been marinated were quite sweet, pairing very well with the spicy kick from the curry.

If you're up for something quick, and something cheap then this place is it.

Tenkomori Ramen House
Shop 16 Regent Place, George St
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Alrose Garden, Strathfield

Met up with my girlies a few days ago on a Tuesday night in Strathfield for some Korean feed.

Fried chicken, $14.00 with extra sweet spicy sauce, $1.00

Fried chicken!! You have to get the extra sweet spicy sauce because it makes it taste much better. This fried chicken came with the usual pickled daikon (which I love) and the chicken was decent, though it's got nothing on NaruOne, I'm sorry. Just wasn't as juicy or succulent. Could really go back for more of NaruOne's fried chicken right now!

Udon stir fried with udon, $15.00

They definitely were not stingy with the seafood here at all! Look at all that octopus, squid, mussel, and prawns... The spicy sauce had a lovely kick to it.

Beef ribs and vegetables with rice cakes, $15.00

This dish had a similar spicy sauce to the udon but who's complaining when it tastes good and there's rice cakes? I think I have a slight obsession with those chewy strips of goodness. The beef could've had a little more time to cook just to make it fall of the bone, but the flavour was there and it was pretty fantastic. Hidden vermicelli noodles hidden underneath everything! I loved dipping the rice cake into the sweet spicy sauce that came with the fried chicken. That was some good chilli sauce.

Pork schnitzel with rice and salad, $15.00

Holy look at the size of that schnitzel! To give you an idea of how huge that schnitzel was, that little mound of purple rice is the normal serving size of rice you would get when going to restaurants. Yep. The schnitzel was as big as my face. And boy was it good. The crust was so crunchy, yet not excessively oily. The sweet and sour sauce provided on the side really finished things off. Loved the purple rice as well - something I had never seen until now! Slightly more sticky than the normal white rice I eat.

Good food and huge serving sizes. Ended up being less than $15 per person!

Headed over to Yogurberry for dessert because who doesn't have room for froyo? :D Bumped into a few other friends I hadn't seen for a while too - it's always great catching up!

Alrose Garden
7-9 Churchill Ave
Strathfield, NSW, 2135
9764 1117