Flavours on Crown - Wollongong CBD

The omelette above turned out better than I anticipated, with tasty bites of several ingredients embedded in the rewarding fresh egg mix. There was a hint of spice, a bit of Italian, generous servings of tomatoes, snippets of mushroom and flavourful ham bites.  The accompanying buttered bread cuts may seem simple but did provide a contrasting lightness.

There can be some drama on the walls but I must say the service is very good and friendly. Whilst waiting for three friends, the staff came to engage in naturally warm chat, something which perhaps some Sydney based cafes have forgotten or intentionally avoid.  Family groups, couples and mates can be seen inside or outside, seated beside the pavement tables, at this cafe, which neighbours the Sugar Cube along lower Crown Street in Wollongong CBD.  The location is also good for shopping, the beach is not far away and is worth considering if you are also catching a show at the WIN Entertainment Centre or a game at the WIN Stadium.

At breakfast time on a Saturday morning, initially I could not decide on a breakfast stack, an Eggs Benedict and a Mediterranean omelette.  There is a choice of modern Aussie with bacon, beef burgers and toasts and Mediterranean influenced flavours with ingredients like chorizo, fetta and pitta breads.  I have not tried the dinners here - there is a restaurant  upstairs.

Home Cooking

Straits Chinese fish curry - Balgownie NSW

Tofu with mince pork and crab meat - Aunty Kui Chan's, Penang

Marinated pork ribs ala Cantonese - Aunty Kui Chan's, Penang

South Indian styled chicken curry - Aunty Kui Chan's, Penang

Light snacks to ponder - Balgownie NSW

Prawn stock noodles with pork slices, hard boiled egg and vermicelli - Jen Young, St Ives NSW

Roast pork with crackle - Jen Young, St Ives NSW

Mee goreng Indian style - Aunty Kui Chan, Penang

Tofu snacks - Susan Chan, Carlingford NSW

Walnut cake - Lai Tan, Carlingford NSW

Pendolino Italian, Strand Arcade - Sydney CBD

The Arrosto Di Anatra Con Cavofiore Al Vino Rosso - or simply slow roasted duck leg with Sicillian red wine braised cauliflowers, puree and Fava beans, black olives and duck and thyme sauce.

It is a restaurant named in honour of a special olive tree, dear to the heart of those who hail from Tuscany and Umbria.  It is tucked away at one corner, the western one, on the second floor of the Strand Arcade, right smack in Sydney City Centre, the one joining Pitts Street Mall and George Street.
make it past their cafe and you then enter the inner sanctum.

Pappardelle pasta flavoured with beetroot and garnished with fresh goats cheese, dried black olives , red onions and Italian parsley exemplify the rustic charm  and feel of the Pendolino.  What caught my eye was their attempt using pork , veal and tomato ragu, served with a Gramigna pasta.  The Trota, a fine name for a basic Russian inspired sandwich, places ice berg lettuce with smoked trout and zings up the final taste with a horseradish mayonnaise, perhaps an excellent lunch idea.  For the brave and initiated, the truffled  chicken liver and Portobello mushrooms I reckon can be a good choice, for it is a challenging matter to make and draw out the best in two very delicate ingredients.  My recommendation for insalate or simply salads, would be the Ortaggi, a healthy and light mixture of ideas with pine nuts, ricotta, beetroot, pumpkin and Treviso radicchio, splashed with a Nebbiolo vinegar.

The cafe portion perhaps is great for breakfasts.  One can reasonably expect choices in cheeses, breads and paninos, What makes Pendolino apart in my eyes is the tasting plate in oil and olive, the Da Assaggiare. This is a wholesome experience by itself, providing the guest with subtlety, contrast and quality as you soak the beautiful bread samples with each distinct and memorable choice of olive oil flavour. The other significant thing that makes me want to go back tot he Pendolino is the blood orange olive cake (the Torta agrumato di Sanguinella).  And then there are the mains, carefully prepared, lovingly served, beautifully articulated and downed with an exquisite choice of wines and liquors.

Pendolino not only offers a cafe and restaurant, but perhaps more significantly also is a wine and olive oil providore. Beautifully named the Lolioteca, you can also access the products on line but perhaps nothing is as enjoyable as viewing the range up front  - with choices like blood orange flavoured extra virgin oil and premium sweet Nebbiolo red wine vinegar, you are transported to another world.  To me, the simple and most satisfying choice would be a small container of Australian grown olives  (the Piccoline).  The store underlines what Pendolino does best, provide an atmosphere and experience, with accented pronunciations that magically transport a guest back to another time, another place - and not in downtown Sydney, on the edge of a desert island.

Housed in a corner of an era of architecture gone by, huddled discreetly by climbing two flights of stairs or taking an antiquated lift, Pendolino first greets you with a cafe with a casual al fresco feel, and even if you find this section can be choked with tables and narrowness, you are soon ushered into a dining room from another century.  Subdued candle lights provide a possible line of gems but once you look at the menu, the carefully named and made dishes overtake the attention of the diner above everything else.  The owners of Pendolino also operate La Rosa upstairs in the same Strand Arcade.  Please note that Pendolino restaurant is closed on Sundays and public holidays.  The wine bar takes over from 5pm till late for six evenings a week.

There is nothing more gratifying than good friendship - and short of that, letting the juices of a craftily and lovingly coked duck flow on to the palate.  With a deep marinade bite, I enjoyed the flow-on succulence of the meat and the crispiness of the well roasted skin.  The sauce matched the inherent tone and taste of the red wine enhanced meat.  I would have preferred alcohol to fully complement this remarkable dish, but we were at office lunch time and had restrictions in time, liberty and option.  Maybe next time at a more easy pace.

Atom Thai, King Street, Newtown - Sydney NSW

The Miang Kham, a delicate appetiser with betel nut a the star.

Texture, taste and twist - is that what we anticipate in any cuisine? Perhaps we also appreciate the clever and subtle use of ingredients, how they blend together in the dish presented to us and how they make an impact on our palate and overall dining experience. Some city centre establishments face constant pressure on space, costs and turnover. Some may take short cuts in pre cooking some of their menu items but such a practice can impact on a discerning diner.  The variety of multi-cultural items on the food scene in Australia means customers may compare with their experiences from traditional settings back in the source countries.  The subtleties of ingredients produced in Australia can make a difference.  Some resort to experimentation and fusion, thereby bringing diners a new dimension and a whole new world of possibilities.  Some diners do not care so much for the food as the quality and flow of the drinks and company.  Some relax because the staff make them feel mellow and others can be highly strung sparked off by one perceived or actual attitude.  All food establishments want regulars to come back, to yearn for their signature items, to spend on their high margin menu dishes and to more than just survive in a fast changing and demanding business environment.

Sago in coconut milk on the glass with ice cream (foreground) with black glutinous rice accompanying mango slices (background)

Atom Thai does not have too many dining tables but is adequately sized in space-conscious Newtown precinct of the greater Sydney area.   The demographics are ready to eat, there are out of towners who come to Newtown occasionally to have a night or day out and the variety of restaurants just means competition for the dollar in the pocket.  I had a birthday treat from a  close cousin and family there recently - and enjoyed three specific dishes: salmon with papaya salad, the Miang Kham and the appetising belly pork stir fried with a relish.  Miang Kham is a uniquely Thai entree that blends a bit of salad, a bit of appetiser and a bit of dash. It can be viewed as an exotic Thai experience, but growing up in Penang island, where there is a sizeable but minority population of Thai origin, this isa familiar item to me.  The best version of this snack to me is home made but it can be found readily in any street market in any Thai conurbation. Kham means to bite and Miang refers to items wrapped in a leaf. Ingredients like ginger, garlic, small dried shrimps (hay bee in the Penang Hokkien parlance), roasted peanuts, roasted coconut shavings, red hot bird's eye chill, shallots are prepared and gathered before the folding process.  The origin of this item suggests a fusion base as the recipe came form an area bordering between Thailand and Burma.  It is popular for festive occasions and fairs, and has variations in Laos and you may have sen its cousin, the Miang Pla, with fish inside, if you have been backpacking in upper South East Asia.

Salmon with papaya salad beside the tasty pork belly (background) and the duck curry (foreground)

Staff are smiling and friendly at Atom,  with the place filling up fast by 630pm on a Sunday evening.
Located at the western end of King Street, nearer to Sydney University campus, it is one of several Thai cuisine outlets in this varied part of Sydney.  An interesting observation about Atom is the absence of overloads of  sugary tastes in their savoury dishes, something which Thai outlets in Australian suburbia has a potential and real risk of.  The clientele that evening we were at Atom was predominantly Caucasian, but of all ages.  I noticed the quality of the ingredients and the care with which each dish was served.  Although I am not  a big fan of glutinous rice, I enjoyed the bite of their steamed black rice dessert, accompanied by a tangy mango.   Thai cooking plays on the diversity of herbs and spices and the challenge is to get a balanced and yet interesting sensation for the diner.

Suffolk House Restored, Georgetown Penang

A Bridge too near - over a creek running beside the restored Suffolk House.

The Captain came from not the aristocrat, but from an adopted middle class family in mid 18th century England.His second son as a Surveyor General was responsible for  the beginnings of what was to become modern day Adelaide.  The life of Francis Light is not very well known, but his legacy impacted on at least three nations.  To me, Light's skills in political negotiation, dealing well with unknown cultures and sense of adventure were the most important things about the man.  My primary school attended was named after this founder of Georgetown, on a tropical isle whose value located along the trading routes was not realised until a Brit guy seized the opportunity, established a settlement out of the jungle and never looked back.  Captain Francis Light embraced the unknown, seized the future and worked on advancing an opportunity not just for himself but paved the way for immigrants from China, India, Thailand, Sumatra and Burma to carve out a new  and better life.  Light was the son of William Negus and his servant girl Mary Light.  The eventual  founder of the colony of Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffles, had first arrived in the region working in Penang.

Tropical practicality - open air verandahs, louvred doors and hanging lamps.

Only ten years after the American Declaration of Independence in 1776 was the colony of Georgetown on Penang Island founded by Light. There are the stories of how the Captain ordered for sovereign coins to be dispersed by cannon on to thick bush to motivate people to clear the jungle fast.  Francis was born in Dallinghoo in Suffolk (East Anglia) in the mother country and before arriving in Penang, was based as a trader in Salang in Phuket Island in nearby Siam.  This must have been where he met his future wife, Martinha Rozells, a woman of both Portuguese and Siamese heritage and later, mother to Colonel William Light. Martinha was Catholic and posed a potential issue to the Church of England, to which Francis belonged to.  Apparently, the marriage was never declared to the English authorities.  Captain Light had three daughters (Ann, Sarah and Mary)  and two sons (William and Francis Lanoon) with Martinha.

A Francis Light II passed away in Taiping in 1906, whilst an Augusta Victoria Light survived in Penang itself until 1972.  Not much recognition is given in modern day Malaysia for the Captain's efforts, but he is buried at the Protestant Cemetery along Northam Road.  William Light was born in Kuala Kedah on the mainland of the Malayan peninsular across from Penang island but was sent to England at the age of six years old.  The Lights are also linked to the Bain family in the 20th century.

In the early 19th century, it was the fashion to retire to writing, reading and reflecting in the drawing room at the end of a the day.

The original residence, located on the inner outskirts of Georgetown, along the banks of the Black River (Air Itam), is said to be occupied by the first Light family in south-east Asia, and then sold to William Edward Phillips, who constructed the Georgian styled mansion we often visualise as Suffolk House. Francis Light and his family in fact occupied a construction made more of attap and timber, but did maintain pepper gardens in the vicinity.  Edwards later became a Governor of this Prince of Wales Island, the official name of the settlement until 1876 (the year the British Straits Settlements was established with Malacca and Singapore).  Suffolk House was occupied by a series of Governors.  The political base of the Settlements then shifted to a more prosperous and strategic Singapore.  Suffolk House then came under the ownership of Penang local Lim Cheng Teik, a millionaire trader, before being passed for a sum of 40,000 Straits Settlement dollars to the Reverend P.L. Peach of the Methodist Church of Malaya.

A cuppa of tea, cakes and a cigar box - the vibes of the early colony for the new aristocrats of the island settlement.

Captain Light had obtained possession of Penang Island from the Sultan of Kedah without informing the British East India Company.  This oversight was uncovered when the military protection Light promised the Sultan from the British did not eventuate when Kedah was attacked by the Siamese. The history of Penang inevitably became intertwined with the Siamese kingdom, British colonial influence over the Malay States on the mainland and the focus of immigration, trade and stability for people fleeing unstable times in China and India.   Penang's ambitions as a vital port and middleman power was realised for many years, until it had to concede this position to Singapore at the southern end of the Straits of Malacca. Like Singapore, however, Penang attracted many immigrants of Chinese origin from southern China, especially  Fujian, Hainan and Guangdong.  There was also an overflow of Chinese  already in nearby Perak (Taiping and Ipoh) and who were there earlier due to the tin mining boom.  It is said that when the United States of America closed the doors on East Asians entering after the heady days of the California Gold Rush, the Chinese began to focus on south-east Asia to escape the dire economic conditions of the last dynasty (the Qing).

The table setting for a formal meal  - later replicated by the Straits Chinese, who adored the British as a community - as the Tok Panjang (or literally, long table) for festive gatherings.

A walk around the restored residence and grounds of the Suffolk House today would impress on visitors the detailed attention given in the renovations undertaken in the past few years.  History is always interpreted and preserved by those in current political power - and if not for the perseverance and funding from a select non-government group in Penang and the SACON Heritage Unit from Adelaide,  the modern version of Suffolk House would not have seen the light of day.  When the place began its period of decay, the building was still utilised to hold classes and operate as a day canteen for students of the nearby Methodist Boys School.

Today all has been transformed, although some locals observe why some specific rooms are never open to the public.  The upper floor actually collapsed many years ago due to the sheer weight of neglect and  lack of monies for repairs.  Henry and I visited Suffolk House on a rather moist refreshing morning during a week of periodic but rather torrential rain.   I reckoned this was the best time to explore its gardens, when flora was utmost green and must have echoed more of the climate more than 250 years ago.  Suffolk House was the winner of the UNESCO Asia-pacific Heritage Awards in 2008.

The lawns and grounds of Suffolk House.

At the ball room on the upper floor, with a bust of Captain Francis Light - it is said that the facial countenance represented here was more of his son Colonel William Light.

Polished floorboards bring us back to evenings when Suffolk House was a centre of social and political activity.

Model of the restored residence  and significant function house.

Mansions and bungalows tend to have this arched porch in an architectural design doted across Penang Island . especially Georgetown, inherited from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

High tea options surrounded by foliage not far from downtown Georgetown.

Apart from dropping by inside a small souvenir room, front reception landing and walk around rooms, visitors can also try meals, including high tea, at the restaurant on the ground floor and at the back of Suffolk House. The operators have been doing this for several years and the menu is influenced by both past and present concepts of fine dining.  The menu includes a variety of both Eastern and Western creations.  Interesting was the availability of Nespresso coffee varieties.  Afternoon tea commences at 230pm, with three-tiered trays of  freshly made single serve chicken pies, scones, cakes and cucumber and salmon sandwiches.  Accompanying preserves offered include tangy apple ginger compote, strawberry and pineapple marmalade.

Vista outside the restaurant window. 

I admired the timber floorings, the high ceilings and the lovingly finished detail.  The young Indian woman who opened the souvenir section for us was friendly and informative.  She hails from Kuala Lumpur and also mentioned about her personal blog site.   I found Suffolk House tranquil, eye-opening and a refuge from modern society.  It is a corner of England from the past, hopefully sufficiently embraced by the present and a gem to preserve for the future.  Those in charge can consider holding staged performances, strengthening personalised or group guided tours and having community based groups learn about this fascinating and rich past of Penang.  It is a settlement that was established before Sydney.

Fine dining possibilities - but is the jury still out on the food and value?

Suffolk House today as you approach it from the front.

Music is the refuge of the heart and soul, away from the ordinariness of life.

A perfect place to while away a moist and cloudy afternoon in Penang Island.

Memories of old England - with touches of the Far East.

Suffolk House is located at 250 Air Itam Road, 10460 Penang in Malaysia.

Tao's at Times Square, Georgetown - Penang

Scallops on the shell, flavoured by mayonnaise and miso - one of my favourites, looking good as well, like golden fans .- 

My favourites at Tao's remain rather consistent I must say - soft shell crab karate, unagi, California maki rolls, age dashi tofu, salmon papaya salad and salmon sushi.
Recently I had the opportunity to try these again at another outlet of Tao's on the island of Penang.
The feel and bite of Japanese cuisine in a tropical climate can vary with the source of their ingredients and the regional fashion of where the cuisine is based originally.   Sure, Tao's has the grilled stuff, the noodles, the rolls, the fried, the cold cuts and steamed dishes, but I do somehow remain of the view that Tao's menu is somehow geared for the local diners instead of anything more else.
I am curious about the pumpkin korokke and may go for this the next time.  Otherwise, every time I am in Tao's, it is with people I am familiar with, and we can all let our hair hang out so to speak.  Tao's all you can eat option is popular with those under 30 years old, but anyone can also opt for ala carte.

They may not look good but I assure you they are snappy crunchy delicious.

Ice cream with topping  and cakes - not very Japanese, but what the Malaysian market expects.

A selection of the sushi and sashimi  from the buffet counter.

Abalone strips, subtle and yet rewarding.

Salmon delicately rolled and served in a rather welcoming marinade.

The grill centre at Tao, with staff form various backgrounds.

Something for the vegetarians - grilled mushrooms on a skewer.

Hard boiled egg garnished with mayonnaise - looks simple but fresh ingredients do make the wholesomeness of the salad.

A cloudy day in central Georgetown, with Penang Hill in the background - view after stepping out of the Tao outlet at Berjaya Times Square.

The Tao chain in Malaysia include an outlet in Kota Damansara in the Klang Valley, Selangor and an earlier one in Autocity Juru on the mainland portion of Penang State.  Settings inside each restaurant are purposefully zen like with low lighting, as if you are inside a ryokan.  Be careful with several items in the Tao cuisine as they are not totally Japanese in origin -  that is the irresistible reality of multi-cultural Malaysia, for you can also have Thai tomyam soup, Sichuan spicy fish, Cantonese smoked duck, prawn mantis Taiwan style and deep fried chicken wings with a chili twist.