Harris Park, Sydney - Little India

Parramatta in New South Wales was settled by the British within a few months of landing at Sydney Cove.  Today, in an adjoining suburb, Harris Park is host to a multicultural group that has a third originating from the Indian sub-continent. Punjabi, Gujarati and Hindi are the predominant languages spoken, together with mainstream English.  Interesting enough, the average age of residents is only 30.   I have heard much from mates and in the media about Harris Park, so one boring weekend I did not resist when I had an opportunity to have lunch there. On approach, Harris Park may seem to be another ordinary western Sydney suburb, but on closer examination, I was impressed by the number of restaurants, the preserved architecture and design of dwellings and how life seemingly is centred around one junction - where Wigram and Marion Streets meet.  I can recall Dandenong in Victoria, north-west of Melbourne, with this similar hub of Indian-born migrants, with so many choices in curries, spicy condiments and more.

I also recall the hill station of Simla, with its British Raj inspired designs in buildings, and on my day of visit to Harris Park, it was a nippy Sunday afternoon chill.  The frangipanis had lost their leaves and were expectedly bare-branched, but this added more character to the place.  Lunch was held at the Chutney, with a buffet of two meat curries, basmati rice, naan bread and three vegetarian curries (including lentils and tofu).  The Chutney had many Indian families enjoying themselves that afternoon.

I must confess I had harboured thoughts of finding South Indian cuisine in Harris Park, but the commercial outlets still offered food, especially desserts, of the northern variety. Yes, there is the occasional appearance of Kerala fish curry and Tamil vegetarian curry on some menus, but what is more impressive is the availability of a diverse range of Indian sweet concoctions, anything from Kaju Burfi to Gulab Jamun and Pedas.  Correct me if I am wrong, but the image captured above suggests to me of the Besan Ladoo (besan being roasted gram flour).  The unique ice cream of Kulfi was also spotted.

In a neighbourhood where reformed ex-convict James Ruse was granted land to settle, Harris Park now is  a microcosm of the cultures found usually in south-western Asia.  Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church exemplifies the presence of historical manifestations from relatively recent migrants to this part of the world.  I also found a unique and petite Indian craft shop (photo above, to the right)with a patient looking man inside working attentively on his passion.  A major Hindu temple is  accessible at nearby Wentworthville.

The inevitable Indian mega pop star poster (above) can be a source of comfort, familiarity and joy to recent migrants.  Below, at the Taj Indian Sweets along Wigram Street, is what seems to be doughnut-like bites with garnishings of pistachio bits - yummy!

The sari shop (above ) can be the atypical illustration of an ethnic and unique cultural practice, but what captivated me was the front of the Ginger Indian Restaurant (image below), which seems to blend harmoniously elements of Australian cottage and country life with the lure of spices.

The Rocks, Sydney - Vignettes

                                                                                       

Hoppers Pancake as Snacks - The Apong

It is a snack I am familiar with from childhood days, a thin crusted light weight pancake with flaky edges, that nevertheless melts in the mouth and provides a crispy bite.  The dough is mainly made from rice flour, the final product involves the delicate skill of the maker and the pancake can be accompanied by spicy garnishings, or eaten plain. Also referred to as apong in Sri Lanka,  South Asia and South-east Asia, it can be a backpacker's staple for breakfast.  The quality of the apong is not just in the taste, plain looking as it can be, but also in the thinness of the skin.  The apam on the other hand is made from sourdough rice.  Quick to make, the apong or the apam is also best eaten fresh.

The batter is made from coconut milk, yeast, rice flour and even fermented coconut toddy. Small rounded pans are utilised to obtain the final bowl-like shape of each apong. When an egg is poached sitting inside each apong, it must be cooked and served runny, with a dash of salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Servings of meat curry, sambal condiments and mashed pumpkin often accompany the hoppers.  The small size of the cooking utensils ensure sufficient heat within a short period of time to come up with the desired thinness of the skins. Pictures here were taken at the Roselyn Community Centre in Carlingford, north west of Sydney, NSW.  Some such hoppers are made otherwise with palm sugar and coconut.  String shaped white coloured hoppers, or putu mayam, are popular in Malaysia as street food.

Torview on its website offers  the following savoury recipe to make hoppers.

Hoppers

2 cups rice flour

1 coconut water

2 tbsp coconut milk powder (optional or put 1/4 cup coconut milk or regular milk)

water

1 tsp yeast (can replace with 1 slice of bread during warm weather)

1 tbsp sugar (if using yeast)

1 tsp salt

1 egg

jaggery (or unrefined cane sugar)  for sweet hoppers

Mix the yeast with a tbsp of warm water and sugar. Add the yeast to all the ingredients and make a thick pourable batter using the blender, if coconut water is not enough add water or coconut milk or regular milk.

Leave the batter to ferment for at least 6 hours or more.

Heat the hopper pan to medium high heat, when it is hot grease the pan with some oil.

Put a ladle full of batter, about 2 tbsp batter and quickly turn the pan in a circular motion to coat the pan. Cook covered.

The outside of the hopper will be crispy and the centre is soft. Leave the pan covered for about 2 minutes when the hopper is cooked it will come out easily.

Pick up one side of the hopper and slide it out of the pan. Make sure it doesn't get burned in the sides faster than getting cooked in the centre, lower the heat if needed.

Serve hot.

Whatever and However

I recall from Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities, "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

Remaining loyal does not pay. That is, when dealing with certain business providers in our everyday routine lives.  When they want you, they woo you to the ends of the Earth. Once they have you, they eventually take you for granted.  Is this what we want in our society?  I am amazed at this attitude of not maintaining customer relationships. In my twenty years dealing with Australian providers,  I seriously am convinced of two things:

1. When they run shouting advertisements, out of the internet, print or telly, on their side, things are actually happening exactly to what they are desperately trying to tell us otherwise - when the catch cry is more captivating, be careful and be very afraid;

2. Like false love and friendships, such businesses court you only in the beginning. After that, I feel like an abandoned parent, of whatever gender, holding the infant (s) in my arms.

Pessimists amongst some I know further articulate that:

3.  Those whose role is to help are of no assistance at all.

4.  These businesses interact with customers without revealing their full agenda - and their front line staff dealing with customers are caught in a real conundrum.

5.  Despite with so much more means of communication to utilise, many more customers feel left high and dry - and not communicated with.  Communication happens most probably because they want to sell you more and milk your farm.

6.   Some can pull wool over our eyes for years.

The optimist in me discusses with my family and mates to:

a.  Always question and ask - assume they do not tell us everything!

b.  Realise it is imperative to do our own research and information search.

c.  Acknowledge that things are not what they appear to be - monitor, check and reconfirm.

d.  Often get a second opinion - and ask why not?

e.  Make the effort to match and compare - review at least annually.

f.   Just enjoy the play with such parties - in the end, it is just a game.

g.  Learn to say "No" ,  "Why Do You Ask" and "I Am Not Interested" more often

h.   Know that there are cosmic forces in the Universe - what goes around comes around (Thank you, Justin Timberlake)

Rodizio Brazillian Churrascaria - Cronulla, Sydney

Bun bread on skewers. Tongs for each guest to help take off a meat slice hanging ready on the sword like skewer.  The last time I saw such skewers was at Santa Fe Portuguese in Wollongong CBD. This time, in a southern Sydney suburb in the Shire, I am surrounded by family groups and couples, with our table of five selecting the churrasco and tapas degustation menu.  The meats are cooked over hot charcoals and offered in a wide variety, from minted lamb to beef sirloin.  Above picture captures our starting blocks, with chorizo and chicken (which was my fav selection for the night, crispy and full of flavour).  A variety of condiments are utilised to marinade the meats - lemon, French mustard, herbs like thyme, garlic, honey, wine and chili.  These ingredients reflect the heritage of European settlers from more than a hundred years ago merging the availability of meats from an extensive animal grazing industry to the cuisine of their forefathers.

For starters, we loved the banana fritters with a touch of doughnut crumb and cinnamon icing (image above).  Interesting examples of tapas served are pork belly, cevice bianco (fish gougonettes with onion, tomato and capsicum) and a wild mushroom saute.  We had decent reds and whites on our table and they blended well with the various meats from the skewers. I did find a few of my sampled meats a bit over the top in saltiness.  There seemed to be only one guy circulating with the sword skewered meats and he (the passadore) was patient and attentive to the customers.  My group was also taken positively by the smiling engagement by the staff.  For example, they took the effort to let us know that the coffee machine was not producing sufficiently hot coffee that night, before they asked us to consider our orders.

Fresh pineapple grilled over charcoal was a new concept to me (above) and it took me a while to adjust to the different taste. Brazil lies mainly around the equatorial belt and so such fruits were not a surprise to us. We did have a few rounds of the bananas and pineapples.

The unique menu offered is food of the cowboys, or Gauchos, in a barbecue called churrasco. If you can recall those Hollywood movies of old, envisage the characters huddled around campfires on tough open terrain, having spit roasts and tall tales told.  Churrasco was born in such surroundings and most probably served in chunky sizes.   In modern day Cronulla, bite sized cuts and fancy salads are made available, together with modern day delights like mozzarella, olive oil and passion fruit juices.  On this occasion, we did not sample the cocktails, with names like Mojito and Cachaca (sugar cane based).  However, Frank was the usual entertainer and Murph poured the grog.

Interesting enough, beers are not accepted BYO, but you can bring in your own wines, subject to a corkage charge. The evening we were there, the atmosphere was sufficiently boisterous, despite a chilly night, and even at 10pm, the piped in music continued to entertain.   Some attention was paid to recreate a Rio Grande region street scene, with actual louvred windows facing inwards along the inner bricked walls and huge orange/red coloured piping running ostentatiously above, just below  the ceiling.  The kitchen had an open concept over a counter for guests to see the tools and ways of the grill trade.  Dining tables are made of solid wood and relatively spacious.  On Saturday nights, there are live performers bringing the vibes of Carnivale to the restaurant. I could see a McDonalds joint across the road but I was more than happy to be on this side instead.  The meatballs are lusciously tasty and the garden salad, refreshing (picture below).

Rodizio also operates in the inner city suburb of Leichhardt in Sydney.  My impressions of my visit to the Cronulla outlet of Rodizio are:

Atmosphere: Bustling.

Location: The Shire.

Taste:  Palate teaser and rewarding.

People Engagement:  Relaxing and attentive.

Service:  Responsive  even on a busy night.

Best Time to Visit: Saturday nights.

Fav Dish Experienced: Charcoal grilled Chicken,

Would I Return?:  Yes, I am already eyeing the

prawn and chorizo pasta.