Hawker, Sydney - Penang Street Food

My best nominated dish - the tamarind laksa - so far as Hawker enters its third week of offering Penang street food to the public.

Michaeline had mentioned to me about this much awaited place - and before Christmas this year, it was all revealed. I like the location, not far with a short walk up from Darling Harbour and down from World Square in Sydney CBD.  The mostly young staff are friendly and seemingly well trained.  The menu is not overly crowded, making sense to non-Asians with a common sense classification of snacks, drinks, noodles, desserts and breads.  Apparently representing the best of Penang street food, what stands out in the Hawker menu are the ban chien kueh in Fujian dialect (here referred to as the apom balik in the menu), plus the banana  or durian filled batter options. The former is a light pancake served with flavoursome peanuts and butter inside the wrap, temptingly cooked in individual burners transparently to the walk in guests. What a marketing genius!  The owners of Hawker I reckon have already achieved a coup in the Australian market by the flapping of roti canai being prepared thorough glass visible to passer-bys in their Mamaks outlets for a few years now.  Now they have transplanted this visual delight of openness in preparing their pancakes. No deep fried ice cream here, it is a Singapore thing originally when Asian cooks thought up of pleasing their British colonial masters in the last century. Instead we have the goreng pisang (deep fried  banana batter) and the goreng durian  (the latter being a rather recent concept and not easily found on the streets of Georgetown Penang itself).

Hawker just before opening at 1130am on a holiday weekend.

A Fujian classic, the thin wrap snack (Poh Pniah) can be healthy, light on the palate and finger sized biting good.

On my first visit to Hawker, I was impressed by the quality of the tamarind laksa, particularly in the richness of the all critical soup, the abundance of fish in the gravy and in the variety of authentic garnishing (Spanish onions, julienned cucumber and fresh mint leaves). The all important fish shrimp paste brought me back true memories growing up in Penang ( The Hay Koh in Fujian dialect).  On the contrary, what was a bit short was in the serving of Poh Pniah that day, specifically with out a light gravy accompanying the version back in Georgetown (think of the version found at the Padang Brown food stalls).  The Poh Pniah at Hawker therefore tended to be on the dry side, although I give thumbs up to the quality of the freshly prepared skin.  There was perhaps too much smashed yellow bean curd and a missing ingredient in the wrap was finely simmered pork bits.

The deep fried lobak - essentially pork cubes marinated with five spice powder, then wrapped in soy skin, offering crunchiness, texture and flavour.  Here served with sides of battered yam and dried shrimp. A street food classic in Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.

Janice loved the chicken curry laksa - and she is an expert in this dish.   I could sense the rising aroma from her laksa bowl.  There was no overload of coconut milk as may be found in some other places.   The tau hoo pork (soya bean based ) stood up attractively in her bowl.   I informally asked a young man sitting next to our table how his serving of prawn noodles (Har mee) went with him, as I saw many around  me choosing that dish.  He was not too impressed though, saying it was just okay.  I was eyeing the wanton noodles (dry serve, soy mixed and with separate soup) and that will have to wait next time.  We avoided the cholesterol contributors of or chien ( mussels in omelette) until we could find a larger group to share this dish.  The test for Hawker perhaps can come down to the quality of the char koay teow, Penang's iconic street food icon.

There are many variations of chicken curry laksa in Australian capital cities.  The Hawker version is more clean cut and this is on my list already on a next visit.

The drinks list at Hawker, December 2014 - Cham means mix, Ping means served with ice and the mouthful of "Kat Chai Suen Mui" is Cantonese for " Kumquat Pickled Sour Plum". A summery preference is barley, definitely cooling for the inner body and I just wonder why there is no Teh Tarik, otherwise available at Mamak's (Chatswood, Melbourne and Sydney)

Peering through the window whilst lining up before opening times - 1130am and 530pm each day.

The feel of the place is spacious when compared to Mamak's.  The young man attending to payment at the counter asked how did everything go, a sign of welcoming feedback.  The washrooms are clean.   It is a suitable place to bring in mates or the clan to dabble in key Penang street food dishes without doing a stall crawl or between shopping or before attending a concert.  Black coloured chopsticks are provided with serviettes, reducing clutter on the small tables. I noticed condiments are not encouraged like in Thai cafes, but home styled prepared sambal and chili sides come along with certain dishes.  There is a choice of non-spicy dishes (like the Wat tan hor fan, or egg gooey wok stirred rice noodles) apart from the expected south-east Asian spiciness - but no mee goreng, roti canal or rendang curry.  On balance, I reckon an ex-Penangfite would feel at home here!

Cafe Opera, Intercontinental Sydney

A selection to complete a rather good afternoon.

High ceilings. Sandstone contrasting with raw red brick walls. Spacious corridors. Perhaps the best seating is in the balconies overlooking the inner sanctum.  In this modern age of glass, electronics and density, it is rewarding to be able to relax in hallowed surroundings being with crowds but not feeling hemmed in. My group of five were fortunate to obtain a reserved table outside the cafe proper, which was chock a block with guests also here for the Sunday Christmas lunch, held  but only once a year in December.   We were greeted with sparkling wine, generously topped up throughout our meal.  A hint of festivity decorated our table, where we could pull Christmas pops, wear season hats and just literally relax. No ala carte selections today, we went with the flow of Christmas goodies, with under currents of a French end of year theme, especially for dessert, but also with good old Aussie seafood offerings like fresh prawns, quality salmon cuts and lots of preserves, nuts and healthy salads.


The Cafe Opera is located upstairs from the rather compact lobby of the Intercontinental Sydney, located at the Bridge end of Macquarie Street, all within walking distance of the NSW State Parliament, NSW Art Gallery, Circular Quay and the Sydney Opera House.  It is sited on the top end of town so to speak and makes most of the old State Treasury Building.  The staff attending to us that day were delightful, quick on the foot and friendly.  They happily offered alternatives of juice or soft drinks if you have to drive after the meal.  Guests are orderly, patient and quiet in waiting for their food in the queues.  The food bars are daintily decorated and suggest an Euro atmosphere, especially with the biscuits, pastries and cakes at the end of the ambient buffet.

I normally try to skip mains in a whole some buffet, but this time I found the Christmas ham and roast turkey irresistible - the cloves were still in my slices of ham and the accompanying gravy lifted the meats further.  The choice of cooked food may not be as varied as in the Sheraton by Hyde Park, but they had gems like delicately grilled barramundi and butter chicken curry.  I saw the rather chunky dim sims ( really steamed buns and pork/prawn siew mai) and did not have the heart to mention to the staff that Cantonese yum cha is really meant for petite snacks of bite size and not to be served in such huge proportions.  Dim sim literally means " touch of the heart" and not a flagging of monster sized grabs.


That little disappointment was soon wiped out by the variety of entrees, starting with Japanese sashimi, sushi and lobster bisque.  The latter was rather gratifying, flavourful, thick and with toasty croutons.  And I did revel in my dessert choices, rather up to expectations and with really too much to choose and take it all in. May be I did miss Italian, Spanish or Middle Eastern dishes but that would have been over the top. We were placed where we could hold a conversation, where the background noise was in another room, where it was reading to catch up with family and friends.  Then it was off to view the David Jones Christmas displays, the Martin Place Christmas tree and the QVB window shopping. I would recommend the Cafe Opera also on quieter months.

Snacks and Bites Australia part 2

Wholesome big breakfast at Cosy Cafe, Unanderra NSW

Portuguese themed home gathering - Balgownie

Spaghetti Marinara at Shellharbour Stockland shopping centre

A great way to start the day - besides the beautiful glass mugs - at Connie's, North Wollongong NSW

Breakfast with the Sakumas - Devon Cafe, Surry Hills Sydney

Roast lamb shanks with potatoes - Costa Azzura Italian, Fairy Meadow NSW.

Roast duck ala Guangzhou with braised mushrooms.

Snacks and Bites - Australia Today

Cantina Dog - Cantina Central Hotel Shellharbour NSW

My favourite yogurt - various flavours from Dairy Farmers

Veg and fruit juicing - fete at Macquarie Park, North Ryde NSW

Eggs Florentine with salmon and avocado - Point Cafe, Bulli NSW

Fish stock based soup in ramen from Ryo's in Crows Nest, north shore Sydney

Perhaps a balanced breakfast - bacon, poached egg, tomato, avocado and cut fruits, from Connie's Cafe, North Wollongong NSW

Spicy arrowroot noodles with garnishing, pork slices and egg - Jonga Jip, Eastwood NSW

Cempita pulled pork on a roll with cabbage - Dagwood, Wollongong NSW

Musing over a brioche roll for a weekend breakky

Beer battered fish and chips with gherkins - Diggies North Wollongong Beach NSW

Soy sauced pork with a Pimms cocktail

Crispy fried chicken with fried egg over tomato flavoured rice, accompanied by a vinegar based dipping sauce - very popular in Vietnamese restaurants and cafes dotted across Australian capital  cities

Fresh from the oven -  French inspired croissants from Orto Trading Co. , Surry Hills, Sydney

Quick fix noodles of curry mee

Sourdough with a twist Spanish style - Bill & James Cafe, Balgownie NSW

Crown Street Markets - Wollongong NSW

A violinist concentrates on play along the mall that hosts the markets every Friday.

Cured meats in a variety of forms and unique tastes underlying the Euro tradition.

The breeze blows in from the ocean, making it comfy for market visitors to browse preserves, cheeses, clothes, handicrafts, plants, fruits, vegetables and meat offerings.  Up the top end of Crown Street Mall is the recently opened shopping centre along Keira Street.

Produce from farms for the kitchen and stove.  Both Myer and David Jones department stores are located nearby, in addition to my fav cafes His Boy Elroy, Lee & Me, Lower Crown Eat and the Three Chimneys.

An Anglican church with sandstone and all awaits visitors in the mall and is open during market time.

Bandstand near the mall, with the beaches all within walking distance.