Hai Au Restaurant

When I think of Vietnamese food, my first thought will be Pho - a Vietnamese flat rice noodles in a bowl of soup with your preference of meat and a side dish of bean sprout, basil/mint , lemon and chili as an option to served together with the soup. But thanks to my brother in law, he introduces and expand my knowledge of Vietnamese food more than just Pho.

The latest encounter of Vietnamese food is at Hai Au Restaurant at Canley Vale.

D.I.Y rice paper rolls with variety of filings

To make your own rice paper roll may seems a bit messy, having to first dip the rice paper in the bowl of hot water until soft , then lay it on a plate and have your pick of fillings such as mint, rice vermicelli, cucumber with cooked meat. It's all worth it as you get to choose the fillings and sort of play with different food flavors and texture at the same time. Saying that, I remember my mum used to say "don't play with your food" (with a angry tone). Guess she will say this must be the only exception.

Spring rolls

Deep fried quill

Minced Prawn on Sugar cane

Like many food bloggers, trying to take photos of the food before start eating, this must be one of a kind ... evidence of my fail attempt ... wasn't able to take a proper photo as all dig straight into it once arrived ! While at least it shows partial form of the dish ?! It just shows how popular this one simple dish. Strong lovely prawn flavor with the sweetness of the sugarcane.

Self grilled marinated Deer and Beef

Yes to my surprise as well, they do sell deer meat and I'm keen to try. Deer is more gamy, but it doesn't really taste much different to beef at all.

Stewed fish in bowl with rice

Sour soup with Fish

While my most favorite must be the Canh Chua, a sour soup made up of more than a dozen types of vegetable and herbs. Such as pineapple, lemongrass, tamarind, tomatoes, coriander, bac ha (taro stem/elephant ear) and okra pods. All these flavor combination makes up one very unique soup that I could not stop refilling my bowl.

Maybe I should plan a trip to Vietnam, while for the time being, to satisfy my desire, I just have to watch Luke Nguyen's Vietnam on SBS.

Hai Au Restaurant

48a Canley Vale Road

Canley Vale, NSW 2166

Phone: (02)97249156

Foveaux Restaurant and Bar (The Red Door)

For a group gatherings or in this occasion - a hens night, it is not difficult to find a nice fine dining restaurant in around the city but at a reasonable price that everyone could afford could be a challenge. Having said that, we managed to dine out at Foveaux.

As the name provided, Foveaux is on Foveaux St. For the third time in a role , this restaurant has been award with One Hat. Without much notice, you could easily walk pass it.

While we first started our hens night at The Red Door (Foveaux Bar). With a long list of wine and cocktails to choose from, after much thought I have chosen the Belvedere Samba. The sweetness of peach bitters with the chamomile tea mix up the slight sourness of grapefruit soda made one very dangerously addictive drink.

With a touch of hens night , the hen was given a lovely tiara headband and some lovely/naughty gifts which seems to be more for the enjoyment of the husband to be. Sitting at the comfy couches and a great jazz mix with funk as background music we all seems to enjoy the atmosphere and love to linger at the bar area for a bit longer chatting away about everything and anything regards to wedding, marriage and even pregnancy tales from some very experience mother.

After the drink , we were escorted to the restaurant. To my surprise they have printed out our chosen testing menu in advance and tailored the menu for a few of us with special dietary requirements.

Marinated ocean trout, smoked trout ice cream , cucumber, popped skin and baby coriander

Caramalised pork belly , ceviche prawn , black pudding puree, shiso and prawn rice cracker

Baked rainbow trout with victorian morel mushrooms, clams, mache, sugar snaps and sweet corn puree

Braised rib cap, oyster, chicken wings, parsley puree and milk braided celeriac

Braised watermelon, vodka jube, fruit salad sage and sheeps yoghurt sorbet

Tonka bean rice pudding, blackberry conserve, white chocolate ice cream and walnut dust

Overall the menu was one exploring adventure for me. The smoke trout ice cream was very smooth and quite an appetizer as the first course. While I'm not a big fan of black budding (pig blood) but this instance it goes really well with the flavorsome pork belly. The rainbow trout was perfectly cook with all the ingredients on the dish defiantly brings out the sweet freshness of the fish.

From what I know, chicken wings aren't often as part of fine dining menu, however Foveaux is an exception on the 4th course they had to offer. They were so crispy and tasty I could have more, while the braised rib cap was very juicy and tender which goes really well with the beautifully milk braised celeriac. By the end of this course , I was already feeling full and bloated. However, with no surprise I managed to finished both my deserts which were absolutely delight.

By the time we finished dinner and fully satisfy, it was already mid night. I'm glad Carlyn - the bride to be, the rest of the group and myself enjoyed the night out at such a cosy restaurant. Who say a hens night must go crazy and wild with naked man ... hmm I guess it's a total different experience but a classy dinner with a great group of friends to celebrate hens night are equally fun and enjoyable.

Foveaux Restaurant and Bar

65- 67 Foveaux St
Surry Hills, NSW 2010

Phone (02) 9211 0664

http://www.foveaux.com.au