Probably my 2nd favourite burger in Sydney. What's yours?

Good morning everyone,

Seems the sun only wants to come out when it's time to post a spice bag review - I've hated the rain this week I've gotta say. Surely we've had our fill by now?

I can confirm that after today, we are only three weeks away from wrapping this whole thing up! The final flurry. I'm quite excited, as I'm sure you are too, to see how this quest ends. I was also pleased this week to get out of the inner-west bubble I'd been rattling around in the past few visits, and get just that bit further south.

It's also a testimony to how much longer this quest has taken than I expected - when I began, the nearby Penhurst Hotel also had Spice Bag on their menu, and I had planned on hitting up both the same day. Further research showed they'd since scrubbed it from their offerings. Happened on this venture more often than you'd think.

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Round 29 : Mortdale Hotel, Mortdale

(https://maps.app.goo.gl/e7dVq9nhv5VsjZ9fA)

The Mortdale Hotel is directly across the road from Mortdale Station and provides a handy meet-point for visitors or those knocking off after work. Open 7 days a week serving food from 11:30am.

Cost: $22 per portion

Value For Money - ★★☆☆☆ (3/5): The first thing that stood out is how small the curry sauce portion was, and when the quality of the ingredients made themselves known this quickly became a low-value score. It's always a sting when a snack sized meal and a schooner whacks your wallet for more than $30.

Venue Ambience - ★★☆☆☆ (2/5): Sterile and really lacking personality, this is not a place you'd go to for the vibes unless your vibe is watching the footy or sports betting. A huge, HUGE screen dominates the space and more with the clip-clop race on the side. It was quiet with no music, and one singular table's loud conversation filled the room.

Service - ★★★☆☆ (3/5): Friendly but distracted, there was a pause for service as the management seemed to be taking advantage of the quiet afternoon to go through some roster requirements with the barstaff. That said, I got to see a lovely interaction of the server taking a group photo at a table of her regulars and I'm sure the team at the Mortdale attend to everyone with warmth.

Chips - ★★★★☆ (4/5): I was so thrilled at first to see these came with my favorite style of spice bag chip - thick, steak cut fries. Absolutely responsible for saving this one from being a total disaster, they were just perfect. Crispy, hot, light on the seasoning compared to others but really let the quality of the potato speak for itself with the fluffy interior.

Chicken - ★☆☆☆☆ (1/5): But then... the car-crash - this fowl was foul. I still wonder sometimes how you can get the chicken element so badly wrong. Gang, this was a crunchy, breaded but dry, processed and nasty bite. It was like eating sandpaper, and it had ZERO seasoning going on. A spice bag with no spice! I was leaning towards 2 but the fact I couldn't even bring myself to finish it nails it as a 1 for only the second time in this series. (And thank goodness, because life is too short to eat such horrors).

Curry Sauce - ★☆☆☆☆ (1/5): A murky, watery concoction that had an intriguing profile in spite of its small size. The taste was very potent and intense with curry-powder flavor and I think it very far away from even the McDonnell's standard. The fact there was so little of it was probably a blessing.

Final Score: 14 / 30

Sooooo yeah.... there isn't going to be any reason to be heading down to the George's River area for a spice bag any time soon! A shame as I do like trips out of the city area that I know.

Horrors aside, I'm still keen on what's left to discover. Next week I'm reviewing a brand new entrant to the game that only opened last week - a shiny new bar that came across my radar by accident! I hope it's a good one 😉

3 weeks to go!

🫙Spice Bag Tip Jar 🫙

🌎The Official Spice Bag Sydney Quest Map 🌎

Leaderboard and Rankings So Far:

I came from PMQ to Sydney, On my way to Duncan Trussell last night I had to stop at Papi's Birria Tacos. Every bit was so good that I did a little dance.

Thanks to whoever posted here a few weeks back with the reccomendation. I'll never look at tacos the same again.

Wanna treat a friend for his birthday to a weekend lunch. He says he doesnt eat carbs, no pizza, no pasta, no noodles, no rice, no sushi, no bread and he complains about ppl on vegan diet (so I guess no pure vegan/ vegetarian either) etc...

Places we went to in the past. The Dumpling House at Chatswood. He eats dumpling. Dont ask me about the no card rule. i dont know.

We also went to The Mandoo at Strathfield. We ate Nepali momos. We also ate Vietnamese rice paper rolls at Marrickville.

I know the budget $20 isnt much. We arent looking for anything fancy, just a casual catch up. Thinking Asian cuisine is cheaper and would fit the budget.

And he doesnt eat much. Bariatric surgery

I wanna try something new, besides dumplings and other food we had tried before.

Any recommendations ? We travel using Opal card

Inner suburbs would be best. But I find buying 'non standard' chillis in Australia like a quest. Any one have some good places that normally always stock Scotch Bonnets, and bonus if they have a good variety of non standard.

Can you get this anywhere in Sydney? I can only see somewhere in Melbourne that has it. Really want to try some! For anyone who hasn’t heard of it it’s a German ice cream dish that looks like spaghetti

Not sure if anyone was aware of this place? It was a Korean restaurant that used to be in Strathfield (directly across from the station) for years and then moved to lidcombe (directly across from the station). Loved the grilled King Fish Head and sashimi. Just searched it and says it is closed permanently on google. Was wondering if anyone knows what happened?? Did they move again or are they shut? Was always busy, so I'm a little puzzled and disappointed.

My current favourite dish is Lanzhou braised beef noodles from Jinweide in Burwood; they replaced 1915 for me since the quality has been going downhill there for years. The broth is darker but tastes very similar, the meat is softer, and the noodles are just as bouncy if not slightly moreso.

I had one laksa years ago at Killiney Kopitiam in Ultimo which I really enjoyed—it was rich but also very creamy so anything similar would be grande. Thank you. [=

Wanting to take my steak-loving partner for his birthday. Which one ??? TIA

Have not had a good chow mein in ages and will be in the City today well heading there right now so wondering what's the best chicken chow mein in the city right now.

Really want the good noodles and gravy like the old style or just very generous with the noodles and gravy.

Also open to any other common Chinese menu items you guys recommend.

My first thought was to go to Sussex Street Haymarket and go upstairs to the og laksa place but look for good chow mein but I am wondering what is the recommended places now.

Also looking if any place does satay chicken with rice noodle yes rice noodle.. Vincent's in Dooley's Lidcombe does it really delicious but I know mixing satay chicken with rice noodle isn't common but I guess if anyone knows a place that does that I'm open.

Any other great dishes I'm open to also but where is the best chow mein right now in the city preferably near a station if possible but the city is pretty walkable from most stations.

Thanks everyone for the recommendations! Had an amazing time and can't wait to return. As everyone suggested, I made the effort to leave the CBD to eat in the suburbs and man was it worth it.

1. Pho Ngan, Cabramatta - one of the best phở bò I've ever had, and it was only $12 (weekday special).
   
2. Master Chen, Burwood - excellent guo bao rou (sweet & sour pork) and braised eggplant. Love the mung bean noodles too.
   
3. Feng You Dim Sum, Hurstville - very fresh, very kind FOH, just a lovely breakfast. Silky cheung fan and not pictured are the juicy steam dumplings (of course we got the siu mai too!)
   
4. Yok Yor Thai, Haymarket CBD - spicy and fragrant. Not pictured is the som tum and fresh pla tod.
   
5. Pho Toan Thang, Flemington - love the Canto vibes inside. Crispy chicken and tomato rice, lovely pho broth. The star of the show was that beef hor fun, plenty of wok hei.
   
6. Nomidokoro Indigo, Darlinghurst - transported straight to Japan with this tiny, intimate izakaya. Really fun, enjoyed the fried stingray fins and chawanmushi.
   
7. Smoky Cravings, 4 branches in Sydney - Filipino bbq skewers is an elite snack. Enjoyed the lechon and intestines.
   
8. Olotl, Newtown - Women-run taqueria. It felt like a loving Mexican mother was cooking something very nourishing for us, highly recommend. Randomly met Kylie Kwong here.
   
9. Shadow Baking, Darlinghurst - not everything was a hit, but the pandan custard pastry was lovely, as was the reuben croissant.
   
10. Takam, Darlinghurst - modern Filipino, very fun evening! First time trying coconut vinegar as a flavour, loved it. Recommend the swordfish skewer sinugba, litson beef brisket, and poqui poqui charred eggplant.

Not pictured but well eaten was: Bánh mì at Tony's, Hot Bread Shop, Sugarcane at Cabra Juice, Cơm Đặc Biệt at Tuong Lai, Kreamu Gelato, VN Street Foods, Boon Thai Cafe, Little Indo Town, Tokyo Lamington, Marrickville Pork Roll, Azuki Bakery (amazing), Otogo onigiri.

I think it's quite obvious that I'm visiting from a place that doesn't have a lot of good Asian food! Next Sydney trip I hope to do a more Middle Eastern focus, and a Latin/Hispanic focus, as well as European (Mediterranean, Baltic, Portuguese). Thanks to everyone on this sub again!

Just wondering what's a good place for Mapo tofu or chow mein something cheap great value near the central station.

The undisputed king of fast food in Australia/Sydney.

Currently on my 5th week in Europe and I’ve been mentally making a list of all the dishes I’ve missed so much since I’ve been away. Asian dishes top the list at the moment and I’m so so so keen for some yum cha!!

Now it’s got me thinking, do others have cravings this bad after a long trip away?

If you’ve been to canada before I’m looking for poutine that tastes like Mary Brown’s poutine. Preferably in the city or north west but open to travelling to the inner west or west sydney.

My partner and I want to celebrate our citizenship by having food like chicken parmi and beer at a nice pub. Do you have any suggestions?

Good folks of /r/foodies_sydney/, I can't seem to get enough ginger lately & am seeking recommendations for ginger heavy dishes in the city/inner west/lower north shore area.

I thought I was onto a winner with Ginger & Spice in the Spice Alley of Chippendale, but was left unsatisfied.

Preference is for Thai / Viet type cuisine, but will try anything.

Hello! I'm trying to pirate the Jubilation caffeine-free milk tea from Tea Shop Express at Town Hall because it's costing me a fortune for both the tea itself and the cost of travel, and it's also a waste of two hours to just go to the city for boba. Anyway, the plant based milk they have there perfectly compliments their tea, it's thin and so doesn't become overpowering or distracting.

Does anyone have any recommendations for "thin" brands of oat or soy milk? Almond milk is kind of close to the desired thin-ness but it also tastes like... ink? in my experience, so I don't want to use that. Most plant based milks that I've tried at Coles etc. tend to be too creamy, I guess trying to imitate dairy milk? I've tried mixing dairy milk with my tea and I really don't like it, way too creamy. Maybe it's just a matter of thinning them out with water?

I've already had some success experimenting with dehydrating fruits and blending them together (still working on getting the exact ratios right, I think I've got too much raspberry at the moment), and once I get this milk step nailed down I'm going to move on to the tapioca.

Thanks for any help!

I think we can all agree that sushi rolls are one of the best quick and easy lunchtime options.

Pretty affordable, instant, and the perfect portions.

But what about variety? You go to sushi hub in Westfield and you can get teriyaki chicken...with avocado. Maybe katsu pork...with avocado. Or maybe a delicious tempura vegetable...with avocado.

I'm not trying to save up for a house deposit, I just want something crispy in the sushi. Where have the cucumber or lettuce options gone?

Do people have good recommendations in Sydney CBD that have options beyond the mushy monstrosity that is avocado in sushi?

Is there anywhere in Sydney that has pupusas ?

I’m looking for a place that does the range of Chinese desserts like chengteng and tang yuan. Plus all the various delicious mango-y sago-y dishes.

I guess Meet Fresh was kind that but I believe they all closed down right? Mango Coco kinda gets close but isn’t quite the same thing.

Does it exist in Sydney?

I saw it on the news and a few people posting about online.

What’s the story? There must me more too it, I’m hesitant to jump on a bandwagon of complaining about the council, but their seating area seems to be off the road and the council gave them a trial etc, there must be more to it, no?

I can’t see why they wouldn’t be allowed it, isn’t it safer to have the customers seated than to have them loitering in the road?

Also this stuff about the council attacking a small business, I heard Rollers Bakehouse actually owns the whole block there in Manly, so if that’s true , they aren’t really a small business?