The cooking, eating and travel blog of a hungry blogger from Sydney, Australia featuring original recipes, interviews and articles on all things food @ Not Quite Nigella

Category Archives: The Unusual

Mui Huong Goat Meat Restaurant, Marrickville

Trust me when I tell you that I am not a satanist. Nor that I am judging being a satanist, but as I am queasy at the sight of blood a future as a Satanist is not in my cards, nor is being a doctor (aversion to bodily fluids also cancels this out). But when my blogging buddy Christie and I drive past the Goat Meat restaurant on our way to the Harry’s Bar event, we squeal with excitement. A Goat Meat restaurant you say? Yes. One with drawings of goats frolicking outside? Yes. And just like that we cancel our dinner plans elsewhere and make a last minute decision to go Goat Meat.

In the restaurant there is another large table of people mid-meal. We ask to see the menu-just in case-just in case of what I am not sure. We are intrigued by the offerings so we sit down and ask the waitress for her recommendations. We’re not well versed in goat meat, both of us only having it in curries, so she recommends the grilled goat meat and the raw goat meat (stay with me, hold onto my hand, it’s not as scary as it sounds). There’s a page of more traditional (and non goat-ey) dishes and a page of the more bovine kind. The waitress asks us if it is our first time here and indeed it is and she smiles and says proudly that this is the only Goat Meat restaurant in Australia.

Salted Lemon juice and Salted Plum drink $3 each

We order some drinks, a Salted Lemon drink and a Salted Plum drink. We’re not sure what to expect but they’re actually quite delicious albeit quite salty. I don’t find them as thirst quenching as I’d like though but they are very flavoursome.

Grilled Goat Meat with rice vermicelli $18

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36 comments | March 3rd, 2009 by Not Quite Nigella

Chocolate Kkomz, Eastwood

“Chocolate Whaaat?” my sister asks when I tell her the name of the restaurant we are going to. This will be a familiar phrase repeated also when I tell M, her boys and my husband the restaurant name. This is our second attempt at dining at Chocolate Kkomz. Last week a staff member had taken our reservation and we had shown up at 1pm only to find the restaurant closed and the staff member waiting outside for us apologising profusely for taking our booking when the restaurant wasn’t open. So when we are running 5 minutes late, M texts us that she is sitting down at our booth and let us know that “Yes, it’s open!”.

Another booth

The booths are unusual, ours is like a train dining carriage and the decor is full of dark woods. Other booths bear a more home spun look with embroidered patterned cream fabric and ties. There’s an assortment of Christmas tunes playing in the background to get us in the Christmas mood. Prices change after 5.30pm by roughly 20% .

The menu is full of reasonably priced options along with some more expensive items like the $80 Pumpkin Fondue special which is poured into a whole steamed pumpkin and needs to be ordered in advance as it takes 2 hours. It’s said to be Korean fusion and indeed some of the dishes are. The waitress is lovely and patient with our umming and ahhing but we don’t see the bell on the table which we are supposed to use to get service throughout the evening.

The rules…

One thing we do notice is the list of rules (we get a hint of these when we walk into the restaurant and see a sign that says “No Prams, No Skateboards”). They emphasise that they are not a library, school or private office. There’s a minimum of 1 dish per person rule and kids that climb under and over the tables are not permitted. The boys are a bit scared of being ejected from the premises which serves to quieten them when their volume levels reach too high. Useful!

Appletise $4.50

Complimentary sides

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22 comments | December 23rd, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

A Dinky Di, Bloody Good, Australian “Chook”

There are a few things that are said to be “typically Australian”. Beer is one thing and BBQs are another. A man clutching a tinnie of beer wearing a “kiss the cook” or boobie apron turning steak over and over again until it’s thoroughly charred is a combination of these two things. I could go on about the list of typical Australianisms (rhyming slang or esoteric terminology like “Dinky Di” or “Ridgy Didge” are said to be typical) but I can’t say I’ve ever uttered these phrases except in jest. And unless you’ve been living under a rock this past week, you’ll have noticed the enormous amount of promotion for the new film “Australia” so let’s call this our little contribution to the cause.

Food and BBQs over the Summer take advantage of our wonderful warm weather. And it’s one of the few times a man will strap on an apron to cook which is never a bad thing. When I first saw this recipe in Matthew Evans’ The Weekend Cook I bookmarked it immediately and asked around as to whether friends had a BBQ with a lid – I would bring the chicken and the beer. Unfortunately everyone’s BBQs were lidless but when M mentioned buying a new BBQ with a lid, a date was quickly made. I think she thought I was crazy when I started going on about a chicken with a can of beer stuck up its backside but to her credit she didn’t call the police.

There were only three types of beer in tinnies at the bottle shop so we chose the one we felt typified Australian beer, or at least the working class glass, the VB (Victoria Bitter). I’m not a big beer drinker but VB seems to be the beer of choice for a friend’s husband and I’m pretty sure that if you look up “Aussie Bloke” in the dictionary, his picture would appear, next to his dog and ute.

Chicken seasoned with salt, pepper and native Australian bush spices

Instead of using salt and pepper we used a salt and pepper and native Australian bush spice blend heady with Australian Lemon Myrtle which is like a Lemon Verbena.

The pressure was on, after all the chicken was the main “meat” at the dinner party with M, Malcolm, Fay, Parwin and Manisha and baby Jay (we had another chicken in the fridge as “back up”). I didn’t want the night to be remembered as “Do you remember that time when that crazy girl stuck a can of beer up the chicken’s ass and tried to BBQ it?”. Rather I wanted it to be remembered as “Do you remember that time when that crazy girl stuck a can of beer up the chicken’s ass and BBQd it and it actually tasted nice?”.

Impaling the chicken onto the beer

The two slightly tricky parts was firstly impaling the chicken onto the can of beer (you’ll want someone to hold the can while you wiggle the chicken onto it). And do put it into the “bottom” of the chicken, unlike me who tried putting it in the top, such was my confusion. After the chicken is cooked and lovely and crispy brown, the can may be hard to get out from under the chicken, especially as it has very hot beer inside it so just be very careful – I would hate for you to get injured whilst attempting this!

Other dishes served: Mashed potato, mushrooms, leeks and blue cheese

Other dishes served: Steamed cassava

The resultant chicken is a gorgeously tender bird, steamed and so soft on the inside by the beer yet crisped and browned on the outside. So much so that M decided to make a trip to the store tomorrow to buy a tinnie of beer to BBQ her other remaining chicken.

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33 comments | November 25th, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

The Lock-Up Prison restaurant at Shibuya

What would you say if I invited you to come along to a Haunted Prison themed restaurant, in one of the busiest hubs of Tokyo and told you that you may indeed be scared senseless entering the restaurant and that you’ll be led to a jail cell in handcuffs and then locked up in it for the duration of the meal? Sounds good? Then you’re someone that I would be friends with.

I had been looking forward to The Lockup in Shibuya ever since arriving to Tokyo as I kept hearing how very weird it was. At another location (there are several Lockups throughout Tokyo), apparently you and your party get placed into a darkened room and if you find the secret opening, then you make it into the restaurant. I had no idea what to expect so when we see the sign indicating we are to go to Basement 2, we follow, hesitating. The entrance looms and there is a genuinely spooky atmosphere given by the extremely dark and winding hallways, cold rush of air and cackling and screaming sounds around us. We inch around the corner slowly, as to not to fall (it’s a lawsuit waiting to happen and this would never happen in a litigious country like America or even Australia) and what happens next frightens the hell out of me, a man strapped to an electric chair, Clive Barker from Hellraiser sans pins, rocks back and forth screaming with lights flashing.

I scream my lungs out and then fortifying myself, move on where we encounter other bumps and things designed to scare (I won’t ruin the surprise for those that want to go) and encounter three doors, one door being the correct one, and two others….well let’s not ruin that for you too! If you want to experience entering the LockUp there are a couple of videos on Youtube

Making it into the sanctum of the restaurant, my husband is led by handcuffs to our prison cell (I don’t get handcuffed apparently, only one member of your group is which I think is a bit disappointing). We get our own “prison cell” and are locked in although the door isn’t actually locked and we are free to go but they do pull the doors shut.

We peruse the menu and find some cocktails that tickle our fancy, mainly due to the presentation as we can’t actually read the menu that well and there is no English menu. It’s Izakaya food, which I absolutely love as I like small dishes in a plentiful number so that I can try as many tastes as possible.

A friend translated the cocktail menu for me as it reads as follows:

Cloning Experiment
Electric Shock
Illegal Parking (Injection) [Red Ticket]= pronunciations of Japanese words for ‘parking’ and ‘injection’ are the same
Bad Loan – your eyeballs have blown up because you’ve lent too much money
Human Experiment
Drug Addition (you are already dead)
Time Bomb Capsules – they may explode after you’ve swallowed them?

Test tube cocktail (non alcoholic Y800)

Our cocktails arrive, the first one a non alcoholic number served in a beaker and with 5 test tubes with different flavours and a dropper to add each flavour to the drink. The drink itself is like a carbonated light yogurt drink and the flavours are sweet and tasty. I enjoy this chance to play scientist and “mix” drinks all night.

Syringe drink Y580

The second drink comes also comes in a beaker but this also has a syringe full of red jelly which we squirt into the drink. It has a sweet berry flavour to it and is alcoholic (and strongly so).

Complimentary breadsticks and cheese dip

The drinks also arrive with some breadsticks broken in half in a beaker along with the sweet and savoury cream cheese. It’s curious and not too bad indeed.

BBQ pork with spring onions Y609

Our range of dishes arrives in quick succession. The BBQ pork dish at first looks like it has too much spring onion on top of it but once popped into the mouth, it tastes perfect, the pork beautifully soft and melt in the mouth. It’s a delicate touch for an Izakaya and we are both impressed.

Big Salad Y871
The second dish, a 35cms tall salad in a glass arrives and the waitress serves this up by tipping out the salad onto a bowl and spreading it out. There is finely sliced crunchy daikon, lettuce, cherry tomato and fried chicken pieces with a Japanese Wafu dressing. There’s no egg as per the picture though but we welcome the taste of fresh salad.

Chinese chicken salad Y504

The third dish is actually different from what we had ordered but it’s very good so we don’t mind in the slightest. It’s a chicken and sesame mayo Chinese chicken salad served in a purple cabbage cup. It’s very good, one of my favourite salads ever so we don’t ask what happened to the original dish (not that we could anyway, my Japanese only gets me as far as ordering, not complaining)

Nankotsu Y504

The fourth dish is one of my favourites ever since I first had this in an Izakaya. It’s not always available at every Izakaya and whenever I see it, I always order it. It’s Nankotsu (chicken cartilege), breaded and deep fried so that the bone is no as crunchy as when it is grilled. A sprinkle of Tabasco and it is perfection and this is indeed.

Mince Okonomiyaki Y609
The last dish, a beef mince okonomiyaki is not to my taste. I am also very full so I pass up on this after a first taste. My husband prefers the mince as it is more “moist” than a regular Okonomiyaki whereas I prefer the regular version. This tastes like a lot of mince with some fish flakes on top. My husband on the other hand is hypnotised by the swaying of the fish flakes.

We sit back and watch other parties being led this time by bondage-y style clad waitresses and wish we had more time to try the other Lock Up experiences. Just because a meal tastes better after a fright.

The Lock Up

33-1 Udagawa-cho
(just off Center-gai, Shibuya Grand Tokyo Bldg. B2F)
Tokyo
Tel: +81 (03)-5728-7731
Open:
Monday to Friday 17:00～01:00
Saturday 17:00～05:00
Sunday 17:00～24:00

Shibuya

Cover charge Y525 per person plus tax charge

31 comments | July 11th, 2008 by Not Quite Nigella

Christon Cafe at Shinjuku, Tokyo

A knowledgable friend of mine, Kathy from Brisbane recommended that I try Christon Cafe after I canvassed friends for unique Tokyo experiences. Started in Osaka in 2000, there are now 8 Christon cafes around Japan, each boasting incredibly detailed interiors decorated in a religious gothic theme. It speaks to the strong Lolita goth culture that exists in Tokyo. In the lobby there is a glass display of the Virgin Mary. Upstairs, Cafe Christon doesn’t disappoint. On the 8th and 9th floor of the Oriental Wave building, you’re struck by the fantastic interior decor the minute you step off the elevator.

We were greeted with 3 leather chairs with naked iron maidens on them the arms well worn and loved. We were then led into the inner sanctum which was awash with wrought iron, gothic and catholic imagery.

To our delight, we’re led towards a blood red curtained booth, private and completely gothic. I’m not a Catholic so the imagery doesn’t strike fear into my heart although I have heard that it can make anyone raised Catholic slightly uneasy. Indeed, there is an altar in the restaurant which we’re told is an authentic altar that was used in a European church.

The details are numerous and quite astounding including the painting on the ceiling.

Gargoyles

Gigantic chandelier

We’re shown the menu, an assortment of izakaya dishes (small dishes typically served with beer). We choose a Japanese beef carpaccio Y1380, Foie Gras sreak with baked risotto Y1800 and grilled salmon steak with mushroom cream sauce Y880.

Amuse Bouche Y300

We’re given an amuse bouche or a spinach tortilla and some sort of pressed meat like a mortadella (we learn we are later charged for this although we may have agreed to it, we just kept nodding yes). The spinach tortilla is delicious and full of spinach and cheese and the luncheon meat is actually delicious, much better than a mortadella.