Come along as we have a foodie staycation in Parramatta with a stay at the SKYE Suites Parramatta. We try some of Sydney's best vegetarian food in Harris Park and enjoy a sleep in and a late brunch. Get inspo for a weekend getaway in Parramatta with great eats and accommodation.
It's a rainy summer's afternoon when Laura and I arrive in Parramatta for our foodie staycation. It has been a while since we visited Sydney's second biggest CBD and tried some of the food on offer so we were excited to see what there was available.
We check in to SKYE Suites Parramatta. I first stayed here during the opening weekend many years ago. This time I am staying in a SKYE Studio 43 which as the name suggests is 43 square metres in size. The building was designed by Architect Koichi Takada and has 72 rooms and suites. While they do call themselves as an all suite hotel, our room is not a suite as there is no separate room.
The SKYE Studio 43 has a double bed so it is ideal for singles rather than couples. It is set up like an apartment with a small kitchenette and full sized fridge with mini bar. There are also laundry facilities in each room as well as free and fast wifi. TV shows are easily streamed from your device.
The bed fitted with a Sleeping Duck mattress is comfortable and partitioned off with sheer curtains. There is plenty of storage place for clothes and it is comfortable with a good amount of space to spread out. The bathroom has Smith & Co toiletries with soap, body wash, shampoo and conditioner only. Other toiletries, robes and slippers are not provided.
There is a gym on the premises as well as a 25 metre outdoor pool on the first floor with access for guests only.
One place that we love visiting while in Parramatta is Harris Park, a suburb literally just a few minutes walk from the Parramatta centre. One minute you're walking among skyscrapers and the next, it's the rich colour of Harris Park and it's weatherboard cottages and terrace houses turned Indian restaurants.
Chatkazz is known for their vegetarian Indian food, and even though it is raining it is busy. Service is absolutely lovely and helpful and they recommended several dishes to us which is very helpful as there is so much choice.
We start with the watermelon mojito, a non alcoholic version of the cocktail with a refreshing sweet and salty flavour to it thanks to the chaat masala spices. But the drink we both fall for is the dried fruit lassi with raisins and sultanas in a sweetened yogurt drink. While we have had countless mango lassis but this one is appealingly moreish especially when you suck up the dried fruit through the straw like a boba drink.
One of our favourite Indian snacks is the pani puri that are delicate crispy little cups filled with seasoned potato and come with three types of sauces: mint, sweet and spicy. The idea is to pour a sauce or a combination thereof into the hole and then eat the crispy, crunchy bite in one mouthful. We love the texture of each bite collapsing with every mouthful and we particuarly like the sweet and spicy sauces together.
The papdi chaat is our favourite dish of the day. It's a mix of crispy flat puris or crackers, tangy yogurt, sweet chutneys, chickpeas and potato with finely fine noodles on top. It is finished with crunchy sev or fine yellow fried noodles for crunch. Each bite is incredibly addictive and crunchy and it one of their signature starters.
We also try the puffy Indian breads that are light and deep-fried. We break them open and enjoy them with the chickpea curry with onions and chilli.
Another favourite is the Jini dosa which is a fusion version of a dosa rice flour crepe that is stuffed with cabbage and carrot with Szechuan sauce and grated cheese on top. This is served with a lentil curry, red onions, coconut chutney and sambar.
If you're looking for a complete meal try one of the Summer Specials called the Aamras Puri Plate. This has a bit of everything including a refreshing yoghurt drink or Masala Chaas. There's a small salad, Aloo Sabji or vegetable curry, and two big puffy puri breads, as well as a chickpea cake or Khaman that you dip into the mint sauce. For dessert there is Aamras or mango puree, a popular dessert during summer.
For dessert we try a few different things: the jalebi is a favourite as it is deep fried orange spirals filled with sugar syrup. These come out hot and freshly fried which is the best way to eat fried food.
We also try the soft paneer cakes soaked in sweet milk with nuts that are comforting and sweet.
And while there is a sizzling brownie with ice cream available, we gravitate more towards the mohanthaal pudding with ice cream. This is made with some of their chickpea burfi sweets mashed up with a biscuitty flavour and served warm in a dish with ice cream. We sleep like babies after this meal.
One of the things that I really loved was not having to get up early for breakfast. Guests of Skye Suites Parramatta are given a $35 voucher for breakfast at the cafe just outside the hotel called The Shed. This means that you can saunter down there at noon for your hotel breakfast. As someone that loves to sleep in and work out in the morning this is a big plus.
The menu at The Shed has a range of cafe classics and they all have the kilojoule count next to them. The cafe is located over some of the original foundations of Parramatta which is on display. We decide to go for matcha lattes to start with. From the colour they don't appear very matcha-ey and they're more like a sweet milk. The staff are very friendly and offer to add more matcha but it isn't quite at the level we want.
I enjoy the Reuben bagel with a poppyseed bagel filled with local corned beef, house made sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and msutard aioli as it is fresh and tasty with just the right amount of filling to bagel.
Under the sweet stuff section are the chicken and waffles. This is Belgian waffle with a crunchy fried chicken thigh, whipped ricotta and a fried egg with hot honey on the side and a dusting of icing sugar on top. It's tasty and freshly made and and it doesn't really need the ricotta as it's good on its own.
Up next: lunch at one of Parramatta's most beautiful restaurants in an unexpected setting!
So tell me Dear Reader, do you do staycations in your city?
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