This is a travel food blog by Shawn and Alison. We live in Sydney and love travelling, and the main reason we travel is food.
When travelling we find the best food by eating as the locals do: this is often on the side of the road...
...and in food courts, markets and no-frill restaurants.
The best street food is made by tops old ladies (check out the old-dear in the top left corner above), but there are also abundant treasures in supermarkets and even Seven-Elevens (in South East Asia you can live out of Seven Elevens).
Alas we can't afford to travel all the time. But fortunately we live in Sydney where there are hundreds of little no frills restaurants that service the local immigrant community and homesick overseas students with wonderful street food from the old country. Pictured above is one of our all-time favourites: Kaki Lima Old World Malaysian Breakfast Favourites in Kingsford.
When looking for good street food joints there is a golden rule: dodginess is next to godliness. Indicators of quality street food are basic no frill street signs, preferably broken.
Basic flooring, hard seats and cheap tables are essential, extra points for traditional formica tables.
One of the best indicators of authentic street food is the cutlery and condiment set on each table, extra points for a jar of tooth picks.
Some places offer little clue to English speakers as to what the hell is going on. We reckon the less printed or spoken English is involved, the better the food will be. Spelling mistakes and bizarre English on the menu is the next best thing.
Street food can also be found in more upmarket restaurants, supermarkets, markets, festivals and lunchboxes. We have been street food junkies for years and have decided to get with the 1990's and start blogging about it. We've also contributed to SBS Feast magazine and to the Eating and Drinking Guide to Sydney. So here we are...
~ Alison & Shawn ~
Contact: muzungu@usedtravelbooks.com.au
The Street Food team. Alison & Shawn are the good looking ones.
Hey Miss Chicken and Mr Shawn, i just stumbled across your blog (as u do when u type random stuff in google!) and i love it! some of your pages have made me LOL (i'm at work, it's a bad thing!). i'm gonna go back to your funny menu you found in HK and reveal to you what those engrish dises really were hehe.
ReplyDeleteLucy
Thanks for your translations Lucy - we have searched the internet with no answers until now - much appreciated!
ReplyDeleteno problem ;) if you have anymore un-explained dishes let me know and i'll to translate for you lol.
ReplyDeleteyou guys are my new heroes!! have long been a fan of the chinatown food courts. now have a little more direction.
ReplyDeletethanks!!
This is a wonderful blog, I look forward to going back east and looking it up frequently, Hx
ReplyDeletehey..love your blog. would love to see what you reckon about new place in Randwick called Aseana. I've eaten there about 4 times now. The Nasi Lemak is good..the duck breast stew is really really good. cheap too.
ReplyDeleteother picks around Coogee / Randwick. the soto ayam at Java. The sweet soy sauce chicken dish at Jimbarin. bothh great restaurants. also the Gai Yang adn Crying Tiger at Chilli Box when it reopens in Coogee
Hey Grapsta, funny you mention Aseana, I was just reading about it this morning, think I have to try that duck breast stew. Methinks we have been overlooking the East!
ReplyDeleteHi guys, regular blog reader and occasional comment poster here. I came across a place in Kingsford that hasn't been reviewed yet:
ReplyDeleteBakso's House/Roserbery Martabak
341A Anzac Parade Kingsford
The menu is split into Martabak Telur and Martabak Manis with different fillings. I look forward to reading a review in the future! If you're interested in it that is :).
- SK
Hi, Like others before me, have stumbled onto your blog while trying to find Ramen restaurants on google near me. Recently I watched a movie called 'Tampopo' and am now a bit obsessed with finding a local restaurant that serves good, cheap, authentic ramen noodle soup. Can anyone recommend anything around the Hurstville area? Thanks
ReplyDeleteGreat blog! Thanks. I'm looking forward to trying your `top five' one-by-one!
ReplyDeleteどれも、美味そうだ。
ReplyDeleteしかし、自分は食べたことないのも多い・・・・
your blog is great service to the nation
ReplyDeleteThanks Dheeraj! It's a vocation to be proud of.
ReplyDeleteHey Alison and Shawn!
ReplyDeleteGreat food blog you've got here. I'm glad I've stumbled upon it randomly :)
I gathered from reading some of your posts that you guys are most probably of Malaysian origins? :P If so, high five! Another ex-Malaysian here :)
I now have a little more guidance when hunting for good, authentic Asian places to eat in Sydney now, thanks to you guys :)
A big shout out to a few of my fav places:
Shalom (no Westernised watered down stuff here!)
Makan@Alice
McLuksa
Ayam Goreng 99
Basically almost every Indonesian place in Kensington lol
Keep up to the good work!
Hi xar - Sorry to say we aren't Malaysian, although we've been through there a few times in our travels. Asian food and culture is close to our hearts, and the places you mention we've mostly tried and will get to the one's we haven't. So much food, so little time!
ReplyDeleteHave you guys been out to Harris Park yet? It's kind of like the Surry Hills of Parramatta.
ReplyDeleteMy favourite place there is Taj Pure Vegetarian on Wigram Rd. Their veg thali is $12.90, best value in town. I usually order a North Indian thali, but ask them to add a bowl of sambhar from the South Indian thali. Best of both worlds! Ask for a little bowl of their tamarind sauce as well - it's yummy.
This is where big Indian families come to enjoy brilliant food with a South Indian twist - dosai, uttapams, idli + chat snacks every day.
An excellent cheap lunch is the channa battura - amazing chickpea curry with deep fried poori bread, chopped onion and chutney for $6.90.
I got them to cater my birthday party once.
Oh Citizen P how you taunt us with this idea! We have been travelling around a bit lately on the train and it's a constant source of ideas. Harris Park is now higher on the ever growing list.
ReplyDeleteYou just cracked me up!!! I love the photo.
ReplyDeleteYou guys have ruined my life !!!
ReplyDeleteI've lived in Canberra for the last 10 years.
Originally I'm a Sydney boy. I've lived in Stanmore, Petersham, Marrickville to name a few. They were my stomping grounds as a young lad. I knew all the good "street food" places.
Consider the agony you put me through when I read your excellent food blog and I compare it against what Canberra has to offer.
I cant take this anymore .
"Goodbye cruel world !!!"
Can you please review the Coogee Bay Hotel desert menu. I've heard the chocolate ice-cream is worth the effort.
ReplyDeleteHi there,
ReplyDeleteI am also one that has accidently stubbled on your site! Very well written and funny too. Another obsessed foodie that loves Asian! Looking forward to reading your whole blog.
Great blog you have here, I've just stumbled upon it this weekend but will be checking back regularly :) Your comment about spelling mistakes made me laugh.. have you been to Pasteur in Chinatown? I'm sure you have - did you notice the number of different ways they spell "noodle" on the wall menu???
ReplyDelete