I’ve never been to Student Biryani, but I can tell you right now that it does the best biryani in Sydney. Ok technically that’s a bit of a half-truth; I may have never been to Student Biryani in person, but I’ve sure eaten it plenty of times. An old co-worker of mine used to occasionally organise biryani days at work, where he would order entire buckets from Student Biryani for us to feast on. And everyone who has ever tasted it agrees that it is the best they’ve ever had.
Belle’s Hot Chicken has a special place in my heart. The first time I ever ate there was in Melbourne, and unbeknownst to me at the time, it was just hours before I was to receive the call that kickstarted my pharmacy career. Sure, it wasn’t a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but at the time, getting a job offer at a large hospital after 3 months of desperately looking for work was the best feeling in the world. As it turns out, I wasn’t the only one who’s come a long way since 2015. In the last 5 years, not only has Belle’s became a stalwart for southern fried chicken in Melbourne, it’s also expanded across…
In the two-odd years I’ve lived in Sydney, I’ve pretty much blitzed my way across all the well-regarded ramen restaurants in Sydney… without crossing the bridge that is. One of the very few ramen-ya on the right side of the river (fight me) I’ve left to try is Chaco Bar, but because they only served noodles for lunch a couple days of the week – the rest of the time is reserved for yakitori – I’ve never gotten around to visiting. So I was doubly delighted when I heard the news that Chaco Bar had gotten popular enough to split into two; the new Chaco Bar now does yakitori full time, whilst the original site has been converted to Chaco…
My biggest fear when it comes to going out to eat in Sydney is finding a cool new place, only to have it close before I can make my way to it. Given how fast the restaurant turnaround can be, coupled with the fact that there’s usually a 6 month gap (minimum) between me finding a place and actually going to eat there, it’s happened more than once before and left me quite upset. And to be honest, I had half expected Arepa to be gone by the time I actually got around t eating there, but as far as new openings go these days, they’re rather tenacious, and have been doing a brisk trade for the last few months…
I went to bed early on Saturday night, full of optimism about getting up early to nab a spot in Surry hills for brunch. But when I woke up, I realised my plans had been foiled by daylight savings. It was a full hour later than I had planned on getting up, and the odds of getting a table now has become slim indeed. Thankfully, it’s still only 9:20, and there’s a good selection of cafes much closer to home. After a quick search, I decided on The Picnic Burwood, and we were there by 10.
Remember Huxtaburger? If you’re from Melbourne, you’ll know it as the very first gourmet American-styled burger to hit the city – almost 10 years ago! – and was almost single-handedly responsible for ushering in the new era of quality burgers that we now take for granted. So am I back in Melbourne then? Unfortunately not, but there is a silver lining here. Over the last decade, Huxtaburger has turned itself into a mini-empire, and is now slinging sandwiches across 9 locations and 3 states. And the NSW branch is in Redfern, though those who have been to the original Huxtaburger in Collingwood would find this location almost unrecognisable. Instead of a tiny diner with retro vibes and the bones of…