A day in Merrylands

Merrylands is somewhere far far away and we only save it for special occasions. 

The past Saturday has been steaming hot and everyone came to Northern Beaches for a dip in the ocean. We've decided to avoid the crowd and hit the west! 

We first heard of this place through our favorite OZ blogger - streetfood and soon it became one of our favorite kebab places. 

I have to be honest that I don't think the meat makes the best in town but the naan is certainly the best we've had in all the kebab shops. It's fresh, right out of oven when the meat is ready to serve. 

There are 2 dressing served with the mixed plate. One being some kind of yogurt and the other has got some spicy in it. 

Previously we've always had coca to wash down the skewers but not this time! Some local residents were having a jug of white drink so I pulled some charm and got us 2 glasses. Apparently it's called YOGI....... It tastes like yogurt mixed with water and some herbs. Salty & interesting. Never had this else where. 

I won't call it a day if it was just for lunch right? 

On our way back, we wandered around the huge shopping centre and checked all the latest games on sale. Had a mixed berry smoothie and searched for something different.

So this is what we discovered at an Ethiopia cafe. Let me introduce to you - the Curiosity Cola! 

Made in UK and tastes very much like cola but healthier! I have to go back to that cafe and check out their tea selections!  

On the way back to our car, we discovered a local bakery. They sell Afghan bread! I know I had to get one! 

Based on my poor observation, there are 2 types, plain & sesame. It cost us $1.40 for the sesame. We had it for dinner with home made chicken stew. And had it again for the next day breakfast with home made espresso. Best $1.40 ever spent!

I will be back checking out the other bread!

Do Dee Paidang - Thai restaurant

The first time we discovered Do Dee was on a summer night, and we drove all the way from Northern beaches to Cabramatta  looking for something different to eat. walking past an old shopping mall, most of the shops were closed then and we saw Do Dee's menu on the wall. 

Pictures of all different noodles are screaming - YUMMY, EAT ME EAT ME EAT ME!

Sadly it was closed at the time and we had to come back again. So the second time we had King size noodle - 1 big bowl of noodles & all different goodies to feed 2 people. Couldn't be happier! 

Until recently I discovered there's a city branch as well in Haymarket! I have to check it out so that I may not need to drive 1.5 hour to Cabramatta again!

The menu is much bigger than Cabramatta but I would stick to Noodles when I go next time. Here's why.

Crispy pork belly stir fried with green veges - It's ok flavor but the pork belly seems been fried multiple times and just not the fresh pork belly we get else where. I would give it 6/10

Duck rice paper rolls -  It feels like a fostered child of Chinese & Vietnamese. 
I've never been to Thailand/ Vietnam myself so my understanding of rice paper roll is it comes from Vietnam originally. This dish has got all the ingredients we normally get from Vietnamese restaurants and it has roasted duck with sweet bean sauce - Reminds me of my last trip in Beijing thought. 5/10

Entry - I had a skewer of deep fried wonton. You must try this! Underneath the pastry layer, it has a whole egg in it! Can't go wrong with $2.50 neither. 

Fish ball skewer - deep fried as well 

I might have to try the pork/beef balls next time.

And here comes the exciting part - from the noodle menu! 
Do Dee Secret!
It's cool to order as well - Hi, Can I please order a little secret? 
The small size is just about right for a female and it's got meat balls, fish balls & some pork mince and noodles of course. A little bit spicy, sour and sweet which is just perfect.  - 9/10! 
I will be back checking your secret again, Do Dee.

Do Dee Haymarket Address -
9/37 Ultimo Road
Haymarket NSW

Seafood noodle soup

Last weekend we went to Chinatown looking for some authentic Chinese food and ended up having two meals in the morning. One of the places we went to serves a hot noodle soup with all kinds of seafood in it and Mr R loves it. It looks like to me more of a fridge clean dish as it has all different kinds of ingredients. I suppose Chinese fishman would cook it with fresh catches of the day on a lucky weather day. 
Anyway, I had to recreate this dish at home as Mr R just keeps talking about it all week.

And here's my version.

What you need 
1. one spoon of dried prawns
2. one spoon of dried scallops
3. 4-5 dried mushrooms
4. Fresh veggies
5. Chicken stock (good to have but not essential)
6. Noodles
You can get all the dried goods from most Asian grocery shops. Check out their dried goods shelf.As dried scallops are a bit pricey, they'd mostly keep them at the register.

Steps
1. chop up all the fresh veggies into slices.
2. all dried goods placed into a bowl with warm water for a good 2-3 hours prior to cooking
3. heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a pan over high heat
4. place all the dried goods into the pan and stir-fry for about 1 minute
5. add boiling water into the pan and turn to medium heat for 3-5 minutes 
6. add noodles and when the soup boils again, add a cup of cold water to furthur cook the  noodles (this step will take about 6-8 minutes)
7. add fresh veggies and salt and cook for another 2 minutes

Now you have your super easy & yummy noodle soup! Tada! Enjoy on a chilly winter night.

FUJI Japanese Bakery

For years, we've always loved the bread from Tokyo Mart at North Bridge Plaza. Every time we go there, I have to grab some red bean bun and custard buns. They're so soft and full of fresh ingredients.    But I never got to know who makes these delicious bread until one day my colleague told me it's from Fuji Bakery!
The trip to Fuji Bakery was delightful and you have to see it for yourself. It's located in a small shopping village in Killarney Heights.

When we arrived, a Japanese lady was just busy displaying the fresh & hot baked red bean buns and we know we have to get one of these. We love everything in red bean paste so we ended up getting a red bean donut as well! Sorry these little buns were finished in a minute so I couldn't take a close photo of their signature red bean paste.

A cheese roll that we couldn't resist eating once we walked outside the shop.

Oh, and if you are lucky enough to spot this little fruit pudding, we highly recommend it! 

As we were eating in the playground outside the bakery, there was a family of five sitting in a row and each one of them was working on a hot steam bun from the same shop. One little girl even walked back to get another one before they left. We'll have to come back and check out what's inside those steam buns! 

Fuji Bakery - 5 Tramore Place, Killarney Heights, NSW, 2087

Mon - Fri: 8am-5pm

Sat: 8am-6pm