Mad Mex: Launch party of new store, Ultimo (7 Sept 2011)

815 George Street, Ultimo NSW 2007
http://www.madmex.com.au

Another Mad Mex opens

“Mad Mex offers authentic Mexican cuisine with a Baja Californian-inspired menu of delicious and nutritious burritos, nachos, quesadillas and more all prepared with only the freshest ingredients and served in a fast casual format than can be preapred to dine in or takeaway”

Thanks to Stuart Fyfe from 6dc for inviting me to the store launch of the new Mad Mex on George Street near Railway Central. Director and Founder Clovis Young was on hand to demonstrate a few cooking techniques on how they make a flavoursome salsa. Essentially roasting/burning tomato, onion and peppers over fire will provide a smokey flavour. Blend together then add your favourite chilli for heat and flavour plus salt and lime juice for taste. The freshly made salsa was quite nice with some warmish tortilla chips. He mentioned a good supplier of Mexican ingredients is Fireworks Food which is the same place Barrio Chino use. Some tequila tasting and education was also in order. I learnt that tequila just has to have 51% agave to be classified as tequila. So hence the 51% agave Jose Cuervo Especial didn't smell or taste as good as Hornitos or Tres Generaciones which were 100% agave. As Clovis says, 51% tequila means 49% hangover — I think he may be right.

For my dinner I ordered the Crispy tacos with black beans, cheese, lettuce & sour cream with choice of filling ($9.90 for 3) so I could try the pork, beef and chicken in each of the tacos. The service was very efficient, although perhaps a little too fast and scary for someone who wasn't particularly familiar with the menu. I sort of felt I had to make my mind up quickly on what I did and didn't want on my order as ingredients were quickly thrown on top. In the end I couldn't even see my crispy tacos under the mountain of lettuce, cheese and huge dollop of guacamole (add $2). I guess they don't skimp on the toppings which might make it better value for money. I noticed Churros with melted dipping chocolate ($5.90 for 2 pieces) on the menu which I always thought was Spanish but soon learnt it's also traditional in Mexico. The churros were decently sized and cooked to a nice crisp although coated in a thick amount of cinnamon sugar which might be welcomed by some. The warmish dipping chocolate was good but be careful of any unfortunate drippings — a few seemed to make their way to my shirt and pants. The churros seemed to be pre-cooked into shape and then deep fried to order unlike Chocolateria San Churro which cooked the fresh dough to order making for a slightly less dense texture inside, although they were definitely better than the dry version I had at Cafe Hernandez.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Quick and efficient service, Ingredients seem pretty fresh, Portions are quite generous, Seating available

CONS: Quick service can also be a little scary and overwhelming if you don't know what you want, No public toilet available, Guacamole is $2 extra, Tacos a little messy to eat

WORTH TRYING: Churros with melted dipping chocolate, Tortilla chips with salsa

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Crispy tacos with black beans, cheese, lettuce & sour cream with choice of filling ($9.90 for 3)

Nachos ($10.90) add guacamole ($2)

Churros with melted dipping chocolate ($5.90 for 2 pieces)

WORTH TRYING :-)

Picture menu and spicy beef option

Choose your style menu

Choose your filling and salsa

Sides, drinks and churros menu

Director and Founder Clovis Young in demonstration and relaxing with the crowd

How to burn vegetables to make a salsa

Time to blend the burnt vegetables then add salt, chilli and lime juice

Different types of chilli appreciation

Tortilla chips with salsa of your choice

WOTH TRYING :-)

Jose Cuervo Especial (51% agave, 49% hangover)

Hornitos 100% agave, Tres Generaciones

Taste testing: Jose Cuervo Especial, Hornitos, Tres Generaciones

Seating and decor

How to eat a burrito napkin

Corona bottle chandelair

Wall graphics

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Ultimo Wine Centre: French Champagne and Imported Wines, Ultimo (6 Feb 2010)

99 Jones Street Ultimo NSW 2007

http://www.ultimowinecentre.com.au

For lovers of fine wine

With Valentine's Day this Sunday 14 February just around the corner it's good timing to know about this boutique bottle shop if you're thinking of getting a quality bottle of champagne. The choices are extensive ranging from a reasonably priced staff recommendation of the Loire Valley's Monmousseau Cuvée J. M. ($25.95) up to the higher priced Cristel Louis Roederer Champagne for I think about $399 which is locked up in a glass cabinet. They also stock many imported and boutique Australian wines — it's definitely not your average mass-marketed Liquorland bottle shop. Staff are friendly and knowledgeable and you definitely need to be careful while walking through the displays of wines — leave your kids at home to avoid accidents.

I must give credit to the reader Gobsmack'd who mentioned this bottle shop to me on my post about the Food Bloggers Award Launch at La Mint. He suggested a few recommendations to try which I unfortunately didn't have on me at the time when I visited.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Extensive range of International wines, knowledgeable staff

CONS: Don't expect to find Passion Pop or cheap wines by the cask

MUST TRY: Free tastings on Saturdays, Gossett Grand Rosé (staff recommendation)

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Gossett Grand Rosé Champagne $119.95 (Staff recommendation)

Cristal Champagne $399 (I think)

Large variety of champagnes

Crates of French wines

1990 Hermitage $449

Be careful not to bump into anything

Afternoon snack

Cornichons, cheese and a bottle Monmousseau Cuvée J. M. $25.95

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Malacca Straits: Hidden Malaysian Classics, Broadway (23 Jan 2010)

66 Mountain Street, Broadway/Ultimo NSW 2000

(in the courtyard of the Quadrant Building)

http://malaccastraitsbroadway.com

Hidden Malaysian Classics

This restaurant is definitely hidden from the main streets of Broadway in a building complex with only signs at the entrances trying to capture pedestrians passing by. I first found out about this place from a Malaysian friend whose very fussy with his Malaysian dishes and says his mum makes the best Hainanese Chicken in Sydney — I'm still waiting for my invite to his mum's place for lunch though :-). He had his birthday here but I was unavailable although he recommended I try the Chicken Rice and otak otak amongst other dishes. The chicken was juicy and moist and was served with a good chilli/ginger sauce and decent sized side soup. They only serve the leg here so expect the bones and skin with all it's usual fatty content — probably up there with Sayong's Chicken Rice. I thought the Otak Otak was very good as well and one of the best I've tried so far — full of flavour, moist and tasty.

The owner recommended we try the Fried Radish Cake which had a good char factor while the radish pieces remained soft with a gnocchi like consistency. The Murtabak was OK but from memory I still prefer the version I've tried at Java in Randwick. The Chicken Satay was flavoursome and came with slices of cucumber, onion and a good peanut sauce. I'm still waiting to find a place in Sydney that serves it with the traditional compressed rice cubes though. The Har Mee was OK but lacked the robust flavour I prefer at Malay-Chinese which I'd say is one of the best in Sydney — gotta love the pork crackling they sprinkle on top too. On such a hot day with no aircon in the restaurant (authentic Malaysian experience) we had to try the desserts. The ABC looked pretty good on the menu but I was disappointed when it arrived. I was thinking where's the rest of it? It's pretty small and hoped it would be closer in size like LNC Dessert House or Little Singapore — I guess you can't expect much for $5. I really liked the Pandan-flavoured Crepe with the toasted coconut inside, although keep in mind you only get one for $5.

Interesting enough the owners dad who works in the kitchen used to be an Executive Chef for Malaysian Airlines and also worked for the original The Malaya when it used to be in Haymarket on George Street before moving to Cockle Bay. Also his mum used to work for Malay-Chinese so the kitchen is well experienced. I'm keen to try other dishes so I can compare to Alice's in Thornleigh which is one of my favourite Malaysian bench-mark restaurants for the hawker style classics. The new restaurant owner has been operating for about 4 weeks and plans to focus more on the Malaysian cuisine rather than the Thai.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Quite area, Authentic-like, Reasonable prices

CONS: Hidden, No air conditioning, Small sized desserts

MUST TRY: Otak Otak, Chicken Rice, Fried Radish Cake

NEXT TIME: Char Koay Teow, Laksa, Wat Tan Hor, Assam Ikan

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Other places tried for Chicken Rice:

• Singapore Shiok!* - 29 Sept 2010

• Malacca Straits - 23 Jan 2010

• Yummy Chinese - 20 Jan 2010

• Laksa House - 24 Sept 2009

• Laksa King - 16 Sept 2009

• Malaysian Food House - 18 Aug 2009

• Malay-Chinese Takeaway - 6 Aug 2009

• Mc Lucksa - 5 Aug 2009

• Jaya Malaysian - 29 July 2009

• Sayong Curry & Laksa Malaysian Cuisine - 22 July 2009

• KL Kopitiam Malaysian Cuisine - 19 Oct 2009

Otak Otak: Grilled spiced fish fillet wrapped in banana leaves and cooked in coconut milk $12 (3 pieces)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Murtabak: Minced marinated beef wrapped in thin paschment roti canai and served with curry sauce $10.50

Chicken Satay $12

Hainanese Chicken Rice $8.50

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Char Tau Kueh: Fried Radish Cake $11.50

Har Mee Prawn Noodle Soup $10.80

Air Batu Campur ABC: Shaved ice with red bean, glass jelly, cendol and topped with rose syrup, palm sugar and evaporated milk $5

Cendol: Shaved ice over chewy pandan-flavoured 'cendol', coconut milk and palm sugar $5

Kuih Ketayap: Pandan-flavoured crepe filled with toasted coconut and palm sugar and served with a scoop of ice cream $5

Eating desserts out of a little plastic kids bowl

Dessert menu — don't expect your ABC to come out like the photo though :-(

Menus

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