Limited Lobster Special | Fat Noodle - Treasury Casino

Led by Luke Nguyen, Australia's Vietnamese leading celebrity chef and owner of award-winning restaurant Red Lantern in Sydney, Fat Noodle offers a dynamic mix of Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai and Malay cuisines.

Stylish chopsticks and wok décor gives Fat Noodle a sophisticated oriental ambience.

Upon arrival, you get complimentary jasmine tea served in an iron cast teapot.

Inspired by other Asian cuisines, Fat Noodle offers Sashimi, Hainan Chicken Rice, Roasted Duck in addition to various Vietnamese dishes such as Pho and Grilled Pork Cutlet.

Since Fat Noodle was having a promotion, we ordered the Lobster Chow Mein with Singapore Sauce for $25. Wok-tossed lobster served on a bed of fried egg noodles and steamed Asian greens (gai lan), drizzled with a delicate sambal and shrimp sauce. Delightfully sweet and spicy, the shrimp sauce complemented the lobster well but I wish there was more. My egg noodles was overly fried which made it quite dry (and was also bland and stale).

 

Lobster Chow Mein with Singapore Sauce ($25)

 

Next came the Singapore Laksa ($22) - rice noodles with generous prawns, fish cakes, scallops, chicken breast, tofu, and egg in a rich coconut broth. Although the Laksa was not authentic and actually quite unorthodox, I really enjoyed it. Unlike traditional laksa, it was not spicy and didn't come with egg noodles. However, the sweet coconut flavours was insanely addictive and I basically drank it all, leaving my Fellow Food Extinguisher with nothing but plain rice noodles :P.

 

Singapore Laksa ($22)

 

Verdict

If you want authentic Vietnamese food, Fat Noodle isn't the right place for you. But if you're feeling particularly adventurous, then Fat Noodle is the perfect place for you. Decent Asian dishes with an interesting twist.

 

 

AJ Vietnamese Noodle House - 70 Charlotte Street, Brisbane QLD 4000

Don't ever judge a restaurant by its cover - this tiny hole in the wall gives you one of the most authentic bowls of Pho (a Vietnamese type of noodle soup) you can find in the CBD - it's definitely comparable to the ones in Darra.

If you can get past the cramped and unglamorous interior, this place is really worth visiting as they offer a good selection of Vietnamese food.

Whenever you go to a restaurant, you should always order the cuisine's specialty dishes. In this case, I ordered the Special Beef Noodle Soup ($10.9), which came with a generous serve of fresh mints, bean sprouts and a slice of lemon. Loaded with sliced beef, tripe, tendons, beef balls, and boiled brisket, the Special Beef Noodle Soup is bound to leave you feeling very satisfied. The highlight was the beef broth - it was light yet packed with amazingly rich beef flavours. I must warn you though - this addictive soup does induce thirstiness (possibly due to MSG).
 

 

My fellow Food Extinguisher ordered the Rice Vermicelli Salad with Grilled Pork ($10.9). Served with grilled pork and accompanied by crush peanuts, sesame seeds, fried onions, salad, mint, basil, it sounded like a delicious combination. However, I found the Vermicelli quite bland as there wasn't enough House Fish Sauce in it. Instead of mixing it in for me, I would rather have it in a separate bowl so that I can make it to suit my liking.

Verdict:
Authentic Vietnamese food at a great price. Note that the food here leaves you feeling thirsty, but who cares as long as it tastes great?