Sydney Cheap Eats thread

[Monsta_AU]

I like food. I am a cheaparse. I live in Sydney.

My other half and I love to go out to eat. Generally we tend to gravitate to the cheap end of the spectrum, something tasty and filling yet not spending a ton of money. Out favourite things - Asian food, burgers, steak, tapas, seafood.

This thread will chronicle where we have been, what we have eaten and how much we paid. You are welcome to join in and share your experiences too.

FRI 13/3/15
The Goni's Schniztelria, Marrickville
296 Marrickville Rd Marrickville, NSW 2204
Website | Urbanspoon | $38 for Schitz, bowl of chips, and 2 softdrinks.

I had heard about this place and wanted to try it out for a while. Sprung it on the other half after getting home from work on a Friday night and turned up. This business used to be housed in the White Cockatoo Hotel in Petersham previously, now it has their own space in Marrickville.

The Schnitz are massive, ends up being about 5-6 normal schnitzels on a massive plate. You can choose between chicken or veal. The toppings are pretty good too, there is 15 different varieties on order and of course you can design your own if you wish. We had the Supreme - fresh sliced tomato, ham, onion & cheese. I added an extra fried egg, because fried egg.

This is what arrived.

The good:

• Massive serving size. This thing could serve 4 people and still have some left.
• We barely go through half of it.
• Toppings were fresh and had good flavour.
• Friendly staff.
• Licensed premises - local bottled beers, cider, wines. They also sell jugs of Sangria.
• Value for money - I don't sink I have ever had this much food for the money. Ever.

The bad:

• Our Schnitz came out only 'warm', and that's being generous.
• Schitz itself was overcooked, dry. Slightly rubbery.
• Extended 25 minute wait for what should be a maximum 10 minute cook time (schitz 4-5 min fry time, 1-2 mins to plate & top, 2-3 mins in the broiler to melt cheese).
  
• Ordered a bowl of chips. They came out hot however they were undercooked and a bit mushy. I do prefer mine on softer side but what was presented needed another 45secs in the fryer, and at least 20 degrees hotter.
• The place is fitted out like a food court. I like more 'spartan' places as most local Chinese/Malay/Thai places are pretty sparse, but this was horrible. Loud, bright and not at all comfortable seating.

Overall it is a ridiculously cheap feed for 4 people. Unfortunately the Schnitz quality just wasn't there. They do sell takeaway containers to take home what you don't eat, I warmed up some yesterday for lunch with a bit of Sriracha for some oomph which really helped it.

Here is the one that the couple next to us was eating. I believe it was a Refried Beans & Chroizo topping.

The verdict:
We want to try this one again, see if we can get a better schnitzel delivered to us. The amount of food is insane and the value is high, just let down by the execution. If they can deliver a hot Schnitz that was not overcooked in a reasonable time then it would be a winner.

 

[filobiblic]

Never heard of it so thanks for the tip @Monsta_AU
Good review. [emoji106]

 

[Monsta_AU]

MON 2/2/15
Bowery Lane, Sydney CBD
Ground floor, 1 O'Connell St, Sydney
Website | Urbanspoon | $40 for two inc drinks

Monday special - NY Cheeseburger, Chilli Fries & Beer (wine) for $20 - link

This place is on the ground floor of a building of one of our clients for work. Noticed that they did a $20 Burger & Beer on a Monday night and knowing how much our clients like to take their overseas visitors from other offices for dinner, and also local clients, it was definitely worth going in after work for a look.

The decor is very NY Loft, and it a touch dark but really creates the atmosphere nicely. They are doing some seriously good meals here, so the burgers are just the gateway to the rest I believe. The full meals here are pretty expensive, I would be banking on about $100pp including a couple glasses of wine normally, so to walk in and get a feed for $20 is great.

What do I have to say about this? Well, the other half reckons it is the best burger she has ever had. I don't quite think so, but it is right up there.

Smoky chargrilled beef of a very high quality, cooked to a perfect medium which keeps everything juicy and delicious. Beautifully melted Monterey Jack cheese over the grilled onions, plus their own house-made relish which was an excellent edition to the flavour profile. Everything in this burger was distinguishable in the mouth yet worked in harmony - the mark of high-quality ingredients and not putting too much into it. The brioche bun had just enough bite to it which holds everything together without being hard.

The fries come with a chilli salt on them, not too much chilli either - just ever now and again you get something that zips around your mouth a little. Very moorish, and in fact we were tempted to get another bowl to share between us because there simply was not enough in the serve. We left contented but were hungry a couple of hours later, so the serving could have been larger.

The beer supplied was a bottle of Brooklyn Lager which was reasonably bitter but that really helped cut through the richness of the burger. Definitely well matched in this instance. The other half had a well matured white wine, I have no idea of what it actually was but it was definite quality and had about 4-5 years of age on it.

The good:

• Top quality meat, cooked properly (medium).
• Incredibly fresh ingredients.
• Really good quality bun. Not too soft that falls apart, not too dry to be hard.
• Chilli salt on the fries was just amazing.
• 'Free' booze in the deal.
  
• Great decor, really nice fitout with great atmosphere.
• Quick service - drinks in 5 mins and burgers out in under 20.
  
• Staff were great, very attentive. That is to be expected in a place like this.

The bad:

• Could have had more fries.
• Burger is small. Would have been happy to pay $25 for a larger version of this burger.
  
• Only the cheeseburger on the cheap list. Would be nice to also have the chicken burger available on it.

Seriously, people in Sydney should be getting onto this. Not a bad way to start a Monday night. Bowery Lane also do various other burgers including a Soft Shell Crab burger. I saw this in person, and looked amazing.

The verdict:
We loved this place, and highly recommend that you go and try the burgers on a Monday. $20 for a burger of this quality, plus fries and a beer/wine is a steal. Definitely on the list to go to again with friends. We also want to try the Tuesday Shared Main & Side for $50, and the Wednesday Night Wagyu.

 

[Nick the Knife]

@Monsta_AU , hmmmmm those pix remind me a bit of the American approach to food, in so much as quantity being seen as preferable to quality. The schnitzels don't look great from the pix - mass churned out stuff and your review sounds bang on what I'd expect, beaten out a tad thin and overcooked. Refried beans and chorizo on a schnitzel?

Hard to beat a really well done home schnitzel, my wife actually keeps a whiteboard of stuff I have to cook for dinners - and sure enough thats on there at present!

Well we've been away from SYD for several years BUT go back regularly and I'm pretty sure most of our favourite haunts are still open and my modus operandi with regards food is very much similar to @Monsta_AU 's in so much cheap & tasty is best.

In no particular order:

NAME: Beyti Adana Kebab House
CUISINE: Turkish
SUBURB: Fairfield
INFO: My wife is Turkish and this is by far the best authentic Turkish kebab/Adana in Sydney. My fave was the mixed plate which was a beef shish, chicken shish and an adana on a plate with salads and freshly made turkish bread. They use really good quality meats and everything is just superior to other places in Auburn etc. My wife rates their ishkender kebab (which is serves in a bowl or plate with meat covered in yogurt and tomato puree. Nice fresh Ayran (yogurt drink) as well. Their fresh turkish bread is excellent and well made. Fairfield is a great suburb and I highly recommend a day trip to it - Middle Eastern, South American, Asian influences all there with excellent food shopping.

NAME: Thainatown
CUISINE: Thai
SUBURB: CBD/Central
INFO: We got to be really good friends with the owners of a very good Thai restaurant in Parramatta (Spice Gourmet Thai - which is/was(?) excellent but bit pricey for this thread) - Aussie guy married to a Thai lady) anyway the wife's sister owns Thainatown (beware as there is atleast one other place with the same name but not affiliated with this one!). They're REALLY cheap and authentic Thai food available (blood+offal related) along with western stuff. A lot of students eat here and the interior is plain but the food is excellent. My wife ALWAYS asks to go back to this one when we do a day trip into the city!

NAME: Satang Thai takeaway
CUISINE: Thai
SUBURB: CBD/Central
INFO: This place is sensational value - huge serves and people almost brawl to get one of the sit down spots. TINY hole in the wall place but really great food. Very cheap and absolutely hits the spot when you want a great meal for under $10. They have a fancy sit down restaurant across the road thats owned by the same folks - it's prolly good as well but this one always did it for me! Load your plate up with their lil pickled chillis - very morish!!! Also it's worth waiting/fighting/going offpeak for a sit down seat - you get a bigger serve and the food tastes better not sweated up!

NAME: Nyugen Hot Bread
CUISINE: Vietnamese
SUBURB: Canley Vale
INFO: A bakery? Yes.....these guys have THE BEST Banh Mi's in Sydney. The chicken ones are the best - chickens cooked onsite. Everything is sensational! Funny Banh Mi's have gotten popular last few years but we were all over these 15yrs ago! Is actually an excellent little bakery, low prices and nice owners.

NAME: Pho Pasteur
CUISINE: Vietnamese
SUBURB: Parramatta
INFO: There's a few of these around - excellent food, very good prices. I tend to go for the Beef Pho, combination noodles/plate with fried pork chop (fried egg on top @Monsta_AU !). Great little place.

NAME: Billu's Indian Eatery
CUISINE: Indian
SUBURB: Harris Park
INFO: Really popular place, can get deafeningly loud but worth the trouble. I tend to go for one of the Thali's - which gives you 4-5 curries, rice, pickle, bread and a lil salad and dessert. Great value. Harris park is actually an excellent little suburb and you can get some cheap shaving stuff in the wonderful Indian stores there - great for buying VERY CHEAP whole spices as well!

 

[Monsta_AU]

Lots of other ones to try there Nick. We both like Turkish so a trip to Fairfield is in order I think.

Not sure about Nyugen's, I am a big Marrickville Pork Roll fan and now he has a shop in Ashfield too I usually don't have to go too far. Hong Ha and associated stores are decent too, but Marrickville will be my first love.
Since I am in Belmore now (and Campsie previously) it is a bit hard to get to Canley Vale/Fairfield in terms of the train. We usually just go to Cabra in that instance, and I usually don't make it further than Kim Thanh because I am usually starving at that point.

Speaking of Banh Mi, a friend of mine has a family business in Bankstown which is also a Banh Mi place. Need to check it out - Banh Mi Bay Ngo.

Harris Park is a massive thumbs up - but it is a bit of a trek for us. We have to go there soon.

Of course, massive shout out to El Jannah in Granville. I love that place, and there is one at Punchbowl too which is easier for me to get to. I do however have Awafy less than a block away from home in Belmore and no real reason to go any further!

 

[borked]

Dario is legendary for his $10 sandwiches.
Legendary is not used lightly in these waters either.
I can honestly state I spent many a lunch at The White Cockatoo when working at Petersham.
Reminds me of the exuberant newbie who couldn't take no for an answer and ordered 3x sandwiches, despite colleagues stating they usually don't finish one.
Friday night is a peak period for most places like these, so naturally will see the worse of them, yet due to the popularity, there usually was a wait for your food from Dario.

Silvas in Petersham does a decent Portugese chicken too, as does A&F (Frangos) down the road from them.

 

[Monsta_AU]

Friday night is a peak period for most places like these, so naturally will see the worse of them, yet due to the popularity, there usually was a wait for your food from Dario.

It really wasn't that busy. Tables were full but turning over. The benches had space.

To me, even at peak time, overcooking is inexcusable, and then to deliver a dish well under temperature was even worse. I don't care for the wait times if it comes out hot and cooked well.

As I said, we will give it another go and either we will have a similar experience and cross it off the list, or we will have a great meal.

Silvas in Petersham does a decent Portugese chicken too, as does A&F (Frangos) down the road from them.

We have had Silvas on the list for a while but we never seem to make it there. I am a big fan of Ogalo however, having one a block away from work when I moved to Sydney was rather good!

 

[borked]

I do have to agree that quantity usurped quality.
Rather than walking away for good next time, express your concerns about your prior visit at the time of order in a quiet respectful manner and see if they're addressed for your order ?

Silvas 1/4 chicken w/ lemon herb sauce and chips, takeaway was pretty much the other option when not at The White Cockatoo.

 

[Monsta_AU]

I'm not alone in my thoughts on it, plenty have tried it since the move and those that had it at the White Cockatoo agree that it has gone downhill fast.

That said, nobody is looking for perfection with that size and cost, something has to give eventually. I did speak to the guy who appeared to be the manager and let him know that it came out below Temp which he listened too and thanked me for my feedback. Handled it ok but not great - saying he would pass that to the kitched would have been better.

Anyway, it is what it is now.

 

[borked]

Hmm sad to hear, as was an ok balance back when I was enjoying them.
Will give them a go and take note of recent feedback in regards to expectations.

 

[Monsta_AU]

NAME: Billu's Indian Eatery
CUISINE: Indian
SUBURB: Harris Park
INFO: Really popular place, can get deafeningly loud but worth the trouble. I tend to go for one of the Thali's - which gives you 4-5 curries, rice, pickle, bread and a lil salad and dessert. Great value. Harris park is actually an excellent little suburb and you can get some cheap shaving stuff in the wonderful Indian stores there - great for buying VERY CHEAP whole spices as well!

We actually found ourselves coming home from out west at dinnertime on Sunday which is a rare occurrence. The suggestion was Indian at Harris Park, and my response was yes, I know a place that is recommended. So after a quick check of the actual place via Tapatalk, and the address dumped into Google Maps, we arrived at Billu's.

We both went the non-veg thali's as per the suggestion from @Nick the Knife, and I had a mango lassi and the other half had a rose lassi.

The wait seemed forever after driving for 2.5 hours but was really 15 minutes. The food came out on massive stainless steel platters, the naan included was fresh and the rice cooked just right. I ended up with daal, a chickpea veg curry, a rich lamb-based curry (not sure of the exact marsala blend) and Chicken Tikka Marsala. I am not a fan of daal but it was what I attacked first and it had heaps of flavour while the lentils being well cooked and soft but not to the point of disintegration. The other veg curry was quite pleasant and I woofed it down.

The lamb curry was well cooked and very tender yet held its shape. The marsala was extremely rich and had loads of flavour without being overdone with spices or heat. Nicely controlled flavours. I'd definitely order a full dish of it if I knew exactly which one it was.

The Chicken Tikka Marsala was fantastic. The chicken itself was slightly dry because tandoor but that marsala was bloody excellent and really compensated. Probably the best flavours in this dish that I have ever had, but the chicken itself did hold it back ever so slightly. Definitely worth ordering if you go a la carte.

Accompaniments were of a very high standard - the naan was fresh, well cooked, blistered and brushed with ghee which makes everything awesome. The raita was different to what we usually get here in Australia, it was smooth rather than chunky with cucumber, had some spice but was refreshing and brought balance when it was needed. I didn't need much of it. The side salad was a bit MUM but again it was welcome for the change in textures. The pickle - damn that thing is pickled. Really strong flavour... almost too much.

The 'sweet' was a milk/cream-based rice pudding. Relatively sweet and while the size was small, we were so stuffed that any more would have been too much. I'd eat that again no worries. Was a nice finish to the meal.

I wasn't a fan of the Rose Lassi but the Mango was great. Not as good as I had in Malaysia but close.

Total was $40.80 - very good value and we were both pretty pleased with our food comas. We want to check out some other places nearby.

 

[SydBJW]

I am definitely going to check out the Turkish kebab shop in Fairfield, that is pretty close.

I think the best chicken/pork rolls are at Hong Ha at Mascot, I used to work near their, you should see the queues at lunch time.

Green Peppercorn Thai restaurant at Fairfield is great food and reasonably priced.

 

[Nick the Knife]

@Monsta_AU , glad to hear you enjoyed Billu's. The biggest downer there is the chaotic and somewhat deafening atmosphere (odzens of people talking very loudly in a very sound reflective room with Bollywood clips playing from a cheap panel on the wall). FWIW I don't know if they still do it only on SAT but they used to do a SAT special Aloo Tikki Chaat, which is these lovely lil potato cakes with a chickpea dish, very sweet & sour via tamarind. It's not a main meal but a very good starter or snack on the run.

The Thali plates do tend to be a lil rough around the edges (we shared your thoughts on the 'salad' which was always good for a laugh or two at the randomly cut items tossed in haphazardly!) in terms of some of the dishes finishing but they're great to share between 2 people and you get a nice snapshot of lots of things on the menu - they're a bit like a very poor man's degustation!

Same as you again we often wished we'd taken a moment longer to ask a staff member what a certain dish was before we scarfed it on down! But thats the fun of a Thali!

I am definitely going to check out the Turkish kebab shop in Fairfield, that is pretty close.
I think the best chicken/pork rolls are at Hong Ha at Mascot, I used to work near their, you should see the queues at lunch time. Green Peppercorn Thai restaurant at Fairfield is great food and reasonably priced.

@SydBJW, if Beyti still has the same owners then yes it's very good - the mixed plate is the pick - often they'll give you extra fresh Turkish bread just out of the oven for free with it.

I used to work in Mascot for Qantas myself and know that shop and though it's going back several years now their huge lines (which I put down to very few other options in the area) aren't IMHO indicative of the actual quality of their Banh Mi's. Now it might have well and truly changed BUT at the time I went there (and I only did a few times as I knew the ones at Canley Vale bakery were a LOT better) they used cold shredded chicken that appeared to have come from Woolworths type rotisserie chickens. Canley Vale used fresh just out of the ovens chicken Marylands (which are so much more succulent than the breast as they're fattier) which they'd marinated themselves. Honestly there was daylight and a lot of it between them!

Also recommend a charcoal chicken place at Fairfield Heights.......it's a while back but if an older Asian chap is still running they are as good as you will find in many a mile!

 

[Monsta_AU]

@Monsta_AU , glad to hear you enjoyed Billu's. The biggest downer there is the chaotic and somewhat deafening atmosphere (odzens of people talking very loudly in a very sound reflective room with Bollywood clips playing from a cheap panel on the wall). FWIW I don't know if they still do it only on SAT but they used to do a SAT special Aloo Tikki Chaat, which is these lovely lil potato cakes with a chickpea dish, very sweet & sour via tamarind. It's not a main meal but a very good starter or snack on the run.

Yeah, they still have the Bollywood stuff playing. We actually sat outside so it wasn't quite so loud, also a Sunday night so it was not as busy as you have seen, probably only 2/3 full. There was no real problem with being outside as they had the heaters on and it was a bit quieter.

Most of the stuff coming out looked good, and we wanted to know what it was and to try it. Since we were the odd people out we felt as if we had a little less attention than some of the subcontinental tables so it was harder to ask. Still a good experience and we will be going back at some stage, if only to explore the area.

The Thali plates do tend to be a lil rough around the edges (we shared your thoughts on the 'salad' which was always good for a laugh or two at the randomly cut items tossed in haphazardly!) in terms of some of the dishes finishing but they're great to share between 2 people and you get a nice snapshot of lots of things on the menu - they're a bit like a very poor man's degustation!

Same as you again we often wished we'd taken a moment longer to ask a staff member what a certain dish was before we scarfed it on down! But thats the fun of a Thali!

The salad was weird in terms of presentation and 'style' as it was about as Indian as a Penriff Bogan but I guess you can dip it into the raita since it is of a decent 'chunky' size. It was very fresh produce though, very crisp and had not been sitting for very long at all. That's a big thing for me. Overall it was very good and I definitely got my $16.90 worth out of it.

I used to work in Mascot for Qantas myself and know that shop and though it's going back several years now their huge lines (which I put down to very few other options in the area) aren't IMHO indicative of the actual quality of their Banh Mi's. Now it might have well and truly changed BUT at the time I went there (and I only did a few times as I knew the ones at Canley Vale bakery were a LOT better) they used cold shredded chicken that appeared to have come from Woolworths type rotisserie chickens. Canley Vale used fresh just out of the ovens chicken Marylands (which are so much more succulent than the breast as they're fattier) which they'd marinated themselves. Honestly there was daylight and a lot of it between them!

I think the bread at Hong Ha is almost the best I have had anywhere, but agree that the chicken lets it down significantly. Marrickville bread is not as good (small margin) but all the condiments & fillings are quality across the board and all home made. I have actually been in the Ashfield shop when they are doing the roast pork. I run into the guy every so often, remembers me, asks how the kids are. Everything that Hong Ha is not.

I'd agree with the whole 'Mascot options' comment although Ogalo (a better version of Oporto) is just up the road and I can always smash a BBQ Chicken Roll from there with both the chilli & garlic bastes. Their chips beat any other chain outlet I know - crisp outside, fluffy inside, not oily at all, chicken salt. Bliss.