Ocean Room, The Rocks

"The dinner table is the center for the teaching and practicing not just of table manners but of conversation, consideration, tolerance, family feeling, and just about all the other accomplishments of polite society except the minuet." (Judith Martin)

The first time I came to Ocean Room was probably five or six years ago, as far as I remember I had a pretty good experience back then. I've recently found out that the restaurant has been newly renovated end of last year, this has inspired me to come back even more. 

The moment I set my foot in, I was charmed by the beauty of the curvy ceiling and wooden chandelier that made of over thousands of hanging wooden tubes. I absolutely loved the theme and the blending of colours, it was simply astonishing. In addition to the elegant dining room, we were lucky to be seated in front of the floor to ceiling window with a magnificent view of Sydney's iconic Opera House right in front of us. We couldn't ask for a better place to bring our parents for a dining indulgence.

Ocean Room is a Japanese restaurant with a twist. The chef cleverly designed the food with traditional Japanese approach that combines with a contemporary culture.

Natural Oyster

We picked the green shio basil sorbet and salted konbu sauce to go with the oyster. These icy cold oysters were really fresh and appetising. I could almost taste the purity of the oyster. It was so delicious that it left me wanting for more

Natural Oyster  $4.5 (each)

Japanese Tapas 1: Tuna Cornet

The marinated blue fin tuna tartare was wrapped in nori rice cracket cornet. The tuna tartare was really soft, it kind of melt in your mouth. The rice cracket cornet tasted like the Chinese egg roll. I thought it was a good match and it certainly made a good entree.

Tuna Cornet $5 (per piece)

Japanese Tapas 2: Soft Shell Crab Taco

The spiced soft shell crab was served with pickled vegetables and wrapped in a crispy taco shell. This was the favourite entree of the night. The crispiness of the taco and the crunch of the spicy soft shell crab, with a dab of mayonnaise and salmon roe is the perfect example of a modernised approach to the traditional deep fried soft shell crab.

Soft Shell Crab Taco  $6 (per piece)

Entree 1: Wasabi Prawn

The crispy king prawn was served with wasabi aioli and petit wasabi croquette. It was a decent entree with a very light wasabi flavour aioli to complement the crispy prawn.

 Wasabi Prawn $19.00

Entree 2: Tuna Creation

We were told that this is the Ocean Room's signature dish. It consists of five different types of tuna (cut into cubes) with five different condiments. The staff explained that each condiment is designed to complement each type of tuna. Because we ordered  this to share, I only get to try the 'Fresh raw akami with black salt, jalapeno and yusu zest'. It was certainly different to what I've tasted before and my dad absolutely loved the 'Marinated akami with truffle salt, fried garlic and fresh chilli' that he had.

Tuna Creation  $23.00

Sushi Roll: Tassie Roll

A crispy ocean trout sushi roll, topped with ocean trout sashimi and roe.

 Tassie Roll  $15.00

Main 1: Chilli Baby Snapper

The roast chilli spiced whole baby snapper was accompanied with micro herbs and dressed with shallot oil.  Even though the meat was cooked perfectly well, but I thought the flavour was pretty mediocre, it was nothing unexpected. I was expecting  more, I was expecting to be blasted away by the fish.

Steamed rice is available for $3.00 per bowl

 

Chilli Baby Snapper $39.00

Main 2: Aburiyaki Wagyu

Thank goodness! I thought I will be dissapointed again, but the wagyu had me blasted half way to the moon! The Wagyu Harami was divine and the meat itself was sweet. This was definitely the highlight of the night. A dish I would come back for. We were given a small charcoal grill to further cook the wagyu to our preference.

 Aburiyaki Wagyu  $45.00

Main 3: Shiogama Pork

This was the last dish we had. The pork belly was tender and tasteful, served with spicy Korean kochuajang sauce, pickled nashi pear and citrus. 

Shiogama Pork $37.00

There's certainly a plus and minus in terms of the food, but Ocean room is certainly a fabulous restaurant with a view to die for.

Ocean Room

Bay 4 - Ground Level, Overseas Passenger Terminal
Circular Quay West, The Rocks

Sydney NSW 2000

PH: (02)9252-9585 

Soto Ayam Medan (Medanese Style Chicken Soup)

 

Medan Must Eat - Soto Medan

After a long day at work, all I can think of is going home for my Mum's delicious Soto. Soto is a traditional yellow soup commonly found in Indonesia. It has a strong distinct flavour mainly from Tumeric and other spices. However, different regions have their own version of Soto. Some of the popular soto are Soto Betawi, Soto Madura, Soto Bandung and Soto Medan (All named after the geographic regions where they were originated from).

I personally think Soto Medan is the best among all, not because it's coming from my hometown, but because it has a hint of coconut milk inside which gives an extra richness to the soup, without being too heavy or fatty. The typical meat used in Soto Medan is either chicken or beef.

 My mum is a non beef eater, so the choice of meat is obvious...

Soto Medan is never complete without Perkedel (Indonesian potato croquette). Perkedel is a fried potato cake made from mashed potato, chopped celery and some other ingredients. Beef is commonly added in preparing Perkedel too. It's very simple to make and is an excellent side dish/appetiser.

 Perkedel (Potato croquette)

Even though I don't have my mum's recipe here, I managed to find the recipes of Soto Medan (here) and Perkedel (here) for you guys. Do try these delicious Soto Medan and Perkedel at home. They make the perfect lunch/dinner dish during a cold winter day.

 Soto Medan (chicken)

 

Soto can be served with vermicelli, but I still think the best way to eat Soto is to have it with plain steamed rice plus some crackers on the side.

Steamed Yam Cake (Taro cake)

One of My 'Must-ask-mum-to-prepare' food

Steamed Yam cake is a traditional Asian savoury cake (known as kuih) that is made with fresh yam (taro) and served with ground dried shrimp, fried onions(shallots), spring onions and fresh chilli/chilli sauce (optional). This has been one of the local's favourites among the Asian countries and it is also one of my 'Must-ask-mum-to-prepare' food when my mum is around.While typing up this post, my mind is filled with all kind of local kuih that I could devour back home. But this purple colour cake should satisfy my craving temporarily.

  The Plain Steamed Yam Cake

The difficulty of preparing this cake is getting the right texture, it should be just firm and slightly sticky (it can't be too soft nor too hard). Mum's version of yam cake always come with her homemade chilli sauce that goes perfectly well with the cake.

 Ground Dried Shrimp (Pan fried)

Homemade Fried Onions (shallots)

I always wonder how mum always get it right because her recipe is always based on estimation only. I guess it all comes with experience. Finally, the easy and fun part is assembling the cake. First, place the cake on the plate then garnish it with generous amount of ground dried shrimp, fried onions(shallots), spring onions and chillies/chilli sauce. 

I need to apologise for not posting the recipe, because mum's recipe is all based on estimation, so if you are interested in savouring this mouth watering cake, why not try googling it online. I'm sure there's plenty of recipes available for you to try =)

After assembling the cake (without the chilli sauce)

After assembling the cake (with chilli sauce)

Hope this post will give you some inspiration for your next visit to the kitchen!

Next time, I will try to prepare this cake myself too.

Gado Gado (Salad With Peanut Sauce)

Gado Gado - The Heavenly Peanut Salad

Gado Gado is another popular street food in Indonesia. It's a traditional salad of mixed vegetables that is served with a sweet and spicy peanut sauce. It can be easily found in many Indonesian restaurants around Sydney. Therefore, for many non-Indonesian, gado gado is not alien anymore. This traditional salad can be easily prepared at home at your convenience, the key ingredient which is the peanut sauce can be made freshly or it's also available from most Asian groceries. It usually comes in block, although I have to reveal that the freshly-made peanut sauce definitely taste better, however off-the-shelf sauce is not too bad either.

Fried silken Tofu (Pre-fried tofu from the shelf can be used too)

The common vegetables used in Gado Gado are cabbage (boiled/fresh), boiled egg,  fried tofu, boiled bean sprout, boiled potato and boiled long beans. However, any kind of vegetables can be used too. So feel free to bring out your inner creativity and include any vegetables of your choice. Cracker like prawn cracker is another common ingredient in Gado Gado, but why not try other type of crackers like nachos, corn chips or any plain unsalted chips? They might turn out to be a good substitute.

The too good to be true Peanut Sauce. Thanks to mum for bringing it all the way from Indonesia.

 Ready to be mix vegetables

This salad can be prepared in no time and is as easy as a pie. All you need to do is prepare your vegetables/ingredients (steamed, boiled or fresh). Prepare your peanut sauce as per packet instruction (make sure it's thick in consistency for maximum enjoyment). Add the peanut sauce into vegetables and toss well.

Indonesian Meatball Noodle Soup (Mie Bakso)

Savouring Mie Bakso Once Again

This post is just a brief introduction to one of Indonesia's most popular noodle soup, Mie Bakso. Mie Bakso (Meatball Noodle Soup) is an ubiquitous street food in Indonesia. Even tough, it is considered a cheap eat, this noodle soup can be found everywhere from street-side stalls to restaurants in shopping mall. However, this bowl of flavoursome noddle is no where to be found in Sydney (or I haven't found one yet). Luckily for me, I get to taste this wonderful noodle soup once again, all thanks to my mum who visited me last week. Mum knows how much I like to eat Mie Bakso, so at 4am Monday morning she rolled up her sleeve to prepare this bowl of delicious noodle soup ready for me when I wake up. Life couldn't be better than this!

(Unfortunately, I don't have the recipe as mum brought the homemade paste for the soup from Indonesia)

Shredded fried chicken

 Chopped celery leaves

This is not a complicated bowl of noodle. It consists of only meatballs (usually beef), shredded fried chicken, crispy fried shallots and celery leaves. However, the peppery and aromatic soup is made from a combination of different kind of Indonesian spices that create the signature flavour.

The usual way to enjoy this bowl of noodle is to add in lots of hot chilli paste and sweet soya sauce enough to make you puffing and sweating, at the same time racing for a glass of cold water to soothe the burning mouth.

Homemade chilli paste mixed with sweet soya sauce

Before adding in the soup

with soup

 Add in the Chilli Paste

Mix well and see you in culinary heaven

Angelo's on the Bay, Cabarita

Angelo's on the Bay is a very special restaurant for me and my husband. This is the restaurant where we celebrated our marriage a year ago. Last week, we revisited this memorable restaurant to celebrate our first wedding anniversary and it certainly brought back fond memories of the most important day of our lives.

 

The restaurant is situated at a beautiful waterside setting in Cabarita. The relax and quiet surrounding allow us to enjoy a magnificent lunch on a great Sunday afternoon. This is a perfect place to enjoy a contemporary Italian cuisine with friends and family.

Garlic Bread $4.00

 Brussel Sprout tossed with Bacon and Onion $8.00

Entree 1: Confit of Pork Belly ($22.00)

The perfectly cooked pork belly is served with daikon and apple salad, chilli jam and apple puree.   The concentration of flavours were held in the meat and every bite of this meltingly tender, rich and succulent pork was a treat.

Confit of Pork Belly

Entree 2: Seafood Antipasto Plate ($24.00)

The seafood plate consists of grilled scallop with tomato salsa and avocado puree, crab and sweet corn spring roll, Kejap manis prawn with basil parcel, Chilli jam tempura fish fillet, Chilli salt and lime salmon cake with aioli. 

This restaurant has a reputation on their seafood dishes.  Even though everything on the plate looks like something you could easily find in a fish and chip shop, but we were blown away by the extraordinary depth of flavours in every single one of these, except for the scallop that has a more subtle flavour. The Salmon cake is an edible alchemy that explode with flavour.

          

Main 1: Fillet of Beef Rossini ($35.00)

The Beef is served with duck liver pate, confit of truffled mushroom and madeira jus. We were abit surprised

to find a toasted bread under the beef. But when me and my husband put the combination of all into our mouth, we were stunned, we looked at each other with a grin on our faces, there was at least 5 seconds silence, before we could say 'Yum'. This is the dish that makes a difference.The toasted bread was a perfect combination with the beef and the madeira sauce added a lovely flavour component to the dish.

Fillet of Beef Rossini

Main 2: Barramundi Fillet ($32.00)

The pan fried barramundi is served with grilled scampi, tomato, basil and citrus salad with mustard dressing. The zesty citrus certainly enhanced the natural flavour of the fish.

Barramundi Fillet

Year one of our marriage was filled with joy and laugther (mostly came from completely silly and corny jokes). Today we began year two of our marriage indulging ourselves with a delicious and memorable meal.

 "Chefs, authors, musicians, actors, poets, so many of us have very strong feelings about food.  Why is food so emotional?  Scents of food stir up childhood memories, cooking for and feeding someone is one of the sweetest gestures in the world, even watching someone eat can be a delight.  Food and love are undeniably connected". (Heidi-Savory TV)

Angelo's on the bay

Prince Edward Park,
Phillips Street - Cabarita

NSW 2137
(02) 9743 2225