Vietnam Saigon Star

This restaurant is located on Smith Street. There is an enclosed dining area built right beside the road, and some extra seating inside the main building. We chose to sit in the main building which turned out to be a unique experience as we were able to watch and hear the goings on of the kitchen staff.

We began our meal with Wonton Soup and Chicken and Mushroom Soup,$4.50 each. The perfect size bowl for an entree and the most delicious soup I've had for a long time. The Chicken and Mushroom Soup was a broth with lots of chicken and mushrooms and just the right amount of spice. There were three wontons in the Wonton Soup. This was a good start to our meal.

The orders are rushed out sizzling hot without too much wait time. However, we did have a short wait between the two soups being served. Maybe in future the cooks could make sure that the entrees are ready at the same time.

Chicken with Mongolian Sauce, $17.00. This meal looked great, had a tasty, spicy sauce and was enjoyed immensely.

Fish with Cashew Nuts and Vegetables, $18.50. Lots of small pieces of Flake, a good mixture of vegetables and heaps of cashews all in a tasty oyster sauce.









We ordered a large bowl of steamed rice which turned out to be a generous serving.

The timing of meals being served needs to be considered. Our main meals were actually served before we had finished our soup and I felt rushed.

We decided to try their desserts as they were reasonably priced. We ordered Fried Ice-cream and Banana Fritter, $5.00 each. They were a good size, well worth the $5.00. Both desserts were made with good quality ice-cream.

A large pot of refreshing and calming Chinese Tea complemented our meal.

I would have no hesitation visiting this restaurant again. The service is great, you don't have to wait long for your meal, the food is delicious and the prices are reasonable.

Crustaceans

At the end of Stokes Hill Wharf we found Crustaceans, a busy scene with lots of customers enjoying the view over the harbour.

Once seated we were given the drink menu and had the ordering process explained to us. We weren't given much time  to check through the menu to decide what we wanted to eat; our waitress rushed us inside to where she explained that all  meals were on display. We made our choice, paid for our meal at the counter and proceeded back to our seats where we took in the pleasant atmosphere. Eighteen minutes later our meals arrived. That was the first sign that something was amiss.

We were astounded to find that our garlic bread ($4.50) was made from hot dog rolls.

The Beef and Reef, 300g ($27.90) came with pepper sauce, chips and salad. I'm sure my friend enjoyed the salad, I can't vouch for anything else on the plate though. I tasted a little bit of the steak and was appalled at its chewiness and lack of flavour. Her prawns ended up on my  plate too. Once again they just didn't taste right.

The Australian Seafood Platter for One ($35.50) looked good. Upon ordering we were able to negotiate a slightly different meal as the squid rings were not wanted, hence this meal came with an extra piece of fish. It's unfortunate that many of our restaurants use farmed barramundi; it just doesn't taste as good. We were bemused by the added fruit plate. Is this one way to cut costs on seafood? The salad plate was ordered as an extra ($4.50) and as it turned out, it was a waste of money. Too much dressing spoiled it. The bugs were tasteless.

I was the unfortunate person who ordered the Western Australian Lobster Mornay (Half) $29.90. I enjoyed the salad and chips. The lobster was tough and chewy. I even had difficulty cutting it. I ate it only because I was hungry.

When our table was cleared away we alluded to the waitress that we were not happy. Later another staff member came and asked us if everything had been okay. We explained what we had not liked about our meals. She informed us that the lobster was "bought in cooked" and that the chef had not had any other complaints that evening.

We started to then wonder about the other seafood. Were the prawns also bought in already cooked? Is this why they were rubbery and an unusual colour?

We decided to end the evening with coffee, tea and dessert. We chose the dessert special, Marshmallow and Strawberry Fondue.

Now look at the photo - does this look like a fondue? No! The marshmallows were small and overly sweet with raspberry and strawberry swirls in them, the chocolate sauce was made from compounded chocolate and we got three hulled strawberries. We paid $14.50 for this. We weren't impressed.

Excellent location, pleasant background music, but we won't be going back for the food.

Bahn Thai Restaurant

We decided to visit the newly opened Bahn Thai restaurant in Palmerston, situated on the corner of Maluka Drive and Rolyat Street.

Our first impression was good. Clean, freshly painted and with a touch of Asian authenticity. At first we were seated in the corner, with myself looking straight into the walls. Not being happy with my view we asked to be moved to a different table. We were offered another table where I would be looking into a wall. Eventually we got to choose - great, this evening we could have a table that  would normally be for four people. Room to move!

We decided to share our main meals and get a fried rice to complement them.

Royal Thai Massaman

We were surprised when the Royal Thai Massaman was served in a soup bowl. For $26 we felt this serving was quite small. The beef was obviously silverside and had not been cooked in the curry sauce. The beef was tender and the sauce was delicious. Just not enough of it.

Chicken Fried Rice

The Thai style Fried Rice, $19, with spring onion, tomatoes and coriander was a little greasy. You could taste the peanut oil.

Chicken Pad Thai

Thai style fried noodle with bean sprouts and peanuts, at $19 this was the best meal for value we had on the night. Quite delicious.

Prawn Chu Chee

Tiger prawns with spicy coconut sauce, $27.00. We counted 10 prawns, they were delicious. I could have eaten the whole plate myself. The spicy coconut sauce being the nicest I've ever tasted.

The meals at this restaurant are not big, make sure you order extra to fill the gap. It's a pity they don't serve their meals with steamed rice.

Desserts range from $7 to $8.50 and are mostly made up with western style icecream desserts. We had wanted to try the glutinous rice balls with coconut milk, the only Asian style dessert on offer,  but they weren't available.

They also have a comprehensive wine list.

We were disappointed with the service, they were very slow to attend to us. Our meals weren't brought out at the same time. It's just as well we were sharing meals and could start on the first one.

Brrrrr - this is a very cold restaurant. The air-conditioning is powerful. Our meals were nearly cold when served, most likely because the air-conditioning chills them off too quickly.

Some of our meals had peanuts in them and they weren't advertised with peanuts. If you have an allergy, make sure you ask about each meal.

We ended our evening with tea and coffee. Be prepared for another lengthy wait, they only have a small coffee machine. No pots of tea, only a tea bag. Shame!

I found that sitting at the table was quite uncomfortable. The chairs are too low for the tables and there is no way you can tuck your legs under the chair because of their design. The tables have four splayed feet, like cafe tables. This makes it quite awkward when placing your feet.

Overall, I was a little disappointed with the Bahn Tai Restaurant but I'd be prepared to try them again. Next time I'll order steamed rice to fill the gap...and take a shawl.

Rendezvous Cafe

You will find the Rendezvous Cafe in the Star Theatre Arcade, off the Mall, in Darwin. It is open from 6pm to 9pm for dinner and is also open through the day with a different menu for lunch.
This cafe is quite small however they have crammed in lots of tables in order to maximise their customer potential. On our visit we found it was quite busy, almost full to capacity.

The cafe's decor is dull and mismatched. They offer Malaysian cuisine but their decor is far from being South East Asian. From the menu cover to the wall decorations, menu boards and background music we found  nothing that seemed to fit.

Our first impression wasn't a good one. However, we dared to venture on. We found that the menu offered entrees from $6 to $8 and main meals ranged from $12 to $20.

For our entrees we chose Tempura Prawn $8, Vegetable Spring Rolls $6 and Spicy Chicken $6.
The Tempura Prawns were tasty, and the Vegetable Spring Rolls were quite delicious. Unfortunately we found that the Spicy Chicken had been rolled in Chinese five spice and deep fried, certainly not what we had expected. Along with the human hair attached! No one was game to eat the last piece. We pointed this out to our waitress and she came back to us with the decision that we would not be charged for the Spicy Chicken.
We were also amazed that the entrees had been served on one big platter and with no dipping sauce.

All the entrees on offer were deep fried, it's a pity they can't offer an alternative for those people who can't eat a lot of deep fried food.

At this point I was feeling a little daunted as to my prospect of getting a decent meal, however, I was hungry and looking forward to the Stir Fried Seafood with Vegetables that I had ordered. Alas, I was to be disappointed.

Stir Fried Seafood with Vegetables, $18.
Three prawns, three pieces of squid, nine pieces of silken tofu. I am not a fan of tofu and if this meal had been advertised on the menu as having tofu I would not have ordered it. Luckily it came with a generous serving of rice. I would also have to add that the flavour was exquisite and I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the meal. I  was adventurous and tried one piece of tofu; left the rest. To me tofu is a filler, something you add into your cooking because it's cheap, helps to cut costs and it fills up the plate.

I checked the menu once again and realised that none of the meals had any explanation as to what they actually contained.

Chicken Laksa, $12.
The cafe advertises that it has the best Malaysian Laksa in town. I'm wondering if there are  any other Malaysian restaurants in Darwin? I'm also wondering how they could presume that they are the best? The comments from my friend, who had ordered the Chicken Laksa, would make me believe that she does not agree with their statement.

Green Prawn Curry, $20.
The initial reaction from this meal was that the cook had forgotten to add the prawns. They were found at the bottom of the dish. This points to the prawns being cooked separately, placed in the dish then the curried vegetables placed on top. Consequently the prawns won't have the wonderful flavour from the curry. This didn't detract from the enjoyment of this meal though, as my friend scoffed it down with obvious pleasure.

We found that communicating with the staff was quite difficult. It would be best not to ask too many questions, just order off the menu and eat.

I was keen to try the Gula Malaka at $7 for my dessert, unfortunately they had run out. I also couldn't get an explanation from them as to what it was; another communication break down.

This cafe is obviously popular, the prices are very reasonable, and it would seem that they have a regular clientele. It's not flash, it's not the most spectacular meal, the service is not the best, but it is just a cafe after all.