Cuisine: Cantonese
It's been a while since I've been very impressed with a Cantonese eatery. New ones crop up all the time in Box Hill, only to disappear months later due to mediocre food, bad service, or simply just bad management.
So when I say I was impressed with the recently opened Roast Duck Inn in Box Hill, I was very much impressed.
It started from the moment we were seated. Polite waitresses brought out not only complimentary tea but also a bowl of complimentary soup each. Little gestures that don't necessarily cost the restaurant much, but can impress their patrons. Too many restaurants these days charge exorbitant amounts of money for tea that costs next to nothing to provide. The soup is a classic Cantonese starter and goes down a treat as we read the menu.
 |
| Classic Cantonese starter soup |
The menu is only 2-3 pages and sports all the classic roast meats (duck, roast pork, BBQ pork etc), as well as all the usual Cantonese noodle and rice dishes. We order a beef brisket noodle soup and a char kuay teow to share. About a minute or so after we order, the manager comes over to check if we've had our orders taken. The attention to detail is overwhelming for a little cafe like this.
Food comes out pretty quickly. The beef brisket noodle soup arrives and you can immediately smell the aromas of the herbs and spices that the brisket has been stewing. The meat is fall-apart tender, the tendon is cooked to perfection - soft, slippery and full of flavour. A nest of egg noodles, some greens and aromatic broth. Simple and brilliant.
 |
| beef brisket noodle soup |
The char kuay teow is also beautifully executed. The all-too-famous wok-smell is evident as it hits the table, and the dish is loaded full of rice noodles, prawns, chicken, fish cake, cuttlefish and Chinese sausage. Just enough seasoning to lift the dish, but not so much as to overpower it.
 |
| char kuay teow |
And to top it all off, the meal came to approximately $20. This is the epitome of Box Hill food. Classic dishes, thoughtful management, attentive waitresses and generous serves at decent prices. I wouldn't hesitate to go again.
Overall Impression: 9/10
[someone needs to create an Urbanspoon account for this place]
No comments:
Post a Comment