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Golden Lake, Baulkham Hills

Restaurants, Chinese, Malaysian

Overall 6.3 20

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.8 Below Average

Food 1 Ambience 6 Service 7 Value 1

I agree with the service being good, we had a lovely waiter, very friendly! However, the food was a let down. Several reviewers claimed the sesame chicken was a standout, as was the salt and pepper squid.

When I order salt and pepper squid, I do not expect a thick batter, I find it difficult to even call it 'salt and pepper squid' because there was hardly any seasoning on it. Now the squid and prawns were covered with a thicker batter than tempura. When making salt and pepper squid, you dust it in a very light flour, some people use rice flour because it is extra light. In the rice flour dusting should be well seasoned salt and pepper, then once you deep or shallow fry the squid it comes out very light and tasty.

Sesame chicken is usually accompanied by a sauce. The chicken was deep fried in a sesame coating, which was dry and flavourless. Once again not seasoned, and very chewy. I would best describe it as a poor version of KFC crispy strips, very chewy and dry.

Finally the Szechuan combination, was overloaded with onion, laiden with MSG, and only 3 prawns between 2 people. It is one of the worst interpretations of the dish I have tasted.

The prawn toast was ordinary, and the dipping sauce was a diluted tomato sauce. A sweet and sour sauce would have complemented it beautifully. A lot of people say that you can tell when a Chinese restaurant has good food when Chinese people dine there, but Golden Lake was full of Westerners.

Yet another let down in the Hills District. If you want to taste some great Chinese food in the area then stick to Top Taste Chinese at North rocks. It is bustling with Chinese people, and the food is sensational. If you want to venture out of the area for great Chinese food, then consider Tai Pak at Chester Hill.

Jan 31, 2011

Peacock Indian Cuisine, Bella Vista

Restaurants, Indian, Vegetarian, Family Dining, Fine Dining

Overall 8 26

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

9 Highly Recommended

Food 9 Ambience 9 Service 9 Value 9

We have tried quite a few Indian restaurants lately but the Peacock definitely has the best food without question. We really liked the fact we could taste the flavours of the dishes without an overbearing intense spice.

The Tandoori mixed grill was excellent, and the Nariyal Chingri (Prawn curry) was my favourite dish of the night, for an Indian curry I give it 10/10. The lamb curry was also very tasty. The pappadams were the freshest and best tasting we have had, to date, and the Naans very fresh. The service was friendly with a "can-do" attitude.

The restaurant itself was bright and new, and the tables were dressed very smartly. The undercover parking is an added convenience. Anyone who is sceptical about eating Indian food, I would advise you to eat here, and you will not be disappointed.

I have finally found a restaurant worthy of a mention in the Hills District with high quality food, great value and exceptional service, congratulations! Will return soon!

Aug 14, 2010

Emma's on Liberty, Enmore

Restaurants, Lebanese, BYO, Serves Dinner, Wheelchair Access

Overall 6.9 123

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.3 Average

Food 8 Ambience 4 Service 7 Value 2

Re-revisted August 2010 - There are contrasting reviews made about the food here at Emma’s, and having dined a second time, the only negative thing I have to say about the food is the price and it was just a fraction salty, apart from that I have to say the food was quite delicious.

We had a limited time to eat, but we were served promptly. The stand-out, once again, were the Lady Fingers! A must try! They really are to die for, the falafels are some the best I have tasted served with piped hummus on the top of each one.
We also had the hummus, coriander potatoes and lamb skewers.

I thought the coriander potatoes could have been crispier, and the lamb was overdone and struggled to come off the skewers, and had too much salt. Also you must try the lemon drink with rose water. It is very tasty and complements the food very well.

Four dishes and one dip, the food portions were too small and my partner went away unsatisfied, after paying forty dollars a head. With the cramped seating of the restaurant entering and exiting can be an issue, and once again it was an unpleasant exit having to push right up against the other patrons just to get out. I hope they enjoyed it more than us. I would order take-away falafels and lady fingers, but probably would not want to dine in again.

Firstly let me praise the customer service over the phone, the restaurant was booked out, but they were able to ring back next day after lunch and found us a table.

When we arrived, the restaurant appeared very small, cramped, and the waiters were flat out, we stood out the front with several others, wondering whether we were going to be acknowledged at any stage and shown our seats. If I had not taken the initiative and interjected one of the waiters we may have been still waiting. As mentioned in other threads, it was very difficult to make your way through the seated patrons, very little room to manoeuvre.

There were 3 banquet options: meat, vegetarian and combination. The meat banquet was 40 dollars per head. In it was: hummus, tabouli, falafel, lady fingers, coriander potatoes, chicken, and lamb skewer and the option of interchanging them for other dishes. I was a little surprised with the omission of baba ganoush from the banquet. We swapped the tabouli for the fatoush and added baba as an extra.

The hummus was very creamy, one of the best I have ever tasted. The baba ganoush was a lumpy consistency, a bit like cottage cheese, and although a nice smokey flavour, I was put off by the texture. The falafel was very good, crispy on the outside and a fluffiness in the centre. The lady fingers were the standout menu item for me, they served 8 of them, and they were worth returning for!

The chicken had a smokey flavour and was well cooked, however, it lacked seasoning. The fatoush was fresh and chunky, but the vinaigrette was sparse and lacked flavour. I was expecting to taste more of a pomegranate influence, it lacked sweetness.

The food servings were generous, and we were certainly full at the end, but unlike many banquets provided at other restaurants, there was no dessert or coffee included, which added to the costs. Also the bread was rather ordinary. Some restaurants offer freshly baked bread on site, and really aides the dips well. The depth and variety of the banquet was not there, and having paid much more for the experience than other restaurants, we had mixed feelings at the end of it.

If returning I would consider not ordering the banquet, but rather, ordering the dishes that are very tasty and done well, but the absence of a really good bread to dip, would always be lingering. To put it in perspective, I am going to compare Emma’s to Summerland, both very popular Lebanese restaurants. Summerland charges 30 dollars for an extensive banquet, with unlimited fresh hot bread made at the restaurant.

There are 18 courses of various dishes and dips and includes dessert and coffee. There were many more meat varieties and assorted dips. The ambience of Summerland was much better. Less cramped, more room on the table, all dishes came out more together, so we could dip our meat, Entertainment was provided, but there were no lady fingers.

I would be more inclined in re-visiting Emma’s on a week day, when it’s not as busy, when you can feel more comfortable, and less rushed. The most disappointing part was the desserts. The semolina tart with dates was incredibly grainy, and the pistachio helva was not very appealing. It tasted like a coffee flavoured meringue, in a very low quality vanilla icecream, with ground pistachips sprinkled on top, just wasn't worth 8-50.

Emma’s have some outstanding food but overpriced in a rather crowded environment. I hope they expand their restaurant, as one waiter suggested, because there is a lot of good potential. The banquets do not do this restaurant justice.

Let me say just how well the wait staff did under extreme pressure. I don't think many other waiters could have pulled off such a busy service, which really appeared understaffed. It was more of a admin issue or lack of space.

Aug 10, 2010

Swiss Cottage, Katoomba

Restaurants, Swiss, BYO, Licensed, Outdoor Dining

Overall 7.7 52

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.3 Average

Food 2 Ambience 8 Service 9 Value 2

The staff at the Swiss Cottage were friendly, informative, good-humoured and showed initiative to make sure we ordered the rosti and the sausage with the cheese fondue because of their apparent complementing flavours, unfortunately, we did not enjoy the food.

We were excited about trying the cheese fondue, and we ended up sharing the single fondue for one, which was more than enough for two people, however, there was a really off-putting taste to the cheese from the wine which had been used, I was very disappointed and so was my partner and so glad we didn’t order the fondue for two, I just couldn’t eat it, I certainly tried. I would really like to know what wine they used because it dominated the cheese.

We both ordered the Sausage wrapped in pastry with a potato rosti. The sausage was huge and we battled to eat the entire rich sausage. It was not what I expected, what it really needed was something to offset the richness, with some vegetables, perhaps, and or a cream sauce. I had envisioned a sausage mince which was rolled in pastry and cut into medallions but we received a bratwurst sausage inside some pastry.

The rosti was tiny, and lacked seasoning. As we left I noticed the unmotivated chef in the kitchen using a tea cup to make the rostis, the lack of passion he was exhibiting reflected the food well. If the passion that the wait staff showed were reflected in the food then it would have been outstanding.

The ambience was warm and inviting and comfortable. For a small fondue, 2 pieces of garlic bread, and 2 sausages with miniature rosti, at $85 dollars for such simple food, without dessert just for lunch, it was a bit rich. There was nothing complex or inspiring about the food.

To put it in perspective we recently enjoyed a banquet with four entrees and four mains, and gelato birthday cake from the best gelato place in town, and even had it picked up and brought across to the restaurant by the staff, for about forty dollars a head. The food was scrumptious, complex and well presented and the service second to none.

I wish I could be more praiseworthy of the food at the Swiss Cottage, because the staff were extremely nice people. We will not be returning to the Swiss Cottage based on such ordinary food and exorbitant prices.

Aug 10, 2010

Saute’ Thai Restaurant, Parramatta

Restaurants, Asian, Seafood, Thai, Vegetarian

Overall 7.3 38

3 Below Average

Food 3 Ambience 3 Service 4 Value 2

Saute had been recommended for their food by a friend who had dined there in 2008 so we decided to check out the food. Fortunately, we found parking in the Phillip St car park for $6 all night, as parking can be rather difficult to come by in Parramatta.

They were extremely busy and we waited about 10-15 minutes before we were directed inside to a table, fortunately, we had made a booking. We elected to go for a banquet menu, which turned out to be a little out-dated so we were guided to the right replacement dishes.

Unfortunately, the entrees were atrocious! The salt and pepper calamari had been deep fried to buggery, and some pieces were too tough to bite into, so we left them. The worst calamari I have ever eaten! It was simply overcooked. The spring rolls were pasty, the dumplings were the best of the entrees but were just ok.

The main dishes were very small portions, the chicken cashew nut was a nice flavour, just lacked food for four people. The lamb cutlets were glutinous as if they had been sitting in bicarbonate for too long and tasted poor, a real let-down since they were a highlight dish the last time our friend visited.

The Massaman beef tasted ok, but was a little spicy for some of our guests, but the real clincher was the amount of meat, we didn’t even have a chunk of meat or a potato for each person, when we asked for some more, they suggested they would ask their manager, but negated to explain what was happening, and simply skipped onto the last dish which they had forgotten. It was listed on the menu too, the barramundi was very small, though the sauce tasted quite good.

The only real positive on a poor food night, was the way one of the waitresses handled the dessert. Having ordered the tapioca which looked like green frog caviar and was quite unappetising, I was asked how it was and she offered to bring out some icecream to replace it.

While our dining experience was unprofessional and lack lustre in terms of food and disjointed in terms of service, the waitresses did attempt to make sure we got what we ordered, but didn’t appear to have a very good system, appeared to be unsupported by the management on a very busy night, they kept asking us what we ordered, and almost gave us a second calamari entrée, which was the last thing we wanted.

You could not call what we ate a banquet, because the food was very scarce.
Then for the insulting blow we were overcharged for the banquets, charging us $ 230 for (4 x $38) which should have been approximately $160.

We certainly will Not be back again, and the person who experienced such a different experience two years ago was indeed puzzled and embarrassed.
The food was really disappointing!

Aug 09, 2010

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Displaying: 1 - 10 of 34 reviews

Golden Lake, Baulkham Hills

Restaurants, Chinese, Malaysian

Overall 6.3 20

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.8 Below Average

Food 1 Ambience 6 Service 7 Value 1

Jan 31, 2011

Peacock Indian Cuisine, Bella Vista

Restaurants, Indian, Vegetarian, Family Dining, Fine Dining

Overall 8 26

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

9 Highly Recommended

Food 9 Ambience 9 Service 9 Value 9

Aug 14, 2010

Emma's on Liberty, Enmore

Restaurants, Lebanese, BYO, Serves Dinner, Wheelchair Access

Overall 6.9 123

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.3 Average

Food 8 Ambience 4 Service 7 Value 2

Aug 10, 2010

Swiss Cottage, Katoomba

Restaurants, Swiss, BYO, Licensed, Outdoor Dining

Overall 7.7 52

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.3 Average

Food 2 Ambience 8 Service 9 Value 2

Aug 10, 2010

Saute’ Thai Restaurant, Parramatta

Restaurants, Asian, Seafood, Thai, Vegetarian

Overall 7.3 38

3 Below Average

Food 3 Ambience 3 Service 4 Value 2

Aug 09, 2010

Atom Thai, Newtown

Restaurants, Thai, Good For Groups, BYO, Child Friendly

Overall 8.5 227

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful

10 Highly Recommended

Food 10 Ambience 10 Service 10 Value 10

Recently our party enjoyed the banquet menu, and we were treated to some fine food and exceptional service. Great value for money and they even humbled us by going across the road to pick up our birthday cake from Ice n Slice. Everyone enjoyed the food immensely, many had not had the privilege to taste the food at Atom Thai, but were thoroughly impressed, and they said they would be back.

Special thanks from our vegetarian friend, who said the food was absolutely scrumptious and very fresh. The noodle was superb apparently, made from scratch she thought.

Sincere thank you to Robin for his phenomenal customer service and being a fantastic host once again, preparing all the menus and special requests beforehand, and making the night memorable.

Apologies if I was a little tipsy toward the end of the night, for bowing to all your staff; was not meant in disrespect. I really appreciate the staff and admire the culture at Atom Thai.

I can't recall seeing Atom there that night, but Atom Thai has impressed yet again. Congratulations, I have finally given you perfect 10's across the board. Well deserved!

-----

It has been almost a yeah since I have been dining at Atom Thai. I feel very fortunate that I have had the pleasure of experiencing such high quality food in such a professional and comfortable environment supported by very friendly and genuine team led by some fantastic, accommodating hosts.

I have dined here approximately 8-10 times in that twelve months and I would not have returned to the bustle of Newtown and the inconvenience of finding a park had Atom Thai not been worth returning.

Notable dishes you must try are as follows:

Miang Goong: An icon of Atom Thai and an institution in Thai food in my experience.

Satay Prawn/ chicken: I savour every bit of the sauce; best satay sauce I have tasted!

Choo Chee: Has become my all time favourite curry I have tasted, no one does it better!

Massaman Beef: The best Massaman I have ever tried!

Chicken & Cashew Nut: The best flavour from any Thai restaurant, with that extra hint of chilli and freshness.

Tamarind Duck: Tender, unique balance of sweet and sour.

I have attempted to find a Thai restaurant in my local or semi-local area which comes remotely close to the quality and service of Atom Thai and have not been successful. You may see various Thai restaurants reviewed on Eatability, some of which have high ratings similar to Atom, but they do not come close.

From the very first time I dined at Atom Thai and every other experience they have consistently achieved the same high standard and service each time. That’s a credit to Atom, Robin and the team.

What I truly believe makes this restaurant a success apart from the great cooking team, are the hosts, Atom and Robin. Every time I have visited they make sure everything is running smooth, and that we are always comfortable, as if we were part of the family. From the host down to the wait staff on the floor, there is no arrogance, there is always generosity and respect and it’s always a pleasure to eat there.

With the addition of new function rooms, Atom Thai has reaffirmed itself as the premier Thai restaurant in NSW, and if there is a better one, in terms of food, quality, service and price, then please let me know, because I haven’t found better.

Response from Management:
Hi Thermostats,

Thank you so much for your continuous support and patronage, and we are very flattered by your compliments and kind words. We are very pleased and proud that all your friends enjoyed the banquet, the food and the service, and that brings us much satisfaction and pleasure.

We know there is always room for improvement, and we will continue to do our best to make the dining experience at Atom Thai enjoyable, memorable to you and many other patrons.

Cheers,
Atom

============

Hi Thermostats,

Thank you for your continuous support and comment. We are really grateful for your suggestions and feedback, which have helped us to improve many aspects of our menu, service and ambience. All in all this, we believe, has made it possible to create a better dining experience for all our patrons.

Another crucial aspect of our success so far is the mutual appreciation we have for many patrons like you, and vice versa. Your encouragement, suggestions, critiques are also key ingredients of our pursuit of improvement.

Thank you again, and see you soon.

Cheers,
Atom

============

Hi Thermostats,

Thank you so much for your updated review and suggestions, we are really flattered with your compliments and also appreciate your suggestion re de-tailing prawns for curry dishes and also crispness of the barramundi fillets. I will talk to the chef tomorrow and we should be de-tailing prawns for all curry dishes. Thanks :-)

I am humbled by the thoughts and consideration you have put in writing about our food and services, and when I showed my staff your comments (translating for them), they are really motivated. Thank you so much.

See you again soon.

Cheers,
Atom

Aug 06, 2010

NamOi, Ingleburn

Restaurants, Thai

Overall 7.8 28

7 Recommended

Food 7 Ambience 7 Service 7 Value 7

They do a very good chicken and cashew nut, it could be the second best one after Atom Thai, their massaman beef is not too bad, but still a little fatty...Their entrees are one of the worst I have tasted, but both the above mains are done better than most suburban places. The service is prompt and the ambience at the restaurant is warm. The variety of dish, perhaps, is a little limited.

Is it an Atom Thai? Absolutely not! But it’s a great place to just order some solid staple meals such as those mentioned above. I will keep going back for their cashew nut chicken and massaman beef, for a quick tasty meal on a Friday or Sunday night.

Jul 25, 2010

Avari, Baulkham Hills

Restaurants, Indian, BYO, Food Delivery, Serves Dinner

Overall 8 14

7 Recommended

Food 7 Ambience 6 Service 7 Value 8

We have eaten at a couple of Indian restaurants lately, and I have to say that both in taste and value this restaurant performed very well.

The Lamb Punjabi the standout curry, and the Tandoori chicken quite tasty. There was nothing pretentious about this establishment, the food came out promptly, the service was efficient and at $20 a head for 2 dishes naans and drinks it was a great last minute choice for an evening meal.

Will definitely consider returning.

Jul 15, 2010

Trattoria La Vigna, Camden

Restaurants, Italian, BYO, Licensed, Serves Dinner

Overall 5.7 29

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

6 Average

Food 5 Ambience 8 Service 4 Value 7

Trattoria La Vigna is a very warm, cosy establishment, very spacious and our group were seated right near the open fire place. We sought out this restaurant because the menu appeared to reciprocate a traditional Italian cuisine, however, we were disappointed with the food overall.

The Bruschetta al Pomodoro was fresh and well liked by all, the calamari was a major disappointment, the antipasto was average, the home made potato gnocchi with a basil pesto sauce was the best entrée, although it lacked seasoning, it was the highlight of a rather limited menu overall.

The service was pedestrian, and a good thirty minutes later after we had received our menus we flagged down the waitress to order, she had completely forgotten to take our orders. The specials were not relayed to us before we ordered, and I had to prompt her about them. Fortunately, after our existence was acknowledged for a second time courses flowed reasonably well.

The ribbed penne pasta with chicken, white wine, garlic , baby spinach in a cream sauce, was very ordinary, the ricotta and spinach cannelloni served in a pink sauce was just ok, the chicken breast with rosemary, white wine and butter sauce worked well with the beautiful buttery chardonnay I had brought, but it lacked impetus and wasn’t played very well.

The fresh strawberry tart served with a sweet ricotta cream was very tasty and the pastry was very fresh and the chocolate and hazelnut mousse was just ok.
On the whole, the food lacked a real rustic and traditional Italian taste, they were very simple, and all dishes lacked a real visual element to them. I thought the prices well reflected the quality of food received, and were quite good value for money.

However, they all lacked the professionalism, the taste and the complexity of similar style restaurants in the area. EG: Ei8ht. The venue is really special, and I felt that it was unsupported by the influence of a friendly and rambunctious host (senior staff and or kitchen staff), the efficiency and professionalism of good service and initiative and the wow-factor of dishes to really capitalise on such a wonderful establishment.

If it wasn’t for the great company and the superb wine which we brought with us, we would have been a lot more disappointed. The gnocchi and strawberry tart were the exception of what was a really lack lustre menu.

Jun 28, 2010

Pancakes On The Rocks, Campbelltown

Restaurants, American, Serves Breakfast, Serves Dinner, Serves Late Dining

Overall 6 40

6.3 Average

Food 5 Ambience 8 Service 7 Value 5

Revisted: It felt like maybe I had worn rose-coloured glasses the first time I dined here for lunch, but maybe it was because there was a better cook on the day, but the same pizza I enjoyed the last time, was a mere fragment of its former self. I didn't even complete it, in fact I found it so sickly, it was offputting. Perhaps, the spicey pineapple last time worked better, but I felt embarrassed after the good review I gave them previously.

The service is was still good, although this time there were hardly anyone dining, and it felt less efficient than before when it was absolutely bustling. The pancakes were ordinary, and I didn't enjoy the experience at all. I suppose thats the nature of the beast sometimes, you pick a day when the cook is not on their game, and, perhaps, you are not as hungry and it can spell disaster. I think many of the dishes are well overpriced considering the quality of ingredients used.

I was overwhelmed by the experience at Pancakes on The Rocks @ Campbelltown on Saturday 4 July 2009. I have never ever dined Pancakes on The Rocks at any venue prior, but I have to say it was one of the best dining experiences for lunch, at what I thought was a very humble establishment.

We were seated immediately, in a very spacious booth, irrespective of there only being the two of us. Our waitress was fun, helpful and informative. Every staff member we spoke to were courteous and helpful. The service was absolutely impeccable for such a modest establishment.

The food was absolutely divine. We chose a pizza each. I selected the eggplant/ vegatarian pizza, and my partner chose the supreme ham pizza. While my pizza was beautiful, I couldn't help being jealous I didn't order my partner's pizza. It was one of the freshest and tastiest pizzas I've had for a long while. It had a unique spicey pineapple, subtle pieces of ham (a good thing) a unique pesto herb base, vine ripened baby tomatoes and fetta. The bases were perfect, crisp, dainty and cooked to perfection.

While I intended to just stop in for some belated breakfast with pancakes, I was very pleased I went for the pizza meal first. Best ever pizza for me. The next best pizza was the vegetarian gourmet pizza at Dee Why RSL.

The pancakes were tasty. I selected the strawberry and coulis with an extra scoop of icecream, and it was very satisfying. Next time I would try the crepe alternative, but we both left that restaurant stuffed to the eyeballs.

To put it in perspective we also ate at a rather exclusive fine dining restaurant the night before. We do appreciate very good food, and myself in particular is very critical when it comes to food. I have a passion for food to the nth extreme, and I really appreciate great food, and this restaurant delivered in every way.

The restaurant was quite busy too. I would estimate it was 90% full, and to have such great service with a smile, and nothing was a problem for them was so refreshing. I expected asking for an extra scoop of icecream to be an issue, based on previous experiences, but it was welcomed with open arms lol.

In fact it was one of the most efficient dining experiences ever, with some really good value great tasting food.