Lazy Suzie, Darlinghurst

After the successes of Devon and Devon on Danks, head chef Zacharay Tan and business partner Derek Puah have added a third venue, Lazy Suzie, on Stanley Street in Darlinghurst. The new venture continues the Malaysian cuisine theme, with a noted focus on dishes from the Penang region in the north.

A bar license means punters can snack and drink as they choose, taking full advantage of an extensive wine list and quirky cocktails ($18) that include everything from galangal to yuzu to nashi pear as an ingredient. Designated driver? There are five different mocktails ($13) as well as fizzy concoctions ($6) from Sydney-based PS Soda including smoked lemonade, wattle cola and bush tonic with lemon myrtle and lemongrass.


Table settings

Lazy Suzie sits on the former IconPark site, a revolving restaurant of pop-ups that included Stanley St Merchants and Rupert and Ruby. The sleek new fit-out - warm woods, a marble-topped bar and a striking tangle of gold ring lights overhead - is a collaboration between Studio Ham and designer Matt Woods.


Brunch menu

We stop by on their first weekend of trade for brunch. The lunch and dinner menus include more substantial options like nasi lemak with chicken curry, Hainan-style pork belly satay skewers and ayam percik coconut spiced chicken. The dishes - and prices - are expectedly fluid in their first week. Several dishes can also be found on the Devon on Danks dinner menu.


Pork floss cronnies $6.50

We spy the cronnies (or cronuts) from Devon on Danks on the bar counter but skip these so we can try as much of the new menu as possible.


Lobster thermidor spring rolls $6 each

Sadly they're out of the Lazy Suzie scotch egg and green mango salad, but we console ourselves with the decadence of lobster thermidor spring rolls. The creamy thermidor sauce tends to drown out the sweetness of the lobster (and I can't taste much of the promised Gruyere) but the spring roll pastry is impressive in itself, super crisp and holding its shape well.


Raw kingfish, torch ginger flower, coconut and yam bean $19
Peranakan Fizz cocktail $16
Campo de Encanto pisco, goji berry, calamansi, chocolate bitters, carbonated water and egg white

The raw kingfish surprisingly ends up being one of my favourite dishes of the day. Plump fillets of raw kingfish are curled up with delicate petals of torch ginger flowers, doused with a lightly tangy dressing. It's the surprise find of coconut cream that has me returning for more, reminding me of kokoda Fijian ceviche. Batons of yam bean at the bottom add a juicy crunch.

The Peranakan fizz cocktail is a cheeky riff on the traditional Pisco sour, substituting the usual lime with Malaysian calamansi limes and adding goji berries and chocolate bitters.

Pie tee $14
Pastry cup with braised shitake, yam bean and freshly picked crab meat

Pie tee are a rare dish to find in Sydney, a dish made by Peranakans, the descendants of the very early Chinese migrants to Malaysia who first arrived in the 15th century. The pastry cups are made by dipping a copper mould in batter and then frying in oil until the cup releases itself.

These elaborate canapes are even more endearing when you find out that pie tee translates to top hat. They're traditionally filled with sauteed julienned vegetables and topped with a whole prawn. At Lazy Suzie they bling these with freshly picked crab meat. Baller.

The mix of braised shiitake, carrot and yam bean are cooked so they still have a bit of toothsomeness and the pie tee shells taste like they were just fried, with a superb crunch in every bite.


Roti baby $19
Spiced pork mince in fried bread and fried eggs

Noone is quite sure what a roti baby is but it ends up like a bready version of murtabak.


Pork mince inside the roti baby

We cut into the giant disc to find a huddle of seasoned pork mince and onion inside a spongy donut bread. There's a sweet crispness to the surface. Two fried eggs and a dish of soya sauce would make this a satisfying breakfast option on its own.


Lam Mee $17
Traditional birthday noodles, pork and prawn broth

Lam mee, or longevity noodles, are almost always served at birthday celebrations in Penang. The Lazy Suzie version is heartier than usual, the long lengths of chewy noodle dotted with pork mince and delicate omelette shreds in a richly fragrant pork and prawn soup. A ceramic spoon of chilli sauce gives you the option to add as much heat as you need.


Supreme Penang char kway teow $25
Stir fried rice noodles with prawn, scallop, crab and duck eggs

You can order the standard version of Penang char kway teow that comes with prawns but we go straight for the luxury trail with the supreme option, a high octane version that includes seared scallops, duck eggs and hunks of crab. It's a tasty rubble of flat rice noodles tossed at high heat with fatty slices of lap cheong sausage, garlic chives and the refreshing crunch of bean sprouts in a sweet and salty sauce. The generous amount of plump scallops, juicy prawns, sweet crab and stir-fried duck eggs give an added richness.


Malaysian vegetarian curry with roti jala $17
Rama-Rama Spritz $18
Tanqueray gin, blue pea flower and jasmine, citrus, dandelion and burdock bitters

The Malaysian vegetarian curry might be meat-free but it would probably satisfy most carnivores. The menu describes this as containing cruciferous vegetables -  I think I mostly snagged cauliflower in my mouthful. The roti jala is expertly made, a complex lattice of batter that you tear into shreds to eat with the curry.

The Rama-Rama Spritz can also be seen in the backdrop of this photo. While the blue pea flower gives this a striking indigo hue, the dandelion and burdock bitters left a strong medicinal aftertaste for the curious sippers. The person who ordered it, though, loved every last drop.


Time to eat


ABC $14
Shaved blue pea flower ice, bubur cha cha, taro ice cream

Air batu campur or ABC means mixed ice. In Singapore, this dessert is known as ais kacang. Across the hawker centres and food courts of Malaysia, ordering an ABC usually scores you a jumble of red beans, jellies and tinned fruits beneath a mountain of shaved ice drizzled with syrup.

Fourteen bucks seems exxy for an ABC until you realise that Tan has elevated yet another dish. It's a study in shades of purple, a bed of finely shaved ice scattered with cubes of taro, grass jelly, palm seeds, coco gel and sago pearls. Blue pea flower syrup turns the shaved ice into varying shades of lavender and purple. It's a light and elegant dessert that wins over everybody. The taro ice cream is silky smooth.


Kaya toast $13
Brioche, thick cut butter, coconut custard, slow cooked eggs with soy burnt butter

We finish, ironically, with the dish that starts the day for most Malaysians: kaya toast. Two fat slices of brioche sandwiched with lashings of kaya coconut jam and a glorious slice of cold butter. There's even a bowl of two soft boiled eggs, Malaysian style, seasoned with soy and white pepper.

Malaysians traditionally dunk the sweet toast into the eggs, making sure the sticky egg yolks adhere to its surface. It sounds strange but it works.

I think Lazy Suzie may just hit it off with Sydneysiders the same way.


Counter seating


Bar and counter stools






Lazy Suzie
78 Stanley Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 7901 0396

Opening hours
Tuesday to Friday 12pm-12am 
Saturday 10am-12am
Sunday 10am-3pm


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Shortstop Coffee and Donuts

Donut lovers will know all about Shortstop Coffee and Donuts, a gourmet donut store that includes flavour toppings from spiced apple cider to cashew orange blossom to matcha and black sesame. No wonder their Melbourne store sells out every day.

Which is why Sydneysiders can rejoice they'll be opening here, set to open up shop at Barangaroo in April 2016.


Glazing the strawberries and cream filled donut

What can Sydneysiders expect? I visited their store on a recent trip to Melbourne (thank you, work conference) and arrived not long after they had opened at 7.30am. It's a bright and airy space, fitted out by Foolscap Studio (designers of the Noma Australia pop-up, Wulugul at Barangaroo and Sixpenny in Stanmore) in blonde timber, while tiles and gleaming glass windows.

You can see all the icing work done in the open kitchen. The donuts are baked and glazed throughout the day. The donut menu is a cute glass box filled with real donuts and printed descriptions so you know exactly what you're getting when you order.


Earl Grey and rose cake donut 

The display cabinet (made with Victoria Ash by Melbourne furniture makers H R McCarthy) is stacked neatly with rows of donuts. They do four kinds of donuts here: yeast-raised ring donuts, yeast-raised filled donuts, denser-style cake donuts and fried choux pastry crullers.


Maple walnut and brown butter raised donut

These are topped and filled with an assortment of flavours. Each day you can count on 12 different donuts. In Melbourne last week they had coconut lemon meringue; apple pie filled donuts; burnt caramel, fennel and sea salt; and hot cross donuts.


Hazelnut, chocolate and banana cake donut


New Orleans iced coffee cruller 


Breakfast to go

I went with six donuts for breakfast, because hey, seven is just plain greedy, right? It's a sturdy box marked with their logo. The circle theme is reinforced with their custom-printed greaseproof paper sheets, marked with noughts and crosses.


Cinnamon, cardamom and sugar raised donut $4

The classic cinnamon donut gets a lift with the inclusion of cardamom. The raised donuts include yeast that give it a cloud-like fluffiness. The crunch of sugar crystals as you bite through the pillowy softnesss is guaranteed to make you feel like a kid again.


Maple walnut and brown butter raised donut $5

The maple walnut and brown butter raised donut is one my favourites of the lot, smothered in a rubble of crushed walnuts. The brown butter glaze gives a nutty sweetness.


Earl Grey and rose cake donut $4.50

The cake donuts are risen by using baking powder. They're a little denser in texture - think Donut King (cake donuts) versus Krispy Kreme (yeast donuts) - with a slightly chewier consistency. Basically you're eating a cake in a donut shape, albeit deep-fried. Oh yeah.

The Early Grey and rose is bashfully pretty, its Earl Grey glaze decorated with a scattering of pink rose petals. It's like having a cup of tea and donut all at the same time.


Hazelnut, chocolate and banana cake donut $4.50

Far heartier is the hazelnut, chocolate and banana donut, another cake donut variation. The donut itself is gutsy with chocolate and banana crowned with a glorious glaze of chocolate and a thousand smithereens of crushed hazelnuts.


Australian honey and sea salt cruller $4

The crullers are rings of piped choux pastry, deep fried until golden. The ridges give an added dimension of texture and there's a more noticeable difference between the firm surface and its airy middle.

The Australian honey and sea salt cruller is proof that there's inordinate beauty in the simplicity of quality ingredients. There's a distinct floral sweetness in the honey, amplified by the gentle contrast of sea salt flakes. It's sweet and salty. Soft yet crunchy.


New Orleans iced coffee cruller $4 

My absolute favourite of the lot is the New Orleans iced coffee cruller. I really hope this will be on the launch menu when they open in Sydney. It's the least sweet donut of the ones I've chosen. Maybe that's why I find it so addictive. It's also rich in the mellow bitterness of coffee - oh hello, maybe that's why I find you so addictive.

The intensity of coffee married with sweet glaze reminds me of a Vietnamese coffee. Deeply satisfying.

April is almost upon us so we can expect Shortstop Sydney to open soon. See you in the queue.






Shortstop Coffee & Donuts
12 Sutherland Street, Melbourne
Tel: +61 (03) 9642 0807

Opening hours
Monday to Friday 7.30am-4.30pm
Saturday and Sunday 9.30am-5.30pm

Shortstop Sydney will open at Barangaroo in April 2016.


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Pinbone at 10 William Street, Paddington

So we all miss Pinbone. The good news is that chefs Mike Eggert and Jemma Whiteman have moved into the kitchen at 10 William Street. It's only a four month stint, and no, you won't find any maple bacon and pumpkin tarts, but they are throwing in a few menu additions like a fried chicken panini (it's amazing) for customers in the know.


Aperol spritz $16

Eggert and Whiteman won't be making any drastic changes to the menu, maintaining all the classics conceived by Dan Pepperell (now leading the charge at Hubert) and continued by Luke Burgess (ex-Garagistes).

And the wine list is still phenomenal, carefully curated yet diverse with everything from orange wines by the glass to a perfectly mixed aperol spritz. Italian reds feature heavily but there are also Swiss whites and French apple ciders. On a Saturday lunchtime the place is heaving with couples, friends and a handful of toddlers.


Gnocco fritto, onion and comte $3

The menu runs from snacks to larger plates. Focaccia and extra virgin olive oil can be had for just $2 but the gnocco fritto is much more fun, little pillows of pastry topped with sweetly cooked onion and a snowdrift of comte shavings.


Pickles, fermented vegetables $10

A bowl of pickles and fermented vegetables is gut-loving goodness, a rainbow of fennel, cauliflower, carrot, red cabbage and gherkins all with varying levels of sourness and crunch.


Whipped 'bottarga' pretzel $14

The beloved whipped bottarga pretzel is hard to resist, gently spiked with cured mullet roe. The whipped bottarga is made in a similar way to Lebanese garlic sauce, lightened with blended soaked bread.


Pretzel

Tear off chunks of a seed-encrusted warm pretzel and dab that plate until it's clean.


Roasted fennel, green garlic sauce, orange gremolata $15

Of the 16 dishes on the menu, nine are vegetarian. If you listen to The Mitchen, you'll know that Eggert is committed to accommodating all dietary requirements.

And there's something deeply delicious about a well-cooked vegetable. We revel in the smokiness of roasted fennel, cooked so there are charred patches across its surface. A green garlic sauce is silky smooth and the clever substitution of orange for lemon in the gremolata provides a softer acidity on the palate.


Figs, ricotta, pangrattato $15

You could easily mistake the figs with ricotta for a dessert but the addition of rosemary leaves and pangrattato - fried bread crumbs - shifts this more to the savoury side. It's a fitting tribute to the last days of summer.


Fried chicken panini $12

The fried chicken panini isn't on the menu but make sure you ask for it. It's wickedly good. To call this a fried chicken burger would be an injustice. You'll find the juiciest thigh fillet coated in crunchy batter dressed in a peach hot sauce and drizzled with smoked mayo. Add two ripe slices of tomato, a handful of crisp lettuce and jam it all between two halves of a lightly toasted bun.


Inside the fried chicken panini

It's the kind of thing you can imagine they would have served up at Pinbone, a childhood comfort food dialed up to new levels of decadence. The kitchen sent these out on the house but I would've ordered it anyway. They only make about 15 a day.


Sugar snaps, pickled pumpkin, nori creme fraiche $15

We're also sent out a complimentary serve of the sugar snaps and pickled pumpkin, probably because this was Mr and Mrs Pig Flyin's fourth visit in a fortnight. They were also keen regulars at Pinbone.

It's a simple dish but one that works because of the freshness of the ingredients. The sugar snaps have a superb crispness to each bite, their sweetness counteracted by the slivers of pickled pumpkin. Nori creme fraiche is definitely an idea I'm borrowing for future use too.


Mackerel, purple congo potato, dashi $22

The kitchen said they'd sent out the sugar snaps and pumpkin because it paired so well with our next dish, the mackerel with purple congo potato. It does. The rich oiliness of the mackerel works well with the vegetables but it's also countered by the lightly vinegared julienned potato, reminiscent of Uighur-style potato shreds. The dashi broth provides an umami lift.


Smoked eel, leek and burnt oil crespelle $20

The smoked eel, leek and burnt oil crespelle is an impressive construction. There's a generous amount of eel inside the Italian crepe, mixed through with a tangle of buttered leeks.


Wholemeal gnocchetti, rooster, marsala, tarragon $26

If you're feeling particularly hungry, the wholemeal gnocchetti will satiate. The gnocchetti have a rib-sticking heartiness to them but what we love most about this dish is the sauce, gusty with flavour from the use of rooster carcasses and boosted with marsala. The scattering of rooster meat is lean but tender too.


Buckwheat chitarra, ceci, piselli, parmesan broth $25

I relish the al dente chew of the buckwheat chitarra, a flat edged pasta made by pushing the dough through a tool that looks like it has guitar or chitarra strings. A rubble of chickpeas and sweet pops of pea provide textural interest but again it's the broth that wins me over. The parmesan broth has a noticeable intensity - it's literally a cheese soup - that makes such logical sense with each bite of pasta.


Licorice farfalle, rabbit, carrot $25

The kitchen also sends out the licorice farfalle, still in late testing stages when we dined but should now be on the menu. The bow ties are made with licorice root, aniseed and star anise although there's not a very strong licorice taste despite its striking colour. A jumble of rabbit is soft and sweet, cooked purely in carrot juice. A few slices of pickled carrot provide balance and the garnish of Thai basil leaves is a clever touch too, with its flavour profile of licorice and anise.


Wholemeal gnocchetti and licorice farfalle


Occelli's barley and whisky cheese with date nuts $16

Whatever you do, order the cheese. It's far from the usual offering of brie, cheddar and blue. The Ocelli al Malto d'orzo e whisky is a cheese made from goat's milk and cow's milk that's then coated with malted barley and whisky and aged. Sharp and crumbly, its resonating nuttiness is amplified by the housemade date nut slice, reminiscent of a flattened protein ball. They work brilliantly together.


24 month comte with candy radicchio $15

We also have the comte, aged for two years, and served with the housemade candy radicchio. Comte is terrifically complex on its own but the radicchio, with its subtle bitterness transformed to jammy sweetness, adds another level of sophistication. That radicchio is mind-blowingly good.


Burnt orange, custard, finger lime, vincotto $12

We only have room for one dessert so skip the tiramisu (mondieu!) and order the burnt orange. I'm glad we did. It's just the tangy refreshment we need after our long and lazy lunch, the hunks of juicy orange sheathed in bittersweet toffee. Add a dollop of silky custard and a sprinkle of zingy finger lime pearls and before we know it, we're scraping the bowl clean.

Pinbone at 10 William will run until late May/early June 2016.






10 William Street
10 William Street, Paddington, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9360 3310

Opening hours
Monday to Thursday 5pm-12am
Friday and Saturday 12pm-12am


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