noodle

Dec 19, 2010 | Post by: Phil Lees 2 Comments

Phở Tam, Footscray

I’ve been a bit down on the phở scene in Footscray over the last few months. One of my regular go-to joints, Phở Tam on the corner of Leeds and Ryan streets has been hugely inconsistent on the soup front. They do a great bún riêu and have the hardish-to-find

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Jun 03, 2010 | Post by: Phil Lees 5 Comments

James Brown advertises Cup Noodles

Yes, I’m meant to be researching for a post I’m working on, but occasionally, YouTube spits out pure gold instead of the prosaic video which you seek. Above is James Brown advertising Cup Noodles. MSG-filled snackfood will never be funkier.

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Jul 19, 2009 | Post by: Phil Lees 18 Comments

Phở Chu The, Footscray

I had grand plans to work my way through the phở of the Melbourne suburb of Footscray, bucket-sized bowls of beef soup every weekend, but never quite got there. There are no less than 20 phở establishments within easy walking distance but every time that I kick things off, I

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Jan 11, 2008 | Post by: Phil Lees 2 Comments

The Wok Hei Economy

One of the great mysteries of eating in Penang is the economics of the hawker center. A group of vendors cluster around a kedai kopi, a cafe serving drinks and work almost independently of the cafe. Some pay rent, others are owned by the cafe, some seem to have agglomerated

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Dec 07, 2007 | Post by: Phil Lees 5 Comments

Pig’s brain tom yam and the morbidly obese dog.

Austin told me that there would be pig’s brain tom yam. An offal and coconut soup aberration buried in Bangkok’s inner suburbs within walking distance of some of the other rarer gems in Thailand’s food scene. A mere taxi ride from the Gut Feelings safehouse where I was holed up

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Nov 26, 2007 | Post by: Phil Lees 9 Comments

The Other History of Khao Soi

Khao soi from Khao Soi Lamduan, Chiang Mai The best food on earth is the result of cultures butting heads with each other. Khao soi is one of them: a synthesis of Yunnanese-Muslim (Hui or in Thai, Cin Haw) and Shan cuisines that came together in Northern Thailand generally thought

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Nov 17, 2007 | Post by: Phil Lees 2 Comments

Miming for Bun

When you wander into a restaurant and can’t speak the local language then there is a short moment when you steel yourself for the interaction with the waiter, who in most cases, will look as confused as you. Bun Bo Nam Bo in Hanoi circumvents this great moment to test

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Oct 29, 2007 | Post by: Phil Lees 8 Comments

Cha Cha Cha

Putting the char into bun cha bun cha is a blunt instrument. For all the subtlety engendered by Vietnamese cuisine, bun cha acts as a counterpoint: blackened rissoles of pork teamed with charred slices of pork belly in a thin fish sauce, vinegar and sugar stock with sides of bun

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