A sweet new fitout at Sugarcane

With age comes wisdom, experience and, especially if you like a drink, a few signs of wear and tear. If only I could undergo a sweet new fitout like Surry Hills' Sugarcane, which has had a facelift and the nip & tuck from its simple, bare basics look for the past five years or so.

New wall mural and fitout at Sugarcane, Reservoir Street, Surry Hills
(Image courtesy of The Cru Media)

The new look is brighter, and more lively and inviting than previously, with hints of Thailand and Asian marketplaces quite fitting with the pan-Asian menu of chef and owner Milan Strbac (ex Longrain). Indeed, the loud chatter of happy diners suits the new fitout much better than its muted former look.

So approachable and welcoming is the new look that Strbac is seeing more walk-in customers than ever into the petite restaurant. Former customers shouldn't fret - most of Sugarcane's signature dishes remain on the menu with a bigger, better focus on the wine and cocktail list.

Prawn, rice cake, caramelised sugarcane

I remember the Thai-influenced prawn-topped puffed rice cakes from several previous visits, and they were as delightful as ever.

Best eaten in the one mouthful, this moreish appetiser of a whole prawn, shredded betel leaves, fried shallots, chilli and a caramelised sugarcane dressing atop a crisp rice cake was a table-silencer - at least for the time it took to scoff the mouthful and wish aloud for another.

Salt and pepper squid, yellowbean and soy dressing

To another signature - and classic Sydney - dish from the 'Small' part of the menu, Sugarcane's salt and pepper squid was impeccably tender in a light and pale batter with plenty of seasoning on the surface.

The squid was served with a yellow bean and soy sauce dressing which I found a tad salty with the already well-seasoned squid.

Coleslaw, crispy pork

Next was an Asian style cabbage coleslaw full of carrot, chilli, coriander and other healthy ingredients, and the rather concealed addition of not so healthy cubes of crisp fried, golden pork belly.

While each component was great and the vegetables were much needed in light of the pork, this probably could have been a standalone salad without the meat while the pork belly could make for a star dish of its own.

Crispy chicken, blood plum

From the 'Substantial' part of the menu came the crowd-pleasing boneless crispy chicken, battered then drenched in a sweet plum sauce and garnished with a wealth of fresh and fried shallots.

Served with a squeeze of lemon, this could well be the modernised and improved version of the classic Aussie-Cantonese dish of sweet and sour pork.

Braised eggplant, mustard greens

The deep fried then braised cubes of eggplant from the vegetables section of the menu had a very pan-Asian feel about it, topped with slices of cucumber, chilli and coriander, sitting in a pool of its braising juices which were great with steamed rice.

Massaman curry of duck

Rice was also partnered with the impressive serve of duck massaman curry, served with chunks of potato and plenty of mild curry sauce. The duck took on plenty of the spice flavours and fell from the bone easily, making for quite the filling dish with rice soaking up the sauce.

Banana roti, condensed milk ice-cream

We made room for shared desserts though, with the deliciously clever roti flat bread, topped with ripe, mushy banana, a silky condensed milk ice cream, caramel sauce and coconut cream. It was a fabulous combination of classic flavours and textures that came together extraordinarily well.

'Corn Flakes', coconut mousse, aloe vera

The other very modern-looking dessert we had featured a white orb of coconut mousse atop a contrasting crumble of corn flakes, sesame seeds and other crunchy bits, beneath which hid a subtly sweet aloe vera jelly. Intriguingly different, it took a little more time to understand and enjoy than the banana roti.

Sweets scoffed and the sweet fitout admired and appreciated, the older, wiser and renewed Sugarcane leaves you with a sticky feeling - one that you want to come back to again and again.

Food, Booze & Shoes dined at Sugarcane as a guest, with thanks to The Cru Media.

Sweet as

Rediscovery is such a wonderful thing. Like when you find a pair of shoes in the cupboard that you haven't worn for ages, it's like getting a new pair all over again. Or when you rediscover a lost passion - one that's been lost in a time-poor, money or career-oriented world.

I recently rediscovered my love for Thai food, having been on somewhat of a Thai hiatus of late. And where better to reawaken my appetite for Thai than at Sugarcane - a new-ish venture in Surry Hills of the Longrain ilk (it's headed by ex-chefs) which I'd been really wanting to check out pre-hiatus.

Located in a quiet street not far from Central Station nor Chinatown, Sugarcane has a quiet, to the point of shy, facade that opens immediately into a small dining space with open kitchen set in the back. There's some funkiness about the room and staff, but I can't help but feel like I'm in a canteen. A nice, funky canteen though.

The menu is fairly succint and travels through South East Asia like I can only wish and dream of at the moment. There's also a brief and very reasonably priced wine list and a couple of specials which entice, so it's orders away while the restaurant fills with mostly small groups.

Prawn on rice cake with caramelised sugarcane at
Sugarcane, Reservoir Street, Surry Hills

In an ode to the betel leaf, Sugarcane tries and succeeds in a new and different variation. A cooked prawn sits on top of a cake of crisp puffed rice, and then piled with finely shredded greenery (kaffir lime leaf, possibly) plus coriander, lime, chillli and caramelised sugarcane pieces. It's a slight challenge to consume in the one mouthful but there's no other option. The flavour explosion is just like that of betel leaf offerings: sweet, sour, spicy and all round delicious. It adds an extra tantilising element in the different textures: crunchy rice cake, firm prawn and soft, fresh herbs. It's a shame I only had one.

Stir fried soft shell crab with chilli, tumeric,
snake beans and holy basil

Next is the soft shell crab and not in a fried, salt and pepper form - imagine that. The crab is stir fried in a thick sauce and hidden under a stack of beans and fried holy basil among other vegies and herbs. The flavours are big and I especially like the beans and basil with lots of steamed rice. Unfortunately the crab doesn't quite hit the mark; not tasting as fresh as possible, although I guess most (all?) soft shell crabs are sourced frozen.

Green papaya salad of crispy pork hock, mint and lemongrass

The papaya salad is an immediate favourite for all the right reasons. The stack of julienned green papaya is scattered throughout with coriander and mint leaves, and sprinkled with roasted peanuts and halved cherry tomatoes. It conceals a treasure trove of crispy caramelised cubes of pork with layers of five spice-infused skin, fat and meat. It's simply blissful and a perfect contrast to the tartly dressed salad. The cracker is embedded with black sesame seeds and is almost the third wheel to the rest of the salad but provides another contrasting texture.

Indonesian style fish special

The final main is a special of Indonesian style fish cooked in banana leaf. It's a thick fillet of white fish topped with a mildly spicy curry paste - a satisfactory dish but nothing to blow us away, especially as the flesh is a touch overcooked. But never fear, the generously-sized salad is there to save the evening and reason enough for a return visit.

The two option dessert menu doesn't quite get the sweet tooth tingling, so we venture out in search of sweetness beyond Sugarcane. The recommendation is for some green tea/yoghurt/ice cream concoction which sounds bizarre but worth a try for that reason.

Mixed plain and green tea frozen yoghurt with Tim Tam's
from White Apple, Regents Place, George Street

Looking very much a franchised store and beacon of flourescent lighting, White Apple offers an extremely limited menu focused around green tea frozen yoghurt, soft serve style. Add to that the option of chocolate, nut and fruit toppings - so many that I can't seem to recall any just now. I elected Tim Tam's, being pretty sure that chocolate and green tea were an ideal mix. They were, and for anyone's information, hazelnuts aren't really. The green tea and plain frozen yoghurt mix was a pleasing treat - light and not too sweet with a definite, subtle green tea flavour.

Sweet teeth soothed at a surprising new discovery, old flames reignited at a new rediscovery - it's cheers all round, and a few more to follow.