Sugarcane
40 - 42 Reservoir St
Surry Hills, Sydney
Sugarcane is a funky Thai restaurant located in the back streets of trendy Surry Hills, just a hop and skip away from Sydney's CBD and walking distance from central station.
Sugarcane has been around for a while, we distinctly remember visiting it a few years back, but as its been recently renovated, when we walked in last week it was like walking into a completely different restaurant. The space has a warm feel, stylishly decorated with wooden furniture and some great murals on the wall which are quite striking. They look stencilled on the exposed brickwork and hand painted. An arty collection of woven bags seems to be hanging off the ceilings as well. We arrived relatively early for dinner on a Thursday evening so finding a table wasn't a problem. We chose to sit at lovely long share table, though there were inviting stools positioned behind some open windows which also would have been quite lovely, especially if you like to watch the world go by as you eat and drink. We started with a bottle of wine, a lovely Clare Valley Riesling. Crisp, light and full of flavour, a good choice and one that was recommended by the maitre'd.
Our first dish was a delicious bite size Prawn Rice Cake. It's a great appetiser, one best eaten in one bite so you experience an explosion of flavours like caramelised sugarcane and coriander as you eat into it. Next we tried the Crab Tortilla. With delicious chunks of crab, shredded green apple, lime and coconut, it's not what you would expect from a tortilla dish. The refreshing aspects of the lime and apple give this dish a really exotic twist that's bursting with flavour. We then moved on to a plate of Vegetarian Dumplings. Filled with aromatic ingredients like ginger and coriander, the soft but firm dough acts like a pillow, making these dumplings so full that they almost look like little clouds.
In our books, you can't have a Thai experience without some Salt and Pepper Squid or Pad Thai, so it's no surprise our next two dishes were exactly these. Now, don't you just hate it when your salt and pepper squid arrives and its lukewarm, soft and bland? Well that's definitely not the case here at Sugarcane. The generous pieces of squid were thick, sizzling and covered in a crispy golden batter. We could not get enough of this one with its perfectly balanced flavours. Our Pad Thai with chicken was just as impressive, but unlike many we've had before, here at Sugarcane the chicken is fried with golden crispy skin making it a mouthwatering combination with the noodles, tofu and sprouts. We found this dish to be a taste sensation and one we highly recommend you try. Count N labelled it one of the best Pad Thai's he's ever had and he's had a few, we can tell you.
We also enjoyed a Whole Barramundi and although we sometimes shy away from ordering a whole fish (mostly because of fear of not cutting into the fish properly and risk eating bones), this one was really easy to eat as the succulent, sweet pieces if fish easily fell away from the bones. Our delicious Barramundi was complemented with a beautiful vegetarian dish - eggplant, smothered in some tangy mustard greens giving the eggplant a really smokey and full flavour.
We finished our amazing Thai experience with a lovely dessert, a bowl of pearly Tapioca and puffed rice. It came with some house made peanut butter ice cream that had chunks of peanuts throughout. Count N hadn't had Tapioca before. It'sa bit like a rice pudding, gelatinous and sweet. The puffed rice on top added an irresistible crunch to the dish.
So after what could almost be described as a degustation menu it was time to contemplate the journey home. We absolutely loved our experience at Sugarcane which is a product of delicious food, great atmosphere and outstanding service delivered by one very talented maitre'd by the name of Jay. Sugarcane is open for Dinner Monday to Saturday and for lunch from Wednesday to Friday. If you after some Thai with more flavour and great service, get yourself down to Sugarcane.
The Counts, who review for Sir and Mlady Dine Out, dined as guests of Sugarcane. Special thanks to Owner/Chef Milan Strbac. Thanks also to Chrissy Symeonakis of Creative Little Soul for arranging this visit.