There's an event being held for Crave Sydney International Food Festival this year, a self-guided tour of sorts. On Sunday Elain, Katie and I went on a quest to find and experience a signature dish of Cabramatta; all we had to do was find a restaurant with a sign in their window stating what their particular dish was. There were quite a few pictures of Pho lining John Street, but Bau Truong had a particularly appetising sign featuring a prawn, pork and green paw-paw salad that beckoned to us.
Elain had never had Vietnamese before, so she let me order (and I do so love to choose what to eat). When the lady at the front of the restaurant pointed us to a table and gave us menus, I tried to think of things to order that would be a good introduction to this cuisine, and I think I did a fairly good job.
Pork and Taro Spring Rolls - $8.50
The pork in these spring rolls was cut in chunks that came out soft and tender. The taro lent its unique, earthy flavour to the pork, and the wrapper crunched loudly when bitten in to.
Crispy Sticky Rice - $10.00
The crispy sticky rice was flavourless, but had a great crunch to it. It was served with glazed pork (from the rib I think) which was sweet and pull-apart soft, and which gave the dish some added depth.
These prawn crisps were complimentary and were excellent, all crispy and crunchy and giving my sister hours of entertainment.
Signature Dish: Green Paw-Paw with Prawn and Pork Salad - $15.00
The signature dish was a beautiful and fresh salad consisting of thin strips of raw green paw-paw and carrot, tender diced pork and cold prawn halves. The dish was served cold, but with so much chilli that my mouth was on fire. It was topped with crunchy peanuts, and all in all was a great salad, and a dish suited to the hot day.
Raw Salmon Salad - $18.00
Elain was tempted by the raw salmon salad, another fresh concoction of beautiful ingredients. The salmon, while raw, was marinated in lemon, lime and chilli, and was accompanied by strips of raw green apple, carrot, and peanuts.
Beef Noodle Soup (Pho) - $10.00
The quintessential Vietnamese dish is a big bowl of Pho, which is why I ordered it. The broth was more fragrant with herbs than what I've had before, but it still had that solid, meaty flavour to it that I love so much. The beef was very thinly sliced, and just barely cooked, leaving it soft and easy to tear apart with my chop sticks. The noodles were silky and smooth, and a squeeze of lemon lifted the whole dish.
Fried Beef Noodles with Dark Soy - $13.00
This was Katie's choice, but of course I snatched a bit. The thin slices of beef practically melted in my mouth, and the rice noodles were a lot of fun to eat. The onion was just cooked so that the pieces were still crunchy, and everything was cooked in a dark soy sauce that was wonderfully salty.
My sister with upside down chopsticks :)
Bau Truong provided an excellent experience for people who'd never tried Vietnamese, and I happen to know that Elain will definitely be back. I, however, look forward to trying more signature dishes of Cabramatta, and think it's an excellent event for the Crave Sydney International Food Festival.
Bau Truong
42 John St
Cabramatta, NSW
2166
Phone: 9727 4492
Both salads look fresh and tasty. I haven't been to Cabramatta yet, looking forward to scheduling a feeding trip soon.
Posted by: Gaby | Oct 20, 2011 at 10:45 AM
Wow... I just ate and I'm hungry again! I love these types of food! Yum!
Posted by: Sook | Oct 21, 2011 at 12:40 PM
I love the sound of the crunchy spring rolls, and the paw-paw salad looks so fresh with those bright prawns! I'd definitely need to tone down the heat though :)
Posted by: Chanel | Oct 21, 2011 at 02:16 PM
id love to eat with you coz you are soo good at ordering food lol!!! everything looks super tasty...esp the paw paw salad! does def look like a great intro to viet dishes!
also, your sis is soooo cute! the hat! the curly hair :)
Posted by: vivienne | Oct 21, 2011 at 10:57 PM
I've always wanted to eat here, the food looks excellent.
Posted by: Dumpling Girl | Oct 22, 2011 at 09:09 AM
Crispy sticky rice?? Oh, my heart be still. I think my niece and I would be fighting over this. LOL
Posted by: Carolyn Jung | Oct 24, 2011 at 10:34 AM
I love Vietnamese too, and went to a local restaurant Sunday night- it really didn't look as nice as your though, and came with complimentary steel wool in my soup!
Posted by: InTolerantChef | Oct 25, 2011 at 03:52 PM