Need some warming up? Taste of Canton is a casual eatery in Zetland where you can order freshly made cheong fan or Cantonese rice noodles. Along with these there are a small range of yum cha goodies like steamed buns filled with bbq pork, black sesame and egg custard. And it's located in an unusual spot too and open from 11am to midnight 7 days a week!
"It's a Cantonese place," said Monica to me before adding in the hook, "It's in a car wash." She knows me too well and honestly I would have jumped in the car straight away because I can always eat and I love an unusual location.
It's raining heavily when I get there and you can park right next to the restaurant and Reni's car wash. There's no sign for Taste of Canton, although inexplicably there are signs for other businesses at the small car wash park. Look for the neon lights and the slightly confusing signs for Mr Fresh, another business in the window of Taste of Canton. The eatery is simple and designed for a quick meal.
We head towards the counter to order and there's a sign, "Pay Cash get 1 free egg" which is just about the best motivation for paying cash I've ever seen. You can order a range of cheung funs from plain, egg, beef brisket and prawn as well as extra toppings like lettuce and sweetcorn. The key items have a thumbs up next to them and there are some yum cha classics as well like siu mai, congee and chicken's feet.
This chive and pork bun has a soft and fluffy exterior and a pork mince and garlic chive filling that is resoundingly strong in garlic.
I always love sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaves at yum cha and this is a nice version. It's fresh and hot which is perfect for this crazy rainy weather. It could do with a touch more salt but it's satisfying once you add a little seasoning.
Each cheung fan is made to order so it does take a few minutes to make them. Once you receive them you add the sauce yourself. There's a classic sweet soy sauce that you get at yum cha as well as a more complex mushroom and garlic sauce. I think it's worth trying both but I do really like the mushroom and garlic sauce a touch more. The cheung fan is delicious and I like the addition of soft, steamed lettuce. I would perhaps go for a bit more bbq pork in this as we get about two thirds of the way through and it's just noodle left.
Cheung fan are made with rice flour and water steamed in a large rectangular metal pan with a variety of toppings. When it is set, they roll it up and serve it and it has a wrinkled appearance. The prawn and egg cheung fan is also good and we add corn to it. Both are slippery and satisfying to eat and you can't really go wrong with either sauce on these.
We actually ordered the black bean spare ribs but they bring out something that we aren't expecting. There are shrimp beancurd rolls on the menu but these seem to be bean curd rolls with beef or pork inside them and not shrimp. Still they are tasty and by the end we are still none the wiser on what we ordered. All I know is that these are bean curd rolls with mince inside with a tasty sauce on top.
I usually love black sesame as a filling although I wasn't quite as taken with this version and instead I finish on the last bite of bean curd roll.
So tell me Dear Reader, do you try and finish your last bite on something tasty or is that just me? Do you like cheung fan?
This meal was independently paid for.
Taste of Canton
76 Epsom Rd, Zetland NSW 2018
Open 7 days 11am-midnight
https://www.instagram.com/tasteofcanton/
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