DENGON NET

次々と新しいレストランがオープンする中、人気店になるのはごくわずか。4月の開店当初から話題になり、既に人気店の地位を確立しているのがモダン東南アジア料理店Sunda。シドニーの名だたる店で腕を磨いた若きヘッドシェフKhanh Nguyenによる創作料理が楽しめるという。今回は、スッタフいち押しの料理をいただいた。

「まずはOtak Otak」と言われてビックリ。 Otak Otakと言えば、マレーシアなどで食べられているストリートフード。スタイリッシュなこの店と不釣り合いでは…と、思っているところに‘Otak Otak’, spanner crab curry, finger lime, rice crispsが登場。パフェスタイルになっていて遠目からだと、ケーキと見間違う美しさ。見た目と裏腹に、しっかりとしたカレー味。それでいてフワッとライムの爽やかな香りが印象的。コリアンダーやチリが効果的に使われていたり、パリパリのライスクラッカーと合わせたり、味も食感も力強いのに繊細な一品だ。

‘Otak Otak’, spanner crab curry, finger lime, rice crisps $27

スタッフが口を揃えて「お気に入り」と言うLamb rump, cashew nut, saltbush, native curry。一見洋風だが、食べてみると確かにアジアン。柔らかくてほんのり甘い味付けのラム、マイルドなカレーソース、ペーストやトッピングのカシューナッツの優しい味が一体となっていて、滋味深い味わい。また、この料理にはオーストラリアの原生植物でミネラル豊富なSaltbushを使用している。この国ならではの食材を使うのがKhanhさんのこだわりで、メニューのいたるところに珍しい食材を見ることができる。

Lamb rump, cashew nut, saltbush, native curry $40

男性スタッフに人気なのが、Egg noodles, XO sauce, chicken crackling, pepperberry。ひと口目からピリッとした辛さが伝わるパンチのある味に驚いてしまった。食べ進むと店オリジナルのXOソース、パリパリの鶏皮、フルーティーな香りと辛味が特徴の原生植物Pepperberryなど複雑な要素が絡み合っていることが分かる。今までの料理とは違う面が出ていて、店の料理に対する奥深さを感じる。

Egg noodles, XO sauce, chicken crackling, pepperberry $22

ここでは素朴なインドネシアの伝統的なケーキBika ambonも、庶民的なべトナムコーヒーも素敵なデザートに変身。Bika ambon, banana custard, macadamia, pandanは、モチモチした不思議な食感が特徴で、微かな甘さと、時折感じるトッピングのシーソルトのバランスが絶妙。

Bika ambon, banana custard, macadamia, pandan $18

Vietnamese coffee, chocolate, coconut, wattleseedは、濃厚でほろ苦いソフトなヌガーと甘いアイスの大人のデザート。クラムには、ナッツのような香ばしい風味と甘い香りが特徴の原生植物Wattleseedが使われている。

Vietnamese coffee, chocolate, coconut, wattleseed $16

Khanhさんの「人々がイメージする東南アジア料理を変えたい」という情熱と、柔軟な発想から生まれる料理がいただける。11月27日から12月21日までは、火曜日から金曜日までランチをオープンするので、立ち寄りやすくなること間違いなし。ごちそうさまでした。

Bold, yet delicate Asian that overturns your expectations 

While there’s a near-constant stream of new restaurants opening in Melbourne these days, those that become popular are very few and far between.  Sunda is one of those few. Despite opening in April it’s already secured its place among Melbourne’s popular eateries, thanks to the creative talents of young head chef Khanh Nguyen, who honed his craft in some of Sydney’s highest-end restaurants. We tried a selection of the staff’s most recommended dishes. 

‘Definitely start with the Otak Otak’, we were told. This shocked us, as Otak Otak is Malaysian street food – not the kind of thing you’d associate with a high-end eatery like Sunda. However, our fears were allayed when the ‘Otak Otak, spanner crab curry, finger lime and rice crisps’ turned up, arranged like a parfait and just as beautiful. The solid curry flavours and light, refreshing lime aromas were impressive, and the coriander and chilli were used effectively. Combined with the rice crisps, you got a dish that successfully juggled strong tastes and textures, but also managed to be delicate at the same time.  

Our next dish, one that every staff member recommends, was the Lamb rump, cashew nut and saltbush native curry. At first glance, this looks Western, but one bite and you know it’s Asian. The tender, faintly sweet lamb, mild curry sauce and paste and the delicate flavour of the cashew nut topping came together to create a rich, delicious taste experience. As you’d expect from someone who worked at Noma Sydney, Khanh uses native Australian ingredients as much as possible, and the inclusion of Saltbush in this dish is just one example. 

Popular among the male staff, the Egg noodles, XO sauce, chicken crackling and pepperberry shocked us with the spicy hit it gives you from the first mouthful. However, the more you eat, the more you understand how the dish combines the complex flavours of its house-made original XO sauce, crunchy chicken skin and fruity yet spicy native Australian pepperberry. It showed a different side to the menu, and proved how much depth is on offer here. 

Finally, we tried the Bika Ambon and Vietnamese coffee for dessert. Normally, Bika Ambon is a simple, traditional Indonesian cake and Vietnamese coffee is a regular, working-class drink, but here both were transformed into entirely new creations. The Bika Ambon, banana custard, macadamia and pandan had a unique springy texture and faint sweetness, while the balance with the occasional hit of sea salt was sublime. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese coffee, chocolate, coconut and wattleseed combined rich, slightly bitter coffee and chocolate mousse with sweet ice cream for a very adult dessert. The crumb uses the wattleseed to provide a nutty, aromatic taste and sweetness. 

Eating here, enjoying dishes that are clearly born of new, open-minded thinking, you can feel chef Khanh’s passion to change people’s image of South-East Asian cuisine. And given that Tuesday to Friday, from November 27 to December 21, people can drop in for lunch, his goal should be much easier to achieve. Gotchisouosamadeshita. 

Sunda
18 Punch Ln. Melbourne
03 9654 8190
Fri 12-3pm
Tue-Thu 6-Late, Fri・Sat 5:30-Late
sunda.com.au