Last week, I promised to recommend my favorite authentic Thai restaurant in Sydney.
Currently, it's Iima at Mr B's.
Mr B's is new bar built on the site of the Old Mandarin Club on the corner of Pitt St and Goulburn St in Sydney's CBD. It's diagonally across the road from the World Square shopping centre.
Inside Mr B's you'll find Iima - a unique eatery offering a broad mix of Thai and Japanese dishes. Some call Iima's a "mixed Asian restaurant" but it really is just a mix of two cuisines.
Iima is pronounced 'im' in Thai. It means full - as in you've eaten all you can manage.
My husband and I are regulars there - at least once a week - and we cannot get enough of their food: in my case Thai, in his case the Japanese. If you want authentic Thai food, here's a great place to indulge. If you love Japanese, you'll find some fantastic variations of traditional Japanese dishes along with more common fare.
My husband usually avoids any restaurant offering food of more than one ethnic origin: he won't walk in the door of a restaurant with a sign outside saying "Thai and Chinese". He believes you can't excel in two types of cuisine in the same restaurant. Now he concedes Iima has proved him wrong.
Iima's kitchen has Thai chefs cooking Thai dishes and Japanese chefs cooking Japanese dishes. It has an open kitchen - so diners cannot help but notice how busy the team is.
The food here is not too expensive - and it's delicious!
On my first visit to Iima, the waitress recognised I was Thai and asked if I liked real Thai food. Then she told me who the owner is: Amonrat Chanta, better known as simply Natui.
Natui has become something of a celebrity in the local Thai community. In the time she's lived in Australia, she's established a collection of restaurants, all appreciated by Thais and locals alike. The most famous is Chat Thai in Campbell St, Haymarket, the heart of Thaitown (as the locals refer to the stretch of Campbell St between George St and Elizabeth St, along with the strip of Pitt St between Campbell St and Goulburn St). It's been open more than two years now and you still have to queue to get a seat for dinner!
Natui also owns Chat Thai Randwick, Chat Thai Manly and Chat Thai City - easily the most popular restaurant in the TGV shopping centre foodcourt. And a little birdy's told us she'll have a new restaurant in the Westfield Sydney development soon, too...
The secret to Natui's success is that she loves real Thai food. (She also has a reputation for treating her staff very well, but that's another story).
Kao Pad Nam Prik Rung Rear
But back to Iima... My recommendations: I love the Lok Chin Ping (grilled pork balls served with sweet chilly sauce) and Kao Pad Nam Prik Rung Rear (fried rice with curry paste, chilli, garlic served with crispy salty fish, salt egg, sweet pork and green bean.) Warning: if you don't like spicy food, this second dish may not be for you.
Koh Moo Yang Num Tok (BBQ pork salad with Thai herbs) is another favorite - you can ask for it to be less spicy if you wish. This has a rich flavour - tender, marinated pork fillets are tossed in mint, garlic, chilli and red onion. It's one of the most flavoursome dishes on the menu.
Iiam makes a mean Gang Som Kung - Thai vegetable curry with prawns. A tart tamarind sauce adds a touch of sourness to the flavour and the curry has no coconut milk added (as per in the original Thai recipe).
Khanom Jeen Ganeg Keaw |
Another recommendation is Khanom Jeen Ganeg Keaw - silky thin tubular rice noodles with chicken curry. It's smooth, delicate and filling.
Iima's great for desserts too - it specialises in sweet pancakes, which are neither Japanese or Thai staples, but a great way to round off a meal - if you're not iima already!
I love Iima's banana pancakes - they're very fresh, and very filling; usually best shared.
My husband likes Thai food too, but not too spicy. No problem at Iima - he usually chooses Japanese dishes, or a selection of both. His favourites: Three Way Ocean Trout - an entree of ocean trout served as sashimi served over a rice mould, tempura and Ikura and surrounded by miso mayonnaise (a delicious chocolate-soy flavoured sauce), and fried Gyoza.
Three Way Ocean Trout
Fried Gyoza
The first time I saw Three Way Ocean Trout served I thought wow! The presentation and decoration is stunning.
Iima also serves a range of Japanese noodle dishes, fresh sashimi and sushi, Teriyaki and other Japanese staples, but each with a twist.
Ocean Trout Wrap
Another highlight of Iima is the hours its kitchen operates. Dinner is served until around 10pm, then it switches to a supper menu which is almost as comprehensive as the main menu, and you can order until about 5am. So, it's a great place for a post-theatre meal or to quench late night cravings. They also serve food from the kitchen in the bar area, which features giant floor to ceiling glass windows allowing a view across the street. There's nothing dark and dingy about this building in its post-Mandarin Club life.
The strength of the Thai menu, the quality of the food and the location on the edge of Thai town have made this bar a popular hub for the Thai community. There's a nightclub underground called Tao Ultra Lounge, which has dedicated Thai nights with Thai bands playing and upstairs the bar is often full of Thais listening to cover bands or a Thai DJ mixing it up.
But don't be deterred: westerners are welcome with traditional Thai hospitality, the bar staff are European and everyone speaks English.
You need not feel out of place here: it's the best way to experience great Thai (or Japanese) food without leaving town.