Night Noodle Markets

Random girl: “What do you want to eat?”

Random guy: “EVERYTHING.”

When I overhead this at the Night Noodle Market, I couldn’t help but laugh because it sounds so funny. Hilariousness aside, I understand that random guy’s answer in. my. soul. In my opinion, the Night Noodle Market is a staple of Sydney’s Good Food Month. As you step through the main entrance, you’re greeted by a canopy of red Chinese lanterns and there’s no question about what event you’re at.
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Despite the fact that it’s basically the end of semester, I managed to find some time in between assignments to visit the markets both during the day and at night with different groups of people. The best atmosphere happens just when the sun is beginning to go down. The sky is kind of murky, all the fairy lights are lit and there’s enough people milling around to make it feel like a nice not-overly-crowded market.

L-R: twice cooked pork belly gua bao ($7), braised pork belly gua bao ($7), fried silky tofu gua bao ($7)

Both times that I step into the market, I immediately veer to the right and join the queue in front of Wonderbao because my theory is that the longer I wait, the longer the line will be. My favourite was definitely the twice cooked pork belly which came with pickled carrots and daikon, cucumber, and hoisin sauce. Both the hoisin sauce and pork belly were rich, but combining them with fresh cucumber and tart pickled vegetables was lovely. The braised pork belly gua bao came with pickled mustard, coriander, and crushed peanuts. I’m kind of glad it was in a palm sized bun. Any larger and it would’ve been overly rich. The fried silky tofu gua bao was exactly how it sounded; friend and crispy on the outside, silky on the inside. Packaged with pickled mustard, coriander, sweet soy, and crushed peanuts, it’s a perfect parcel for vegetarians. You’d have to be extra careful with it though, it was very hot.

Yakisoba ($10)

It wouldn’t be a complete noodle market experience without some noodles! I decided to try vegetarian yakisoba from Teppanyaki Noodles. Even with a drizzle of mayonnaise on top, it’s still got a nice tang to it. I usually don’t like cabbage that isn’t pickled, but I enjoyed it with these noodles.

BBQ chicken in traditional glaze - inihaw na manok ($10), BBQ pork belly with banana ketchup glaze - inihaw na baboy ($10)

Walking towards the back corner of the market, I spot a haze of smoke which spikes my curiosity. As I get closer, I realize that it’s Hoy Pinoy Filipino BBQ and immediately join the queue. The Hoy Pinoy stall was an immersive experience, not only do you get to eat BBQ, you also leave the stall smelling like BBQ. $10 bought 2 skewers which can also double as a spear after you’ve finished the meat. My favourite would’ve been the chicken as it’s slightly sweeter but the pork belly is also nice.

T-B: Bulgogi beef taco, chili pork taco, chili chicken taco ($20)

Tacos at an Asian food market?! But they’re KOREAN BBQ tacos. Poklol is serving up tacos with kimchi slaw, shallots, pickles, crispy shallots and spicy mayo. Usually I am terrible at eating tacos and things just fall out of my tortilla at both ends, but this time I was successful at minimizing the fallout. My favourite part of the tacos was the spicy mayo. I actually wanted more of it.

Mini pancakes with chocolate and red bean ($10)

I know, it’s slightly weird to try mini pancakes at an Asian food market, but dessert is dessert. There’s still an element of Asian to it, don’t worry. We decided to try a combination of chocolate and red bean which might sound slightly odd but it works. You’ve got to mix the pancakes around otherwise the ones at the bottom of the pile are just plain and the ones at the top have too much sauce.

Happy taste bud time "pot luck pie" ($9)

As I tried to find a table to sit at, I held this lychee sponge, mango puree, rambutan and coconut gelato, whipped salted coconut cream, and coconut macaron concoction from Gelato Messina like a small child; scared that I would drop it and crack it’s macaron head open. The mango puree is so sweet, the whole thing (besides the coconut cream) is mega sweet; I felt buzzed after finishing it. When I tasted the gelato itself, I feel it’s maybe three-quarters coconut, one-quarter rambutan.

I wasn’t able to eat everything like that random guy wanted to do, but I sure as heck tried my best to eat at places that I can’t easily get to. I know this because every time I get home after a big meal, I just lie down on the couch for a while and stare at the ceiling for a while; which is exactly what I did. Y’know, I really hope Wonderbao opens up in Sydney someday…