Hidden in the lower floors of the Queen Victoria Building (where Laksa House used to be) is Assamm – one of the younger members of Amy Chanta’s extensive Chat Thai family. The space is a lot bigger than it looks on an initial glance. A mix of bare brick walls, low ceilings, dark lighting and colourful murals of Asian cities makes you feel like you’re dining in some ultra-secretive and cool basement that’s probably marked by only a plain black door with a yellow lamp on top of it. Weirdly specific; I know.
Each one of Amy’s restaurants is a slightly different concept: Samosorn is a canteen, Boon Café doubles as a grocery, Assamm draws on Thailand’s location at a crossroads between Central Asia and South-East Asia. It’s a bit of a departure from the solely Thai offerings of its siblings. This cultural influence is evident in dishes like ramen with wontons, crab meat and bbq pork ($15) and Hainanese rice with panko crusted fried chicken ($14). We all know that I’m a sucker for fried chicken but what I’m at Assamm for is Chat Thai-style food without huge queues.
The stir fried crisp pork belly and wild ginger in red curry paste ($15) – mhu grob padt prik khing – is a favorite of mine, I’ve even learnt how to make it at home. To me, it’s a delicious combination of salty, sweet, and meaty. Although the crackling wasn’t as crisp as I hoped it would be, I still enjoyed it with a big helping of rice.
Khao soi isn’t on Assamm’s menu so I opted for sukho thai noodles ($13). Fish balls and char sui pork float in a sour soup. A handful of scallions, bean sprouts, and peanuts finishes it off. There’s something comforting about a steaming hot bowl of noodles on a dreary day. I could drink that soup by the pint. It’s probably not healthy, but I can think of worse ways to go.
The joy of eating a crab meat omelette ($20) that’s fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside is ephemeral. It’s like with any good burger – it’s great as it goes down but once you’ve finished it, the oiliness hits you like an out-of-control tuktuk. I began to falter after going through a third of the plate and am thankful I didn’t try to power through the rest of it.
There’s only four desserts on the menu here, compared to Chat Thai’s entire booklet of sweets but they’ve kept the classic sticky rice and mango ($8). What caught my eye was the tub tim grob ($6) – tapioca coated water chestnuts in an aromatic syrup with fresh coconut milk and young coconut flesh. It reminded me of one of my favorite childhood desserts. Unfortunately I was so stuffed, I just decided to wash it all down with a glass of cha nhom ($5) – traditional Thai sweet iced red tea with caramelized milk.
If you’re sick of loitering outside Chat Thai waiting for a table, try Assamm. Same bang for your buck, less lines.
Assamm
Shop 17, Level LG 2, QVB
Sydney NSW 2000
Website
The stir fried crisp pork belly and wild ginger in red curry paste ($15) – mhu grob padt prik khing – is a favorite of mine, I’ve even learnt how to make it at home. To me, it’s a delicious combination of salty, sweet, and meaty. Although the crackling wasn’t as crisp as I hoped it would be, I still enjoyed it with a big helping of rice.
Khao soi isn’t on Assamm’s menu so I opted for sukho thai noodles ($13). Fish balls and char sui pork float in a sour soup. A handful of scallions, bean sprouts, and peanuts finishes it off. There’s something comforting about a steaming hot bowl of noodles on a dreary day. I could drink that soup by the pint. It’s probably not healthy, but I can think of worse ways to go.
The joy of eating a crab meat omelette ($20) that’s fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside is ephemeral. It’s like with any good burger – it’s great as it goes down but once you’ve finished it, the oiliness hits you like an out-of-control tuktuk. I began to falter after going through a third of the plate and am thankful I didn’t try to power through the rest of it.
There’s only four desserts on the menu here, compared to Chat Thai’s entire booklet of sweets but they’ve kept the classic sticky rice and mango ($8). What caught my eye was the tub tim grob ($6) – tapioca coated water chestnuts in an aromatic syrup with fresh coconut milk and young coconut flesh. It reminded me of one of my favorite childhood desserts. Unfortunately I was so stuffed, I just decided to wash it all down with a glass of cha nhom ($5) – traditional Thai sweet iced red tea with caramelized milk.
If you’re sick of loitering outside Chat Thai waiting for a table, try Assamm. Same bang for your buck, less lines.
Assamm
Shop 17, Level LG 2, QVB
Sydney NSW 2000
Website
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