Recently opened in St Leonards, The Rice Den originated from the depths of Chatswood and encapsulates the authentic taste of traditional Cantonese food with a modern and urban twist.
Chef Nelson Cheng and Roy Chan focus on farm-to-table ingredients creating innovative dishes that challenge the conventional way of Cantonese cooking without losing it’s authentic touch.
Assorted Housemade Pickles
The perfect starter and a great way to refresh the palate after each dish. The white radish, carrots & pickles were tangy and had a slightly sour vinaigrette taste.
Handmade Cheong Fun Sesame Hoisin Sauce (Vegan)
Chewy, soft, gooey and creamy, very similar to Tteokbokki. However had a subtle taste, with the hoisin complimented the Cheong Fun well.
Stir Fry Roast Duck San Choi Bao
Served onto a crisp fresh lettuce leaf, the stir fried roast duck was topped with a peanut hoisin sauce giving a wonderful crunch to the tender and moreish meat. I really love the whole process of wrapping the hot meat mix into the chilled lettuce leaf, whoever invented this was an absolute genius.
Rice wine cured ocean trout pickled fennel, ginger and soy sauce
The winning dish of the night. The presentation was simply beautiful with the ocean trout freshly sliced into delicate and succulent pieces and layered on top of the pickled fennel. I found the textural contrasts between the crunch of the salad and the tender trout really worked well in this dish.
Crispy Soft Shell Crab, topped with spicy spanner crab, with mung bean noodles
With its golden brown tempura shell being harder than its actual shell, this soft shell crab was a perfect example of traditional Cantonese urban fusion. The mung bean noodles were something I've never seen before, but they worked well adding more crunch to the dish.
Slow Braised Chu-Hou beef cheek kohlrabi, baby carrot corn
An exceptional dish that fell apart at the lightest touch and melts in your mouth. The beef was tender and cooked to perfection whilst the carrot and baby corn added a hint of natural sweetness to this traditional Cantonese dish.
French Toast Dulce De Leche peanut crumble mascarpone with matcha green tea
Holy Moly this was sweeeet heaven! The french toast was everything you wanted it to be, golden brown, crisp, covered in sugar and pumped full of caramel. The ice cream added a nice break from the richness of it all however I felt a sprinkling of cinnamon instead of the bitter matcha would have been more appropriate.
#TheRiceDen ($17.00)
This cocktail was a refreshing and fun drink, completely epitomising the rice den's unique flavour and style. It was served in glass jar and very very easy to drink (just how we like 'em). Sweet and citrusy with a slight hint of bitterness.
Open from Tuesday to Sunday for lunch and dinner, The Rice Den is a perfect venue for any occasion, whether you’re having a quick business lunch, an intimate dinner for two or a boisterous group gathering.
The Rice Den
30-32 Chandos Street,
St Leonards, NSW 2065
Contributed by Joshua, who dined as a guest on behalf of 2 Hungry Guys