Green Palace Vegetarian Restaurant, Newtown

Green Palace is one of many, many Thai restaurants on Newtown’s King St strip. However, it stands out from others because of three things: it’s vegan, it’s cheap, and it’s really REALLY delicious. I know, it surprised me too!

Mamak, Chinatown

Cheap, delicious and BYO, Mamak is my kind of place. It is deservedly popular, and arriving at 6.30pm on a Friday means an hour-long wait. Not always practical but worth it when you need a good Malaysian roti fix!

Sem-sav quaffing

 Though I’m not usually a fan of the semillon grape, this semillon sauvignon blanc had just the right amount of tropical sweetness to balance our rich, spicy Malaysian meal at Old Town Kopitiam in Melbourne. In keeping with the down-to-earth style of the restaurant, this bottle was a mere $18 (not BYO sadly) and kept our total meal cost to less than $50 for two of us.

Surjits Indian Restaurant, Annandale

We love Surjit’s! Whether it’s home delivery or eat-in, the service is great and the food, impeccable. We highly recommend the Madrasi Gosht Curry, the Shahi Paneer and the lamb shanks – but generally everything we’ve tried is fantastic. Each curry is unique, none are too sweet or overly-spiced, and I never feel queasy after eating them. The breads are freshly cooked in the tandoor till deliciously flaky and golden.

Delhi O’ Delhi, Newtown

 My favourite Indian restaurant in Sydney has to be Delhi O’ Delhi. The food is always impressive and incredibly good value; the ‘house special’ banquet is just $34 per person and you get to choose four mains (excluding seafood)!

Kammadhenu, Newtown

I’ve been to Kammadhenu many times over the years, and I’ve always been impressed by the food and blown away by the value. The service can be erratic but it’s always friendly, and when you’re paying $15 a person for delicious food I can deal with waiting a little longer for the bill/glasses/whatever.

Little Haveli, Broadway (Ultimo)

Little Haveli is a simple Indian restaurant with a straightforward menu and basic decor. While it’s not a place to go ‘out’ for dinner, I’ll definitely be ordering in from Little Haveli in the future – the food is good value and yummy!

Let’s Eat Thai, Marrickville

 Fantastic, authentic, cheap and sophisticated Thai in the Inner West – huzzah! We’ve been waiting for you, Let’s Eat!

I can’t praise the food here highly enough. Every dish, every mouthful was perfect. The menu is extensive, and the specials board particularly enticing.

Darbar Indian Restaurant, Glebe

Housed in the old Darling Mills building, Darbar has a beautiful facade and dramatic interior. Having never been before (except some home delivery a few years ago), we hoped the food would live up to the atmosphere.

Albee’s Kitchen, Campsie

Tonight my passion for Malaysian food took us to Albee’s Kitchen in Campsie, which I’ve been hearing about for a while. It sounded like just my kind of place – simple decor, straightforward service and all the focus on the food.