The best restaurants in Cabramatta

Some of Noodlies, Sydney food blog’s fav local eats.

By Thang Ngo

Updated 24 March 2013

Wanted to do a day trip to Cabramatta but don”t know where to eat? What are some of the best restaurants in Cabramatta? What dish should I order to get the most of my Cabramatta adventure? Are there any vegetarian options? What is Pho noodle? How do I eat Pho?

All these questions and more are answered below… as we say at noodlies, happy eating!

Banh Uot

It might sound flippant, but food is one of the main reasons we chose to live in Cabramatta. My partner and I are rarely home by 7pm – who has time to shop, cook, eat and wash up? Why cook, when we’re surrounded by good, honest, delicious food.

Over the years, so many friends have asked me to recommend places to eat in Cabramatta. So if you’re wondering where to eat in Cabramatta, this blog is devoted to my favourite local restaurants; my version of the best restaurants in Cabramatta.

But first a disclaimer, which might save me from being lynched by restaurants who didn’t make the list: it’s a competitive market in Cabramatta – diners are fussy, if a place is not good, it won’t last. So just by being open, the restaurant is pretty good already!

pho

Pho

If we’re talking Cabramatta and food, we must start with Pho; Vietnamese flat rice noodles in clear soup, usually with different cuts of beef and served with a side accompaniment of basil, bean sprout, lemon, fresh chilli and a small dish of hoi-sin sauce.

My two favourites are Pho Tau Bay (flying boat) and Pho Minh. Tau Bay’s soup is a little sweeter, while Pho Minh packs a stronger punch, you can taste the fish sauce. Goi cuon, Vietnamese fresh rolls is also particularly good at Pho Minh.

During August 2010, noodlies: Sydney food blog ran a foodie poll on Sydney’s Best Pho. The winner, Pho Tau Bay was announced in September. We also announced the best pho by different regions in Sydney.

2010 noodlies Sydney’s Best Pho restaurant

If you like egg noodles and chicken, both of which I’m particularly partial too, then Tan Viet is not to be missed. Mi ga don, crispy chicken noodle soup is the best in Sydney. The skin melts in the mouth to get your taste buds ready for the tender chicken flesh. The egg noodle can come in the soup (uoc/wet) or you can get them in separate dishes (kho/dry). Try dry, it’s different and delicious.

A popular, but less known Vietnamese dish is bun bo hue, a fearsome, uncompromising soup fired up with chilli and lemongrass.  Dong Ba with three restaurants in Cabramatta alone (and another in Bankstown) serves the best bun bo hue in town.  Noodlies reckons there must be interest in bun bo hue, the above video explaining how to eat this dish, with over 73,000 views, is currently the most popular video on noodlies TV channel.

Dry Hu Tieu

For a different type of noodle, try hu tieu – rice noodles Cambodian style. Battambang restaurant on the quiet eastern side of Cabramatta serves a mean dry hu tieu. The low profile Dong Vu Cambodian does the best traditional hu tieu around and ridiculously cheap to boot! Dong Son in Park Road isn’t bad either.

If you fancy heartier dinner dishes, try Hai Au or Bau Truong. Both offer some of the best Canh Chua, sour soup in Sydney. Canh Chua is made from a dozen types of vegetable and herbs. It’s sweet from the pineapple and sour from tamarind and tomatoes with more flavour contribution from bach ha, fried garlic, several types of fresh mint and of course, hot chilli. Hai Au’s prawn Canh Chua is particularly good, while Bau Truong’s fish Canh Chua hot pot is sensational.

Vegetarian Canh Chua

A delicious vegetarian version of Canh Chua can be had at Duy Linh, where rice vermicelli noodles come with the soup, making it a meal on its own. Another favourite for vegetarian is An Lac, my favourite dish is tomato stuffed with tofu, which you have with a side dish or rice.

Frank’s

If chicken is more your fare, try Frank’s Lebanese restaurant in nearby Fairfield for the best bbq chicken, served with homos, tabouli, Lebanese bread and the most pungent and delicious garlic paste. Their mixed plate is also very good.

Som Tum

Green Peppercorn is deservedly 2013 SMH Good Food Under $30 guide’s Best New Restaurant.is the place to go for humble but mouthwatering Thai-Lao. Spicy Lao sausage is a favourite, as is Som Tam, green papaya salad. Most people go for the Thai Som Tam, but if you’re adventurous, ask for the pungent Lao interpretation, it contains small fermented crabs with shells.  Their desserts are particularly good – the pandan creme brulee is highly recommend.

Holy Basil

Holy Basil in Canley Heights is an amazingly popular Thai-Lao, the food is good and the decor is up-market. Savann in Arthur Street, Cabramatta is a humble, unpretentious Thai-Lao restaurant that does a very good Yum Nua.

If it’s a formal dinner and you’re after something different, Iron Chef on the eastern side of Cabramatta offer Canto-fare in classy surrounds. Their Peking Duck is particularly good, give them a call it’s on special some weeknights.

Iraqi

Al-Diaffah Al-Iraqi restaurant in Fairfield serves up hearty lamb curry with warm, fluffy flat bread made on the premises. The bright green, red and yellow pickles which come with the meals are especially good.

Chilean Burger

La Paula Café’s Chilean chacarero is a particularly delicious burger consisting of beef, beans and mayonnaise – make sure you put lots of chilli sauce. Wash it down with pipping hot coffee while you watch cable TV from Chile.If you’re still hungry, Super Dish opens until 11pm most nights serving a Chinese favs like congee, egg noodle soup and fried rice.

24 hour food fix: And if it’s after midnight, Cabramatta has a couple of 24 hour pork roll shops, you can’t go wrong with a freshly made pork roll/banh mi thit from Viet Hoa. 

Now you know why we rarely eat at home.

Noodlies, Sydney’s food blog’s best restaurants in  Cabramatta and Fairfield.

Al-Diaffah Al-Iraqi
13 The Crescent, Fairfield
9755 0870

An Lac
94b John St, Cabramatta
9727 5116

Bau Truong
42 John St, Cabramatta
9727 4492

Battambang Cambodian Restaurant
Shop 4, 156-158 Cabramatta Rd, Cabramatta
9724 7307

Dong Ba
Shop 5/117 John Street, Cabramatta
9723 0336

Dong Son
44 Park Road, Cabramatta
9724 4551

Dong Vu
Opposite Baptist Church
Hughes St side of No 1 Shopping Centre,

Duy Linh Vegetarian
Shop 10, 117 John St, Cabramatta
9727 9800

Frank’s Restaurant
16 Smart St, Fairfield
9724 3000

Green Peppercorn
Fairfield Hotel
1-3 Hamilton Road, Fairfield
9724 7842

Hai Au
48a Canley Vale Rd, Canley Vale
9724 9156

Holy Basil
233 Canley Vale Road, Canley Heights
9727 7585

Iron Chef
84 Broomfield St, Cabramatta
9723 6228

La Paula Café
Shop 1, 9 Barbara St, Fairfield
9726 2379

Pho Minh
42 Arthur St, Cabramatta
9726 5195

Pho Tau Bay
Shop 12, 117 John Street, Cabramatta
9726 4583

Savann Lao-Thai Restaurant
Shop 5/2 Arthur St, Cabramatta
9726 0305

Super Dish
19/1 Hughes St, Cabramatta
9727 7880

Tan Viet
Shop 2-3, 100 John St, Cabramatta
9727 6853

Viet Hoa Hot Bread (Pork Rolls)
John Street (Hill street end), Cabramatta

Do you have any favourites that aren’t on this list, let me know in the comments section.

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