Ms. G's, Potts Point - Dumpling Girl's Birthday Finale

 

The end of my birthday adventures stops at Ms.G's.  I had been meaning to come for a while but had been too busy munching elsewhere, so it was only fitting that I book a table, and with family in tow we celebrated the end of my birthday week.

I truly love the decor and relaxed vibe of this place, it's imperfect, quirky and fun.  We are seated at the table with the lazy susan and the menus come, they have different covers of fat ninjas and cherry blossoms on them, but we were hungry so we had to make some quick decisions.  Now, don't be alarmed by the amount of food to come, just bear in mind there were eight starving souls dining that night.

The lights

Our table

I love gimmicks and all things adorably cute and my packaged cocktail was all these things with the bubble tea cup and the kokeshi doll on the top.  I couldn't resist, I had to slab her in the eye with that bubble tea straw.  It's a real novelty for me, as I don't drink bubble tea.  This cocktail is refreshing and more so for Ms G's Famous Yuzu Slushee that I get a taste of from my cousin. 

Good Morning Vietnam package cocktail

In that straw goes...and slurping away  

The boys on the other hand were happy with their beers.  I took a sip of Cheesecake Boy's 333 and I am pretty fussy with beer but loved this one. If anyone knows which bottle shop stocks it, please drop me a note as I've been trying to find it. 

Our food comes so quickly, first the mini banh mi they are delicious and the majority on the table vote this as their favourite of the night.  Cheesecake Boy and I order one pork and a chicken between us and share,  I think I was the only one on the table to prefer the chicken katsu but don't get me wrong, they were both fantastic.  Unfortunately, the mini banh mi are bite size and they're gone after 2 bites ok may be 3 but it's making me wish we ordered more.  However, we had to prepare ourselves for all the food to come and I really need to leave room for dessert. 

Mini banh mi - crispy pork belly and chicken katsu

 Originally, we weren't going to order the corn but we saw a booth nearby order them and they looked appetising, so we all thought might as well and no regrets at all.  The corn cobs are chargrilled with mountains of parmesan and lime, what's not to like about that combination.

Ms. G's grilled corn on the cob, parmesan, lime

Now, I have not told Cheesecake Boy this but I normally hate prawn toast due to my loathing of incessant sesame seeds, where most restaurants drown their prawn toast in it and then  proceed to overcook it till the sesame taste way too toasty.  However, I was intrigued as to why Dan Hong, creator of food quirky and fun had this on his menu, as its often done so badly.  It couldn't be that bad, right? Exactly, right as this dish ended up being my favourite savoury of the night.  The prawn toast is lightly sprinkled with sesame seeds and not overly cooked at all.  However, its the thick smear of prawn paste  with some magic ingredients in it and the use of sourdough that really makes the difference for me.

Prawn toast, yuzu aioli, herbs

Hmmm, yum I want some now...

Fried chicken is always a hit, and Cheesecake Boy is a kimchi addict. The chicken was perfectly tender and juicy and the mayonnaise makes this more than just fried chicken with its tang that cuts through the deep friedness nicely.

Whole fried baby chicken, kimchi mayonnaise

I had high expectations for the noodles dishes, especially with the egg noodles with XO sauce as I love XO sauce and duck and was expecting this to be rich and heady.  However, the noodles really didn't deliver the kick I was expecting, even the perfect poach egg didn't save the egg noodles for me.  

With the rice noodles, I really liked the combination of flavours but again the dish didn't hit the right notes that I was hoping for.

Egg noodles with XO sauce, braised duck, soft poached egg

Stir fried rice noodles, wagyu beef, chilli, herbs, peanuts

Against the objections from the majority on the table, I ordered this dish due to the rave reviews I had heard.  I should of listened, the ingredients were of exceptional quality, truly the best raw tomatoes I have ate in while, but at the end of the day this didn't live up to my expectations.



Crispy spiced tofu and fried eggs, cherry tomatoes, coriander, Thai basil



This was the dish that Cheesecake Boy ordered, he saw chorizo and he was sold.  Unfortunately, he realised that he is not a fan of surf clams, so more for me.  I love surf clams and thought they were nice and juicy and surprisingly the chorizo went really well with this combination.  The chorizo seem to actually mimic lap cheong (Chinese sausage) for me, but the chorizo bought a spicy lift that lap cheong doesn't deliver and it worked as it's not salty as lap cheong either.


Taiwanese style wok fried surf clams with chilli, chorizo, basil


The flavours in this dish are subtle, and the pork is truly tender here.  I loved the tang of this dish and the use of konnayaku noodles that is a nice contrast to the soft texture of the pork.  Only wished there were more of these noodles.  

Braised pork belly "Hue Style", konnyaku noodles, lemongrass, chilli broth

Prawns have to be cooked super well for me to like them, I normally don't order fresh prawns due to being disappointed most of the time.  These prawns were absolutely delicious and I loved the sauce.  I drowned my rice with this sauce.

Grilled king prawns with "Sambal Matar" eshallot, lime & chilli relish

The fish was our last main and the texture was very delicate and light.  There was no trace of any fishiness on this fish, I remember being surprised that the sauce seem to have a subtle citrus note, that made this dish quite pleasant. 

Mulloway fillet steamed with white soy & ginger, salad of fennel, radish, herbs

Now for the desserts, for some strange reason my camera started playing up around here so the photos I apologise are not the best but you'll at least get the gist.  

Cheesecake Boy went for the "Stoners Delight" and he was bonkers about this dessert.  This dessert was his highlight of the night, due to the unusual combination of ingredients used in this dessert.  I kept stealing his rice bubble cubes, they tasted like a healthy mars bar.

"Stoner's Delight" banana ice cream, chocolate, rice bubbles, pretzel, peanut brittle, marshmallow

As for me I went for the "Jam Doughnut", I was expecting something squishy and warm but the doughnut pieces actually were quite hard and crunchy and reminded me of a cross between youtiao (Chinese cruller that we use to dip into congee) and a crouton. I liked the raspberry jelly and the ice cream, the flavours were really packed a punch.

"Jam Doughnut" cinnamon doughnut ice cream, raspberry jelly

Now only one person on the table ordered the "Splice" and it actually ended up being my favourite of the desserts.  This is way better than the original splice, the granita of pine-lime is just the right mix of sweetness without being overly sour and the smoothness of the lychee sorbet is divine with the whipped cream, this dessert just melts in your mouth.  The "Splice" is more than just refreshing, it really satisfies with the creaminess.  I really had a moment with this dessert and it was only one bite.
 

"Splice" pine-lime granita, lychee sorbet, whipped cream

The bill

You'll definitely find me here again in the not too distant future.  An imperfectly, perfect place for drinks and a relaxing night out without needing to take yourself seriously.  I'll be back for the food too, so don't forget me prawn toast and splice, we shall meet again.

Happy eating, Dumpling Girl

Ms. G's
155 Victoria Street
Potts Point NSW  2143
Ph: (02) 8313 1000
http://www.merivale.com/#/msgs/msgs