Ever since the Luke Nguyen collection of cookbooks has graced my shelves, Red Lantern has been on the list of places to try. His Vietnam TV shows made it all the more enticing with his jazzed up versions of what I'm told is otherwise typical home dishes. It is probably fair to say that his TV show makes use of cheap and readily available ingredients throughout SE Asia, whereas in Australia you pay quite a premium for higher quality ingredients (maybe), general Sydney location and table service.
The few people I know who had been felt it was good but the portion size and price got to them. When comparing against general Asian food sizes and prices, that's not an unexpected opinion. Barely any Chinese people I know would ever eat higher end Chinese. Good thing I'm different.
The a la carte menu does take you a bit by surprise. Banh xeo for $30? How different could it be?
It seemed more reasonable to opt for the degustation menu - Saigon Scrumptious at $85pp for 11 courses.
The inside is nicely decorated with red lanterns and candles lighting up the room. For the amount of light, my phone photos didn't work so well. I'll have to consciously bring the SLR next time.
- Bo Nem Nuong - not nem nuong as I know it, but chargrilled beef rice paper roll. I thought it was a little plain and didn't have the rich variety of herbs that I prefer. The nuoc mam sauce gave it a bit more;
- Muc Rang Muoi - chilli salted squid that was crisp, well seasoned and delicious. Much preferred on its own than with the lemon dipping sauce;
- Tam Cuu - tiger prawn wrapped with pork neck, Vietnamese mint and shallot had a better collection of herbs. Ensure the dipping sauce coats it before eating as it makes a very big difference to the amount of flavour;
- Cha Co Hoi - pan fried salmon, roasted lemongrass and chilli fish cake was excellent. Beautiful thick pieces of fish in the cake with a herb topping enriched with perilla;
- Goi Chim Cut Nuong - tender grilled quail pieces with an excellent salad enhanced mostly by the fennel;
- Ca Nuong Rieng - simple pan fried fish in a very typical Italian-style tomato sauce. I couldn't detect any galangal flavour;
- Tom Xao Mat Ong - king prawns with tamari & honey sauce allowing vermicelli to absorb the salty sweetness;
- Suong Nuong voi Salat Xoai Xanh - grilled pork chops marinated in Szechuan peppers, palm sugar and tamari. Tender pork, sweet, salty sauce, minimal chilli heat;
- Cu Sen Xao Nam - zucchini, mushroom & lotus root wok tossed in black bean sauce seemed a very typical Cantonese dish. The zucchini was the standout vegetable here;
- Vit Quay voi Salat Viet - my favourite of roast duck served with plum sauce and Vietnamese salad. Chewy heavily flavoured duck meat, a delicious cutting sauce. Reminiscent of Longrain's pork hock;
- Red Lantern Dessert Platter - a fancy selection of red sticky rice coconut cream and jackfruit pieces in banana leaf topped with cinnamon icecream, deep fried banana with palm sugar, vanilla bean icecream topped with roasted shreds of coconut, a soup spoon of pineapple bits and the most wonderfully unexpected kaffir lime creme brulee.
Overall it is a little expensive, but you'll pay more from many degustation menus around Sydney/Melbourne/the world. The flavours were more refined Vietnamese, even though I'm probably more used to overloading my senses with herbs and sauces. Nonetheless salads were enhanced by perilla, vietnamese mint and coriander, nuoc mam and palm sugar. I'd definitely go back for the occasion. I'm not sure how big the a la carte servings are, but the degustation is quite reasonable when you compare prices.
