Toei is a new fusion restaurant in Surry Hills, Sydney that in a way, represents us: Asian and Australian 😏.
Click HERE to watch our Youtube video and how embarrassing we are lol.
Click HERE to watch our Youtube video and how embarrassing we are lol.
Food
We had never seen smoked pacific oysterat a restaurant before so we were very intrigued to try this. It had coconut cream and wakame oil for $6.50 each. My gosh…. it was so creamy and smooth. It tasted like a fresh oyster but had been cured perfectly, with a balance of sweetness, saltiness and tartness that when combined, melted in our mouths. The staff said they smoked the oysters for an hour.
This was a delightful cured kingfish on black sesame cracker, with sudachi citrus ponzu, kohlrabi, wakame powder and dashi cream for $10 each. The first taste to hit our palate was a balanced sweet citric taste – at first we thought yuzu, but it was actually the umami citrus from the ponzu. The mouthfeel was great. Squishy, cold, tender fish with a dry aromatic sesame cracker.
The dish we came for: fried mantou king prawn, marie rose sauce, shellfish oil, tarragon $12 each. WOW.
This was a warm, delectable bite. The mantou had defined folds, kind of like a Chinese croissant, that made it an airy dough. The use of shellfish oil enhanced the umami flavour deeply. It was not drenched in oil.
And the filling was a rich, creamy and almost decadent mouthful of prawn. It balanced the mantou’s savouriness nicely.
This was a warm, delectable bite. The mantou had defined folds, kind of like a Chinese croissant, that made it an airy dough. The use of shellfish oil enhanced the umami flavour deeply. It was not drenched in oil.
And the filling was a rich, creamy and almost decadent mouthful of prawn. It balanced the mantou’s savouriness nicely.
This korean beef tartare smelled like KBBQ in a bite. It was a puff pastry, black olive, bread crumb, pine nut cream for $9 each. It was a little messy to eat but worth licking up all the crumbs.
We’ve never had tartare served like this before. The beef was tender, marinated in a sweet galbi flavour. The charred bread crumbs gave it a rich smokey effect. And the puffy pastry was crispy enough that the textures contrasted the chewy meats.
We’ve never had tartare served like this before. The beef was tender, marinated in a sweet galbi flavour. The charred bread crumbs gave it a rich smokey effect. And the puffy pastry was crispy enough that the textures contrasted the chewy meats.
They forgot our seared scallop so we had this at the end, but it was still DELISH!. This was normal, tender scallops with desert lime nahm jim, pickled grape, wakame oil, yuzu kosho cream for $12 each.
The sauce was a little spicy. There was also a nice contrast of citric (yuzu) and umami (scallop) in this bite.
The sauce was a little spicy. There was also a nice contrast of citric (yuzu) and umami (scallop) in this bite.
This was the meatiest quail we have had in a long time. This was buttermilk fried quail with five spice for $22. It was served with shredded cabbage.
The quail was THICC and juicy. We were so surprised by how much meat was on the bird. It was turned into a katsu with buttermilk, chicken salt and chives. The skin was very crispy – audible crunch heard in the video.
The quail was THICC and juicy. We were so surprised by how much meat was on the bird. It was turned into a katsu with buttermilk, chicken salt and chives. The skin was very crispy – audible crunch heard in the video.
Our main dish was this 15 days dry aged duck with davidson plum teriyaki sauce, celeriac puree for $42.
The duck had been rendered nicely, oozing just the right amount of flavour without all the fattiness and oils this poultry is known for. The skin was glazed with the sweet and umami sauce. We were not a fan of the fennel – it was sour and bitter, reminding us of European sauerkraut which is not in our palate dictionary.
The duck had been rendered nicely, oozing just the right amount of flavour without all the fattiness and oils this poultry is known for. The skin was glazed with the sweet and umami sauce. We were not a fan of the fennel – it was sour and bitter, reminding us of European sauerkraut which is not in our palate dictionary.
The side dish was charred broccolini with whipped sesame, laoganma, fried peanut crumb for $16. It was cooked well, with the laoganma adding a heat that radiated towards the back of the mouth.
Service
The staff were very friendly and attentive. We had a great experience dining here for the first time.
Review
This was one of the better fusion restaurants we have been to in Sydney. After editing our video 3 months late, I’ve realised there are a few menu item changes which seem intriguing enough for a second visit. The ambience was cosy, moody and romantic.
Overall cost was about $85 per person. They also have set menus at $59 and $85 price points but we enjoyed the freedom of a la carte.
Thanks for reading. Happy eating!
Overall cost was about $85 per person. They also have set menus at $59 and $85 price points but we enjoyed the freedom of a la carte.
Thanks for reading. Happy eating!
