For those who may have been living under a rock for the past few weeks and are unaware, the annual Sydney Good Food Month's most anticipated event of the year is back, the Night Noodle Markets. This was my first time actually visiting the Markets, however I thoroughly enjoyed it and will be intent on returning on a yearly basis. The Night Noodle Markets is a combination of colour, sounds and smells of an Asian bazaar with the ambience of an outdoor festival. Despite the fact that there are over 50 food stalls dispersed across Hyde Park, options where somewhat limited for Halal food-goers (something Sydney Good Food Month planners might want to take into account in preparation for next year). However, me and my friend managed to scope out the popular dishes of the festival that were also suitable for us to consume.
Our first foodie stall was Thainabox, where we sampled the spring rolls ($7/ 4 pieces) which were a great appetizer and start to our foodie pilgrimage. The second foodie stall we sampled from was Bao Stop, the lengthy winding lines were indicative of how popular the stall was. Nonetheless, service was quick, efficient and before we knew it we were happily munching away on our vegetarian friendly, sweet potato fries with their Bao Stop signature chilli mayo, chives and roasted peanuts ($8). Definitely one of the best fries I've ever tasted. By this point you can imagine we were probably starting to feel somewhat bloated, however that did not phase us from sampling the key dish we came to the festival for, Gelato Messina's 'David Bao-wy' ($12), yes you may roll your eyes at the pun. A deep fried gua bao filled with salted coconut sorbet, dipped in white chocolate mango ganache and rolled in crushed cashews, heaven delivered in a box. The dessert was a tasteful conclusion to my first experience visiting the Night Noodle Markets.
Location: Hyde Park, Sydney until October 25th
Hours: 5pm-till late
Rating: 4/5 (initiative needs to be taken to introduce more Halal menu items)
