The ‘East’ is often looked upon as a mysterious land of culture and originality. But when it comes to inner east suburb of Zetland it’s been at the end of the proverbial cultural alphabet for some time. A trip wouldn’t have been on your radar let alone Google maps.
East Village is the newest, hippest urban village to open its shopping doors with Phoenix, the Chinese mega restauranteurs claiming their fifth conquest by snapping up a cracking spot on its third floor (the bonus is that you can work off the calories at Virgin Active next door) with their new hot spot, East Phoenix.
The decor is slickly fitted out with red illuminated walls, a central bar, fireplace, black lacquer chairs and an army of black and white suited servers that dart around the expansive dining room with precision and purpose. Tanks of ‘Please don’t eat me even if I look like Tony Abbott’ fish are your banqueting audience.
Come early for yum cha or avoid the queues by opting for a la carte in the evening. As we’re sure you know, not all Peking duck pancakes are equal; but these are some of the best. Generous slabs of duck with perfectly rendered crispy skin are a folded, sauced, one handed mouthful. Prawn toasts and a steamed trio of dim sum lead up to the main event- Pippies in house-made XO Chilli Sauce lolling on a bed of toasty on the outside, silky on the inside rice noodles. Moorish BBQ pork and salt & pepper squid are perfect partners for Phoenix fried rice and a glass of Italian Guerrier Prosecco or a Tsingtao beer.
With more openings to come, finally there is a destination between the city and Bondi worth visiting which delivers more than its fair share of Eastern magic.
East Phoenix
East Village, Level 3, 2A Defries Avenue, Zetland
Yum Cha: Mondays – Friday 11:00am – 3:00pm, Saturday and Sundays 10.30am – 3:00pm
A La Carte 7 days a week from 5.30pm – 10:00pm
eastphoenix.com.au
