A fusion feast

Review by Jillian Goh

Brisbane Powerhouse’s Night Feast is a culinary wonderland — and it looks like it too, with its live performances and its dark, stylish ambience.

One of the stalls I tried was Wonderbao. Hailing from Melbourne, the stall’s menu combines the Cantonese pastry of bao with non-traditional fillings.

I had Wonderbao’s Three Gua Bao Set. With three totally different fillings, each bao brought out a different element of Asian cuisine.

One of the baos was filled with kimchi and fried chicken. A perfect blend of savoury and sour —  the chicken was cooked perfectly and could have even been eaten separately from the bao.

Another bao had a mushroom croquette, which was fantastic. It refrained from tasting too strongly of mushroom, and fused well with the crumbly, crunchy croquette.

The third bao had coconut braised beef with a strong ginger flavour, which came through much more powerfully than the coconut.

Another stall I tried was Southside, a South Brisbane restaurant that specializes in East Asian cuisine.

I had the Potato and Truffle Spring Rolls, and having grown up eating traditional Chinese ones regularly, these were a pleasant surprise to my tastebuds.

The potato filling was a drastic contrast to the usual vegetables and meat in traditional spring rolls and at times, they tasted more like samosas. The truffle went well with the crunchy, toasted skin of the rolls, with the spicy vinegar dip further complementing them.

The best dish I had was from NOTA. Located in Paddington, their menu mostly boasts an extensive selection of delicious, hearty dishes.

NOTA’s Braised Beef Short Ribs were the highlight of my night — maybe my week, too. Perfectly tender and medium, the umami of the bourguignon sauce and the slightly sweetened potato puree all came together to create one of the night’s best dishes. Garnished with spring onions, this dish also pairs perfectly with a glass of wine.

But these delicious dishes are only the beginning — Night Feast has even more food to discover, and I have yet to start on the drinks.

The Night Feast will be running until 29 October, get in before it’s gone!