Taipei Chef, Artarmon

 

If crisp skin, succulent flesh and the lingering trail of smokiness in every mouthful is your idea of bliss, then Taiwanese-style smoked chicken ($10) is the flavour bomb your tastebuds have been waiting for. The chicken is cooked twice - first steamed and then smoked over a mixture of tea leaves and sugar until the skin takes on a golden glaze and becomes deliciously brittle. Trust us: this

Freda's, Chippendale

If Sydneysiders are ready to embrace new neighbourhoods, then Chippendale is ripe for a giant bear hug. The object of affection? Freda's Bar & Canteen, set up in a formerly abandoned warehouse in the inner city.

Sure we're all used to hidden bars and secret entrances, but you know things are serious when even the bar's blog has a photo essay published with directions on how to find it.

Habib's Charcoal Chicken, Bankstown

There's a tantalising smell of charcoal as you approach Habib's Chicken in Bankstown. It's the heady scent of meat slowly caramelising, the hiss of chicken fat hitting the coals, and then the loud whoosh of a hairdryer used to fan the glowing embers.

A hairdryer? In a chicken shop? It takes pride of place by the barbecue at Habib's, mounted on its own little stand before being removed, flicked

Ms. G's, Potts Point - Milk Bar Memories

The potato scallop. You couldn't find a better snack for 15 cents when I was a kid. The golden batter would be bubbled and crunchy, surrounding a thick slice of cooked potato. Out it would come, straight from the deep fryer, threatening to burn your fingers and your tongue as the oil from the batter rapidly seeped into the paper bag.

There was the always half-empty bain marie, lined up with

Becasse Creative with Justin North at Quarter Twenty One Cookery School

How does culinary inspiration make its way from a chef's first thought and onto your plate? This is the theme behind Becasse Creative, a new series presented by Justin North at his Quarter Twenty One cooking school.

First things first. This isn't cheap. At $250 for a two-and-a-half-hour session, this is aimed at the serious food lover, but with only 12 people in the class it offers a unique

Assembly Bar, Sydney

So Sydney is riddled with cool hip hidden bars but what happens when it's so well disguised that nobody knows it's there? Assembly Bar is one of the newest tenants at Regent Place - you know, the building near KFC on George Street, near Lumiere, where Chefs Gallery is, and Ton Ton Ramen and Azuma Patisserie and ohhh I didn't know that was called Regent Place...

Assembly sits directly beneath

TOYS Collective Issue #9: Blood, Bones & Butter

"This plate tastes delicious!" I say, as I snap off another piece and savour every crumb. It's just another surreal moment in an evening that veers between playful and extreme yet is always sincere.

The event is the 9th edition of the wildly successful TOYS Collective, a series of one-off collaborations by local young and inspirational chefs, commencing in Sydney and expanding to Melbourne