Thursday 28 August 2014

Sit Lo

The perfect opportunity to try out Sit Lo arose when my friend and I decided to catch up over lunch. Being Vietnamese, as well as loving our Vietnamese food, we were both keen to see what the fuss was all about!


Very much on trend with the decor that can be seen in basically all the new eateries opening up lately, there is a clear modern, industrial feel here. 




There is a long communal table along the centre, seating by the window out the front as well as tables for two along the wall. We visited at approximately 1:30pm on a Thursday, so we'd probably missed the lunch hour rush and it wasn't too packed.

There is a large menu right by the counter which is divided into six main sections - noodle bowls, banh mi, pho, baos, cold rolls and sides. We placed our orders and were directed to a table along the wall.

Filtered Vietnamese Iced Coffee $4

Refreshing, but a tad too sweet for my liking because of the amount of condensed milk it contained. I'm sure I've had better, but it would've been either while I was in Vietnam or made by my parents at home!  

Trio of Baos (steam buns) $13
From left to right:
Panko crumbed fried chicken, pickled cucumber, chilli mayo, coriander & scallions
Soft shell crab, slaw & egg chive dill mayo
Slow cooked Barossa Valley pork belly, pickled cucumber, hoisin & scallions

These really caught my eye when I first started seeing photos all over instagram and looked over their menu. The first bao I tried was the pork belly one. Unfortunately the meat was bland and cold, and the pickled cucumber was soggy and didn't taste at all like it had been pickled. I really couldn't taste the hoisin either. Such a disappointing start to the meal!
Next up was the soft shell crab bao. I was expecting the soft shell crab to be hot and crunchy but it was the complete opposite. The only thing that made this bao better than the pork one was that it had the mayo to tie it altogether. Yet another disappointment.
Finally, the chicken bao. I don't know if I was expecting this to be terrible as well or if it was actually good, but it was definitely the best out of the three. The chicken was still crunchy and it tasted great with the chilli mayo. Again, the cucumber was soggy and flavourless.

I have a theory about why the food wasn't too spectacular today - I assume everything is pre-prepared before their lunch service but isn't kept at their respective temperatures properly. For example, the pork and soft shell crab were serious let downs. Also the cucumber tasted like it had been left out at room temperature. I feel as though just because we chose to dine a little later for lunch, the food should be at the same standard as it would be at the beginning of the service.

Although the food this time wasn't the best, I can definitely commend the service! Everyone was super friendly and we were greeted as soon as we walked through the door. The food and drinks were ready probably within 5 minutes of ordering. I'd love to see if this is the same when they are a little busier!

Presentation-wise, I did like that everything was served in recyclable cardboard containers, although I think I'd still prefer my pho in a big bowl! I do think that the prices are a bit steep, though. I originally thought that the baos were pretty good value but they were rather small and my friend who ordered the same thing said he was still hungry afterwards!

Overall, an underwhelming first experience at Sit Lo. I might give it another shot when I reach the bottom of my list of places to dine in Adelaide, but I'm not in too much of a rush to go back.



Sit Lo on Urbanspoon

2 comments:

  1. I'm so happy you're back to blogging! It's so helpful to read all of these great places to eat in the CBD (although I'm a typically poor uni student and treat myself to lunch out only once a week (; ). If you're ever in the area you should visit Cow and Co on King William st (: it's a healthy frozen yoghurt shop and I work there on Mondays and Fridays (: would love to meet the girl behind the blog and let you try the delicious yoghurt we make (:

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    1. Oh thank you so much, it's so great to know that there are people who actually read my blog :) hahah snaps, I'm a poor uni student too! I eat out once a week too when I catch up with my bestie who goes to a different uni. I actually walk past Cow & Co everyday and have been in a few times and definitely love it! I'll pop in and say hello when the weather starts to warm back up. Thank you again! xo

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