Every Chinese in Sydney that came before the 90s would know Marigold. Opened in 1982, they have been providing Sydneysiders a reasonably priced yet high quality Cantonese seafood.
Like all the Cantonese restaurant in town that worth their salt, Marigold has a live seafood tank area that featured live lobsters, crabs and fish.
The dinner started with 蜜汁叉燒拼化皮乳豬 honey glazed barbecue pork and roast suckling pig slice and jellyfish. The charsiu was a mixture of fats and lean meat and it was delicious. But it was the roasted suckling pig that stole the limelight on the plate.
椒鹽鮮魷白飯魚 deep fried squid and white bait with salt and pepper was just OK. Could be crispier.
XO醬粉絲蒸連殻帶子 steamed scallop in shell vermicelli and XO chilli sauce was a favourite of the dinner group. Fresh scallop was steamed with vermicelli and XO chilli sauce to produce the classic steamed scallop.
避風塘炒泥蟹 typhoon shelter style fried mud crab was not in the menu and really flavourful. It could do with a lot more garlic and chilli, but I didn’t expect the exact same result as the ones in Hong Kong.
蠔油牛柳 beef fillet in oyster sauce with wasabi sauce was everyone’s favourites.
生扣鴛鴦雞 steamed sliced chicken with ham and shiitake mushroom is a classic Cantonese dish that requires quite a bit of work. First the chicken has to be deboned and cut to the same size as the shiitake and ham. The three items are place in sequence and then steamed. The au jus is then made into a sauce and drizzled back on the steamed chicken/ham/mushroom. The executive of this dish in Marigold was slightly flawed because of the ham they used. In most cases, one would used Jinhua ham. Here they used local Australian ham, and that did not add to the flavours.
The vegetable dish – 方魚炒芥蘭 stir fried gai lan with crispy salted fish – was really nice. The crispy salted fish added the umami and saltiness to the local kailan.
We ordered a rice and a noodle dish for the entrees – 鹹魚雞粒炒飯+仙泛蓮池 fried rice with salted fish and diced chicken + braised e-fu noodle with mushroom and vegetable – these were the weakest link for tonight’s dinner. I find the e-fu noodles a bit bland and dry, and the fried rice did no have wokhei.
We ended dinner with some really nice mango pancake 芒果班戟 that was similar to those from Hong Kong, and they came with complimentary fresh fruits 時果 and “pineapple” buns 菠蘿包.
The service here was really good. Served by really senior staff that have been working there for years, they know the regulars by heart and are really knowledgeable on what to recommend when you come with non-Chinese friends. On the weekends, they offer dimsum on trolleys, and it is one of the best in Sydney.
Reservation recommended as it can get really packed in the weekends.
Marigold Chinese Cuisine
Level 4 & 5, Citymark Building, 683 George Street Sydney NSW 2000
Tel : 02 9281 3388
Date Visited : May 2019
Closed in 2021
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