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Above: Vietnamese chefs Vinh and Dat cook up a storm at the Dongara
Hotel. The two have proved hugely
popular with the locals. Below: Expansive umbrellas create a perfect
beer garden.
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Oriental cuisine won’t
be the
same again in Dongara following
the arrival of two talented
Vietnamese chefs.
VIVIENNE RYAN reports.
Download a PDF of this article.
Supplied with
compliments by Coral Coast Happenings Magazine, Geraldton Newspapers
Pty Ltd. |
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A
TRANSFORMED Dongara Hotel is an eclectic mix of the old fishing
village with modern, international influences. So the addition of
two high-class Asian chefs fits right in.
In what was traditionally a men’s pub, there is now a polished feel
to the hotel, which has come with a makeover to the exterior and the
dining room.
There is a fresh menu, too, and along with fresh paint on the walls
and new artwork hanging on the walls, the small pub is on the up and
up.
Starting our dining experience in the hotel’s beer garden with, what
else but a cold one, we found shelter beneath the oversized
umbrellas.
Browsing over the menu, we were impressed with the variety of the
town’s famous crayfish on offer, while an ‘Asian Corner’ indicated
the influence of chefs Vinh and Dat. Having arrived less than a year
ago, the chefs are quickly finding their feet in their first WA
kitchen.
Leaving behind senior jobs at international hotel kitchens in Ho Chi
Minh City, Vinh and Dat are enjoying the change. Head chef at the
Park Hyatt in Ho Chi Minh City before emigrating to Australia, Dat
concedes Dongara is a little different to his home town.
“It is a little quieter up here. There are a lot less people,” he
says. “Our city has eight million people ... here there are not so
many!”
Dat was sponsored by Dongara hotel owners Robert and Geneve
Galluccio and came to Australia with
his wife and five year-old son Anh.
He says he found it hard at the beginning but now really enjoys the
country town.
Owners Robert and Geneve say Dat suffered from
homesickness at the beginning but the arrival of Vinh helped cure
it. “It is great to now have them together,” they said. |
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Left to right: Vinh
with his traditional sweet and sour prawns; Tasty Asian food;
Dat with his signature fillet steak and fresh prawns.
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“The whole
community has welcomed the two men with open arms and the pub’s duty
manager Mary is teaching Dat to
drive.”
Vinh arrived in WA a month after Dat and before landing was training
in Japan in preparation for his trip.
He had 16 chefs working under him at the five-star Omni Hotel in Ho
Chi Minh City and is waiting on the arrival of his wife
Mai and two daughters Hai Yen, 5, and Thu Hien, 1.
He says he is pleased to be in Australia but misses his family. “I
am very happy to be here, the future is in Australia,” he
says. “My family is very happy that I am here and I am very proud of
myself for being here.”
Always quick with a smile, the pair have warmed the hearts — and
bellies — of the Dongara community.
The hotel menu highlights the local specialty, crayfish, while
keeping its hugely popular steaks. The Asian Corner includes seafood
curries, sweet and sour prawns and wok-fried Hokkein noodles.
The chefs say they are amazed at the quality and size of the lobster
they cook with in Dongara.
“It is very good,” Vinh says. “It is much smaller in Vietnam.”
Eating out on a wintry Sunday afternoon, the hotel’s dinning room
was a welcome escape from the elements.
Two entrees were served to start and included garlic prawns served
in a rich, creamy sauce and Vietnamese-style spring rolls.
My dining partner says they were the best spring rolls she had ever
tasted.
Lightly fried in rice paper, the pork mince spring rolls were
delicately garnished with crispy fried noodles and served with a
chilli sauce dip. The garlic prawns were juicy and served with fresh
and light jasmine rice — a warm, heavy meal for a wintry Sunday.
Well fed ahead of our main dishes, I still managed to fully
appreciate a tender steak fillet with crunchy green beans, cooked to
perfection. My partner found it hard to finish the traditional sweet
and sour prawns served on a bed of rice. Again the prawns were juicy
and tender and the chefs used local seafood to create a dish that
encompasses what the pub is all about.
The hotel now has an international flair which can be experienced
through its kitchen. Visitors and locals should drop into Dongara’s
best-kept secret for a hearty and delicious meal — or just to say hi
to Vinh and Dat.
PICTURES: Gary Warner |
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