Tel: 98987388
Open 7 days 11am to 10pm
We thought it would be apt to begin Flavour with undoubtedly one of our favourite restaurants. Box Hill, where Asian cultures rendezvous, is the central point of the eastern suburbs. Situated in the heart of the busy food street in Box Hill, New Age Café embodies everything about dining as an international student in Australia.
New Age Café is the perfect blend of cultures, from its contemporary setting to its unique blend in food. From Japanese to Hong Kong cuisine to Malaysian dishes, New Age grabs the essence of the cuisines, blends them together and presents them in a modern, western way. Our review today would demonstrate perfectly how these words would appear as food on a plate.
Chau's Review
We arrived at New Age Café just before 8pm on a Monday night. It was about 30% to 35% full, so there was plenty of sitting for us. From experience though, it’s a different story on weekends, when you might find yourself queuing just to get in. The menu consisted of about 150 food, drink and desert items, from that, we picked three dishes to sample, in an almost random process.
Soba Noodles with beef. This dish was an interesting twist from the authentic Japanese soba noodles. It was of course served cold with a delectable miso-soy dipping sauce, together with a cutlet of seared tender beef (with a choice of chicken or pork). It was presented in a simple yet stylish way topped with mysterious flakes (we think, or hope is onion) which dance to the temperature of the food. The noodles definitely mingles well with the miso-soya sauce on the palette, invoking a refreshing burst of flavour. The cutlet of beef was amazingly tender and had a slightly sweet flavour to it.
Baked Seafood Combination (with special seafood sauce). If you excuse the “special” lengthy name, it actually wasn’t a bad dish. You wouldn’t expect fresh fish in a dish with such a “special” description, and true enough there wasn’t. There, however, were crab sticks, prawns, squid, mushroom and onion in a “special” cream based sauce. I must admit the sauce was pretty “special”, unlike any of the regular cream sauce in other similar dishes. It was a little pricy at $11, but why not try something a bit… “special”.
Portuguese-style Baked Chicken Rice. This traditional favourite can be found across several Asian/Fusion eateries around Melbourne, which makes it a good comparison for the quality of food in the store. I do rate New Age’s version one of the better ones I have tried, with succulent chicken pieces in a buttery sauce. It is hardly authentic, but the fusion restaurants have made the version of this dish their own. So if you’re not comparing with the real Portuguese-style chicken or baked chicken dish, this calorific dish is a delicious filling dish on it’s own.
My highlight of the evening however was the Iced Milk Tea. It’s really what we call ‘Hong Kong Milk Tea’ in most places, and is another good item to compare between stores. I particularly enjoy New Age’s version because it has a strong taste, but not over-powering the sweetness. It did lack a bit of depth – and a disappointing deficiency in aftertaste. But if you’re not picky about such flowery details of a drink, the New Age Iced Milk Tea really holds it’s own in its class of drinks. It is also reasonably priced at $3.30 each.
Overall, the food is good value for money, if anything, you should try it for its unique mixture of east meets west culture. I have no complaints about the service and was encouraged by my partner-in-crime to include praise for the use of palm-tops on each waiter/waitress to ensure your order is never wrong or mixed up.
Chau
From Top left clockwise: Portuguese Chicken Rice, Baked Seafood Combination, Soba Noodles with Beef, Ice Milk Tea
Lato's Review
So since my goon is so picky about me editing his portion, i have to repost my comments here T-T.
Cold Beef Soba Noodles :
Heey don't underestimate cold food! Warm food is great but so is ice cream~ anyway~ The cold soba noodles is slowly becoming one of my favourite dishes. I like the way that it looks very simple, presentable and of course yummy! but I guess it's had better days. It was quite sad that it ended up being a bit sticky almost as if the noodles were overcooked. But the combination of the cold soba noodles dipped in soy sauce with wasabi was refreshing. I practically felt a tingling sensation in my tongue. Some portions of the beef were a bit tough but you could taste the spices embedded within. All in all, it was a nice dish~
Baked Seafood Combination (with special seafood sauce) :
How do I start... You know to stay away from seafood when it comes out greenish. And no it's not the veggies. Okay maybe it was the mushroom but I swear, this dish was... special. Taking a bite out of the delectable platter enlightened me. And it was then I discovered how one LITERALLY can have "butterflies in your stomach". The combination of crab meat, squid, prawn was quite sensational as it is with seafood combinations, but the "special" sauce was pushing it. Up to this day, i still can't describe what it was in the sauce that ruined it.
Baked Portuguese Chicken on rice :
Yum, definitely my winner for the night. I was lucky I got first bite while it was still hot still "melts in your mouth not in your... spoon?" The dish consisted of freshly cooked rice, just right, soft not dry, topped with soft creamy sauce, bits of sliced succulent chicken, with cheese (well I think there was but not CHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESE just cheese). I loved the way the creamy sauce melted in my mouth with the soft pieces of chicken to nibble on XD. A must try~
Milk Tea :
YAY!! I'm quite fond of milk tea, it always gives me a warm fuzzy feeling~ I wouldn't say New Age milk tea is perfect, but i guess it's not bad. The tea portion was a bit strong but it was still proportioned quite right.
All in all, it was a great night for two hungry,food-fascinated, socially deprived men who are writing on this food blog, instead of looking for dates.
-Mr anonymous. Just kidding
-Jon
| Today’s Receipt | |
|---|---|
| Cold Soba Noodles with Beef | $9.50 |
| Portuguese-Style Baked Chicken Rice | $8.80 |
| Baked Seafood Combination (With Special Sauce) | $11.00 |
| Iced Celon Tea (x2) | $6.60 |
| Total | $35.90 |
Summary
| Critic | Chau | Lato |
|---|---|---|
| Fare | Fusion | |
| Location | Station Street, Box Hill | |
| Accessibility | Box Hill is a major suburb, with trains and buses. New Age is barely a 1 minute walk from the said public transport | |
| Value | With single dishes ranging from $8 to $12, you can expect to pay about $10 to $15 a person if you don’t want to miss out on the Ice Milk Tea or other variety of drinks. As Melbourne pricing standards go, it is thoroughly worth it. | Well i quite agree. Range of about $8-$12 and + %3 for beverages. So long as your not a wine person which would cost you a bit more. |
| Oomph | Love the comfortable & casual setting, great service, value-for-money food and drinks | I quite like the ambience of the place. Depending on the days you go, it has a very happy family setting, or a contemporary modern aura for dates. Not to mention the PDA's they use to take your orders (cool). |
| Ugh | Although it wasn't on today's receipt, probably might want to stay away from the green apple bubble tea | Definitely. NOT just apple, but most of their "bubble tea" taste... funny. Try if you dare!! |
| Rating | 9/10. Definitely recommending this place to anyone looking for fusion food. Not for those looking for authentic recipes though | The food is good, but nothing in particular is eccentric enough for you to come back for. Doesn't mean the food is bad people~ Still, for this price range, availabilty and location, it definitely is one of Box hill's best. I'd give it a... 8/10 |
