Taco, enchilada or alambre packs at Itacate – $50, feeds four
Itacate’s takeaway packs are generous and can feed a whole family. “It really depends on your appetite,” says owner Rosa Cienfuegos. “There are 12 enchiladas in that pack, or you can make 15 tacos with the taco pack. I would like to say four can eat, but when I think of my brother I know he’ll eat a whole enchilada pack by himself.”
The offering changes weekly and components are sold by weight. A nachos meal includes 500 grams of totopos (corn chips) plus 250 grams of chile con carne or tinga de pollo (chicken) for $45. The alambre pack has 500 grams of grilled beef and 500 grams of tortillas for $50.
There are also enchiladas filled with chicken or potatoes and served with Cienfuegos’s extremely hot green salsa, or a taco pack with a choice of pastor (pork), suadero (beef), cochinita (pulled pork) or chicken tinga.
We think you might like Access. For $12 a month, join our membership program to stay in the know.
SIGN UPOrder from Wednesday to Saturday for delivery on Friday and Saturday via Uber Eats.
mexicanfoodaustralia.com/itacate
Two-for-one spaghetti at Peppe’s – $20
Every once in a while, lockdown has a silver lining. Peppe’s Mamma’s Taking Care of You offer is one of them – it’s two styles of spaghetti for $20. The handmade noodles are topped with one of six different vegan sauces – cashew e pepe, walnut bolognaise, pomodoro, pesto, funghi, and aglio e olio. The offer is this list’s best-value meal.
“Everyone is doing it tough, not just us, so we’ve been thinking of how we can add value and still feed people really good food,” says co-owner Joe Pagliaro. “It’s been insanely popular. The spaghetti is really easy and fast for us to make, so we pass that efficiency on to the customer.”
If you don’t feel like eating pasta, Pagliaro is also selling delicious $13 tofu burgers that might end up on the menu at Joe’s Sandwich Bar after lockdown. “We marinate the tofu for 48 hours in brine, douse it in mustard and batter before flash frying. It’s served with spicy chickpea mayo, coleslaw and pickles on a vegan bun,” he says.
Order via Peppe’s website for pick-up, or via Doordash, Uber Eats and Deliveroo for local delivery. Available from Wednesday to Monday after 5pm.
peppesbondi.square.site/s/shop
Honey and lemon chicken with rice from Joe’s Table – $25.50 (share between two)
Before lockdown, Darlinghurst’s Joe’s Table did a healthy lunchtime trade. Owner Joe Kitsana made sandwiches like soft-shell crab with Chinese five spice, and at night he transformed the space into a Southeast Asian eatery. “Unfortunately, I don’t do sandwiches anymore. Because of Covid I lost so much lunch business in the area. I only do Asian food now,” he says.
His dinner offering is outstanding. Although none of the dishes fall in the $15 range individually, many of them can be shared between two people. Kitsana recommends a customer favourite – the honey and lemon chicken with rice ($25.50). “It’s fried chicken with honey, freshly squeezed lemon with a crunch of pickled carrot and daikon and sesame seeds. It’s a combination of crispy, sticky, hot honey sauce and sour lemon.”
Order takeaway from Monday to Saturday by calling (02) 8385 7110.
Fish burger plus one side at Fish Shop – $30 (feeds two)
The Fish Shop marked the Fish Bowl team’s return to Bondi, the place where it all started in 2016. Although we can’t sit in and enjoy the sunlight streaming through the windows in the upmarket Sevenways space, we can still enjoy its outstanding seafood.
For $16, there’s a classic crumbed fish burger with cabbage slaw and tartare sauce on chewy organic sourdough. Order it as a single meal or split it between two and add the harissa baked pumpkin with stracciatella and chilli, or the tahini roasted cauliflower with pistachios, both $14.
Keep your eye on Fish Shop’s social media channels for the $16 bake-at-home takeaway fish pies served with mushy peas and gravy. They’re not available at the moment, but they could make a comeback.
Order takeaway either in person or by calling (02) 9130 3994. Available daily.
Lechon banh mi at Don’t Doughnuts – $16.50
Normally Don’t Doughnuts just does doughnuts: ginger-laced dulce de leche; garam masala and sugar; amber-glazed burnt Basque cheesecake – all with a brioche sourdough. But during lockdown it has collaborated with (currently closed) Filipino cafe General Charlie in Crows Nest to deliver its first savoury dish: lechon banh mi.
Lechon is a whole-roasted suckling pig. Cebu province in the south of the Philippines probably has one of the best-known versions. The meat is tender and juicy, the skin is crunchy and savoury. It’s often served with sawsawan (a spiced vinegar and garlic condiment). In the banh mi, house-made pickles offer a similar acidic offset to the fatty meat.
“We do a 12-hour lemongrass-marinated roasted pork,” says co-owner Miko Aspiras. “We make our own stone-baked sourdough ciabatta, as well as carrot and turnip pickles. The banh mi is served with lechon mayo sauce and pickles.”
Order via Menulog or Doordash for pick-up or delivery. Available on Fridays and Saturdays.
DIY burgers from Meat Jovi – $35 (for two)
When Jovan Curic resurrected Ultimo’s Pub Life Kitchen in July, he didn’t want the burgers to get all the attention. But as Sydney’s lockdown was extended, he realised selling DIY burgers would help keep his staff working.
“While it was the intention to move PLK in a different direction and bring back the classic bistro pub meal, it seems we can’t escape burgers,” he says. “It’s keeping people (just) employed and the doors open. I’m grateful for that.”
Jovi’s DIY burgers come in a pack of two patties, two soft buns, plenty of mayo and enough cheese and pickles that you can have a little pre-burger snack while waiting for your meat to cook (which only takes 10 minutes).
The burger was created in partnership with Marcus Papadopoulo of Marrickville’s Whole Beast Butchery and sold through Drnks. “The patties are made from grass-fed Angus beef which is aged on the bone. It has a strong fat content, ’cos fat is flavour.”
If your burger-cooking skills are lacking, not to worry. Curic has made a charmingly funny, step-by-step video showing how to cook the perfect burgers.
Order before 2pm via Drnks for same-day delivery in the Sydney inner-metro area.
Cafes
Restaurants
Bars
Accommodation
Shop
Broadsheet Pick
Recently Opened