Tom Yum Goong or Hot and Sour Prawn soup is Thai cuisines’ most famous dish both within The Kingdom and in the many Thai restaurants around the globe. In Thailand, it is served in a charcoal steamboat and eaten with rice. Each region in Thailand has a different recipe for this ubiquitous dish but the version below originates in Bangkok and is probably the most common.

Everyone at Chedi Thai would like to thank all our patrons who dined at the restaurant over the busy Christmas and New Year period.The added bonus of the Cricket Test and the Sydney Festival have all bought additional diners to our door.

Last year on November 29th Chedi Restaurant was honored to host a dinner in support of the Hands Across the Water Bike Ride 2011. Ailish Gary and Davina O’Hara, who are two friends from Ireland working in Australia, organized the dinner. The girls were inspired to be part of the long ride from Bangkok to Kao Lak after hearing Peter Baines talk of the children from Bann Tharn Namchai orphanage.

Merry Christmas from Greg, Kai and staff at Chedi Restaurant

Due to our location at the city end of Newtown in close proximity to Sydney University, Chedi Restaurant attracts many foreign tourists to dine. Often when these visitors are paying the bill, I hear them say to each other “in Australia you don’t have to tip”. This I find surprising as in countries like America, a mandatory tip of 15% or more is added to your bill in most restaurants. And if you are in a place like New York and leave a restaurant without tipping, angry waiters will confront you in the street to extract their tip by force.

A great way to enjoy a Thai meal with a group of friend is to order a variety of dishes which covers the 4 main Thai food styles; which are “wet” curries and soups, “yum” salads, “phad” meaning stir-fried and “phet” meaning everything spicy.

Chedi Thai is pleased to announce a charity dinner will be held at the restaurant on Monday, November 29th. The dinner is to raise money and awareness for orphans of the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami; which devastated coastal towns and villages in many Asian countries and left thousand dead and others both homeless and orphaned.

At the moment, Thai street food is all the rage for lovers of Asian food, with the release of a David Thompson’s culinary adventures titled “Thai Street Food”. Adding to the feeding frenzy, a host of celebrity chefs such as Neil Perry, Anthony Bourdain and Rick Stein all have produced shows on Thai street food. But for the majority of tourists visiting Thailand; where do you go to find the best street food?

During service at Chedi Restaurant, I am often asked by customers “how big are the serves?” My standard response is that we offer quality sized portions. What else can I say? Eating in Thai should be a shared meal with a variety of small dishes and perhaps a larger fish or mixed seafood dish. But unfortunately, many Thai restaurants are now serving super size portions of muck on rice.

Newtown is a great place to eat; with the best selection of mid-priced restaurants in Sydney. A leisurely stroll along King Street, from Newtown station to Sydney Road at the peripheral of Sydney University, will take you past cafes and casual dining restaurants to suit most palates.