I was so enamored with Miss Chu the first time I went (the eatery, as opposed to the person, though she seems lovely) that I had to try it again – just to see. To make sure it was the food that had me bouncing off walls and grinning at passers-by, and not just the euphoria that comes with being let out of the office and into the sunshine on a Friday. Poor Geoffers (and for some reason, he’s always referred to as Poor Geoffers whenever lunch is the topic of conversation) had missed out last time, and so plans were made. The agenda this time? To try as much of the rest of the menu as we could in one sitting. The outcome? Well…

Tell you what, word has gotten out about Miss Chu. This time, the seats were even more scarce than the first (and we’d arrived a whole 5 minutes earlier). And (AND!) the coconut mousse desserts sold out before I reached the head of the queue.

But we were determined, and we got a seat. And I, well I got a lassi  make up for the disappointment of no coconut mousse.

“Mint and Banana Lassi” said the sign and so “Mint and Banana Lassi!” said I. Three dollars gets you a cold paper cup, the size of a large coffee. And in it, a blend of thick banana, with mini woohoo!-there-you-are! jolts of mint. As I carried my boon back to the table (to the amusement of a hungry Geoffers) I heard a “Oh! It’s dairy free!” from behind me and whipped my head around to throw a grin and a “Oh! Great!” back at Miss Chu.

And great it was. I can’t do too much dairy without suffering the crampy-painful consequences so was doubly glad about the lassi. I tasted a nuttiness to it that could have been rice or soy milk, but it wasn’t overpowering, and I slurped the whole lot down.

There is a call for Shez, and a big brown paper bag is handed through the window. Geoffers’ eyes light up and we unearth our goodies.

Deep fried spring rolls are there to share. There was a toss up between the prawn & crab net rolls, and the temptation of duck and shitake. So, rather than get one and miss the other, we chose both.

Five stout fingers sit in the first cup and five longer skinny fingers sit in the second. A squeeze of sweet, vinegary dressing is tipped into a discarded lid and off we go!

The duck was ok. I kinda wanted it to be more… duck-y. Because when a bite landed me with a morsel of lovely roasted duck meat, I was all “Oh! Duck!” but when it didn’t – and sometimes it didn’t – I was a bit more “Oh. Duck?”

But the prawn and crab net rolls! These I could have eaten all day. And possibly even all night. Crisp flaky net gave way to a piping hot filling – all gooey and firm at the same time. Tell you what, I didn’t want to give Geoffers the fifth one, but I did. Mostly to make up for all those times we mocked his sandwiches. Sorry Geoffers.

He had picked the pho. “What’s the point” he said, later “in going to a Vietnamese place that has pho, and just not getting it? You have to try pho. It’s like, a rule.”

Fragrant broth is tipped into the noodle bowl, where thick (not thin) strips of rice noodle mingle happily with sprigs of vietnamese basil, rounds of spring onion and chilli, slices of meat and a smattering of bean sprouts.

I taste the soup, for research purposes, and it is unlike any pho broth I’ve ever tasted before. For a start, this one is beefy. Not faintly “oh, I think they used beef bones for this broth” but richly, herbaliciously beefy. It warms me like a big hug before sliding down my throat and settling in my stomach with a sigh. “This is good soup” says Geoffers, in between mouthfuls. “Mmmmm…” say I.

For I am eating yet another vermicelli salad.

A salad. I know.

I don’t do salads for lunch. I do meat for lunch. Rice maybe. Something that will keep me going (if it doesn’t send me to sleep first). I don’t do salads. And yet, here I was, ordering a salad for the second time and the same joint. And (somewhat embarrassingly) hoeing into it before the thought of a photo even occurs to me.

Leave your too-sweet-straight-from-a-packet-peanut-satay-sauce misconceptions at the door people. This satay chicken is grilled and smoky. It’s dressed in that sweet and vinegary dressing that I just can’t get enough of and messes around in its tub with the same plump-but-firm noodles and shredded-yet-fresh!-and-crisp! salad as its beefy counterpart.

And this time, I finish it off. By. Myself.

On our way out, we order some takeaway from a fallen friend who has had to miss this trip on account of work (there’s always one…) and are tempted by the promise of custard buns. They are fluffy and sweet and delicious – so delicious that they are eaten en route back to work with nary a picture in sight.

And me? I noticed, that opening hours had been extended to 9pm. And I also saw a little box that labelled “Black Sticky Rice”. So, erm… anyone up for dinner?

Miss Chu
Shop 1/150 Bourke Street
Darlinghurst (cnr William St)
ph: 02 8356 9988

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