Visited 29/12/2018, Brisbane
** Dairy Free Approved**
185 Wickham Street, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane
Admittedly, my initial plan wasn’t to eat at ‘Superbowl’ but after a long search in the scorching heat for ‘Happy Boy’ – which wasn’t open, what I needed more than food was a cool room and Superbowl fit the bill. It’s easy enough to find, right in the heart of Brisbane’s shabby “Chinatown” on an equally shabby strip is where you’d find it.
It’s surprising to me that Superbowl gets any traffic at all, the decor on the outside would have turned me the opposite way in any other situation. Superbowl reminds me of a Chinese Takeaway, metal doors boasting newspaper articles, the menu and an archaic OPEN sign. So much so it makes me scrupulous about whether it should be catering wedding lunches or any of the other events it claims to be commissionable for. The inside is slightly more decent, brightly lit and simple, definitely fashioned for a older crowd in mind. The tables are segregated according to big and small money spenders. The smaller tables are accompanied by a piece of food-splatter paper so the table requires minimal cleaning after use as the paper is simply thrown out. The big tables for the larger audiences are simply cloth lain for the full luxury experience.
Superbowl’s habit of penny pinching doesn’t stop at just its tables but also with its electricity. Only 2 of 4 Air Conditioning Units was operational on a 29 Degree Celsius midday. However, we’d already been seated and it was much too late to back out so we got to ordering, all the while chugging the cold water we’d been brought. The menu was several pages long and when you don’t know where to start looking, asking for recommendations or ordering from the Chef’s Specials is your best bet. Superbowl just happens to have a list of recommended dishes, making ordering a simple affair. From the Chef’s Specials we ordered 2 mains and on the side, a bean curd and vegetable medley. Chinese food is mostly Dairy Free (DF) but I’d advise you to inquire if you are concerned; Superbowl’s staff were very capable of conversing in English.
Mixed Vegetable and Bean Curd Hot Pot ($15.80)
It didn’t take long before the bubbling vegetable stone bowl was served and the speed at which it was served was the only plus of this dish. There was a category on the menu for vegetables and another for bean curds, this was of the bean curd variety. Unfortunately, the picture is a pretty accurate representation of its composition; mostly vegetables. I’d say there were maybe 5 bean curds in total, 6 to be courteous but I was expecting a little more. It’s common for canned vegetables to be used in this dish so I can’t deduct points for the corn or mushrooms and the vegetables were crunchy fresh but the execution was terrible. The liquid in which it swims is usually viscous and if done well, flavorful but what we got was basically water. It was thin and under salted, the whole dish was bland.
Shredded Beef Peking Style ($19.80)
It also didn’t make much sense to me why a meat dish cost only $4 more than a bowl of watered vegetables but when it was brought to our table, it then made sense. The fried cardboard-like bed of crackers amp up what is truthfully a pitiful amount of substance on the plate. The beef is piled in obvious sight but the dish is mostly filler vegetables like capsicum, spiralized carrots and large stalks of spring onions. The beef is stick thin and well fried, still crunchy and holding its own against the sauce. This was no peking sauce though, it was Marmite, yes Marmite, also known as Vegemite’s arch rival. Don’t knock it till you try it though because Marmite Beef is a rare delicacy which is hardly done right. Not all Marmite is created equal, the Marmite used to make Marmite Beef is much sweeter, making the beef savory, sticky, sweet and all caramelly. This is a good example of Marmite Beef done absolutely spot on and something I’d go back for.
Sizzling Garlic Chicken ($19.80)
The most unsuspecting dish of the day came out with the greatest theatrics. The chicken crackled & popped on the hot plate as it was carried to us,
drawing eyes from the other tables to our direction, sauce splattering all over the paper covered table when it was set down. When the last of the eyes finally left, I took my first bite. It was underwhelming to begin with, chicken tender and slightly sweet from the onion, salted well. It was seemingly a simple dish until you got to the very bottom, where all the sauce was. Quite a shame the sauce had mostly evaporated due to the heat of the plate, leaving only a little of the fragrant, complex soy garlic glaze left. If the beef is what I come back for, the garlic chicken is what would make me stay.
Although oddly priced, badly furnished and quite stingy, Superbowl Chinese Restaurant serves some pretty authentic Chinese fair. I can’t speak for the other dishes offered at Superbowl but I’d recommend sticking to the Chef’s Specials if you are planning a visit. Overall not a disappointing choice, a place with really hidden gems.
DF NAVI 