Obsession

Absolutely fabulous. Double cooked duck is a must. Great service and ambience. Staff pleasant and courteous. Prices reasoable. Caters well for families.

It was that time again, which has gone fast, meeting my friend again in South Bank - usual business, lunch and a movie. The deal was that it had to be cheap again, and one place I knew was kind of cheap - or at least I perceived it to be - was not going to be open for a while longer. So, walking down the street full of plenty of options, it was a matter of finding one that was both open, and new. This one was open, only just starting to, with the waitress being willing for service. Luckily, there was a lunch special which was relatively affordable.

This place sort of needs the lunch special for some thoroughfare with clientele as the price is a bit exuberant. Note, there are some places along here that are a bit more up-market than others but it is usually because of more fancy fare, something a bit exotic or justified as they make sure that it goes beyond just having a good meal. While .... good, this place is kind of forgettable in the long run.

The service was not incompetent, and it did show some signs of being professional. However, with trying to order meals the waitress could have tried to upsell the meals a bit, or at least encouraged by asking if anything else was wanted (I would be lying if I said no to that). It wasn't all bad, as at first she was offering water and went through the options - still, sparkling and mineral, in which my friend and I got mineral. For something different, it is good and refreshing.

To the credit of Obsession, it manages to escape the usual trapping of most Chinese places outside of Chinatown and Market Square. Actually, overall the menu is tiny for the cuisine, though objectively overall it still gives the diners a fare bit of variety to choose from. Influences from the surrounding neighbours are taken on board, with some Malaysian, some Singaporean and some Indian items on the menu among others. Looking at the meals on the menu, none of them are seeming to be just the same sauce with a different meat. Seafood features more prominently, getting featured first with the main meals which must mean they take pride in it. There is also a bar menu with cocktails, wines, liqueurs and all that - even coffee is an option.

From the lunch specials menu, I ordered the classic and reliable Mee Goreng. This one had potato, egg, chicken, prawns, peas, tomato and chili mixed through the noodles. It was topped with a generous amount of lettuce. The serving side was fairly substantial. They certainly were not being stringent with the toppings, and the they were good - the prawns nice and juicy, the chicken was tender and it had a small bit of spice mixed throughout it - it could have been a bit spicier, or a lot as I love my spicy food. The noodles were well cooked, and mixing it in with some fresh lettuce made it quite well-rounded. All up, passable.

Finishing off, I went to get a coffee. They use one of the less common blends here, Grinder's. It is a pity that Grinder's isn't as easy to find as something as it is one of the finer varieties to be found in town. It was the usual doppio that I had. As a cup, it was half decent. Not burnt, a bit on the mild side, well extracted - I can't complain about it. The coffee was serviceable.

Well, overall I place it as not bad. In terms of Chinese food, it is far better than many of the local takeaways but it is not something that could stand alongside the great wonders that can be found in Chinatown and Sunnybank. If it wanted to be better, a more focused menu could really help - either focus on getting the best parts of Chinese, or a certain region and really go for it. That would help it immensely. Also, with such a nice look to it the service was even more vague than many counter service restaurants that I have visited. For it to be on the same sort of footing as many of its nearby competitors, the service probably needs to honed in a bit more and perhaps encourage ordering a lot - they seem one place that could bank on that. This does have a bit of potential, but I think it needs to start being more out there since it sort of blends in away from the rest of the options.

Maybe I would like it a bit better with more focus on atmosphere, but at the moment I merely can just say, "eh". There are plenty better places around. It is not so much that there is anything wrong with it, but it seems lacking for something with such a great up-front presentation. However, I will contend, maybe another time to come here is needed to truly give it justice - try more, bring a bigger group and all that. Effort will always be acknowledged where it is exerted, but the end results here should be more than they were.

Food was tasty and service was excellent. Initially we were seated a bit too close to the kitchen for comfort but the staff were happy to oblige when we asked to move. It is definitely more expensive than your local, suburban Chinese restaurant but it is also more of a fine dining experience.

Food is excellent if a little pricey. I thought the service was outstanding - bemused by some of the previous reviews.