In
an attempt to find a good Vietnamese restaurant in my local area, I noticed the
Proud Peacock, which is a few shops away from Straits Kitchen.
The
PP is situated in the Pinewood shopping area.
However, it’s a little bit away from the main hustle and bustle of the
shopping area. The PP is a simple
restaurant, quite small and squishy inside with mismatched furniture. Just a few tables crammed in, with an even
smaller kitchen and a skeleton staff – just one waitress and a cook in the
kitchen. But you immediately get a feel of homely vibe to the place, with a
reasonable number of locals, including young families, dining in and getting
takeaway.
I ordered
the grilled pork w vermicelli. I also
asked if they had three colour drinks. The
waitress said that they used to have it on the menu, but no longer have
it. It was because they found that not
many people around this area knew what the drink was and didn’t order it. Rather nicely, the waitress then poured me a complementary
glass of juice – which was very nice and thoughtful! She also brought out a rather generous serve
of complementary cake and oranges (all tables get this).
The
grilled pork and vermicelli ($9) was a notch above average. I liked how the grilled pork had a bit of fat
on it. For me, pork has got to have some
fat on it for it to taste good. Too many
places serve overly lean pork. The juicy
fat makes it succulent. Lots of
vermicelli and a reasonable amount of salad (iceberg, beanshoots and herbs). I also liked the toasted peanuts. The nuoc cham was good but bit too fiery for
me – too much fresh chilli in it meant that I was only able to use a little of
it.
Verdict
Food
– 7
Service
– 7
Ambience
– 6.5
Price
– 10
Overall
Given
it’s lean set up, the cheap prices, the Proud Peacock is doing pretty
well. Definitely a cheap and cheerful
sort of place. You would be hard pressed
to find another ‘cheap eats’ place that doles out so much complementary food,
and where some of the mains are less than $10.
Also, I noticed that if you do order any drinks (soft drinks or juices),
you simply get given a two litre bottle of the drink and you just help yourself
to as much of it that you like. Service
is friendly, but (understandably) gets a little bit frazzled when there’s more
than a few diners in the restaurant.
While
the PP may not be my new go-to Vietnamese eatery, I would return again. I like the vibe and the whole approach to the
place – it’s like you’re visiting a family friend who’s serving you a decent
meal. Certainly that seems to be thought
that’s shared by other reviewers on Urbanspoon.
It’s rustic, and that’s part of its charm.
I’ve
also read some of the other reviews that are bit negative on the service and
set-up. I think it’s a bit unfair to be that critical of the Proud Peacock. It is a small restaurant and the prices are
quite cheap. If you’re wanting something
a bit more polished, then you’d need to go somewhere that’s bigger and also
priced accordingly.
Address
The
Proud Peacock
71
Centreway, Pinewood Shopping Centre
Mount
Waverley 3149
Telephone:
9803 8862
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