Sydney's Night Noodle Markets Are Back for 2020 — But They're a Little Different

This year, you won't be heading to Hyde Park to enjoy doughnut burgers, cheesy puffles and tasty things on sticks.
Samantha Teague and Libby Curran
October 06, 2020

This spring, Sydney's Night Noodle Markets will return for a month of tasty things on sticks, bowls of noodles, bao and extravagant desserts. But, like many events in 2020, it's going to run a little differently to usual. Instead of bumping elbows with hundreds of others in Hyde Park, you'll be able to enjoy the festival's usual lineup of tasty treats at home, in your local park or on a beach. Yes, Night Noodle Markets 2020 is coming to you via delivery.

This year, the delivery-only menu showcases eight food stalls — instead of the usual 30-plus — which have created special menus for the occasion. Thankfully, many of the festival favourites have made the cut.

Sydney's go-to for inventive, Asian-inspired doughnut creations, Donut Papi is back with a wild new creation: a prawn toast doughnut. If savoury doughnuts aren't really your shtick, the Redfern favourite is also bringing back its super-popular leche flan doughnut burger for the occasion. It features a slab of lush, sticky Filipino-style crème caramel stuffed between halves of a sugar-crusted doughnut bun, ready and waiting to ooze upon that first bite. Just take a look:

Another favourite making an exciting return, Puffle is a cheesy riff on the egg waffles you'll find at street stalls in Hong Kong. This month, Puffle is out to win you over with three different decadent versions of its dish, including the cheeseburger — an assembly of chopped bulgogi-style beef and extra melted cheese, finished with lashings of sweet and spicy ketchup, mustard and Japanese mayo — and a KFC option with spicy Korean-style fried chicken. But, whichever filling you opt for, you're in for a crunchy, oozy and delightfully messy ride.

Elsewhere on the menu, you'll find four types of bao from Bao Brothers; skewers, curries and paella from Span Thai; Teppanyaki Noodles' bowls of yakisoba, udon and ramen; sweet loaded waffles from Waffleland; and Wok Master's prawn wontons, spring rolls and steamed Chinese buns. A new addition to this year's lineup: Toastie Smith. The Chatswood newcomer is offering five of its giant Korean-style sangas to-go, including a wagyu number, a taro and pork floss toastie and a shrimp and egg version.

A notable omission from this year's lineup is Gelato Messina, which usually creates a wild and wonderful menu for the occasion. Last year, we were treated to twists on Thai sweets, such as a Thai milk tea cheesecake sandwich and a Phuket Bucket, which came with banana fritters, caramelised banana gelato and peanut crumble. Fingers crossed we see these frozen treats again in the not-too-distant future.

The Night Noodle Markets at Home dishes will be available to order exclusively through Doordash, with three banquets on the docket, too. You can choose from Broc 'n' Roll ($69.50), Date Night ($89) and The Bougie Banquet ($233), each coming with a selection of dishes from across the stalls. If you're lucky, you might even receive a free gift with your delivery, with the NNM saying Maggi noodles and Weis treats will be snuck into some orders.

The Night Noodle Markets at Home menus are available via Doordash from Wednesday, October 7 to Friday, November 6 as part of Good Food Month.

Top image: Night Noodle Markets by Bec Taylor

Published on October 06, 2020 by Samantha Teague
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