Are you getting tired of eating the same food and drinking the same coffee on campus? Can’t be bothered waiting in long lines at the food trucks? Perhaps you and your friends cannot find anywhere to sit during the lunch-rush? Or maybe, you’d much rather spend your money on something that is actually worth the price?
I have lived right in front of East Victoria Park for the past year, and I can definitely assure you that there is so much that the suburb has to offer! Located right next to Bentley, East Victoria Park is just a seven-minute drive or bus-ride away from Curtin University’s Bentley campus, and is honestly a hotspot for good-quality food that is affordable and worth paying for.
This article will dive into three restaurants in no particular order that I would personally recommend you guys to try out, if you haven’t already. I will also include the food and drinks that I usually order from these places, the pros and cons, and my honest – though positive – opinion about the restaurants and their customer service.
Image Credit: Cheyenne Valero
Chicken Rice Corner (Shop 21/789 Albany Hwy, East Victoria Park)
It’s a lot more filling than it actually looks. Probably because of the rice.
Positioned a few doors down from the entrance of Hawaiian’s Park Centre, Chicken Rice Corner is a cosy little restaurant which specialises in their Hainanese chicken rice. They are open seven-days a week, 11:00am to 8:30pm on weekdays and 10:30am to 8:30pm on weekends, and offer a range of services such as dine-in, takeaway and delivery via MenuLog.
In order to secure some seating, I would suggest going to Chicken Rice Corner during weekdays around lunch-time, as weekends in East Victoria Park – especially during school holidays – can often get pretty hectic. As I prefer to purchase the specialties, I usually order one Hainanese Chicken Rice with a small, self-serve chilli sauce. For drinks, their ice lemon tea is extremely refreshing during hot weather, and also helps to cancel-out the spice if your spice-tolerance isn’t very good. The total cost of this meal tends to be around $14.50.
During the times that I have gone to Chicken Rice Corner, the customer service has always been polite, efficient and quick with serving their food and beverages. Although the restaurant is family-friendly, there are not many tables, and they are positioned quite close together due to the small amount of space. If you would like to get the best service out of Chicken Rice Corner, I would suggest dining-in during weekdays, and ordering takeaway or delivery on weekends.
Image Credit: Cheyenne Valero
Hakata Gensuke (850 Albany Hwy, East Victoria Park)
Want to listen to a bunch of old anime openings while you eat?
Situated beside Chocolateria San Churro, Hakata Gensuke is a Japanese restaurant which specialises in their tonkotsu ramen. They are open seven-days a week, from 11:30am to 9:30pm every day, and offer a range of services such as dine-in, takeaway and delivery via HungryPanda.
Despite having a decent amount of tables to sit at, Hakata Gensuke tends to become a full-house pretty quickly during both the lunch and dinner rushes. Because of this, I would recommend dining-in during the afternoon anytime throughout the week, roughly around 1:30pm to 5:30pm, to receive a more comfortable service, and so that you are not seated right next to customers that you don’t know (unless you are down to making new friends while you eat). If you are wanting to order food during the full-house periods, I’d suggest just ordering takeaway or delivery.
As for my usual meal, I like to order the Signature Tonkotsu Ramen with its featured toppings and chopped green onion, normal noodle-texture and broth, and a decaf ice lychee tea. The total cost of this serving usually comes up to $33.00.
I should also note that orders are done through QR Codes (this practice has been put in place since the COVID-19 pandemic started), which makes it beneficial to pay quickly without direct contact, and is also great if you’re an introvert at heart. The only downside about this mechanism is that if you’re not tech-savvy or feel a certain way about scanning QR codes, then you may experience some difficulty when ordering.
The staff are always polite and friendly, and although long-wait times may affect the speed of preparing orders during the lunch and dinner rushes, the chefs are usually quite efficient and make sure that the presentation of your meal is appealing. As the tonkotsu broth that the restaurant uses for all of their ramen options is made from pork, if you are vegan, vegetarian, or cannot eat pork due to religious reasons, then Hakata Gensuke may not be for you.
Image Credit: Cheyenne Valero
Johny’s Kebab Burger & Grill (969 Albany Hwy, East Victoria Park WA)
Mmm… meatbox.
Located right next to Sinatra’s Pizza & Pasta, Johny’s Kebab Burger & Grill is a fast food restaurant which specialises in their kebab wraps, chicken wings and burgers. They are open seven-days a week, 11:30am to 2:00am from Monday to Wednesday, 11:00am to 2:00am on Thursday, and 12:00pm to 3:00am from Friday to Sunday. The outlet also offers a range of services from dine-in, takeaway and delivery via Uber Eats or the Johny’s app.
Whenever I have gone to Johny’s Kebab Burger & Grill, particularly during the dinner-rush, the place has always been very crowded. Long wait-times, tired and unsociable staff and anything that you would expect from a ridiculously busy fast food restaurant – is definitely there between 7:30pm and 10:30pm. However, the food does make up for the customer service most of the time, and I’m sure that if you were to go there for lunch, during the afternoon or even after midnight, you’d receive a more pleasant experience.
Regarding my order, I usually order the Small Meatbox HSP with mixed meat, hot chilli and sour cream sauce, and some extra cheese on top. If I’m feeling like a cheeky dessert, the chocolate hazelnut gelato that they provide is amazing and is also the exact reason why I have a new, go-to ice cream flavour. The overall cost of this meal usually comes up to $22.45.
Given how there aren’t many tables available at Johny’s Kebab Burger & Grill, I would suggest ordering takeaway or delivery (or just avoid dining-in during the dinner-rush altogether) to get the most efficient and quickest service. Depending on how busy the restaurant is, some meals tend to be a lot better than others, so I’d also recommend trying out a variety of different menu options, just so that you know what you like if you were to come back another time.
Once again, these restaurants are just my personal recommendations when it comes down to eating at East Victoria Park, and might completely go against your own. Of course, there are many more restaurants in this suburb that provide a wider range of options, so I would advise you to visit after your tutorials or lectures, and walk around until you find a place that may become your new favourite restaurant.