This week we had lunch at PAPERBOY KITCHEN on Little Lonsdale Street in Melbourne’s CBD. This group started off as a stall at The People’s Market & The Night Noodle Market but they now have a pretty good gig with limited opening hours – Monday to Friday 11.30-3pm.
These days the trend is to delve away from the traditional banh mi stores like Nhu Lan and to try something a little more refined – a little fancier. Though I doubt Nhu Lan will ever go out of business due to its bargain prices and quality food, Paperboy brings a little bit of fusion and a hell of a lot of funk with its R&B vibe and its eclectically strewn miniature animal models & magnetic letters.
The menu is such that you can order traditional rolls or rice noodle bowls which all come with Asian slaw, carrot-daikon pickle, Sriracha mayonnaise & coriander. You can also purchase fried chicken, cookies, and a selection of drinks.
Here’s what we had… Viet iced coffee ($3.50) 
Pretty darn good.
Spiced lemon tea ($3.50)
Think fresh lemon, star anise, cinnamon and fresh ginger mixed with the perfect amount of honey.
BBQ chicken rice noodle bowl – marinated free range chicken ($11) 
This was extremely tasty. We paid an extra $1.50 for a fried egg with a runny yolk (obviously they weren’t going to cook it long enough to let it explode!) – it looks like a bit of tofu in the far right side of the bowl. The popcorn was amazing – it was doused in chilli sauce and sprinkled with a little sugar.
Pulled lamb & hoisin traditional roll – slow cooked lamb shoulder with sweet sticky sauce ($12)
The lamb was so succulent. I just wished the peanut sauce was a teeny bit sweeter – I guess that’s the Malaysian blood in me talking…
All in all an awesome meal. A bit pricier than the usual $4 rolls at Nhu Lan but really – is there any comparison? We think not.
de-brief me 