Where do you go in Sydney to find classic American food? The Dip of course! I must of walked past this place a million times but never stopped to even notice it. Good God is hidden at the Spanish Quarter on Liverpool St, it is a bar/restaurant/club and on Wednesday to Saturday nights, The Dip operates.
When we arrive, the place is dark and lit by tacky Christmas lights, the furnishings quite ugly and overall quite a dodgy looking place. But before judging, I wanted to let the food speak for itself. We are seated in a booth and informed that Thursday has half price hot dogs from 5-7pm, just our luck! The ordering system requires you to order and pay at the register and not long after (maximum 10 minutes), our food starts arriving.
Fries; thick cut steak fries with chipotle mayo – $6
The first thing that arrives is the chips. Medium sliced pieces of potato fried with a crunchy exterior, they are seasoned well but the stand out is the sauce! Last time at Li’l Darlin I was disappointed to find their chipotle mayo tasted like aioli and not chipotle, but the one here is spicy and smokey in flavour – highly reminiscent of smokey barbeque ribs…mm…
Lev’s Dawg; smoked kosher hot dog with chipotle mayo, fresh tomato salsa, grilled yellow peppers and american mustard on a steamed bun – $12
Next up is our half price hot dog (now $6)! The steamed bun is soft and at first bite it melts in your mouth with a full flavoured kosher sausage. After a while though, the flavour of the yellow peppers becomes quite overpowering and is all you can taste. The other accompaniments don’t do much and I wish there was less peppers as the hot dog itself was delicious.
Pulled Pork Nachos; corn chips topped with 12 hr smoked pork, pinto beans, tomato salsa, bbq sauce, lime cream and cheese – $15
But the winning dish of the night was yet to come. We were recommended by the waitress that anything with pork is generally quite popular, and I now know why. Straight from the oven with a plate that is still hot, I slowly pull apart this dish to taste each element. The pork is smoked for 12 hours and is extremely soft and tender with subtle flavours. The tomato salsa on the other hand is cool and refreshing and together with the crispy corn chips and cheese, there is a winning combination of flavours and textures in your mouth. Divine.
The Damn Skippy; grilled kangaroo & macadamia burger with beetroot, drill mayo and rocket on a grilled bun – $12
After this, the two of us are satisfied but feel that there is still room to try another main. And so comes the Skippy Burger! Reminiscent of some modern burgers (small surface area but tall), this dish wasn’t really particularly amazing for me. The meat is tender and goes well with the beetroot, but it lacks flavour and could use more seasoning. The accompanying dill mayo is quite weak and doesn’t help the already underflavoured meat. There are macadamias in the bun which is different, but a bit strange and doesn’t add substance to the dish. Needless to say, this dish was my least favourite of the night.
After this we took a break for about an hour and discovered that Thursday nights is trivia night! This restaurant is just full of surprises! Five rounds of trivia (you don’t have to participate in all of them) and chances to win free alcohol, we were definitely entertained. We didn’t win unfortunately, but our moods were cheered up by the desserts.
Cookies n Cream; salted caramel ice cream between two chocolate molasses cookies with hot chocolate fudge – $10
Cookies and cream, a literal play on the name. A scoop of salted caramel ice cream wedged between two soft cookies, the ice cream tastes exactly like Werthers original and was delicious! There was also a salty flavour which matched the sweetness strangely enough. However, this dessert should be shared as after a while I got a bit sick of it and it is best savoured in small bites.
Ice Cold Guac; sweet avocado ice cream, strawberry salsa and waffle chips – $10
By this time, a third friend came and joined us (yes everything mentioned above was consumed by two people! Such fatties!). She ordered the Ice Cold Guac which I got to try as well. Having only tried avocado once before in a sweet form, I pretty much forgot what it would taste like. The ice cream here was extremely smooth (similar to a slightly firmer soft serve) and tasted exactly like guacamole (no surprises). The strawberry salsa was quite tart and sour and individually the components of this dish were a bit strange, but together it somehow worked!
The lessoned learned from this visit is to never judge a book by its cover. The Dip, although looking dark and dingy provides great food and also entertainment! A good place to grab a quick snag or to spend the night drinking and munching away to classic American food.
The Dip @ Goodgod Small Club
55 Liverpool St, Sydney, 2000
Ph: (02) 9283 8792
Wednesday & Thursday (5pm – 11pm), Friday (5pm – midnight), Saturday (6pm – midnight)
