Sunflower (Ultimo) - blinded by the sun(flower)

Just like Inspector Gadget's nemesis Doctor Claw, I had my plan foiled one Sunday. Rocking up to Broadway with K and my mum, and hoping to introduce her to Mamak Village, we were instead met at the door by a hand-scrawled "Closed today" sign. Closed? When Victoria Park across the road is swarming with people for Fair Day? Crazy. Instead of stroking my cat like the good bad doctor, we ventured down Parramatta Road in search of dining options. Malacca Straits isn't open Sundays, great. Is anything open at 11a.m. for lunch? Thankfully, Sunflower is.

Sunflower is an unusual name for a Taiwanese 'gourmet' eatery, especially when the plum blossom is Taiwan's national flower, and the word gourmet is used rather loosely. Nevertheless, it's open, it's close to Broadway Shopping Centre, and it's affordable. Two tables are already occupied, a young couple and a quartet of rowdy Cantonese-speaking young 'uns, reading the fading and cracking laminated menus.

The decor here is immediately conspicuous for its Asian kookiness. The mainly white room is hijacked by two loud murals of, um, cows, pink satellites, lightning bolts, creepy black-and-white faces, and of course, sunflowers. Nothing better to stimulate appetites than pink satellites I guess. Tables are small and the seats are either a too-low but cushioned banquette, white plastic barrel seats, or red ottoman cubes. There is even a lineup of available drink options on a counter ledge, looking like target practice. Where's the rifle? So far, so eclectic.

The menu is a bit loopy as well. Entrees include the obvious spring rolls and fish cakes, but garlic bread and Japanese takoyaki? At least there's a Taiwanese sausage. Mains include the usual rice and noodle combos with pork schnitzel, fish fillet, beef brisket, curry chicken, etcetera, but a number of crepe dishes as well. I know crepes are a beloved Taiwanese night market dish, but I have a feeling they're wanting to snaffle some roti business.

Chic Smarty - crepe with smoked chicken, capsicum, mushrooms, shallot and cheese, topped with sweet chilli sauce ($8.90)

The stupidest name for a dish we have ordered this year, the Chic Smarty crepe comes accompanied by a small smount of salad and two slices of garlic bread. The crepe is nicely thin and eggy, and the filling is substantial but a little underseasoned. There wasn't enough sweet chilli sauce for a menu description which states "topped with sweet chilli sauce", and the salad is not dressed properly with lazy squiggles of mayonnaise. What would have been a light and fairly healthy lunch dish ideal for a hot February Sunday turns out disappointingly mediocre.

Pork schnitzel with rice ($8.80)

I love pork chops, whether they be fried, grilled, deep-fried, crumbed, battered, or laced with arsenic. Therefore, I can say nothing bad about this dish, or can I? Taiwanese deep-fried pork dishes are always interesting because they overload the plate with surfeit accompaniments. In this case there is shredded cabbage, red capsicum, corn, pork mince, egg and a tomatoey sauce. Someone dial 1800-TOO-MUCH now! This garniture overkill doesn't detract too much from the crumbed pork, which is tasty and a tad dry, but my bias for the pork wins through and I still found this dish pleasantly acceptable.

Spring rolls ($5.50)

Spring rolls can border on bland, disgusting or both, but happily the ones here are neither. Well-crisped rolls of a teensy-weensy too-thick pastry is filled with a generous and delicious mix of vermicelli, mince, and the usual vegetables (but thankfully not the frozen variety). Again, they come with more garnish: lettuce, cucumber, corn and red capsicum, but five bucks fifty for four spring rolls of this quality is not bad value.

Garden salad ($4.20)

Lastly, a garden salad, which is essentially a melange of the garniture used in the previous three dishes, but with the added bonus of tomatoes and mushroom slices. It is dressed well with an understated vinaigrette and is a reasonably unremarkable bowl of greens.

It would be unfair and churlish of me to be too critical of an eatery where we had a good feed for less than ten dollars a head, so I won't. The food is eclectic but not overly exciting, and the execution can be haphazard. The service is beige but efficient, and the decor is weird to the max by non-Asian standards. But for a quick, cheap, and above average westernised Taiwanese eating experience in this part of the city, Sunflower is a reasonable choice. You won't remember it for its food but you will enjoy the air-conditioning when it's blisteringly hot and humid outside.

What we ordered:
Entrees: spring rolls
Mains: Chic Smarty crepe, pork schnitzel with rice
Sides: garden salad
Total bill = $27.40 for three

The good: spring rolls, low prices, quick service, open early on Sundays

The bad: ummemorable and ersatz Taiwanese food, lowness of the banquette seats

What the?: strange decor that only a designer would love, the name Chic Smarty

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