Hot in the City: Dada is a place for all

Peter and Kaye Kang are big fans of food and dining out. The couple were the brains behind cult favourite Ramentic in Braddon, which they sold after three successful years.

But things changed for them when one of their daughters developed a number of food allergies. It was difficult for them to find somewhere to eat out that could cater for all their needs.

While more restaurants are offering dishes to suit a range of restrictions, the combination of their daughter’s multiple allergies created an extra challenge.

To deal with these challenges Peter and Kaye decided to open a restaurant that would cater to everyone, regardless of their dietary requirements.

The name Dada is a reflection of this idea:

“’Da’ means ‘all’ in Korean,” Kaye explained.

“We thought, ‘Let’s have a place that’s all for all’.”

While Ramentic was just focussed on ramen, the menu at Dada takes in a whole range of Asian flavours and cuisines. Kaye said that drawing on multiple influences opened up more possibilities and they enjoyed the different cuisines.

“We are originally from Korea, but Peter has worked at lots of other restaurants in Sydney and Canberra. So rather than just doing Korean or Japanese we thought let’s show the diversity of Asian flavours.”

The menu at Dada is designed to serve many dietary restrictions, whether that’s gluten free, dairy free, vegan, egg free or a combination. Everything is made in-house by Peter so they can be confident that there are no hidden allergens.

One thing that is definitely not missing from the menu is flavour! Peter uses bold flavours and textures and his menu doesn’t suffer at all from a restricted ingredient list; if anything, the challenge has made the dishes more creative and interesting.

At $55 the set menu lunch deal is an excellent and affordable way to try a wide range of dishes on the menu, starting with Peter’s own gluten-free bread.

The black vinegar tartare achieves perfect balance with the richness of the beef cut by the vinegar while fresh cucumber keeps things light. Skewers of Korean rice cakes with homemade sweet chilli sauce are another tasty dish.

Traditionally stir-fried chilli pipis are cooked in the shell, but Peter always found that inconvenient and occasionally gritty. His shell-less pipis are cooked with bean sprouts and dried chilli and served with rice.

One of the standout dishes is the Vietnamese-style lemongrass pork which is juicy and packed with flavour. A fresh, herby salad and crunchy cashews are piled on top.

Sweets and baked treats are notoriously difficult to alter for dietary restrictions, but Peter and Kaye have multiple options available. The Vietnamese coffee inspired banoffee pie is delicious, as is the Asian red date pudding.

Not included on the lunch set menu is the Korean fried chicken/cauliflower, but it’s worth adding. Peter couldn’t find fried chicken that lived up to his childhood memories so he developed his own recipe. Customers love the chilli sauce so much they’ve been asking for it in bottles to take home!

The list of local wines is small but perfectly curated to match the food and the cocktail list is similarly focussed on quality, not quantity.

The menu at Dada is available for lunch or dinner with set menu options for both that can be made vegan on request. Dine in or take away the quick lunch specials like Chashu Pork Ramen.

Dada is located at G4/12 Furzer St, Phillip with street access from Worgan street.
It’s open from noon to 2 pm for lunch from Wednesday to Saturday, and from 5 pm to 9 pm for dinner Tuesday to Saturday. Follow Dada on Instagram.