January 22, 2010

Restaurant Review : Good Fortune Roast Duck House, Northbridge. Plus, Abandoned Sail Factory Photo Tour


Good Fortune Roast Duck restaurant, William Street, Northbridge. An institution. However, during a recent visit, something terrible happened to me. I feel so dirty. So ashamed. So... so... white. I ordered the boneless roast duck with noodles, and an extra serving of choy sum. Its a great lunch time treat. Always delivered to the table quickly. This time,  something was wrong. Very wrong. Trinny and Susannah wrong. Although I am finding it difficult just remembering the experience, I have to write it down here, you know, to let it out, and move on with my life. Yes, I got the dreaded - Guilo Special. AKA the whitey deluxe. No duck sauce. No plum sauce. Am I really, just another Guilo?




I waited for the waitress to walk by, and called "Excuse me?". "Yes, is something wrong?", she asked me knowingly. "Umm, can I have the... the...sauces?". My face must have shown the embarrasment, as she (lets call her Chun Li) hurried to get the sauces. Before Chun Li even got back to the table, I knew something was amiss. Chun Li was only carrying one sauce container, just a small Chinese bowl. The single bowl was placed onto the middle of the table. Me - "ummmmm..... excuse me...", Chun Li - "yes, what is it?". "ummm....and the...the ummm....and the plum sauce as well?. Now, I was getting very, very upset.



Why me? What have I done to Asians, to deserve the Guilo Special? I began to question life itself. Chun Li returned to the table. "Um, just so you know next time you must order a small serving of kail lan or choy sum or some other vegatable not just pay one dollar extra vegetable". "WHAT?"... "Ok this time next time no extra vegatable one dollar must order small serve of vegatable". With that, Chun Li returned to the safety of the front counter.


I was devastated. I was confused. I couldn't think clearly. "Chun Li!" I called her back. "Yes?". "umm, Chun Li, I have been coming to Good Fortune for long time. Are you saying that I can't pay for extra vegetables anymore?". "Yes". The bargaining continued. "Look, I don't really need a whole extra plate of Chinese vegatables, just an extra bit of.." ..."No!"


Really, I still don't understand what happened. One minute, I'm a local writer, introducing whiteys  the world over to the delights of Dim Sum. I have done my bit for cross-cultural relations, explaining the concepts of "Yellow Fever", and even the "Whitey Ratio". The next minute, and its NO FUCKING SAUCES FOR YOU.



So, what do I do? Recommend this place?. Hell yes! The best duck this side of Tsim Sha Tsui. Decor : attrocious. Not even clean. The greasiest floors in Perth, you actually can slide all the way to the toilets out back. Service : depends if you are Asian. As I am currently re-evaluating my place in the world, I am seemingly not qualified to comment (see what you've done, Chun Li?) Whitey Ratio: great. Food : succulent, boneless, duck. To be honest, they could double the price of the boneless duck, and I would still be a regular. Double the price. Triple it. I dare you.



Overall : 10/10 - a must visit. Go down, order a half boneless duck, some rice, and some Chinese veges in oyster sauce (small size). It's one of the best meals you can have in Perth. Make sure you get both sauces. Let me know if you get the sauce-less Guilo Special.




Good Fortune Duck House on Urbanspoon

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

yeah they have started doing this recently. my brother had the same problem and he has been going there for a while. if they start behaving like twats it might end up hurting them because they arent heaps better than 4 seasons. better but not by all that much

the young dude who chops up the meat and the older lady are cool, it is this young bitch who appears to have become their own version of the soup nazi who needs to calm the fuck down.

sanj

N. said...

Sanj - absolutely spot on, the three people you described are exactly my experience as well.

Matt C said...

I've been there twice in the past month or so... once I got the sauces, once I didn't. I thought it was just me!

acc521 said...

I'm having flashbacks to our experience Sanj. No. sauces... Can't sleep. Not. Asian. Enough!

Anonymous said...

haha hey i got the sauces that day. i might put on my singaporean accent the next time i go in, see if that makes a difference.

sanj

Bento said...

The young girl who has been there for ages is flat out awesome. Attitude up the yin yang, but once you get on her good side, you're golden.

Have yet to be denied sauce. Maybe I'm just lucky.

Beaufort Street Bloggers said...

Perhaps the problem is also in the ordering of boneless duck. The boneless option is there for the white man, the Chinese tend to like their beasts more intact.

On an unrelated note, we ordered a whole suckling pig from there once for a party, the entire thing was consumed in about 15 minutes, including it's snout, ears and tail. It's a great catering option, and it comes very well presented with a fake hibiscus behind its ear. The chopping man even tells you how to cut it up.

Great blog by the way, very much enjoy the photos.

N. said...

Wow, Beaufort Street Bloggers! Thanks for taking the time to comment, I have been a long time fan of your blog. The pig sounds amazing...

Regarding Bones/Boneless, you may be onto something, that I hadn't previously considered, but knew all along (if that makes sense).

I have spent some time in China. Once, we had a judge in Guilin stop the car to buy some fresh dog, and I can assure you, that was consumed meat-on-bone later that day. But, I digress....

Thanks for your blog, you are doing a great service for many people.

Anonymous said...

Hahah.. I've just come across your blog and I"m definitely bookmarking this! Well done!

RE:Good Fortune... I find that when I'm with other asian, I get the full service and smiles! But when I go there with my fiance.. who's white.. they treat me like I'm a ghost! Wtf!

Anonymous said...

im trying to track this place down, is it possibly Fraser Doyle Sails in north fremantle? i respect you cant give the address, but a clue would be handy

N. said...

Hey anon - three clues:

google fremantle taskers

Anonymous said...

Taskers sail factory has been demolished.

N, are you going to do the PEC or am I going to beat you to it...

N. said...

hey anon.. I hope one of us gets to it, and has a camera in-tow... good luck!

Rob Ahern said...

love the blog. these are spectacular images. i lived in perth my whole life, never seen these places!

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