By Cole NeSmithContributing Writer
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Hawkers Asian Street Fare
1103 N Mills Ave
Orlando, FL 32803
Basic summary: it's a great casual environment with an extensive menu at fair prices. There are two ways to go about dining at this Korean/Malaysian/Chinese/Western fusion dining experience. Tapas style or traditional entree style. If you're on a budget, I'd suggest ordering one of the more entree sized rice or noodle dishes - all around $6. Or, if you have some extra cash to spend on dinner, order several of the $3-6 smaller plates. This will allow you to get a sampling of all the influences that make Hawkers unique.
With three of us at the table, we were all able to order and sample many different dishes. We started out with salads. We got the Spring Salad that came with a licorice infused dressing and a Jicama Salad (pictured) that came with a peanut dressing. Both were light and tasty.
One of the things unique to Hawkers' menu are their "Five Spice" dishes. This is a great combination of a mild warmth, salty and a hint of sweet. We sampled the Five Spice Pork Chopettes (pictured) and the Five Spice Tofu. While the pork chopettes were very tasty, they were heavily fried and came out glistening. Tasty... but not very healthy.
One of the things I did appreciate the most about Hawkers was that the meat used in their Western influenced Tacos and their Hawkers Skewers is charcoal grilled. Meat cooked over fire is always more tasty. The tacos were pretty basic with meat, lettuce and some pico. The skewers were fantastic. With the choice of beef, chicken, shrimp and pork as well as 4 marinade flavors, there are a lot of options. My favorite : The Chinese Jerk Chicken. (We also had the Satay Beef and the Lemongrass Chicken. Both were good).
While the food was good, I made the wrong personal decision to go tapas style instead of ordering an entree. After each of the three of us spending about $15 each, I still left hungry. (Thank goodness for late night bowls of Raisin Bran.) But the variety of items on the menu makes it really difficult to settle for one thing.
In addition to slightly larger portions, hopefully the kitchen will be able to step it up a bit in the next few weeks. From the time our first dish was served to when I got my last dish, there was probably a span of about twenty minutes. The dishes are served as they are finished preparing them in the kitchen. So, be prepared to share... or sit and watch one person at a time eat.
With dozens of menu items and thousands of combinations, it's safe to assume that the Hawkers dining experience can be different every time you go. Right now, Hawkers is in soft opening mode. Their grand opening is at the end of April... (so I'm expecting an invitation so I can try some more of those dishes and report back here!!)
