Dom's Asian Teahouse

PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIA
It was Dom Hii at his Malaysian Teahouse, first in South Hobart and later upstairs in Salamanca Place, who introduced many Hobartians to the flavours of South-East Asia a decade or more before laksa and green curries became mainstream. Since then, things have moved on while Dom simply moved out of the city, south to the rapidly expanding beachside suburb of Blackmans Bay. And, in the nature of such things, his once cutting-edge food might be described as suburban too.

Dishes his menu warns are hot and spicy might be called bland by today's more fire-resistant palates and his sizchuan [sic] hot chilli beef is a very gentle interpretation of the fiery, spicy cuisine of China's fabled culinary region. But a restaurant survives by tailoring its food, flavours and prices to the expectations of its market. Dom has been around a long time and by now knows the tricks and knows his market. He's still there, still doing it and in those terms, and as one of the few evening bright lights in the shopping centre, he's doing it well.

Graeme Phillips