Local Knowledge: Is Sydney’s Own “Little Iran” Emerging in the Suburbs?

“Salam!”

Vahid Hamadin is calling out to customers walking in the door of Dorchin Persian. It’s late on a rainy Saturday afternoon when Broadsheet visits, but there’s still a steady stream of families coming in for lunch, and rows of Uber Eats orders arranged on the front counter. The mellow tones of people speaking Farsi rise over the music.

“About 60 per cent of our customers are actually Australian,” says Amir Hamadin, Vahid’s brother and co-owner. “We do have a lot of Persian customers, but I think Aussies love our food and culture.”

The brothers, along with Vahid’s wife Hurra Hamadin, opened the restaurant in mid-2024. Together with Persian bakery Kian Bread and Persian sweet shop Saffran Patisserie, this corner of Old Northern Road in Baulkham Hills has the makings of a Little Iran. “Vahid and I love to cook,” Amir says. “We both cook for family at home, and we always wished to have our own restaurant.”

The menu reflects the brothers’ heritage, featuring dishes from their father’s native Tehran and their mother’s home in northern Iran. The regional differences come down to flavour profiles. Southern dishes are on the tart side, with plenty of tomato-based stews and sauces for meats. Chilli is used enthusiastically. In the north, dishes are sweeter, often featuring fruit like cherries, plums and pomegranates.

“In the north, they’re close to the beach and the sea, and the dishes are different. Baghali ghatogh is a very famous northern dish – it’s made with fava beans, dill and garlic, served with a fried egg and Persian bread,” Amir says. “There’s also nardoon, a kind of stew. Ours is made from spatchcock marinated in wild sour plum and pomegranate.”

Dorchin’s menu leans south: grilled and slow-cooked meats, mountains of saffron rice. Take the zereshk polo ba morgh, where saffron rice glistens with magenta barberries and slivered almonds. The accompanying saffron-roasted chicken – topped with a tomato-based sauce – is so tender you only need to approach it with a spoon and it falls off the bone. More sauce, mixed through with fat slices of sweet carrot, comes on the side; plus parsley, coriander and half of a brown onion, with the surprisingly sweet rings tasting delicate alongside the chicken.

Like everything on the menu, the zereshk polo is incredibly generous – far too much for one person. “Persian people eat a lot!” Amir says, laughing. “We love rice and we eat in big groups all together.”

That’s evident from the table configuration. In the small room, there are just four tables, three arranged to seat six and one to seat four. Judging from the families gathered for seemingly casual feasts of mixed kebabs, dips and salads, the Hamadins know their customer base.

A quick look at Dorchin’s near-perfect online reviews shows the brothers have carved out a comfortable niche. When I comment that they’re doing well after only 10 months in business, Vahid smiles proudly and without a hint of arrogance, says, “We make the best Persian food in Sydney”.

Dorchin Persian Grill Restaurant
Unit 1/6–10 Old Northern Road, Baulkham Hills
(02) 9686 8989

Hours:
Tue to Sun midday–9pm

dorchinpersiangrill.com.au
@dorchinpersiangrill