Rosebery Nabs Sydney’s Only Thai-Style Barbeque Chook Shop

Chicken shops speckle Sydney’s suburbia like chicken salt on hot chips. They’ve become the spot for modern Australian comfort food, inspiring passionate debates on podcasts and at dinner tables over which style reigns supreme. Some swear by a classic rotisserie while others chase Lebanese, Portuguese or Indonesian flavours. In March, Tay Rosebery graced our city with another style: gai yang. And in doing so, became the only joint in Sydney to serve Thailand’s fragrant roast chicken in a classic chook shop setting.

Deeply rooted in Isaan cuisine, grilled chicken is found all over Thailand – on street carts, in market stalls and dedicated restaurants – skewered, hot and ready to eat. You’ll find it in Sydney too, but usually as pieces of breast or chicken Maryland rather than the whole, flattened birds you see in Thailand.

“It’s always been one of my dreams to have a Thai chicken shop in Australia,” Tay’s owner Alex Tanasap says. “It’s something deeply connected to my family and my upbringing.” Tanasap arrived in Australia in 1989, beginning her hospitality career as an apprentice 20 years ago. Now, armed with her grandmother’s gai yang recipe, she’s living her dream.

“Sometimes when you get a Thai barbeque chicken from some Thai restaurants, they adapt it to be suitable for Westerners, but our one is like the real original one we will eat at home,” she says. Her grandmother is from Northern Thailand, reflected in the recipe’s ingredients.

Free-range chickens are flattened and marinated overnight in a mix of garlic, coriander seeds, coriander root, oyster sauce, black peppercorn, lemongrass and several other vibrant ingredients Tanasap is coy about sharing. Then they go straight to the rotisserie.

While charcoal isn’t involved, the flavour doesn’t miss a beat. The meat is tenderised, fully saturated from the marinade, arriving succulent and juicy. The flavours have the kick of a Muay Thai fighter – honestly, it’s addictive. A side of house-made nam jim is sweet, tangy and spicy, but the meat doesn’t really need it.

Sides are important players, too. Tay runs a hot bar and salad bar. There are Greek and caesar salads, plus fried rice, hot chips, teriyaki chicken and a few Thai dishes – like pad see ew and satay chicken. “I wanted to bring something different to the neighbourhood. A Thai barbeque chicken shop combined with a sandwich bar and cafe,” says Tanasap.

Papaya salad and sticky rice – two items often enjoyed with gai yang – are coming soon, after popular appearances on the specials list.

There are three whole chickens available each day, ready between 10.30am and 11.00am. But Tanasap is ready to roast more if the demand is there. Like on Saturdays, when more birds spin to serve the local Thai community.

To avoid disappointment, pre-order by sending Tanasap a message. At $19 for a whole gai yang or $18 for the lunch pack combo (a quarter chicken with three sides), the flavour-to-dollar ratio is off the charts.

“It’s the exact same way we marinate and cook at home,” Tanasap says. “Sharing these familiar flavours with the community feels like sharing a piece of my family’s heart.”

Tay
781A Botany Road, Rosebery
0420 698 978

Hours:
Mon to Fri 4am–3pm
Sat 6.30am–2pm

@tay.rosebery