Opera Bar, Sydney Opera House

One Friday evening, I made my way to Opera Bar with a bunch of my girlfriends (hereafter called CC, Spoon, Tea and Shell) for a night of chatter and grazing. Tea was visiting us from HK, so we were keen to sit somewhere comfortable. However, as with all the other watering holes in Sydney, the after-work crowd swarmed around the outdoor tables and created a haze out of cigarettes. Indoors, was thankfully non-smoking and, since there's no good view from indoors, there were plenty of tables to choose from!

We slid into a cosy booth, dispatching Spoon on a mission to obtain a jug of Pimm's. The first attempt failed. The bartender thought she could pass for an under-18 teen. It will be a sad day when we treat that as a compliment...

Jug of Pimms (~$40)

We were pretty spoilt for choice in terms of sharing plates. CC recommended the tasting platter for the variety and large portions. She was right in saying that it could feed 4 (though the menu says it serves 2 to 3) - but I'll get to that later.

Lamb ribs were my order. Sweet, sticky and meaty, these honey-glazed morsels fulfilled my carnivorous cravings. Similar to the pickled condiments you get in Cantonese restaurants upon arrival, the accompanying pile of sliced cabbage was sour and vinegary. The others didn't like them because they weren't used to the strong flavour, but I found it enjoyable.

Lamb ribs (~$16.00)

The yam crisps were surprisingly cheap (for the place), considering yam is expensive and this was a bit of a novelty. They were good munchies, but not exactly the main attraction.

Yam Crisps ($8.00)

The tasting platter was really 2 plates, so it felt like pretty good value. The bottom level consisted of a tuna terrine with dill, thin crusty slices of bread, juicy pork belly buns (pretty much gua bao) and chunks of trout on little wooden sticks.

Opera Bar Tasting Plate - 1st tier ($48.00)

The top level was made up of sardines, potato croquettes, mini (not that mini) chicken pies, and small green pickled chillis with cured meat. Shell refused the sardines. I was about to, but figured I might as well give them ago. Really fishy, as expected, but the topping of peppers helped a little. Croquettes were as they should be - crunchy and crumbed outside, but creamy inside.

Opera Bar Tasting Plate - Tier 2 ($48.00)

Satisfying comfort-food.

As an aside, I must say that the skill of the waitstaff at carrying large numbers of glassware was admirable. It wasn't an uncommon sight that night for a man to pass by with glasses stacked from below his waistline and reaching above his head. CC swore the girls could do just as well.

The Treehouse, North Sydney

How we got there

Our visit to The Treehouse Hotel was purely accidental. We'd finished touring Sculpture by the Sea, wanted to have dinner on our side of the Bridge, and decided to check out Rengaya in North Sydney. We ambled inside but were regrettably turned away - they were booked out for the night :(

Our hunger pangs were hitting us pretty hard and, it being a Saturday, there weren't many options around North Sydney station. For a moment, I thought that we'd have to retreat to the nearby Hungry Jacks, but soon recalled passing a restaurant that had been perched grandly at the top of a flight of stairs. At the time, I'd glibly called it "cute" and thought it might make a romantic dinner spot, with its potted plants and timber furniture. Gleeful that we had this as a back-up plan, I dragged the Boy off to The Treehouse.

The Treehouse is separated into 3 sections:

1. The garden terrace, which overlooks onto the street, and on that day was booked out for an event hosted by a nearby private school.
2. Indoor bar area
3. Restaurant lounge area

When we entered the restaurant, it was difficult to get the attention of any of the waiters, which was a little odd because we were the first patrons to arrive for dinner and, though the bar area was filled with people, no table service is available to them. I guess they were all busy with the event on the Terrace... Having said that, once we managed to locate someone to seat us, service was fairly smooth for the rest of our visit.

I've got to say, I really loved the soft ambience created by the glowing lamps and whimsical decor - if this were the Sims, my Environment bar would probably be maxed out!

Mismatched chairs and '20s posters scream "vintage chic"

Food

To start, we shared a dozen fresh oysters, served with lemon wedges and a gingery mignonette sauce. No complaints - oysters were indeed fresh, and that acidic accompaniment was delicious.

Fresh oysters - 1 dozen ($32.00)

We also indulged in a couple of cocktails, both of which were a tad more sweet than alcoholic - no less enjoyable though!

Daiquiri ($16.00)

French martini ($14.00)

I had the gnocchi for my main. These starchy potato pillows were lightly pan-fried and served with large prawns, peas, leek and sage brown butter for moisture. This could have become too oily, but they got the balance just right. Thankfully, the portions were sizable and they weren't stingy on the prawns :)

Gnocchi ($30.00)

The Boy ordered a medium steak - Tassie grass-fed eye fillet with cafe de paris butter. I didn't dare eat into his portion, since steaks at restaurants always look so tiny, but he gave it a grin and a thumbs up. I did try the fries, which were prettyyyyy good.

Eye fillet ($33.00)

Verdict

• Food and drinks are decent
• Great atmosphere
• Quite pricey
• Observation: They seem to attract an older crowd

I wouldn't mind coming back for a hearty comforting meal, but given the menu isn't particularly innovative, it's unlikely I'll return for a while.

BLACK by ezard, Pyrmont - Good Food Month 2013

Having trudged through 26 days in a row of uni classes (i.e. no weekends!) and battled through 3 final assessments, I'm finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Amidst all of that learning, I drowned my sorrows in eating - more particularly, in those new honeycomb Magnums with their crisp, nutty, chocolate exteriors... Sadly, there was minimal time for Good Food Month. I did, however, manage to sneak in one lunch at Black by Ezard in the Star with CC.

The deal? 2 courses with a glass of wine/ beer/ mineral water for $38.

CC asked about the cost of adding on a dessert, but the waitress, with a cheeky wink, suggested that one of us order an entree/ main and that the other opt for the main/ dessert combination. We're glad we followed her tip, as the portions were pretty substantial considering it was a fine dining restaurant.

One of the Brown Brothers' reds

Complimentary bread took the form of a mini loaf served with (unsalted) butter and a sprinkle of salt. Though a little dry, it still bore the trademark buttery richness and soft textures of brioche. As far as breads in restaurants go, this was probably one of my favourites due to the novelty and taste. When offered a second loaf, I was sorely tempted to accept. However, my appetite felt a little suppressed that day and so I reluctantly declined. I realised later that I'd overlooked the fact that CC might have wanted some. Social faux pas aside, she mentioned later that she was glad we didn't have that second loaf.

Brioche

 The entree was a pretty assembly of thinly sliced kingfish, sesame custard, edamame puree and chardonnay & shallot dressing. Flavours reminiscent of dried seaweed suggested Japanese cuisine, in contrast to the encrusted dollops of... cheese? Pulps of sweet citrus added little bursts of moisture with each biteful - CC thought it might be grapefruit, but surely grapefruit would have been noticeably sour. In any case, it was a fun dish to polish off.

Hiramasa kingfish sashimi

The chicken was a surprise for me, as it's one of those ingredients that I'm so used to eating that it kind of fades into the background of the menu. The pungency of charcoal from the use of the wood-grill, creamy farro risotto, blueberries and mushrooms made for a really comforting meat dish. Chicken is boring no longer.

Corn fed chicken

 We finished off with a sphere of chocolate ganache that was situated on crushed chocolate biscuit and raspberries. Liquid chocolate was then poured over the top to reveal a scoop of mint ice cream. CC voiced my inner sentiments in her exclamation that "the mint ice-cream doesn't taste like toothpaste!"

Chocolate dessert

It's a pity that Black removed their tasting menu, but I'm definitely keen to return.

Food Society, Darlinghurst

The first time I heard about Food Society was over a year ago when a friend posted photos of a bunch of their sharing plates on Facebook and made me green with envy. At the time I vowed to myself that I would pay a visit, but never quite got around to doing so. Then, earlier this year, I spotted one of its Groupon deals and impulse-purchased the voucher - "High Tea with Sparkling Wine Each for Two ($49)". Once again, a significant amount of time lapsed before making a reservation to make use of them.

Paranoid as I am, I skimmed through some reviews beforehand to mentally prepare myself for anything negative that could potentially have spoilt the afternoon. Gladly, none of the negative items mentioned happened to me, and my overall experience was pleasant! We were running half an hour late due to unexpected traffic on the way to the Bridge. I called ahead and spoke to a waitress who cordially made a note of it. When we arrived, we were settled in, provided with our sparkling wine, and served our courses at a steady pace.
 

It gets dark in there ><

Food Society's high tea is not the traditional sort that comes with tea, sandwiches, scones, jam and cream - though they did serve the first round on a two-tiered plate stand! Instead, its menu is separated into different "canape" categories - savoury, substantial and sweet.

The first savoury canape I tried was a demitasse (small coffee cup) of soup. It was some sort of onion soup with a little sprinkle of parsley on top. It was nice to have something warm to kick off the meal.

Soup

Second was a celeriac custard tartlet with root vegetable salsa. The pastry, filling and garnishing were all light - the epitome of a canape.

Custard tartlet

On the bottom plate lay croquettes and crostinis for two. The croquette consisted of sun dried tomato, provolone cheese, parsley and thyme with horseradish cream. What struck me was how little resistance there was when I bit into it - I wasn't too fond of how the filling oozed out.

The crostini was quite adventurous. It contained trout tartare, capers and watercress, which in itself  wasn't strange, but the external skin of the crostini could be likened to a thin layer of omelette. It made me wonder what their definition of a crostini is...

Croquette and crostini

The next part of the high tea was made up of a mini burger and salad. The burger was a little milk roll that sandwiched some pulled poached chicken, paprika aioli, dutch smoked cheese and baked apple. The slices of apple tied the roll nicely to the salad, which was fruity and sweet (containing walnuts, grapes, sugar snap peas, cherry tomatoes and a light drizzle of beetroot and mint dressing).

Milk roll with chicken

Salad

The final round was very rich, though presented beautifully on a wooden board. I opted to start off with the lightest looking dessert item - the lemon curd and French meringue tart. The meringue was soft, though lightly torched, while the lemon curd was zesty but still quite sweet - and a little runny.

Lemon curd tart

Second was the fudge brownie sitting in some walnut butterscotch. While the butterscotch was a nice touch and added a little moisture to the brownie, it was still quite dry and biscuit-like.

Brownie

Last to be attacked were the ricotta doughnuts. These were dipped in lemon sugar and amaretto honey. Though I wasn't very full by this time, one of these little guys was enough to bring me to satiation. These little balls of doughnut tasted like crunchy, sugary pancake. Definitely comfort food.

Ricotta doughnuts

What's high tea without tea to drink? Clearly Food Society doesn't boast tradition, but I wanted something to cleanse my palate. I ordered green tea and was provided a monster of a pot. I think it was actually larger than my head. Enjoyed it - though not so much the indigestion that followed because I was too greedy and drank the rest in one go at the end.

Not sure how I managed to get the below photo so bright... I might have forgotten to play around with the ISO until too late. Whoops.

Pot of green tea ($3.00)

For $49 for two, I don't think it was a bad deal. Would I be willing to pay full price for it? Probably not...

Origin Dining, Willoughby

We paid a visit to Origin Dining a few weeks ago because I was tugging at the bit for a change of scenery. I'd figured that parking in Willoughby would be simple enough due to the substantial size of its residential district, but it was actually pretty difficult to find a spot. Nevertheless, we managed to find a place and made our way down to the restaurant.

Upon arrival, I was struck by how little floor space they had - if you imagine a rectangular prism and dissect it length-wise, one half consisted of an open kitchen, while the other half was made up of 5 or 6 tables that sat 4 people each. This also meant that throughout our whole visit, the smells wafting from the stove were very tantalising.

Origin seems like a good place for groups - every dish is accompanied by an option to go a size larger in order to share it with your dinner partner.

We decided to share the entree - a salad of chickpeas, quinoa, capsicum, feta cheese, coriander and pine nuts. I was expecting the quinoa to be sprinkled around the dish like cous cous or rice, but it was formed into starchy cubes.  It took some getting used to, and the dressing was a bit sour, but the creaminess of the feta helped to balance everything out. It really grew on me - though it was a bit of a pity that there wasn't more dressing, as the overall dish was dry.

Quinoa salad ($14.00)

We waited for about an hour after our entrees were collected for the mains to arrive, during which I became well-acquainted with their "Life is Short, Eat Dessert First" sign.
 
The scotch fillet came with bordelaise sauce, watercress, caramelised onions and a bowl of fries. It was average - not unpleasant to eat, but not particularly memorable.

Scotch fillet ($28.00)

My dish was lamb rib eye with chickpeas, borlotti beans, and olives. Tasting slightly curried, as well as being moist and tender, I have to say that this was more flavoursome than the beef and my favourite for the night.

Lamb ($24.00)

In summary, Origin Dining is a slightly pricey neighbourhood restaurant that's worth checking out - just don't plan to visit when you're in a rush or if you know you'll be experiencing hunger pangs at 9pm!

Oxford Social, Darlinghurst

To be honest, I childishly don't want to write about this restaurant. I'd be helping word spread, it'll get even busier, and the prices will be bumped up :( At the same time, these guys are so congenial that you can't help but want this place to take off on the food scene. And take off it potentially could, with its fresh flavours, dynamic menu and cheerful hospitality.

Oxford Social's black and yellow signage can be a little hard to miss (the friend who took me there mentioned it a while back but I could never quite spot it). However, if you're like me and frequent Oxford St on public transport, the landmark to look out for is the Happy Herb Shop a couple of doors down from it.

Once inside, you're greeted warmly, seated (we made a booking in case it was one of their busy days), and served water garnished with a slice of lemon. I reached for the drinks list and couldn't resist ordering a cocktail (see below). I tend to nurse my one glass of alcohol for the duration of the entire meal, so I take care to choose citrus cocktails. This one was not only acidic, but contained floral notes (too bad I can't remember what they put into it!).

"Fiasco" ($16.00)

Oxford Social's menu is made up of specials, entrees/ "grazing" and main meals. My friend and I opted for a number of grazing plates to eat tapas style. Based on my friend's prior experiences, we started off with 4 dishes but later added 2 (which was regrettably 1 plate too many - I was uncomfortably full by the end!).

The grazing dishes are served together, so it felt like a banquet was being set in front of us. It also didn't take long at all for the food to arrive, which speaks highly of their efficient service.

The first dish I attacked was the chicken tenderloin, one of the day's specials. It was marinated in soy, lime, coriander and chilli, and set on a bed of watermelon and wasabi salsa. It sounds a bit adventurous, but the components that stood out the most were the lime dressing and salsa. The chicken was moist, tender and warm, contrasting nicely with the freshness of the salsa. If you're a bit queasy about eating wasabi/ mustard, fear not: the mustard flavour isn't overpowering at all.

Chicken tenderloin ($16.00)

I moved on to the autumn salad, which contained asparagus, pear, goats cheese and semi-dried tomatoes. Once again, the dressing contained mustard, but once again, it wasn't overpowering - the dressing was more cheesy than anything else. The rocket helped to cut through the cheesiness, the pear contributed moisture, and the semi-dried tomatoes added a punch of acidity. I'm not usually someone who will buy a salad costing more than $10.00 (they're often incredibly simple and just as grassy), but this one was definitely more complex than your usual garden salad, and a whole lot more palatable.

Autumn salad ($14.00)

The bruschetta was up next, and done amazingly well. The bread was toasted until crusty, soaked in olive oil, and served with a mix of semi-dried and fresh tomatoes. I could also taste balsamic dressing, which tends to go well with these sorts of vegetables, and I was surprised that, considering the amount of liquid soaked up, the bread still retained a lot of crunch.

Bruschetta ($7.00)

If I had to pick, the highlight of the evening would have been the scallop dish - paired with Serrane ham and a puree of celeriac and leek, I couldn't have enough of it. The scallops were very lightly grilled and that puree was so addicting I wanted to lick the plate. Pity we didn't order bread to go with it.

Grilled scallops ($16.00)

The arancini balls and prawns were added on afterwards because I was greedy. 4 courses would have left room for dessert, but after those arancini balls, I couldn't think of eating a 7th course.


Ahhh prawns. I do love my seafood, and just as with the scallops, the prawns were cooked very lightly. The prawns were laid out in garlic pernod (liqueur) cream sauce with braised fennel, which upon first glance we thought was pasta.

Prawns ($15.00)

I wasn't a big fan of the arancini balls (they were deep fried and contained leek, mint, chilli, fontina cheese and semi dried tomato. They tasted better after rolling them around in the lemon beurre blanc, but it was nevertheless a bit of an effort eating 2 of them because they were so carby and filling. The interior of the balls was rice-like in texture, reminding me of risotto balls which are so often served at cocktail events. It wasn't bad, but it also wasn't the best thing to eat at the end of a meal. It was also kind of jarring to eat something lardy, having been consuming lighter food for the first 2/3rds of the dinner.

Arancini balls ($15.00)

Were I to consume the exact same dishes again, I would probably rearrange the order of eating to go something like this: salad, bruschetta, scallops, arancini balls, chicken tenderloin and the prawns. However, when I return to Oxford Social (and I most definitely shall), I plan on tasting their mains and desserts!