Gastro Park

This is the best meal I have ever had, full stop.

Big claim? Perhaps. Do I verily believe it is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? Absolutely.

Setting aside its tongue-in-cheek and slightly repulsive name, Gastro Park is an award-winning fine diner headed by Grant King of Masterchef fame. Of course, this post will feature his signature dish, the liquefied gnocchi.

But let's start with a tipple. 

Blossoms, $20

Gastro Park has four signature cocktails, and all of them are extremely tempting. The most intriguing, however, is Blossoms. It is a concoction of gin, elderflower, cointreau and blood orange silk, topped with edible flowers. What is blood orange silk, you ask? I have no idea, but it has the texture of its name: a light yet silky layer perching precariously on top of a refreshing cocktail; more substantial than foam yet lighter than cream. Blossoms has that amazing acidity where you feel refreshed, yet your cheeks do not pucker. 

Negroni, $20

Apart from the signature cocktails, Gastro Park also offers classic cocktails such as this negroni. Negroni has become increasingly popular in Sydney bars, and by the same token it is increasingly difficult to stand out from the crowd. Gastro Park's negroni, however, does. Perfectly balanced, the refreshing bitterness comes first, then citricy sweetness.

The dinner is already off to an excellent start. 

On Saturday nights, the only offerings available are the seven-course and the ten-course degustation. The ten course has the addition of a Moreton Bay bug dish and two dessert dishes. Weighing up our options, we decided to go for the seven-course degustation and spending the price difference on a couple of wines. 

Snacks

The first course is a snacks course, and it set the tone for the dinner: surprising, innovative and absolutely to-die-for delicious. 

The snacks course comes in three parts. Pictured above are a black charcoal cup filled with creamed buffalo cheese (cold and smooth as silk, not to mention the adorable presentation) and a cod mousse wedged between two potato crisps (paper thin, crispy, and satisfyingly savoury). 

The last part of snacks is paper-thin beef, a plum-like sauce and shredded cheese wrapped around a bread stick. My dining partner declares 'they could just serve me those bread sticks all meal long and I'd be happy.' 

Although bread is not technically a course, I can't not mention it. Chewy crust and light, airy bread, paired with perfectly soft butter and sea salt flakes, I had to force myself to stop eating them so that I don't get too full for the rest of the meal.

Scallop and pomegranate ceviche

The presentation of the second course is even more exciting and impressive than the snack course. Liquid nitrogen or dry ice was used to create a copious amount of billowy smoke, and seashells are opened to reveal fresh scallop pieces curing in a very mild pomegranate vinegar along with sweet, caramalised onion pieces. 

BBQ quail, sea lettuces & weeds, shitake

Quail is a fiddly little bird to eat, but the reward is great as the meat is uniquely chewy-yet-tender. I'm not entirely sure what sea lettuces are, other than delicious. This dish showcases Gastro Park's flair for contrast: the simplicity of the quail pairs beautifully with the savoury sea lettuces salad; and its chewy leanness balances the thick, fleshy shitake mushroom as well as the crispy seaweed. 

Liquid butternut gnocchi, mushroom consomme

Here comes the dish for which Gatro Park is most well known: liquid gnocchi, nestled together like quail eggs, served with dried shitake. 

A rich, dense yet clear mushroom consomme is poured over these gems, bringing a contrasting depth of flavour to the very sweet 'gnocchis' which are pretty much little mouthfuls of butternut pumpkin soup. 

As each 'gnocchi' bursts into your mouth, it's almost like drinking two soups of entirely different flavours and textures at exactly the same time. The sensation is very difficult to explain, but it definitely works. 

Seared bass gropper, carrot, duck ham, sunflower, jerez

Fall-part tender, the bass gropper rests in a pool of light yet complex sauce. Duck ham tastes a lot like prosciutto, but slightly more gamey. I'm not entirely sure what jerez is (and google didn't help either), but whatever it is, it was tasty. This dish actually has a lot going on, but when you eat it, it tastes completely simple and respectful of the ingredients. 

Rangers Valley Wagyu beef shoulder, pickles & beets

This, for me, was the highlight of the dish. Normally, the dessert course is - not this time. This is the single most beautiful piece of beef I have ever had in my entire life. The strange thing is this: although the meat doesn't immediately give under the knife, it immediately melts once you start chewing on it. The meat is so perfectly marbled you can taste the juicy fat oozing out with each mouthful. The sauce is very light and largely unnecessary (although it is a very nice sauce), because the meat speaks for itself. I will be dreaming of this course for a long, long time; and it may have forever ruined steak for me. 

Chocolate, honeycomb & vanilla sphere, cardamom, saffron, ginger

The final course makes the dinner go out with a bang - by this point, I expect nothing less of Gastro Park. On a bed of gingerbread crumbs and ginger-flavoured ice cream (very dry, not at all melty, coming in small irregular shapes - like no ice-cream I've had before) rests honeycomb pieces and a chocolate sphere. 

Once you crack the sphere open, a gorgeously sweet liquid oozes out to pair perfectly with the gingerbread crumbs. The honeycomb is nothing like the cut-your-mouth honeycomb in commercial chocolates, the honeycomb used here are soft, chewy, deliciously honey-like rather than merely sweet. 

Score: 6/5 

5/5 simply would not do this meal justice. 

Cost: $140 pp for 7 course menu, +95 for matching wines. 

Address: 5-9 Roslyn Street 2011 Potts Point, Sydney

Website: http://www.gastropark.com.au/

Note: unfortunately, Gastro Park is closing in a couple weeks' time. However, the same team is bringing us a brand new restaurant in the same location - I can't wait for it to open!
Special Thanks: to Chris K, resident foodie, guest judge of not one, but two cooking shows, who convinced me to look past the unfortunate name.