Nel - Once Upon A Time

If I had to pick my favourite restaurant in Sydney, as difficult a task that is and as much as I might hesitate, I will eventually give you this name: Nel. 

Headed by Nelly Robinson, Nel features an open kitchen where chefs combine intricate skills, quality produce and artistic creativity that turns each meal into an experience. Serving degustation menus exclusively, Nel updates its menu every few months to bring you a brand new theme to get excited over. Make sure you book early: seats, particularly the popular seating dates and times, are booked out months in advance. 

To lift us from the gloom of COVID, Nel brought us a Disney themed dinner that's full of theatrics, served against a background of Disney music. The menu is a series of cryptic clues as to what will be served and which Disney film it references. Guessing is half the fun.

In celebration of the Disney menu, Nel gas also created 4 cocktails to team with the theme. Alice in wonderland is a light gin based cocktail with a shiso twist; Moana a rum based tropical punch, the Little Mermaid is a martini with a twist - very strong, we were advised; and Mulan is a beautiful, fragrant, subtle cocktail of gospel rye, honey, ginger and kiwifruit; served with gorgeous petals evocative of her namesake. 

Mulan, $22

A professional food blogger would take great care in photographing the meal, ensuring every photo is perfect. Well, I am no professional food blogger, I was way too excited by the menu, and as a result...I am missing a photograph, and embarrassingly that happens to be the very first thing served. Forgive me as I have had to use Nel's own photo to demonstrate the magic that is the "Eat Me" cookie - wafer thin, so buttery they leave your fingers slightly oiled, filled with a savoury cream with a hidden surprise: popping candy. We are off to a magical start. 

Eat Me (image credit: Nel)

Dragon Fire plays hide and seek: served with flaming charcoal sticks, at first glance it was hard to find what we were supposed to be eating. What appears like little lumps of coal turn out to be little jalapeno poppers - packs a flavour punch but not spicy. 

Dragon Fire

Run away to the circus! If there ever were a time for escapism, 2020 certainly is it. The amazing thing about these wings is that although they look just like an ordinary fried wing, the top part is actually boneless - what you're eating is not so much wings but a chicken mash, for a lack of a better description. 

Run away to the circus

You shall go to the ball is a circlet of pumpkin brioche served with cultured butter. These are so much fun: bouncy, sweet, with that slight nuttiness of the pumpkin; just satisfying enough without filling you up. 

You shall go to the ball

Here, we get a sense of Nel's dark sense of humour. The dish named Bambi & Thumper is a delicate, beautiful venison capaccio served with little bits of rabbit terrine. The balance of fresh rawness and fried goodness makes this an interesting dish both in terms of flavour and texture; and the mushrooms and mini herbs provide some distinctively forrest vibes. 

Bambi & Thumper

Steal form the rich, give to the poor is like nothing I have ever experienced. A rich, umami mushroom consomme is poured at the table into a bowl of slightly pickled onion, sprouts and potatoes, and little golden frozen beads that make the soup shimmer wonderfully as they melt. 

Steal from the rich, give to the poor

Just keep swimming is a perfectly cooked piece of John Dory topped with whirls of fennel and a delicate, barely-acidic but very fragrant lemon foam. It is sprinkled with a gorgeous savoury mixture that reminds me of furikake, a Japanese seasoning that is umami, savoury, and adds interest and crunch to rice dishes. 

Just keep swimming

Donald a Paris comes in two parts. The first part practically walked onto the table in the cutest little egg cups imaginable - these are fried duck terrine. The soft, melty texture of duck meat underneath the crunchy exterior showcases a lovely depth of flavour. 

Donald a Paris, part 1

Part 2 consists of the more traditional duck a l'orange, using duck breast that was aged 7 days to bring out a richness in flavour. It is perfect with the rich, slightly sour and sweet orange and beetroot sauce, and a buttery scalloped potato rounds out this traditional dish with a modern twist. 

Donald a Paris, part 2

If Nel asked me, "do you want to build a snowman?", my response would be "please build one for me". The melted snowman (guess who is the inspiration behind this!) looks like an ice-cream, but it is not! It is a spice-soaked carrot cake encased in a yoghurt mousse and sat on a bed of black sesame paste. It is unexpectedly tart on the outside, yet warm and sweet in the centre. Even though one would think the carrot nose is purely decorative, it actually was a highlight: it is somehow very, very sweet and crunchy - the best way I can describe it is it it were pickled in sugar instead of acid. Very special.  

Melted snowman

In case we were in any doubt as to the origin of "roses are red, beasts are blue", this gorgeous layered cake is served alongside a rose in a glass globe. This is hands down one of the best deserts I have ever experienced. It is a rose, lychee and raspberry flavoured cake (wonderfully moussey and fluffy in turn) with a beautifully perfumed lychee sorbet topped with freeze-dried lychee, with a snow of liquid-nitrogen flash frozen rose petals. The sorbet, in particular, melted so smoothly that it was like eating snow. 

Roses are red, beasts are blue

Finally, we have imagination. A tiny Portuguese tart with strawberry jam and a single blueberry. The clock is striking twelve, the night is over, and we must depart the fairy land - with our imagination to fuel us the rest of the way. 

Imagination

Score: 5/5
Price: $135 for the degustation, excluding drinks. There are three degustation pairing options: wine, premium wine, or non-alcoholic.
Address: 75 Wentworth Avenue, Sydney
Website: https://nelrestaurant.com.au/