I Don't Eat, I Devour

One of Sydney's most exciting new restaurant / bar combo in the heart of Newtown, Odd Culture boasts an excellent wine list and one of the best value banquets I have had. When stepping into the space, the lofty ceilings immediately transport you away from the bustling, slightly crowded streets of Newtown.  The anchovy cigars caught our eye, so we ordered some in addition to the generously portioned set menu. Crispy, delicate and savoury, the already complex flavours of anchovies are enhanced further by the addition of olive and taramasalata.  Anchovy cigars, $7 each The house bread is curiously named "beer bread". It is a house baked sourdough with house butter, which is rich and generously sprinkled with coarse sea salt. The fluffy bread is a wonderful start to the meal - especially if you're also washing the food down with a couple of cocktails.  As a refreshing first course, disks of cucumber is tossed in silky preserved tofu and salted chilli. The contrasting text...

 The fun, chill little sister to Ester (with their names combined to be a tongue-in-cheek "polyester"), Poly does share plates well. I mean, really well. The cocktails are well-balanced and interesting, and the food menu is curated and beautifully executed.  Cocktails, $23-$24 Each of the cocktails at Poly are gorgeous. Whether you are into something light and refreshing, or packs a punch, the ever-revolving cocktail list has something to suit every palette. Where you'd rather be is a pandan-based, fragrant number; golden buzz is strong yet balanced; and green with envy is a sweet yet smooth cocktail that's dangerous moreish.  Six Natural Oysters, $38 Plump, juicy Sydney rock oysters that hasn't been overly-washed, so they retain the wonderful saltiness of the ocean. Paired with a chili vinegar, they are the perfect start to the meal.  Potato bread, $10 This is a must-order at Poly. The chewy, satisfying bread is paired with a magical whipped sesame dip that we co...

Since its opening at Crown Sydney, I have had several foodie colleagues recommend A'Mare to me, so when I finally found a fitting occasion, I was excited to try their degustation menu.  First, A'Mare is a beautiful restaurant. During the day it is bright and vibrant, overlooking the waters. At night, it transforms into something elegant and sleekly intimate. Another aspect that sets A'Mare apart from other restaurants is that there are a lot of table-side service, which adds another dimension to the dining experience.  Burrata caprese The burrata is presented whole and cut open at the table, then drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with pepper. It is a rich, creamy burrata with very little salt; accompanied by green tomatoes and salsa verde.  Focaccia The bread is, of course, served warm. Springy and pillowy, with a satisfying bounce, it is accompanied by Pugliese extra version olive oil and an aged balsamic that tastes mildly bitter - presented by staff and drizzled ta...

Cuckoo Callay Surry Hills boasts a kitchy-bright interior and a big outdoors seating area, serving a menu of creative, East-meets-West dishes that are what brunch dreams are made of. In the era of covid, the outdoors seating and the in-app ordering are particularly appreciated. There is also a Cuckoo Callay Newtown serving a slightly different menu that I'm yet (but excited) to try.  Watermelon mimosa, $5 Weekend brunch, of course, starts with mimosa. In addition to the classic version with orange juice, Cuckoo Callay serves a watermelon version. It is a pretty watered-down, weak drink, but at $5 a pop, there is little to complain of.  Ask a chilli question and you’ll get a chilli answer, $24 The names of the dishes here are all cheeky, fun and punny. I was geniunely torn between a few options, but settled with this gorgeous soft scrambled eggs with fermented chilli, mushroom and eggplant xo, with a roti paratha on top. This rich and savoury dish is flavoured with fried curry ...

In the lazy, hazy days post-Christmas but before New Year, I have ample time to not be productive, yet here I am, writing up the Christmas lunch which wrapped up a full and busy work year.  Venison tartare Venison is not a meat I see served often - Three Blue Ducks did a wonderful job of ensuring it is not gamey by serving it with beetroot, horseradish and crispy beetroot brik pastry. The beetroot is treated so that it is sweet and sour, thereby balancing the meatiness of the dish.  Kingfish  The raw kingfish is tossed through a curry spice and serve with grapefruit, fried curry leaves and toasted peanuts. A delicious twist on the usually lime-heavy kingfish dishes seen elsewhere.  Burnt leeks Leeks is usually not my vegetable of choice, but even I cannot deny that it is gorgeously sweet when cooked right, and here, the vegan treatment of it with macadamia cheese, capers and smoked macadamias, it is soft and flavourful.  Lamb This dramatic-looking dish is a Moro...

This long-standing Paddington restaurant is something of a venerable establishment. I can't quite believe it's taken me so long to finally pay it a visit, and believe me, it lives up to the hype.  Pretzel bottarga, $18 The first thing foodies will mention when the name 10 William St is spoken is probably this delicious entree. The waiter also recommended it, saying, it has practically never left the menu. We can certainly understand why that might be. Beautifully lightly whiped butter with a generous shaving of salty bottarga, served with a piping hot, seedy, satisfyingly chewy pretzel - wonderfully satisfying.  Focaccia, $4 With such generous serving of whipped butter, we had to order a focaccia just to mop up the remainer of the previous dish. The focaccia came with the most decadent pool of olive oil, and is wonderfully fragrant and fluffy.  Eel on toast, $14 each one of the new, rotating menu items, the eel on toast sounded a little more unusual than the alternative (...

 MONA is an incredible museum and art gallery (perhaps my favourite in Australia), and the food options are just as incredible. There is the wonderful Faro, of course - but I'm going to talk about The Source, a restaurant quirkily giving you the option of dining outdoors on "living tables" with moss and herbs as tablecloths, or dining indoors and risking being seated indoors and eating above a dildo.  The table we got, alas, had no dildo fun, but is a rather aesthetic piece of jade ornament. The dining philosophy is sharing is caring, so here goes.   Spiced eggplant, $28 Eggplant has always been my favourite vegetable, and I fell in love with it once again in Tasmania. At The Source, spiced eggplant is cooked with saffron and fino roast fennel, manchego cream, green olives, roast tomato broth and topped with a couple of grissini. It is rich, umami and complex. The star ingredient - the eggplant - being such a perfect vessel to deliver all these flavour explosions....