Out & About: Peet vs. Sydney

It was my birthday last week, and being the amazingness that he is Mr B decided to whisk me off to Sydney for four days of eating, drinking and shopping! (well, mainly eating...) Obviously I have to share a few highlights. Some seriously good food went down, I can tell you...

We kicked off on Thursday night (b'day night) at Onde, a tiny little french bistro just around the corner from our hotel in Darlinghurst. It was totally awesome, really simple french food. I had an amazing linguine with tomato, capers, chilli and preserved lemon and Mr B had what was quite possibly the juiciest, most delicious chicken I have ever had the pleasure of eating. I was worried my pasta might be a bit boring, but it was packing so much flavour! Highly recommended.

The next morning we headed for brekky at Bills, which was a super cute cafe right across the road from Onde. My eggs were sooooo light and creamy, and Mr B's fluffy ricotta hotcakes with honeycomb butter (yes, you read that right) were unbelievably delicious. Though beware if you don't have a sweet tooth - these pack a serious sugar kick!

After breakfast we walked up to Oxford St where we spent quite a few hours shopping, then decided to grab a quick bite at a cute little tapas-style bar called The Passage, before heading back to the hotel for a pre-dinner siesta.

We shared a crispy calamari and cute little mini burgers, then washed it down with a couple of icy cold ciders. So tasty!

 

After a long nap it was time to get ready and head out for a late dinner at Spice Temple - yet another notch in chef Neil Perry's belt. We were treated to some pretty special Chinese cuisine, along with artfully made cocktails and a rather extensive wine list.

The menu is designed for sharing, so we opted for one starter, two mains and a side of chinese greens, along with a perfectly matched bottle of pinot gris.

Lamb & Fennel Dumplings

Guangxi style roast pork belly with
coriander, peanuts, red onion and sesame seeds

Three shot chicken

The next day we headed down to Bondi Beach, and took a walk down to Bronte Beach along the cliffs. The lunch we had might have been average, but the beautiful scenery more than made up for that.

We headed back to Darlinghurst in need of some decent eats and a cold drink, so headed to yet another tapas bar - Li'l Darlin, which was advertising $4.50 pizzas. Mr B placed the order and came back to the table informing me that he had just ordered three of said pizzas, much to my horror! However, I was relieved when they arrived that they were "tapas-style" and a very manageable size. The thin crispy base and fresh toppings were delicious, especially when accompanied by a jug of Pimms.

Sadly the next day it was time to head home, but not before one last culinary adventure; which actually turned out to be the highlight of our trip. Mr B had cleverly booked us a table at Sake, which was a great way to kill a few hours before our flight.

After perusing the menu and chatting with our delightful waiter, we decided that we had to try as many dishes as possible, so went with a (rather large) selection of entrees.

We kicked off with the Kingfish Jalapeno - slices of fresh kingfish in a yuzu soy dressing and topped with thin jalapeno slices & coriander. It was absolutely beautiful.

Next up; sashimi tacos topped with spicy tomato salsa and accompanied by a sake shot.

Salt and pepper tofu came next. Crispy fried to perfection...

Next came my personal favourite; the Beef Tataki. Words simply cannot describe how amazing this beef was! Lightly seared tenderloin generously dressed with the most beautiful ginger soy tataki sauce. HEAVEN on a plate.

Crispy fried chicken was next land on our table, served with a selection of dipping sauces - spicy tomato salsa, jalapeno and spicy mayo. What can i say really? Just another amazing dish in a string of amazing dishes!

We were feeling pretty full by this stage, as you can see the portions were quite generous, but pushed on with the Tonkatsu Cups. Crispy panko crumbed pork belly in a dainty lettuce cup topped with japanese barbecue sauce and crunchy cabbage. I loved the presentation of this dish, the colours worked so perfectly together on the plate.

And the final dish to arrive was the steamed beef dumplings, which were lovely and light - the prefect note to end on. Or so we thought.....

After we finished up our food and wine, our delightful waiter was back asking if we wanted dessert. I must have been on some sort of foodie high because I heard the word "yes" coming out of my mouth before I even had a chance to think about how full I was feeling!

We decided that sharing a dessert might be a good decision at this point, so we ordered coffee and a chocolate fondant to share. I think I'll let the photos speak for themselves on this one....

 

Would you take a look at that oozing chocolate!? All I can say is wow. The entire meal from start to finish took us a leisurely 3 hours, and every minute of the experience was incredible; well and truly topped off by meeting the chef at the end! If you are visiting or living in Sydney and you haven't been to this restaurant, all I can say is GO NOW!

So thank you Sydney for turning out the beautiful weather, some great shopping and some seriously tasty foodie adventures!