Ocean Room, Circular Quay

Miss Piggy (and her +1) dined as a guest of Ocean Room and Wasamedia.

Ocean Room is one of a handful of beautifully situated, fancy pants restaurants at The Overseas Passenger Terminal near Circular Quay.  I've been here once before but only for a few nibbles at the bar.  The bar snacks here were exceptional and I knew I wanted to come back...someday.

The restaurant overlooks our glorious harbour with a prime position opposite The Opera House. Throughout dinner I keep take peaks out the window and feel slightly jealous of people who get to stare at this view all day (or for the lucky ones who live around here who get to stare at the Opera House whenever they please). Ah well, I get to stare into Everybody Loves Ramen's laundry window so I guess living in Parramatta has it's own perks too.

I'm catching up with my friend Miss M and we're here to sample the Ocean Room's new autumn 12 course tasting menu.  TWELVE COURSES! I was worried that I'd be over-full by the end of the meal but as with the way with Japanese food everything was light, fresh and well-balanced. I left Ocean Room feeling satisfied...and good.

I'd had a bit of a rough day so we eager to start our night off with a cocktail.  Miss M is more of a wine drinker but I twisted her rubber arm to join me in some cocktail fun.  My tipple is the Blood Orange and Plum Sour described as a "juicy whiskey sour with succulent blood orange and plum scotch whiskey, plum wine and blood orange juice, cinnamon orange syrup and bitters". It's just what the doctor ordered and I enjoyed the woody notes of the whiskey. Miss M  goes for a good old classic - the Mojito - and I'm told it's good stuff.

Our tasting menu begins with "Kaki" - freshly shucked Sydney rock oysters with Guinness, myoga (ginger) and a Yamazaki (whiskey) silk. The oysters were juicy, plump and still a little briny, fresh with a hint of sea water. I really enjoyed the silky, slightly sour "whiskey silk" that felt like jelly on the tongue.

Our second course, Ochazuke, brings a bit of theater to the table. I can tell we're in for an interesting + entertaining meal as our waiter pours cold-drip dashi and premium gyokuro green tea into a small bowl of Koshihikari rice crust, flame seared latchet (fish), umeboshi (salt plums) sorbet, wasabi dust. The flavours in this dish were really interesting - so many temperatures, tastes and textures in every mouthful.  The dashi + green tea "broth" was slightly salty, tasting of fish in a powerful, earthy (or ocean) way.  I loved the crunchy "rice crust" that reminded me of puffed rice and the sorbet was savoury and refreshing.

Moving on to course #3 and #4 we have Maguro - yellow fin tuna with Sicilian green olive + buffalo mozzarella drops, crystalised yuzu, soy pearls, tomato chips following by Shinjo - housemade croquette of tiger prawn & calamari, yuba angel hair.

The Maguro is basically a tuna tartare which requires us to mix all the elements on the plate together in order to get the best flavour out of the tender, soft tuna.  Amazingly this simple looking dish seems to contain nearly every flavour all in one mouthful; sweet, sour, salty and umani. I loved the Shinjo which reminded a lot of a Thai fish cake in terms of flavour and texture, and who doesn't love a salty, crunchy lotus root chip (rhetorical question I think as EVERYONE loves them).

The theater arrives back at the table with the arrival of the pretty-as-a-picture Onsen or "autumn vegetable collection".  The centre of the plate houses what is basically an oil-burner containing a rich, unctuous, salty anchovy and garlic bath that I can't get enough of. Along the rim of the plate sits fresh, seasonal vegetables for dipping.  So simple but one of my favourite dishes of the night.

The sashimi platter is so fresh and it feels like an incredible healthy dish of food to be eating.  I can't quite remember all the different fish appearing on the platter but I know we had some tuna and some salmon. There were quite a few varieties of fish that I'd not heard of before - some were very 'seafoody' in flavour and others fairly mild.

Interestingly I found the strips of wagyu beef in the Shabu to be quite "meaty" - almost in direct contrast to how delicate the thin slivers of beef actually were. The beef was served in a dashi consommé with grilled tofu and seasonal mixed vegetables.  I added the lime, chilli and soy dipping sauce directly into my broth which I thought helped counterbalance this meaty tasting dish.

I absolutely loved the Miso Cod - one of the Ocean Rooms signature dishes. The fish is fall-apart tender and lusciously sweet thanks to the orange miso it is cooked in.  I enjoy the savoury element the little piece of grilled shallot adds to the mix - a nice counterbalance to the sweetness of the miso.  The pile of ginger risotto offers a petite little carb-fix.

It also appears that my cocktail has run out so I decide to try the Rouge Royale - a fizzy strawberry drink with Martell VS, creme de peche, strawberry, orange, lemon juice, Angostura bitters and Clover Hill sparkling. I loved that my cocktail came with a rosemary swizzle-stick as it gives me another idea of what to do with all that rosemary I have growing.

I was a little confused when our waiter places the Butabara down in front of us - how exact do I open this little parcel without spilling pork broth all over myself? Ah, in a flourish a pair of scissors is brandished by our waiter and the top of our cellophane packet is snipped off to reveal a parcel of steaming simmered pork belly, melting tofu, yuzu chilli and ponzu. Loved this - the broth reminded me a lot of a tonkatsu pork ramen and that's never a bad thing.  The silky, soft tofu didn't "melt" however so we think that might be some creative menu writing?

I was really looking forward to the Sansui as I've been craving steak lately (the side affect of cooking mostly vegetarian food at home these days I think). Whilst I prefer to eat grass-fed meat there's no denying that the wagyu flat iron steak was flavoursome and tender, and incredibly well cooked. It was served with a Tasmanian pepper jus, an ENORMOUS and meaty quinoa crusted king prawn and an Americaine cream and agedashi taro potato "tower".

I like that the meal proper ends with a plate of edo-mae sushi.  It's a nice light note to end on -- and rather it's unconventional I think to go back to something light, rather than end on a heavier meat dish.  We're told that this sushi is an "authentic Tokyo style nigiri". 

I saw this dish arrive at our neighbours table about 10 minutes before we received our dessert and I actually thought it was a savoury dish of cold soba noodles carefully wrapped "around something".  I was jealous that we weren't getting it as part of our tasting menu as it looked so intriguing.  It turns out that this dish is not soba noodles but dessert.  Amaguri - is a chestnut mont blanc with green tea angel cake, spiced ice cream, chestnut puree and cognac persimmon.  It is topped with a little chestnut that looks like a little brain and it's the first chestnut that I've eaten and actually liked.

The Ocean Room is at the Ground Level, Overseas Passenger Terminal - Circular Quay West. Phone them on 9252 9586.

The (new) Marlborough Hotel, Newtown

Miss Piggy dined as a guest of The Marlborough Hotel for her first two meals. On the third visit she cracked open her wallet and bought her own lunch. True story.

Even though I walk past The Marlborough Hotel in Newtown every few weeks or so I failed to notice the whole place had shut down for a full renovation and make over. I think my eyes were distracted by that “other” Newtown pub that has also had a recent make over and ended up bright green like a radioactive frog.

The "new" Marly is bright, light, airy and fun. It’s also feels much more feminine than before with the decor (both inside and out) reminding me of a garden party. There are loads of comfortable upholstered couches, hanging baskets of flowers and astro turf . Gone are the dark, masculine booths, carpet and wood that adorned the old Marly. Don’t worry though boys as you can still get beer on tap and a good blokey feed. 

I like how "fun" the food options are at the new Marly Kitchen. It’s really good mix of that diner craze that is popular at the moment (cue the cheeseburger with fries) and good pub staples like steaks and schnitzels. It’s the best of both worlds.

The new menu also has some fun twists on regular pub items such as “chip nachos – there’s not a corn chip in sight. I really got a chuckle out of seeing the “Backyard Platter” listed on the menu – a perfect mix of Aussie BBQ favourites such as Jatz with cheese, cabanossi and dip – perfect food for sharing over a beer or three on a sunny Sunday (or Saturday) afternoon in the beer garden.

The new menu also has a REALLY large selection of vegetarian options on the menu which is a rare sight at a pub (or anywhere really). On my first visit I’m with VegeTARAian so we try a few of the non-meat options. We’re planning to come back with a bigger vegetarian group soon as there are SO many vegetarian choices we hardly made a dent in things.

Tara is keen to try the Vegetable Schnitzel ($17.00) which is something VERY VERY rare to see on a menu anywhere. We’re told the schnitzel is made from “seitan” which Tara pronounces like “satan” (who staunch meat eaters might think concocted this “non-meat” schnitty) but I thought it was pretty good. The flavour is good (quite nutty) and the texture was somewhat meaty (like a sausage perhaps) but more “bouncy” which makes sense seeing as this product is basically pure gluten. We had the vegetable schnitzel with a side of mushroom gravy (all their gravy’s here are vegetarian) along with some stellar, creamy mash, and fresh, crunchy batons of vegetables.

The minute I spied the Chip Sandwich on the menu ($8.00) I knew that I HAD to have it. The chef tells us it’s something that he’ll often eat in himself while working in the kitchen so he thought why not put it on the menu. I tell you the man is a genius! This simple, but delicious sandwich will bring back memories for just about every poor uni student or British backpacker who has whipped themselves up a chip sambo to ward off certain starvation.

The Nacho Fries ($18.00) are a tasty and interesting twist on your regular nachos. We have all the usual suspects - salsa, guacamole, cheese and beans - adorning, not crunchy corn chips, but big fat steak fries. The creamy guacamole has a mild heat to it and the salsa is vibrant and colourful, offering a burst of freshness with every mouthful.  I really loved the spicy beans -- they have a good amount of smokey + spicy = tasty! And can I just say how much I LOVE liquid cheese. I kinda want to burst into the kitchen, find the liquid cheese bottle and empty into my mouth. But, that would be wrong (or would it)?

I'm back a few short days later I really need to try the cheeseburger as I'm still on my quest to find a Shake Shack doppelgänger. Whilst there are loads of meaty options on the new Marly Kitchen menu I need to get my cheeseburger craving sorted first before I can move on. 

The cheeseburger is very substantial and it comes with fat, steak chips - so I think it's pretty good value for $16.  It's gloriously messy to eat and my little rectangle of wax paper looks like something akin to a crime scene by the time I'm finished - a good sign of enjoyment I'd say.  The burger comes on a sweet, pillowy brioche bun (as they all do here) which is soft and fluffy from being steamed before serving. The juicy pattie is generously sized with a hint of pepper and is blanketed in a layer of melty cheese AND my beloved liquid cheese. The whole lot of topped off with a squirt of tomato sauce + mustard. I am happy!

I brought my meat-eating work buddy along so that I could get snaps of some other options for carnivores but she was too tempted by the Veggie Burger not to order it! This thing is HUGE and a much less messy affair to eat than my lovely cheeseburger (or perhaps she is just a more coordinated eater). The burger has a flavorusome veggie pattie, sweet potato, beetroot and tomato amongst other things and my friend says that it's really good.  I didn't spy any liquid cheese on there though...perhaps because I ate it all?

I'm back again, this time for a Friday team lunch (paying my own way this time FYI).  The courtyard is really nice area to spend our lunch hour -- a nice respite from our artificially lit cubicle farm.  I'd already decided last visit that I was going to order the steak sandwich ($18.00). The Marly's steak sandwich is a departure from the type of steak sambo I'm used to seeing.  The steak was thin ribbons of tender meat - not the huge chunk of steak I was expecting (making it really easy to bite through). Other than that it had all the usual suspects - lettuce, tomato, beetroot, cheese + big fat steak chips. I cannot get enough of these chips!

I also knew from my last visit that I really NEEDED to try one of The Marly's waffles (all $8.00) each.  I'd had my eye on the pulled pork waffle but when one of my teamsters hinted that she'd like to try the fried chicken waffle I was happy to go halvies (after all a waffle AND a steak sambo is a bit much even for me).  The waffles themselves were quite crunchy, but softened up thanks to a generous dollop of gravy. The fried chicken was EXCELLENT, so excellent that I was sad I was sharing. The batter was super crispy, and just a bit peppery and the tender white meat was still nice and moist.

One of my colleagues had the fried chicken burger -- I'm getting this next time for sure if the chicken inside is anything like the chicken that comes with the waffle.  And here's a picture of a salad - just to prove they do salads (or deconstructed prawn cocktails actually).

 The Marly Kitchen is on the ground floor of The Marlborough Hotel -145 King Street, Newtown.

Balcony Garden: Harvest Monday #25

After two very false starts in trying to grow rosemary (the plants carked it both times) I've finally got a really healthy, prolific rosemary bush.  It's doing so well that I've just had to relocate it to a bigger pot. This made me VERY nervous as I worry that if I transplant things I'll upset them and they'll die on me.

Of course the downside to SO much rosemary is that I really don't have much of a clue of what to do with it ...other than a seasoning for lamb (and there's only so many lamb roasts a gal can eat).  I did try making some rosemary + cheese "oat biscuits" that turned out very VERY badly (more on that another time perhaps) and I was running out of ideas. So what to make?

I've recently fallen in love with potato and rosemary pizzas (having had two very excellent specimens at Napoli in Bocca in Haberfield) so it seemed like a pretty logical thing to try making. It's also very simple - pizza base, drizzle of oil, sprinkle of salt, smattering of finely chopped rosemary, some cheese thrown here and there. Cover the whole lot with thinly sliced potatoes, drizzle with more oil + rosemary and bung into the oven. Wait...wait...wait...and eat.

And how did it taste? Well, I won't be putting Napoli in Bocca out of business anytime soon - but it was good. Really really good!  So good that I've made this pizza quite a few times since this initial experiment.

I'm quite proud of this meal as I didn't use a recipe. For the first time ever I was able to identify flavours (albeit it simple ones like olive oil, salt + garlic) I'd tasted in other similar, professionally made pizzas and put them together to make something quiet decent myself.

So tell me dear reader (lol, I've always wanted to write that) what do you use rosemary for in your cooking. HELP ME!

You can view more Harvest Monday posts on Daphne's Dandelions blog.

Berry Sourdough Cafe, Berry

Sometimes it's great to get out of Sydney - to go for a drive to a place where skies are bluer, emptier. The streets of Berry aren't really any emptier though as I think it's the destination of choice these days for Sydney-siders to flee to.

Berry Sourdough Cafe is a buzzy little place off the main street of Berry serving freshly baked pastries, bread + cakes as well as  breakfast/brunch/lunch and all manner of caffeinated beverages to wake you up for your drive back to Sydney.  The cafe is literally bursting at the seems with hungry visitors needing a bite to eat on their day trip to the country.

But don't let the crowds put you off - be patient and you'll soon be rewarded with a table.  If you're lucky your table will be in full view of the cake cabinet - the perfect spot!

The Boy + I arrive just in time for lunch and fate is smiling on us as we get one of the last tables before the rush really hits. We kick things off with a bowl of crunchy french fries with mustard aoili ($6.00) whilst we contemplate the rest of the menu.

I'm still in a bit of a brunch mood still and really want a meal that has the famous Berry sourdough bread in it.  Whilst the brunch menu has well and truly been put to bed the roast butternut pumpkin, fennel, dill marinated local feta on sourdough ($16.00) is the next best choice. It's a really flavoursome (and filling) plate of food and I particularly love the crispy fennel paired with creamy feta that has generous sprigs of dill through.

I pretty much always have food envy and The Boy seems to have a knack of ordering dishes that I really actually want to eat myself.  The crisp pork belly, hazelnut puree, green pear and raddichio ($24.00) is no exception to this rule and despite eyeballing every mouthful he inhaled I only managed to nab a (very delicious) morsel of crackling right at the end. Doesn't this dish just look like perfection on a plate? Just as aside the guy at the next table SHARED his pork with his wife...take note Boy!

And as I had been in the perfect position to ogle the pastry cabinet all throughout lunch I could not resist a little something sweet to end off our day trip to Berry. This petit coconut orange cake was really tasty, light yet moist bite or two that certainly curbed my sweet craving.  The chocolate tart hid a river of caramel sauce within its chocolate lid that was as shinny as silk and utterly scrumptious.

Berry Sourdough Cafe is at 23 Prince Alfred Street, Berry.  Phone them on (02) 4464 1617.

High Tea at Radisson Blu Hotel, CBD

Miss Piggy dined as a guest of Radisson Blu Hotel & Bistro Fax.

I'm yet to meet a High Tea I haven't liked so it's with interest, and a keen stomach, that I head on over to Radisson Blu Hotel in Sydney's CDB to try their Gluten Free High Tea. I'm not gluten intolerant myself, but hey! it's high tea so I'm up for it!

With so many people nowadays suffering from Coeliac Disease or having a gluten intolerance it's nice to see restaurants taking these dietary requirements into account.  I'm sure all the gluten intolerant sweet tooths out there are doing a little happy dance knowing they can now enjoy a high tea along with the gluten endowed like myself.

The Radisson Blu dining room (aka "Bistro Fax") is light, bright, and airy with high ceilings and HUGE arched windows.  The sofas are plush and comfy and they perfectly accommodate my ever-expanding food blogger's derrière.  This seems like the perfect place to sit and enjoy a traditional British style high tea and while away a few hours on a Saturday afternoon.

Our high tea kicks off with bubbles, as all good high teas should, and our bottle of Marquis de la Tour (from France thank you very much) disappears all too quickly. It's a crisp, clean drop that has a slight fruitiness to it (I hope that sentence makes it sound like I know a little about wine)? 

Is there anything more squeal inducing than the sight of a three teird high tea stand? I think not! It's definitely a pretty sight - all the little sandwiches + cakes lined up just waiting to be elegantly devoured.

Personally, I like to start my high tea experience at the bottom tier - with the sandwiches. I then work my way upwards through the various sweet layers and finally end the day in a mild sugar coma.  Half way through afternoon tea I glance over and spy a couple who have turned my high tea world upside by starting at the top and finishing with the sandwiches at the end!!!  It's a radical move that I've never contemplated myself -- but I think it's something to bear in mind for the future.

I adored the chicken wrap on the sandwich tier - the chicken was moist, tender and well flavoured.  The gluten free wrap was really similar to a thin, spongy crepe in texture.  I would happily eat quite a few of these.
 
Now, I'm not going to lie. I'm pretty sure we all know that gluten free bread is...not like "real" bread. It's never going to be as soft, fluffy or pillowy as it's gluten laden cousin.  The trick seems to be in the fillings -- a moist, flavoursome filling like this beef with caramelized onion and horseradish goes along way in making the bread more moist and less dense in texture.  I'm pleased to see high tea staples like smoked salmon with cream cheese, dill and + capers and cucumber with cream cheese making an appearance - it wouldn't be a high tea without them there. 

Most high tea's have scones lurking about on their second tier...but the things with scones is that they are big fat bundles of gluten...so out they go. I'm actually really happy about that as I LOVED the sweet, crumbly shortbread biscuit (made with a mix of rice and potato flour) that had a perfect divot on top to hold a good dollop of luscious cream and jam.  This was probably my most favourite morsel from the high tea (along with the chicken wrap). It was sweet -- but not overly so, and crumbly like all good shortbread should be, but not too crumbly. It was...perfect. I'm wondering if I can go back for a few more of these...

The top tier of the high tea is actually the same as the regular high tea...it's a total gluten-free zone and as pretty as a picture. The mini chocolate + lemon curd cups were delightfully petite - a perfect mouthful of zingy lemon curd cupped by a thin, sweet shell of chocolate that shattered as I bit into it. Passionfruit is one of my favourite things so I really enjoyed the little glass of tart passionfruit jelly and the airy mini pavlova was over all too soon. The coconut macaroon has been reshaped into a little slice of crumbly heaven and is a tad more dense and substantial than its traditional namesake. We finish the afternoon with a little walnut slice and head back out into the real world...sadly.

High Tea is available each day from 10am - 6pm.  The gluten free high tea is $50pp (regular high tea is $40pp). Our bottle of bubbles would set you back $90.

Bistro Fax at Radisson Blu can be found at the "corner" of Pitt, Hunter + O'Connell Streets.