Is it a mistake to go to Sydney and not eat at Tetsuya's?

[ChrisTaylor]

Seemed like ages ago when I posted this thread but now it's not too far off. Bookings are finalised and everything else.

The final list:

Guillaume

Four in Hand

Marque

Aria (lunch)

Quay

Bentley (lunch)

Becasse

est (lunch)

Sepia

Berowa Waters Inn (lunch)

Pier

[ChrisTaylor]

I head to Sydney on Saturday morning. Will post some photos and reviews as I go, but the final list ended up as:

Dinners:

Guillaume @ Bennelong

Four in Hand

Marque

Quay

Becasse

Sepia

Pier

Lunch:

Sake (followed by cake at Le Renaissance)

Ormeggio

Etch

Aria (just the lunch special--not that excited about it to pay for the full degustation)

Bentley

est

Berowra Waters Inn

Will squeeze in a visit to Zumbo's somewhere.

[Broken English]

Sounds like a great list. I'd love to know what the new Becasse is like, I have a booking there in two weeks.

Make sure you have the Peking Duck consomme at Aria. It was my favourite course last time I went.

[nickrey]

Looking forward to your reports Chris.

With that list I'd see it as somewhat the opposite of "taking one for the team"

[Broken English]

I was recently in Sydney and had the opportunity to experience, Quay, Marque, Tetsuya, Otto, Longrain and Rockpool Bar and Grill.

I would skip Tetsuya altogether. Although the fish was prepared extremely well and there were some highlights to the meal, the service was spotty, the decor looked 'tired' and overall the experience was very very underwhelming and surely not worth the expense, in my opinion,

You will not go wrong with Quay and Marque.

Otto is a great Italian seafood restaurant on Woolloomoolo Harbor which is nice place for lunch if the weather is good. Longrain served some of the best and innovative Thai food we have ever had. Fun family-style food with great cocktails.

Rockpool Bar and Grill was okay but nothing worth going back to.

I worked at Otto for almost a year, just before the last chef, James Kidman, left. The food is good and simple modern European, but it is quite expensive. I've eaten there once since I left and the food has gone up a notch under new chef Richard Ptacnik (he was senior sous when I worked there).

I've been wondering about Rockpool Bar and Grill, I can't see how it's worth anything like two hats, especially when restaurants like Bilson's and Tetsuya's are also two hats. In my opinion, it's good, but overhyped beyond all belief.

[ChrisTaylor]

Sounds like a great list. I'd love to know what the new Becasse is like, I have a booking there in two weeks.

Make sure you have the Peking Duck consomme at Aria. It was my favourite course last time I went.

I like the idea of both an entree and main of duck ...

[Broken English]

Sounds like a great list. I'd love to know what the new Becasse is like, I have a booking there in two weeks.

Make sure you have the Peking Duck consomme at Aria. It was my favourite course last time I went.

I like the idea of both an entree and main of duck ...

Well, duck is the Chuck Norris of meats, after all.

Kind of a shame you're not going to Rockpool though, I would really like someone to vehemently disagree with my experience last time I went there. I found it so boring and repetitive. I mean, I love soy and ginger, but in a degustation menu I don't expect them to be repeated 5 times in nine courses. Neil Perry's dishes on Iron Chef last season give me some hope though, maybe it was just a bad night.