Balzac - Sydney

[Shalmanese]

Today, I just got some very good news so my family and I went and celebrated at Restaurant Balzac with my family. For those who are unfamiliar with it, the chef, Matthew Kemp runs a small, cozy local joint focused on serving great french style food focusing on taking many individual components cooked to best highlight their inherent flavour and then bringing them together with an expertly made sauce to make it better than the sum of it's parts. It's also conveniently just 2 blocks away from my house and easy to get in on a Friday night which is very handy for us.

We were in a celbratory mood today so we went for the 7 course degustation for 4 with 1 wine pairing shared between 2 (mother and little brother who is 13 aren't drinkers).

The menu we had tonight was the following (I don't have the menu in front of me so some of these are by memory. Apologies to the chef for any mistakes):

Amuse - Sydney Rock oyster with Iced Verjus

This was a brilliant amuse. Simple, refined, elegant. The oyster was top quality, briny with a strong iodine finish and the verjus lent a really interesting element to the dish. Something I'm definately copying for home use, except with a bucket of oysters .

Mille Fieulle of Petuna Ocean Trout Confit and a Sauté of W.A. Yabbies with

Sauce Bois Boudran

2004 Alsace, Lucien Albrecht - Alsace, France

Clearly inspired by Tetsuyas salmon confit, the trout was moist and flavourful if a little undersalted. However, the yabby was full of flavour. The garnish of fish skin on the top was far too tough and was a disappointment for me as a great fan of fried fish skins. The sauce made of a disconcerting sounding combination of ketchup, tabasco, worstershire and tarragon was actually surprisingly subtle in flavour and played with rather than fought the subtle flavours of the trout. Over all, a solid dish but probably my least favourite of the night.

The wine was intensely grassy and paired nicely.

Panfried Kingfish with Vongole, Chorizo and Squid

2004 Petit Chablis, William Fevre - Chablis, France

I have to admit, my kingfish was just a touch overcooked but the other 3 were done perfectly. It was remarkably flavourful though and seasoned completely through which is a nice change from the salty skin/bland flesh syndrome some other preparations lead to. I'm normally a huge fan of chorizo and I'm certainly not going to turn it down but I didn't see how it added that much to the entire picture. The squid I had was cooked wonderfully and was melt-in-your-mouth tender but my brother complained about a piece so tough it was inedible. The sauce was a combination of citrus reduction and chorizo fat and was amazingly good. The kind you try and "inadvertenly" brush your fingers through so you have an excuse to lick them. I think this was my favourite savoury dish of the night.

The wine was a very odd one. The waiter said that the vineyard grows on top of a fossilised oyster bed and I could definately catch a very strong wiff of some smell which has been frustrating me all night because it's just on the tip of my tounge. It's got a very oceanic taste to it. Very enjoyable but odd.

Quail Breast with braised Quail Leg and Chestnut, Parmesan Gnocci and fried sage leaves

2004 Massale, Kooyong Pinot Noir - Mornington Peninsula

There was a bit of a humerous misunderstanding as the entire table heard the waiter describe the dish as containing "braised quail egg" and me wondering how the fuck you braise an egg. But this was quickly rectified and did nothing to ruin the meal. The breast was tender and well flavoured and the leg was rich in flavour although I have to admit that I couldn't taste the chestnut. The gnocchi was good but not extraordinary but again, the sauce was the standout with a expertly made veal demi-glace without much embellishment. I have to say, I'm quite puzzled by Matthew Kemps fondness for using fried herbs as I've never seen much point to it every time I was there.

The wine was slightly disappointing for me. I've found that with some reds, theres a complete deadness to the finish which completely ruins the taste to me. It's almost as if you get a taste of water. This wine wasn't so bad in this regard but I've had another wine pairing at a degustation that totally didn't work for me whatsoever for precisely this reason. Still, nice lean pinot with quite a minerally taste which paired well.

Caramelised Pork Neck, Butternut Squash, Boudin Noir and Cracklings

2001 Cotes du Rhone, Domaine du Parc St Charles - Rhone Valley, France

The pig comes from a specialty farm in Northern Queensland which, for the life of me, I can't remember the name of now. As an asian and great lover of pork neck which I believe is a greatly underutilised cut, I was really looking forward to this. However, the pork was just briefly caremalised with butter which means that the tough connective tissue in the neck had not broken down at all. The flavour of the pork was rich and deep and laced with wonderful marbling (the farm also does wagyu apparently so they're not into the whole lean pig thing) and was just an indescribably lovely porky flavour. The squash was good but not great, I didn't really see the logical pairing with the pork. The crackling was disappointing as a lover of crackling (in fact, this seems to be a trend, a lunch there a while back contained a wholly unmemorable slice of bone marrow which was also a huge disappointment) as it was far too tough. The boudin was amazingly deeply flavoured and a radical departure from the several times I've had congealed blood in China which seemed to focus on presenting the purity of the flavour of blood. The sauce was the standout favourite of my brother who not only cleared his plate of sauce but also graciously offered to clean our plates as well .

The wine had rich berry notes which was good in itself but my palate was a bit too tired at this stage to judge the appropriateness of the pairing and just tried them individually.

Rhubard Cream Pre-dessert

I was very impressed with this. As someone who does not eat rhubarb often, this has inspired me to try and incorporate it into my dishes. Presented in a shot glass, it consisted of a rhubary syrup on the bottom with whipped cream and chunks of meringue and topped off with chunks of rhubarb. The wonderful crunchy texture of the meringue totally made this dish.

Chocolate Fondant with Nocello Ice Cream, Bread and Butter Pudding with Pain D'Epice Ice Cream

A Spanish fortified wine which I cannot find the name of

Bread and Butter pudding could be quite justified as being called the signature dish of Balzac and one I try and get every time I am there. To me, it's the mark of an exceptional chef that he can turn such humble ingredients into such a wonderful dessert and it's a constant surprise to me every time I eat it how far he surpasses my expectations of what can be done with a bread and butter pudding. The chocolate fondant on the other hand, was just too chocolaty and rich at this stage in the evening. I'm not normally a big fan of chocolate in the first place and I just couldn't handle such aggressivness at the end of such a long meal. It hurts me to say this as I know the kitchen puts a lot of effort into the ice creams but I've been consistently underwhelmed by them. They seem to be oddly dry and gritty (like, sand, not ice crystals) and the flavour becomes too subtle with such a ballsy pairing like a fondant.

It didn't help that the wine was also insanely rich. At this stage in the evening, I would have far preferred a nice, sparkling dessert wine to help lift the palate but the wine and the chocolate, although an amazing pairing, just taxed my already overworked tounge and stomach far too much.

Tea, Coffee, petit fours

For a finish, I chose a springtime tea with mint, rosehip and something else. Dad chose a rhubarb and cream tea, Mum chose a Cappucino and my brother ordered a latte. I'm by no means an expert on coffee but I was not wowed by the quality of either of them although the latte was marginally better. The teas, however, were exceptional. Soothing and complex, it was a perfect end to the meal. The petit fours were a banana creme pie and a champagne chocolate truffle. The creme pie was unmemorable and the truffle was again, far too chocolately for that stage of the night.

All in all, the dinner took over 3 hours and we had a ball of a time. I know that my reviews tend to come off slightly negative sounding but that is mainly because I try to be honest with my percieved flaws with the food. In truth, all of the negative points I raised were minor and inevitable in any pairing of this length and complexity. Overall, the meal was an amazing experience with solid dishes from start to finish and I was highly impressed. In total, the bill came up to slightly more than $90 per person which I think is very reasonable for a restaurant of this calibre. The food was impeccable, the service was friendly and warm and the entire experience was well worth the money. Highly reccomended to anyone who happens to be in the area, if nothing else but to try some of the most refined saucing I've seen in my quite limited experience at high end dining.

Edited March 17, 2006 by Shalmanese (log)

[Shinboners]

That sounds great.

I remember watching Kemp in the "Heat in the Kitchen" documentary series, and the work he had to do to set up the new Balzac.

I think I'm going to have to find an excuse to go up to Sydney for business.

[Shalmanese]

I really do not like to do this but I feel in all fairness that I have to amend my review. After the dinner, me, my brother and my mother all broke out into a perculiar rash. Small bumps would appear on our arms and legs which were intensely itchy and has persisted until today (almost 5 days later). Now, we're pretty sure it was caused by that meal because a) the 3 of us had not had anything together since 48 hours before that meal. b) I hadn't even had anything to eat for 24 hours before that. c) the symptoms were remarkably consistent.

Now, thats fine. I understand restaurants sometimes make mistakes and you can never account for anything. But the response from the restaurant was simply unacceptable. The person we spoke to denied that the meal could have had anything to do with it and was bodering on hostile. He seemed offended that we would even imply that such a thing could have happened.

As a result, I simply can't in good faith reccomend anyone dine there. The food is good but there are plenty of places with good food in Sydney. Spend your money elsewhere.

[cookaburra]

That's one place I've always wanted to check out.

Thanks for the very informative and detailed description of your experience/s there.Even though you pointed out a few faults I still intend to visit there one day. I thought your post was fair to the chef/s as you not only expanded on their bad points but also mentioned the good side.

This is my 1st post.I hope I make some sense.

[Shinboners]

Now, thats fine. I understand restaurants sometimes make mistakes and you can never account for anything. But the response from the restaurant was simply unacceptable. The person we spoke to denied that the meal could have had anything to do with it and was bodering on hostile. He seemed offended that we would even imply that such a thing could have happened.

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I'm sorry to hear that.

How would you have liked them to have handled your complaint?

[Shalmanese]

Now, thats fine. I understand restaurants sometimes make mistakes and you can never account for anything. But the response from the restaurant was simply unacceptable. The person we spoke to denied that the meal could have had anything to do with it and was bodering on hostile. He seemed offended that we would even imply that such a thing could have happened.

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I'm sorry to hear that.

How would you have liked them to have handled your complaint?

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Hrmm... I dunno. I wasn't expecting free food or anything. A simple apology would have been nice. It was mainly their complete and utter denial which I thought to be in poor form.

[Julian Teoh]

I am going to put in my two cents' worth.

I loved the old Balzac in the Spot. Back then, it was nice and suburban, in the nicest possible way. There were just two waiters, Lela (co-owner), some bloke who tried to teach me how to eat skate (unsuccessfully, as I have been eating skate since childhood and was never in a mood to take lessons) , and only two chefs in the kitchen. Service was charming, always time for a good meet-and-greet. Oh sure, it was unbelievably busy, don't get me wrong (especially after the pre-theatre crowd had left), but it didn't seem to matter. We sat over three-course meals (plus pre-desserts and complimentary "demitasses" of mushroom cappuccino and truffle oil) that took hours and hours to eat. The waiters weren't in a hurry to turn tables, and believe me, I wasn't in a hurry to give mine up.

The food was not tricksy, but it was very very good. Earthy flavours of slow-cooked osso buco, simple seared snapper on a garlic mash, whole peeled sweetbreads scattered with fried shallot pieces and a veal jus that transported me back to...whenever. Veloute with escargots, and a wonderful self-saucing chocolate pudding that gave me a fleeting glimpse of God.

For years in a row while I was living in Randwick, I would book Balzac (well in advance, of course) for my birthday. I was lucky to have a local like Balzac. The people in Randwick and surrounds clearly thought so too; having had a wide selection of cheap and tasty Asian food around due to the large overseas student population, to have a top-quality classic French eatery was something to treasure. Entrees were $11, mains were $22, and desserts were $11. Life was good. Amongst my friends, we would discuss the next time we would eat there, and more often than not, we actually did.

Then Balzac moved to wherever it is now. I had to try it, of course. I was disappointed. Now there were machinations on the floor, ruthless serving machines that put the Terminator (if he applied to be a waiter) to shame. Very slick, efficient, but very rushed and probably as a result, coming across as cold. While I sympathise with Shalmanese's dilemma, it does not surprise me that he got the reaction that he did. I don't think the old Balzac would have approached the problem the same way.

The food was still decent, but now, there emerged things that signified the passing of the old Balzac. Truffles, foie gras. A degustation menu made up of seven small portions of the entire entrees list. Things that the old Balzac would never have stood for, in the same way that my local noodle shop would not stand for nitro poached eggs and espuma of tiger penis.

Lela is still there. Skate bloke is still there. But they are mingling in a crowd of new waiters. The model has clearly changed. Matthew Kemp complained on TV about how he was making like $100 a week at the old place and had to open up a place with more capacity. I respect that, and I respect his right to make a decent living for himself in the same way he should respect my right to flog myself comatose in a law office 60 hours a week for a pittance.

Balzac is still a good place to dine. Go by all means, and you will have a nice feed. But it is not the charmer that it once was. I haven't been back since early 2005, and I don't think I will again. I am probably being irrational to take that stance when I honestly think Balzac still deserves a hat and is still pretty good value. However, being in the new space reminds me of what went before and what we've lost, and I cannot bear to face that.

[Shinboners]

Hrmm... I dunno. I wasn't expecting free food or anything. A simple apology would have been nice. It was mainly their complete and utter denial which I thought to be in poor form.

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If I was to look from the viewpoint of the bloke who took your call, I honestly don't know how I would have dealt with it.

It's tricky. You don't want to admit liability in case the diner decides to take legal action. On the other hand, you do want to know just in case there is a food handling, food quality and/or allergy problem to deal with.

With the benefit of spending a few minutes thinking about it (and hoping for an ideal world without lawyers ), I probably would have taken down your details and said that I'd speak to the chef....and made sure that the chef got back to you.

[Shinboners]

I loved the old Balzac in the Spot.  Back then, it was nice and suburban, in the nicest possible way.  There were just two waiters, Lela (co-owner), some bloke who tried to teach me how to eat skate (unsuccessfully, as I have been eating skate since childhood and was never in a mood to take lessons) , and only two chefs in the kitchen.  Service was charming, always time for a good meet-and-greet. 

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Next time you're in Melbourne, go to Moretons' Brasserie and/or Libertine. I think you'll enjoy them as much as you loved the old Balzac.

[Shalmanese]

Hrmm... I dunno. I wasn't expecting free food or anything. A simple apology would have been nice. It was mainly their complete and utter denial which I thought to be in poor form.

←

If I was to look from the viewpoint of the bloke who took your call, I honestly don't know how I would have dealt with it.

It's tricky. You don't want to admit liability in case the diner decides to take legal action. On the other hand, you do want to know just in case there is a food handling, food quality and/or allergy problem to deal with.

With the benefit of spending a few minutes thinking about it (and hoping for an ideal world without lawyers ), I probably would have taken down your details and said that I'd speak to the chef....and made sure that the chef got back to you.

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Oh, we went there in person.

[Julian Teoh]

Edited March 23, 2006 by Julian Teoh (log)

[The Chefs Office]

umm, symptoms you have described are exactly those of an allergic reaction. Sounds very much like a shellfish/seafood reaction.

Trust me, if you were food poisoned, you'd know it.

(exploding from both ends).

PS. yes, that is me in OCAU 8+)

[Shalmanese]

umm, symptoms you have described are exactly those of an allergic reaction. Sounds very much like a shellfish/seafood reaction.

Trust me, if you were food poisoned, you'd know it.

(exploding from both ends).

PS. yes, that is me in OCAU  8+)

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Yeah, active poster, Sydney location. That really narrowed down the field

[Shalmanese]

Oh btw: Currently, my hypothesis was that it was the oysters. I've had oysters a couple of times before but not Sydney Rock Oysters as far as I'm aware.

Either that or the yabby. Which I've also had before in Victoria but not in Sydney.

[The Chefs Office]

I'd say if it was the oysters you'd probabaly be writing your posts from the toilet seat right now.

They can be nasty little buggers.

[Shinboners]

I'd say if it was the oysters you'd probabaly be writing your posts from the toilet seat right now.

They can be nasty little buggers.

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After working very hard to avoid things like oysters and mussels during a trip to Taiwan, I was bought a bowl of congee one morning....complete with oysters and mussels on the bottom. By lunchtime, I was, as you wrote earlier, exploding from both ends. By evening, I was in hospital on a drip.

As bad as that experience was, it didn't put me off eating oysters and mussels in Australia.

[Shalmanese]

I'd say if it was the oysters you'd probabaly be writing your posts from the toilet seat right now.

They can be nasty little buggers.

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I'm not claiming it was food poisoning. Allergy has always seemed like the most likely explaination. But as I said in the original review, the oysters had a strong tang of iodine to them. I'm thinking they might of had some chemical or other in it in particularly high quantities that we were allergic to.

[The Chefs Office]

I'd say if it was the oysters you'd probabaly be writing your posts from the toilet seat right now.

They can be nasty little buggers.

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After working very hard to avoid things like oysters and mussels during a trip to Taiwan, I was bought a bowl of congee one morning....complete with oysters and mussels on the bottom. By lunchtime, I was, as you wrote earlier, exploding from both ends. By evening, I was in hospital on a drip.

As bad as that experience was, it didn't put me off eating oysters and mussels in Australia.

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I once ate local yak (or, who knows what it was) in Nepal.

Hospitalised (yes, Nepalese hospital) for two weeks.

Funny though, I lived overseas for 12 years and ate local/street food the whole time and the yak was the only bad experience.

[Shinboners]

Funny though, I lived overseas for 12 years and ate local/street food the whole time and the yak was the only bad experience.

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Sometimes there appears to be no rhyme or reason for people's reactions to street food.

A friend of mine visited Laos, and at one of the villages, she along with other travellers, all ate street food from this one vendor. None of them had a problem. Another tourist comes along, eats the same food from the same vendor, and ends up in hospital.