Suminoya, Sydney

Are you a KBBQ or JBBQ person? I do love my banchan side dishes at Korean barbecue but Japanese barbecue (yakiniku), with their premium cuts of meat and dipping sauces, is where my heart lies. We recently returned to Suminoya, a Japanese yakiniku buffet in the city, and was surprised to find it kitted out with shiny new ventilators, leaving the place entirely smoke free! There's a tiered menu with different price points offering different dishes. We went all out on the Deluxe buffet which meant we could order as many servings of ox tongue, wagyu beef rib and sushi as we wanted within 60 mins, with a further 30 mins allowed for eating. The standouts for me were definitely the wagyu cuts, with other dishes such as the sashimi, sushi and salads acting as foils for the inevitable meat coma. Don't forget to save room for dessert with both the black sesame and green tea ice creams being a nice way to end the meal.

TL;DR: All you can eat Japanese BBQ, without the smoke!
Favourite dish: Wagyu beef rib
Would I return?: If I'm hungry

Penguin says Feed Me dined at Suminoya courtesy of Washoku Lovers

Suminoya
1 Hosking Place
Sydney NSW 2000 Australia
Ph: +61 2 9231 2177
Lunch: Monday to Friday, 12pm to 2.30pm
Dinner: 7 days, 5.30pm to 10pm
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Shiny new ventilators = no smoke!

Gourmet buffet - $50

Premium buffet ($60) and Deluxe buffet ($65 Mon - Thu; $70 Fri - Sun and Public Holidays) 

Touchscreen ordering system

Ox tongue on the grill

Curry rice - apparently a typical dish eaten at yakiniku

Garlic prawns, garlic with butter and corn in butter

Duck breast

Mixed sashimi

Aburi scallop and aburi wagyu sushi

Wagyu beef rib and wagyu beef rib finger

Roast beef salad

Grape slushy

Black sesame and green tea ice cream

12-Micron, Sydney

If you're looking for a place where you can do drinks, dinner and dessert, then look no further than 12-Micron in Barangaroo. We're here for the dessert bar, having heard about the dessert tasting menus. There's options of 3, 5 or 7 courses, but we decide to order a la carte among 6 of us for more variety, and also so we can say, "One of everything, please!" The desserts arrive, colourful and artfully plated, making for an impressive spread. There's some interesting ingredients as well, like native Australian rosella, quandong and finger lime. Each element on each plate is beautiful and packed with flavour, but sometimes the components seemed to be fighting for the spotlight rather than working well together. My surprise favourite was actually the Pyengana cheddar dessert as it had a nice balance of sweet and savoury. It was an interesting meal, but none of the dishes were a stand-out for me, so I probably wouldn't be rushing back any time soon!

TL;DR: Fine dining desserts with unique flavours
Favourite dish: Pyengana cheddar, milk chocolate, plum, honeycomb
Would I return?: Probably not

12-Micron
Tower 1, Level 2, 100 Barangaroo Ave
Barangaroo NSW 2000
Ph: +61 2 8322 2075
Open 7 days, 12pm til late

Barangaroo

Mood lighting

Table setting

Cocktails

One of everything, please!

Earl grey, mandarin, white chocolate, peppermint - $19

Pineapple, coconut, sago, mint - $17

Pavlova, quandong, strawberry, white chocolate - $18

Peanut butter, rosella, toast ice-cream - $22

Chocolate, passionfruit, rainforest lime, muntries - $24

Pyengana cheddar, milk chocolate, plum, honeycomb - $19

Carrot, cream cheese, liquorice, blood orange - $18