Restaurant Hubert, Sydney

Entering Restaurant Hubert makes you feel like you've been transported to a sophisticated Parisian dining room. As you open the doors, you're greeted with mood lighting and wood panelling, with the hubbub of the dining area getting louder as you descend the stairs into the basement. I'd heard lots about Restaurant Hubert before my visit. "Make sure you get the duck" was probably the one I heard the most, and so literally the second my butt touched the seat, I asked if we could reserve one of the ducks for tonight. We managed to get the last duck, which was amazing with crispy skin, deboned and stuffed with duck sausage. But don't worry, even if you don't manage to get your hands on a duck, everything else is also delicious. Other stand outs for me were the prime beef tartare (amazing chips!) and the pommes anna. Save room for dessert as well because these were also amazing. Don't just take my word for it though - if you haven't been to Hubert yet, grab 5 friends and make a booking there ASAP!

TL;DR: Classic French cuisine in a glamorous dining space
Favourite dish: Canard farci, Prime beef tartare
Would I return? Yep, already have!

Restaurant Hubert
Basement, 15 Bligh Street
Sydney NSW 2000 Australia
Lunch: Thursday & Friday, 12pm to 3pm
Dinner: Monday to Saturday, 4pm to 1am

Descending to the basement

Duck parfait: Liver mousse, maple syrup jelly - $19

Prime beef tartare: Wagyu topside, classic condiments, French fries - $24

Malakoff: Fried gruyere, dijon mustard, dill pickle - $15

Canard farci: Whole roasted duck stuffed with duck sausage, cherry sauce – $95

Bavette steak: 300g grilled Rangers Valley flank, Cafe de Paris butter - $48

Pommes anna: Layered potato, beurre blanc - $12

Melon en surprise: Santa Claus melon, finger lime, sorrel jelly, young coconut sorbet - $22

Vacherin: Sauternes ice cream, meringue, honeycomb, lemon & mandarin - $19

Le grand macaron: Raspberry, rice cream

Mood lighting

Cafe Lyon, Lindfield

Having learnt French for 5 years of my schooling life, I've developed a love of France, its culture, language and food. I've never had the chance to travel to France but I think when I do, I will never want to leave! This love of all things French comes from my mother, who first introduced me to the French language and helped me through all my assignments. It was only fitting to take her to a French restaurant for her birthday.

Oysters from Mooney Mooney, Cabernet Sauvignon mignonette dressing

Between the 7 of us, we managed to cover most of the menu, which is $53 for 2 courses or $65 for 3 courses. The oysters are incredibly fresh and shucked with the shell being replaced back on top. They're so fresh that most of us eat them with a simple squeeze of lemon, not needing the dressing.

Prosciutto, crisp halloumi, asparagus and artichoke heart salad

Charm orders the prosciutto, haloumi, asparagus and artichoke heart salad. It's surprisingly moreish with silky strips of prosciutto and the crispiest chunks of haloumi I've ever had, and is simply dressed with olive oil.

Scotch egg

Featured on the specials menu tonight is the scotch egg which Sir D has no hesitation in ordering as soon as he hears it.

Vue de Monde, Melbourne

"Is that cheese?" asked Liz, as she pointed at the circle of butter while the rest of our table laughed. It was our last day in Melbourne and we'd decided to splurge on a three course lunch at the three-hatted Vue de Monde. It was definitely on the pricey side for lunch at $55 for two courses or $70 for three courses, especially since a few of the group weren't that into fine-dining (or butter that looks like cheese). But by the end of the fabulous meal, everyone agreed that it was definitely worth every cent.

Table setting

We dined at Shannon Bennett's restaurant when it was still located at the Normanby Chambers on Little Collins St. Things have changed a little since then, with Vue de Monde moving to a new location in the Rialto on Collins St, but there is still the option of having lunch for $60 or going all out for their $250 degustation menu.

Glass of wine included with our meal (left) and quirky light fixtures (right)

We're in awe at the level of service as soon as we step through the doors. It was a rainy day and we were immediately offered to place our wet umbrellas and jackets in cloakroom before being taken to a spacious dining table. The girls in the group were even offered to place their handbags on a shelf rather than the floor - and it's these little things that make a dining experience so memorable. We took in the sights of the simple but sophisticated dining room, and I was lucky enough to have a clear view of the pass where a mirror was set up to reflect the chefs placing the finishing touches on the dishes before they were sent out.

Olives

Crisps with a sour cream and caviar dip

While we each decided on what we wanted from the menu, some appetisers were placed on our table for us to nibble on. The olives came in a bowl made out the bottom of a wine bottle, while the crisps and sour cream dip which was topped indulgently with caviar were a cute little set where the dish was able to fit perfectly on top of the wavy edge of the bowl of crisps.

Complimentary bread

After we placed our order (and after I convinced everyone to get something different so we could cover the whole menu!), a waiter came over carrying a basket of bread. We were each offered a warm bread roll which I slathered thickly with the French butter. Yes I wanted more, and yes I was eyeing off the bread basket going off to other tables. But luckily we only had the one bread roll because there was more delicious food to come.

Cured ocean trout, dill, avocado

Quarter Twenty One, Sydney

Complimentary bread and butter

I always love being served a warm bread roll with creamy butter to start my meal at a restaurant. With Becasse Bakery around the corner, it's no surprise that the bread is wonderfully soft and delicious.

Interior

Quarter Twenty One is one of the newest additions to Justin North's food empire, having recently opened on level five of the new Westfield Sydney. Sir D and I are here for dinner tonight to celebrate my graduation and even though they've somehow lost the booking, we're dining relatively early so we have no problems getting seated. We debate whether to go with the 7-course degustation menu at $90pp but instead choose to order off the a la carte menu.

Caramelised Kurobuta pork belly, smoked bacon consommé, mushroom, slow cooked yolk and jowl - $25

My eyes immediately darted to the words "smoked bacon" on the menu and so I chose the Kurobuta pork belly as my entree. It arrived on a seemingly custom-made plate, with a round indentation to hold the slow cooked egg yolk perfectly. The dish was smaller than expected but rich and fatty, with paper thin sheets of bacon draped over the medley of mushrooms and egg yolk. The consommé was quite salty but when eaten with the other elements of the dish, everything worked well together to give an overall meaty, porky flavour.

Sauté of king prawns, crisp pigs ear, garlic custard and persillade purée - $26

Ad Lib Bistro, Pymble

Let's be perfectly honest - the Upper North Shore is a bit of a dead zone when it comes to food. Aside from a few decent cafe-style restaurants, there's not many places that you can go for a nice but affordable dinner (if I'm wrong feel free to provide suggestions!). That is, until Dietmar Sawyere's Ad Lib Bistro moved onto the Pacific Highway in Pymble with classic French food served in a casual Parisian-bistro atmosphere. It's clearly a favourite around here since we had to book 3 months in advance for a Saturday dinner.

Onion soup gratinée

We start with the onion soup, which I had high hopes for after reading other reviews. The cheesy gruyere crouton covers the top of the soup tureen and eating our way through it reveals a rich, fragrant brown broth. It is sweet from the caramelised onions, though a little heavy handed on the booze which isn't to Charm's taste. I can't pinpoint exactly what I don't like about the dish but I find it a little underwhelming - but that may be because I hyped it up too much in my own head!

Sugar cured salmon, toasted brioche, herb and shallot mascarpone - $19

Restaurant Balzac, Randwick

Complimentary bread - I love the butter to bread ratio here!

Friday lunch. One of my favourite times of the working week because a) it's nearly the weekend, and b) there are lunch specials to be had! I've previously been to Assiette and Marque for their Friday lunch specials, but this time we headed to Randwick to try out Restaurant Balzac's lunch special, which offers a three course set menu for $35.

The restaurant interior is clean and white with lots of natural light flowing through the windows. On this particular Friday it was pretty full and I saw that most diners were having the lunch special, though the regular a la carte menu and degustation are also available. We were presented with some complimentary bread while we waited for the rest of the food to arrive.

Lyonnaise tart with Holy Goat La Luna and fresh thyme

Blanco Restaurant, Potts Point

I love finishing off the working week with a nice drink, and luckily on this dreary, rainy Friday night as we headed to Potts Point for dinner at Blanco Restaurant, we were presented with page of refreshing sounding cocktails to kick-start the weekend as we were seated in the restaurant.

Bloody Passion: blood orange, 42 Below passionfruit vodka, lime, sugar - $12

Blanco is situated in a stark white building studded with mosaic tiles off the main street in Potts Point and is run by Damien Pignolet and Ron White, formerly of Bistro Moncur. Pushing open the door, we're greeted with a bar at the front and a sparsely decorated restaurant bathed in red light, with a little bookcase and reading area at the back of the room. It's still early so we're the only ones there and have the full attention of the waitstaff who help us choose some drinks from the cocktail list which prominently features blood oranges.

Bloody Stringer Bellini: Paul Louis French sparkling, blood orange juice, peach liqueur - $10 (left); Crispy Portuguese chicken wings - $15 (right)

We start off with the crispy Portuguese chicken wings which actually turned out to be little drummettes of chicken but were tasty nonetheless. These were coated in a salty, slightly spicy batter and were crunchy on the outside with juicy, tender chicken on the inside. Perfect with a squeeze of lime.

Tarte Aux Pralines: A Lyonnaise Specialty

I was super jealous when I found out that my sister was going to France on exchange for 6 weeks. I was even more jealous when I found out that not only was she going to Paris but also to the French capital of gastronomy, Lyon. Thankfully she was kind and after tantalising me for 6 weeks via email about eating foie gras and macarons and quenelles (which Lyon is famous for), she brought home some foodie gifts including a book on macarons, a kilogram of chocolates from Lyon and these strange pink, rock-like things called pralines.

I asked Charm what it was and she said it was pretty much ground nuts and sugar. Why it was pink I'm not sure, but these little pink rocks form the basis of the filling of another specialty food of Lyon, the tarte aux pralines. Although my sister helped her host family make one during her stay in Lyon, she had forgotten how to make it so I stumbled through the French instructions attached to the packet with my year 10-standard knowledge of the French language.

It ended up being simple enough though - I just had to make my sweet shortcrust pastry, dissolve the pralines in some cream and pour it into the baked pastry and let it set in the fridge. When I added the pralines to the cream and it started dissolving it turned a bright red colour and here is the finished result:

It was rather lurid and to be honest the striking red colour was a bit off-putting at first. But I cut myself a slice and tasted it.

It was sticky and sweet with some crunchiness from the nuts and a subtle almond flavour as well. As much as I liked it, the sugary-ness meant that a small slice was enough for me, but Charm really enjoyed it and she ended up finishing it off in the next few days. I'm hoping that means it's a sign that my version of this special dessert from Lyon was close to the real thing!

Tastevin Bistro and Wine Bar, Darlinghurst

Tastevin is one of those restaurants that I've walked past time and time again, each time making a mental note to myself to go there but never actually getting around to do it. After passing it several times (and exasperating Sir D with my repeated comments about wanting to eat there), I finally made a booking. This time, instead of walking past the inconspicuous door, we opened it and traipsed up the stairs into a quaint little French bistro.

It was still early on a Friday night and we were the first to arrive at the restaurant. There were so many things on the menu that I wanted to try, so we decided to get a starter, two entrees, a main and a dessert. Our waiter was friendly and chatty, and when we told him that we were sharing all the dishes, he was more than happy to have the kitchen bring them out one by one so we could savour each dish one at a time.

House made bread with French butter - $4

We started with the house made bread with French butter. A basket filled generously with bread was brought to the table along with some olive oil and balsamic and a stick of French butter wrapped in a silver foil. The butter was a bit too cold when first brought out, making it difficult to spread, but after a while it warmed up and was a lightly salted, creamy spread for the two types of bread that we were provided with. One was a plain white baguette, which had a bit of a chewy crust, and the other which we both preferred had fennel and poppy seeds and a nice crunchy crust.

Gnocchi à la Parisienne, sautéed mushrooms and white truffle mornay (entree) - $17

Ripples at Sydney Wharf, Pyrmont

It's been a bit quiet on the blogfront here, and uni is solely to blame. The thing is I haven't stopped eating and cooking and so a sizeable backlog of photos is developing which I have yet to post about. Hopefully there will be more frequent posts from now on but I'm not guaranteeing anything because I think the onslaught of assignments and exams has only just begun!

It was my parents' anniversary and they were jetsetting off to Europe for 3 weeks to celebrate (they've been back for a while now, which just goes to show how late I am with this post). We wanted to have one last family lunch together before my sister and I became parentless for 3 weeks, and we decided to go to Ripples at Sydney Wharf in Pyrmont.

Beef shortrib bourguignon, creamy parmesan and parsley pomme puree - $27

Ripples currently have a lunch promotion running which lets you have one of four mains, a glass of wine or beer plus coffee or tea for $29, Monday to Friday, which my parents and Sir D took advantage of. Dad chose the beef shortrib bourguignon, which was two fat beef ribs with the meat so tender it only needed a fork to prise it easily off the bone. The pomme puree was magically creamy and soft - it was so good I kept stealing some off his plate.

Vegetarian tasting trio: Potato and leek soup with gruyere toast, mushroom and rosemary risotto, goats cheese pomme dauphine - $28

Après, Potts Point

I recently celebrated my 21st birthday by having dinner with family and close friends at Après restaurant in Potts Point. The staff there were lovely for setting up two long tables for us complete with candles and printing out personalised menus.

I selected three entrees, three mains and three desserts for our group's set menu and I sneakily sat myself next to two people who I knew would share dishes with me so I could sample all three of each course hehehe (thanks Sir D and Charm!). The price for 3 courses was $60.

French martini: Grey Goose vodka, dash of pineapple, chambord - $17.00

Sir D and I chose a French martini from their extensive cocktail list whilst waiting for all the guests to arrive.

Escargots

After our orders are taken, we are presented with a not-so-pretty amuse bouche of escargots. Don't be put off by it's appearance though - the snails are soaked in a rich, garlicky butter which just leaves us all wanting to mop up the sauce with some bread. Unfortunately there's no free bread tonight and I seriously consider just downing the delicious garlic butter, but thankfully the plates are removed before I have time to clog up my arteries with fat.

Presse of rabbit, mushrooms and serrano ham with mustard fruits