40|30 at the Gherkin – COOLest venue of the Noughties!

My last visit to 40|30 Restaurant at the Gherkin was in January, long enough a gap in my view.  So it was back again with a group of friends to enjoy a night out in the one of the  “COOLest venues of the Noughties“.

So is it still “Cool”? – Absolutely.

This place has substance and style, there is no question that 40|30 is continuing to delivering first class food in a first class venue.

The menu was both interesting and varied, some classic food combinations and some more surprising ones.  My main course of  Pork belly with Black Pudding doughnuts was  just stunning and the cheese cake with celery of all things, was another standout.

For food of this calibre in such a world class location, 2 courses at £39.50 and 3 courses at £47.50 is such a good deal (especially as it includes an amuse bouche and a pre dessert).  The wine list is extensive but there are sufficient bottles under £40 to ensure that it is not too daunting.

You could tell by the empty plates at our table just how much we all enjoyed the food.

 

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Public Dining Room @ Balmoral beach – what no sauce?

A post from No Experts Australian Correspondent

It was with great anticipation that we headed down to The Public Dining Room at Balmoral beach.  The dining room is beautifully located, with views of the Ocean and Balmoral Pier. It’s modern glass fronted look, maximises the ocean views.

To add to our anticipation, the occasion that took us there was a food and wine tasting diner organised by Henshke Wines to promote their  Lenswood range of wines. It’s no secret that Henschke are one of my favourite Vineyards, and to this day, I find it extremely difficult to find fault with any wine that they produce.

MENU WITH MATCHING WINES:-

Soup of turnips, champagne, avruga caviar – 2009 Henschke Julius Eden Valley Rielsing

Tortellini of scallop mousse, seared scallop, broad beans and tomatoes, verjuice emulsion – 2009 Henschke Lenswood Littlehampton Innes Pinot Gris

Slow braised, deboned chicken thigh, confit egg yolk, brioche crumbs, chervil – 2007 Henschke Lenswood Croft Chardonnay

Poached hapuka fillet, lentil ragout, parsnip, red wine jus – 2008 Henschke Lenswood Giles Pinot Noir

Golden plains pork belly, parsley puree, roast chestnuts, peas, spiced salt – 2007 Henschke Tappa Pass Shiraz

Twelve hour braised veal cheek, creamed polenta blanco, brussel sprout leaves, pine nuts, lemon – 2007 Henschke Lenswood Abbotts Prayer Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon

Strawberry lamington, coconut sorbet, strawberry salad and soup, basil – Henschke Muscat of Tappa Pas

We arrived a little early, and after checking in at the main desk, we were pointed at a table, and told to take any seat. Once seated, we had a great deal of trouble getting a waiters attention for some aperitifs, which was disappointing! Somehow we expected something much better from this restaurant.

The amuse bouche, a warm soup of Turnips with champagne and topped with Caviar was mouth watering leading us to expect big things to come! Sadly the course that followed seemed to set the precedent for the rest of the evening.  The tortellini of scallop was dry, and the four components of the dish appeared to be randomly plonked on the plate. I couldn’t work out what chopped tomatoes, and boiled beans were doing on this plate at all!  The verjuice emulsion that should have brought the components of this dish together, seemed sadly evident as only a smudge on the plate. Very disappointing.

The courses that followed, were similarly either dry, or lacking in a sauce or even missing components completely.  Lovely moist chicken, accompanied by an over cooked egg, again very dry and lacking a sauce to bring it together.  The following courses were notable for over cooked fish, lovely soft pork belly again missing a sauce, and missing the parsley puree completely, even the veal cheek was missing the pine nuts.

Our saving grace was the delicious wines, and good company. The wine did appear to be well matched with the food, but every one I spoke to on the night seemed to concur that the food was generally dry and lacking something. Inconsistent plates, and missing components makes me think that the Public Dining room are attempting to take on too much, and that organising a food and wine matching for 85 people is well beyond the restaurant’s capabilities to cope.

It maybe unfair to judge the restaurant on this evening, however I  have no desire to return, a feeling shared by many of my fellow diners.

Marks out of 10

Food 3.9

Service 4.1

Ambience 7.5

 

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Cross Keys – and angry words (Closed)

The Cross Keys is a historic pub in the heart of Chelsea. It has a couple of lovely rooms that can be hired out and a separate  restaurant at the back with a retractable roof to let in the sunshine.  We dropped in for Sunday lunch, not realising that the pub had changed ownership earlier this year.

The service itself was a bit patchy, with the bread and one dip arriving first, then a second dip coming  just as the main courses arrived. I am pretty sure the rather loud argument we heard from the serving area did not help the ambience!

The bread with fresh pesto dip and olive oil was a good start, but the menu selection was not very exciting,  none of the starters grabbed our attention, nor did the desserts. So we ended up just having main courses, specifically  the Lamb Cutlets and the Wagyu beef burger with Truffle fries which at £16.00 has to be one of the most expensive burgers I have ever had. The Truffle fries were nice, but the burger was very ordinary, and served with way too much Kos lettuce. At that price I was expecting something a bit more  sophisticated, like the “frenchie” burger served at Bar Boulud for example.

So maybe on my next visit I will just stick to drinks and bar snacks and avoid disappointment.

Marks out of 10

Food 4.2

Service 4.5

Ambience 4.7

 

UPDATE – November 2012: Restaurant is now closed. See article about Squatters taking up residence for some background information.

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Confessions of a Chocolaholic Afternoon Tea at the Hilton

Overindulged at the “Confessions of a Chocaholic Afternoon Tea at the Hilton”  in the Podium Restaurant on the ground floor of the Park Lane Hilton.

This afternoon tea is good value for money, compared to a lot of the hotel based afternoon tea options in London (£29.50 including a glass of champagne).

The three tier cake stand used looks great and I was impressed by the chocolate selection, even the gold sprinkled base was made out of chocolate.  There is so much here, making the pretty take away handbags a must.  The Tea selection was also interesting and extensive.

The open sandwiches were beautifully presented, tasty and fresh. The chocolate spread with Chocolate Chip scones was also a nice touch. Not so keen on the cup cakes though which were rather ordinary.

The let down was more on the service side, which although friendly, was really slow. It was hard getting attention and it was nearly a hour before we started!  I am also not sure that “I did not have time to bring the extra sandwiches is a particularly good excuse” in a hotel of this calibre.

The room was pleasant enough but had rather bad acoustics and the use of live and canned music really did not work.

Marks out of 10

Food 5.7

Service 3.8

Ambience 4

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Catalina – Unique and Distinctive

A post from No Experts Australian Correspondent

Unique and distinctive, is a frequently used description for the Catalina flying boat, that was so successfully used in the defence of Australia in WWII. In my view, it is also an apt description for this restaurant in Sydney’s Rose Bay. Located next to the Sydney Seaplane’s base, and the site of Sydney’s first international airport,  the Catalina Restaurant is named after the famous flying boats that once operated here.  There are numerous other fabulous waterside restaurants that can boast amazing water views, but what makes this restaurant truly unique in Sydney, is not it’s location, but the fact that it opens all day!  In my search to find a suitable restaurant to take my husband for his 40th birthday lunch, I was to discover that  fine dining restaurant’s that open for lunch on Saturday are as rare as hen’s teeth in Sydney!  Catalina is not only open for lunch, but boasts a kitchen which “remains open from midday to late”. Hurrah!

Despite being nearly 30 minutes late and looking incredibly dishevelled from the boat trip, staff greeted us with a friendly warm welcome. We enjoyed a glass of champagne while deciding what to order.  My husband elected for the Blue Swimmer Crab linguine to start, which was delicious, accompanied by a Rose from Crawford River. I selected the Scallops with Zucchini and goats cheese croquettes, which was perfectly cooked, but a little overwhelmed by huge quantities of tomato puree. The scallops were well matched to a Gruner Veltliner. Judge for yourself, but in my view the portions were huge!
Fortunately the main courses were a little more modest! The beef tenderloin was perfectly cooked, and well balanced with fondant potatoes. The lamb rack a little on the fatty side, but enjoyable none the less. Main courses were accompanied by a very delectable 1998 Mount Langi Ghiran Shiraz, recommended by the very patient Sommelier. The wine list at Catalina is wide ranging, and features a substantial number of aged wines, at an equally substantial price. A 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A for five thousand dollars, anyone? Undoubtedly the highlight of the meal was the desserts! The Passion fruit soufflé was a delight to eat, melting in the mouth, and well worth the wait! Raspberry and apple crumble with raspberry sorbet, had just the right balance of tartness and sweet. Not wanting to stir from such a lovely spot, we dragged out lunch until sunset, with a few glasses of Port, and my current favourite, Pedro Ximénez.

Overall a delightful place to spend a relaxed afternoon, watching the sea planes land, and taking in the views. Food was good, but not exceptional. The wine list awe inspiring, but possibly more suited to the wallets of the pop stars that are said to frequent the restaurant. Service was the most formal that we have experienced in Sydney, but at the same time relaxed and incredibly un-pressured. Catalina has certainly perfected the art of the lazy lunch!

Marks out of 10

Food  5.9

Service  7.9

Ambience   8.0

 

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The Chop House – Vegetarian friendly!

Had a casual lunch with some friends in Butlers Wharf Chop House, we went for the set lunch in the bar area rather than the main restaurant.  For a restaurant known for its meat, the set menu surprisingly did not include any, just a rather nice selection of vegetarian dishes and one fish dish.

For starters we had the Vegetable and Barley soup, tasty and very wintry, but as the sky was dark with rain, it rather suited the day.  The Heritage Tomato salad was also delicious, so fresh it reminded one of my friends of her childhood eating tomatoes straight from the garden.  I had the red onion and cheese tart which I really enjoyed, the onions were very sweet and the combinations just worked. The Ling and runner beans needed a side order to complete the dish and the perfectly cooked Jersey potatoes were ideal. For dessert we ordered the Knickerbocker glory (nothing special), but the Secretts Farm Plums, Praline and Vanilla ice cream was well received, even if it was difficult to eat from the glass bowl.

The service was also very good, the staff were friendly and efficient. The only time we had any issue was when we came to pay the bill and found the bar area empty of staff.

Marks out of 10

Food 6.5

Service 6

Ambience 5

 

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