Bills - Surry Hills

Everyone knows of Bill Granger - he is renowned for his scrambled eggs which Nicole Kidman flocks to whenever she is in Sydney. New York Times once said Bill is "the egg master of Sydney" and i guess you can only have that acclamation for one reason.

I walk past bills all the time when i visit surry hills and each time i tell whoever would listen, that i need to try it one day. That day came when my sister's friend watched a Japanese show featuring Bill Granger. Bill is well known in Japan as he has several restaurants in and around Tokyo and as such he was showing how his eggs were made on the tv show. She suggested a trip to nearby surry hills for breakfast at bills to try out the real thing and off we went on a busy saturday morning.



You would've thought that because bills in surry hills has been opened since 1996 that people would be sick of it already but no, we were squashed amongst an eager crowd of anxious breakfast goers waiting for a table. These eggs must be good!



My sister ordered the sunrise drink which was a concoction of orange juice, banana, yoghurt and berries. Nothing beats a refreshing kick start to the morning.


sunrise drink $5

I opted for the hot chocolate which did not disappoint! It was served with melted callebaut choc chips adhered to the side of the cup. It was fun having to scrape off the chocolates and making sure i got every little bit off the side. As it was extremely rich i probably shouldn't have ordered it to accompany my very full-bodied eggs.


bills hot chocolate made with callebaut $4.50


scrambled eggs with sourdough toast $13.50, extra: cured ocean trout $5.70

The eggs arrived at the table. My initial thoughts were that the eggs seemed very whipped and paler in appearance, not the usual scrambled eggs. Per Bill Granger's recipe it says the secret is not to over stir and treating it as folded eggs rather than scrambled.

The fluffy light and luscious eggs seem to glide in your mouth. It was definitely not overdone as it was still a little runny. A few arteries must've been blocked as the overpowering taste of butter and cream becomes too much after half a plate but happiness swept over me as i devoured the dish.

Sometimes its the simple things which are deceivingly good.


full aussie breakfast, scrambled eggs, sourdough toast, bacon, roast tomato, chipolatas and mushrooms $24.50

Bills
359 Crown Street
Surry Hills
Tel - 02 9360 4762
www.bills.com.au

Danks St Depot

I've been meaning to go to Danks St Depot ever since i had my birthday dinner last year at Jared Ingersoll's other restaurant, Cotton Duck. Dank St Depot has such a following and after 9 years of operation it is still thriving.

We purchased the spreets voucher $29 for a breakfast for two and shocked (but not surprised) that so many people also brought this voucher. I booked the morning straight after the release of the deal and managed to secure a saturday morning breakfast reservation.

Dank St Depot is situated across the road from The French House (which i promised myself i will visit one day!) in Waterloo in an unflattering grey warehouse. As soon as you enter however, it is anything but dull. Light streaming from outside illuminated a rectangular room lined with wooden furniture bustling with patrons. With the kitchen at one end and the bar at the other, we were seated near the front door to witness all the breakfast goers pour in.

The $29 deal included coffee/tea, entree of roasted pears and any two egg dishes from the menu.


$29 breakfast for 2 including coffee or tea

The pears arrived and looked more like roasted potatoes with fetta, but was in fact roasted pears with labneh (a soft cheese made form yoghurt) drizzled with honey and sprinkled with walnuts. The pears were amazingly soft and sweet with honey. The labneh was much needed to cut through the sweetness and married beautifully with crunchy walnuts to finish it off.


A platter of roasted corella pears, labneh, roasted walnuts and local honey

I was a bit disappointed with the coffee though. My mocha was overly bitter even with chocolate, so i'd hate to have ordered a latte.


Mocha

We had a choice of any egg dishes on the menu. All the eggs are made with Cornucopia Farm’s biodynamic eggs from the Hunter Valley hence i was eager to quickly order and dig my fork into some gooey egg.

What caught my eye was the creamed eggs with truffle. Thinking about the bottle of truffle olive oil i purchased from Hunter Valley last time, i had to try it out and see if it was any good (so i can replicate it at home!).

The eggs were creamy and slightly runny which i didnt mind. Probably due to the copious amounts of cream and butter in it! The gigantic mushroom was nicely roasted -dry around the edges but with juicy centres. The sourdough was good albeit a little tough, maybe a bit more butter required?! haha.


Creamed eggs with truffle oil - two eggs cooked with cream and butter, served soft with chopped chives, truffle oil, roasted field mushrooms, herbed tomato and sourdough toast


Poached eggs with hash - two eggs, served with herbed tomato, sourdough toast and your choice of bacon hash or silver beet hash

Dank St Depot
2 Danks St
Waterloo Sydney
Tel - 02 9698 2201
www.danksstreetdepot.com.au

Kazbah @ Darling Harbour

My friend was able to get a 50% discount voucher for Kazbah which was valid for 4 days only. We've been to Kazbah in the past to have their infamous breakfast tangines (which were to die for!!) at Kazbah in Balmain but we've never tried their dinners. Hence without hesitation we booked ourselves into the Kazbah at Darling Harbour to savour the flavours influenced by middle east and northern africa.

We all opted for the 3 course with wine for $55pp. 2 course with wine is also available at $45pp. For the 3 course that day we were told we will be served a selection of dips and bread followed by a Mezzes plate and then we chose our own main from the tangines, shish kebabs and specialties list on the menu.




The cool water jug with mint leaves

We requested the babaghanouj (eggplant dip) to replace the carrot. The generous serving of dips meant that we didnt have enough crispy bread to dip with. It was a lovely blend of flavours, not too spiced and texturely pleasing.


Babaghanouj, Hummus and Tzatziki dips


Crispy lebanese bread

The Mezze plate came with a selection of goodies - soft shell crab, prawns, chicken wing and grilled halloumi cheese. Even though i would prefer the japanese style soft shell crab instead, the other elements were scrumptious especially the sweet marinated chicken wings and grilled halloumi.


Mixed Mezze plate - cumin battered soft shell crab, chilli prawns, chicken wings, grilled halloumi cheese and beans

As a duck lover i couldnt go past a duck dish. The massive portion of duck was tender with the sweetness of quince, crunchy sweet potatoes providing a winning combination of textures.


Roast duck, falafel, honey baked quince, sweet potao chips


Tangine - beef cheeks, sweet potatoes, camramelised onions, almonds

I was extremely full by this stage but as a chai lover i couldn't resist ordering thier chahi served in a dainty glass cup.


Chahi "yemeny sweet milky tea"



Next we had the Kazbah Bomb! It made its appearance looking like a bomb alaska until the waiter poured kurrant vodka all over the bomb to set it alight. It is worth ordering just to witness this!


Kazbah bomb for two, turkish delight ice cream, blueberries, flamed with kurrant vodka





The kazbah bomb was a turkish delight flavoured ice cream encased in a film of fluffly meringue served with blueberries. It was a dessert for two but actually satisfied all three of us with some left over.



The tiramisu on the other hand can be given a miss. I literally took a scoop of it and then pushed it to one side. The waiter actually said he was going to warn me not to order the tiramisu when he saw i only took one spoonful, but obviously he didnt. It was definitely a poor choice!



So we walked out feeling like overblown balloons but very very merry. Paying $30 each for such a feast is unforgettable!



Kazbah
The Promenade,
Harbourside Shopping Centre Darling Harbour
Sydney
Tel - 02 9555 7067
www.kazbah.com.au

St Malo Bakery

When someone from work brought in tarts for a birthday, we were all mesmerised by them and everyone copied down the name and address. Ever since then i've been meaning to come to St Malo for some more indulgence.

Then by chance my friend said he will take me somewhere nice for breakfast. Lo and behold it was St Malo Bakery!! This place is a hidden gem that is obviously loved by the locals. It is an absolute heaven for the freshly baked bread lovers, tart cravers and cafe addicts alike.

St Malo bakes their own bread and make everything daily and as/when required so you know you are only eating the freshest. They have a great selection of pastries, croissants, tarts, cakes and bread so your only problem would be deciding what to sacrifice for next time.



Breakfast was a crazy affair as the tiny bakery cafe is packed with breakfast goers. We ordered at the counter, grabbed a number and sat at the back of the cafe to avoid the traffic. Simple classy decor with an adorable glass elevated seating area at the back, it is a very inviting space to be in.

I couldn't resist but order the "Breakfast of the Kings" and i definitely felt a sense of superiority ordering it =P



It was a generous serving of scrambled eggs with irrestibly sweet roasted tomatoes, mushroom and chorizo served with yummy sourdough.





I was like a little kid at a candy store, jumping up and down at the sight of the rows of tarts. Even though i was incredibly satisfied already i couldnt resist but buy some to takeaway.









The weekend after i found myself back at Crows Nest and back at St Malo. Ordered the blueberry custard slice and yet again fell in love.



St Malo Bakery
83 Willoughby Road
Crows Nest
Tel - 02 9906 6256
http://stmalobakery.com

Number One Wine Bar

Number One is Tony Bilson's bar and bistro spin off to Bilson's Restaurant. Tucked away next to Starbucks at Circular Quay, we were welcomed by a wave of beautiful piano playing and singing by the live pianist.

We opted for the outside tables to make the most of the recent warm weather. The restaurant was serviced by three waitstaff only even though it was a friday night however we could not fault any of them as they were extremely friendly and professional.

The menu is exceptionally well priced for a bistro with such elegance and warmth. The menu is typically Bilson with its french influences but also interwined with flavours of spain.

We decided on one entree to share and opted for the scallops. It was impeccably presented, the calibre you would expect from Bilson's Restaurant. It was lightly seared, topped with juicy-explode-in-your-mouth ocean trout roe served with a magical beurre blanc sauce. It was the perfect combination having the freshness of scallops, light buttery (but not overpowering) sauce and popping roe. A definite highlight of the meal.



Gratin of Scallops with Spinach, Hollandaise & Ocean Trout Roe $18



The pork belly main was totally scrumptious. I'm not a big fan of the fat, but if there was ever a perfect pork belly then this was it. The skin was thin and super crunchy, followed by clear layers of fat and meat. It was such a generous serving of three that i could not finish it. The only downfall was the pungent mustard that was buried under the pork belly.



Confit Pork Belly, Choucroute, Potatoes & Dutch Carrots $28



The casserole of sausage, duck and braised pork was a different story altogether. It was a terrible choice as it tested the extremities of the palate in the wrong way. Extremely salty duck, bland tasteless pork and super dry sausages served with an overload of beans. Such a disappointment.



Cassoulet of Toulouse Sausage,Duck Confit & Braised Pork $28



After ploughing through the casserole we were thankfully rewarded with amazing dessert. They redeemed themselves with a souffle that sent me to cloud 9.

I ordered the Number One Souffle which was a rasberry souffle with tiny specs of rasberry jelly throughout, served with blood red orange sorbet. It was a massive serving but i could have easily devoured another one, it was that good. My spoon passed through a thin crispy top layer into a light and fluffy souffle. Rich in rasberry flavour it was heavenly.


Number One Souffle $18

The white chocolate fondant sent us back to hell. The supposed hero of the dessert is the fondant but there absolutely was no melting centre as the fondant was overcooked. The passionfruit sorbet was grainy and of a slurpee consistency however it was flavoursome. The pesto mousse did not compliment the dish but the candied lemon was done well.


Special dessert - white chocolate fondant with pesto mousse, passionfruit sorbet and candied lemon $18

Who would have thought the quality of a meal could vary so substantially. From extreme wonders to disasters, the bistro still has room for improvement. I would love to come back just to eat two souffles by myself, but i would definitely give some dishes a miss.

Number One
1 Alfred Street
Sydney
tel - 02 8252 9296
www.numberonewinebar.com.au

Alio Restaurant - Pasta Making Masterclass

Pasta making is something that i've never attempted mainly because i dont own a pasta machine and partly because of the time involved. We purchased the Scoopon voucher to attend a pasta masterclass at Alio Restaurant Surry Hills, where hopefully i will be assured that pasta making isnt that labour intensive and daunting after all.

After signing the registration form, we were offered coffee before being ushered to the kitchen tucked behind.



Ashley has a great personality who cracked jokes and made everyone felt at ease. It was kept quite intimate and informal which was fabulous. It was also evident that Ashley and Tracey his sister had a fantastic relationship from the constant bantering and laughing.

Compared to my impression of a commercial kitchen where there's constant yelling and frantic running, Alio's kitchen was surprisingly harmonious. Ashley spoke so softly to his staff that i wonder what it would take to tick him off.

We were shown how to make a versatile bread dough for focaccia and pizza base.








I learnt that there are 600 odd types of pastas. A slightly different width/length of pasta were given a different name, and even then there may be name variations for the same type. Ashley demonstrated step by step how to make pasta dough and passed on some tips and tricks. We were shown how to make a selection of pastas from the simple linguine, fettucine and farfalle (bow ties) to ravioli and other stuffed pasta.




Key take home pointers:
- use strong flour in the pasta dough
- when rolling out the pasta with the machine, keep folding in half after each time and turn it so you get straight edges
- when making pasta with stuffing, ensure any air is squeezed out




Rotolo with spinach and fetta was on the menu for lunch and hence Ashley walked us through how to make the filling, rolling it and eventually serving it.








We all gathered outside in the restaurant for a glass of red, the rotolo and focaccia.


Rotolo with spinach, porcini and fetta


Rosemary and thyme focaccia


Dessert tiramisu


Alio Restaurant
5 Baptist Street
Redfern NSW
Tel- 02 8394 9368
www.alio.com.au