Foodies who have travelled to Sydney will be familiar with restaurants such as Marque, Tetsuya and Nomad - all excellent restaurants worth visiting.
But there are new and exciting places to discover too, as I found out on a recent trip to the Australian city. Three restaurants especially stand out with their take on contemporary Australian cooking.
The menus offer a selection of Western dishes that feature ingredients such as scallop, salmon, duck, beef and lamb sourced domestically, part of a global trend of restaurants focusing on local produce.
Except that in Sydney, the source may be as local as the backyard of the restaurant, which is the case of the restaurants I visited. A small patch of land, a cluster of flower pots or even a wheelbarrow filled with compost is fertile ground for growing healthy herbs and vegetables such as basil, oregano, parsley, dill, rucola or kale.
The proximity of these food sources translates to a freshness in the food that you have to go to Australia to appreciate. Which is why, for me, Australian food just tastes so much better when you are there.
ahyoke@sph.com.sg
THE POTTING SHED
The Potting Shed is a restaurant within a cluster of cafe, coffee roaster, bakery and shops called The Grounds of Alexandria that was converted from a warehouse/ industrial complex two years ago.
The largely alfresco dining area is filled with plants that make you feel like you are dining in a garden.
The image is reinforced by the motley garden furniture and menus held together by clips in the shape of tiny shovels.
The food looks like it is from a farmhouse kitchen, with rustic fare such as The Shed Platter (from A$22 or S$24 for two persons), comprising cured meats and cheeses with fruit and marinated vegetables.
The Buttermilk Popcorn Chicken (A$12) is good, especially if you pair it with a salad of Roasted Baby Beets (A$19), where watercress, radicchio, hazelnuts and pickled golden shallots are tossed with apple balsamic.
The Kurobuta Pork Belly Sliders (A$16) pack a punch with the shredded meat mixed with kimchi and red-eye mayo, and stuffed in a charcoal brioche.
Where: The Grounds of Alexandria, Building 7A, 2 Huntley Street, Alexandria NSW 2015, tel:+61-2-9699-2225
Open: 11.30am to midnight daily
Info: www.groundroasters.com
THREE BLUE DUCKS
Located on a small street just a short walk from the popular Bronte Beach, this is a funky restaurant with colourful wall murals covering one wall of the dining room and wood panels covering another.
The food comes out of a tiny open kitchen in a smaller room separated by an open corridor. We were there for breakfast and it was good and hearty.
I ordered the Flaked House Smoked Salmon (A$22) and it was a huge plate with the fish hidden under pieces of toast and two poached eggs sprinkled liberally with dukkah.
Underneath was a lush bed of fried kale and labneh chilli (a spicy yogurt). It was one of the best breakfasts I have had in a long time, and a pretty healthy one too.
The Scrambled Eggs With Black Sausage (A$22) was tasty enough to overcome my dislike for black sausage. It came with a dill cucumber yogurt salad and red currant jam.
I will have to return for lunch, which includes promising dishes such as Steamed Mussels With Herb, Coconut Sambal And Chili Toast (A$28) and Coffee And Cumin Brisket (A$29).
The intimate dining room does not prepare you for the restaurant's spacious backyard. Follow a sign that says "Chickens, Bees and Bathrooms... this way" and you find yourself in a backyard garden with neat vegetable beds and herbs growing out of pots and wheelbarrows. There are even a few banana trees.
And yes, chickens.
Where: 141-143 Macpherson Street, Bronte NSW 2024, tel:+61-2-9389-0010
Open: 7 to 11.30am daily, noon to 2.30pm (Monday to Friday), noon to 3pm (Saturday and Sunday), 6 to 11pm (Wednesday to Saturday)
Info: www.threeblueducks.com
CHISWICK RESTAURANT
Chiswick Restaurant, located in Chiswick Gardens in the upscale Woollahra suburb, has a big open kitchen next to a bar. The dining room is in an adjacent area with floor-to-ceiling windows that let in plenty of light during the day.
The windows also look out onto a pristine lawn and a kitchen garden in the back where a lot of the herbs and vegetables used in the dishes are grown.
I was there for dinner on a rainy evening, however, so all these could not be appreciated.
The focus, then, fell on the food that appeared on the plates, and it was excellent.
The menu is big for a Western restaurant, with sections for Nibbles, Small Plates, Mains, To Share, Sides and Desserts.
There is also a Collective Menu at A$75 a person comprising a four-course menu of the restaurant's popular dishes such as wood-roasted lamb and whole roasted chicken meant to be shared among a table of six people or more.
My favourite dish, Crispy Fried Quail (A$22), is found only in the a la carte menu.
Marinated with lime, shallot and ginger, it is perfectly deep-fried with its crispy and fragrant skin enveloping steaming, moist meat.
The ginger lends it a Cantonese flavour that resonates with me.
The Roast Pork Belly (A$33) is also expertly cooked, with its crispy crackling and fork-tender meat.
Here, aromatic shallot oil gives the flavours a refreshing lift, while a bed of toasted barley takes the greasiness down a notch.
If you're feeling peckish, get the Prawn Popcorn (A$14) while waiting for the main dishes to arrive.
The battered and deep-fried pieces of prawn are sweet and succulent, and delicious with a chipotle mayonnaise dip.
Where: 65 Ocean Street, Woollahra, NSW 2025, tel: +61-2-8388-8688
Open: Noon to 2.30pm (Monday to Thursday), noon to 3pm (Friday to Sunday), 6 to 10pm (Monday to Thursday), 5.30 to 10pm (Friday and Saturday), 6 to 9pm (Sunday)
Info: Go towww.chiswickrestaurant.com.auor e-mail reservations@chiswick restaurant.com.au
