I was invited to the try the tasting menu of Abode Bistro and Bar at the Park Royal Darling Harbour which I was only too happy to go as I’m always on a look out for a list of venues I can roll off my tongue to recommend to my colleagues for business dining during the work week. The criteria is that it needs to be in the Sydney CBD, elegant, refined but not too refined, not too noisy so you can hear the other person speak with ease, a good menu, good wines, great coffee, exceptional service and consistency because you really only have that small lunch slot during your work day so efficiency is important.
I’m happy to say I would add Abode Bistro and Bar to this list and with a 6 course menu at $65 you, it really is great value for a work lunch with colleagues or for an additional $35 for matching wines if you are not in a hurry back to the office.
ABODE Bistro & Bar recently won the title of Best Restaurant in a Hotel/Motel/Resort on Monday 12 September 2016 at the 2016 NSW Savour Australia Restaurant & Catering Hostplus Awards for Excellence and I can see why they won this accolade. Their tasting menu and matching wines is nothing short of excellent.
Anthony Naylor, heads up the kitchen at ABODE Bistro & Bar who was appointed 6 months ago. Originally from Dublin, Chef Anthony started his career at the tender age of 15 when he was offered the opportunity of a lifetime to train under the tutelage Chef Patron Derry Clark at the Michelin Star restaurant L’Ecrivain. Over his 20 odd years of career, he’s left his mark across the UK and Europe before arriving in NSW to clinch not one but two chef hats in the Gault & Millau Restaurant Guide as Head Chef at Prime Steak Restaurant.
Chef Anthony favours high quality, seasonal produce in its most honest and refreshing form and paired with some of the most highly rated Oceania wines.
Today, we started with an amuse-bouche of smoked paprika and sweet corn soup with crab, lime and salmon roe opened the meal. Served in a small cup, the flavours were deliciously salty yet sweet, creamy with the beautiful round smooth textures of salmon roe that burst in your mouth.
The second course Anthony counterbalances the richness of the pan-seared scallop with a smooth cauliflower purée, pickled radish, shaved broccoli, pancetta and lemon oil, with understated elements of dehydrated cauliflower and scallop dust. As a seafood lover, I loved the way this dish was done and it’s so beautifully presented too.
Pulling back to something lighter for the third course is the taste of the baby beetroot and goats cheese salad with puy lentils, barberries, orange gel and cumin crackers. The flavours lend this dish a woody autumnal flavour.
For the fourth course which was one of the mains we enjoyed was a deliciously tender confit Quaker’s Hill duck breast with wilted greens, mushrooms, bacon and red wine jus. And after that we had another main, the warming and tender Flinders Island rump of lamp, smoked aubergine, onion marmalade, asparagus, sheep’s milk feta, olive paint and confit tomato.
The finale dish, a dessert, was deeply and instantly lovable. The flavours of the banana parfait, coconut sponge and salted cashews with butterscotch sauce jump with energy, served with house-made ice-cream. The banana parfait had the temperature and texture of ice cream but the flavour of like a banana cake. So it tasted like a banana cake ice cream which was excellent with the fluffy and light coconut sponge and the butterscotch sauce and salted cashews. This is one of the finest and memorable dessert dishes I’ve had for a while. A dessert that’s an answered prayer.
The atmosphere is light, white and airy, with large open windows, gracefully curving seats, diffuse lighting and tinge of downlights make for a rare mix of elegance and casualness. At $65 for this 6 course ‘tasting menu’ which will have you rolling with enough food in your stomach when you walk into Abode Bistro and Bar, and its central city location, it is an excellent value dining experience for lunch and I would definitely recommend it for anyone looking to entertain business guests.
For reservations: 02 9260 2945, rsvp@abodebistro.com or book online at www.abodebistro.com
ABODE Bistro & Bar, PARKROYAL Darling Harbour, Sydney 150 Day Street.