A touch of Manhattan at Bowery Lane

Posted by Hendy

At the ground floor of the still gleaming new renovation and refit of 1 O'Connell Street in the Sydney CBD, Bowery Lane is the newest entrant to the evening dining scene on the suits-abundant street.

Just off the building's lobby entrance, the modern, Manhattan-inspired interior provides a sense of alignment, if not aspiration, in the heart of corporate Sydney.

A glass of Bannockburn Douglas 2010 at Bo wery Lane, O'Connell Street, Sydney

Named after the oldest thoroughfare on Manhattan Island, New York, Bowery Lane has extended its existing breakfast and lunch services to offer a different menu for the evening alongside a short, eclectic wine list, a selection of craft beers and chic cocktails.

A number of craft brews come from the Big Apple, including the Brooklyn Lager and Brooklyn Sorachi Ace. The wine list features a number of increasingly popular blends, like the multi-varietal Bannockburn Douglas which was pleasantly aromatic with its blend of cabernet, shiraz, merlot, malbec and pinot noir.

Manchego croquettes with smoked chilli aioli

Bowery Lane's dinner menu of snacks, entrées, shared dished, sides and mains are more wholesome options than its lunch options, taking inspiration from Manhattan in that rustic-mod way that Sydney's so good at.

We started with golden crumbed croquettes filled with Spanish manchego cheese from the snacks menu. Served with a smoked chilli aioli, the croquettes were delightfully light and soft within while the creamy aioli brought a lingering heat.

House smoked hickory salmon with puffed wild rice, bottarga salad, burnet

We opted for three entrées to share, including the house hickory wood-smoked salmon. Plated in coils with puffed rice and shaved bottarga cured mullet roe, the smoked salmon was light and creamy with a subtle smokiness. The dish was paired with salty bottarga-topped crisps in delicious contrast to the soft, velvety texture of the salmon.

Jamon serrano with buffalo mozzarella, witlof rocket and shaved pear

The jamon serrano cured ham was another light entrée served as a salad with radicchio, pear slices and rocket leaves. Having been sliced so thinly, the jamon serrano could have been mistaken visually for radicchio leaves while I thought the dish could have benefited from a drizzle of olive oil.

Master kobe skirt wagyu (marble score: 9+) with chermula and lemon

To follow two lighter entrées, we had the kobe skirt wagyu which is one of the many meat based dishes that feature on Bowery Lane's dinner menu.

Lightly seared and topped with a chermula marinade, rocket and radish slices, the beautiful slices of high quality wagyu beef took on a lot of the chermula's tanginess which added a necessary overtone to the fat-marbled skirt steak.

1kg braised wagyu short rib with horseradish cream and roasted garlic

Continuing on the wagyu theme, for mains a 1-kilogram braised wagyu short rib was the first shared main dish to arrive.

Slightly charred on the surface, the braised wagyu short rib was beautifully cooked and looked, and felt, as if it literally had fallen off the bone.

Two whole roasted garlic bulbs were popped alongside the large serve of short rib, waiting to be peeled and smooshed for their caramelised sweetness alongside the zingy horseradish cream.

Whole BBQ organic chicken with lentils and grains and smoked yoghurt

The next shared main was a whole BBQ organic chicken, served in pieces with lentils and various grains mixed through smoked yoghurt.

A great, homely sharing dish, the lentils and yoghurt gave the comfort food, family favourite a new lease on life that was still utterly comforting.

Tempura soft shell crab burger with Asian slaw and miso mayonnaise

Two burgers feature on the dinner menu, including the towering soft shell crab burger. The undersized burger bun attempted to hold in a whole, tempura-battered soft shell crab, an Asian style cabbage slaw and what looked like half a bunch of coriander - a win for coriander lovers.

Complemented with a Japanese-style mayonnaise with miso, the salty, crunchy soft shell crab pieces were large enough to be eaten in a 'deconstructed' manner which is always easier for burger towers.

Barramundi fillet with king brown mushroom, smoked leek jus gras, parsnip

The barramundi fillet provided a lighter option for mains. With crisp, golden skin, the nicely cooked barramundi flaked easily and worked well with the parsnip puree and leek jus, and surprisingly, the king brown mushrooms.

Old Fashioned

On my visit the standalone bar at Bowery Lane wasn't yet in action, but it will surely be a popular one to prop up against for the building's suited tenants when the bar stools and seats are in.

With a good range of bourbon whiskies, to finish the night I opted for a good ol' Old Fashioned cocktail with Bulleit Rye whisky from Kentucky, which features on the cocktail menu in the Wall Street and New York Sour cocktails.

Bowery Lane

So realistically, Sydney mightn't be in the same ball park as New York but with Bowery Lane doing breakfast, lunch and dinner with some NYC inspiration and enthusiasm, we might just have a touch of Manhattan in our midst.

Food, Booze & Shoes dined at Bowery Lane as a guest, with thanks to Wasamedia.