Steersons Steakhouse Signatures on the Wharf

As part of Good Food Month, for the month of October King Street Wharf restaurants are offering Signatures by the Wharf: a set of a signature main meal or dishes with a drink, enjoyed by the sparkling waterside.

I shouldn't have been all too surprised at the bloke-heavy population at Steersons Steakhouse on a weeknight dinner, where corporate cards seem to get a good workout. The restaurant at the northern end of Lime Street overlooking the wharf was almost completely full by the time we put orders in, and with steak, wine and a whisky trolley out the front – it makes perfect sense.

Freshly baked damper with salted butter and mixed marinated olives from Steersons Steakhouse,
Lime Street, King Street Wharf, Sydney

We started with freshly baked damper that was almost as soft and light as fairy floss; certainly softer than any white bread I've known and nothing like the damper I made at school camp all those years ago. Served with plain old butter, I'd recommend having it with some of the other very tempting starter options.

The mixed marinated olives were an ideal accompaniment, comprising meaty Sicilian green olives as well as kalamata olives in a chilli, citrus and herb marinade.

Pan-Fried Chorizo with mint & basil in a hot pan

There was even more flavour packed into the chorizo entrée, served in slices in a small, hot frying pan with mint, basil and a touch of balsamic vinegar – the latter cutting through the fatty, well-spiced pork sausage. With oils from the chorizo pooling at the bottom of the pan with the vinegar, it combined to make all too delicious (and naughty) a dipping oil.

Petite Grasslands (NSW) rib-eye with chips

Steersons' Good Food Month signature offer is the petite Grasslands rib-eye with red wine jus and a choice of potato: mashed, baked in its skin or fat chips, plus a glass of house wine. At 220 grams, the petite rib-eye steak is a good size for dinner with a couple of entrées and sides although hungrier types may look to the larger steak offerings.

Done medium-rare and served with hot English and seeded mustards, I was delighted with my petite steak which was pink and juicy but not bloody, so very tender, well-seasoned and charred on the surface, and full of beefy flavour.

With crisp, wide (and well done) chips and a few token green leaves, it was all about the signature steak that was so well executed by the Steersons kitchen.

Havericks Dry Aged Beef, NSW – Riverina rib on bone (pasture fed)

Outside of the Good Food Month special, the Riverina rib on the bone came highly recommended. Dry aged by Havericks for six-to-eight weeks, the tenderness of the not-too-thick 400 gram steak was a marvel, though I found my petite rib-eye tastier – if only for seasoning.

The coin of confit garlic and thyme butter was a rich addition along with the pot of red wine jus. Cutely, the serve of mashed potato was presented in a cloud-like fashion next to some plate greenery.

We paired our steaks with the easy-quaffing, excellently fruity, medium-bodied Jed Limited Reslease Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina.

Wild Rocket & Parmesan with goat cheese & beetroot

We added vegetables by way of the rocket and parmesan salad, differentiated from the masses with the addition of tartly-pickled beetroot – both the usual and golden varieties – which were thinly sliced but maintained an earthy firmness.

A goat's cheese dressing was served with the rocket leaf salad, both drizzled atop and in a side pool, while I think there was also a touch of balsamic vinegar.

Sauteed garlic mushrooms

I adore mushrooms in most forms but it would be hard to top the sautéed garlic mushrooms at Steersons. Served in another small frying pan, I think it was a mix of Swiss brown and button mushrooms cooked just so with the perfect hit of garlic, topped with breadcrumbs. If I were a vegetarian (I probably wouldn't be at Steersons Steakhouse, but), this is what I would want to eat all the time.

We didn't leave time or space for dessert on this occasion but for me, when it"s all about the steak – as is Steersons' signature – it's all about the steak.

There's a wide range of dining options on King Street Wharf and so there's a wide range of offers from the likes of Bungalow 8, Cargo Bar, Casa Ristorante Italiano, George's Mediterranean Bar & Grill, Kobe Jones, Wharf Teppanyaki, La Cita, Nicks Bar and Grill, The Malaya and Steersons Steakhouse. See all of the Signatures by the Wharf dining offers at King Street Wharf.

Food, Booze & Shoes dined at Steersons Steakhouse as a guest, with thanks to The PR Partnership.

Go west to Atura Blacktown and Skyline Drive In

I'll be the first to admit that I don't go west very often - those inner city and inner west bubble walls can be rather thick.

But a recent Saturday morning event in the west presented me with a unique opportunity to go west the night before - to the rather new Atura Blacktown hotel by the AHL group that also owns Sydney's boutique QT Hotel, and the adjacent Skyline Drive In cinema.

Atura Blacktown, Cricketers Arms Road, Blacktown

For those not accustomed to going west (hi), Blacktown is pretty far from the inner city especially in after-Friday-work peak hour traffic. When you do get to Blacktown/Prospect, don't get too worried when GPS tells you to turn off a dark, rather sparse road that shows very little around for what seems like miles.

You're (probably) on the right track to reach the beacon-like, white-and-yellow-lit Atura Blacktown on Cricketers Arms Road. Opened in late 2013 as a newly-built three-storey structure, Atura Blacktown is the first of a new chain of design hotels by AHL aiming to bring some style and quirk to city fringe, suburban or regional areas where there's still demand for accommodation.

Pool table and seating on the ground floor lobby

Aside from a whole lot of corporates, Atura Blacktown targets event-goers at Eastern Creek (apparently now known as Sydney Motorsport Park) and in the warmer seasons, families and groups headed to Wet'n'Wild Sydney.

The hotel's philosophy is based around "high connectivity" and "low guest maintenance" which means free WiFi and a huge shared space lobby incorporating reception, entertainment, the Roadhouse Bar & Restaurant, and a Grab & Go pantry where quick snacks, microwaveable meals and other necessities are there for guests' grabbing and purchasing convenience.

Bedroom suite

Upstairs the guest rooms are a surprisingly spacious proposition, like a well-planned studio apartment with all the necessary trimmings. Decked out in what I can only try to describe as a modern quirky art/design style, the rooms have a desk, small sofa and table, bed (of course) and the added facilities of an almost-kitchenette.

Kitchenette

There's a kitchenette sink, microwave, kettle and pod espresso machine as well as some kitchen utensils which makes me think there was also some kind of stove implement for basic in-room cooking.

Then, there was the full mini bar with drinks, including booze, snacks and even microwave popcorn for drive in cinema or in-room consumption - the latter a rather tempting offer with the on-swivel flat screen television and free movies on offer - yes, free movies.

Artwork and sofa

Room furnishings

Bathroom artwork

Bathroom furnishings

Roadhouse Bar & Grill dining area
(Image courtesy of AHL)

Of course, for something more substantial to eat there's the Roadhouse Bar & Grill on the ground lobby floor which offers a menu of grill and modern Australian dishes with something to to suit everyone.

The open kitchen at Roadhouse Bar & Grill, Atura Blacktown

The bonus of the open and shared lobby space means that there's plenty to watch for entertainment as you wait for your meal - from cars pulling up out the front, people at reception or the pantry, to people at the lobby televisions or playing pool and in the warmer weather, probably people in the pool.

Aperol Spritz (left) and Dark and Stormy (right) cocktails

The Roadhouse Bar has standalone bar seating while it also services the restaurant with a full offering of beer, wines and cocktails.

I opted for a weather-inappropriate pre-dinner Aperol Spritz, while the Dark and Stormy was also served classically: tall with Goslings Black Seal rum and topped with ginger beer and lime.

Popcorn prawns

It didn't take long at all for our starters to arrive, beginning with battered popcorn prawns that we demolished in minutes.

Served considerately atop a leafy salad with pickled carrots, the not-small golden-surfaced prawn pieces were deliciously easy to enjoy, especially with a sweet chilli lime mayonnaise drizzled over.

Baked beetroot and goat's cheese salad

The friendly waitress' favourite dish of beetroot and goat's cheese salad featured baked baby specimens of both golden and normal beetroots. Pimped up with crunchy pistachio nuts and pumpkin seeds, the salad was a perfect balance of leafiness, tart balsamic vinegar dressing, sweet beets and creamy goat's cheese.

300g free range Kurobuta pork chop, potato gratin and beans

Being the cold night it was I felt like something comforting and winter-appropriate, and so ordered the larger than expected pork chop served with creamy, cheesy potato gratin and green beans.

The huge, well-grilled pork chop came with a glossy, tasty gravy but even that couldn't get me all the way through the quite lean chop, while the potato gratin was irresistibly filling.

200g eye fillet steak, Grassland, NSW

As a grill restaurant it's hard not to go with a steak and the Grassland eye fillet is one of five steak options, all served with fat chips and a choice of sauce.

Cooked to medium-rare as requested, the petite but thickly cut steak was a tender affair that was best with the rich pepper sauce.

Eye fillet steak served with fat chips and sauces

Meanwhile, the metal basket of super fat chips with fluffy innards were great with the bacon-and-garlic-scented mushroom sauce; an inadvertent second steak sauce.

Roast vegetables

A side of roast vegetables was a wintry celebration of sweet, softened root vegetables - pumpkin, carrot, sweet potato and the ever-delightful parnsip.

Queue at Skyline Drive In, Cricketers Arms Road, Blacktown 

Unfortunately we didn't have time to try desserts at Roadhouse Bar & Grill as we were due for a movie at the neighbouring Skyline Drive In - the only permanent drive in cinemas in Sydney, and with two screens.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks of Grease at the sound of a drive in and it's all the fun you imagine and more. Drive in, queue up in your car, pay per person at the entry then park in one of the many designated spots.

Watching a movie at the drive in!

Then, tune in to the right radio frequency and voilà - surround sound in the confines of your car. Note that it can get pretty chilly in winter so rug up, take a blanket or work out how to keep the heating (and radio) on without the car lights on.

Grab and Go pantry at Atura Blacktown

If dinner and popcorn weren't enough to stave away hunger pangs post movie, a quick visit to the Grab and Go pantry late at night would have done the trick.

Roadhouse Bar, by day

The next morning we returned to the Roadhouse restaurant area for breakfast. As with many hotel restaurants, the space doubles as the buffet breakfast area with the kitchen pass getting covered in vessels and food dispensers.

Cereals, milk, yoghurt and fruit at the breakfast buffet

Healthy options include yoghurts, fruit and cereal - and weirdly, I can never resist tinned peaches at a hotel breakfast buffet.

Yoghurt, fruit and juices 

Bread station

The bread station offers a decent selection of white, brown and super thick raisin bread as well as English muffins and a range of spreads including Lurpak butter and Birch & Waite honey.

Next to the breads is the conveyor belt toaster machine which warmed my English muffin though I wouldn't have called it toasted. I think I need more practice with those machines.

Scrambled eggs

From the hot food selection were heavy enamel pots of scrambled eggs, not quite crispy bacon and the best whole, buttery, button mushrooms of which I could have had seemingly endless helpings.

Bacon

Mushrooms

Buffet breakfast plate

However healthy the intention, this is what my buffet breakfast plates tend to look like. With the addition of crisp hash browns and mini chicken sausages, this big breakfast was completely appropriate for a day when the consumption of alcohol commenced before noon and not long after check-out.

The pool at Atura Blacktown

Once the weather warms up, I can imagine the pool and pool bar just outside of the restaurant dining area will become highly coveted spots for those staying in the hotel and not in the area for water park queues. Given this was the view from our room, bikini parades and people watching are also likely to be popular.

Chairs by the pool

Atura Blacktown brings some city pizazz and quirk out west with a unique offering at an affordable price point. With the Roadhouse Bar & Grill and the Skyline Drive In next door, it's a bit of an attraction in itself - worth going west for.

Atura Blacktown exterior by day
(Image courtesy of AHL)

Food, Booze & Shoes was a guest of Atura Blacktown, Roadhouse Bar & Grill and the Skyline Drive In.

Argentinian down under at Gaucho's Argentinian Restaurant, Adelaide

Posted by Hendy

No trip to Adelaide would be complete without a visit to Gaucho's Argentinian Restaurant, which prides itself as being Australia's first Argentinian restaurant.

Established in 1985, Gaucho's offers many dishes that Argentinian cuisine is best known for: beef, pork and an elaborate selection of grilled meat dishes. The name Gaucho's comes from the original pioneers of Argentina who roamed the vast plains of the Patagonian grasslands, the pampas.

Ciabatta with extra virgin olive oil and house made dukkah at Gaucho's Argentinian Restaurant, Gouger Street, Adelaide

The restaurant has both indoor and outdoor seating and with the warm, beautiful Adelaide day, we opted for the great outdoors.

Starting with ciabatta bread with olive oil and dukkah, and warm, marinated mixed olives, we trawled through the extensive menu which is broken down into courses: entrada (entrée), primer plato (first course), segunda plato (second course) and firma plato (signature dishes).

Oliva - Warmed mixed olives with chilli, paprika, tequila and lime

What stood out in the signature dishes were all the asado barbecue or grill based dishes. There was everything from simple eye fillet, scotch fillet, porterhouse beef cuts and a number of wagyu cuts – including rump and striploin – to mixed grilled meats that can all be 'asado'ed.

Churrasco Grande - Wagyu rump

It was hard not to, so we all opted to order steaks or ribs from the mouth-watering asado menu and a number of side dishes.

The first plate to arrive was the Churrasco Grande; a 500-gram wagyu rump steak with a marble score of 8+, aged for over 42 days and sourced from Mayura Station in Limestone Coast, South Australia.

The rump was well cooked to medium-rare as ordered, delectable with just a pinch of salt and very, very tender with the wagyu marbling giving it a buttery texture. There was also the light chimmichurri marinade that Gaucho's put on all its steaks to give them their signature finishing.

Bife De Chorizo - New York style porterhouse

A number of us ordered the Bife De Chorizo grain-fed Riverine porterhouse, aged for a minimum of 42 days. Simply presented alone on the plate, the porterhouse was there to shine; similarly tender at medium-rare as with the wagyu rump.

Six-hour slow-cooked beef ribs coated with blue cheese sauce

The last protein to hit the table was the six-hour cooked beef ribs - one of three specials on the day. Giant as it seemed, the slow cooking meant the rib meat just fell straight off the bone.

The single rib was served with a blue cheese sauce that surprisingly wasn't overpowering but complemented the beef, providing it with a draping of flavour alongside colourful vegetables on the side of the wooden board.

Hand cut fried potatoes with rosemary and sea salt

Hand-cut, skin-on, fried potatoes, a fancy chunk of a chip if you will, come default with the main dishes.

With their mid-sized cuts, the potatoes were crunchy on the outside and wedges-fluffy on the inside, seasoned with rosemary, sea salt and paprika to finish.

Verduras verde - Seasonal greens sauteed with olive oil, lemon and fresh chilli

To topple the protein imbalances, we ordered greens from the ensaladas é verduras menu. The greens side of broccolini was simply sautéed with oil, lemon and chilli.

Pera ensalada - Salad of pear, witlof, radicchio, pecorino and roasted walnuts

The pear salad was a colourful and flavourful mix of sliced pear, radicchio and pecorino cheese, with toasted walnuts and some witlof greens.

I loved the balance of flavours of the salad, from the saltiness of the pecorino to the bitterness of the radicchio to the sweet slices of pear.

Being my second time at Gaucho's since few years ago, not much has changed. Gaucho's has retained its simplicity and ability to present good Argentinian dishes at its purest form - making it a worthwhile stop if you're ever down under in Adelaide.

The locals' Woodland Kitchen & Bar

Posted by Jan

Ideally, every suburb should have a reliable dining option that locals can just wander to for a good meal - something that's more than takeaway but not too fancy or difficult. Woodland Kitchen & Bar is Neutral Bay's newest dining addition and fits the bill perfectly.

Dining room at Woodland Kitchen & Bar, Grosvenor Street, Neutral Bay

Re-emerging from what used to be the northern outpost of Pony Dining, Woodland Kitchen & Bar is husband and wife duo Damien and Jenni Heads' first solo venture (you may remember Heads from such shows as Ready, Steady, Cook).

Chef Damien Heads

With a wealth of experience between them, they have created a modern Australian menu with a casual yet personal approach, most suitable for the sophisticated, well-serviced neighbourhood.

Being locals to the area, their approach is no-fuss, honest flavours and simple food. This comes through strongly in the menu that includes hot and cold seafood, steaks, share plates as well as a $10 children's menu.

Oyster shot, Bloody Mary

We started with sweet, briney Sydney Rock oysters from Wodongo Inlet in a shot glass of spicy Bloody Mary tomato mix. Never the prettiest starter, I found it tough to stop myself from having more than my fair share of the excellent oysters. 

Yellowfin tuna sashimi spring roll , soy bean sauce

Retrieved from the Pony Dining menu, the tuna sashimi spring roll is another example of why we love Sydney summers and seafood so much. The raw tuna encased with crisp spring roll pastry and served with edamame beans, whole and puréed into a sauce, was a casual and light option perfect for summer grazing. 

Grilled ciabatta, whipped fetta and marinated olives

A shared plate that could have been dinner alone for me featured a divine whipped fetta cheese, served with plenty of smoky, grilled ciabatta bread and a small selection of olives.

Sauteed calamari and chorizo

The very classic pairing of chorizo and calamari was complemented with a rich tomato sauce, white beans and grilled sourdough bread. The hint of sherry vinegar in the calamari sauce added a bit of tang to this tasty, tapas-style dish. 

Baked onion and goats cheese flan

Grilled asparagus and watercress were great additions to the baked onion and goat's cheese tart. The freshness and added crunch of the vegetables complemented the rich pastry and goat's cheese very well. 

200g grass fed eye fillet steak

From the mains the eye fillet steak was cooked medium-rare as requested with perfect cross-hatch grill marks, and was served with a red wine jus, roasted baby carrots and eschallots, and a salsa verde.

Lamb backstrap 

The tender lamb backstrap from the woodfire grill was served on a bed of hummus with smoky eggplant, tomatoes, quinoa and a salad of celery leaves, tarragon and chervil.

I wasn't sure what (everyone's favourite super-grain) quinoa would bring to the dish, but it tied the rest of the ingredients together quite unexpectedly and added a lovely texture to the salad and lamb. 

Potato gnocchi with roasted pumpkin, burnt butter and salted ricotta

Despite being quite full, I couldn't help but offer to help finish off the soft, melting potato gnocchi with sweeet roasted pumpkin cubes and salted ricotta slices. It would have been a sin to leave a single pillow of goodness behind. 

Tasmanian Salmon with pickled beetroot, orange, fetta and mint

Also from the woodfire grill, the large fillet of salmon was cooked perfectly with a nice addition of fetta cheese and mint, and orange segments and pickled beetroots that cut the richness of the salmon.

Sides of chips with roasted garlic aioli and a salad of rocket, pear, fennel and parmesan

Golden, thick cut chips with a roasted garlic aioli were a crowd-pleasing side along with a fresh salad of rocket leaves, pear, shaved fennel and parmesan cheese shared at the table.

Caramel and chocolate tart with fresh honeycomb and double cream

I'm glad I made room for dessert: a not-run-of-the-mill caramel and chocolate tart served with freshly-made honeycomb. There was a slight bitterness of golden syrup that was heated to just the right temperature before burning - the hallmark taste of a good home-made honeycomb that you just don't get in commercial honeycomb.

Woodland Kitchen & Bar's honest and uncomplicated approach to well-cooked food is what every neighbourhood bistro should have. I can just imagine myself as a local coming back again and again for, "my usual, please". If only every suburb could be so lucky.

Food, booze and shoes dined at Woodland Kitchen & Bar as a guest, with thanks to Agency G.