Tacos, down Mexico Food & Liquor way

It's pretty impressive that in the space of just a few of years, a craving for tacos can now elicit a number of Mexican restaurant suggestions in most inner Sydney suburbs. I remember a time when I only knew one venue – a dingy space in Kingsford – but choice is aplenty now.

Tequila at Mexico Food & Liquor, Randle Street, Surry Hills

It was an interesting decision to morph what was previously chef Warren Turnbull's already 'casual' District Dining in Surry Hills into the more casual Mexico Food & Liquor, but the decision has proved worthwhile, with nightly crowds packing into the lavishly decked out Mexican venue.

No wall is free of Mexican paraphernalia: from wrestling masks to vintage photos, which really works in getting patrons into a tequila state of mind. On that, there's a crazily extensive menu of 100% agave tequila with pages of bottle pictures in each Blanco, Reposado and Añejo categories.

We sampled a clear Reposado straight, which warmed rather than burned with sweet vanilla top notes.

Queso fundido with broccolini, black olive powder, corn bread

On food, we started with a tempting-sounding cheese fondue: a shallow dish of a pale melted cheese mix sprinkled with a savoury powder of black olives and served with lightly-cooked broccolini and a very moist, crumbly corn bread.

Our waiter also recommended an additional side of soft tortillas for dipping, noting that the broccolini and corn bread were never enough to mop up the somewhat bland, watery cheese mix.

Pickled vegetables

I like how Sydney restaurants are embracing pickles as they’re great appetisers, healthy and quite fun in their diversity.

The stout glass jar here was stuffed full with cauliflower, large chillies red and green with some bite, beans and carrot sticks – all crisply pickled in a just-tart enough pickling mix.

Pork, fish and beef tacos

There are main dish options on the menu, but we were down this way for the tacos. I was most looking forward to the pan fried fish taco, served as a mostly boneless fillet with a gribiche sauce, spicy chipotle mayonnaise and a red cabbage coleslaw – the latter being the perfect vegetable addition to every taco, I think.

The slightly chewy beef skirt steak had the most fantastic char flavour, complemented with a zingy salsa and fried onions.

Braised pork belly with pomegranate, spiced cabbage, sesame

Not to be outdone, the pork belly taco featured a fabulous Korean-style kimchi salad of very spicy cabbage and sesame seeds, with pomegranate for sweetness to combat the heat. The sticky, sweet and tender pork belly was worthy of being its own featured dish.

Chocolate, orange & pink peppercorn mousse, Abuela’s sweet biscuit

For a shared dessert we opted for the chocolate and orange mousse which was topped with more whole pink peppercorns than we could pick off.

The mousse itself was a light, airy rendition with good citrus flavour, though completely overpowered and even jarring whenever one of the many peppercorns got in the way every mouthful.

While the extensive tequila menu is all 100% Mexican, the food at Mexico Food & Liquor seems to have more of a modern and perhaps Australian fusion touch to it, but it's more than made up for with the decor and fantastic fiesta atmosphere. And as for for some great tacos, do come south of the CBD, down Mexico way.

Anatoli brings modern Greek to The Eastern

Modern Greek cuisine exploded onto the Sydney dining scene over the last couple of years and it's been nice to watch it develop and grow, now into the eastern suburbs with Anatoli at The Eastern.

Pork moussaka from Anatoli, Level 1, The Eastern, Oxford Street, Bondi Junction

The Eastern in Bondi Junction, adjoining the mammoth Westfield shopping centre, has this year undergone a barely recognisable transformation; from multi-level pub to a multi-venue attraction with two distinct restaurants, four bars (with food) and a lot of good eating and drinking to be done.

The bar at Anatoli

Anatoli on Level 1 of the four-storied complex features a breathtaking, cliché-free fitout with a large, marble-topped bar splitting restaurant and bar seating for a significant 150 patrons.

With an array of Greek wines on offer, it's hard to go past the very fruity recommendation of 2010 Domaine Sigalas Assyrtiko Athiri from Santorini by the glass (tip: always get a recommendation when you can’t pronounce any of the wine labels or grapes on offer).

The restaurant at Anatoli

Chef Matt Fitzgerald (ex Bentley Restaurant & Bar and Bather's Pavilion) heads the Anatoli kitchen, as well as the upstairs Mexican venue, El Topo.

The Anatoli menu is grounded in great local produce with classic Greek influences – proffering a uniquely modern Greek-Australian take on shared plates, which I think is the perfect way put together a menu for today’s modern Australian palate.

Eggplant, tzatziki & hummus mezethes with grilled pita

One of my all-time favourite ways to start a meal is mezethes dips and addictive, fluffy wedges of grilled Greek pita bread – a sufficient amount too, which rarely seems the case.

The hummus, excellent as it was, was no match for the smoky eggplant dip, which in turn was no match for my absolute favourite dip – tzatziki, the classic Greek refreshing dip of yoghurt, garlic, lemon, cucumber and loads of fresh mint.

Spiced school prawns & smoked chilli mayo

Whole fried school prawns are becoming a regular sighting on Sydney menus, and I can say definitively that these were the best I've had across town.

The generous pot of prawns had the crunchiest possible coating and pleasantly trimmed whiskers, themselves seasoned to salty, spiced perfection. There was the smoked chilli mayonnaise for the creamy condiment-inclined, while we also requested lemon wedges for some extra zing.

Wild mushrooms, kohlrabi & roast pinenuts

There was a sprinkling of Greek influence in the pan of wild mushrooms; I think oregano through the shiitake and King Browns, topped with raw enoki mushrooms. The fungi were supplemented by a creamy puree of kohlrabi, with added texture from roasted pine nuts.

Pork moussaka with eggplant & gruyere

I was seriously excited to try Anatoli’s moussaka – classic Greek comfort food drenched in a white sauce. The moussaka comprised with a high quality mince of pork, soft eggplant slices and home-style seasoning, all topped with rich, creamy béchamel sauce and gooey, melted gruyere cheese.

The little cast iron pot deceived the eyes but not the stomach; densely-packed with the rich meat mixture and luxe, creamy sauce, it was a surprising struggle to clean up the entire petite pot.

Slow cooked shoulder of lamb, roast onions, braising juices & tzatziki

For our other main we elected the slow-cooked lamb shoulder, served as a neat block with sweetly roasted Spanish onions and hearty, goodness-filled juices from the braising process.

The lamb had a delightful fall-apart texture, simply using the force of a fork. The flavourful meat was lightened and enhanced with the excellent tzatziki on the side in an array of classic and clean Greek tastes.

Roast Brussels, hazelnut, haloumi & filo

The order of roast Brussels sprouts came out logically with the mains, without request. Lightly cooked and arranged prettily with roasted hazelnuts, filo pastry shards and shaved haloumi cheese, they were a nice foil to our heavy mains (though hard to rank against my and Sydney’s favourite Brussels sprouts).

Ouzo with ice

We ended up with leftovers as we were warned early on to leave space for desserts. To help digestion along, I had a nip of ouzo, served however the drinker likes.

I like to add a cube or two of ice to the liquor, just so I can play around and see the ouzo go cloudy, while the aniseed-flavours are perfect with dessert and as a digestive, especially post a big meal.

Chocolate mousse, hazelnut & burnt Gerakas honey ice cream

The chocolate mousse was a particularly pretty dessert arrangement featuring the creamy, dark chocolate mousse on the bottom, and scattered with roasted hazelnuts, delicate chocolate curls and an exquisite honeyed ice cream in a forest floor look.

Milk pie, kumquat, honey & sesame halva

The milk pie dessert was a less sweet option with a fantastic halva ice cream and glazed kumquat pieces adding a very unique citrus aspect. The milk pie itself was a soft, creamy square that matched nicely with the crisp bits of kataifi pastry.

On the whole – food, drinks, atmosphere and service – Anatoli was one of the best nights I've had out recently. No one aspect stood out acutely but the entire experience left me completely satisfied and smiling. 

The departing thought was that if this is the towering levels of modern Greek-Australian cuisine in Sydney, despite challenges in the industry, Sydney dining is in a really good place.

Food, booze and shoes dined at Anatoli as a guest, with thanks to Savannah PR.

Gault&Millau's The Yellow Guide launches in Sydney

Sydney is about to be hit with another restaurant guide, awarding hats and scores out of 20 no less. Launched last night at food lovers destination, Salt Meats Cheese, with a crowd of chefs, champagne and canapés, Gault&Millau Australia's 'The Yellow Guide' for Sydney 2014 is the newest kid on the reviewing block.

Gault&Millau Australia's 'The Yellow Guide' Sydney 2014

Hailing from France, Gaullt&Millau (for us Aussies, phonetically pronounced "Go Me-yo") Australia recruited industry professionals and trained them to international Gault&Millau reviewing standards; evaluating more than 1000 meals for the inaugural Sydney guide.

While scores out of 20 are pretty standard, no restaurant scoring less than 10 appears in the Yellow Guide; resulting in more than 300 of what are considered to be Sydney's best published in the guide.

Gault&Millau Australia's hat system

Hats are awarded differently to the current incumbent system, starting with 1 hat for a score of 11 or 12, up to 5 golden hats for a perfect score of 20. The addition of a score/icon for venues with 12 or more cheeses offered is a very French touch.

The restaurant reviews are generally longer than the bite-sized ones in the incumbent guide, with some spanning whole pages but the majority being half pages of a smallish font size.

Gault&Millau Australia's top hatted restaurants

And while there are many similarities up the top hatted end, it's the three, two and one hats in Gault&Millau Yellow Guide that are particularly different; with hats awarded in much greater volumes from three hats and down.

There are currently no 5 golden hat restaurants in Sydney, though I'm not sure that's even a realistic result. It's yet to be seen how Gault&Millau Australia will be received - by restaurants and diners - but another perspective can't be all bad. Congratulations to the Yellow Guide's hats in Sydney.

Five hats (18.5 to 19 points)
Momofuku Seiobo, Quay, Sepia

Four hats (17 to 18.4 points)
Billy Kwong, The Bridge Room, Chiswick Restaurant and Bar, est., Gastro Park, Jonah's Restaurant, Marque, MoVida, Rockpool, Rockpool Bar & Grill, Sean's Panaroma, sixpenny, Tetsuya's

Three hats (15 to 16 points)
Altitude Restaurant, ARIA Restaurant, Arras, The Bathers' Pavilion, Bei Amici, Bentley Restaurant & Bar, Berowra Waters Inn, Bistro Boulevard, BLACK by Ezard, Busshari, Cafe Sydney, Cara & Co (closed), Catalina, China Doll, Clareville Kiosk, Cottage Point Inn, The Cut Bar & Grill, The Devonshire, Fix St James, Flying Fish Restaurant & Bar, 4Fourteen, Four in Hand Dining Room, Fratelli Paradiso, Kitchen by Mike, Longrain, Lucio's, Ms. G's, Otto Ristorante, Pendolino, Pilu at Freshwater, Pony Dining (The Rocks), Popolo, Porteno, Restaurant Atelier, Spencer Guthrie, Spice Temple, Tastevin Bistro & Wine Bar, Tomislav Restaurant, Uccello, Verde Restaurant + Bar, Vini

Two hats (13 to 14 points)
A Tavola, Agape Organic Restaurant, Almond Bar, Ananas Bar & Brasserie, The Apollo, Aqua Dining, Ash St. Cellar, Azuma Chifley, Balla, Bambini Trust, Bar H, Barbuto Restaurant, Baroque Bistro Patisserie, Barrenjoey House, Barrio Chino, The Bellevue Dining Room, Berta, Bishop Sessa, Bistro Moncur, Bistrode CBD, Blancharu, bloodwood, The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay, Bodega, Bondi's Best, Bronte Road Bistro, Buffalo Dining Club, Buon Ricordo, The Burlington, Burnt Orange, Buzo Trattoria, Cafe Lyon, Chef's Gallery, China Beach, Chophouse, Cipri Italian, Cucinetta Ristorante & Bar, deviate, The Dining Room, The Duck Inn Pub & Kitchen, Dunes Restaurant & Kiosk, Enopizzeria, Felix, The Fish Shop, Foley Lane, Foveaux Restaurant & Bar, Garfish Manly, Ginger & Spice, glass brasserie, Glebe Point Diner, Gowings Bar & Grill, Grecian Blue, Hartsyard, honeycomb, House, Hugos Manly, Icebergs Dining Room & Bar, il perugino, Intermezzo Ristorante, Jah Bar, Kabuki Shoroku, Kalevu, Kobe Jones Teppanyaki, Letoile, La Rosa Bar & Pizza, La Tratt, La Trattoria on Norton, Luke Benchmark, Malabar @ Darlinghurst, Manly Wine, Manta, Mexicano, Mission Restaurant and Bar, Morena, Mr Wong, Neptune Palace, Neutral Bay Diner, Nilgiri's, North Bondi Italian Food, O Bar and Dining, Ocean Room, Ormeggio at The Spit, Orto Trading Co, Oscillate Wildly, The Owl House, The Pantry, PaperPlanes, Pizza Mario, Pompei's, Public Dining Room, Red Lantern on Crown, Restaurant 16, Ripples Chowder Bay, Ripples Milsons Point, Ripples Sydney Wharf, Rocket Restaurant, Sails on Lavender Bay, Sake Restaurant & Bar, the sardine room, Signorelli Gastronomia, Sokyo, Spice I Am Darlinghurst, Starfish Avalon, Steel Bar & Grill, sugarcane, Sugaroom, sushi e, tapioca, The Tea Room Gunner's Barracks, Three Blue Ducks, Toko Restaurant & Bar, Ume, Verandah Restaurant & Wine Bar, Wilbur's Place, Wildfire, The Wine Library, Xanthi, Yoshii, Zaaffran

One hat (11 to 12 points)
Aki’s Indian, Angel Restaurant, Antoine’s Grill, BAHBW, Banjo Patterson Cottage Restaurant, Bau Truong, Beppi’s, bills, Bistro Bruno, Bitton Café & Grocer, Blue Eye Dragon, The Boathouse Palm Beach, Booth St Bistro, Brown Sugar, Café Sopra, The Carrington, Cavallino, Chairman Mao, Chat Thai, Chinta Ria Mood for Love, The Cook’s Garden, Courtney’s Brasserie, Danny’s Seafood, Delicado Foods, Din Tai Fung World Square, The Eathouse Diner, Efendy, Emmilou, Fei Jai, Firefly Neutral Bay, Fish Face, 42 Bannerman Trattoria e Bar, Galileo Restaurant, Garfish Crows Nest, Garfish Kirribilli, Gazebo Wine Bar, Golden Century Seafood Restaurant, Grappa Ristorante e Bar, The Grounds of Alexandria, HaNa Ju-Rin, Harvest Store & Kitchen, Hickson Road Bistro, High St Bistro, Home Thai, Hugos Bar Pizza, Iron Chef Chinese Seafood Restaurant, Izakaya Fujiyama, Jamie’s Italian, Ju Ge Mu & Shimbashi, Kazbah Balmain, Kobe Jones Sydney, Kujin, La Brasserie, La Grand Bouffe, La Grillade, La Pesa Trattoria, La Scala on Jersey, Lachlan’s Restaurant, love.fish, Lucio Pizzeria, Machiavelli Ristorante, Malabar@Crow’s Nest, The Malaya, Mamak, The Morrison Bar & Oyster Room, New Shanghai, Nostos, The Old Library, Oliveto Ristorante & Bar, Osteria Riva, Palace Chinese Restaurant, Palings, Parma, Pony Neutral Bay, Quattro Paste, Queenies, Radio Cairo, Red Chilli Sichuan Restaurant, Red Lantern on Riley, Rengaya, Ripples Whale Beach, The Riverview Hotel Dining Room, Safi, Sakana-Ya, Seven Lanterns, Spice I Am Balmain, Stella Blu, Stuyvesant’s House, Szechuan Garden Restaurant, Temasek, 3 Weeds Restaurant, Treehouse, The Union Restaurant, Via Napoli Pizzeria, Vicinity Dining, WAQU, Wildwater Grill, The Winery

Food, booze and shoes attended the launch of Gault&Millau's The Yellow Guide as a guest, with thanks to Savannah PR.