What better way is there to spend a sunny winter’s afternoon than lunching on the terrace at Cafe Sydney with sumptuous food and equally sumptuous views? Mum and I went for a long overdue lunch on Sunday and it was worth the wait. We started with cocktails. All of the best meals start with a cocktail. Mum had the office fling: An affair of white peach, lemon zest and vanilla sugar drawn together with Grey Goose La Poire vodka, Tuaca vanilla liqueur and cloudy apple juice. I had the Light Apple Flour: Fresh apple and lavender flower smashed with Ketel One vodka, Pomme Verte and topped with Cloudy Bay Pelorus.
For my entrée I had the Jerusalem artichoke soup with seared scallop, chestnut mushroom and truffle creme fraiche. Superb! I am having a love affair at the moment with the Jerusalem artichoke. Where have you been all my life?
The love affair with the artichoke continued into the mains; Thyme gnocchi with peas, jerusalem artichoke, asparagus, cavolo nero and pecorino. This was utterly sublime. The perfect dish. I love it when gnocchi has that golden crust on it but is still so pillowy-soft inside. Drool. I paired it with a glass of the 2009 Mt Difficulty ‘Roaring Meg’ – Central Otago, NZ. This wine had a lovely bright cherry hue, and had overtones of strawberry with a gorgeously soft mouthfeel.
My mum rarely eats meat, so she indulged in a steak: Peppered beef tenderloin with swiss brown mushroom, brussels sprouts, porcini cream and jus. She said it was succulent and delicious. I believed her. Wine of choice was a glass of the 2008 Craggy Range ‘Gimblett Gravels’ Syrah – Hawke’s Bay, NZ, a perfect match for this dish as the wine was full bodied and bold, but not rude. It had a lovely deep blood colour and beautifully soft tannins.
I thought I was going to be too full for dessert, but I managed to squeeze it in; raspberry and almond tart with fresh raspberry and lemon curd cream was a delightful choice to cap off this wintery afternoon’s lunch. The zesty lemon curd cream was incredible and balanced the warm, mealy richness of the tart.
Mum had chocolate pavé topped with honeycomb and accompanied by sour cherries, chocolate icecream and cherry sorbet. The smile on her face said everything about how it tasted.
If you have not dined at Café Sydney, you simply must. It is just so Sydney, and I love Sydney.
