N2 Extreme Gelato - Coolest Craze on the Block

Ever since watching Heston Blumenthal beat up ice cream in a bowl of liquid nitrogen on one of his shows, I’ve wanted to find out how they would actually taste in comparison to ice cream made by conventional methods. Finally Sydney has its own mad scientists experimenting with the magical N2, making ultra-fresh and super creamy gelato.

It is a courageous move opening a gelato shop right in the middle of winter, but the fun and innovative nature of N2 Extreme Gelato successfully attracted a crowd of ice cream enthusiasts, even on a wintry night.

The establishment resembles a science lab, with numerous flasks filled with different ingredients and large cylinder cans of liquid nitrogen. Once you’ve selected a flavour from their ever changing menu, the staffs in lab coats pour various components into the colourful Kitchen Aids. While the ingredients are churning, they blast liquid nitrogen into the mixtures. The result is an enormous cloud of smoke and, of course, the smoothest gelato!

The entire process takes a few minutes only, almost too fast if you are trying to take photos of what’s going on around you. Once the gelatos are made, you need to demolish them quickly – not only because they are lip-smacking, but they do melt pretty fast too.

Tonight I had their blueberry cheesecake and that is exactly what it is – luscious cheesecake with real blueberries… it’s so creamy and dreamy (especially when placed in front of the cloud of smoke). My bestie Lu ordered buttered popcorn – a sweet buttery gelato with traces of real popcorns. We agreed this would be a perfect movie snack and should be made available at all cinemas.

While we are there we had a quick chat with the owner, who happened to be experimenting with a new flavour. He offered us a spoonful to try and asked if we could guess the ingredients. “Coconut” we guessed, and we’re right. But there is something else… another ingredient in there we could not pick out, and would have to come another day to find out...

Blackboard menu with flavours updated every now and then

Flasks filled with yummy goodness

Adding ingredients into the Kitchen Aid

Adding N2 into the mixture

Moments before the birth of something magical :)

TADA... The Delicious Blueberry Cheesecake Gelato @ $6 for a big scoop
(I've already eaten some before remembering to take a photo!)

N2 Extreme Gelato

43/1 Dixon St  

Sydney, NSW 2000

Open: 7 days a week from 2pm – 11pm

Visited September 2012

Friendly advice: The owner is keen to test out new flavours, and you can submit a flavour on their website as I just did – Scrambled Egg & Bacon, inspired by Heston Blumenthal - I sure hope to see it on their menu one day :P

A Touch of Paris @ Bistro Papillon

Bistros are defined mostly by home-style cooking with robust wholesome dishes, including slow-cooked foods to suit this time of year. On that front, Bistro Papillon is an absolute champion. Tonight’s gathering is called to celebrate the ageing of my youthful sister with two of her best friends.

Bistro Papillon is rather small accommodating fewer than 40 customers at a time. It is the real deal however, with French chefs, French waiter, serving regional and authentic French food and French wines. The service is friendly and welcoming, and came with a smile on a charming face and a French accent. Together with the classic French posters on the wall, we felt like we are in Paris for a few hours.

Tucked away on a quiet stretch of Clarence Street

 With classic French posters on the wall

A lovely, cosy setting with candle lights

Tonight I had the Cassoulet Toulousain, which is a rich, slow-cooked casserole originating in the south of France, containing confit duck leg, pork belly, smoke sausage, white beans and vegetables. It is by far the best Cassoulet I’ve ever had. Starting from the moment the casserole is brought in front of me, I am infatuated by the wonderful aromas. The duck confit is wonderful and the meat just fell off the bone. The chucks of pork belly are unbelievably tender and tasty. The entire dish is a joy to eat – I do not normally like haricot beans (maybe due to association with baked beans from the can) but couldn’t resist the white beans here that are so soft and appetizing.

I also had some of the pan fried spring chicken supreme wrapped in pancetta. It is served with a creamy wild mushroom sauce and is an extremely rich and flavoursome dish, best complimented by a crispy garden salad. Worthy to note is that some of the mains (marked with an asterisk on the menu, including the spring chicken and the rabbit casserole) include a choice of side dish - what a fantastic deal. I did not try the rabbit casserole as I use to have pet rabbits, but our friend loved it and demolished the whole dish. She ordered a side of home-made spaetzle, which are bits of cheesy, chewy egg noodle dumpling, and is ultra comforting.

For desserts we ordered crème brulee and profiteroles to share. The crème brulee is the best I've had in a long long time - with a fine, thin caramelised crust on top and creamy vanilla goodness underneath. The profiteroles are a crowd pleaser with its combination of hot (chocolate sauce) and cold (vanilla ice cream).

Bistro Papillon’s unpretentious attitude in offering simply delicious food in a warm, cosy setting definitely won me over. I am getting hungry just looking at these pictures again and will definitely be looking to return soon.

L Loves… Cassoulet Toulousain

Confit Duck Leg, Pork Belly and Smoked Sausage, White Beans and Vegetables 

Suprême de Volaille Forestière

Pan Fried Spring Chicken Suprême Wrapped in Pancetta Creamy Wild Mushroom Sauce

Lapin à la Moutarde

Rabbit Casserole, White Wine, 
Seeded Mustard, Cream, Mushrooms and Carrots

Homemade Spaetzle

Profiteroles with Vanilla Ice Cream and Hot Chocolate Sauce

L Loves… Crème Brulée à la Vanille Bourbon 

L's Verdict:

·   Taste: 9/10

·   Ambience: 4/5

·   Value: 3.5/5

·   Service: 4/5

·  Creativity and other WOW factors: 3/5 

Overall rating: 23.5/30

Bistro Papillon

98 Clarence Street

Sydney, NSW 2000

Ph: (02) 9262 2402

Open Mon – Fri for lunch,

Tues – Sat for dinner

Visited September 2012

Friendly advice: Make sure you book ahead as this little bistro does get quite busy, even during weekdays. Once you’re there, I’m sure you’ll be in good hands… relax, enjoy, bon appétit!

Fancy Greek @ Xanthi

One of my besties, Miss C, decided last minute to pop into Sydney for the weekend. Excited and feeling somewhat adventurous, I flicked through the 2013 SMH Good Food Guide Award Winners and decided it’s time to go Greek!

Walking into the restaurant we are charmed by gold silken drapes and the ornamental glass lamps. We are taken to a table directly in front of the open kitchen, where we could watch the chefs roll out filo pastry and check out the roasts on the vertical spits.

A spacious dining area with circus tent style drapes overhanging

Being a newbie to Greek food, I did my research on what to order at Xanthi, and all reviews pointed to one dish you have to order – the pork belly baklava. This dish consists of succulent shreds of pork belly wrapped in flaky, hand-rolled paper thin filo pastry with a sweet date and pistachio filling, topped with spears of crunchy pork crackling. This is undeniably a marvellous start to the evening.

L Loves... Pork Belly Baklava 

L Loves... Pork Belly Baklava 

Twice cooked pork belly with a date and pistachio filling 

Served with a date mastic sauce and pork crackling

Having the meats go round and round on the spit in front of us definitely lured us into ordering them. We got 250g servings of both meats that are available tonight – goat and pig. The pork is incredibly juicy and tasty. Served with toasted pita bread, sumac spice sliced tomato, onion, tzatziki and lemon wedges, it is a hearty feast on its own. The duck on the other hand is less memorable. It is well cooked and is pre sliced on the plate, however I found the spiced quince accompanying the duck to be overly sweet and almost like a dessert.

Roast Duck with Quince

Duck breast cooked in a quince syrup and
served with wilted greens and roasted quince

Goat ‘Apo Tin Souvla’ (250g from the spit)

Served with toasted pita bread, sumac spice sliced tomato, onion and tzatziki

L Loves... Pig ‘Apo Tin Souvla’ (250g from the spit)

Served with toasted pita bread, sumac spice sliced tomato, onion and tzatziki

As the final course, desserts should always be sweet and memorable. Tonight the sweetness element tipped the scale as we ventured our way through these devilish sweets. One thing is for sure, the pastry chefs here definitely are the unsung heroes. I am usually not drawn to tarts as I find the base to be too thick and dense, but the shell of the coffee brulee tart is impeccably thin, creating a perfect contrast to the silky smooth brulee and allowing the coffee flavour to be prominent.

Patsavoura (Wet Mop)

A sweet spiced syrup soaked pastry with a cinnamon and clove nut filling. 

Served with clotted cream.

Sour Cherry Bougatsa

Semolina milk custard wrapped in fresh hand rolled filo pastry. 

Served with coconut ice cream.

L Loves... Greek Coffee Brulee Tart

Served with milk and honey sorbet.

Overall Xanthi is a warm experience and I am definitely keen to explore further into the mysterious world of Greek cuisine.

L's Verdict:

·    Taste: 7.5/10

·    Ambience: 4/5

·     Value: 3.5/5

·    Service: 4/5

·    Creativity and other WOW factors: 2.5/5 

Overall rating: 21.5/30

Xanthi Bar and Restaurant

Level 6, Westfield Sydney

Corner Pitt Street Mall & Market Street, Sydney
Ph: (02) 9232 8535

Mon–Sat 11am–3:30pm, 5pm–11pm 

Sunday from 11am, kitchen closes 8pm

Visited September 2012

Friendly advice: The meats from the spit are amazing and servings are limited so make sure you get your order in quick. 

Welcome to Sydney, my dear Ladurée!

The first Ladurée shop in Australia is finally opened!

The macarons at Ladurée is definitely one of the highlights during my trip to Paris last year. Those beautiful, round macarons, crisp on the outside, smooth and soft in the middle, are so heavenly. Taking a bite into each will bring out such intense flavours and exhilaration. The macarons at Ladurée I had in Paris – the salted caramel, pistachio, rose, and green apple – are out of this world and had me hooked to macarons ever since.

Ladurée is founded in Paris 150 years ago. It rose to fame in 1930 when they invented the double-decker macaron. In 1993 the Groupe Holder (who also own PAUL bakery chain) took over Ladurée and started setting up pastry shops around France. In 2005 they went international, starting with England, then Monaco, Switzerland, Japan, Italy…………….and the list goes on till just a week ago, Sydney – Ladurée’s first shop in Australia!!! Oh yes we are blessed!!!

On the first weekend after their opening I decided to go and play the line game – waiting in a queue for an hour is not something I would normally do, but an exception is made for these delicate little things that travelled half way around the globe to get here. They have a queue for takeaways and a queue for dine-ins. The dine-in area is quite small and the only food they serve at the moment is their macaron. I am undecided about having afternoon tea in the middle of a mall (even if it’s a classy one like Westfield Sydney) where people are standing by so closely and watching you eat, so I opted for the takeaway queue which went all the way around the shop.

Staff busy serving an excited crowd

What an elegant macaron tower :)

How adorable are  Ladurée's packaging!

Love the attention to details at Ladurée

Ladurée Sydney's current menu board

When it finally came to my turn to order, I already had plenty of time to think about what I would get. Unfortunately they ran out of pistachio ones (note to self: must come earlier next time). A few flavours have not yet made their way into Sydney – words have it they are held by customs – which is exactly what I would do if I am them :P

I ended up getting orange blossom, lemon lime marshmallow, salted caramel, blackcurrant violet, vanilla, strawberry poppy, coffee, almond marshmallow. These macarons are $3.20 each for takeaway and $4 each to dine in.

  

L Loves... Orange blossom, lemon lime marshmallow, salted caramel, blackcurrant violet, vanilla, strawberry poppy, coffee, almond marshmallow (from left to right)

Welcome to Sydney, French beauties from Switzerland :)

After testing out all the different flavour, my favourite is still the salted caramel – the perfect blend of slight saltiness and sweet chewiness. Nothing else stood out as much as the ones I had in Paris and I’m not a big fan of the marshmallow fillings. I’m not sure if it is because they had lost some of the delicate flavours while they are frozen and shipped as I remembered them to be so “WOW” in Paris. Don’t get me wrong, they are still exquisite and are amongst the best in Sydney, but I would probably wait till the craze (and the crowd) dies down a bit before I go back again. Till then, there are other fantastic macarons around that are made locally in Sydney, for example Cafe Cre Asion and Adriano Zumbo!

Ladurée, Sydney

Level 3, Westfield Sydney

Corner Pitt and Market Streets

Ph: (02) 9231 0491

Westfield Open Hours

Mon to Wed 9.30 am-6.30 pm

Thu 9.30am-9pm

Fri & Sat 9.30am-6.30pm

Sun 10am-6pm

Visited September 2012

Friendly advice: These macarons are best kept in the lower level of your fridge and lasts for three days. They also sell tea, jam and candles in lovely gift packs - perfect gift for sweet lovers and for indulgence at home. 

The Perfect Saturday Lunch @ Cottage Point Inn

A few months back I received a very special birthday gift from Mr & Miss J – a gift certificate to dine at Cottage Point Inn. I am told it is a place best visited on a nice sunny day. So we waited patiently, and finally came the day when both Mr M & I are free, and the weather is forecasted to be perfect. And boy it is worth the wait!

Getting there is said to be part of the experience, and it is. Especially when you see two bushfires on the way and your GPS is not willing to co-operating. But the long drive is rewarded when we arrived. Stunned by the peaceful setting we felt like we are a million miles away from the hustle and bustle of city living.

We are seated with a gorgeous view of the waterfront, and throughout the service we watched guests arrive by seaplanes, ferries and private boats. We also encountered some special guests – kookaburras – that are fed by the restaurant regularly. Apparently if they don’t get fed, they will start stealing from our plates!

The stunning view from our table

Guests arriving by seaplane 

Here comes the kookaburras 

Before I came I learned their new Executive Chef Ehren Ryan is only 29 years of age. However when the food arrived on our table they looked like they could have came from any hatted kitchen – they are clean, elegant and the flavours are well balanced. I loved the deboned oven-roasted quail that is perfectly executed, moist, superbly complimented by the creamy celeriac puree, earthy truffles and delicious mushrooms.

Chilled Cucumber & Fennel Soup

L Loves... Bread that tasted like cheese scones 

Eastern Rock Lobster Ravioli, Consommé, 

Cucumber Fondant, Chervil & Tarragon 

L Loves... Deboned Oven-Roasted Quail, Perigord Black Truffle Mousse, 

Wild Mushrooms, Celeriac Puree  

Cootamundra Lamb Rack, Baby Spring Vegetables, Cassoulet, Mint Sauce 

Darling Downs Beef Tenderloin, Brussel Sprouts, Horseradish, Beef Jus  

Broccoli with Toasted Almonds & Sherry Butter   

L Loves... Dauphine Potatoes
Crisp puffs of rich, garlicky potato mash

None of the desserts on their menu appealed to me at first so I asked if they could prepare a soufflé in another flavour than the one on the menu (which is orange & dark rum soufflé with honey and ginger ice cream). The chef is very accommodating and offered a raspberry and blood plum soufflé instead. The soufflé is beautifully puffed up and fluffy – and the creaminess from the vanilla crème anglaise perfected the warm, slightly sour and sweet soufflé.   

Raspberry and Blood Plum Soufflé, Plum Ice Cream, Crème Anglaise    

Lemon meringue pie is not something I would normally set my eyes on but the one served at Cottage Point Inn is phenomenal! The dish is deconstructed and beautifully laid out on the plate. The lemon curd reminded me of the best lemon tart I have ever tasted – Mr J’s take on Heston Blumenthal’s lemon tart – the velvety filling and the brisk citrus sharpness as you bite in… oh this dessert is so sour and so yummy – these are two adjectives Mr M can’t imagine to go together, so I happily swapped my dessert with his :P

L Loves... Lemon Meringue Pie – Lemon Curd Meringue, 

Lemon Yoghurt Sorbet, Lemon Peel & Thyme   

This is not the type of restaurant where you come for a quick meal, or where the staffs rush you along so they can reset the table for another seating. We enjoyed every moment of this wonderful, relaxing experience before we headed back to reality. 

Au Revoir!

L's Verdict:

·      Taste: 8/10 

·      Ambience: 4.5/5

·       Value: 3/5

·       Service: 3.5/5

·       Creativity and other WOW factors: 4/5  

Overall rating:  23/30

Cottage Point Inn

2 Anderson Place

Cottage Point NSW 2084

Ph: (02) 9456 1011

Lunch: 7 days from Noon to 3pm
Dinner: Fri-Sat 6.30pm to 9.30pm & Sunday 6.30pm to 8.30pm

Visited September 2012

Friendly advice: For the ultimate experience, book the Fly/Dine Package from Sydney by Seaplane or Sydney Seaplanes. Note the restaurant does not allow BYO and does not serve tap water. Mineral water are priced at $8 a bottle.