3 Weeds The Restaurant

3 Below Average

Food  3      Ambience  1      Service  7      Value  1     

We dined here on a colder night hoping there would be a fire place in the restaurant but only one being in the bar. Shame. Group of 3 people we had entree, main and dessert.

Prices very expensive for the level/quality of food you get, to me the food was a little in the boring side and similar sort of things to what other places similar to this are doing. I guess I don't want foams and gellies I want real food! With real texture. And some seasoning would not go astray!

As for the homemade sourdough. That's not sourdough I can taste the yeast in it! Why do restaurants need to lie? Do they really think customers are dumb, I knew it was yeast because I have been a sourdough baker for 11 years now. On a nice note the waitstaff are brilliant.

May 26, 2012 

6.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  8      Value  4     

Went to this place with my husband and 2 friends on Friday night. I found the food beautifully cooked, what there was of it. Everyone's meal was superb except for, perhaps, the $40 cheese platter.

Supposedly 6 types of cheeses where only 5 tiny wedges came out, every cheese not weighing more than 30gr each, not a bad profit for 180grams of cheese. I asked what happened to the 6th cheese and was told they ran out of the 6th cheese type. Well kitchen staff, do you need to be told to place any other wedge on the plate? Can't you tell we're still hungry.

As good as the food was, not likely to come back as overrated prices (particularly for a pub venue) and toddler portions do not equal good value.

Mar 20, 2012 

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  8      Value  7     

A dinner with friends for a 50th. Special occasion and a special meal. The food was wonderful, both to look at and to eat. Shame about the "nouvelle cuisine" portion sizes. Service was lovely, attentive without being overbearing. Space between tables and courses was perfect. Overall a really nice evening.

Feb 13, 2012 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  8     

Enjoyed a fabulous meal here on Saturday night, every course was brilliant, highlight for me was the venison with chocolate gnocchi. Beautifully presented, very tender meat. The side of truffle mash worked perfectly with it. Great entrees, desserts, wine and service also. Can't wait to go back. Going to buy a gift voucher for my sister's xmas present.

Dec 19, 2011 

7.3 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  7     

We came here for an early seating and it was empty while the bar area was buzzing with activity. Eventually diners started to fill in and there was more of an atmosphere and we felt more comfortable.

Service was professional and friendly but at the end we felt like we were rushed with the waitresses bringing us the bill when we didn't ask for it and straight after we told them we didn't want dessert. Still, food was delicious! We started with the beetroot and goat cheese ravioli and the venison we had for our mains was tender and cooked perfectly. We were too full for dessert and was happy with our choices and we want to come back to try the pub/bar area (their pizzas look good).

Nov 12, 2011 

6.8 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  4     

Food was delicious. Each dish seems to go for complex mixes of this and that around the main purpose, however, on 2 of my 3 dishes, it was hard to find them - e.g. the shrimp ceviche with the salmon, couldn't find it! Definitely needed 3 courses, a bit stingy given the price, especially for a Gastro PUB! We were a group of over 7 so we were restricted to the set menu and set menu prices at $75 for 3 courses. Wine list was a bit lacking too in terms of variety of choice. May go back again, but there is better in the area.

Sep 18, 2011 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  9     

My wife and I treated ourselves to the degustation with matched wines last night. So I write this with a slightly heavy head. It was a Saturday night, so busy then, however that doesn't excuse the lack of wait staff. They were just run off their feet and while two of our staff were attentive and great, the girl bringing us our food had a habit of telling us what it was as she walked away. Which kind of spoils the fun of a degustation. The Sommelier was friendly and knowledgeable but too busy.

The ambiance was fine, nothing wrong with it, nothing overly special about it, good lighting, attractive diners, healthy spacing between tables and workable noise levels. OK, that's out of the way, now for the food. I gave a perfect 10 as there was not a moment where we weren't in mouth bliss. It was 8 courses with 7 wines. I think. Admittedly the pre-dinner champagne didn't help me count.

The whole experience lasted 3 hours and we loved every second of it. The timing between dishes was perfect, we were never impatient waiting for the next dish, just reveling in the tastes of the last. The food was exciting and delicious, perfectly cooked and beautifully presented. The wines were generally well matched, tasty and generous. Value? You get what you pay for. It was expensive for us but so worth it. We walked out fat, boozed and happy.
Will we be back? Most definitely.

Jun 26, 2011 

3 Below Average

Food  6      Ambience  2      Service  1      Value  3     

Food everywhere but not a bite to eat? The mid week catch up with friends, is one small ray of light in the race of the rats. Myself like quite a few of my friends have moved from the East to the fringe of Balmain, or Rozelle.. (Good Family Making area... ). This move was made easier for the apparent abundance of top flight venues to choose from. As the SMH guide would have you believe anyway... This "Gastro Pub" is hardly a good example of this type of fare.

The Service - I really am quite happy to order where ever is required of me in a casual environment. But when the goal posts change on such a regular basis, you begin to feel like you're in some sort of strange social experiment? I finally found the location of that days ordering protocol, I was served by a lovely lady who was unknowledgeable, but very gracious and personable to balance this out.

After making it through the first part of the test, we waited for 45 minutes for our food to arrive, after which half the table did finally come. The other half was "Lost in Transit"? The half that arrived sat patiently waiting for a further 10 minutes for the rest of the food, at which point I went to track them down. I found a lady who I asked this question of and her exact response was - "Look Mate, we are quite busy and the food is coming!" What?

Not only are we not mates, but a simple inquiry should be treated with a little more respect than a brush off? Shouldn't it? I am not too sure where this young 'Lady' thought we were or how she thought this response was kosher, but a little less attitude especially when you're in the wrong. We waited a further 20 minutes when the rest of the table finally received their mana from heaven.

The Food - Is always quite nice and good size helpings (when you do receive it), but do not go on a weekend as the above is bound to occur and probably you will have a run in with my Mate! The Pie is a great winter warmer and is a huge serving especially compared with their friends at the Welcome Hotel. I usually opt for the Tapas with the Mrs, and the selection was great at first but after a few visits its all a little groundhoggish.

The star is always the Fish and chips, I mean as far as fish and chips go, good serving size, good house made tartare, and some chips. All in all not a bad effort on the food front.

Ambience - Can someone please look this up? Not only cannot you not hear your friends but you are usually sat on those awkward communal tables (Thanks Bill Granger). So the neighbours conversation is much easier to hear than your own. Combine this with neighbours who do not seem to know the meaning of personal space, then you've got your self a party.

Overall - I might bitch and moan, but thanks to the lack of a good wine list and casual dining options in the area I think we will be back. We will just be dodging my Mate. Thanks for the memories.

Jun 06, 2011 

4.8 Average

Food  3      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  2     

I went with 5 friends for dinner 1 month ago. We all had 3 courses and all of the servings were ridiculously small for the price paid. The entrees were about $22 each and everyone received servings about twice the size of my thumb. We tolerated this thinking the mains would be bigger (being priced at $38 each) but they came out the same size! When we complained that we were all hungry as the servings were so small, we were asked if we had ordered side dishes, which we had. After further discussion, dessert was made complimentary. Food was good, but I will never go back again!

May 26, 2011 

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  9      Service  7      Value  7     

We went with some friends for a Friday night dinner, and had been wanting to go for some time. Parking is hard to find, so come prepared to circle the streets on popular nights.
We thought the service was attentive, friendly though not intrusive. The presentation of the meals were the highlight. Wonderful and full of colour. The kingfish pre-starter was memorable. I had the confit of salmon entree, mulloway main, and mille feuille dessert. I thoroughly enjoyed all my meals and thought the different bursts of flavours were a real treat. People have been commenting about portion, and I thought the portions were adequate for a 3-course meal. It left me satisfied, not full. Value wise, we used our trusted entertainment card, so for a 3-course meal, we thought it was good value for the dining experience we received. I would likely return.

May 14, 2011