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7.3 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  6      Value  7     

I wasn't aware of Alhambra until I saw a voucher deal. I love Moroccan food so excited to try. The voucher included a shared tagine with couscous, either carrot salad or olive starter, and we also ordered some Patatas Alioli. The food was excellent. I didn't think the portions were very generous for sharing, but seems others disagree so, perhaps, it was just our voucher deal which really wasn't sufficient "Tapas and Tagine for 2" as indicated.

We had the lamb tagine after reading reviews and it was perfect. Sweet but not too sweet, and the lamb melted in your mouth. The carrot and potato tapas were also very tasty. The ambience inside the restaurant was nice but I scored it lower as it's just across from the bus stop and with door (and windows or bifolds?) open it was quite noisy with buses and cars constantly passing (and blocking what would otherwise be a view of the water).

Service was Ok, we weren't really paid attention to other than bringing plates and taking away. I'd probably return on a nice day (ideally during the week when less traffic) for a tasty tagine and a stroll with gelato elsewhere after.

Oct 07, 2011

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  10     

I'd been wanting to try Zaaffran anyway, so bought a Spreets voucher for 3 BBQ courses for 2 for $55, including a bottle of wine. We went for lunch one Sunday with our toddler and infant. In a nutshell, it was a ton of delicious food and the service was great, both exceeding my expectations. We'll definitely return and recommend to others.

Food: Great flavours, fresh and generous portions. Some naan flavours (with mushrooms and truffled butter) I'd never tried, and others that were better than most I've had. Nice green salad, chutneys, sauces, as well as amazing marinades on the large variety of meats including chicken tenderloin, chicken and lamb skewers, beef ribs, lamb cutlets.

Ambience: The restaurant was nicely furnished and had tables on a balcony outside and along large glass windows. It felt a little sterile, but was pleasant and new feeling. It felt more upscale than most Indian restaurants, but also family friendly as there were plenty of children and multigenerational tables. My only quibble from our experience is that the tables could be cleaner.

Service: The staff was attentive and very friendly towards my toddler (and one at a table nearby). Water was refilled in a timely manner (rare in Sydney), food came at a nice pace, but the friendliness of staff is what stands out.

Value: The Spreets deal was probably the best value I've ever found at a restaurant. We added a kulfi for dessert which was also reasonably priced and delicious (rose and mango flavours).

Response from Management:
Thanks for your detailed review. A professional food journalist couldn't have done it better!

We've read all your 34 reviews, some dating back to 2008. We've dined at most of the places you've reviewed -- some of your favourites are ours too. You obviously have good taste, so we intend to try the other restaurants which you've recommended.

You didn't mention the Zaaffran $20 voucher, redeemable for future visits, which all Spreets coupon holders receive as part of the original deal. Sorry if we missed it. Please email your postal address to info@zaaffran.com and we shall promptly mail two vouchers of $20 each.

You may also subscribe to the Zaaffran newsletter, or become Zaaffran's facebook fan; to be eligible for many future deals.

Once again, thank you for sharing your experience online. That's what
Eatability is all about.

Oct 07, 2011

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  9     

I've been wanting to try Rosso Pomodoro for years and finally made it. I knew it was meant to be good, but it exceeded my high expectations. We went with friends and the pizzas I tasted were delicious and the one I didn't looked delicious. The crust was perfect and the ingredients top quality (Italian toppings and mozzarella they say). The pizzas were as big as the plates and the tiramisu portion was enough for 2 to share. It was also delicious with shavings/chunks of chocolate on top (as well as cocoa powder). Great value as pizzas similarly priced to every other pizza place in the inner west and beyond, and even better, there's no BYO charge. Ambience is cozy and it's in a quiet side of Balmain so not too hard to park. I just saw on their website that they were awarded "BYO Restaurant of the Year" in the 2012 Good Food Guide. With Il Locale, the best pizza in Sydney, and well worth the 30 min drive from my house.

Sep 13, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

6.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  4      Value  7     

As someone who lived in the US for many years, I really wanted to love Blue Plate. I hesitated to go after all the mixed reviews and after really enjoying my few visits to South a few years ago.

Service seems to be hit or miss per reviews below, and we seemed to get a "miss" day (even though we were the only table most of our meal), but the food would bring us back. No one was rude, they just weren't very friendly or attentive except for one girl who wasn't serving us. We weren't really greeted and I got the feeling they didn't really care if we were there or not. I'm used to average service in Sydney.

On the other hand, we enjoyed the ambience and food. We went for lunch and shared chips with guacamole and salsa, buffalo wings, 1/2 rack of ribs and a pulled pork sandwich. The guac and salsa were fresh and flavourful though portions smaller than I expected. We thought the chips tasted a bit stale, so the waitress took them back for replacement. The new ones were a bit better, but less crunchy than we're used to so, perhaps, the consistency is just different as it says they're homemade?

The buffalo wings were great though the blue cheese dip didn't taste as good as I remembered from South (though still very very good). The ribs were also good, though having just been to the States a few months ago we felt they didn't really compare. However, the pulled pork sandwich was as good as any we've had in the US and our favourite item. We'd go back for that alone even given the not so great service.

Value depends on what you get, but they have happy hour specials and lunch seems to be reasonable.

Sep 05, 2011

7.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  5      Service  9      Value  9     

I bought 2 vouchers for mudcakes and had a good experience both times. I did not taste the first cake as I took it to my son's school for his birthday, but several teachers said it was very nice and from the photos it appeared that all the children enjoyed. At that time I also bought a cherry danish which was nice. The pastry was a little harder (less flaky) than I prefer, but it was nice and buttery and fresh tasting, and there were plenty of other cake, pastry, slice etc options on display.

I did taste the 2nd mudcake and it was very nice, moist and chocolatey, not too sweet like some. But what stood out was the service. The voucher specifies to order 24 hrs in advance and I called late afternoon for the next day, so less than the requirement. The lady I spoke with said she had to check and would call me back, then called back within a few minutes to say it was fine. Also in both cases, they wrote a message on the cake for free.

Sep 05, 2011

7.3 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  6      Value  7     

I wasn't aware of Alhambra until I saw a voucher deal. I love Moroccan food so excited to try. The voucher included a shared tagine with couscous, either carrot salad or olive starter, and we also ordered some Patatas Alioli. The food was excellent. I didn't think the portions were very generous for sharing, but seems others disagree so, perhaps, it was just our voucher deal which really wasn't sufficient "Tapas and Tagine for 2" as indicated.

We had the lamb tagine after reading reviews and it was perfect. Sweet but not too sweet, and the lamb melted in your mouth. The carrot and potato tapas were also very tasty. The ambience inside the restaurant was nice but I scored it lower as it's just across from the bus stop and with door (and windows or bifolds?) open it was quite noisy with buses and cars constantly passing (and blocking what would otherwise be a view of the water).

Service was Ok, we weren't really paid attention to other than bringing plates and taking away. I'd probably return on a nice day (ideally during the week when less traffic) for a tasty tagine and a stroll with gelato elsewhere after.

Oct 07, 2011

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  10     

I'd been wanting to try Zaaffran anyway, so bought a Spreets voucher for 3 BBQ courses for 2 for $55, including a bottle of wine. We went for lunch one Sunday with our toddler and infant. In a nutshell, it was a ton of delicious food and the service was great, both exceeding my expectations. We'll definitely return and recommend to others.

Food: Great flavours, fresh and generous portions. Some naan flavours (with mushrooms and truffled butter) I'd never tried, and others that were better than most I've had. Nice green salad, chutneys, sauces, as well as amazing marinades on the large variety of meats including chicken tenderloin, chicken and lamb skewers, beef ribs, lamb cutlets.

Ambience: The restaurant was nicely furnished and had tables on a balcony outside and along large glass windows. It felt a little sterile, but was pleasant and new feeling. It felt more upscale than most Indian restaurants, but also family friendly as there were plenty of children and multigenerational tables. My only quibble from our experience is that the tables could be cleaner.

Service: The staff was attentive and very friendly towards my toddler (and one at a table nearby). Water was refilled in a timely manner (rare in Sydney), food came at a nice pace, but the friendliness of staff is what stands out.

Value: The Spreets deal was probably the best value I've ever found at a restaurant. We added a kulfi for dessert which was also reasonably priced and delicious (rose and mango flavours).

Response from Management:
Thanks for your detailed review. A professional food journalist couldn't have done it better!

We've read all your 34 reviews, some dating back to 2008. We've dined at most of the places you've reviewed -- some of your favourites are ours too. You obviously have good taste, so we intend to try the other restaurants which you've recommended.

You didn't mention the Zaaffran $20 voucher, redeemable for future visits, which all Spreets coupon holders receive as part of the original deal. Sorry if we missed it. Please email your postal address to info@zaaffran.com and we shall promptly mail two vouchers of $20 each.

You may also subscribe to the Zaaffran newsletter, or become Zaaffran's facebook fan; to be eligible for many future deals.

Once again, thank you for sharing your experience online. That's what
Eatability is all about.

Oct 07, 2011

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  9     

I've been wanting to try Rosso Pomodoro for years and finally made it. I knew it was meant to be good, but it exceeded my high expectations. We went with friends and the pizzas I tasted were delicious and the one I didn't looked delicious. The crust was perfect and the ingredients top quality (Italian toppings and mozzarella they say). The pizzas were as big as the plates and the tiramisu portion was enough for 2 to share. It was also delicious with shavings/chunks of chocolate on top (as well as cocoa powder). Great value as pizzas similarly priced to every other pizza place in the inner west and beyond, and even better, there's no BYO charge. Ambience is cozy and it's in a quiet side of Balmain so not too hard to park. I just saw on their website that they were awarded "BYO Restaurant of the Year" in the 2012 Good Food Guide. With Il Locale, the best pizza in Sydney, and well worth the 30 min drive from my house.

Sep 13, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

6.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  4      Value  7     

As someone who lived in the US for many years, I really wanted to love Blue Plate. I hesitated to go after all the mixed reviews and after really enjoying my few visits to South a few years ago.

Service seems to be hit or miss per reviews below, and we seemed to get a "miss" day (even though we were the only table most of our meal), but the food would bring us back. No one was rude, they just weren't very friendly or attentive except for one girl who wasn't serving us. We weren't really greeted and I got the feeling they didn't really care if we were there or not. I'm used to average service in Sydney.

On the other hand, we enjoyed the ambience and food. We went for lunch and shared chips with guacamole and salsa, buffalo wings, 1/2 rack of ribs and a pulled pork sandwich. The guac and salsa were fresh and flavourful though portions smaller than I expected. We thought the chips tasted a bit stale, so the waitress took them back for replacement. The new ones were a bit better, but less crunchy than we're used to so, perhaps, the consistency is just different as it says they're homemade?

The buffalo wings were great though the blue cheese dip didn't taste as good as I remembered from South (though still very very good). The ribs were also good, though having just been to the States a few months ago we felt they didn't really compare. However, the pulled pork sandwich was as good as any we've had in the US and our favourite item. We'd go back for that alone even given the not so great service.

Value depends on what you get, but they have happy hour specials and lunch seems to be reasonable.

Sep 05, 2011

7.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  5      Service  9      Value  9     

I bought 2 vouchers for mudcakes and had a good experience both times. I did not taste the first cake as I took it to my son's school for his birthday, but several teachers said it was very nice and from the photos it appeared that all the children enjoyed. At that time I also bought a cherry danish which was nice. The pastry was a little harder (less flaky) than I prefer, but it was nice and buttery and fresh tasting, and there were plenty of other cake, pastry, slice etc options on display.

I did taste the 2nd mudcake and it was very nice, moist and chocolatey, not too sweet like some. But what stood out was the service. The voucher specifies to order 24 hrs in advance and I called late afternoon for the next day, so less than the requirement. The lady I spoke with said she had to check and would call me back, then called back within a few minutes to say it was fine. Also in both cases, they wrote a message on the cake for free.

Sep 05, 2011

4 Below Average

Food  3      Ambience  3      Service  5      Value  5     

When a friend suggested Paradoxe for a French meal, I was a bit leery, and should have gone with my gut and suggested another restaurant instead. A group of us went for dinner during their 20th anniversary celebration so 3 courses for $39, which seemed like great value. However, the only decent course was the mains of beef fillets and which came with some veggies with a garlicky butter sauce (arguably the highlight of the entire meal).

The starters were generally poor as were the desserts (unfresh and bland tasting ceviche, bizarre "scallops",and the worst creme brulee ever, both with strange consistency and flavour as others mention below). They are BYO with no corkage which is nice, but the tap water tastes funny and they had no soft drinks for those who don't drink wine. We were underwhelmed all around in the food department.

Service was fine overall, though they didn't bring the water we asked for towards the end of the evening while looking at us like please hurry and leave. However, the ambience was worse than the food. The dining and bathroom areas look like they haven't been touched in more than 20 years and where it could have had a cozy feel like a small cottage, it instead felt dated, grotty and there were too many tables crammed together. Several people from the table next to us had to get out of their chairs and move from the area to enable my friend to exit her chair to go to the bathroom.

Overall the food and ambience/cleanliness negate the otherwise good value and would prevent me from returning.

Jul 24, 2011

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  8      Value  8     

I've dined upstairs, downstairs on the sidewalk, and had takeaway. All food was top notch from the fried fish and chips to the salmon and thai fish cake "burgers" (both full of fresh fish and herbs, not breading/fillers), and the 3 course meal upstairs.

The service upstairs was not as good as the friendly and fast service downstairs, but still a very enjoyable meal and evening. It looks like they've changed the menu and upstairs is now reserved for functions? Downstairs looks to have expanded to include salads and baguettes, all very tasty looking as well.

May 04, 2011

8.5 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  8      Service  7      Value  9     

I've only been for the breakfast banquet, which as described below, included multiple courses and a ton of food for $25/person. As I recall it started with a course of banana porridge and sweet couscous served with cardamom milk and stewed rhubard, which was followed by eggs with turkish toast, spinach, haloumi, tomatoes, etc. Next was breakfast tagine, and finally a large pancake. Every item was delicious and there was an unbelievable amount of food.

Ambience was nice, especially on a Sunday as we did a family funday Sunday ferry ride to Darling Harbour followed by a stroll to walk off some of the calories. Several of the servers were very friendly, but service deteriorated as the restaurant became busier, it took ages to pay, and we were (illegally)charged a Sunday surcharge. It was always linked to Kazbah, but looks like it's officially called Kazbah now and banquet only available to groups of 8 or more?

A shame as we were a group of 4 and I might struggle to get 8 people together for breakfast at the early hour my family dines.

May 04, 2011

7.8 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  7      Value  7     

I've been here several times for breakfast and once for lunch. The food has been delicious each time and generous portions. The service has been mixed. Happy to say that unlike the reviewer below I have been allowed to bring pram in, but, perhaps, only during less busy times?

The breakfast items I've tried are the tagines, porridge, and breakfast mezze. All have been delicious and each time I've had a hard time choosing as I'd like to try most of the items I see on the menu and see on plates en route to other tables. The fresh juice of the day has also always been nice, though a bit pricey. I did not like the homemade lemonade a friend ordered.

I most recently had lunch with girlfriends for my birthday where we shared a few mezzes and each had a salad. Both mezzes were very nice. One was the cauliflower, and I don't remember the other. The salads were also fresh, tasty, and generous portions, but 2 of my friends who ordered the one with haloumi were disappointed as it wasn't larger pieces, but shaved bits, almost like parmesan cheese, that got lost in the salad. Then the salads were around $19, but on their latest menu are $27-29?!

However, you can now get 2 courses plus a glass of wine at lunch for $35, which looks like a much better deal. If I lived closer I'd eat here all the time as the food is so interesting and tasty.

May 04, 2011

7.5 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  7     

We had a voucher for 2 banquets and ordered 2 meat banquets which included hummus, baba ghanouj, fattoush, kafta, shish kebab, shish tawook and lebanese coffee and sweets (baklava) for dessert. I found the hummus fairly bland and the lamb skewers a bit overcooked, but thoroughly enjoyed the meal which was very flavoursome and fresh with nice cuts of meat.

Our meal was excellent value, but ordering a la carte or banquets without using a voucher don't look to be as good value as I didn't find there to be as much food as other banquets and felt hungry a few hours later. Still, the service was good, the meal was good and while ambience is lacking (overlooking car park), the restaurant is clean, convenient, and friendly and efficient service, so I'll definitely be back.

May 04, 2011