maggiec48

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  9     

We stayed at the attached Guest House and it was lovely to just wander downstairs to a beautiful French restaurant. There were the usual suspects on the menu, snails, brains and duck in orange sauce (I won't attempt to write it in the French way as my pathetic attempt to say it was corrected by the waiter).

The special was braised ox cheeks which we didn't try. I had the brains for entree and they melted in my mouth. Then I had the duck which was to mind a little undercooked and it was a bit chewy, I definitely needed a sharper knife. As I'm an ignoramus it's probably supposed to be like that. It was still delicious. The nice thing about this restaurant is veggies come with the meal and you don't have to order them separately at great expense.

Also it was BYO which we did (although the waiter didn't seem totally impressed with our choice). And (my hobby horse) it had real tablecloths with No paper on top. The set menu provides great value and the service was excellent (although just a tad haughty but maybe that comes with the turf in a French restaurant). On a cold Autumn night it was a very pleasant experience and I highly recommend it.

May 31, 2012

9.8 Highly Recommended

Quality  10      Food  10      Ambience  10      Service  10      Value  9     

We had dinner here last night (Mothers Day). We were very rude in that we hadn't booked but just dropped in on spec to see if they had a table. They didn't treat us with the comtempt which we deserved but were extremely accommodating.

Luckily it was early and they could give us an hour which was perfect! We went with the staff's suggestions which were the slow cooked lamb (cooked all day) and the gnocchi. I didn't try the gnocchi but reports were good. The lamb was melt in the mouth and the pasta perfect. I'll be back and next time I'll book, and I'll bring wine.

May 14, 2012

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  9      Service  8      Value  10     

I went with 3 friends last night (Saturday) on the recommendation of a local. We arrived quite early and the restaurant was quickly filling up. My first impression was very positive. The place is stylishly decorated, very fresh and inviting.

The staff were accommodating and didn't blink when presented with a bottle of champagne stopped up with builders tape (long story), although they did charge a small fee for "corkage". The extensive menu worries me. The question is "how can they do everything well?" particularly in a kitchen the size of a shoebox. Judging from the reviews below the answer is, "they can't". Also, they appeared a bit confused as to who (or is that whom) they are, with items such as "swiss style hash browns" and duck.

To all intents and purposes it seemed to be an Italian restaurant with a nice picture of Positano over the kitchen but one of our party, who is Italian, says duck (as one example) would be unlikely on an italian menu.

After reading the reviews below we steered clear of the pickled onions. The crumbed brains for entree were well presented and were lovely and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. Beautiful. The entree sized gorgonzola risotto was everything a good risotto should be. One friend intrepidly tried the prawn and barramundi sausages (maybe I don't get out enough but that was a novel combination to me) and she reported they were delicious.

Dessert was the highlight. The honey pudding with chocolate hazelnut sauce would be at home in a much more upmarket restaurant and at only $8 its definite value for money. Melt in the mouth delicious. The others loved their sticky date pudding and strawberry crepes. One thing though – “Tira-mi-su”? Is that some sort of inside joke? Our Italian friend confirmed that the dashes were... well... odd.

To finish, service was prompt and polite, presentation of dishes was above average, value for money was excellent and even though the restaurant was full, we didn’t have to shout to hear each other. Top marks.

Oct 23, 2011

8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  8      Value  8     

We went to this restaurant on the recommendation of a Sri Lankan friend. Always a good thing. After reading the reviews below I expected the service to be ordinary and was pleasantly surprised. The staff were prompt, helpful and friendly. The food was delightful and I highly recommend "Sunil's Favourite" lamb. Sunil himself came around the tables to chat, which was nice. It was a Saturday night but the place was not packed as it should be. I think its a hidden gem.

Oct 10, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

9 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  8      Service  10      Value  8     

I took hubby there last night for his birthday. It's a perfect place for a celebration. Real tableclothes and no paper :)! Service - knowledgable and efficient. Food, what there was of it, was superb. I think the chef is of the "big plate with artistically arranged tiny portion" school. That's fine. We eat too much anyway I guess. Ambience - great seaside feel but hard surfaces made it very noisy (it was a Saturday and packed). My only complaint was dessert. Oh Man! Not enough of it! I ordered the panacotta with almond tart and I got 2 teaspoons of panacotta and less than a quarter of a tart which, if whole, would have measured 6cm in diameter. I promise I am not exaggerating. It wasn't cheap and, really, why couldn't I have had the whole tart? My husband did get a whole, beautifully cooked creme brulee. I was very envious of his choice. Apart from that small down note I highly recommend this restaurant for special occasions.

Mar 13, 2011

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  9     

We stayed at the attached Guest House and it was lovely to just wander downstairs to a beautiful French restaurant. There were the usual suspects on the menu, snails, brains and duck in orange sauce (I won't attempt to write it in the French way as my pathetic attempt to say it was corrected by the waiter).

The special was braised ox cheeks which we didn't try. I had the brains for entree and they melted in my mouth. Then I had the duck which was to mind a little undercooked and it was a bit chewy, I definitely needed a sharper knife. As I'm an ignoramus it's probably supposed to be like that. It was still delicious. The nice thing about this restaurant is veggies come with the meal and you don't have to order them separately at great expense.

Also it was BYO which we did (although the waiter didn't seem totally impressed with our choice). And (my hobby horse) it had real tablecloths with No paper on top. The set menu provides great value and the service was excellent (although just a tad haughty but maybe that comes with the turf in a French restaurant). On a cold Autumn night it was a very pleasant experience and I highly recommend it.

May 31, 2012

9.8 Highly Recommended

Quality  10      Food  10      Ambience  10      Service  10      Value  9     

We had dinner here last night (Mothers Day). We were very rude in that we hadn't booked but just dropped in on spec to see if they had a table. They didn't treat us with the comtempt which we deserved but were extremely accommodating.

Luckily it was early and they could give us an hour which was perfect! We went with the staff's suggestions which were the slow cooked lamb (cooked all day) and the gnocchi. I didn't try the gnocchi but reports were good. The lamb was melt in the mouth and the pasta perfect. I'll be back and next time I'll book, and I'll bring wine.

May 14, 2012

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  9      Service  8      Value  10     

I went with 3 friends last night (Saturday) on the recommendation of a local. We arrived quite early and the restaurant was quickly filling up. My first impression was very positive. The place is stylishly decorated, very fresh and inviting.

The staff were accommodating and didn't blink when presented with a bottle of champagne stopped up with builders tape (long story), although they did charge a small fee for "corkage". The extensive menu worries me. The question is "how can they do everything well?" particularly in a kitchen the size of a shoebox. Judging from the reviews below the answer is, "they can't". Also, they appeared a bit confused as to who (or is that whom) they are, with items such as "swiss style hash browns" and duck.

To all intents and purposes it seemed to be an Italian restaurant with a nice picture of Positano over the kitchen but one of our party, who is Italian, says duck (as one example) would be unlikely on an italian menu.

After reading the reviews below we steered clear of the pickled onions. The crumbed brains for entree were well presented and were lovely and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. Beautiful. The entree sized gorgonzola risotto was everything a good risotto should be. One friend intrepidly tried the prawn and barramundi sausages (maybe I don't get out enough but that was a novel combination to me) and she reported they were delicious.

Dessert was the highlight. The honey pudding with chocolate hazelnut sauce would be at home in a much more upmarket restaurant and at only $8 its definite value for money. Melt in the mouth delicious. The others loved their sticky date pudding and strawberry crepes. One thing though – “Tira-mi-su”? Is that some sort of inside joke? Our Italian friend confirmed that the dashes were... well... odd.

To finish, service was prompt and polite, presentation of dishes was above average, value for money was excellent and even though the restaurant was full, we didn’t have to shout to hear each other. Top marks.

Oct 23, 2011

8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  8      Value  8     

We went to this restaurant on the recommendation of a Sri Lankan friend. Always a good thing. After reading the reviews below I expected the service to be ordinary and was pleasantly surprised. The staff were prompt, helpful and friendly. The food was delightful and I highly recommend "Sunil's Favourite" lamb. Sunil himself came around the tables to chat, which was nice. It was a Saturday night but the place was not packed as it should be. I think its a hidden gem.

Oct 10, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

9 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  8      Service  10      Value  8     

I took hubby there last night for his birthday. It's a perfect place for a celebration. Real tableclothes and no paper :)! Service - knowledgable and efficient. Food, what there was of it, was superb. I think the chef is of the "big plate with artistically arranged tiny portion" school. That's fine. We eat too much anyway I guess. Ambience - great seaside feel but hard surfaces made it very noisy (it was a Saturday and packed). My only complaint was dessert. Oh Man! Not enough of it! I ordered the panacotta with almond tart and I got 2 teaspoons of panacotta and less than a quarter of a tart which, if whole, would have measured 6cm in diameter. I promise I am not exaggerating. It wasn't cheap and, really, why couldn't I have had the whole tart? My husband did get a whole, beautifully cooked creme brulee. I was very envious of his choice. Apart from that small down note I highly recommend this restaurant for special occasions.

Mar 13, 2011

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  10      Value  8     

We stumbled on this restaurant today and it ticked all the boxes. Service was prompt and friendly, atmosphere was great (admittedly it was a balmy sunny day with a sea breeze wafting in the open windows with a little bit of Harbour Bridge poking over the trees), the food (I had the perfectly cooked meaty mushroom risotto and hubby had the melt in the mouth pork belly)was excellent. To finish, the coffee was just right (always my rule of thumb judge of a good restaurant) and hubby's sticky date pudding was individually cooked and not just sliced off a bigger cake. They should be congratulated. I'll be back.

Feb 26, 2011

8.8 Highly Recommended

Quality  10      Ambience  5      Service  10      Value  10     

Hey! Do you really go to the dentist for ambience? I've never been to a dentist where I didn't have to wait half an hour. With these guys they were dead on time! Dr Lim (I can't comment on the others) is extremely efficient and competent. She keeps you informed every step of the way and wastes no time. Highly recommended.

Feb 26, 2011

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

6 Average

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  1      Value  5     

I think I was sitting at the table next to Rinnia (see below). We had the same experience. We were plonked down, no offers of drinks, no water, and ignored for 30 minutes before they came to take our order. We did receive our food fairly promptly after ordering but no drinks! We had to ask about the drinks,then the coffee was so strong it was undrinkable. Surely this place makes its living off the coffee so how could they be so negligent? To be fair the food was excellent so I can't fault the chefs. The management is non-existent. My hubby noted that it was like a footy team without a captain. Just understaffed and disorganised. Yes it was busy but you have to book - so its not like they were caught on the hop. We've been several times over the years but I'll definitely think twice before going again.

Feb 24, 2011

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  9      Value  8     

This was my first visit and it was a Saturday. The area where we were sitting was all hard surfaces and we were surrounded by long tables of christmas party goers who were all having a very loud good time so ambience was pretty bad. However, I think at a quieter time it would be nice. The decor was welcoming and modern. I see previous complaints about the mussels. Those problems appear to have been fixed as our friend greatly enjoyed his. Food was of high quality and generous. My beef potpie was tender and juicy and my husband's steak was perfect. I would definitely recommend this venue to my friends. PS: they might want to rethink their chairs which have almost invisible legs which tend to trip people. I personally tripped over them a couple of times and we saw one lady come a cropper.

Dec 12, 2010

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

7.3 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  5      Service  9      Value  7     

I noted this restaurant when it first opened. I tried it out for lunch and the food was delightful. The fact that its been able to survive in its godforsaken position must be a testament to its food and service. We went for my birthday on a Saturday night and it was packed. Now - my pet hate, Paper. Bloody paper on the table! Go to Italy and you'll see that even the smallest Nonna restaurant has 2 cloth tableclothes per table.

The top one can be changed regularly. Paper tells me that the senior staff doesn't respect me as a customer and it screams cost-cutting. Other than that it was a very pleasant experience, food was still lovely and, my pet love, we didn't become invisible at coffee time.

Nov 20, 2010