Parsons Bar3 Kellett St
Potts Point, Sydney
In a bygone era when razor gangs and nefarious figures dominated, Mr Parsons stood tall as a man of the people. Parsons Bar has adopted his name and his ethos - providing a sanctuary for those in the area. Local in every way!
It's hard to define Parsons Bar. Whilst it is a bar, it is also so much more. It's a restaurant, a lounge room, a courtyard and an outdoor deck.Brothers Joe and Nick van der Heide have transformed this place themselves - literally. They've designed and fitted it out in a relaxed yet chic style that captures a great flowing feel yet leaves different areas with their own identity throughout the place. The place is diverse and fits in groups in some spaces that don't impact on the rest of the guests - it's a good design.
As it's labelled as a bar we started with drinks. The "Take it off Real Sloe" has a catchy name you easily remember and seemed a perfect start to the night ahead. It's made from sloe gin, grapefruit, lime juice, falernum syrup, Metaxa and fresh basil which is also actually pegged to the side of the glass. It was a very tasty drop that we both loved.
The challenge to beat this starter was hard - but the next dish was simple and yet possibly the dish of the night. These hand-cut chips were twice cooked and served surrounding a pond of rosemary-oregano aioli.
They were crispy, crunchy and fluffy and the aioli was tangy enough but still subtle. Put simply, these chips were to die for.
Drinks time again brought a playful tipple called Barbosas Chest. It was Havana 3 year old rum, Angostura rum, Lambs rum, fruit juice and bitters. Sir loved this as he's loves his rum! The kitschy pirate goblet and live flame on top added plenty of showmanship as well.
The smoked beef brisket sliders were on mini house made milk buns that were so light.
The beef was smoked for four hours then slow cooked a further five hours. It's then served in these delicious buns with apple and fennel slaw.
We devoured them.
When you read a menu item that says "Spinach and Feta Ravioli" you probably expect a certain style of dish to arrive. Not here.The ravioli comes in three giant triangles of pasta pillows filled with a mix of spinach and feta and slathered in a rich and tasty tomato and basil sauce. This is a dish with punch.
It was the slow braised beef cheeks that came served on a generous bed of smooth warm polenta.
Our reaction was "how tender is this" as it literally dissolved in our mouths. This meat was extremely tender and the flavour combination was delicious.
By now we were really starting to slow down quite a bit as the dishes we'd had so far started to hit us.
However, the next course was the beginning of the end - the mixed board with a selection of local and imported cheese - blue, Gorgonzola and brie - served with quince paste, home made liver pate with white truffle oil clarified butter and thin slices of toasted flatbread. It was a great combination and a lovely share board.
It was paired nicely with a few glasses of The Sticky Italian Botrytis Semillon from Central Otago in New Zealand.
The salted caramel fudge was a great finale to the meal.
This fudge was cool to the bite and gently melted in the mouth.
It was a very rich and totally indulgent sweet but once tasted also hard to resist.
Parsons Bar has something for everyone. The drinks menu is creative and the food of chef Daniele Sciara creates a sharing selection that pairs nicely making it easy to stay and hard to leave! The atmosphere adds even further to this - it's a great addition to the Sydney scene.Sir and Mlady dined as guests of Parsons Bar. Special thanks to Joe and Nick for inviting us and looking after us so well, and to Isabelle for also ensuring it was a great evening.
