ABODE Bistro Bar
Outside Parkroyal Darling Harbour
150 Day St
Sydney
We were very fortunate to experience the ‘Chef’s Table’ at ABODE and at the same time experience their new Autumn menu. We love it when Chefs can use seasonal locally sourced produce to create dishes that let the quality ingredients be the star. They’ve done this here. The passion and creativity of Executive Chef Josh Askew and Chef de Cuisine Vico Betguen shone brightly all through this wonderful five course menu. These wine pairing they also offer here creates a matching that works so well too - it’s really worth going the whole way!
ABODE is family oriented but at the same time pairs relaxed and sophisticated so nicely. The decor is bright, spacious and elegant. There are several spaces too so it breaks up the area. It’s worth checking out the ‘egg chairs’ that hang near the entrance. These add to the chic fun atmosphere.
When we arrived we were greeted with a Mountain Goat Gin cocktail. Seriously this was good! It was such an easy cocktail to drink, soft and smooth. Mlady will be adding this to her list of favourites. Make sure to ask for it!
As it was a special occasion we started with some canapes - and they were house made and oh so good. The flavours went so well together and they were delicately delectable. We thoroughly enjoyed the torched Ora King salmon, tapioca, dashi, roe, House pickles, pea labneh, seeds and lavosh.
Our first course, and first entree was Vanella Stracia topped with a dollop of avruga caviar, a splash of romesco sauce and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil all served with a side of house baked sourdough and house made honey butter. The paired wine was a light and subtle Rockbare Riesling from Clare Valley SA.
Basically this beautifully presented dish was the heart of the cheese and it was deliciously tasty and gooey. Using the sourdough bread topped with olive oil and herbs, we then scooped up the cheese and extras. It was so divine. All the flavours complemented each other so well. This was such a nice delicate entree with a lovely wine.
Our next entree was duck breast served with burnt carrot, grapes and spiced jus gras. The paired wine was a dry and lightly spiced Catalina Sounds Pinot Gris from Marlborough NZ.
Sir loves duck and he thoroughly enjoyed this. The duck was cooked perfectly - nice and tender with a lovely pink colour. This gorgeous duck was from Pepe’s Farm in Eastern Creek. The vine leaf garnish was amazing to look at and it also had a soft delicate crunch. The process to get the vine leaf like this is through dehydration. It was brushed with olive oil, apple cider vinegar and this whole drying procedure takes about 6 hours. It was very impressive to eat too. There were again so many great taste sensations with this dish.
Our last entree was Grouper served on squid ink risotto with a bouillabaisse sauce, salsa and sea succulents. It was paired with a fresh citrusy single vineyard Black Cottage Reserve Chardonnay from Marlborough NZ.
Mlady loves fish and squid ink risotto so this dish ticketed all the boxes. The grouper itself was beautifully cooked and she loved the risotto. The sauce was flavoursome and the salsa and sea succulents combined so well. It was another appetisingly presented dish.
There was a choice of two mains - beef or lamb - so Sir went with the lamb. It was lamb rump served with potato grain, beetroot, cauliflower, pine nuts and jus. The wine pairing for this was a medium bodied Snake & Herring ‘Dirty Boots’ Cab Sav from Margaret River WA. This beautiful lamb was from Victoria and it was served pink and tender. It was a lovely combination. .
Mlady does enjoy her beef so she had the Mb+4 Wagyu flank served with braised onion, bone marrow carrots and jus. It was paired with a medium to full Head Red Shiraz from the Barossa SA. We are coming into cold weather and this dish conjures up visions of sitting in front of a nice cosy fireplace while eating a mouthwatering meal. The Wagyu was perfectly cooked, juicy, pink and so tender. Mlady loved everything about this meal and the wine which embodied a nice wintery cosiness complemented it so well.
Dessert was a flan with yuzu ( how cute are these spheres), creme fraiche and frozen fresh berries. It was as pretty as a picture it was sad to eat - but we did! A work of delicate art that tasted so good. The berries start off fresh then they are then frozen for serving. Those cute yuzu spheres were a great taste sensation as they exploded when you bit into them. The dessert was paired with a lightly sweet Mojo Moscato from Langhome Creek SA. This was one of the best Moscatos Mlady has had. Not at all sickly sweet - it was just right with this amazing dessert. Mlady thoroughly enjoyed both.
The food and wine really here at Abode is incredible. The set Autumn menu we had, with paired wines, was divine. The food is beautifully and artistically presented and is fresh and vibrant with great taste sensations, textures and combinations.
Sir and Mlady dined as guests of ABODE Bistro Bar. Special Thank you to Chef Josh Askew and Chef Vico Betguen for their wonderful creations and providing a valuable insight into every dish. Big thank you to Gemma, Charmaine, Ewen and Faith. Thanks also to Erin and Amy for taking care of us on the night.