ZALI'S RESTAURANT | (IN NOVOTEL SYDNEY MANLY PACIFIC) MANLY, SYDN
Zali's Restaurant
Novotel Sydney Manly Pacific Hotel
55 North Steyne
Manly, Sydney
Manly, on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, was certainly the place to be on this starry Saturday night! The Novotel hosted a fantastic night of Sri Lankan indulgence where talented celebrity chef Peter Kuruvita put forward an outstanding 4- course menu at this lovely venue.
Novotel is a stylish place and the first floor balcony was the starting point where the champagne flowed and the tasty hors d’oeuvres whet our appetites. We weren’t overly familiar with Sri Lankan food so we were quite excited to try this cuisine. Inside, the function room was beautifully styled.
We were soon attacking the crispy fried bread and dipping relish which arrived at the table. Delicious.
Our entrée course was a slice of yellowfin tuna with spanner crab and a coriander gel. The dish was beautiful to look at and the flavours were light and fresh. Our chef addressed the room to describe his menu and the inspiration behind his choices. It was both interesting and entertaining. We were also lucky enough to check out the kitchen and see the magic happening. It was a surprisingly calm and organized small team atmosphere – not what you’d expect at all!
Next came the black pork rib curry with smoked yoghurt, cucumber and pork crackle. Don’t we all just love a good pork crackling! Well this one was sensational and had apparently taken days to prepare. It topped an absolutely succulent slab of ribs and tasty pickled cucumber.
Main courses were alternated but of course we shared – wouldn’t want to miss a taste of everything. Dame M loved the wild fish curry with tamarind, prawn, sweet potato and steamed rice. The fish was cooked to perfection and that lightly curried sauce was a real treat.
Dame T had the slow-cooked organic goat kottu with crisp Gothamba, fresh vegetables and chilli oil. The meat was full-flavoured and meltingly tender. It was a very tasty dish and not uncomfortably spicy.
The dessert of curd and treacle was wonderful and such a perfect way to finish an amazing meal. The creamy curd base was topped with crisp-dried fruits and the most delicious syrupy treacle. It was a well-balanced dessert and so easy to devour!
We thoroughly enjoyed the evening and it seemed everyone else did too. Great food, great company and it was good to see the behind-the-scenes staff applauded by Kuruvita.
Those Dames dined as guests of Novotel Sydney Manly Pacific. Special thanks to Angela from Accor Hotels for this invitation.