AQUA S - HAWKER LANE IN WESTFIELD CHATSWOOD, SYDNEY

Aqua S
Westfield Chatswood (Hawker Lane),
1 Anderson Street, Chatswood, Sydney

Aqua S is a hugely popular dessert venue in the CBD.

Here in Chatswood their new outlet has opened just around the corner from Hawker Lane - so make sure that you don't miss it for a sweet finale to your meal.












Mlady had the refreshing Lemon tea flavour which was an inviting lemon colour. Sir had the Sea Salt which was an appetisingly vibrant blue colour. Both ice-creams were eagerly devoured and complimented our wonderfully Hawker styled meals.

Sir and Mlady visited Hawker Lane as guests of Westfield Chatswood. Special thanks to Julia Murray of Sibling Agency for this invitation.

 

PASSION TREE - CHATSWOOD, SYDNEY

Passion Tree
T67 The Interchange
436 Victoria Ave
Chatswood, Sydney

Light and bright, pink and white…..Passion Tree looks as sweet as its menu. With an industrial theme of concrete floors and exposed ceiling ducting, the décor is modern with lots of bright lights and coloured cushions. As you walk through the arched doorway the counter full of colourful cakes and macarons looks tempting and delicious.


An array of scattered white chairs hanging upside down from the ceiling were a fun, effective and very quirky touch.

 Jerry, behind the counter, explained the menu and the specials on offer. We started with a latte and a passionfruit soda. The coffee was good and the soda, which comes in different flavour choices, had a nice tang.

We decided to go for the chocolate fondue. Molten milk and dark chocolate bowls arrived surrounded by goodies to dip – strawberries, banana, cake, waffle pieces, macarons and marshmallows! It was a really good combination and we both loved it.

Dame D was keen to try the strawberry tower, so we ordered it together with the watermelon bingsoo. Both impressive to look at, there is even a competition for the best photo which is open until Christmas Day.

The strawberry tower was a thing of beauty – berry sorbet embellished with sliced fruit and whipped cream. It was a shame to destroy it but it was well worth it! A really refreshing dish. The watermelon bingsoo was as good as the picture too. Melon balls covering watermelon sorbet with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Yum! We noticed people passing by actually stopping to point at this treat and call others over for a look! As an indulgence it was a healthy one so we proudly gave it the thumbs up.

  

The final dish we just HAD to try was the waffles with caramel popcorn and cream. Wow.

It arrived in all it’s glory and the waffles were crispy and drizzled with syrup.

We barely had any room left for this but somehow it was too good to stop eating.

There are lots of interesting items on the menu here and lots of specials. You can also order cakes to take home which look amazing.

If you are in the mood for a sweet treat or you haven’t tried a bingsoo, Passion Tree certainly is worth a visit.

The station is close by so its easy to get to and a great place for a meeting point. We had a fun experience and felt quite spoilt after our sugar hit!



Those Dames, who review for Sir and Mlady Dine Out, dined as guests of Passion Tree. Big thanks to Jerry for all his help. Special thanks to Gaby Mavridis of Sydney Public Relations for the invitation.

 

BEN & JERRY'S - CHATSWOOD, SYDNEY

Ben & Jerry's
Shop 9 The Concourse
409 Victoria Ave
Chatswood, Sydney

The Ben & Jerry's chain of ice cream and dessert shops is well known across Sydney.

They offer rich, indulgent treats packed with chunks of all sorts of things - think chocolate, caramel, toffee, fudge, cookie dough etc etc etc.

They're generally in high traffic areas where plenty of people drift past after eating dinner elsewhere.

Think Manly, Bondi Beach, Ultimo, Penrith, Blacktown and of course here at Chatswood where we happened to be strolling by after eating a tasty dinner nearby.

This evening we were after a dessert in Chatswood and we were simply wandering the streets - Victoria Ave to be precise. The options are a bit limited but we eventually found Ben & Jerry's. We both had two varieties of ice cream in a cone. Sir had chocolate chip cookie dough and English toffee crunch. Mlady had vanilla and chocolate fudge brownie. We both really enjoyed them. Ben and Jerry's do pack plenty of chunks and bits into their ice creams - in fact more than most places. It's almost a meal in a cone!

 

HAYES STREET WHARF BISTRO - NEUTRAL BAY, SYDNEY

Hayes Street Wharf Bistro
13 Hayes Street
Neutral Bay, Sydney

Tucked away down Hayes Street - and in fact almost hidden - is the deliciously delightful Hayes Street Wharf Bistro.

They do have a clear French influence - but their food goes beyond this. Described as Modern French it has a range of influences touching its original base.

The brainchild of Gavin and Natasha Tuckwell, they've found a nicely cosy location to bring their dream to life.

It's clearly also a produce driven menu that stays small based on what's fresh and seasonally available and therefore it also constantly changes.

The decor is charming. It has a pleasant yet casual feel to it that embraces you instantly.

When you arrive anywhere and are first seated your priorities are probably something to nibble, a menu to peruse and a drink to sip on. Well the sourdough baguette with truffled butter that they have here is perfect for the nibble. Then you could sip on a glass or two of good red wine - in this case a Chateau Grand Jean 2010 Bordeaux Superieur. The menu was there too and it already had us excited. All three boxes were ticked and the night was off to a great start! 

Then it was time for our starters.

Mlady had the delicate scallop and crab boudin blanc in a fragrant tomato crab bisque dotted with black caviar. It was an impressive dish.

Sir had a beautiful lightly seared bugs tails with avocado, celeriac remoulade and salmon pearls.

Mlady was in the mood for red meat for her main course - which happens less often than with Sir. She chose the sticky Wagyu beef brisket Bourguignon (that literally dissolved), caramelised shallot and a great truffled mash. She loved it.

A tasty side of green vegetables and almonds went well too.

Sir spied the duck on the main course menu and as is often the case the rest was history.

This beautiful dish was roasted half duck with lovely gnocchi and cherries.

It was a big dish too - with plenty of nicely cooked duck. The cherries and gnocchi added great flavour too.

Dessert - the sweetest part of the meal - soon arrived. Mlady's inner chocoholic shone through brightly and she chose the chocolate fondant with hazelnuts and raspberry sorbet.

The molten inner of the fondant oozed out when it was cut, slowly seeping onto the plate. It was rich, indulgent and amazingly good.

Sir chose uncharacteristically with the rhubarb blancmange, cinnamon crumble and apple sorbet.

He usually heads for chocolate or pastry.

The very light and fluffy blancmange was simply delicious, and the fruity apple sorbet combined perfectly.

 Hayes Street Wharf Bistro is a hidden gem worth looking for and finding. The food has substance and subtlety, delicacy and flavour, colour and texture. The venue is comfortable and the service is attentive but not overbearing. Find it and see for yourself.

Sir and Mlady dined as guests of Hayes Street Wharf Bistro. Special thanks to owners Gavin and Natasha Tuckwell and also to Yyani for looking after us. Thanks to Claire McPherson of CPM Online Marketing for arranging our visit.