29 August 2010

Elysium Restaurant: French & Italian influenced dishes, Randwick (19 May 2010)

133 Avoca Street, Randwick NSW 2031
http://www.elysiumrestaurant.com
Note: After 3.5 years Elysium Restaurant is moving to new premises at The Spot in Randwick around October 2010.



Nice meals and decor

'elysium' - taken from the adjective elysian, which relates to elysium or elysian fields, the place in greek mythology where heroes were conveyed after death; of or like paradise.

The advertised Plat du jour with a glass of house wine for only $20 on the outside chalkboard menu was a tempting enticement to come and check out this nice and comfy looking restaurant. Unfortunately I'd just had a pie previously that day for lunch so the bourguignonne style beef, mushroom and bacon pie with fat chips wasn't as tempting as all the other higher priced menu dishes on offer. The reasonably priced House red wine ($15/500ml) was very drinkable and served in it's own carafe. I really enjoyed the Seared sea scallops ($19) which came with an unusual but lovely tasting caperberry and tarragon salsa, although I felt the large saffron and chorizo risotto fritter sitting in the middle wasn't quite needed — perhaps some cauliflower puree instead would have been more preferred for me.

Crunchy pork crackling was thankfully found on the Twice cooked 'porchetta' style pork belly with honey roasted apple, celeriac puree and calvados sauce ($28). It was a tasty yet heavy dish which sadly left no room for dessert. The nicely cooked Roasted baby chicken breasts ($28) combined well with the sauteed greens, pancetta and chestnuts although I thought the pithivier of the leg meat and black truffle didn't really add anything to the dish. Service was friendly and the decor and seating was very pleasant. I'd be happy to visit again and try other dishes on the menu and hopefully leave room for dessert next time.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:
PROS: Nice decor, Friendly service, Reasonably priced plat du jour, Nicely cooked dishes, Reasonably priced house wines
CONS: Some dishes could be quite heavy due to the French cooking style, Menu changes regularly so your favourite dish might not be there the next time, No BYO on Saturdays
MUST TRY: Seared sea scallops with caperberry and tarragon salsa, Desserts next time

Complimentary bread and butter

Seared sea scallops with a saffron and chorizo risotto fritter and a caperberry and tarragon salsa ($19)


Twice cooked 'porchetta' style pork belly with honey roasted apple, celeriac puree and calvados sauce ($28)

Roasted baby chicken breasts, pithivier of the leg meat and black truffle with sauteed greens, pancetta and chestnuts ($28)

House red wine 500ml carafe ($15)

Framed wine labels

6 comments:

Wedding Reception said...

Wow Different types of dishes, variety of food, seems it has great taste.

Two fit and fun gals said...

food looks great :)

Gummi Baby said...

I should know better than to read a restaurant review before lunch! I could really go for a plate of those scallops right now, alas, I am currently house-bound so will have to use my imagination! :D

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

The food looks really good! And it's very close to us too!

Sara @ Belly Rumbles said...

Scallops looks wonderful and I do have a big love of pork belly, two of my favourite foods.

Simon Leong said...

hi wedding reception, they seem to do a good job of providing variety :-)

hi betty, i'd revisit again :-)

hi gummi baby, likewise hehe hope you get your scallop fix soon enough :-)

hi lorraine, it's always nice when a restaurant is within walking distance so you can have that extra glass of wine :-)

hi sara, i think scallops and pork belly get me all the time when i see them on the menu, along with soft shell crab, salt and pepper squid and creme brulee :-)

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