Simon Food Favourites: Altitude Restaurant

09 January 2010

Altitude Restaurant: Fine Dining at 36 Levels Above, The Rocks (4 Jan 2010)

Shangri-la Hotel
Level 36, 176 Cumberland Street, The Rocks NSW 2000
http://www.36levelsabove.com.au

Bollinger for my Birthday

Continuing on from my pre dinner birthday cocktail next door at Blue Bar on 36 I was very spoilt with a surprise birthday dinner at Altitude which I remember has been visited by fellow bloggers like Not Quite Nigella, Pigged-Out and Here Comes The Food. It's been awarded a 1 Hat by the 2010 SMH Good Food Guide Awards and commands one of the best views of Sydney Harbour. I enjoy a glass of Bollinger Champagne for the first time and it's a great start on the palate along with the amuse-bouche of Potato and Leek Veloute with Lemon and Chive Chantilly. I also enjoy a glass of the 2008 Mahi Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough NZ. The Tortellini of Spanner Crab and Sea Scallops catches my eye on the menu and it's a real treat, perfectly cooked and tastes great. The Ceviche of Pink Snapper is well presented although I find the fish texture slightly too stringy and chewy for my liking — not sure if this is due to the type of fish.

For mains my order of Thilmere Duck Breast is very tasty and nicely tender and the Roasted Castricum Lamb is also good. It's nice to see the meals are quite generous in size and I probably could have done without the side of Buttered Mashed Potatoes as the mains were quite rich. Before desserts a complimentary dessert cleanser of Pineapple Pannacotta in a shot glass was served — I think I could have finished here because it was rather thick and rich and not as light as one would expect. My choice of the Valrhona Chocolate Pavé was served as my surprise birthday cake and is wickedly rich for the chocolate lover and nicely plated. The Emaux of Summer Berries on the other hand wasn't particularly enjoyed and I found the lemon curd just too overpowering on the taste buds to the rest of the plate — I was thinking a lemon sorbet might have been better suited. I don't want to be too critical but I think the presentation could have been better — it just seemed to be a bit all over the place and not particularly elegant.

Our male service waiter was friendly, young and eager to please but unfortunately there's still room for improvement as we noticed a couple of the neighbouring tables throughout the night weren't cleared of their dirty napkins and glasses for quite a while after diners had left. Also our glasses of water were never topped up during the night — I'd expect the service in fine dining restaurants to look out for this. Trying to grab the attention of the waitstaff for the bill was very frustrating too as we felt rather neglected and invisible towards the end of the night.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: View (request window when booking)

CONS: Service should be better, neighbouring tables not cleared promptly

MUST TRY: Bollinger, Tortellini of Spanner crab and sea scallops

RATING: 1 Hat (2010 SMH Good Guide Awards)

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