Simon Food Favourites: March Into Merivale

Showing posts with label March Into Merivale. Show all posts

25 March 2012

est: March into Merivale $33 Meal Deal, CBD Sydney (21 Mar 2012)

Establishment Hotel, Level 1, 252 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000

http://merivale.com.au/whats-on/event/33-meal-deal/

Beautifully presented to please

est is one of those restaurants I’d love to visit more often if I had the money to burn. Being a 3 hatted restaurant it’s definitely not cheap with entrees starting at $35, mains at $55 and dessert at $28 hence why the only times I can afford to visit is during March into Merivale and Let’s Do Lunch as part of Sydney International Food Festival. I figure if I’m going to go to one of these meal deals I might as well go to the most expensive one of them all for the same price. Fining dining restaurants always seem to provide complimentary bread and est is no different which also helps to fill you up. As we perused the menu choices for March into Merivale Meal Deal ($33 including glass of wine) the restaurant manager Carissa Teeling informed me Chef Peter Doyle wanted to provide a complimentary dish for our table to try which ended up being the Green tomato gazpacho, poached scampi, grilled sourdough, black olive pearls ($35). We all agreed it was beautifully presented with a nice balance of flavours. Quite a light dish which I thought could have benefitted with a bit more grilled sourdough, perhaps on the side, to help soak up more of the gazpacho.

I love how est serve the dishes all at the same time for diners — a bit of theatrical dining makes the experience extra special. I chose the Petit Clos Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough to go with my Pan roasted palmer island mulloway fillet, zucchini, heirloom tomato, chilli, tapenade ($33 inc glass of wine). Crispy skin as hoped and a nice balance of flavours in the dish. The tapenade seemed to be served on the skin but I might have just preferred it on the side to maintain the skin crispness more. The Ginger glazed pork neck, compressed cucumber, pickled chinese cabbage, mustard seed ($33 inc glass of wine) was well-flavoured and the Fillet of veal, dutch carrots, green peas, baby onions, thyme consomme ($33 inc glass of wine) had very tender meat as hoped. Seasonal vegetables ($12) and Mash ($12) were kindly provided also with compliments by the kitchen which filled out the lunch nicely amongst the five dining topped up with Petif fours (compliments of the kitchen, usually $8 with coffee). For those looking for a light lunch you might not need to order sides but the two course option for $55 is tempting to include a dessert which I’m sure would be very enjoyable.

My fellow diners feedback:

“The room is beautiful and I loved the gazpacho with prawn, sweet pea flowers and smoky sour dough bread.”

“The gazpacho was my favourite too – clean, fresh taste and the flowers added unusual tastes – looked pretty too. Very good acoustics in a relaxed space.”

“The food was great, the staff were attentive and I loved the theatricality of the simultaneous food service.”

“The mulloway with its crispy skin was sensational – nice clean taste of the fish complemented well by all the other elements on the plate. The potato mash was silky smooth without being overly creamy. However was let down very slightly by the side vegetable accompaniment – the purple beans were a bit tough.” — I agree about the purple beans

Other visits to est.:
• 21 Mar 2012 - March Into Merivale $33 Meal Deal
• 17 Oct 2011 - Let's Do Lunch $38 Menu
• 5 Oct 2010 - Let's Do Lunch $35 Menu
• 12 Mar 2010 - March Into Merivale $33 Menu
• 30 June 2009 - Winter Feast Menu

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Sampling of a 3 Hatted Restaurant at a reasonable price, Nice decor, Professional service, Well-presented dishes, Complimentary bread, Finally no Bvlgari soap cakes in the toilets

CONS: I find their forks very awkward to hold, A one hour time slot is allocated for March into Merivale lunch but might extend depending on how busy they are on the day, Can't afford to really visit at other times

MUST TRY: Visiting while March into Merivale is still on

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March into Merivale menu: one course $33, two course $55

Selection of complimentary breads — I enjoyed the sourdough

Green tomato gazpacho, poached scampi, grilled sourdough, black olive pearls ($35, compliments of the chef)

Black olive pearls were a nice touch

Pan roasted palmer island mulloway fillet, zucchini, heirloom tomato, chilli, tapenade ($33 inc glass of wine)

Ginger glazed pork neck, compressed cucumber, pickled chinese cabbage, mustard seed ($33 inc glass of wine)

Fillet of veal, dutch carrots, green peas, baby onions, thyme consomme ($33 inc glass of wine)

Seasonal vegetables ($12 compliments of the chef)

Mash ($12 compliments of the chef)

Petif fours (compliments of the kitchen)

Petit Clos Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough; Ata Rangi ‘Crimson’ Pinot Noir, Martinborough

Dining theatre: I love how service staff place the dishes at the table all at the same time

Am I the only one that finds their forks very awkward to hold and turn in the hand?

A la carte menu

Dining room

Nice decor

Interesting carafes

Toilet — thankfully no sign of cake soap this time like previous visits

March to Merivale food festival 16 Feb - 5 Apr 2012

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12 April 2011

Time Out Taste Test Final: March into Merivale Special Event at Felix, Sydney (11 Apr 2011)

2 Ash Street, Sydney NSW 2000
http://www.marchintomerivale.com

Time for young guns to dish up

Thanks to Kimberley Salt from Merivale for inviting to this special event which stands as one of the most quickly booked out dinners of the March into Merivale lineup. Six apprentice chefs were part of the final Time Out Taste Test held at Felix under the watchful eyes of Head Chef Lauren Murdoch and her team of professionals. The diners became the judges in the end to determine the winning dish of the night which deservedly went to Zen Jay Ong for his Crisp confit of pork belly followed closely by runner up Jay Richardson for his Crumbed carrot cheesecake. I think from the outset the first three dishes were at a disadvantage being all raw seafood which were presented similarly and seemed to use an abundance of micro herbs. Perhaps it was no surprise that the only warm dish and dessert dish won the hearts of the diners, but they were also my top favourites as well.

Scampi tartare was the first dish up which had generous amounts of scampi but could have been held back a bit for me to help other flavours come through in the dish. I liked the addition of the compressed watermelon, crunch of pomegranate and pork crackling dust but I couldn’t really taste the lemon olive oil snow which was fairly invisible on a white plate. I think the presentation could have been tightened up and the watermelon juice seeping on the plate didn’t work in its favour. Next was the Organic tofu with bluefin tuna nicely presented but I found there to be too much going on and my palate was getting overloaded and lacked direction. I loved the cucumber pickles though which took centre stage over the tuna. When the third dish of Snapper sashimi was served many at our dimly lit table thought it was the same dish they’d just had. I’m not sure about the presentation looking like it had all accidently tipped to one side of the dish but the chilli kick was welcomed. For me there just didn’t seem to be anything particularly exciting about it to kick the wow factor, but it was nice.

The fourth dish of Galantine of rabbit was nicely tender although cold and the rabbit belly scratchings were superb and worthy of being a regular bar menu item in their own right. Unfortunately the acidity in the delicate pickled mushroom salad was as subtle as a slap to the face. Finally a warm dish of Crisp confit of pork belly nicely presented and flavoured with notes of sweet corn which worked well. The smoked salt popcorn was an interesting touch but I'm not sure if I fully appreciated it. I would have loved the crackling to be even more crunchy for my liking but maybe it was just my piece. I liked the inclusion of the plum but wondered if finely cubed or being caramelised would have helped to make it more harmonious with the dish for me rather than being a side of fruit.

I really enjoyed the final dish and only dessert of Crumbed carrot cheesecake which had the Time Out table in a feeding frenzy. All the flavours combined well but I wasn’t sure if the micro herb of parsley(?) worked on flavour and perhaps was just playing visual homage to the carrot top. I think a missed opportunity of including a mini chocolate Easter bunny might have tipped the final votes. Congratulations to all the apprentice chefs that made it to the final and all the efficient and hard working service and kitchen staff that I’m sure made it a special and memorable night for all.

Other Time Out Taste Test events:

• 11 April 2011 - Zen Jay Ong wins at Felix

• 22 March 2010 - Stephanie Coupland wins at CBD Bistro

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Nice restaurant décor for the event, Large kitchen and preparation area for the chefs to work in, Watching the new talented chefs in the kitchen take on the challenge

CONS: The event books out quicker than a bat out of hell, Couldn't appreciate the artistic presentation of dishes on a table with only dim lighting

MUST TRY: Crumbed carrot cheesecake by Jay Ricardson and Crisp confit of pork belly from Zen Jay Ong, Hopefully attending next year

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Stephannie Liu

Dish 1: Scampi tartare, pomegranate, compressed watermelon, lemon olive oil snow, pork crackling dust, baby coriander by Stephannie Liu, 2nd year, Felix

Matthew Stevenson