Sydney's dining scene has become a game of musical chairs. A fickle beast, that's for sure. Chef Chui Lee Luk of Claude's fame (R.I.P. and case in point) is the latest to venture into more casual dining, a glaring sign of the times. Chow Bar & Eating House sits flush on Crown Street at the former Bentley restaurant site (who has upped stumps to the Radisson Blu Hotel in the CBD) - it's hard to keep up some times! This is an exercise in getting back to basics.
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| Drunken mussels with beer, galangal, lemongrass. A very similar dish featured in Claude's - quick, hot and moorish |
As with so many venues in Sydney these days the emphasis is placed on beverages (you know what I mean) where the margins are much higher. Food is often an afterthought as a result (fried chicken and burgers get a bit old after a while) but not so at Chow. Luk's menu is an homage to her Malaysian roots and classical French training and technique. Seated at our long table with mahjong tiles inlaid, we soaked up the relaxed Sunday afternoon vibes. And to the difficult task of choosing from the menu, with a good range dishes for sharing. Happy days.
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| The interiors by Giant Design remind me of a sort distressed version of the ritzy Mr Wong's on Bridge Lane. A den for drinks and snacks aplenty, this is a parlour without the seedy underbelly |
First, some bar snacks to whet the appetite
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| Cannon Shot Dumplings filled with roast pork, shiitake, yam bean (L). Chilli dipping sauces (R). The dumplings were delicious morsels, delicately fried. So tiny you could easily polish off a bowl yourself but save room for what's to come! |
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| Xin Chow Bao - DIY goat sausage, lettuce wrap. This dish was one of my favourites, a play on the traditional sang choi bao - this version uses goat (but you would never know, to be honest). The sausages are house made and boy doesn't that make a difference; juicy, succulent and begging you to go in for more |
The main event
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| Fried cauliflower, seeds, hot mustard. This came in second for me, the heat from the mustard is a nice combo with the humble cauliflower. However I would have to say some pieces were a bit bitey and undercooked :/ |
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| Whole fish, black bean, capsicum, garlic. This dish is a total staple in traditional Chinese cooking. The fish was steamed to perfection and the black bean sauce a perfect complement - this one was gone in a flash |
And Sweetie, darling
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| Avocado blancmange with cocoa jelly, pear, caramelised white chocolate. Wowsers, another beautiful Chui Lee Luk dessert. Thrown together with panache this dish is the perfect union of textures and flavour. The avocado blancmange itself was a heavenly soft mousse, the dusting of white chocolate just in the right proportions. Miam-miam! |
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| Egg custard tart (dan tat), a dish referenced from the hallowed halls of yum-cha. This Frenchified version served warm is no match to the original I'm afraid |
Chow Bar & Eating has its sights firmly set on the bearded hipster Surry Hills set. Not taking itself too seriously and shaking the fusty rep of fine dining, this bar slash diner is all about a warm welcome, fun times and full bellies. Enjoy this one.
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| Numero uno, the mahjong mats set into the tables. A nice touch along with the joss stick (incense) inspired chopstick holders |
Thanks for reading!
xGourmand
Claude's has undergone an extreme makeover of sorts. A complete overhaul in interior design has ushered in a new era for this little Woollahra shopfront. Gone are the days of pushing the doorbell to be admitted and of the stuffiness of Sydney fine dining. Claude's has been visited by swathes of food critics raving about the new do. And according to Terry Durack, apparently it's not half bad (17/20). Chef Chui Lee Luk has stayed true to applying French technique to Asian inspired dishes to deliver a menu that is clean but somewhat unconventional. Hello to the new you!
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| The downstairs bar: like visiting your uber trendy friend ja...with bar and bartender handy. The distinct lack of table cloths here speaks to the gen-Yer, more casual scene downstairs. The dangling pendant lights over each table made pretty eye candy. Pascale Gomes-McNabb has waved her magic design wand once again (see here). Photo credit: Daily Addict |
If there were not a massive hill preventing me, I could easily see this as my neighbourhood bar that I could stroll over to. It would be perfect for a pre-dinner drinkie or two before having a proper dinner. P.S. it's a good idea to book beforehand to guarantee yourself a table if you're planning to stay and dine :) Situated a couple of doors down from Wine Library on Oxford St, there have been so many times I have walked passed Claude's and not taken any notice. But today, I'd be sampling the menu available at the bar downstairs.
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| Attack of Ziggy Stardust: the upstairs (degustation only) dining room has been hit with the technicolour stick. It's a nice talking point before you get stuck in to your hours-long-feasting. Photo: Caroline McCredie |
We were shown to our table (one of two proper tables basically) and I could catch glimpses of the kitchen backwards through one of the bolt shaped mirrors. It was a very professional outfit with Chef Luk at the helm, head down and busy busy. And it was so quiet! Brilliant. The complimentary sparkling water was a nice touch. On perusing the menu it was a rather eclectic mix with offerings of charcuterie next to a Swiss cheese souffle to individual rock oysters. I suppose it all fits together in the end. Trying to fashion a dinner for ourselves, we ended up adding more dishes onto our order. Standard.
It soon became glaringly obvious who had come for the degustation dining experience and the plebs who had not (us included). We entertained ourselves trying to guess who was going upstairs and who was staying down. One clue was definitely age, clearly the baby boomers of the Eastern 'burbs were there for 'the real deal' whilst the gen-Yers stayed downstairs for bar snacks and wine (occasional alcoholics that we are). It was all a bit too easy - we discreetly judged diners wearing fur (get upstairs IMMEDIATELY), strappy stilettos and smoking jackets...how intriguing that the class divide has reached the restaurant scene! We even sighted a certain SBS news reporter heading up amongst them. Nice. Here's how we rolled:
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| Pig's face, black fungus relish sandwich. This slider trend is just unstoppable. Pork belly and chinese black fungus made for an interesting rendition. My only gripe here would be that the pork was cold. I would have preferred it warm thanks :) Nevertheless, Asian pride! |
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| Spanner crab, burnt butter crumbs on French toast. We lapped this one up! A couple of pieces of french-toasty brioche and bites of crab mixed with prawn meat. This one was completely delicious, and not an easy task to share amongst four! |
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| Ocean trout, apple dashi, palm heart. Flaky and beautifully smooth ocean trout with Asian greens. Clean, fresh, simple - bingo! It felt like having a wee detox before the next dish... |
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| Yowsers: Rangers Valley short rib, red wine & cafe de Paris. My heart stops just looking at the thing (uh, literally). Maybe that's why it's so small (and so expensive $38). So luxurious and naughty - the beef just melted in the mouth and the Paris butter helped it go down a little bit faster. And a beautiful glossy red wine sauce to round it all out. |
We also ordered the Boston Bay mussels with chilli and tamarind - a lovely sauce and fresh mussels, tiny as anything but so sweet!
The review of Claude's featured in Australian Gourmet Traveller is quite complimentary and I would echo those sentiments. The reservations they had about the downstairs operation (service) I can safely lay to rest. The food on offer is certainly 'no slouch' in the taste department. I'd imagine we only had a small peek into what delights are available to the lucky few degustation-ing. Each dish came as a small delicate portion (i.e. we want more!), each considered and finished with a delicate touch (tweezers ahoy!). Chui's food talks in moving whispers, not so much shouts across the room. The flavours are not slap in the face like we are so familiar with these days (read: Spice I Am, Porteno) more a brush across the cheek. Can you see the poetry here people? Baha.
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| Lemon curd, milk ice, muscovado. That bloody brilliant dessert that everybody's raving about (not quite but you get the picture) - my, GOD. Rated as one of the top ten desserts in Sydney. This is my #1 (at the mo anyway). The lemon curd was custardy with the right tang, accompanied with muscovado jelly (with a slight alcoholic note), coffee meringue and shavings of jersey milk ice ---- that's me DYING right now. So so perfect. Everything a dessert should be... balanced, restrained, all encompassing. Trust me, the kitchen had probably never seen a plate so clean! Photo: Caroline McCredie |
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| Dessert continues: Burnt honey souffle. I always delight in being able to order a souffle. The ones I've had at home have been rushed out from the oven only to deflate in front of your very eyes - magic! Not. A gorgeous souffle done well can't be sniffed at. Definitely not this one. Light, airy and yum! And aren't those copper pots adorable?! |
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| Chocolate Indulgence cake. Incredibly, this precise cake has been on the menu for over 30 years at Claude's and is a recipe by Josephine Pignolet. Her son Damien has a similar recipe featured here. Apologies for the terrible photograph - choquante! |
Apart from that dastardly green eyed monster (the whole night I so desperately wanted to go upstairs for the meal x8 i.e. degustation) I had a nice time! I am now busting to try the revamped and much touted upstairs dining room. Er, could we get an upgrade? The only conscientious objector to degustation amongst our party was described as being 'so weak'. Maybe next time... certainly something to look forward to! :)
Thanks for reading xo
