Marvellous views in background, but food comes to the fore.

IT’S BEEN A GOOD YEAR, for me and for Quay. I’ve been having the time of my life, eating and drinking around Sydney with my girlfriend. This weekend is our anniversary, so we wanted to go somewhere special.

And what better place than Quay? Over the last year, the restaurant has taken out every ‘Best Restaurant’ award in the country. It also recently entered the list of the top 50 restaurants in the world.

Dinner started with an amuse bouche of sashimi tuna, cucumber jelly and lime crème fraiche. It was a good indicator of what to expect over the night. The tuna suggested an emphasis on fresh produce; the jelly a preference for light flavours. The crème fraiche attested to a love of … well … crème fraiche, which featured in a few of the menu items. We also started with a Fontaine rosé (Domique Portet, Yarra, 2006), as we usually do.

1A. I was determined to try the restaurant’s signature sea pearls (+$25). The dish has appeared in numerous forms over the years. The present incarnation features five temarizushi-sized balls, including: Tuna & caviar, Smoked eel & egg white, Tapioca & crab, Dashi & octopus, Scallop. The ‘tapioca pearl’ (not to be confused with the tapioca pearls you have in your milk tea) was the most interesting of the bunch. It was dressed with yuzu citrus (柚子) and garnished with silver leaf. It makes sense, since this pearl has been a mainstay of the menu for a longer time than the others. However, my favourite pearls were the smoked eel and the dashi (出汁) ones. No surprises here. I love smoked fish, especially the umami flavour (旨味) of smoked eel. Not to mention, of course, the umami flavour of dashi, which has to be my favourite ingredient in the world. A personal highlight.

1B. Western Australian marron was the first of many poached dishes on the menu. According to that menu, this was garnished with seaweed jelly, cucumber, fennel, samphire and our beloved lime crème fraiche. While a lot of restaurants do not give much thought to vegetables (or to desserts for that matter), Quay does not miss a single detail. The selection of ingredients was well-considered and delightfully presented. My girlfriend even preferred it to the sea pearls.

2A. Five textures of Southern rock lobster (+$25) didn’t give much away in the title. It included a lobster custard with lobster consommé; as well as a lobster-tapioca dumpling, poached lobster and lobster ‘velvet.’ The velvety texture comes from the use of (the ubiquitous) egg-white. This was the highlight of the evening. The lobster custard was like a chawan-mushi (茶碗蒸し), but it replaced the dashi with a lobster stock. Lobster stock, as well as prawn stock, is one of those tastes that is unmistakeable. And undeniably delicious. The poached and velvet lobster was moist and tender; a total melt-in-mouth experience. The dish was treated with such skill and finesse that it struck a perfect balance between subtlety and fullness of flavour. One of the best dishes I’ve eaten in Sydney.

2B. Partridge breast was yet another poached dish. You might be led to believe, at Quay, that everything is poached, and served with tapioca or crème fraiche. However, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The partridge was accompanied by roasted chestnuts, walnuts, bitter chocolate black pudding, truffle custard, partridge ravioli and sweet leaf. There was a lot going on in this dish, matching a game bird with nuts and the earthy flavours of chocolate and truffle. My girlfriend preferred it to the lobster, but for me there was no contest.

3A. South Australian Suffolk lamb was one of the few roasted (read: non-poached) dishes on the menu. It was cooked to a perfect medium-rare and was mouth-wateringly moist. It was accompanied by a series of interesting vegetables, including heirloom baby carrots, Arbequina olives, nasturtiums, capers and calendula marigolds as well as sheep’s milk fromage. Despite the exotic ingredients, this was perhaps the most conventional dish of the evening. It wasn’t too rich, though, for the Chardonnay (Curly Flat, Macedon Ranges, 2006) we had been drinking.

3B. Murray Cod had been (you guessed it) butter poached. It was matched with ‘hasuimo’ taro (蓮芋), periwinkles, oyster cream, white turnips, winter melon, hops purée and gerkin shoots. The fish had been well-handled and was proved very succulent. You might think that these portion sizes are quite small for a four-course meal, but a steady supply of great breads kept us sated. My favourite bread was one made with polenta and sunflower seeds.

4A. Strawberry guava and custard apple ‘snow egg’ is another signature. The medley of fruit flavours was very refreshing. The pairing of an icy granita with a creamy custard was also a great combination of textures.

4B. Speaking of texture, the eight texture chocolate cake (+$10) was a decadent indulgence. The ‘textures’ include layers of Valrhona mousse and sponge; meringue, ganache, hazelnut praline, whipped milk chocolate and Amedei ‘Chuao’ chocolate. The eighth texture was provided by a hot ganache poured at the table. I really enjoyed these desserts, even though I don’t usually go in for restaurant desserts (especially chocolate cake).

This was an excellent meal. My only wish is that I could’ve tried more, especially the Mud crab congee and Pig belly confit. I guess there’s always next time!

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Quay
Overseas Passenger Terminal, Circular Quay West, The Rocks
Tel. (02) 9251 5600
http://www.quay.com.au

Lunch: Tues-Fri, noon-2:30pm
Dinner: Mon-Sun, 6pm-10pm