I was a virgin and it was the first day of SIFF (the Sydney International Food Festival). OK let me clarify that rather preposterous statement. I was a Let’s Do Lunch virgin. This year, I finally was going to take part in a Let’s do Lunch where for $35 you get a main meal along with a glass of wine with tea or coffee. However at Bilson’s we learn, the let’s do lunch deal is slightly different from the rest. For $25 you get a main meal and a glass of wine but it does not include tea or coffee. I am lunching with Reem this sunny, warm Spring afternoon at “One”, Tony Bilson’s new restaurant at Number 1 Alfred Street Circular Quay. I’m a little lost (yes I get lost easily) and I need to ring Reem to find out where she is (it turns out she is only metres away from me under the stairs, in a shaded area).
Reem, are you tweeting?
We take a quick look at the menu. There is of course the Let’s Do Lunch deal which is the Swordfish Nicoise salad which is normally priced at $33 so to get this for $25 plus a glass of wine is a steal. I opt to try something else (for the sake of research of course) so I choose the most interesting sounding thing on the menu, the pig’s trotters. The food is mainly French which Bilson is known for but with bits of Italian and Spanish and a tempura dish thrown in to please everyone.
Bread $7
We were hungry so we answered yes when we were asked if we’d like bread. It’s not bad and the butter is unsalted but I prefer some of the more sour sourdoughs on offer at other restaurants. The appearance of $7 for the bread on the bill is a bit of a surprise to me too.
Truffled Crepinette Pigs Trotters with celeriac puree $32
The pigs trotters appear as two orbs of glistening meat settled in a creamy celeriac puree with dutch carrots and wilted spinach. Crepinettes are like sausage parcels and for want of a better comparison these are like round rissole type of items made up of the soft flesh from a pig’s trotter. The flesh is coarsely torn and richer than rich and the sauce is thick and gelatinous as befits a pig’s trotter sauce and the truffle scent is light but gives it an added dimension. The dutch carrots are perfectly cooked as is the spinach and celeriac puree. I hold back on licking the plate, instead using the leftover bread to mop up the juices.
Swordfish Nicoise Salad $25 with a glass of wine
Reem’s Nicoise salad is impressive looking with a lovely cooked swordfish steak still tender inside and not a jot dry and a perfectly poached egg with a riotously coloured orange yolk. When the waitress offers us a look at the dessert menu we immediately say yes and our eyes gravitate towards the Number One Souffle (Blood Orange) and the Pear Tart so we order these along with coffee.
Pear and Frangipane Tart Fine with Vanilla ice cream $14
The tart is buttery and gives a satisfying crunch when a knife cuts into it. The pear is sliced paper thin and the almond fragipane’s aroma is distinct. The vanilla ice cream is good but could be more vanillaey for my taste but the butter puff and frangipane and pear are fantastic. I think I should have perhaps stopped there.
Number One Souffle $15
The Number One Souffle isn’t very Blood Orangey at all, in fact it’s the very slightest after thought much like chilli in chocolate is a subtle aftertaste. We were both hoping for something with a bit more punch and a strong citrus souffle would have been gorgeous.
Coffee $3.50
When the coffee arrives I sense danger. The froth on the cappucino is made up of huge bubbles, not the tiny compact bubbles of a frothy foam. Unfortunately both of our coffees are burnt and for me I can’t drink more than a tiny sip. The waitress looks a little hurt when I tell her (perhaps she made it).
Losing your virginity is fun but I can’t help thinking you need to know when to stop!
So tell me Dear Reader, are you taking part in any SIFF events this year?
Number ONe Tony Bilsons Wine Bar & Bistro
Goldfields House, 1 Alfred Street, Circular Quay, NSW
Tel: +61 (02) 8252 9296
www.numberonewinebar.com
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31 Comments | Add your own
Ive never tried pigs trotters but ur description makes me want to so much =) I thought theyd be more trotter shaped!
Lovely food and pictures. Not sure about those trotters.
Yum! I’ll take the swordfish and the pear tart please
Unfortunately being in ‘Vegas, I won’t make it to SIFF, but it looks like you are having fun.
I would love to take part in SIFF…it sounds like so much fun! I’ve never tried trotters of any kind actually…my hubby loves lamb, but I can’t say I’ve ever had it myself. I’m not usually that squeamish but a few months ago my husband bought a whole lamb and brought it home for us to butcher (he actually thought we would enjoy butchering it!). (Trust me, it was a total blood bath, since I have no butchering skills!) And I got to see (and smell) many animal parts that sadly turned me off to red meat for a while. I’ve slowly worked my way up to being able to enjoy beef again, but I’m still somewhat averse to even lamb. Very sad, I know…I blame hubby.
That Swordfish looks pretty cool as does the tart…we used to eat trotters growing up. Shame about the coffee…that definitely is something you don’t need after a meal…Dzintra♥x
Before getting to the photo, I was anticipating the pigs’ trotters to be more like a whole knuckle. Did the cepinettes contain any of the gooey tendon and skin bits, or just the flesh?
One of the worst thing to do is to burn coffee FAIL. Especially when it’s toby’s estate my on of my favs.
I’m surprised you managed to taste the coffee at all through the two tonne of cocoa sitting on top!
I’ll admit I had to google pig trotters. This is just like me trying stuffed chicken neck in Italy with full chicken head on plate. (more interesting), but the swordfish plate looked a bit more up my alley. How can they get the cappuccino so wrong?
hope they remade a new new coffee for you?
Good review Lorraine, my husband and I dined at One earlier this year and we had trouble finding it too. The meal was good but we are spoilt for choice with lots of exciting eateries in Sydney that we’re continually trying other places.
I have been salivating at the thought of SIFF and Saturday was our first event at the SMH Growers’ Market at Pyrmont. Even though the weather was awful the day was great with lots of stalls and the special Nose to tail Barbecue event,$15 bought you a pork dish from one of the many talented chefs eg Kylie Kwong, Sean Connolly,Justin North and others. Looking forward to Night Noodle markets in Hyde park,probably try to get to a ‘Let’s Do lunch’ and a High tea but the ‘piece de resistance’ will be the World Chef Showcase at Star City (going on Sunday 11th )sooooooooo excited.
Tweeting? Me? Noooooo! I was checking my email, for work you know
the tart looks gorgeous. I hate it when my eyes tell me to press on and try something else- despite a full belly and loving what I have just eaten- and it doesn’t live up to expectations and ruins the taste from the previous morsel.
i love pig trotters, i would have ordered them as well.
I can’t dine without bread and the $7 on the bill is very annoying…
I’m not big on pigs trotters (tried them once…didn’t like them), and I’m not a huge seafood fan, so unfortunately, neither of those meals appealed to me
I’m sure I’d find something at Number One that I’d enjoy though! LOL
I would love to take part in one of the SIFF events, but I still have no job…and no job = no money for me to spend
There are a few “Let’s Do Lunch” deals that appeal to me though…actually, I’d rather go & do all the options in the “Sugar Hit” section on the SIFF website!
Trotters aye, I’ll need to try those one day. Oh and the coffee, not sure why most big restaurants can’t make a good coffee. Perhaps it’s because they don’t have a barista who makes coffee day in and day out, but it’s a real shame when a meal can possibly be spoilt by a bad coffee!
Haha, I was gonna say that is SO expensive at first, but then I realized you meant Aussie currency, right?
Everything look REALLY elegant. That celeriac puree…does it taste like potatoes?
We’re having the Malaysia International Gourmet Food Festival going on now…there are some great deals out there and I was at the gala launch dinner last week which was quite impressive…I think I’ll have to go try one of the festival menus!
without fail, i’m inevitably more drawn to whatever dessert(s) you’ve pictured than anything else. that pear tart looks simply scrumptious.
I was hoping to be a real cheapskate and enjoy the SIFF vicariously via all the food blogs that I read – saves on calories too, hehe! I hate queues.
$25 is such a steal! The plating of the two balls shaped pigs trotters with whole dutch …. hahaha!! I am thinking of something else.. Oopps! nothing worse than a cup of burnt coffee.
I am a virgin too!! You think they are worth it? I should try One anything since the food looks so good mmm
Hmm I’m so excited for another GFM! I’m so jealous that you have already been to one!
Truffled Crepinette Pigs Trotters – I’d love to try that.
*sigh* I hope to get out for lunch time, but the chances are looking very thin…
I didn’t know that Let’s Do Lunch was only $25 here! The pig’s trotters look delicious.. but shame about the coffee! I went to Sean’s Kitchen recently for Let’s Do Lunch and just blogged about it as well – definitely an interesting experience
The meal looks very nice other than the burnt coffee of course
I would love a taste of the buttery pear tart!
$7 for bread? I would be a snarling duck.
Hehe that shot of Reem tweeting through the glass is great! Such a pity about the souffle and coffee fail (and $7 bread, what.), but those pig trotter crepinettes look so rich and moreish!
The Pear and Frangipane Tart looks delicious.
I’m going to the “Out of the Frying Pan” free event on 14 October: http://www.siff.com.au/CustomContentRetrieve.aspx?ID=277380
Alex Herbert, chef at Bird Cow Fish restaurant, is speaking.
We actually stopped at Number One for drinks and some snacks while walking one day. We loved the ambience but, out of four glasses of wine we tasted, only liked one. Did you have the same problem there? I have to say that $25 is a steal even though your cappucino was burnt.
I HATE being charged for bread. The worst is when the waitress offers it, like she’s doing you a favour and then you get charged for it. Grrrrr…. Got me all worked up. Still, looked like great food…
Hi Brianna-Hehe I think they usually look different but these were crepinettes (meatballs)
Hi Lea Ann -Thankyou! Oh really?
Hi Cakelaw-Aww what a shame, maybe another year?
I’m having a ball!
Hi Faith-It’s a lot of fun (but oh so fattening
). Oh my, that sounds a bit confronting! Did you consider covering it for your blog? 
Haha yes he does sound like the one to blame! 
Hi Dzintra-Yes I wish more restaurants did good coffee!
Hi ms delicieuse-Yes I suppose that’s more trotter like looking. It was mainly flesh I could taste but with a little tendon in it
Hi Katherine-I know, it was really quite awful
Thankfully I wasn’t charged for it (well I only tried a sip!)
Hi Conor-Haha!
Hi Angela-Ahh surprising! I thought you might know pig’s trotters
I don’t know, it was a sad ending to a nice meal!
Hi Simon-No I said don’t worry!
Hi Matilda-Oh good, so it’s not just me!
Yes there are so many lovely places 
Sounds like you’re having a ball at SIFF! 
Hi Reemski-Haha suuuuuuuure
Hi sandra-Yes that’s right! It’s not good is it!
Hi Julia-Yes the bread add on was a bit of a surprise, I mean it should be on the menu in that case!
Hi Liv-Ahh ok I love trotters
Yes I’m sure as there’s plenty to have there! Hehe the Sugar Hits are good as they’re one of the more well priced items!
Hi Howard-Oh you haven’t? They’re great! Yes I don’t expect the best coffee in the world but a good one or a decent one would be nice
Hi Sophia-Haha well actually it’s actually not that different at the moment!
It is reminiscent of mashed potato but has its own distinct taste 
Hi Chefspiration-Oh fantastic! Lots of fun for you I bet!
Will we read all about it pretty please?
Hi grace-Haha well I can totally understand that!
Hi Moya-Hehe no problems with that at all!
Hi Ellie-It is isn’t it!
Haha I didn’t even think of that! 
Hi FFichiban -Hehe you need to devirginise!
Yes they’re quite good indeed considering!
Hi Yas-Reem and I scheduled it for the first day! What better way to deflower oneself
Yes I can imagine it would be!
Hi Jacq-Yes it doesn’t say that on the SIFF site! Yes I read your story
Hi 5 Star Foodie- the coffee was definitely the low point. The tart was lovely though!
Hi Blond Duck-Hee hee!
Hi Steph-She’s a born tweeter!
They were so rich, I don’t think I could have had more than 2!
Hi Darren-It was! Oh very cool, that sounds like lots of fun!
Hi Akila-I’m afraid I’m not much of a wine drinker so I left the wine to Reem (who got it with her meal anyway). Yes it’s hard to argue with $25!
Hi Bam-It annoys me when I am at an expensive restaurant. I figure that’s kind of worked into the cost! The rest of it was good
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