Friends in high places, they mean a lot of course but friends in the right places means a lot too. My friend M was just the person that I needed to speak to about a very important topic and she suggested that we meet up at Saks Espresso & Wine in Surry Hills as she works nearby. I did my due diligence (i.e. looking up reviews) and it all looked good. There’s a selection of arty books resting against the banquette near the window and inside is all red and it’s full with patrons.
It’s coming up to crazy season, that’s right, Christmas is almost upon us! December is a hectic time and Christmas meet ups with friends seem to happen in November as December fills up months in advance. When Kath asked our group whether we’d like to go to Baroque Bistro, the brand spanking, new and shiny thing on the block owing to some miracle of planning there was a date we were all free in November. Baroque Bistro is by the same people that own La Renaissance, the lovely patisserie in The Rocks and rumour had it that you could watch all the chefs baking all sorts of goodies in the window and on the other side, there was a beautiful view of the harbour. It’s open 7 days a week from 8am til late and given the location and view, the prices are a veritable steal.
Our waiter explains that there is only the duck leg available in the duck dish tonight which is usually duck done two ways making it a duck done one way only so we bypass it. Trish, Kath and I are eager to share so that we can try more so we order a few things that we all like the sound of or are curious about. The waiter is a tad confused about our need to share as he wants to assign each position in the table with a dish and this results in a main going missing a little later.
“Excitement! Dinner at Quay 
All dressed up. Mr NQN in sneakers and sailing shirt love it lol” I tweeted one Saturday night. As a way to celebrate moving into our new place Mr NQN and I thought we’d do it with a dinner out at Quay. It had been years and I mean literally years (the last visit was B.B. aka Before Blog) since I had last dined there and when I called up a couple of weeks before moving in I was told that the next table for two on a Saturday night was 6 weeks away (owing to the Restaurant of the Year accolade no doubt). It looks like I’d have to keep waiting.
View at 6pm
Many moons ago, there was a heritage listed sandstone building in Sydney’s Darlinghurst. It used to be an Italian restaurant but then lay unused for years. It then became The Pond, a pop up restaurant serving local produce and with a constantly changing menu. And like Cinderella at midnight, on January 31st 2010, the sponsorship by Pure Blonde beer expires (although there are plans to keep it running with the intention of making it a profitable business that doesn’t need sponsorship).
A glass of fragrant lavender and rosemary marks the spot at our table at Martin Place Bar, the recent winner of the Bistro of the Year at the I love Food Awards. Even on this Wednesday afternoon it’s crowded with people eating and taking advantage of the “Lunch Within the Hour” where diners can book and pre-order what they want and within 5 minutes of sitting down they can eat their meals and for the rest of the time can enjoy themselves rather than feel rushed and anxious if their meal will arrive. Today we’ve got a bit more time to enjoy things though and are partaking of a 3 course sampler lunch.
As seen in the Foodies Guide 2010
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