SugarRush 2015 - Let's fly away at Flying Fish

With a view like this, we don't really need anything else. But a bit of sugar and a little alcohol certainly adds to it! This is the third instalment of our Good Food Month antics and, having wanted to visit Flying Fish, I looked very much forward to this event!

A comfortable fish out of water

What's on offer? An exotic, modern Japanese fusion with fresh flavours - just what we would expect from Flying Fish. Chef Elliott Pinn had created a gorgeous palette of yuzu curd, mandarin furikake (Japanese flavoured sprinkles for rice, but of course, it's a different mix for this dessert), matcha sorbet and shiso. But to add to our dessert experience, something off the (bar) menu took our fancy - we are what we eat - so had to try their blueberry, chamomile and violet tart.

What a work of art. To those who despise the food photographers at restaurants, take one look at this dish and you will be tempted. And the flavour? Not normally a fan of matcha ice cream, I found the sorbet much more appealing as it is more lively and fresh. The curd was silky smooth, and we loved the sesame coating to it.

Our petite tarts were bite sized - perfect mouthfuls - with a lush smooth curd that is refined and beautifully presented. We washed it down with one of our favourite liquors - Pedro Ximenez Gran Reserva 1983 - a sweet sticky with the most deliciously rich fruity flavours much like a drinking prune or sultana. At about 212g/l sugar, it's one of the rare sweet drinks I love. 

Must return for more goodies - next time I will aim to sample their actual menu items!

CS

SugarRush 2015 - Bistro Mint

As if we haven't ingested enough sugar this month, let alone this year, an invitation from Bistro Mint arrived and who can resist chocolate?

Balmy spring evenings are the best in Sydney. Following some stomach-lining at the Night Noodle Market, we strolled to the oldest public building in the CBD. Sydney Mint was built in the early 1800s, once known as the "Rum Hospital" due to the contractors having been paid with 45,000 gallons of rum! A different kind of alcohol was served on the evening of Sugar Rush, part of the Good Food Month.

Seated on the balcony overlooking Macquarie Street, glasses of Yalumba Museum Reserve muscat were served. Tawny-coloured, it's plumy, chocolatey, a little spicy and very much sticky!

The dessert plate arrived with a dark chocolate dome, its contents in suspense, and a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream topped with honey foam. A hot dark chocolate sauce, with extra vanilla stirred in, was poured over the dome as the show began.

While the chocolate dome melted, the ooh's & ah's were quite audible in the otherwise placid surrounding. The big unveil consisted of a chocolate fudge coin (geddit!) and Merlot gel - rich and tangy all in one hit. Crushed peanuts at the base of the plate gave the liquidy dessert an extra texture kick, as well as adding its nutty fragrance.

It was another beautiful evening to appreciate our wonderful city, made even better by a sugar high! Thank you Bistro Mint for a lovely sweet indulgence!

**Sugar Rush at Bistro Mint is available from 7pm Tuesdays to Fridays until 30 October 2015. For more information, please visit their website.

Hsinner ;)

SugarRush 2015 - Signorelli Gastronomia

Our much anticipated month of sugar injection is here! One of our favoured joints - Signorelli Gastronomia - has put up an offer we could not resist, so on the opening night of the October Good Food Month, we went.

Nico the lovely manager greeted us like we're family and exchanged some good humoured banter throughout the evening as he butterflied about, making everyone feel at home. Immediately our sweet whites arrived followed by the gorgeous dessert of the month - "Under the Sea" - inspired by the Aussie coastline, the centre piece was hazelnut semifreddo adorned with caramelised popcorn, passionfruit and blackcurrent jubes, banana and orange croutons and spicy pineapple with nougat coral and crisp salted 'waves'. Intricate and beautiful, we took our time photographing. Did I say it was beautiful? We had to do it justice! And it tasted as it looked - gorgeous. Visually the plate looked like waves hitting the seashore, with the salty waves it brought me to Bronte.

We weren't kidding when we said many photos were taken .... 

And we followed this with an enormous cheese platter! Nico was most amused the first time we visited that we'd started with the sweet stuff followed by our main course. We have our priorities and it's sweet. The platter was incredible, with truffle pecorino, gorgonzola with truffle honey, a gooey taleggio, and delicious sides of fruits and nuts and quince paste. And glasses of shiraz to wash them down with... but I had to have my Pedro Ximenez - a deliciously plummy and sultana'y sticky sherry-like red wine. L. O. V. E.

And because we're gluttons, we had to have another dessert off the main menu - Sicilian Citrus - citrus posset with orange cake, crispy meringue, black currant and orange jelly topped with ruby grapefruit granita. Very refreshing, very pretty (of course), and we loved how easy it was to eat.

We were all on a sugar high, the wine made us laugh at just about everything, plus Nico popping over to make sure we were having a spectacular evening ... The night could not have been more fabulous. And we were still eyeing the goods in the cheese room, and contemplated one day organising a dinner at the red wine room....

CS