Ester Restaurant - Chippendale, NSW

It's always the new year that brings out the best intentions in us. Something about...starting a fresh, clean slate and all this "new year, new me" stuff. Realistically, it's not any different from the last 365 days you've just experienced but somehow, you feel more motivated, more invigorated and more certain that this year, you will fulfill your tasks and achieve your goals. Such is the wave of emotions I was overcome with this new year. The passing of another year had me thinking about how quickly 2016 had passed and how little I managed to achieve blogging-wise...and it did not make me feel happy at all. I reflected on the fact that my blog had been around for awhile now (longer than any of my previous attempts) in fact, just today I found out that we've been active for more than 2 years.

So long story short: I'm back once again after my hiatus and I've recharged my blogging batteries for now. I have saved up a small collection of places we've dined at and as I've done before, I will make an attempt to write multiple posts until I've caught up. Today, I'd like to reminisce about the spectacular dinner the Mrs and I had at Ester. You'd think that being married and not having any kids (yet) would mean that the two of us would be able to share intimate dinner moments more often...well, you'd be mistaken. So therefore, in light of how rare the opportunity is, we tend to cherish the nights where we've committed to going out for a fancy dinner.

To be honest I've heard nothing but good news about Ester and the work they do but I could not have prepared myself for what followed. I met the Mrs after work where we decided to bum around at Central Park before heading over. At this point, the Mrs had yet to decipher where exactly I was taking her but she soon figured out (with the help of Zomato of course...). Arriving promptly for our dinner reservation, we were seating almost at the centre of the dining room that had yet to be filled with eager guests. This provided us with ample solitude to mull over the decisions of what we would order and how much we would indulge that night.

Upon arrival, each table is given a light snack to open up your appetite and help ease our hungry stomachs into readiness. A small plate of crisp, roasted chickpeas perfumed with aromatic herbs and a touch of salinity that begs you to go for more. The Mrs opted to not have any alcohol that night but I on the other hand, decided to settle in with a nice glass of Nikka from the barrel (after very little coercion from our delightful hostess).

Opting not to go for the set menu, we ordered a multitude of items which we believed best suited our palates. First to come was the fermented potato bread with salmon roe and dashi jelly. By far, the MOST impressive starter/bread service I've ever had in my life...the wood fired oven that you can see most prominently in the kitchen is a sure-fire sign that whatever comes out of that furnace would be delicious and that, to be honest, is barely sufficient to describe this bread. Cut open that savoury and smoky crust and you will find the most pliable, soft and doughy bread in existence. Slather a mild amount of the salmon roe combination onto the bread and put it in your mouth for an instantaneous umami explosion. This is the dish I would start and end my meal with...stuff dessert!

Shortly after came the roasted oysters with horseradish emulsion which were absolutely sublime! Admittingly, the mild shell-cutting-the-edge-of-my-mouth incident did dull my enjoyment ever so slightly however, I just couldn't get over how well the flavours melded together! The oysters were plump and buttery and the emulsion just gave it a really nice contrasting element.

There was a dish on the menu that I had to order for myself which was the blood sausage sanga. The Mrs isn't the biggest fan of blood sausage but I am a willing sucker for anything of the sort. This did not disappoint because not only was the sausage delicious, the slice of square bread it rested on was also impressively moist and soft...I'm sensing a common theme here.

The next two dishes to come were definitely for the Mrs however: salt baked crab and the marron with salt and pepper sauce. The Mrs adores crustaceans and shellfish (what she gets for being inducted into a Chinese family) but even I had to admit that the crab was mighty impressive in it's simplicity. The flesh of the crab was unbelievably sweet which I can only assume lends part to the fact that the baking of the crab in salt assists with. There was a crab roe dipping sauce that was provided but I remember barely touching it at all as the inherent flavours of the crab was more that sufficient. I almost felt bad for wasting a beautiful sauce that someone put so much effort into making! I personally was more impressed with the marron...smaller than the tasmanian lobsters I'm used to having but much larger than yabbies, the marron provided just enough succulent meat to whet your desire but sadly, not enough to satisfy it...not something for people with a huge appetite for seafood. The sauce was very, very impressive though...not an overpowering saltiness and a rather decent and refreshing kick from the pepper.

To round off our meal, we had ordered the flank steak with smoked cream and kombu. We then paired this with their house cauliflower with almond sauce and mint. Flank steak is definitely not my favourite cut of beef but my word, this was done well. Cut against the grain (like any good flank should be), the meat just tears away so easily...and then melts in your mouth when consumed...not something I would expect with flank. Every other element on the dish was designed to heighten your bovine experience...the smoked cream, the jus and the side of pickled daikon all served to take that humble piece of meat and make it heavenly.

Though the beef was great, the "designed-to-be-shared" portion sizing left the glutton in me wanting more. Fortunately, this is where the delectable side of roasted cauliflower comes in. I know from my experience with the many delicious cauliflower dishes I've had but prior to all this gourmet eating, I never could have imagined that the humble and unassuming cauliflower could taste so good and satisfying....but it totally does! The almond sauce was really rich in flavour and I really enjoyed the fresh, herbaceousness from the mint.

Overall, our night at Ester can be summed up in one word: impressive. At that price range, Ester is a standout amongst a lot of equally impressive eateries mainly for their service, their technique and how each dish complimented and elevated the next. There was literally no crescendo....it just kept going up and up. And if you're fortunate enough to find yourself sitting at one of their tables, please...double down on that potato bread.

Catalina - Rose Bay, NSW

You probably might have gotten the idea by now (what with us being food-bloggers and all) but the Mrs and I really like to dine out. Sadly, we haven't really had the chance to go out and enjoy a really nice meal lately because we've had to save some money for a special event we have coming up. That's why I was so excited when a major milestone of ours came up and I used this opportunity to go and book a restaurant that the Mrs had been wanting to try for a while, Catalina.

A little tip for would-be diners: don't fret too much about needing to beat the traffic and find parking. They have ample parking outside the restaurant and you won't really encounter the typical sydney traffic trying to get there. Upon entering, we were seated at a rather ideal table located right by the water, perfect for setting up a romantic evening. Service was also impeccable from the moment you sit down, but is expected of a dining experience of this calibre....still, major points to the staff.

Despite there being sushi and sashimi available on the menu, the Mrs and I fought our temptations and stuck to the regular entrees and mains. For our entrees, we decided to share an order of the crispy whitebait and duck-egg as well as an order of the pan-seared scallops. When the dishes arrived, we were fascinated by how the dishes were presented and served as the duck egg was cut up and tossed before being placed onto the table. To say that we were impressed by the whitebait dish is an understatement. The crispy texture of the whitebait was complemented by the delightfully moorish duck-egg which made the dish extremely tasty. Despite sounding heavy, there was a slightly citrus-like element in the dish which cut through the flavours making it really appetising.

The scallops were also pretty good but I have to admit that in this case, the Mrs did pick the tastier entree. The scallops themselves were cooked perfectly but I can't say there was any other element of the dish which was memorable. That said, I do have a palate that craves heavy and distinct flavours so that's why when we ate the whitebait and the scallops back to back, the scallops wouldn't have had as much impact as the whitebait did. The dish was good in it's simplicity and the freshness of the ingredients.

Quickly thereafter, our main dishes arrived at our table and boy, were we impressed. The Mrs ordered the pan-seared kingfish from the daily menu which was served in a seafood bouillabaisse. Kingfish is possibly my most favoured type of fish when cooked which is great because this piece of fish was cooked beautifully with crispy thin skin and an almost steak-like texture of the fish being just cooked on the outside but still a bit raw in the centre. Just underneath it was refined and elegant seafood bouillabaisse which was smokey and savoury in all the right ways. The dish also had clams and mussels which made it just so much better. For me, this was definitely a highlight of the night.

The star of the show had to be my dish though, the lobster and fettuccine nero with tomato and chilli-infused lobster oil. The dish was magnificently presented with vibrant colours and a smell which was well indicative of how good this dish was. The pasta was cooked to an al-dente snap and was tossed with an abundant amount of plump and juicy bits of lobster meat. The sauce itself was absolutely moorish but had an acidic tang to it which made it irresistible. It was a shame that halfway through I had to give the pasta to the Mrs...the things I do for love. In addition to all this, we also ordered a side of mash just in case the mains weren't enough.

Normally, we'd end the night there (neither one of us is big on dessert) but since we hadn't been out in a while, we thought it'd be a good idea to order a sweet treat just this once. I naturally gravitated to the most chocolatey dish available and the Mrs obliged. We ordered the caramel-centred dark chocolate mousse with feuilletine crumble and valrhona milk chocolate ice cream to share which was a great decision because the dish was so amazing but so rich and decadent. A must order for any chocolate fan.

In addition to the dessert, the staff also provided us with a little gift for our special occasion which the Mrs and I were very appreciative of and thought was a great gesture. That last bit pretty much adequately describes our experience with Catalina, Perfect. The staff provided some of the best service we've had with their attentiveness and care which only made the food and the night even more spectacular. This has to be one of the most memorable dinners we've had and we're both so glad we chose to celebrate at Catalina.