By Franz Scheurer
Location:
Overlooking the North Sydney Olympic Pool, adjacent to Luna Park
View:
The
Harbour Bridge spans your horizon and frames sweeping views of the city with
the Opera House taking centre stage.
Seating:
Inside and terrace
Feel:
Modern, urban
Service:
Efficient, friendly, knowledgeable
Tableware: Good
Glassware: Better
Menu:
Appetising
Wine List:
Comprehensive, clever!
Extras:
Watch the swimmers doing laps in the pool
Value:
Good
Food:
Good
Situated at the western end
of North Sydney Olympic Pool, Aqua Dining has commanding views of the Harbour
Bridge, the Opera House, Miller’s Point and the CBD. Sitting on the terrace,
watching the locals doing laps in the pool, sipping a glass of wine from the
superb wine list, you realise just how lucky you are to live in a city like
Sydney.
This is the perfect lunch
spot and you will probably want to come back for dinner. The food will
either have to be non-descript and secondary, so as not to detract from the
atmosphere, or so good that it will make you sit up and take notice. Jeff
Turnbull succeeds doing exactly that.
Jeff states, and I quote:
“Simple Food? A statement widely used. Can the very best food produced in a
kitchen be simple? My goal is to design a menu with depth, complexity and integrity,
to create dishes you have not experienced before, that are a feast for your
senses, both taste and visual. Isn’t that simple?”
Sounds simple and the test
is in the eating: The “Freshly Shucked Pacific Oysters with Campari, Lime and
Verjuice Dressing” are plump, fresh and the bittersweet dressing works. The
Aqua Tasting Plate, which changes daily, typically contains “Fresh Turmeric,
Lime, Coconut and Crab Broth”, “Confit of Duck Leg served on Caramelised Witlof
and Char-grilled Radicchio”, “Seared Scallop on Avocado Salsa”, “Salmon on
Bruschetta with Smoked Tomato and Tarragon Dressing” and “Char-grilled Octopus
with Soy, Sesame, Garlic and Chilli”. Beautifully presented, this is a
fantastic way to introduce Jeff Turnbull’s food to you. Another wonderful
entrée is the “King Prawn and Coleslaw Salad”. This modern peeled, bite-sized
prawn meat and coleslaw stack looks terrific and is easy to eat. We love the
“Roast Saddle of Lamb on Eggplant and Haloumi Fritter with a Seeded Mustard
Sauce and Chilli Oil”. Boned, rolled and baked to perfection the meat melts in
your mouth and the sauce lifts the dish from good to great.
Desserts, so often a let
down, are the domain of Greg Burge, pastry chef and again, they convince and
satisfy the eye and the palate.
Score: 7/10
For more information or
bookings:
Aqua Dining
Cnr. Paul and Northcliff
Streets
Milsons Point
Tel.: 02 9964 9998
reservations@aquadining.com.au