Cafe del Mar

A relatively fancier dinner for a group catch up. As you would expect, restaurants at Darling Harbour with views and nice decor ain't cheap, but thanks to Dandelion for finding a voucher for us to use (ended up being around half price). I've been here before, but mainly at the balcony for some drinks and finger food. I remember the inside was really pretty and that hasn't changed, When step inside, it's sort of like an indoor trapeze with fancy lighting and decor. It's more formal dining, so lighting inside was pretty crap (soz for blurry photos). Also, didn't focus some properly since everyone was starving so didn't check if I took my photos properly lol.

 

they have so many types of fancy chairs

It’s expected touristy places like this restaurant in Darling Harbour isn’t cheap and portions were small, but it was pretty decent quality. Loved the decor with big chairs and relatively bigger tables.

food spread

We ordered from the a la carte menu, so we could share and try more dishes.

Squid was deep fried well with a good batter and not chewy on the inside. Really flavourful, and I have to admit the chilli did help elevate the dish to give it an extra kick. Lovely creaminess from the aioli.

yeah, I take photos of bread+olive oil+vinaigrette

Torched blue mackarel, spanner crab salsa, paprika aioli-$26

Mackerel had so many elements, each were delicious individually, as well as together. Yes, it is pricey for a few pieces, but the flavours really came through with the paprika and salsa, without having a super salty mackerel.

Angalotti of house made ricotta, pea, egg yolk, asparagus and hazelnut-$22

This pasta was cooked well, I just wished there was more filling. Used some bread on that sauce.

 

Titania chestnut fed pure bred bresaola (50g)-$18

I don’t normally order this stuff, but it sounded interesting on the menu. I can’t really judge it apart from it’s not as salty or taste ass artificial as the stuff from the supermarket delis.

   

Rabbit 2 ways, sweetbread ravioli, boudin blanc-$28

Tbh, wasn’t really sure what the 2 ways this rabbit was cooked. Both ways didn’t over cook the meat or made it tough/dry, This isn’t on the menu anymore.

We ordered 2 mains, since there were more vegetarian options in entrees, and entrees are cheaper so can try more things lel.

Confit Saltbush lamb belly, ricotta gnudi, summer greens, black garlic-$36

Lamb was so tender and loved the sauce with it, perfectly seasoned.

Brulée cannelloni of ricotta and mint, pumpkin toffee, zucchini flower-$26

This was one of our favourites. The filling was so delicious, wrapped in a nice thin pasta sheet. Again, wished there was more. I love zucchini flowers, and these ones had a light batter with a creamy filling. That ricotta filling had just the right creaminess, and the slight toffee flavour really highlighted the sweetness of the pumpkin. 

White polenta, grana padano-$12

Polenta chips were just a tad bit dry on the inside, but did have nice crisp. Would have liked more cheese sprinkled on top. I looooved the truffle mash, mainly because you could actually see and taste the truffle.

Truffled mash-$10

The mash was smooth and not grainy (not the smoothest I've ever had, but better tham your average mash). Did go a bit harder once it went cold from the butter, but I highly recommend ordering this side. Probably the best truffle mash I’ve had (not that I’ve had a lot, but I would imagine this one to be near the top).

open kitchen

inside bar