Last night I had a meal in Sydney that was so good, it deserves its own blog entry! First, I need to thank my father, Allan D. Kellar. I believe I must have inherited my love of trying new and interesting restaurants from him. And Dad, you would have LOVED this place!
I traveled from Cairns to Sydney on Monday, arriving in Sydney around 5:30 (and leaving for New Zealand the next morning), so I really didn’t have a lot of time to do anything that night other than have dinner. I decided to try another restaurant recommended by my Lonely Planet guide book, and I also wanted to walk through Kings Cross (the “seedier” part of Sydney, in a Las Vegas showgirl kind of way), so I chose a restaurant called Fratelli Paradiso in Potts Points. To get there, I would walk through the Kings Cross area, including past the iconic Coca-Cola sign. (See photo)
When I got there, I actually walked past it – partially because I didn’t see the name at first and wasn’t positive that this was the right place, and partially because it looked so schicki-micki that I felt slightly underdressed in my jeans and sweater. So I walked down the street, and then got up my courage and went back. And I am SO glad that I did!
The waiter didn’t seem at all fazed by my request for a table for one, and seated me in a prime spot out on the sidewalk next to a table of four women who looked like they were vacationing from Rome. He immediately gave me a glass of water, and then I settled in with the wine list, waiting for the menu. I was engrossed in my Kindle (God bless this wonderful invention!) when I realized that the waiter was going over a very long list of specials with the women at the next table, and suddenly I noticed that they didn’t have menus. In fact, no one in the restaurant seemed to have menus. I suddenly felt a little sick as it occurred to me that this might be one of those fancy-schmancy places with a “set” menu of just a few dishes. And I felt even sicker when I realized that almost everything the waiter seemed to be mentioning (that I could hear) involved seafood of some kind! Had I just made a horrible mistake??
Well, at least I had some forewarning to prepare myself. So when the waiter came next to me, and asked what courses I was interested in, I said that I wasn’t sure and would like to hear everything, but I didn’t eat any seafood or fish. Once again, thankfully, he didn’t seem at all fazed and started through the “not from the sea” menu options. I settled on a Caprese salad (Joan is rolling her eyes right now), some meat ravioli, and a glass of Riesling.
By the way, I did realize later that the “menu” was written up on the wall inside the restaurant – there were just no printed menus.
What followed was two and a half hours of such culinary bliss that I concluded that “paradiso” is indeed an appropriate name! The buffa mozzarella and tomato salad had no fewer than 6 different varieties of tomatoes, perfectly seasoned with sea salt, ground pepper, fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil. And five perfect little beef and veal ravioli were served with a sage and butter sauce and fresh tomato relish. All the flavors were just absolutely exquisite! And perhaps most importantly the portions were just right – enough to enjoy and savor but not so much that I felt stuffed.
I was having so much fun (and laughing out loud reading my Janet Evanovich book) that I decided to have dessert. I was having a hard time deciding between the white tiramisu (the women next to me ordered this and it looked delicious!) and the strawberry mousse. I asked the waiter for his recommendation and he said that the tiramisu was very rich, while the mousse was lighter, so I decided to go for the mousse. Like everything else in the meal, it was fantastic!
It was dark by the time I left, but I felt like it was an evening (and money) very well spent!
So if you are ever in Syndey, check out Fratelli Paradiso on Challis Avenue in Potts Point. I promise that you will not be disappointed!
I traveled from Cairns to Sydney on Monday, arriving in Sydney around 5:30 (and leaving for New Zealand the next morning), so I really didn’t have a lot of time to do anything that night other than have dinner. I decided to try another restaurant recommended by my Lonely Planet guide book, and I also wanted to walk through Kings Cross (the “seedier” part of Sydney, in a Las Vegas showgirl kind of way), so I chose a restaurant called Fratelli Paradiso in Potts Points. To get there, I would walk through the Kings Cross area, including past the iconic Coca-Cola sign. (See photo)
When I got there, I actually walked past it – partially because I didn’t see the name at first and wasn’t positive that this was the right place, and partially because it looked so schicki-micki that I felt slightly underdressed in my jeans and sweater. So I walked down the street, and then got up my courage and went back. And I am SO glad that I did!
The waiter didn’t seem at all fazed by my request for a table for one, and seated me in a prime spot out on the sidewalk next to a table of four women who looked like they were vacationing from Rome. He immediately gave me a glass of water, and then I settled in with the wine list, waiting for the menu. I was engrossed in my Kindle (God bless this wonderful invention!) when I realized that the waiter was going over a very long list of specials with the women at the next table, and suddenly I noticed that they didn’t have menus. In fact, no one in the restaurant seemed to have menus. I suddenly felt a little sick as it occurred to me that this might be one of those fancy-schmancy places with a “set” menu of just a few dishes. And I felt even sicker when I realized that almost everything the waiter seemed to be mentioning (that I could hear) involved seafood of some kind! Had I just made a horrible mistake??
Well, at least I had some forewarning to prepare myself. So when the waiter came next to me, and asked what courses I was interested in, I said that I wasn’t sure and would like to hear everything, but I didn’t eat any seafood or fish. Once again, thankfully, he didn’t seem at all fazed and started through the “not from the sea” menu options. I settled on a Caprese salad (Joan is rolling her eyes right now), some meat ravioli, and a glass of Riesling.
By the way, I did realize later that the “menu” was written up on the wall inside the restaurant – there were just no printed menus.
What followed was two and a half hours of such culinary bliss that I concluded that “paradiso” is indeed an appropriate name! The buffa mozzarella and tomato salad had no fewer than 6 different varieties of tomatoes, perfectly seasoned with sea salt, ground pepper, fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil. And five perfect little beef and veal ravioli were served with a sage and butter sauce and fresh tomato relish. All the flavors were just absolutely exquisite! And perhaps most importantly the portions were just right – enough to enjoy and savor but not so much that I felt stuffed.
I was having so much fun (and laughing out loud reading my Janet Evanovich book) that I decided to have dessert. I was having a hard time deciding between the white tiramisu (the women next to me ordered this and it looked delicious!) and the strawberry mousse. I asked the waiter for his recommendation and he said that the tiramisu was very rich, while the mousse was lighter, so I decided to go for the mousse. Like everything else in the meal, it was fantastic!
It was dark by the time I left, but I felt like it was an evening (and money) very well spent!
So if you are ever in Syndey, check out Fratelli Paradiso on Challis Avenue in Potts Point. I promise that you will not be disappointed!
You still have it over Mr. "doesn't eat onions, celery and peppers" as far as culinary explorations are concerned! I shudder to imagine John investigating a native dish in public looking for contraband. I would slap him upside the head.
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