Signorelli Gastronomia, Pyrmont

As part of my latest (bi)monthly bookclub meeting, a group of friends and I organised dinner at Signorelli Gastronomia - an Italian restaurant in Pyrmont that was part-taking in the Good Food Month with a Vertical Garden dessert!

Restaurant from the outside

The restaurant is less than 10min walk from Pyrmont bridge and is actually around the side of the Accenture building. My walking buddy (from Wynyard) and I almost walked past the restaurant as the exterior isn't very prominent and is sort of hidden behind trees and cars parked on the street.

Upon walking through the entrance and down a set of stairs, you walk by the open kitchen on the left (with windows along the wall for customers to peer inside and get a glimpse into the workings of their kitchen) and racks filled with purchasable goods (such as pasta, risotto rice, pasta sauce, biscotti) on your right before you come across the reception area.

Since we booked a table in advance, we were quickly led to our table and offered table drinks whilst we wait for our late-coming friends:

Watermelon gazpacho - offered to customers on arrival (free)

Picture of the back of their menu, which acts as the place mat for each customer
It looks like they change their menus on a monthly basis as the menu
presented on the table listed out unique specials/events for Oct and Nov. 

When all my friends finally arrived (by which time, I was starrrrvvinnnggggg...), we were ready to order our food. The pizzas came out soon afterwards (15-20min after ordering), along with the two pastas that we ordered:

Pizza with Italian sausage, gorgonzola and potatoes ($24)

Pizza with three mushrooms, taleggio and parmesan ($25)

Calzone with ham, mushroom and ricotta ($23)

Pasta of the Day - squid ink fettuccine with large prawns, cherry tomatoes and fresh herbs (M=$30)

Orecchiette with pan-roasted pork and fennel sausage, mushrooms, white wine sauce,
fresh herbs, finished with soppressa wafer (E=$18; M=$27)

The pizzas were good (or it could have been the hunger) but could have been improved with a bit more seasoning (none available on the table). The squid ink fettuccine was more of a novelty and interesting to eat although the pasta, having been be cooked 'al dente', was a bit too firm for my taste - I prefer not to chew so hard in order to eat pasta. The orecchiette wasn't cooked al dente so was easier to eat.

Finally, it came to the highlight of the evening - the Vertical Garden Dessert! Every table in the restaurant ordered this after 8pm (it was literally flying out the kitchen in a constant procession!).

Good Food Month - The Vertical Garden Dessert Offer
The bespoke creation by our Celebrity pastry chef Vincent Gadan - frozen nougat, rose blossom loukoum, 
lychee jelly and pistachio wall with a glass of Yalumba wine ($20pp)

Close-up of dessert.... nomnomnom...

This was by far the best dish of the night - beautifully presented and the flavours were amazing! The only element of this dish that I wasn't sure about was the lychee jelly. which was seriously wobbly and mushy (could have done with a bit more gelatin?) ...

I absolutely loved the frozen nougat - however, by the end, it was a total sugar overload due to the addition of the rose blossom loukoum (a.k.a. Turkish delight) in the frozen nougat. It could be improved with something slightly savoury to offset the excessive sweetness (even with the pistachio wall, raspberry coulee and choc biscuit crumbs/dirt).

Overall, the meal cost $42pp - a bit steep for the likes of me (given the fact that it WAS pizza and pasta, followed by a sugar-filled killer dessert). I would definitely recommend people go for any desserts that they might have on offer in the future for Good Food Month/Sugar Hit.

Good Food Month: Momofuku Seiobo & Signorelli Gastronomia, Pyrmont

October could possibly be the most exciting month of the year. It's more than a lead up to the holiday season because in Sydney, this is the Good Food Month. A time to embrace all things edible and try something new.

Momofuku Ssam Bar, Momofuku Seiobo

As part of the "Hats Off Dinners" for Good Food Month 2014, Momofuku Seiobo is giving us a blast from the past: Momofuku Ssam Bar 2007 - a la carte, no bookings, best of New York's Ssam Bar menu from 2007.

Queue outside Momofuku at 6:00 PM

Credits go to the Pianoman for discovering this event. It is such a rare opportunity to go to a '3 hatter' with spontaneity and no fixed menu. That was all the excuse we needed, friday night, myself and 4 foodie friends join the queue for Momofuku.

The ambience wasn't what I'd expect from a 'three hat' restaurant. In fact we saw a family of 4 (incl two young children) occupying a table nearby - which sparked a can of worms topic: "Young children at fine dining establishments?" Momofuku had a wonderfully friendly atmosphere, different to other 3 hatter's but very welcoming and refreshing. It was obvious they were exceptionally busy on this night though, as waiters were run off their feet. On several occasions, we were hard pushed to get someone's attention.

Ssam Bar 2007 Menu

Unfortunately we had to split tables, so we sampled a smaller selection than we had hoped. But this was somewhat expected of special event dinners.

Steamed Buns - pork belly, hoisin, cucumber, scallions $18 (for 2 buns)

The signature pork bun. Easily the most highly anticipated dish of the night. We were so eager for this, Pianoman and I made a number of 'back up plans' to feast on imitations of the pork bun if we hadn't gotten into Momofuku. And it was wonderful indeed. I find it perplexing how such simple flavours became such a global phenomenon, but it is that simply amalgamation of the 'bao' and 'peking duck' flavours and the melt-in-you-mouth pork belly that just hits the spot.

Pan-Roasted Asparagus - poached egg, miso butter $19

I just had to order something with egg. A good restaurant, cooks a good egg - that's my golden rule. This asparagus dish is wonderful and light. They were rather generous with the miso base, which got a little salty towards the end. I could happily eat those aparagus with just the egg.

Tello's Chawan Mushi - black truffle, snails, edamame, scallion $28

The egg was so incredibly smooth and delicious. Once again, we felt they were a little generous with the snail and truffle sauce. I guess we just have a subtle palate? But the sauce did get a little overpowering after a couple of spoonfuls.

Marinated Hanger Steak Ssam - ginger scallion, kimchi, bibb lettuce $32

An absolutely perfectly cooked steak! Intended to be eaten with kimchi, scallions, wrapped in lettuce. Sounds familiar? 'What's that? Korean BBQ you say?' Did remind us a little of that. But the quality is unquestionable in this dish.

Rice Cakes - Pork sausage, kale, kimchi $20

Possibly my favourite dish of the night is the ddukbokkie. It tastes like spag bol + kimchi with rice cakes! (David Chang will shake his head at this comment I know). Pianoman and Ms Strawberry both agree, but we loved it!! The flavours really work. Ms Strawberry and I almost fought over the last piece.

Contributions from Will-Eat-Yum*:

Spicy Honeycomb Tripe $18

Pig's Head Torchon - mustard, pickled cherries $21

Squid Salad - ginger scallion $16

Smoked Prosciutto - red eye mayo, baguette $15

These were dishes the boy's table ordered. I can't say too much as I didn't eat all of them myself. I tried some of the squid salad. It was a pity I didn't get to try the tripe, Pianoman and Will-Eat-Yum both agree this was the most outstanding of that night. 

Let's Do Dessert, Signorelli Gastronomia

Previously called 'Sugar Hit'(s), 'Let's Do Dessert' is a signature event every year, when hotel restaurants open their doors and offer dessert plus a glass of wine for $20. And we couldn't think of a better way to end the night

This year, Signorelli Gastronomia offers "Il Giardino Verticale" - the vertical garden.

Il Giardino Verticale - Frozen nougat, rose blossom loukoum,
 lychee jelly, raspberry yolk and pistachio wall $20 (incl wine)

Each one so delicate, so perfect, filled with a creative array of textures and flavours. And it tasted as good as it looked! I wish there was more lychee jelly as this was my favourite part. The green hard candy antennas were good fun too. It gave us something to suck on, long after we'd finished our dessert. 

A most wonderful night, probably not a dinner I would repeat in a hurry, but it was enjoyable fine dining nonetheless. And dear readers, do you have any 'Good Food Month' experiences to share?


*Credits: Photo donations from good friend Will-Eat-Yum. Thank you for your contributions.
All meals independantly paid for.