For our big anniversary dinner last night, the Snook and I headed out to Neil Perry’s latest venture, XO. It’s at the site of the old MG Garage in Surry Hills. We were really looking forward to it as our previous Perry experience (Rockpool in 2002) was just magnificent. Also, my co-worker Leanne’s boyfriend Brendan is an apprentice chef there and we heard great things about it from them.

I never saw the site when it was the MG Garage, but the new fitout is really lovely: all dark woods with cozy pools of light and subtle Asian design flourishes. We were excited to see that the Banquet Menu was available (since we’d thought it was only for larger groups), so we both had that. It’s really the little touches that make a fancy dinner, you know? Like ordering a G&T and being asked which of three gins you prefer. And asking the waiter for a wine recommendation and ending up having a whole conversation about up and coming Australian vineyards. (We went with Nick’s recommendation, a Lake George Chardonnay, which wasn’t something that we’d have picked out ourselve. It was really excellent.) Then the food started coming. The pork wontons were very yummy in a moreish kind of way. The chili squid was surprisingly tasty; I usually find it rubbery and fishy. But this was firm and thick and spicy, and we had fun trying it with the three different Asian sauces they’d supplied. I’d been slightly dreading the trout salad, of course – I have fish issues – but it ended up being one of my favorites. The combination of the meaty fish with the coriander and pawpaw was wonderful. Of the mains, the tea-smoked duck was unusual but the smokiness was a little strong for my taste. I was apprehensive about the steamed fish fillet but it was fine; actually the Snook liked it less than me as he’s not such a fan of freshwater fish. (“It tastes kinda like mud.”) My favorites were the pork belly and the Eight Treasure Chicken. Of course, we were getting pretty stuffed by this point. We’d also polished off the whole bottle of Chardy and an additional glass of Pinot, each. We were really looking forward to that salty peanut toffee ice cream on the dessert menu, though. Imagine our surprise when the waiter said that Brendan was instead preparing a whole dessert tasting plate for us! So instead of one dessert, we had four. (I’m so going to Weight Watchers on Monday.) We had the peanut ice cream along with chocolate cake, panna cotta, and a fig and walnut ice cream. It was just a completely fabulous evening. I wouldn’t rank it equal with Rockpool; the food wasn’t quite orgasmic enough. But it’s definitely up there. I don’t know why Perry seems to get things right where other restaurants so often fail. His formula seems simple: good food, beautiful dining room, excellent service. I just can’t stress enough how much a difference the service makes. We left Nick the biggest tip we’ve ever left in Australia and still debated afterwards whether he was worth more. We highly recommend XO if you’re in the mood to be treated like royalty.

To parrot a rather grotesque Australian phrase, I’m full as a tick. The Snook took me out for my birthday dinner to Buon Ricordo, perennially recognized as Sydney’s best Italian restaurant. It did not disappoint. For the first course I had the signature dish: Fettucine al tartufovo. Basically, it was served as a plate of fettucine with cream sauce, with a lightly fried egg on top. The secret, the waiter told me, was that the egg (in the shell) had been sitting next to truffles for a while so it sucks up the flavor. Then they grate lots of parmesan on top and toss the whole thing right in front of you, so the egg and cream and cheese get all mixed up and melty together. I’d never had truffle before so I didn’t know what to expect. To be honest, if I didn’t know it was in there I probably wouldn’t have guessed. It was just a very, very subtle garlicky, earthy, musty sort of flavor. Very yummy. It was basically the fanciest mac-and-cheese I’ve ever eaten in my life. The Snook had some sort of seafood thing – calamari and mussels – that he enjoyed a lot. For the mains, I had the roast duck. Again, it was a first for me, and it was so good. Crispy with just the right amount of delicious fat on top, with broccoli and ginger and chili around it. Snookums had the Tournedos alla Rossini, which was a big fillet of beef wrapped in pancetta with a total Iron-Chef-style slab of foie gras on top. (Sakai-san would’ve been so proud.) We washed down our excellent dinners with a bottle of pinot – thankfully Sideways wasn’t nearly so popular here so you don’t feel like a git for ordering it – and even managed to cram in some dessert. All in all, a very satisfying evening. I’d probably rank it as tied for second with Bennelong in my Sydney dining list (Rockpool remains #1). The food was better than Bennelong, but nothing can compete with the harbour view. The service was really fantastic. I remarked at one point to the Snook: “You hear about ‘professional’ waiters, but it isn’t til you come to a place like this that actually see them.” They were attentive without being annoying and seemed genuinely eager to give us a great night out. I feel like it would be a great out-of-the-way place to take visitors…

Happy Valentine’s Day!
At the last minute, the Snook and I decided to head out for a Valentine’s Day dinner so we got all gussied up – check us out; I wore the orange bridesmaid dress – and headed to the Lord Nelson, a pub and brewhouse that happens to have a very nice restaurant on the first floor. We sat down and had a look at the holiday set menu. “Shall we get it?” I asked. “But it has a seafood plate as the appetizer,” Snookums said, knowing that I don’t really eat seafood. “I’m game,” I said. A few glasses of wine later, out came the plate. There were four prawns, four oysters (two with strawberries and mangoes on them), two scallops with salmon roe, and an honest-to-goodness Moreton Bay Bug. Folks, I ate everything. I really did. The prawns were really good, but I’d had them before. I wouldn’t say I really love oysters yet, but they’re definitely growing on me. (The ones with the fruit were surprisingly delicious.) I was wary of the scallops for fear they’d be fishy, but they ended up being really good. (And the salmon roe – which looked like little orange tapioca balls and is pretty damn gross to contemplate – really did burst pleasantly in the mouth.) Lastly, the bug, as seen in the photo before you. Hell yeah, I ate that sucker. Cross him off my list. The Snook was absolutely floored that I was brave enough to try everything. The thing is, it was all delicious. I don’t know if it’s just that Sydney seafood is particularly good (which it is), or that I”m slowly developing my taste for this stuff (which I probably am), but I am definitely becoming a fan of the shellfish. Yum. The rest of the dinner was excellent – I had the chicken; the Snook the steak – but not nearly the phobia-challenge of the entree. Pretty cool, huh?