I've always heard about Cafe Sydney. When I first started my career and was finally earning a little money (after the last call on a seemingly endless university degree), I would dream about all the restaurants I wanted to spend my meager surplus in. People in the circles above me at work would talk about Cafe Sydney in the same sentence as the new fine dining establishments and fond old favourites of Rockpool, Darcy's, Aria, Claude's, Tetsuya's and the former FortyOne. I couldn't wait to experience this motley crew of eating houses myself. So on a recent trip back to Sydney, I took my sisters birthday as a perfect excuse to make a booking.
When we alighted the lift in Cafe Sydney, the first thing I noticed was the bold city names that lace the cornice of the high ceilings. New York, Cairo, London, Paris, San Francisco, Dalian, Xiamen, Kingston, Halfax. . . hang on a second. . . how did the latter 2nd tier Chinese and Canadian cities get up there? There must be a story here I'm not privy to.
Our table wasn't ready when we arrived, so we took a seat in the bar area and ordered some cocktails. The low seat, combined with my high heels, meant I ended up with my knees around my ears (I exaggerate, but not comfortable! Glad I wasn't in a short skirt - no chance. . .) as I ordered my drink from a non-plussed waiter. At this stage I was still open to being wowed. It was a Sunday lunch and I could hear the live music playing as I surveyed the place and chatted with my sister. Cafe Sydney is a combination of natural light, earth colours, accented with stainless steel and an orange carpet. It has an atrium style, and being full of glass and mirror, it had a boisterous atmosphere. It's a relaxed cafe environment, but unfortunately it's showing the signs of love in a few spots - the stained orange carpet has seen better days. Once I adjusted my expectations, I settled in for a nice afternoon, bistro style.
Our table became free and we carried our drinks around to our seat - our heavily pregnant, lycra clad Matre'D would have had no chance - she was spending all her grace navigating between the tightly packed tables and kids doing star jumps. Power to her - poor thing!
Our table had a fantastic view of the bridge - obviously this is what you're paying for when you come to Cafe Sydney. The balcony awning frames the coat hanger perfectly, and set the scene for a lovely birthday celebration.
It's a shame to say that the wait-staff were not adding any personal touch to their service (apart from the waiter who kept wiping my water glass and table in between my sips - thanks, you get points for being observant, but weird. . . just get me a coaster or put table cloths on during the warm days?) and not to mention that they were a pretty tardy bunch with no common service vibe. I quite enjoy being served by a waitperson with a huge, jolly 'I eat too much of my own pasta' belly, but it goes without saying that a sense of attention to detail in the dress is important. Lets just say that the male staff at Cafe Sydney are leaving the sour-faced girls in their dust. Enough complaining - the food was very nice.
Cafe Sydney has a seafood inspired menu, and my sister loved the fresh oysters and prawns. I was pleased to find vegetarian options on the regular menu, without calling ahead. I started with the famous goats cheese and beetroot tart, served with caramelised onion, walnuts, watercress, and cabernet vinegar. It was creamy and compact with a delicious marmalade accent. I then moved on to the gnocci as a main, which was golden-brown delicious, if not a bit heavy. It was served with an interesting combination of thyme, peas, celeriac, and asparagus, with the peas giving the dish a delightful fresh sensation. The gnocci also came with a poached egg served on the side.
It was a huge undertaking for lunch, and left us without room for desert, so we finished off the meal with tea, which was served with honey on the spoon, and lemon. A lovely way to relax after a feast!
Overall, I would not call lunch at Cafe Sydney as my all-time favourite - I think it would be a nice place to take guests from out of town as a one-off for the novelty, but there are other places on the harbour offering a similar view. Having said that, if I'm going to spend $100+ per head on lunch, I expect more than just the view (fantastic as it is!). If Cafe Sydney could tighten up the sensibilities of it's wait staff and service plan (I hardly saw the same face twice, apart from the glass wiper), and perhaps re-think some of the design (a few less tables?), then they'd have a respectable high-end bistro, commiserate with the food they're serving.
Address: Level 5, Customs House, 31 Alfred Street, Circular Quay NSW 2000
When we alighted the lift in Cafe Sydney, the first thing I noticed was the bold city names that lace the cornice of the high ceilings. New York, Cairo, London, Paris, San Francisco, Dalian, Xiamen, Kingston, Halfax. . . hang on a second. . . how did the latter 2nd tier Chinese and Canadian cities get up there? There must be a story here I'm not privy to.
Our table wasn't ready when we arrived, so we took a seat in the bar area and ordered some cocktails. The low seat, combined with my high heels, meant I ended up with my knees around my ears (I exaggerate, but not comfortable! Glad I wasn't in a short skirt - no chance. . .) as I ordered my drink from a non-plussed waiter. At this stage I was still open to being wowed. It was a Sunday lunch and I could hear the live music playing as I surveyed the place and chatted with my sister. Cafe Sydney is a combination of natural light, earth colours, accented with stainless steel and an orange carpet. It has an atrium style, and being full of glass and mirror, it had a boisterous atmosphere. It's a relaxed cafe environment, but unfortunately it's showing the signs of love in a few spots - the stained orange carpet has seen better days. Once I adjusted my expectations, I settled in for a nice afternoon, bistro style.
Our table became free and we carried our drinks around to our seat - our heavily pregnant, lycra clad Matre'D would have had no chance - she was spending all her grace navigating between the tightly packed tables and kids doing star jumps. Power to her - poor thing!
Our table had a fantastic view of the bridge - obviously this is what you're paying for when you come to Cafe Sydney. The balcony awning frames the coat hanger perfectly, and set the scene for a lovely birthday celebration.
It's a shame to say that the wait-staff were not adding any personal touch to their service (apart from the waiter who kept wiping my water glass and table in between my sips - thanks, you get points for being observant, but weird. . . just get me a coaster or put table cloths on during the warm days?) and not to mention that they were a pretty tardy bunch with no common service vibe. I quite enjoy being served by a waitperson with a huge, jolly 'I eat too much of my own pasta' belly, but it goes without saying that a sense of attention to detail in the dress is important. Lets just say that the male staff at Cafe Sydney are leaving the sour-faced girls in their dust. Enough complaining - the food was very nice.
Cafe Sydney has a seafood inspired menu, and my sister loved the fresh oysters and prawns. I was pleased to find vegetarian options on the regular menu, without calling ahead. I started with the famous goats cheese and beetroot tart, served with caramelised onion, walnuts, watercress, and cabernet vinegar. It was creamy and compact with a delicious marmalade accent. I then moved on to the gnocci as a main, which was golden-brown delicious, if not a bit heavy. It was served with an interesting combination of thyme, peas, celeriac, and asparagus, with the peas giving the dish a delightful fresh sensation. The gnocci also came with a poached egg served on the side.
It was a huge undertaking for lunch, and left us without room for desert, so we finished off the meal with tea, which was served with honey on the spoon, and lemon. A lovely way to relax after a feast!
Overall, I would not call lunch at Cafe Sydney as my all-time favourite - I think it would be a nice place to take guests from out of town as a one-off for the novelty, but there are other places on the harbour offering a similar view. Having said that, if I'm going to spend $100+ per head on lunch, I expect more than just the view (fantastic as it is!). If Cafe Sydney could tighten up the sensibilities of it's wait staff and service plan (I hardly saw the same face twice, apart from the glass wiper), and perhaps re-think some of the design (a few less tables?), then they'd have a respectable high-end bistro, commiserate with the food they're serving.
Address: Level 5, Customs House, 31 Alfred Street, Circular Quay NSW 2000
Phone: +61 2 9251 8683
Website: www.cafesydney.com
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