Buffalo Dining Club, Darlinghurst

If the idea of a mozzarella bar doesn't tempt you, then I don' know what will. It was the promise of pasta being spun in a giant cheese wheel that tempted a group of us hungry food bloggers to venture to the Cross on Halloween. Pasta, cheese and ghouls, could there be a better combination?

Upstairs dining

The Buffalo Dining Club is a tiny restaurant. And when I say tiny, I mean tiny. They don't take reservations nor will they seat you until your entire group is present, so going there early would be your best bet. By the time we entered at around 6:30/7, the restaurant was pretty much packed out and we managed to snag one of the last few free seats.

The menu

Short and concise, the menu gets straight to the good stuff - the cheese, the cured meat, the pastas and some salads for those of you who need some veggies on the side of the mighty load of carbs you are about to consume! For groups 6 or larger, the restaurant orders for you and we were happy to be taken under the wings of the staff at Buffalo Dining Club. Show us the food :D

A little bit of an issue where there was too much to fit on the table :P

Fresh burrata (100g) with marinated olives and tempura cauliflower, $20

I don't know what constitutes as a good burrata as this was my first time eating it but this was damned good. A bouncy outer shell of solid mozzarella gives way to the mozarrella and cream filled centre that flows out. It was very light to eat because of its freshness, and had a wonderful creaminess that lingers on the palette. The tempura cauliflower were also a win. Super crunchy and well seasoned.

Caprino with artichoke hearts and honey baby carrots, $20.00

This goats cheese was also another winner. Salty and tangy, it was wonderful lathered on the bread. The carrots are quite ordinary but sides are sides. Would've preferred an extra serving of the cauliflower though :P

Buffalo Mozzarella (125g) with grilled baby broccolini and cherry tomatoes, $20.00

The delicate flavour of fresh  milk that the buffalo mozzarella another great cheese to eat, although I think we were all a little bit more enamoured by the fancier burrata in comparison. Soft and moist, I could definitely easily eat this and the tomatoes and still be one happy camper.

Pumpkin and potato croquettes, $8.00

And who doesn't love a good croquette that's deep-fried to a wonderful crisp? The innards for both were deliciously creamy and smooth and loved that dip that it came with! Not quite sure what it was but definitely quite tart.

Bresaola, $16.00

Onto the good old cured meats! Look at those glorious ribbons of fat running through the bresaola. The beef flavour is strong due to the aging process but that's exactly what we were looking for.

Prosciutto San Dan, $10.00 for 60g

And of course prosciutto, the perfect accompaniment to all those cheeses we had on the table.

Chilli accompaniment

If you're a chilli fanatic, this will be THE sauce for you. Let me tell you, it's hella spicy. We each tried a tiny bit and the level of spicy is PHUOR spicy. And it just gets spicier in your mouth after the initial kick. So be warned before spooning this baby on top of all your pasta! Unless of course, it is your intention.

Buffalo ricotta gnocchi, $20.00

Gnocchi is one of those things that could go terribly wrong and stodgy a lot of the time but these were soft pillowy, cheesy balls of goodness. Tossed in that gloriously rich tomato sauce, I have nothing but good things to say about this dish.

Lamb ragu, $20.00

The ragu was a tad lacklustre after the gnocchi. Whilst not bad, it really could've wowed with an extra hit of seasoning.

Food bloggers frantically trying to capture the action

And for the dish that Buffalo Dining Club is infamous for. It probably doesn't need to be tossed at the table, but for theatrics and for us to see the giant wheel, I sure as hell ain't complaining :P We get to feel involved with our food!

Caccio e Pepe, $20.00

If you're after that huge pepper kick like I am all the time, you will definitely be pleased with this one. Lots of parsley, pepper and of course, pecorino is distributed evenly through the pasta because of the wheel tossing for pieces of cheesy goodness in each bite.

Full to the brim, this feast was very reasonable and the bill was under $30 each. Considering all the food that was brought to us, it was more than good value. And a good visit to make for all of you who are mozzarella lovers! It is a mozzarella bar after all :P And a big thanks to Charn for organising this dinner :)

Buffalo Dining Club
116 Surrey St
Darlinghurts, NSW, 2010

Opening Hours
Wednesday - Saturday: 12:00 noon - 11:00pm

The Cliff Dive, Darlinghurst

The entrance

If there's one thing I haven't quite seemed to have the time for lately is kicking back for some nice relaxing drinks. Hipster bars are all what Sydney is about and I love finding these hidden gems scattered throughout the city. It's kind of like going on a crazy little treasure hunt trying to find the entrances to these bars. The Cliff Dive bar was not easy to find! The only sign that there is a bar is the bouncer standing outside this door with a giant pineapple on it. When I say giant, I mean huuuge. Look for the giant pineapple pictured above!

Going down the stairs, we were greeted with a giant sculpture, hinting of the things to come. The deco was incredibly inspired by that of Papua New Guinea and Timor.

Prawn crackers

 An insanely cute bowl of colourful prawn crackers were placed before us once we were seated and began pursuing the drinks menu (because who doesn't drink on a Thursday night?).

Pimento and Falernum

Michael (ex Sokyo, Black by Ezard and Bulletin Place), the drinks director, was super helpful and gave us heaps of info about the different cocktails they had on their menu and also about how they make them. They have two housemade bases that they use in all their drinks just to make their drinks that little bit more special. The first being Pimento - an overproof rum with a dash of black rum infused with allspice berries. Falernum is the second one and is also overproof rum based except this one has notes of almonds, clove and ginger - all of which you can taste just sipping on the little shot.

Luau Especial, $17.00

The Luau Especial was quite strong of tequila and everything else if you don't mind your drinks that way. The orange bitters, rhubarb, star anise and lime made this drink quite the refreshing one.

Pina colada, $21.00

Me being me, I definitely could not go past the pina colada. It said it was served in a pineapple! The Cliff Dive Bar only cores out a certain number of pineapples every day for the pina coladas so the servings are limited. Coconut juice is also a necessary ingredient for this coconut and young coconuts are also cracked fresh every day to obtain the juice. Michael whisked this up with ice to make it nice and frothy so it tasted almost creamy despite the fact that zero cream was used. I was definitely blown away at the first sip of this pina colada. My favourite rendition of pina colada to date. Especially with that lovely spicy undertone from their housemade bases!

The Hungry Honky, $16.00

Throughout our cocktail sipping, the aromas from the kitchen were wafting over to the bar and the skewer platter looked pretty damned amazing when it hit the table. You could really taste the South East Asian influence behind these skewers: wild ginger beef, turmeric and lemongrass pork, lemongrass chicken , chill and ginger octopus and chilli and tamarind tofu. My favourite one had to be the confit octopus. It was so tender and soft and the chilli and ginger really made it super delicious. House-made pickled vegetables were the perfect balance of sour and sweet to team up with the skewers. The pandan coconut rice was also something special all on its own - so fragrant it was almost dessert-like. Yum.

The fun and friendly Michael Chiem!

It was a lovely night kicking back to celebrate the end of my uni week and it was wonderful chatting to the boys of The Cliff Dive Bar. Thanks for a super fun night!

Crystal Noir dined as a guest of Yurripi at The Cliff Dive thanks to Olivia Dowd of HK Strategies. Opinions however, are entirely her own.

The Cliff Dive
16-18 Oxford Square, Oxford St
Darlinghurst, NSW, 2010

Opening Hours
Wednesday - Saturday: 6:00pm - 3:00am

Blackbird Cafe 2, Darling Harbour

Darling Harbour is the place to go when you're searching for a good view to impress whilst having your meal. So if the food doesn't impress, at least the waterfront will right? That being said, I enjoyed my meal at Blackbird Cafe significantly more than I thought I would last time - the salad really was a surprise of the good kind. My visit this time however, was of a different sort. The TGIF sort. I was kindly invited by Carly from Blackbird Cafe to sample their new cocktail menu designed by their in house mixologist, Mirko, who has spent ten years mixing drinks all over the place from Italy to Miami and even across North America. Looks like Blackbird has landed quite the Italian catch.

Clockwise from back: Sweet Emotion ; Apple Lychee Martini ; Oreo Crunch, $17.00 each

These cocktails were so incredibly yet dangerously drinkable!

With peach vodka and schnapps, passionfruit passoa, paraiso and lemon sour topped with lift and blue curacao, I really felt like it deserved an umbrella. It's the kind of drink you feel like you ought to be drinking in the Caribbeans whilst getting your tan on.

Introducing paraiso and apple schnapps gives your traditional martini a sweet fruity twist. I say the lychee flavour from the paraiso is a winning addition here.

But my favourite of the trio would have to be the Oreo Crunch. You wouldn't even know it were a cocktail if nobody told you because it really felt like I was having an awesome Oreo thickshake! This concoction of kahlua, baileys, frangelico, oreos, honey, sugar syrup and icecream seriously made us all feel like we were having a liquid dessert. Super delicious.

Onto proper food now, shall we?

Gnocchi, $26.90

Couldn't resist how lovely a simple gnocchi sounded with buffalo mozzarella, fresh basil and cherry tomatoes. The tomato based sauce itself needed a bit more of an extra little something but I loved the parts where I managed to get some glorious melted mozzarella and parmesan cheese. And there's always something very addicting about the texture of pan-fried gnocchi.

Lamb and champagne risotto, $28.90

Risotto always holds a special place in my heart and this one sounded very alluring with its inclusion of enoki mushrooms and pumpkin. It didn't quite hit the mark seasoning wise though. It could've packed a great punch if the flavours were infused into the risotto itself. Overall, a pleasant dish, but the wow risottos would have to go to Uccello and Jones The Grocer who've definitely set high benchmarks.

We were also rewarded with front row seats to a giant fireworks extravaganza from Blackbird's balcony. So do keep that in mind whether you find fireworks too loud or are looking to impress - it goes either way! Plus there is a lot of options on the cocktail menu for everyone to have a great Friday night :P

Crystal Noir sampled cocktails courtesy of Carly Lund of Blackbird Cafe, but opinions are entirely her own. The meal was independently paid for.

Blackbird Cafe
Harbour St, Balcony Level of Cockle Bay Wharf
Sydney, NSW, 2000

The Carlisle, Potts Point

I don't find myself in Kings Cross very often but upon a tempting offer of trying out tapas and cocktails at The Carlisle's opening, I found myself venturing out to the Cross with Steph and Vanny!

Waiters serving champagne upon arrival

Candle

Interior

Bar area

Celebrity chef Chrys Xipolitas designed the menu, inspired by Asian and Mediterranean flavours while there was a modern twist of traditional Martinis, Manhattans and Old Fashioneds on the cocktail menu.

Carlisle plate

Dips, feta and marinated olives kept us bloggers satiated before the tapas were served.

Bartender making clover club cocktails

Grilled haloumi cheese, topped with purple grape and balsamic reduction

Seriosly, this was the perfect flavour combo! The grape really helped add a touch of sweetness to the haloumi.

Clover club, $18.00

Lightly floured and fried prawn cutlet, served with soy teriyaki & wasabi aioli

 Yum, deep fried prawn! The sauces were what really made these morsels delicious. I thought the wasabi would be too strong but it actually provided just the right amount of kick.

Eastside Fizz, $18.00

BBQ spicy marinated chicken thigh fillets

 I happened to get a fatty chicken piece which made it super delicious. I would like to know what's in that secret sauce on the side though!

South of border, $18,00

BBQ beef tenderloin rolled in mixed peppers with a bourbon jus and garlic chips

The beef was cooked to a lovely medium rare and was very tender to eat. What I couldn't get enough of were those garlic chips! Crunchy hit of garlic - such an ingenious idea.

Blood and sand, $18.00

Overall, I really have to thank Bonnie Wu for being a wonderful hostess throughout the night. It was lovely meeting all the various bloggers during the event - it was great to chat and put faces to blog names :D We had endless cocktails topped up throughout the night and we were definitely encouraged to drink more than our fair share ;) Word f warning though, these cocktails are mighty strong!

Crystal Noir attended the opening launch courtesy of Bonnie Wu of The Carlisle Bar however all opinions are her own.

The Carlisle Bar
2 Kellett Way
Potts Point, NSW, 2011
http://www.thecarlislebar.com.au/

Opening Hours
Monday - Wednesday: Closed
Thursday - Sunday: 6:00pm - late

Felix Bistro & Bar, Wynyard

Merivale currently has meal deals for $33 as part of their March into Merivale celebration so yes to cheaper meal deals :D McMini, M and I were seated outside for our girls date so thank goodness there weren't big gushes of wind that night! We ended up ordering from the normal menu and not the meal deal menu.

Complimentary bread and butter

Slather on that butter! Choice of sourdough, multigrain or rye with butter - how can you go wrong? The pick of the three had to be the sourdough with the lovely crust.

Twice baked Gruyere soufflé with onion puree, rocket and walnut, $20.00

Souffle is not something I've had before so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. It was so fluffy! The souffle by itself was nice, but it was lacking a little something which I found the onion puree made up for. The two together really gave us a delicious start.

Slow cooked, herb crusted lamb shoulder with  slow roast tomatoes and rosemary jus, $33.00 (for one)

The flavour that was encrusted in just the herb crust itself was delicious. The lamb shoulder itself was beautifully soft and tender as all soft-cooked lamb should be. Just a tad underseasoned but overall, incredibly tasty.

Confit duck leg, frisee, lentil and green bean salad, lyonnaise sauce, $33.00

How can I ever say no to confit duck? M offered us both to try some of her confit duck and it was divine. Just as good as the one I had at Le Pub :) I loved the subtle sweetness from the lyonnaise sauce.

Roast cauliflower, spring onion, mint and marinated goat's cheese, $10.00

We also got a side of roast cauliflower because you know, veggies! I do love cauliflower though - the insides were so soft. And with pomegranates and marinated goat's cheese, it's hard to dislike the sweet, tangy, salty and herby flavours. Always a fan of the addition of spring onion.

Looking back, we ordered some solid winter comfort food in the dead midst of summer... Didn't regret ordering any of those, because they were all delicious! Who says you have to eat according to the weather? :P

Felix Bistro and Bar
2 Ash St
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Opening Hours 
Lunch
Monday to Friday: 12:00pm – 3:00pm
Sunday: 12:00pm - 3:00pm

Dinner
Monday to Saturday: 5:30pm – 10:30pm
Sunday: 5:30pm - 9.30pm