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

Mancini's Italian Restaurant via EatNow App

With everyone's busy lifestyle these days, it's sometimes hard to spend a lot of time creating meals at home. Personally, I would rather make my own meals so I have a healthy option but sometimes, I find that I really don't have the time. With the launch of EatNow's app, available via the Apple App Store, ordering in has never been so straightforward.

It's seriously as easy as 1, 2, 3. First you search your suburb and a list of restaurants that deliver to the suburb come up in a list which you can filter by either cuisine or closest restaurant, etc. Once you pick your restaurant, the menu will come up with all their deals and dishes they have on offer.

I chose a meal deal with was easily customisable and I could even change up pizza toppings if I wanted. After everything's all done and decided, you simply pick how you are going to pay - either with cash or card and then it's done! A text is sent to your phone to confirm your order and letting you know when it'll arrive and then you simply wait for the arrival of your hot and ready meal. How easy is that? All within the confines of your own home! I can imagine how convenient it'll be to just order whilst going home from work and having it delivered to your door as soon as you're home. Too easy.

Pizza al mare

The gourmet pizza deal was actually quite a good bargain at $50.45 for two pizzas, a pasta and chicken wings. Pizza choices time? Let's try out the seafood on pizza.Whilst salt and pepper calamari is awesome, I think it best let meat be the king of pizza toppings :P

Casalinga

This one was the preferred pizza because prosciutto on pizza is a tick in my books.

Pear and gorgonzola gnocchi

Had to order the gnocchi when I saw it was a creamy gorgonzola sauce. The gnocchi was a tad stodgy but the sauce was every bit as rich and divinely artery clogging as we expected and wanted it to be.

Overall, the app was extremely easy to use and for those of you looking for an easier option of ordering take out food with delivery, EatNow does give you plenty of choices!

Crystal Noir tested the EatNow app thanks to Christie Byrne of The PR Group. All opinions however, are her own.

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

Uccello, Wynyard

Sorry for the silence lately, dear readers. From starting my masters and getting used to working at an actual architect firm, I've neglected things on the blogging front! But after finishing one of my assessment presentations and graduating from my bachelor degree, I decided to celebrate in the way I love best. Of course my friends and I were going to eat :P I'm so thankful for Casanova, McMini and Chef Meathead for coming out to my graduation - I know the ceremonies may not be the most fun of things but from the sincere bottom of my heart, I really appreciate your presence!

We headed over to Uccello afterwards for dinner with hungry stomachs to try the newly introduced "First In Best Dressed" menu by head chef, David Lovett, which draws upon his favourite rustic Italian dishes. Who can say no to Italian food? :D

Complimentary bread

The First In Best Dressed is only on weeknights and you must be seated between 6-7pm but it's insanely good value. $45 for two courses or $55 for three. $10 extra for another course? You bet we are all going to pick that option.

Cured meats, soft cheese, sourdough

We started our antipasti with a selection of cured meats, cheese and sourdough - always a winner. The board we were presented with came with both  chorizo, nduja, prosciutto, salami and goats cheese! It was my first time eating nduja and boy was that good.

Raw red prawns, parsley, lemon, olive oil

Casanova wanted a big entree the size of Chef Meathead's cured meats board so you can imagine his disappointment when this serving size came out haha! Normally I'm not a fan of prawn so I was especially apprehensive about raw prawn but this really surprised me! The prawns were so soft and the the flavour and it was just an incredibly delicate dish.

Kingfish crudo, marjoram, pink pepper, lemon

I love how light the cured kingfish was - it's always so refreshing on the palette.

Buffalo mozzarella, peach, San Daniele prosciutto

Oops forgot to take a photo of this one! Luckily one of my friends did :) Since peaches are out of season, they told me that they would replace the fruit with figs which was fine by me. Creaminess from the mozzarella, saltiness form the prosciutto, and sweetness from the figs all make for an example of letting good produce shine on their own.

Char grilled sardines, lemon, chilli, parsley

The flavour they managed to pack into the sardines blew my mind. I loved the saltiness of the dish which really contrasted with the delicate ceviche style dishes earlier. I know you can eat the bones in the sardine but I would've much rathered not as it wasn't entirely soft. But that was a minor dent in what was a pretty damn tasty sardine.

'Risotto Milanese’ saffron and bone marrow risotto

Kicking on to our primi course, how could I resist the classic risotto Milanese? Mixing in the bone marrow added that extra dimension of richness that really tied everything together. There was just a tad graininess left to the rice so if the risotto was cooked just a tiny bit longer, it would've been perfection.

Rigatoni, pork sausage, broccoli, ricotta

The rigatoni was also something I didn't expect to be as good as it was. If all broccoli tasted this good, I would have no qualms eating it on a daily basis! When I took a bite of the broccoli, there was a real hit of basil and we all know how much I love my fresh herbs :D

Pappardelle, wild rabbit, pancetta, rosemary, parmesan

The parppardelle was made much wider than I'm used to but that really doesn't affect anything. Rabbit is only something I've had once before and I can happily say that the game meat was scattered in wonderful tender chunks in a tomato based pasta sauce.

‘Stinco di maiale’ roast pork shin, fennel, bay, potato

I expected the dishes of the second piatti to the be the smallest but I was definitely wrong! The waiter brings this out to me and laughs a little.

"I hope you're hungry!" he says.

My eyes popped out at how large the serving was. It was the entire pork shin! At this stage I was beyond full. But power on for the food! What I absolutely adored was the fennel. It was so soft and was just holding its form together. Just the way I like my fennel cooked! I'm glad the pork was left on the bone - the flavour is always better that way!

Roast blue eye, fennel, orange, olive, strega

When fish is cooked this well, I really want to clap my hands in glee. It was so moist! With a a simple squeeze of lemon atop the fish, it was all thumbs up.

Trippa alla Romana, beef tripe, guanciale, tomato, mint, oregano, pecorino

A lot of people aren't into offal, but for those of you who are - get this dish! There was plenty of awesome sauce left over to be wiped up with the bread on offer :P

Spring lamb shoulder, caponata, pine nuts, mint

Lamb shoulder is such a gorgeous cut of meat because of all the fat on it so it's barely a dish where you go "Oh dear, the meat is far too dry". Tender to the point of falling apart, there was little to fault with how it was cooked. Eaten with the caponata, it really made this dish sing.

I don't think we could have fitted in dessert no matter how hard we tried. Despite it being a Friday night and located next to the Pool Club, it was surprisingly not too loud. But that may have possibly been because it was raining that night :P For only $55, the meal was very good value especially with the large serving sizes. Uccello provided both quality and quantity tonight and left us rolling out the door in a food coma-esque state!

Uccello
Level 4, 320 George St
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Opening Hours

Lunch
Monday - Friday: 12:00 – 3:00pm

Dinner
Monday to Saturday 6:00 – 10:30pm

La Margherita, Croydon

Despite living in Croydon for the past 15 years, I can't say I've dined at a single restaurant in my home town. Yes, yes, poor form, Sherrie! But I can now say I have :D After my disappointing Italian meal at Janus, I was craving a good one to replace my unsatisfied experience. Venturing down to a local restaurant with my brother and sister for dinner, I was hoping to replace my poor experience with a good one! When we arrived at 6:30, the waitress mentioned that all the indoor tables were booked out (a sign of it's popularity with the locals), but the outdoor tables were free which we did not mind sitting at. The fresh air was welcome on this warm summer's day.

Calamari fritti, $17.00

I looove deep-fried calamari! But sometimes it can be quite overcooked, chewy and rubbery. Fortunately, this was not the case! The calamari was cooked beautifully and was so very tender. Dip it into their very own homemade mayonnaise and we were on a very good start to our meal.

Gnocchi 4 Formaggi, $20.00

The last time I had amazing gnocchi would have had to be in Melbourne but I couldn't resist the lure of homemade potato dumplings on the menu. And this did not let me down one bit. With four types of cheeses (gorgonzola, smoked provolone, parmesan AND mozzarella), the sauce was wonderfully salty and the hint of saffron really elevated it just that little more. And the gnocchi... The gnocchi! So soft like little pillows. When I mentioned that I loved pepper, the waitress sure did not skimp out on dousing our dish with it. Look at all those flakes of freshly cracked pepper!

Carne pizze rosse, $21.00

There have been some pretty good reviews about the pizza served here being a hidden suburban gem so I was very excited to see if it matched the hype. And this has got to be one of the better pizzas I've had in Sydney for a while. The base was thin with a puffy edge and was topped with tomato, mozzarella, mild salami, smoked ham, Italian sausage and caramelised onion. With so many meats, how could it be anything but tasty?

As I went to pay for the bill, I noticed a lot of locals coming to pick up pizzas to takeaway. It may not be the cheapest of places for its serving size, but what they do offer is quality with both food and service. And with it so close to home, I will sure to be back for another visit :)

La Magherita
7 The Strand Croydon
Croydon, NSW, 2132

Opening Hours
Monday - Saturday: 5:00 - 10:00pm
Sunday: Closed

Janus, Sydney CBD

One of Westfield Sydney's positive attributes would have to be their choice of eats in their food court. There's so much more than your standard fast food joints on offer. For those of you who don't like the hustle and bustle environment of food courts, you can even venture up to level 6 where they have Xanthi Restaurant, Chat Thai, Chinta Ria, Sky Phoenix, Max Brenner, and Janus, where I made a particular visit this time around with Miss Dentist-In-Training and my other friend E.

Thornclarke pinot gris, $38.00

This was an occassion of celebration, so we decided to order a bottle of wine. Hailing from South Australia, with its flavours of Nashi pears and apple puree, this white wine finished on a clean and crisp note. Can't say I know too much about wines, but this one wasn't bad.

Spicy chorizo, $20.00

Couldn't resist ordering a pizza with chorizo on it. They were quite generous with the chorizo pieces, and bits of fennel, rocket and capsicum added a punch of flavour that made this pizza quite delicious.

Pumpkin, haloumi & pinenut salad, $15.00

I was looking forward to the lemon and oregano vinaigrette that would dress this salad but unfortunately we didn't get any of that. Instead, we got a very oily dressing that didn't have much flavour and only added grease to the palette. Much like when you forget to shake those Praise salad dressings you can buy at the supermarket before you drizzle it onto your salad. The saving grace of the plate was the roasted vegetables themselves - butternut pumpkin, sweet potato, carrot, eggplant and zucchini. I quite enjoyed eating them with the saltiness of the grilled haloumi.

Pappardelle al ragu di agnello e pecorino sardo, $18.00 for entree size

It sounded so promising with its slow cooked lamb shoulder ragu and pecorino sardo. When I see slow cooked lamb on the menu, I'm expecting a meat that's extremely tender, with the flavours infused right in from all that time that's spent cooking. What we got instead was quite a bland pasta dish, where the pasta was a tad slimy and the lamb itself was quite stringy. And where, may I ask, is the pecorino?

Choc-nut fudge brownie, $5.80

We decided we needed a little bit of a pick me up after that mediocre-at-best lunch, so we headed next door to indulge in a piece of intensely rich fudgey brownie. That chocolate sauce cheered us right up!

So do let me know, do you try to save the day after a not so awesome meal by treating yourself to a little something extra afterwards?

Janus
L6 Westfield Sydney
188 Pitt Street
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Opening Hours
Monday - Friday: 11:00am - 9:00pm (closed from 3:00 - 5:00pm)
Saturday - Sunday: 11:00am - 9:00pm