Someone once told glutton and nuts that if we thought food could be better than sex, then we weren't doing it right. Well, we reckon they're not eating the right food...
House Resaurant in Surry Hills is one of those places you show up to with 'the jury still out' expectaton-wise. It's got a slightly unusual licensing rule (drinks are to be ordered from the bar nextdoor only) and it's quite open to Elizabeth Street's speeding traffic. However, even with these things in mind, House will knock you for six - twofold.
Firstly, by completely blowing these undecided expectations away (this is more than just 'Thai food' - this is north-eastern street Thai, so good it'll make you want to go and live on the streets of Thailand!).Secondly, and quite literally, it will blow your tastebuds away. The food is hot. Seriously. Even the salads have a massive kick... and at one point we were definitely crying.However, what glutton and nuts is more interested in, of course, is the most unusual and quite surprising thing on the menu - or the 'special dessert menu' to be precise. Now, we don't throw this around too often - but we had what was possibly the best dessert we're yet to taste in Sydney. Yes, from a small north-eastern street Thai on Elizabeth Street - it took us by surprise too - but without a doubt this dessert would hold its own (more than) against any of Sydney's best restaurants.It was aptly named 'Better than Sex' and comes with a bit of a shy giggle from the waitress. The name hooked us in and the sheer size and look of it sold us. This dessert is big enough for two (but you definitely won't want to share!) It's lightly fried brioche, with green tea ice cream, caramel sauce completely saturating the dish and some runny chocolate thrown in to boot. The most gluttonous and delicious dessert we are yet to find in this city - and read early posts - this includes Quay Bar's guava egg!The challenge is on... but we think this one will be hard to beat.And if you're still undecided - it's called 'BETTER than SEX' - you HAVE to try it!
House
202 Elizebeth Street
Surry Hills
02 9280 0364
Sashimi and martinis. Possibly God's two greatest creations. Put them together and you either have the most incredible gastronomic invention you can think of... or soggy fish in a glass.
Either way, the brains behind the drink menu at Tokonoma on Crown Street have certainly been trying their best to test their diners... and this is exactly what glutton and nuts is about.
It's hard to tell whether they thought raw fish in a (very) strong martini would be an increbible mix of flavours or if it had more to do with the fact that these two words kinda sounded similar - we're guessing the latter. We're also guessing it was the result of a pretty incredible staff party in which they were trying to out-shock each other with ingenious ideas - like the combination of the head chef and the bar manager putting together their favourite little ditties without thinking it would ever actually make it onto the menu...
Which it did. And is now in front of us waiting to be drank/ate.
It's an interesting, different and brilliant concept. And in all honesty tastes much like a classic (and very strong) martini. The fish isn't overpowering in the slightest (although we didn't really expect it to be) so in terms of flavours it's actually pretty easy to drink. This martini is certainly all about the flavour of the liquid rather than its garnish, it's sheer potency and the confusion that comes when you finish the drink and don't quite know what to do with the slightly swollen slice of salmon which is left over... we'll leave that part to you!
Order this drink if you have a curious nature as otherwise you'll always be left wondering. However, if you would normally drink things like lychee martinis then we'd avoid this one... it's for dirty martini drinkers who want things just a little bit dirtier...
Tokonoma
490 Crown Street
02 9357 6100
Those who regularly read glutton & nuts will be well aware of our love for unusual and creative dishes... the more inventive something is, the more we're tempted by it.
Mostly, we tend to find these foods in only the most original of restaurants – those with chefs who take pride in shocking and surprising their diners.
Recently we’ve been searching for cookbooks that suit these creative needs at home; after all, we can’t always being dining out at unusual restaurants… as much as we try! So, as we hunt for the most inventive cookbooks on the market, we’ll post our findings on here… we may even try to recreate a few dishes ourselves and and put our money where our mouth is...
To begin with however, we’re starting small. Literally.
Small Food, by Brigid Kennedy is a celebration of canapés. If you’ve ever bumped into glutton & nuts at an event which serves fascinatingly creative canapés, then you’ll know exactly what this means to us: everything.
The opening line from Brigit’s Kennedy’s Small Food is: ‘One of the greatest pleasures in life is food; another is celebration’ which, at that, we’re sold.
Dishes such as gazpacho aspic with mustard ice cream take the jelly-and-ice-cream tradition and turn it completely on its head. Not only is this dish twisting sweet into savoury but it’s doing it in such a way, that (incredibly) it doesn’t lose its party-food touch. The result is something completely unforgettable.
Then there’s mango and passionfruit butter… great if you’re already a fan of things like banana on toast, while on the more filling side of things there's rabbit pie (definitely not to be missed!)
If you’re heading to an event and trying to come up with finger food that’s creative then Small Food is perfect. As Brigid Kennedy is also a very successful events organiser, it covers almost every possible circumstance you can think of: from the normal celebrations like Christmas and summer barbecues, to seasonal events, retro food and even ‘baby naming day’ food…
When I was a child I remember going to a friend’s birthday party and spending virtually all of my time standing motionless with my eyes fixated on a Barbie cake which stood beautifully in the middle of the table.
She looked so real, so authentic, so much better than just a normal Barbie… I mean you could eat her for God’s sake!
Fast-forward 20 years (or so…) and I’m in the same situation. Except this time, I have no interest in Barbie (well, not that I would admit) and I’m in a rather lavish restaurant in Sydney, so must remain civilised…
Now, I swear that in the 20 years post Barbie-cake-infatuation, I have never seen a cake which has even come close to being as pristine or as perfectly executed as that Barbie was… and I sure have been looking.
That was of course, until recently, when the record was broken with the older girls’ dream item: The classic Chanel handbag.
Yes. 20 years later, I’m standing motionless with my eyes fixated on a classic Chanel handbag cake… which, is so authentically like the real thing, if I saw it on a shelf in a bakery I would most probably try and sling it over my shoulder.
What’s even more amazing that the lady who made it does not (yet) do this for a profession…
If passion makes you good at what you do, then this is the most passionate cake I’ve ever seen, let alone tasted…
Oh, and as for the taste... well, there’s only one word really: Rich (in all the best ways!)
For more info email gluttonandnuts@gmail.com
Ok, so the last time glutton & nuts had a Bloody Mary, we were on a flight from Sydney to London, so hung-over that jumping from the plane seemed like the only appropriate option. That was of course, until the idea of drinking more vodka sprang to mind... Those who say a Bloody Mary cures all have never had one served to them by an insane Etihad flight attendant whose 90/10 split of vodka/tomato juice resulted in a feeling we can only imagine as being similar to downing bleach. This combined with the hangover from hell and a 24-hour flight... not so good. That aside, it was time once again to face the bloody demon... and the only way to do it was in shot form - with an oyster thrown in, obviously. Fortunately, with a head as fresh as a daisy and being served by staff who clearly knew what they were doing (glutton and nuts stands up and applauds Kingsley’s in Woolloomooloo) this time round the Bloody Mary experience was Bloody Marvalous! This little shot of slithering joy was delicious... and no, not because they held back on the vodka (it's there in a big way!) but because the combo of salty oyster, tangy tomatoes and kick-ass vodka was mind blowing. And if you love your unusual foody textures then this is one you’ll not want to swallow. Swish it around and enjoy it a little bit... once it’s gone, it’s gone, unfortunately... That is, unless you get the Kingley’s staff to rack up a long row of them... which, after discovering how seriously dedicated they are to all things food and booze, they most probably would!
Visit Kingsley’s... no, like seriously do...www.kingsleys.com.au
Kingsleys Steak & Crabhouse
10/6 Cowper Wharf Rd
Woolloomooloo
New South Wales 2011
1300 546 475g&n hearts Kingsleys
Someone once told glutton and nuts that if we thought food could be better than sex, then we weren't doing it right. Well, we reckon they're not eating the right food...
