More restaurants starting with B (BALLA and BISTRODE)

BALLA AT THE STAR

Balla is described as 'a little piece of Milan with Sydney's best view.' I was having lunch there one afternoon and the beautiful view over the Jones Bay Wharf combined with the buzzing lunchtime service create a ambiance that is lovely, yet exciting. The waitstaffs are all very attentive and charming, one of the best dining service I've had recently. One petite lady waitress in particular has a smile on her face all day long and is so lovely I almost want to ask for her number and be her best friend :)

YuM, Bread basket. I love it when they give me a whole basket instead of just one piece :) I normally love butter with my bread as I am a butter-girl but when I am served two different types of amazing breads with some beautiful olive oil, I am not a butter-girl anymore, I am just a happy-girl.

Entree : Slow braised calamari with spinach, chilli and garlic. 

This dish might not look pretty but a perfect example of how you can't judge food by how it looks. It smelled amazing and tasted even more so! The calamari is so tender and the spinach has such a beautiful almost creamy texture. The dish is tasty from the chilli but light enough to be an entree dish (I'm Indonesian so I don't mind at all eating tons of chilli for entree or breakfast) But sometimes by having less chilli you can really taste all the other good-quality ingredients and beautiful seasonings. While dipping the bread to the garlic-y sauce along with the little remaining olive oil left (yes I almost finish them all ^^) while sipping my cocktail, and looking at the gorgeous water on a bright sunny day, the day and my lunch felt so perfect. 

My cocktail is Bella Donna Daiquiri : Havana 7 Anejo rum, Disaronno liquor, fresh lime and a little sugar, shaken vigorously and poured into a cinnamon rimmed glass for a deluxe Las Vegas favourite.

I ordered this for the 'cinnamon rimmed glass'. Lol

Main : Curly pappardelle pasta with snapper sauce.

And I ordered this really because of the word 'curly' ^^ haha but this dish is such a delicious comforting food. I love carbs and pasta to death and this pasta is perfectly cooked all dente and the 'snapper sauce' is rich yet really balanced. I had a glass of white to go with that (not sure what my wine is, I asked the waiter to just bring me a glass of white). I was not patient enough to read the wine list and while busy eating, forgot to ask ^^

Cheese : Pecorino al Tartufo -- aged sheep's milk with black truffle. 

The reason why I was ordering cheese instead of dessert is because I was planning to have gelato messina after (which is just next door) ^^. I was very happy with my choice of cheese, the cheese is quite strong on its own so at the beginning I just ate it with the crisp bread to get my cheese kick of the day and towards the end I ate it with the sweet paste, which make it lovely in a different way (almost in a dessert way). I eat the grapes to occasionally balance off the sweetness of the sweet paste and I also eat the walnuts just because it's there ^_^

I have to say I adore Balla ^_^. The menu is more rusty than sophisticated, and more traditional than experimental, but what do I care if the food is that satisfying! I love traditional food as much as contemporary food (or any type of food), as long as they are all done greatly :)

"Balla could have gone upmarket and fancy but that's not the Manfredi (chef) way. Instead, it brings to Sydney relatively simple, recognisably Italian food built on quality prime ingredients and  a bustle, big-time, business-like dining experience. And, of course, those wonderful floor-to-ceiling windows, open to the view we never knew we had." 

--Terry Durack, Sydney Morning Herald

"Balla is all Manfredi. Manfredi has never lacked vision, and Balla is his vision, splendid, bold, beautiful and fun"

--Gourmet Traveller 

BISTRODE CBD CITY

I dined at Bistrode CBD for the Jeremy Strode '20 years' September menu. In September, Bistrode pays homage to Jeremy Strode's Australian years with a special menu featuring 20 of his renowned dishes, plated and priced as they were.

I love dining at Bistrode CBD. The fine-dining restaurant is so elegant with its crisp white walls, white tablecloths and its lush dining chairs. The menu is of modern British and the foods are equally refined. They make gutsy pub food (such as offals, pig trotters) sophisticated :) The service is that good old-fashioned charm and attentive, knowledgeable and very professional.

Entree : Duck 5 ways (consommé, duck liver pate, duck neck & pistachio sausage, duck breast and duck leg salad). From Pomme, Melbourne, 1998.

Wow, sometimes when you have a 2-way dish, one is surely better than the other but this dish is so impressive because all of them are so superb that it is almost impossible to pick a favourite. But if I have to choose one, I'll say the duck consommé as it has a lot of depth in that tiny little cup and I also seldom have a duck consommé while I more often have a great duck liver pate. But all the others are really good too, the picture really don't show how delicious this whole thing is. I hope the chef bring this dish back as a regular menu. Oh man this dish is a must for any duck-meat-lover out there!

Main : Pork chop, black sausage, black vinegar. From Langtons, Melbourne, 2001.

The pork chop is succulent, I am not big on black sausage but I must say this is the best black sausage I've ever eaten. Maybe because it is also small in portion and it match perfectly with the pork and the vegetable and the sauce. How brilliant when everything compliment one another?!

Dessert : Rhubarb pie and lavender ice cream. From Langtons, Melbourne, 2001.

I had a glass of Rose wine (2011 Spinifex Rose, Barossa Valley - South Australia) with my food  and had a teapot of earl gray tea with my dessert. I love having a cold ice cream with a hot pie. (I love both hot and cold together in dessert such as ice cram with chocolate fondant or soufflé). This slightly salty and quite tart pie goes really nicely with the sweet fragrant ice cream, however I just wish that the ice cream is bigger so I can have an equal portion of ice cream and equal portion of pie T T. But I understand that that is the normal ice cream serving size so I'll shut up now and just eat :)

"The room is as crisp as a new white shirt with the framed black-and-white portraits of great European chefs such as Gordon Ramsey and Fergus Henderson staring down at you"

--Time Out Sydney

"The daily changing menu is studded with all manner of strange animal parts often seen plated up in Britain's cosy gastro-pubs, but that rarely grace Australian tables. Calf's liver, black sausage and roast bone marrow all feature regularly alongside classic pub fare with modern twists, like the deluxe take on corned beef that uses wagyu meat."

--de Groots Best Restaurants of Australia 

Balla and Bistrode CBD are both awarded the coveted one hat in the most current Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2013.