Sydney Cove Oyster Bar, Circular Quay

There’s never any argument that we have one of the world’s most stunning harbours, even on a grey day. And it’s even better to sit right beside it and enjoy a meal. But on many occasions there has been a food-view trade off – great view, not so good food (places like Ormeggio, Berowra Waters Inn and Pilu are an exception, with a great showing on both fronts). One day Mamma Rosa and The Sisters get the ferry into the Big Smoke, and I walk down from my office to Circular Quay to meet them. Our last get together was at Via Alta.

Today we are heading to Sydney Cove Oyster Bar, as Mamma Rosa is a big oyster fan, a taste I inherited from her. We are warmly welcomed and the staff that day were absolutely lovely – friendly, warm, helpful – nothing was too much trouble.

We start with sea scallops with pork belly and shemiji mushroom – fat scallops, well caramelised, and we enjoy it.

We then go for the Ultimate Oyster Bar Indulgence Platter ($225) and it looks great on the table, accompanied by various (somewhat pedestrian) sauces. The oysters though sadly are disappointing, and just don’t have the beautiful freshness I’ve found elsewhere (for instance the previous week at Gardels the oysters seemed like they’d just been plucked from the sea) and the mussels we have to send back. The best parts for me are the crab and the lobster, fresh and sweet and we enjoy every bit of them. The battered seafood is good too. It’s a bit of a shame about the oysters given the location (and the name of the place!), but maybe we just caught them on an off day.

Sydney Cove Oyster Bar, Circular Quay East, Sydney, Ph (02) 9427 2937
http://www.sydneycoveoysterbar.com

Ocean Room, Circular Quay, Sydney

Ocean Room is in a stunning harbourside location at Circular Quay. As I’ve said before, I’m a bit dubious about restaurants with Sydney harbour views, they tend to think they can get away with a bit on the food.  But this was a work function, and as I’ve been wanting to try Ocean Room for a while, it was a great excuse to check it out.

We were in a private room upstairs, magnificently encased in glass and showing off Sydney perfectly, but I noticed the downstairs layout was very spacious with a nice combination of tables and booths, and would be a very pleasant place to sit.

The menu was set for us that night, but given an overall good experience, I’d certainly come back and go a la carte, or try the 10 course tasting menu which looked quite good for $120. As I walked out I saw the kitchen dishing up plates of sushi and sashimi which looked like fantastic quality.

On our menu that evening:

Tasting Plate – Wasabi prawn with wasabi aioli, Pacific Oyster with tomato water jelly, and tuna tartare with soy pearls. This was beautiful, especially the oyster with the refreshing tomato water.  Actually the prawn was pretty fantastic too.

Ocean Barramundi Fillet, with Sake steamed clam butter.  The skin was a little chewy. The clam butter was surprisingly light.

Black Angus tenderloin with Tasmanian pepper jus.  A knockout piece of meat, and although it supposedly came with a jus, I felt like having a Manu-where’s-the-sauce moment.  There could have been better accompaniments than a bunch of cress and a squashed potato.

Chocolate tasting plate – mousse, chocolate mud & pistachio, and opera cake.  I’m not big on chocolate desserts, but I really enjoyed this.

Worth a visit if you’re in need of some harbourside beauty to accompany your meal, particularly on a sparkling summer day.

Ocean Room, Ground Level, Overseas Passenger Terminal, Sydney Ph (02) 9252 9585