Otto, Wooloomooloo

Otto is an established favourite along the strip of restaurants on Cowper Wharf in Wooloomooloo, Sydney. A picturesque setting, combined with modern Italian cuisine and wine, provides the perfect escape from the drudgery of everyday life.

I recently had the pleasure of dining there with friends and I must say their reputation for fine food has not waned. The hardest decision was always going to be what to order. When in doubt, have a little of everything! Degustation menus are a perfect way to sample more than one dish on the menu - so that's the option we went for.

What follows is a pictorial tribute to our feast. Special thanks to our friends for helping with the food lighting...the dim lighting is the only drawback for a food blogger! We did the best we could under the circumstances. The photos don't do the food full justice. It was a delicious feast.

The degustation menu is $140 per person (or $210 per person with matching wines). A little pricey for some, but well worth the treat!

We added some fresh and dressed oysters to our menu and they went down a treat!



Not sure this was on the degustation list either but it was included - delicately cut Prosciutto and Rockmelon. 



Tonno ‘Panzanella’Yellowfin tuna, tomatoes, cucumber, capsicum, croutons, olives, capers, basil.

Carpaccio di Manzo Grainge Angus carpaccio, truffle dressing, aioli, capers, parmesan, baby rocket.

 

Fiori di Zucchini Zucchini flowers filled with baccala, caponata.

Tagliolini Black and white long pasta, QLD scallops, cherry tomatoes, chilli, garlic, basil.

 The next plate was a choice between fish and meat. I went with the Black Angus and was not disappointed. It melted in my mouth.

Dentice Line-caught Pink Snapper fillets, Globe artichokes, celery, muscatels, pine nuts

Cappello del Prete Rangers Valley Black Angus flat iron beef MB 3+, celeriac, mushrooms, onion, pancetta, veal jus.



Formaggio A taste of cheese with quince paste and date.

 

Selezione di Dolci Selection of miniature desserts.

In all my reviews I like to pick a stand out dish, and in this instance I would have to say it was the Black Angus - I had mine medium (the most they will cook it) and it was mouth wateringly good! It was followed closely by those front two miniature desserts, each featuring favourite flavours of mine - coconut and chocolate. The dessert plate was shared in pairs - a good thing, since by this stage we were pretty full.

Combined with great wine, and coffees to end the night - it was a wonderful degustation menu and highly recommended. Otto hasn't lost any of its shine. Head Chef, Richard Ptacnik says that his mission "is to let the freshness of the produce and the quality of the ingredients do the talking”
- and he certainly has done that.

Afternoon Tea Buffet, InterContinental Hotel, Sydney

Over the weekend I had the pleasure of experiencing a Valrhona Chocolate Afternoon Tea Buffet at the InterContinental Hotel in Sydney. Held in the hotel lobby's Cortile Lounge, the ambiance was warm and inviting from the outset. Nestled in the centre of the lobby, away from the noise and distraction of the outside world, it really did feel like a peaceful escape. With unobtrusive live music playing and gorgeous surrounds, it was the perfect afternoon. I was there for a 30th birthday celebration and I can assure you that everyone left impressed and suitably full! 

The Cortile Lounge, Intercontinental Hotel, Sydney. Image found here

The buffet had a splendid array of both savoury and sweet foods. The savoury sometimes gets forgotten at high teas, represented only by a couple of sandwiches - but not at The Cortile. From the Sandwich Selection, I sampled the Tasmanian Smoked Salmon Wrap with Preserved Lemon, Cucumber and Capers and the Chicken, Mayonnaise and Pesto Finger Sandwich. I could easily have eaten more of both, the flavours and textures melding perfectly together in each. Teamed with a glass of sparkling white wine, they were the perfect start to afternoon tea.

From the Hot Canape Selection I had the mini Olive Oil and Feta Muffins - surprisingly light and delicate in flavour. I also had the Aussie Beef Pie because I can never pass on a pie, and this one didn't disappoint. No party pack pie by any stretch of the imagination, the crisp pastry was filled with a delicious blend of meat, vegetables and herbs.

Between the savoury and the sweet, there are also a number of "Extra Delights" and from here I had some cheese, crepes with Nutella chocolate sauce, scones with Hibiscus strawberry jam and Chantilly cream and waffles with maple syrup. I really wanted to go back for another scone or waffle (both had great texture) but I knew I had yet to tackle the sweetest section of the buffet.

I braced myself, ordered a tea and then proceeded to load my plate up from the Dessert Selection. I didn't quite sample everything but I tried my very best. The things I do for this blog! Where do I begin with this tasting plate? Each delicate dessert was obviously made with care and tasted heavenly. From the gooey Caraibe Chocolate Coconut Macaron and the Tim Tam Chocolate Macaron to the tiny sprinkling of candy that I added to the creme brulee, everything was exquisite.

The Dark Chocolate Winter Spice Creme Brulee was deliciously warm and enticing, and different to most brulees you find on menus across Sydney. The cone shaped dessert, a mix of cream and chocolate, was light and provided some respite on a plate laden with rich and heavy flavours (not that I'm complaining). The most decadent piece on the dessert table was definitely the Valrhona Guanaja Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar - so rich I almost thought I wouldn't be able to finish it, but I powered on! The ganache atop that bar was simply a chocolate lover's dream. Before all this, I also managed to taste a small piece of the fruit and nut bark that sat grandly on the dessert buffet - also a wonderful treat. Thus, you can imagine how very full I was by afternoon's end and the reason I was able to skip dinner that night!

The service, atmosphere and food were all worthy of a five star hotel and I would definitely recommend an Afternoon Tea with friends at the InterContinental in Sydney. The Afternoon Tea Buffets are held over two sittings on both Saturdays and Sundays (1pm-2:30pm and 3-4:30pm). On weekdays the Cortile offers tea stands between 11am and 5pm. High Coffee is also available Monday to Sunday between 11am and 5pm. The Afternoon Tea Buffet Menu is $60 per person with a glass of sparkling wine included or $75 per person with a glass of champagne included. Bookings are recommended as they do sometimes get quite busy.

Menus are seasonal. Before this gorgeous Vahlrona Chocolate  menu in celebration of winter which you can see in full here, they had a menu highlighting Malfroy's Honey for Autumn and coming up they have a menu centred around fresh berries for Spring - I may just have to go back and sample that!

        

The 3 photos above courtesy of Rosanna Velardi. 

The centre photo shows some of the lovely chocolate bark behind the coconut macarons.

Tim Tam Macarons

More macarons and Valrhona Dark Chocolate Raspberry Drink