est

Australia may not be a member of Michelin but in Sydney at least there is the Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Food Guide and the hotly contested awarding of “hats” to fine restaurants. Head chef Peter Doyle is an Australian icon and his restaurant est has duly done very well –maintaining three hat status for four years’ running now.

As part of the Sydney International Food Festival est was offering lunch and a glass of wine for $35 so I decided this was too good an opportunity to pass up and went there with a good friend to see if it could live up to its press.

Firstly I have to admit to being disappointed by est’s “lunch” offerings which gave exactly what it said on the tin and not a morsel more. Even the petit fours were charged for and at $35 a head I would have appreciated slightly more frills than a free piece of (admittedly very good) sour dough. I won’t pretend to be able to do a comprehensive review based on one main dish and a plate of petit fours, but for what it is worth these were my impressions...

I had the pan roasted jewfish on shaved calamari, spring asparagus, beans and peas and romesco salsa. My friend went for the duck leg confit, roast kipfler potatoes, green peas, jamon and savoy cabbage. I am afraid the word that springs to mind when describing these well executed dishes was stingy. My shaved calamari was there but was exactly one tiny strip – very tasty but gone in less than a mouthful and therefore not adding anything to the overall flavour of the dish. My friend’s kipfler potato looked great but was exactly half a potato and no more.

On the plus side the jewfish was perfectly cooked, crispy on the outside and meltingly tender within. The asparagus and broad beans and peas were also perfectly done and it all contrasted nicely with the slightly sweet smokiness of the romesco sauce. I chose a 2003 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc to accompany this which was crisp and dry and a great match to the fish. My friend has had more melting confit and said it was a little dry, but on the whole she was pleased with her dish and the potato was indeed very tasty.

The petit fours were probably the highlight of the meal. Some divinely decadent chocolates with a ganache interior and a quirky kiwi fruit jelly surrounded with lip pursing sherbet instead of with sugar. There was also a lovely miniature apple pie which had a whimsical dolls house feel to it. I felt a little like Thumbelina as I tucked into this miniature delight.

The service was friendly and precise and the decor pleasant and clean. I had food envy looking at other peoples’ lunches and would indeed go back – but est isn’t top of my wish list for a repeat performance. To be honest I found the whole meal just a little disappointing. I’m sure the Good Food judges had more than one course to go on and I am hoping they are right in their three hats judgement but I have certainly had better food.