tap into cru54

After a recent time-out for a bit of cosmetic surgery, Surry Hills’ Cru54 reopened last week, showing off a brand new interior at a night of cocktails, tapas and Spanish festivities.

Guests were greeted with the more polished and modern decor, complimented by Spanish artworks of deep red and orange. We also got the chance to taste the new menu, the result of changes in the kitchen as owner Catherine Andreo assumes the role of Executive Chef.

Along with tapas options (like the pictured Spanish-style anchovy on citrus tomato and avocado salsa toast), there are now additional ways to share your food, with tablas of cheeses or cured meats (try the 40-month-aged jamon iberico) and raciones of meatballs in spicy tomato sauce or classic seafood paella.

We thoroughly recommend checking out the new cocktail list too.

Cru54 can be found at 54 Foveaux Street, Surry Hills. Ph: 9281 1054

cru54, surry hills, restaurants, tapas

review: bonanza coffee heroes, berlin

The darling of the Prenzlauerberg coffee scene, Bonanza Coffee Heroes pays the ultimate homage to the humble flat white. Buying a decent cup of coffee is like a game of Russian roulette in this country (and city) but Bonanza owners Kiduk Reus and Yumi Choi are leading a major caffeine coup to overthrow the rule of the drip coffee filter. More espresso bar than café, Bonanza offers only seven styles of coffee (ranging in price from €1.70 for an espresso to €3.30 for a doppio), with the flat white taking pride of place. There are also freshly baked goodies such as New York cheesecake or Oma’s berry cake. So seriously do the owners take their coffee that adorning the wall is a manifesto of sorts explaining the process from bean to cup. According to Choi, “coffee is like wine”. The coffee beans – sourced from Ethiopia, Sumatra and Brazil- take centre stage.

As though in a twenty-first-century apothecary’s lab, almost all of the Bonanza floorspace is occupied by the roasting and grinding machines, large vats of beans and a bean roasting quality chart. Produced with a Synesso Cyncra - the Rolls Royce of coffee machines - the coffee here is excellent, perhaps not surprisingly given there are only three of these machines on the continent. The interior design is minimalist chic with unpainted walls, vintage furniture pieces and light bulbs dangling from their cables.  In its prime position on the creative pilgrim’s route from Mauerpark to Kastanienallee, Bonanza Coffee Heroes will delight Aussies in dire need of a flat white fix and will ensure that devotees from all over the world are never far from a quality cuppa.

Bonanza Coffee Heroes
Oderberger Straße 35
10435 Berlin Germany
Mon – Fri  8:30am – 7pm  and Sat & Sun  10am – 7pm
Transport:  Train U2 Eberswalder Straße; Tram M1 Eberswalder Straße  or M10
Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark

preziauerberg, bonanza coffee heroes, kiduk reus, yumi choi, synesso cyncra

new shanghai

There is something you should know about New Shanghai: it’s in a food court. But please, oh please don’t let that put you off. I’m not going to say that the food makes up for the location, because it doesn’t need to.

New Shanghai has taken a corner of Chatswood Chase, put some walls around it and created a glossy vision of 1930s Shanghai last seen in Hollywood. It’s a sea of red and black that evokes an (albeit clean) authentic Shanghai street, right down to the cobblestone floor and the pushbike resting against the front door.

The menu (a large paper number which doubles as our placemat for the evening) is divided up into cold dishes, dim sim, noodles & rice, and main dishes. A friend has told us we must try the New Shanghai pan-fried pork bun (the restaurant’s specialty), but the waitress is so persuasive in her suggestions that we end up ordering the pan-fried pork dumplings.More...

new shanghai, chatswood chase, chinese, dumplings, restaurant

tiella introduces neapolitan cuisine to new york

Tucked comfortably in the heart of New York City lies Tiella, a quaint little dining spot that opened its doors to the city on July 12. Co-owned by Mario Coppola and chef Giuseppe Castellano of Cambridge’s Gran Gusto, the restaurant boasts an extensive selection of authentic Neapolitan cuisine – just without pizza.

A humble space of simple furnishings and subdued lighting, Tiella owns the smallest brick oven approved by the New York state. Baked at a searing 800 degrees, the appetising range of tiella dishes the eatery is named for are topped with ingredients such as creamy cheese and truffle, or prosciutto and foie gras. Homemade pasta is also said to be their specialty. With dishes such as risotto with lobster and pink grapefruit up on their menu, hopefully Tiella will be sticking around for a while.

Tiella is located on 1109 1st Avenue, New York.

tiella, neapolitan cuisine, mario coppola, gluseppe castellano, gran gusto cambridge, new york

cutler and co

On a recent trip to Melbourne this Kluster writer happily indulged in a meal at the Good Food Guide hatted restaurant (two to be exact), Cutler and Co.

Located in the bohemian suburb of Fitzroy, Cutler and Co's dining room combines comfort with familiarity and understated sophistication. Inside the long, gently lit room a semi-open wine store holds more than 1300 bottles. Considering the breadth of their selection it stands to reason that the role of sommelier at Cutler & Co would be filled by an individual who is suitably confident across a range of vino. The aforementioned individual, Sally Humble, was appropriately knowledgeable and accommodating in helping us choose a bottle of Alsace Riesling to accompany our eight course Chef's degustation.

The combination of flavours was generally quite traditional (think: duck with plum), it is the execution that makes this dining experience exciting. Executive chef Andrew McConnell combines high-quality produce to create a multitude of textures in his dishes. Layering taste-upon-taste to create a range of delicately balanced dishes. More...

Melbourne, Cutler and Co, Food, Fine dining, Bars, Eat, Drink

recipe: lemon-almond tart with raspberry sauce

After Kluster Says guest editor Claire McCarthy told us about the truly amazing food at NYC’s Angelica Kitchen, particularly the lemon-almond tart with raspberry sauce, we thought we should check it out. Leslie McEachern, owner of this NYC eatery, was kind enough to give us the recipe from their cookbook, The Angelica Home Kitchen, to pass on to you.

Leslie tells us this special dessert is her personal favourite. It's perfect for special occasions - not really that complicated to whip together, but looks like you’re a master chef. Enjoy!

Lemon-Almond Tart with Raspberry Sauce

Yield: 6-8 servings     Cooking time: 1 hour

For the crust:
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup maple syrup

For the filling:
1 agar bar
2 cups apple juice
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
Pinch of sea salt
1 cup rice syrup
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (strained)
1/4 cup kuzu (type of starch for thickening, from Chinatown or specialty stores)
1/2 cup soy milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 pint fresh raspberries or strawberries (for garnish)More...

recipe, tart, angelica kitchen

foodie trivia

Think you know your food? Can you name the herbs used in a coq au vin? Could you take on anyone in a MasterChef-style taste test? Then it’s time to get out of the kitchen and into the pub with foodie trivia at Balmain’s Riverview Hotel.

Every Monday night, teams will test their brain cells and taste buds in an attempt to score some great prizes like wine and dinner vouchers. At the end of 12 weeks, the best performing team overall picks up a degustation for 10 people at the Riverview’s fabulous dining room.

We went along for the first week on Monday to see where we stand in the world of food snobbery. We came up a bit short on cocktail ingredients and foods in Nat King Cole songs, but surprised ourselves by picking the vintage of wine in a taste test. The Kluster team didn’t win, but coming in fourth with only two team members isn’t too bad. We’re definitely going back next week.

For all the details, visit the Riverview Hotel website.

foodie trivia, riverview hotel, balmain

alio's greatest hits dinner

Last week, Surry Hills restaurant Alio celebrated ten years in business. Not wanting to let a golden opportunity to create something spectacular pass them by, the minds behind the Italian eatery put on an impressive feast to showcase the best of their time in business.

The lucky invitees sat down to a ten-course culinary exposé of food trends over the past decade, as seen through the eyes of Alio’s chef. From 2001 there was the stracciatella (pictured), a Roman-style chicken broth with cheese ravioli; 2006 saw the arrival of barramundi baked in a bag with black mussels; and 2008 was the year for panna cotta.

The good news is this decadent menu is available to the public throughout the month of June. Check out the Alio site for all the details.

alio, degustation, restaurants, surry hills

recipe: coffee and walnut cake

At dinner with friends last weekend, someone commented on how underrated the walnut was. Though it has a nasty habit of turning bitter with age (don’t we all), it’s a wonderfully versatile nut, equally at home with savoury friends, like blue cheese, as it is with sweet ones.

Coffee and walnut cake is a classic English teatime treat, generally filled and topped with a rich, coffee butter cream. After some recent overindulgence (yes, it was the same meal – how quickly a great night out can turn to gluttony), this traditional accompaniment seemed a bit too much. Instead this version is served without filling, and topped with a mocha glaze.

For the cake:

125g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
125g butter, softened
125g caster sugar
60g walnuts, roughly chopped
2 large eggs
1 tbsp instant coffee dissolved in 2 tbsp hot water
walnut halves for decoration

For the glaze:

1/3 cup caster sugar
60g dark chocolate, chopped
1 tsp instant coffee
1 tsp butter More...

recipes, cake

all aboard at stanley street station

Just in time for the chilly winter weather, the streets of East Sydney have revealed another cosy hidey-hole for enjoying warming lunches and post-dinner drinks.

Stanley Street Station, which sits on the corner of Stanley and Crown Streets in East Sydney, launched last week with a bang – a night of music, food and cocktails. As we sipped our Moore Club cocktails (a tart pink tribute to Lord Mayor Clover Moore), DJ Money Man and the burlesque-looking songstress Anikiko made sure we were entertained. Food came in the form of mini-mes from the full menu: sautéed school prawns with aioli, beef cheek and shitake pies and lemon tarts.

We snuck back in the next day to see what Stanley Street Station looked like without the roaring crowd, and found a bright, airy dining space, with a couch corner perfect for canoodling. The lunch/dinner menu is a small, but comprehensive, list of larger dishes, plus a good selection of “smalls”, perfect for bar snacking or sharing with a group.

Keep your eyes peeled for the specials too. We nabbed a totally rockin’ smoked salmon and grilled vegetable sandwich on rye for a measly $8.50. If that’s not awesome value, we don’t know what is.

Stanley Street Station can be found on the corner of Stanley and Crown Streets, East Sydney.
You can get lunch and dinner Mon-Sat from noon-midnight and Sundays noon-11pm.
Breakfast is served Sat-Sun 8am-2pm.

stanley street staiton, bars

the riverview hotel, balmain

Looking for a bite to eat on one of the few cold days that Sydney has had during this unseasonably warm April, we went out in search of a suitably warming dinner. Balmain’s Riverview Hotel (where chef Brad Sloane has recently taken over the kitchen) presented us with the solution. Heading upstairs to the dining room, nearly every table we passed in the bar was topped with nice looking pizzas. A timely bit of eavesdropping told us that it was 2-for-1 pizza night – perhaps something for the next visit.

Of course having tasty bar food on offer means the Riverview has wiggle room for a proper restaurant upstairs. And it is a dining destination in itself, not simply a bistro with overblown prices. Though there is some reflection of the location in the food, with a modern English slant to the menu. More...

riverview hotel, balmain, restaurants, pubs

watch it, eat it... nyc presents the food film festival

Have you ever watched an actor eat something delectable on the big screen, only to wish you could taste it for yourself? Well, this years NYC Food Film Festival is about to make your dreams come true. 

Celebrating their fourth year of tantalizing the senses of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, the NYCFFF will run from Wednesday, June 23rd to Sunday, June 27th, screening documentaries, features and short films of the worlds most scrumptious foods.

The festival will take advantage of the Summer weather by hosting a series of outdoor events. Putting a new spin on the beloved drive-in movie, we’re happy to announce The World’s First Food Truck Drive-In Movie. On Saturday, June 26 from 12-10pm, the food trucks will be rolling in as the audience arrives on foot.

Watch this space for details and announcements.

nyc food film festival