Posted by KB on April 21, 2010
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.
With just two specials on the board, we decide they both need to be knocked over, starting with an entree of the lamb pappardelle – a delightfully slippery pasta with fall-apart chunks of meat and a velvety pea butter. We also opt for the fetta and beetroot tart off the menu. It’s a little unwieldy, with ingredients loosely piled atop a crisp base, but the flavours are spot on.
With the cold outside, it seems only appropriate to order the Berkshire pork belly, which much to my delight comes on a bed of shredded brussel sprouts with ham hocks, and black pudding ravioli. Any dish that can incorporate three kinds of pig is a winner in my books, but it could have done with an extra piece of ravioli – even if my thighs say it would be a bad idea. From the specials board the winter theme continued with the fish pie, a veritable aquarium of critters under a homestyle potato topping.
Everything on the dessert menu looks like a winning proposition, but we manage to narrow it down to the quince crumble and the chocolate brownie (pictured). The crumble is an early winner, a sticky layering of icecream, fruit and flaked almonds, but in the end, the perfectly salted pistachio brittle atop the brownie gets it over the line.
riverview hotel, balmain, restaurants, pubs