Toko in Sydney

I want to write but am being too precious about the words. If I remain like this I'll lose out on telling you all about these amazing experiences, so take this post as a visual diary. One of the most exciting places in Sydney, is Toko in Surry Hills for contemporary Japanese, izakaya style. If one also eats with one's eyes, then I'm going blind with bliss.

Red Snapper Carpaccio with Truffle Oil and Pork Lard: This inspired one of those need-to-close-eyes-in-umami-magic moments. Enough said.

Tofu steaks with avocado tartare: Steaks so pillowy and meaty it was like being in a tofu duvet. Dreamy avocado flavour.

Sushi & Nigiri selection: Impeccable presentation and of good quality, though I was spoilt after the Fish Markets in Pyrmont. I would concentrate on the cooked dishes. 

Ricey, wheaty and refreshing. Sake is my new favourite guzzle. 

Beef steak with sweet sesame sauce: Tasting how beef should taste, and lovely sweetness from the sauce, sadly a little chewy.

Lobster tempura: Unmissable. Gold nuggets from the sea, still with bite and sublime with the wasabi mayonnaise.

Soft Shell Crab with Wasabi mayonaise: Fugacious glimpses of gastro heaven. Words escape me.

Chocolate Fondant with Hazelnut Ganache & Ice Cream and Apple Sorbet with Rhubarb Crumble: Go for the Crumble. Fire and ice, strong lush fruitiness above and below.

Dark, moodily-lit and full of subtle glamour. J'Adore. All the above courses and drinkies at AUD$50 per head amongst 5. The glorious blazing sun feature reminds me of the Japanese flag. I pray for Japan. 

Surry Hills: Notting Hill in Sydney

Sunglassed yummy mummies pushing prams, arty designer types working on iPads and stylish bars lining the streets. I'm in Surry Hills, AKA Notting Hill when you're Down Undah. Bushy, breezy trees line the wide avenues and from brunch to bistros, this is the chic and creative South East Sydney spot.

Should a trip into a Sydney neighbourhood tempt you, it's a pleasure walking around these pastel-washed detached houses, with dainty iron gates. Although home to chef hat restaurants like Billy Kwong and Bill's, there is more to explore and fall in love with. If I may suggest an itinerary...

Start off for brunch at The Book Kitchen, a restaurant and food bookshop. Sit around the large wooden table for sharing, amidst wonderful food books, faced by a handsome, ornate flower arrangement. Casual and polished at the same time. Spanish Eggs with capsicums and oregano arrived on top tomatoes so caramel-y it could have been a jam. The sweet stew mixed with the yellow eggy ooze was a devilishly good combination. Add the spicy chorizo, wipe it all up with grilled sourdough and you can take on the world after brunch. The roast pumpkin omelette with sage stood robust and sturdy, garnished by asparagus. Delight in the fluffy egg and cheeky Tallegio middle.

Because Sydney-siders are big on breakfast/brunch (so, no need for lunch) and you'll be distracted by trendy boutiques and cafes, all you'll need mid-afternoon is a pastry from Bourke Street Bakery. This bitsy boulangerie is exactly like their products, small, sweet and delicious. Its urban legend is for real - the dark chocolate raspberry tart had a light crumbly pastry which smelt butterlicious and the svelte centre was better than, a-hem, some! (Also featuring macarons of the moment from Adriano Zumbo in Balmain, who in Sydney is synonymous with exquisite pastries. Friend E would not let me leave without these - thank you for that enlightenment!)

Enjoy a pre-dinner drink at Pocket, a grungy bar/restaurant with Liechtenstein-esque murals and couches aplenty. Classic cocktails and a decent wine list are the perfect appetiser.

Come dinner, the closest we got to the English gastropub was The Winery, where I had the most impressive-looking pie. One doesn't always get a Lamb Shank proudly thrust in its casing, like Excalibur waiting to be unsheathed! Stewed in red wine, with meat falling off the bone and buttery mash at the bottom, it's a hearty bundle of yum. It has a retro-glitzy outdoor garden with fairy lights strewn over overhanging branches, creating a canopy over velvet chaise lounges.  


Ah, life is sweet, though not cheap as we're in pretty-land. Darn you, Aussie dollar for being high against the Sterling at time of writing/eating! A glass of vino was on average AUD$9 and meals being AUD$20 in the Hills. What can I say, you only live once.

Sydney Fish Markets

So far, my time in Sydney has been nothing short of fantastic. As time is ticking and food is waiting, I'll have to be efficient and pick out the highlights.

One experience you cannot miss if you come to Sydney are the Fish Markets. Busy, crowded and full of foodies waiting to get their hands on the freshest fruits of the sea, it's a place to consume and be consumed by.

Weave in and out the crowds who stare, marvel and indulge in all the fresh seafood around. Everything seems so vibrant and technicolour-rich. This is food envy like none other, you gaze green-eyed as everyone else's choices seem so good and ever more confusing when you reach the top of the line!

R (who graciously gave me a first class tour of Sydney- thank you!) and I were kids on Christmas Day in this salt water playground. After over excessive deliberation, we saw the light in 3 sashimi fillets of tuna, salmon and kingfish.

If the choice stupefies you, as it did us, Peter's Fish Market in the main hall is a fine choice. Select your fillet and hands fly tentatively to slice up these tender, satiny portions. After muscling our way onto a table nearby, and breaking wooden chopsticks eagerly, this wait was all worth it. I only had to push the top of my mouth onto the tuna sashimi piece gently to get it sliding down. Immaculate.

The salmon was marvellously striped with fat, sending sweet fishy sensations throughout my tongue. Kingfish had more bite, but just as delicious.

For the rest of the time there we giggled over other customers plunging into their crab and lobster bonanzas, the mounds of shells that littered the tables and the infectious buzz of the place. There is plenty more to sample (I hadn't even managed to get to my true love, the oyster!) but as I said, there is more food awaiting! Absolutely worth a visit in this food capital. Our sashimi treats which we couldn't finish was an extremely reasonable AUD$24 for that fine quality. Sydney Fish Market is on Bank Street Pyrmont, open every day from 7am, except Christmas Day. Check their site here for directions and details.

G'Day Mate! Hungry in Sydney

Bad Hungry Female. Fewer posts and falling behind on all these amazing things I've been up to since landing Down Under. If I had to pick a highlight in the last couple of days, it would have to be...

...seeing swarms of bats fly up from Hyde Park whilst having a beer at Opera Bar, near Sydney Opera House. Dramatic, spooky and enthralling, so Gotham City! At first they look like disturbed birds, then they fly overhead, spreading their limbed wings in that distinctive eerie shape. Opera House to the left, bats above, cold Opera Pale Ale in hand, I'm in another world.

Awesome.