Lunch time just got a whole lot better
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo this year at one of Sydney's top mexican joints
Learn to cook like a master chef
There's only one thing wrong with this amazing restaurant - its name
The name sucks. Everyone knows it, no one's denying it, and there's no point harping on about it. And yet you can't avoid it because GastroPark (shudder) is the restaurant that Sydney can't stop talking about. It occupies the old Baron's site, which was home very briefly to Blanco, followed by Steak Haus (Beach Haus, the bar for holidaying Euro clubkids, is still upstairs) and is the project of Grant King - the russet-haired Kiwi and ex-head chef of Pier.
There’s a certain leap of faith you have to take when reading King’s menu. Sweet, smoky hunks of gleaming tuna belly, say, impaled on a polished tuna bone ($9). If you’re feeling really adventurous, King can occasionally get his hands on some tuna marrow, too. This is just one of the many snacks offered on the first part of the menu. If there are a few of you, order all of them because there isn’t a single fail here. A plate-sized parmesan wafer ($6), bejewelled with capers, anchovy, tomato and olive, looks like an edible fascinator, served rising out of a big river stone. A single, foot-long grissino ($11) is wrapped in air-dried wagyu beef short rib, sprinkled with dried olive bits and rests like a sabre on a piece of polished marrow bone. It’s not really something you can share. Same goes for the glistening veal sweetbreads ($9), skewered with a rosemary spear, doing a highwire act over a rich, dark mushroom and onion consommé. Toast fingers of brioche come topped with fresh fig and fine shavings of foie gras ($18) – it’d work just as well at the beginning of the meal as it would at the end. Liver for dessert? At GastroPark we say yes. The magic doesn’t stop with the snacks, either. Floor managers Martijn de Boer and Timothee Servajean give the casually laid-out room all the decorum of a triple-clothed restaurant. They even supply magnifying glasses for reading the comically tiny wine list.
An entrée of many duck bits (salted breast, smoked tenderloin, duck ham, duck jelly – $26), interwoven with fine ribbons of tagliatelle and finished with just a few tiny marigold petals, is right up there in terms of dishes-thatmake- your-fellow-diners-jealous. The snapper ($38) looks more like a Miro than lunch, the fillet cooked with the scales lifted and crisped so it resembles a fish with its hackles up. It’s joined by slicks of squid ink and a bubble of squid crackle and is probably the most beautiful dish to have graced a Sydney restaurant in some time.
There’s also the lamb ($38) – a beautiful mess of loin and crumbed shoulder, with thin slices of pickled cauliflower and baby kale leaves, some dressed, some deep fried. And if you’re really keen, you might consider ordering a side of potato churros ($8). They’re long tentacles of potato dough, deep fried and served with aioli. There’s no momentum lost with the desserts, either. A chocohoneycomb globe ($20) – yours to smash with the cutlery of your choice – is made all the sweeter with the addition of nip-sized cookies’n’cream macarons. Oh, but there’s the vodka espresso – nitro style. Soft, snowy flakes of boozy, coffee-flavoured granita are a great set-up if you intend to head out after your meal.
Forgotten about the name in the face of all this goodness? Yep, us too.
Potts Point 2011
Telephone 02 8068 1017
Price per person including drinks $51 to $100
Open Lunch Fri-Sat 12 noon-2.30pm; Tue-Sat 6-10pm
116m - Kings Cross by day is very much a lucky dip. Potts Point's well-heeled rub...
140m - Paul and Jenny McGrath's restaurant, now settled in the stately old...
113m - Located in the stairway of Darlinghurst Road bar the Sugarmill , the new...
149m - This nicely decked-out store stocks fantasy costumes ranging from the usual...
© 2007 - 2012 Time Out Group Ltd. All rights reserved. All material on this site is © Time Out.
Newsletter
RSS feed
Twitter
Facebook
Google+
Spotify
Foursquare
iPhone App
Other Time Out cities
Magazine subscription
Print
Email
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
I took my wife to Gastro Park for her Birthday on Easter weekend. The food is great but the whole experience was let down by sloppy service and unsophisticated atmosphere. Firstly, it took ages for anyone to greet us at the door when we entered. We were then sat at our table given menus but I was not offered a wine list, had to ask for one. I also had to ask for my glass of wine again after they forgot. And considering there was only four main options on the menu my wife was disappointed to learn that her choice, the pork, was sold out and the waiter jokingly said "it wasn't very good anyway". I did read in the SMH GFG that the service is described as 'quirky' but it can fall a bit flat and just turn out to be annoying and weird if it's not polished. On the ambience front I didn't expect it to be a family restaurant and there were high chairs and a couple of kids running around which is odd on a later Saturday evening sitting. We have a young child ourselves and go to family restaurants too but when you're heading to Kings Cross on a Saturday evening you expect it to be a bit slicker. The food is superb but the talented chefs are let down by weird, sloppy service out front and for 2 hats I expect more.
Posted on Tue 24 Apr 2012 02:00:11
Food is very good, but service and overall experience falls short of the objective. We would normally be much more forgiving, however, the pricing and waiter arrogance leaves patrons frustrated and disappointed. Better alternatives around.
Posted on Fri 12 Aug 2011 23:21:42
As group of four sydney foodies - this place was a must try... so we went on Friday July 1st. Although the meals were very inventive, complex I would say the biggest let down was the lack of whistles to the bells. ie. Our 4 person table was 2 tables crookedly put together, the waitstaff topped our sparkling water off with still, we finished our bottle of wine half way through the main and wasn't asked for another, the wait between meals was long and after spending around $200/head there was no petite fours with our coffee... the small things that make a big difference to the overall experience. I must also add I was excited to order the $32 entree fois gras toast was extremely salty and unimpressive... I hope they improve quickly as it's a shame to not support what looks like quite a creative foundation.
Posted on Wed 13 Jul 2011 20:25:46