Assiette, Surry Hills

Assiette is located in a small closeted location in the heart of Surry Hills. As you step into the restaurant, you are greeted by the cosiness of it, emphasised by the dim lighting and small setting, fitting a maximum of 50 people. The open kitchen allowed for a closer atmosphere as we see the chefs working away diligently for our orders.

It is currently known for its one chef hat status, which is why I opted to go there for dinner. I had wished I came with an empty stomach as the lunch beforehand was quite a handful and left me feeling quite disgruntled to consume a seven course degustation menu ($105). Nonetheless, the flavours were rich and wholesome. It's during these times that I appreciate the miniature portions they give. Otherwise, I'd be in a food coma.

To the food:

Warm bread served with butter

Seasonal oyster with Vietnamese dressing and baby coriander

Having a Vietnamese background allowed me to compare the taste between my mum's oysters and these ones. The Vietnamese dressing or otherwise known as 'nuoc mam' pretty much hit the familial taste of home. But I'm not sure I like the combination of fresh oysters with the fish sauce. Maybe steamed would have done it more justice? With a lil bit of ginger, and shaved shallots? I don't know.

Kataifi quail egg with mushrooms, duck consommé and crispy pigs ears

A relatively simple dish, yet executed with such powerful flavoursome combination of taste, complimenting each other very well. When I saw pig ears, I actually thought they were going to be in the shape of a pig's ear, however, I was greeted with two strips of crunchy and succulent twig like shape which held onto the flavours very well. The quail egg was wrapped in a crispy noodle, but went limp and noodle like when it came into contact with the soup like sauce.

Sashimi tuna with crustacea cream, pickled octopus, hibiscus and almonds

I'm not the greatest fan of raw tuna, as I find salmon more appeasing to the tongue, so I guess this dish didn't really do it for me. There were too many fishy and pickled flavours to work with. But then again, it could just be my full stomach calling out to me. The crustacean sauce was nice though, offering a soft subtle taste.

Seared mackerel with avruga, cucumber, cauliflower puree and dill emulsion

The mackerel was so tender and soft. And once again I was baffled at the pickled vegetables intermixing with the food. There was too much vinegar, it obscured the original taste of the dish.

Ballotine of quail and foie gras with croustillant of confit leg, braised salsify, walnuts and date puree

This dish was beautiful! There was an arrangement of flavours which seemed to compliment each other really well. On the savoury edge, just how I like it.

Roasted denver leg of venison with boudin noir, dauphinoise potato and heirloom carrots

!! :D I would have totally enjoyed this dish if I was more on the hungry side, than borderline food coma-ing. That isn't to say I didn't enjoy it. I enjoyed the pieces I had. By that time, Po and I were in shambles, disgruntled by our protruding bellies. The deer was soft, and mighty juicy, each bite oozing with flavour and the potato was so tender and soft. The black pudding was a strange mixer to the whole dish. Struggling to finish!

Pre dessert: Lychee jelly

ALAS DESSERT! My stomach opened up for dessert. This little cup was awesome! And I managed to scrape every last bit of it. It offered a really refreshing taste to cleanse all the meat and oil of its predecessors. There seems to be done akin to a popping candy on top, which was a little bit sour, yet complimented everything well.

Strawberry and cherry salad with yoghurt sorbet, vanilla doughnut and mint emulsion

Dessert to end the night! Mint emulsion was fresh. Yoghurt sorbet reminded me of Moochi in Strathfield. And donut was nice and warm. Fab~

Complimentary treats

Now...time to do insanity for a whole week. T____T"

And for the lovely Po who loves Evo's so much, happy one year!

In all it's glory...and flaws which makes it awesome. Will blog about that for another time. Toodles!