Flying Fish Restaurant & Bar, Pyrmont

 The highly acclaimed and much heralded Flying Fish Restaurant & Bar (Lower Deck, Jones Bay Wharf, 19-21 Pirrama Road, Pyrmont) is next on our degustation merry go round. Located just down the road from the Star, the restaurant is hidden right at the very end of Jones Bay Wharf and next to Doltone House. Even though we parked right opposite the wharf, it took the family a solid 10 minutes to get our bearings right and eventually our hungry legs guided us to the front doors. (Just a note that there are quite a few photos in this post so have fun scrolling!)

 Follow the wharf all the way down and the smell of freshly cooked seafood will lead you the rest of the way.

Here's a photo so you don't get lost!
Once you see this, follow the wharf down

Front of restaurant/Bar area

 As we walked through the restaurant to be seated by the friendly wait staff, it was hard not to admire the stunning interior and set out of the dining area. Wooden pillars gave the restaurant a warm steak house feel which was dimly lit by a barrage of light bulbs.

 Before embarking on the chef's tasting menu the family was bombarded with four different starters. It's been a while since we were here...so I've kind of forgotten a few things.

Salmon Mousse, Watercress served on Papadum

 First, we enjoyed a light crispy snack of salmon mousse with watercress on a surfboard papadum (name made up).

Arancini Balls

 Secondly, a bowl of arancini balls which were densely filled with rice and creamy sauce.

Tuna Tartare on Seaweed Crisp

 Our third complementary entree was a tuna tartare served on a light, bubbly seaweed crisp (I think that's what it was). A delightful one mouthful treat!

Renkon Chips

 The last entree was a car crash of renkon chips (lotus roots), sliced thing and deep fried.

The Shangri La Dee Da
Lychee, Lime, Cranberry, Lemonade

Apple Upsetting the Almond Cart
Apple, Ruby Grapefruit Juice,
Orgeat Syrup and fresh Passionfruit

Penny Lane
Strawberry, Lime, White Sugar, Cranberry

Hi Mum & Dad

 Our drinks arrived on cue, with Mum, Dad and Patty enjoying their own little mocktail party. Andrew and I on the other hand opted for the wine pairings with our degustation. (who named these mocktails...seriously?)

 I do have an abnormal obsession with degustation bread so if restaurants want a happy Bernard, then an adequate amount of soft bread with velvety butter will do the trick. I can safely say that I left a happy man after being offered numerous slices of bread.

Smoked Salmon Consomme with
Saffron & Bacon

 After the barrage of starters we eventually began the chef's tasting menu which began with a light but flavoursome consomme. A super delicious combination of smoked salmon and bacon with some saffron for colour.

Crustaceans & Flavours

 A scrumptious trio of sea creatures served three ways!

Crab Wrapped in Lettuce Leaf

 More to it than the name suggests. A great bite size portion of succulent crab with the crunch of lettuce.

Cured Prawns

 Simplicity is sometimes the best way. Just imagine some perfectly cooked prawns with a light tangy sauce, done!

Crayfish Poached in Truffle Butter

 Anything with butter is already a bonus but when combined with truffles then all hell has broken loose. Someone call me an ambulance. Sorry, a little bit carried away. Anyhow the crayfish was beautiful and rest assured ... the truffle butter has disappeared on each plate.

Yellowfin Tuna, Pork Belly, Pink Grapefruit
Black Pepper Caramel

 One of my favourites of the night was this stack of pork, tuna and grapefruit. On the bottom is a thing slice of pork belly which is sat on by a fat slithering of seared tuna and a juicy mouthful of grapefruit. It is finished off with a delicious sweet and slightly peppery caramel sauce.

Petuna Ocean Trout, Crisp Quinoa, Tonburi
Miso Cream & Shitake Broth

 Seafood dishes ... keep em coming please. Another mouth watering piece of seafood on our plates and this time it's a gently smoked trout with quinoa for texture, tonburi as garnish, miso cream, and finished with slices of shitake and shitake broth. The broth is poured onto the plates at the table.

John Dory with Smoked Almond, Cauliflower
Brown Butter & Tamarind Vinaigrette 

 A pan fried hunk of john dory which is on a smooth layer of almond and cauliflower puree topped with brown butter and vinaigrette. A really succulent piece of fish which went really well with the puree.

Oysters
served with White Soy, Mirin & Lime

 From right to left: Claire De Lune, Merimbula, Smokey Bay
Now we turn our attention to some freshly chucked oysters. No clue what the names mean but I'm guessing they're just the types of oysters. Each kind varied in smoothness and sweetness but the family enjoyed them all.

Stir Fried Duck Breast, Nameko, Buckwheat
Spring Onion & Rhubarb

 We've officially stopped fishing and now we're greeted with a less frenetic dish of stir fried duck on a crumbling of nameko (potato), buckwheat and spring onion, topped with a film of rhubarb. Although quite nice, it was little bit chewy and wasn't as tasty compared to the seafood dishes earlier. Keep on fishing.

Toilet Shot

Lamb Eye of Loin, Smoked Lamb Sausage, Salt Bush
Parsley Root, Pickled Peach

 The second meat dish of the night was the lamb loin and lamb sausage. The lamb party also included friends from the forest which included salt bush and parsley root. This dish was very enjoyable but by this time we were raring for dessert. Oh yeah, it also came with a bowl of salad!

Served with some SALAD!

Smoked Cheddar Mousse with Pickled Aple
Crisp Rye & Mead

 Our final savoury course of the night was a delicate cheese dish which consisted of a smoked cheddar mousse with some crisp rye daggered into it's centre. A great variation of cheese and dip =)

Orange Sorbet
with Grapefruit & Elderflower Granita

 To cleanse the pallet we knocked down some orange sorbet which was accompanied with some grapefruit and elderflower granita. Looks like an oversized orange pearl.

Valrhona 'Ivory' Chocolate Yuzu Ganache, Yuzu Sponge
Honeycomb, Buttermilk Mousse & Mandarin Ice Cream

 Dessert couldn't have come soon enough! There were so many elements on this plate that it was impossible to really single out a particular taste that shone from the rest. A refreshing combination of chocolate with citrus along with some contrasting textures from honeycomb and yuzu sponge.

Rhubarb & Strawberries, Mascarpone, Pistachio
Rosella & Strawberry Sorbet

 Our final course of the night was worth waiting for. Mum and Dad were very intrigued by the whole poached strawberry which was incredibly soft and juicy inside. It was a dessert that just worked well overall and it was a great way to end the night.

 To end the night we finished with some petit fours and coffee. Thanks again to Andrew for taking us out for Mum's birthday! The food was excellent, especially the seafood (considering it's what you come here for) and it was awesome to enjoy some quality family time.

The Family

Bunny Rating-
Category: Fine Dining