The Cottage Bar & Kitchen, Balmain

 With places like The Cottage Bar & Kitchen (342 Darling Street, Balmain) it's no wonder that Balmain is developing into a hub full of great food and exciting things to do. Under Andrew's recommendation I researched into this place and thought it'd be a great place to take the other Bunnyblogger (the one that doesn't do anything on this blog, except eat and complain and make me pay for meals) ... oh right a.k.a Patty on a relaxed date! 

Front Courtyard

 I would highly recommend sitting in the front courtyard area as the greenery enhances the outdoorsy feel and besides, there's no greater anxiety than not knowing when a bird may fly over your table and drop you a special sort of gift. With that in mind, we took our time ordering to enhance such anxiety and ended up with a couple drinks on our table. 

Batlow Cloudy Cider/ McLaren Vale Ale
(both on tap)

 We hadn't tried the Batlow Cloudy Cider before but it was delicious, not overly sweet and had a relatively dry finish. McLaren Ale is also one of my favourite beers at the moment so it was a double win for the Bunnybloggers on this occasion. They also offer a great selection of craft beers and have a solid wine list too! 

Zucchini Fries
with Tomato Aioli

 Yes, yum! Zucchini fries is a must try. Something different and because it's a vegetable it's healthy right!? Ahahahha sorry I was trying to sound like someone on a diet. Anyway, if someone says that to you, just hit them back with a *you know potatoes are vegetables too right?* BOOM! Then await the awkward conversation. Right, back to the food. So the zucchini is tempura battered and is served unsalted but has a neat little serve of tomato aioli on the side (just little bits of tomato in normal aioli dip, but yes I would have loved some red coloured aioli as well!)

Seared Scallops
with Rocket, Fresh Fruit, Vinaigrette, Pancetta

A great entree to enjoy before heading into the mains. Scallops with rocket, thin slices of strawberry, little crunchy bits of pancetta and lightly finished with some vinaigrette. This had a bit of everything and I loved the daring combination of flavours on the plate. 

De Jamon - Monte Nevado Jamon Serrano (18 month)
with Pear, Walnuts, Rocket, Parmesan & Vincotto

 Thought I'd put three photos in there just because I couldn't pick between them. Their mains consist of wood fired pizzas and a small variety of other specials. Ignore the gibberish of the pizza's name because all you need to know is that it means 'cured Spanish ham' which is served with pear (couldn't really taste it that much to be honest), some crushed walnuts, rocket, shaved parmesan and finished off with a drizzle of vincotto. It was a pretty good pizza and there was nothing wrong with it but there were three others I also wanted to try! =(

Check these out: (you can find these on the menu)

Fun Guy - Field Mushroom Paste & Foir de Latte with Forest Mushrooms, Parmesan, Truffle Oil & Lemon

Portuguese Chicken - Marinated Chicken, Iceburg & Peri Peri Sauce

Hoi Sin Duck - Pulled Confit Duck Leg with Caramelized Hoi Sin, Vietnamese Herbs & Cashews

 The duck looks amazing, maybe next time. 

Hawaiian Style Beef Rib
served off the bone with
Passionfruit, BBQ Sauce & Salad

 My favourite of the day! Looks like the salad is growing beef ribs ... and honestly if it really was, wow ... just wow. If there were such a plant then sign me up. I'd have them growing everywhere around the house and I would grow some in a pot plant and bring it to uni with me. Who needs friends anyways, they're overrated when you have food this good. Okay, right. Beef ribs braised and deboned, then lathered with a coating of speciality BBQ sauce and passionfruit! Sounds weird but it was super delicious. It was actually an order from the 'Cottage Specials' menu which I'm assuming is ever-changing but hopefully it's still there. 

Fairground Plate for 2
Maple Candied Popcorn, House Made Orange Marshmallows,
Fairy Floss, Mini Ice-Cream Cones, Mini Toffee Apples,
& Peanut Brittle

 There's just too much happening on this plate. Like a kid at a candy shop our eyes gleamed at this plate sugar overdose. There were actually some other awesome desserts to choose from including an indulging banana split and their very own version of an eton mess. Although it did get a bit too sweet for us, each component on the plate was pretty tasty.  

 Although we left The Cottage Bar & Kitchen gasping for water from the dessert, I'd revisit any time to try the rest of their exciting menu. I almost forgot to mention! There was live music playing throughout the entire duration of our lunch which made the atmosphere even better. A not so shabby vocalist accompanied by his acoustic mate made our experience just that much more romantic. 

Bunny Rating-

Category: Pub/Bar