Bathers Pavilion (Balmoral)

My last day in Sydney for 2012 - tomorrow, I fly out for a 6 week trip across Europe and Hong Kong. Yay me! Unfortunately, it would be the last chance that I'll get to spend with my closest friend before the New Year - so we went exploring again.

Bathers Pavilion at Balmoral is a place she has wanted to try, and it is a lovely place tucked inside the Pavilion. A bustling restaurant with lovely scenic views of the beach, and quite cute napkins too (see below)!

The menu on offer was quite interesting, so we agreed on trying the following: Cranberry Cocktail (non-alcoholic $7.80), Kingfish crueche (some salad-y thing) and the seared fish-of-the-day on parsley risotto.

I'm sorry for keeping this post rather short - I'm actually on my travels at the moment. Overall it was a mixed response - we loved the fish-of-the-day, and the parsley risotto was delicious. The kingfish was cold, which I was disappointed to sample - but apparently it IS meant to be served cold... so I have much still to learn. Taste was quite nice - but we loved the fish/risotto much more. Cocktail - very small portion for the price.

Overall, that reflects our perspective - for what we paid ($72.50 for an entree, a main, the cocktail and a soft drink), it wasn't good value. However, the experience of enjoying a decent hot meal indoors with seaside views is something to treasure.

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Bathers Pavilion (Balmoral)
4 The Esplanade
Balmoral 2088

How to get there: the 257 bus from Chatswood will take you there eventually, but driving yourself is recommended. Going south-bound along the M10 Spit Rd, turn left into Awaba St and head to Balmoral. If you're coming from the south, Awaba St has a no-right-turn limitation, so turn left away from the beach and do a legal U-ie, before heading down to Balmoral. The Pavilions themselves is impossible to miss - either find a 2P residential parking and walk, or pay for the 3P parking right in front.

Value: Entrees $20++, Mains $30++

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/70/750210/restaurant/Sydney/Mosman/Bathers-Pavilion-Balmoral"><img alt="Bathers' Pavilion on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/750210/biglink.gif" style="border:none;padding:0px;width:200px;height:146px" /></a>

Opera Kitchen: Cloudy Bay Fish Co.

So following on from our delightful lunch at Balmoral, we spent the afternoon mucking around and enjoying life, living in the moment.

Anyways, back to the food: dinner tonight was back in the City, exploring Opera Kitchen. This collection of four eateries combine to handle the pre-drinks/pre-dinner crowd for any performances in the Opera House, or in our case, Friday night after-work drinks. Arriving at 7pm, the place was packed in the 'downstairs' sit-down dining sector, likewise in the 'upstairs' area with many a fist clutching a beer, glass of wine, nibbles, a smoke, or something else.

If you haven't noticed, I'm enjoying this freedom to explore and eat out at different areas of Sydney, and this was an interesting experience in itself. A cross between casual eating with fine food is what I perceive... but isn't what we got.

Selection tonight, after excluding the Japanese and the Vietnamese/Asian eatery, was with the Cloudy Bay Fish Co., with a decent range of Australian food: fish and chips, burgers, etc.

Above is the Duck Pancake from Misschu (the Viet stall). For us Asians, $4 per pancake is pricey, and we've had fresher tasting ones elsewhere. For those who haven't had it, or don't want the associated mess with boning and cleaning up after a roast duck selection, then this is something to try at some point.

What I liked about it: hot and greasy (the duck, that is). A cold duck pancake does not do this dish justice.
Dislike: 'relatively' stale, compared to the fresh-out-of-a-Chinese-kitchen ones I've lived with.

Above is the Cajun Chicken burger, decent for $19.50 and the to-table delivery, but pricey for the portion sizing. I had no expectations, but my friend expected the Cajun to have a bit of a zing with it: this was essentially a simple chicken burger.

Below: the Cloudy Bay Fish Co. Tasting Plate. At $26 it wasn't cheap... And could be a lot better too. Four small mounds of assorted fish, served on an okay salad, with bland potato crisps... There are better dishes to sample.

Opera Kitchen: Cloudy Bay Fish Co.

Lower Concourse Level, Sydney Opera House
Bennelong Point, 2000

Hours: Evenings

Mains: $15-35 for most items.
Drinks: best purchased separately from the bar