ARIA, Sydney

On Saturday night, we concluded Steve’s birthday week with a dinner at ARIA. I have never been to such a restaurant before so it was a real treat and I loved every minute of it.

 

First up we went to O bar for a pre-drink because we loved the view so much last time we were there. Unfortunately for us, we didn’t get a window seat but the view was still spectacular so no losses there.

When we walked through the front door and after confirming my reservation, they promptly wished Steve a Happy Birthday before leading us to our table. I thought the restaurant was well spaced out and was happy it wasn’t too crowded or loud. We chose the 7 course chefs tasting menu and a nice bottle of wine to match. Honestly, I could not fault the food at all. I didn’t love every course, but that was more my palate rather than the food itself. The absolute best course in my opinion was the duck consommé and I have been dreaming of it ever since.

The service was impeccable and the staff really had a lot of knowledge of the food and wine. They were also attentive without being too overbearing which I find with a lot of restaurants.

I would write down all of the courses, but I’m not sure it is that interesting, so here is the link so you can take a look yourself :-)

Dinner took a few hours which is expected when you have 7 courses. They took their time bringing the food out each time which was so welcome. I didn’t roll out the door like I have done after degustation’s previously.

Afterwards we continued the night at the Grain bar at the Four Seasons hotel. Originally the plan was a night cap before heading home and before I knew it, it was 1:30am and the lights had come on. Steve is a whiskey fan so was asking the knowledgeable bar tender for recommendations. Needless to say, the tipsier he became, the more expensive the whiskey was.

ARIA is really a fantastic restaurant. There is nothing at all that I could fault from our visit.