Universal
Location: Republic 2 Courtyard Palmer Street (between Burton and
Liverpool streets), Darlinghurst
Cuisine: Modern Australian
$$$ per person spent inc drinks: $100
We all watched Christine Mansfield coach this year’s Masterchef
team in producing her famous Gaytime Goes Nuts dessert and we were
instantaneously persuaded to try it for ourselves! *drool* But, one does not
just go to Universal just for the dessert and so here we were, spoiling
ourselves again at one of Sydney’s better restaurants. Watching Christine work
her magic in the kitchen while we ordered was a highlight from this colourful
spot… but famous TV personality or not, we want our readers to know the truth.
And the truth is it could be your 10 out of 10 night, or your biggest moment of
dissonance! And here’s why…
AMBIENCE
Dels says ‘Nice bar area. Nice lighting. If youre sitting
inside facing the back wall, I hope you like bright orange because a boring
wall is the only thing you will be looking at. They could do more with the
place.
DKay says ‘Well suited for its surroundings. Bright &
bold colours gave it a fun & cheerful vibe.’
Kaan says ‘Least impressive thing I
experienced that night. It was too bland. It was colourful but there was no
artwork?!’
Bron says ‘Well everything is modern and colourful which I
quite liked – the chairs are comfortable, the lighting pleasing… the menus are
fabulous and probably a highlight. I’m not sure this gets a thumbs up for what
it is meant to be though and I was slightly disappointed but it was good
enough’
FOOOODDDDD
We ordered:
Just so you know, the plates are all ‘tasting
plates’, and we ordered the following three tasting plates per person (well
Kaan ordered four, he had two desserts ;P)
Tasting Plates for Dels
STARTER: smoked tofu and shiitake mushroom
sandwich, yellow beans, tempeh and chilli caramel $28
MAIN: roasted john dory, spanner crab and mint salsa, palm
heart and spiced coconut $31
DESSERT: gaytime goes nuts. honeycomb ice
cream, caramel parfait, chocolate crunch, salted hazelnut caramel $23
Tasting Plates for DKay
STARTER: sichuan pepper spiced duck, snake
bean and eggplant sambal, XO chilli $29
MAIN: braised veal shin, fried turnip cake, kim chi broth,
brussel sprouts, oyster vinaigrette $31
DESSERT: mister fawlty. Basil panna cotta,
strawberry jelly, raspberries, orange croquant $19
STARTER: grillled mozzarella, crispy bacon, freekah croquettes, snowpeas $28
MAIN: slow braised rabbit, chorizo and celeriac, swiss chard,
gruyere cloud $28
DESSERT: china white. White peach curd, white
poppy seed glaze, lemon marshmallow, moscato poached peach, lychees $19
gaytime goes nuts. honeycomb ice cream, caramel parfait,
chocolate crunch, salted hazelnut caramel $23
Tasting Plates for Bron
STARTER: rare roasted venison, toasted
sesame, chocolate, red miso, black olives, pink turnips and beetroot $28
MAIN: steamed snapper, toasted walnut crumble, coriander
yogurt relish, freekah, pomegranate and cucumber $29
DESSERT: gaytime goes nuts. honeycomb ice
cream, caramel parfait, chocolate crunch, salted hazelnut caramel $23
smoked tofu and shiitake
mushroom sandwich, yellow beans, tempeh and chilli caramel $28
Dels says ‘Absolutely divine! Could not fault this dish. It
is the best tofu dish I have ever tasted by a mile. The texture of the tofu was
silky and melt in your mouth. All ingredients come together perfectly. The
chilli caramel was on the sweeter side, but still incredibly tasty and
presentation was beautiful.
Dels says ‘ This dish is Asian influenced, the spiced
coconut is actually a broth. The John Dory fillet was a little dry; placed on
top of tasty parm heart and other vegetables with small strips of de-shelled
spanner crab on top. The flavours of this dish were very light. I enjoyed it
but it wasn’t a memorable dish for me.
-------------------------------
DKay says ‘Tasty dish. Flavours could not be faulted but
dish was nothing special. I made a wrong selection (I blame my duck obsession!)’
DKay says ‘Sounded better than it tasted. I expected some
bite to dish with the kim chi broth but that was not the case. “Brussel sprouts”
was a singular leaf placed on top with vinaigrette spooned in,.Once again, a
tasty dish but nothing special.’
DKay says ‘Light & refreshing which was good after my
main selections. Not as visually creative as some of her other desserts. Also
there were mini strawberries and crunchy flakes placed on top which were a good
touch to taste and texture but meant that (once again) the dessert did not
match the description.’
-------------------------------
Kaan says ‘This was absolutely amazing, I
was so surprised that it would be this tasty! It had so much flavour, it was
fresh and had such a different twist to fresh mozzarella dishes. The croquettes
were little bundles of surprise within the mozzarella’
Kaan says ‘Just when I thought things couldn’t
get better, this dish came out. Creativity it gets ten out of ten. For flavour
ten out of ten. The gruyere cloud was to die for and the rabbit was succulent
and tender. I would insist you order this dish – the waiter said it was his
favourite, and I agree with him.’
Kaan says ‘This was very nice. If I wasn’t
a chocolate lover then this would be something I would order again, but since I
am a chocolate lover then you just cannot go past the Gaytime goes nuts.’
-------------------------------
Bron says ‘OH Dear! Just remembering this makes me sad. OK,
as a South African born, venison is close to my heart. This venison had been
cooked tenderly, but had lost all of its flavour. It could have been the local
beef from Coles, honestly… there was nothing to it. It was dead. It had been
paired with a sour salad that didn’t seem to go at ALL with the beetroot puree,
nor the meat… I couldn’t taste any chocolate.. over all, this was honestly my
biggest let down and it was extremely hard to watch the others eat their better
dishes!’
Bron says ‘Clearly this wasn’t my night. OK lets start with
the positives… the toasted walnut crumble added a lovely texture, and the fresh
yogurt relish with pomegranate and cucumber was delish… BUT my snapper!!! To my
dismay my fish had been severely overcooked ;-(. FAIL! $60 wasted so far!’
gaytime goes nuts. honeycomb ice cream,
caramel parfait, chocolate crunch, salted hazelnut caramel $23
Dels says ‘This dessert is not your average dessert, that’s
for sure. It’s a delight for all the senses. The moment it’s on the table in
front of you, it’s a pleasure to look at. Then taking your spoon and cracking
the chocolate crunch; seeing the icecream oozing out with the concealed
hazelnuts are another delight. Lastly, you scoop up this masterpiece, have a
taste and it is everything you thought it would be. Yummmmm!!!’
Kaan says ‘Yes, I ordered two desserts but
I wasn’t going to bypass this dessert; we had been talking about this for
months! It definitely was not a disappointment. If you are a chocolate lover
you have to order this! It is the best dessert I’ve had at any of the venues
I’ve been to. I could easily go back and just have two servings of this and
walk away very happy.’
Bron says ‘Oh my goodness – the reviews of this dessert was
right! It was sooo right… I finished mine all to myself without a second
thought. Everything about this dessert is amazing, and I think you’ll need to
try it for yourself. YES what they say about this is true. YES this is worth $23!’
VINNOOOOOOOOO
Kaan,
Bron, Dels ordered the following wine:
Meyer-Fonné Reserve Riesling Alsace $18
Bron says ‘As my family has a place in Alsace, and I’m quite
accustomed to the wines from the region, I found this Riesling to be very
disappointing.’
Dels says ‘Very
sweet and fruity
OVERALL TEAM
VIEWSSSS
Dels says ‘The food is the highlight of this place that’s
for sure! I was very satisfied with my meal and will recommend Universal to
friends. I think it’s wise to speak with wait staff about the menu as they are
quite knowledgeable and will steer you in the right direction. The meals that
were recommended by the wait staff ended up being the tastiest ones. The menu
is great and I enjoyed the small tasting plates. The restaurant itself is a bit
boring and obviously pricey but this place is all about the food.’
DKay says ‘It was hit and miss. Between 4 friends, the
disparity between the dishes was far too great. Some dishes were clearly more
creative, tasty and appeared to involved more skills than others. For the
price, it should not be luck of the draw of selecting the right tasting plates.
Having said this, I would go back for their desserts.’
Kaan says ‘Great vibe in the restaurant,
the service was exceptional. It was nice to see Christine Mansfield come out
and say hello to her guests in the restaurant. All the food that I had was
exceptional. I would definitely recommend anyone who wants to impress their
guests to take them to this restaurant in Sydney. You won’t be disappointed the
only let down will be the bill at the end ;P’
Bron says ‘If I hadn’t come here with my friends and tasted
some of their dishes, Universal would never ever see my face again. My two main
tasters were a disaster. The dessert did make up for it yes, but the overall
experience for me was a let-down. I would definitely recommend that you choose
the tasters wisely and don’t miss out on the Gaytime goes Nuts’
KAAN WILL SHELVE (i.e. not very good)
1. The Spicy Olive Oil you get with
the bread (why is this even on sale for $11 a bottle?)
AND THE GOLDEN GAYTIME GOES TO:
Dels says ‘It’s a toss-up between my tofu dish and the
Gaytime Goes Nuts. They were both brilliant.’
DKay says ‘The location. One of my fave eateries is next
door but they don’t do dessert...’
Kaan says ‘The Gaytime goes nuts without a
shadow of a doubt. Up to now, China Dolls desserts was absolutely amazing, but
this bypassed them by far.’
Bron says ‘The Gaytime goes Nuts!!! Absolutely delicious,
worth every calorie!!’
Team meets next month…
Hint : Hollywood with a B
Date we
visited Universal: 14/11/2012
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