Bar H – Surry Hills
Location: 80 Campbell St, Surry Hills
Cuisine: Modern Australian with an Asian Influence
$$$ per person spent inc drinks: $50 (normally $80+)
AMBIENCE
Dels says ‘Very sleek cozy bar for cocktails and something
to share. But too small and crowded for dinner.’
DKay says ‘Small, dark but cosy. Good if you’re going for a
drink but our table was simply too small to cater for 4 ppl. The food didn’t
fit and I couldn’t see what I was eating’
Kaan says ‘I loved the way they designed
the bar as open plan and the kitchen was also a part of the actual bar. Which allowed
you to see exactly how they prepared your meal. The windows facing the bar was
also wide and open which gave some character to the venue. The only let down
was the tables. They were very small. I think I have never dined on a smaller
table then this. The table would barely fit 2 people comfortably but they
wanted 4 of us to dine on this through an 8 course banquet!
Bron says ‘An intimate venue indeed… Do not go here with
your work colleagues or you will be up in your Financial Manager’s business..
AWKWARD! A little more space and light would have been appreciated’
FOOOODDDDD
We ordered the eight course banquet:
Crisp fried oldman salt
bush with chilli mayo
Dels says ‘Was so impressed with this dish! So incredibly
tasty, I wanted to finish the whole plate to myself! Props to the chef for
making leaves taste SO delish!
DKay says ‘Really interesting and so tasty! It was creative
and got me excited for the rest’
Kaan says ‘Absolutely loved this dish! It
was my dish of the night and being the first dish it set the standard of
expectation for the other courses. The combination of the mayo and the fried
bush leaves. I haven’t had anything like this so far dinning in Sydney. Very
unique - I would go back just for this dish and have it with some cocktails!
Bron says ‘I honestly expected it to be fish, not leaves…
this was so tasty and so unique… highly highly recommend this dish!’
Cucumber and black fungi
salad
Dels says ‘Simple flavours, light and tasty.
DKay says ‘Very tasty and refreshing. Interesting textures.
One of my fave dishes.
Kaan says ‘I wasn’t too amazed by this
dish but it was very flavoursome for a mushroom salad.’
Bron says ‘This wasn’t something that stood out for me… it
was a nice, fresh, light dish.’
Steamed chicken and prawn wontons with chilli dressing
Dels says ‘There was nothing really special about this dish.
DKay says ‘Nothing special to be honest. Comparable to one’s
local Chinese takeaway shop.’
Kaan says ‘This was a very yummy dish. I
like wontons in general maybe that’s why I’m bit biased. The flavours did burst
in your mouth with this first bite. It was also bit tangy which I enjoyed.
However, I’m sure you can get better wontons in Chinatown and for a better
price.’
Bron says ‘I’ve had much better for less’
Crisp sesame leaf with pork
and kim chi
Dels says ‘Tasted too much like the first dish. Didn’t
understand why they would have a dish so similar to the salt bush?’
DKay says ‘Sesame leaf was interesting.’
Kaan says ‘I also enjoyed this dish allot.
It was bit too porky for my palate but I could look past that as the whole
concept was interesting with the pork being fried in a leaf. Another dish that
I would like to have as a snack whilst having a couple of cocktails.
Bron says ‘I really didn’t enjoy this dish but then again, I
am not the biggest fan of pork dishes unless it is crispy bacon, or a really
well done pork belly… I would skip this’
Warmed silken tofu with
black bean and chilli sauce
Dels says ‘This was some yummy tofu! Silky, fluffy and the
sauce added a great flavour.
DKay says ‘I love tofu so can never go wrong in my eyes.
Kaan says ‘I didn’t think much of this
dish. It was actually probably my least favourite dish on the night. The tofu
was way too gooey for my liking!
Bron says’ l loved this dish – the tofu was perfectly balanced
with the black bean and chilli sauce. Very nice light dish overall’
Braised beef cheek with
winter vegetables
Dels says ‘The beef tasted over cooked. Didn’t like the
flavour at all.’
DKay says ‘Nice and soft. It had some great flavours and
perfect for a cold winters day.’
Kaan says ‘This dish is a perfect winter
warmer – loved how the beef cheek was so soft succulent. The only thing that
was a letdown was the way it was served. I don’t think it is an ideal dish to
share and probably should be served for one person. The whole point of this
menu is for sharing and I felt like this was the wrong dish to have on a
sharing menu.
Bron says Trust me, this is a great dish, but it’s nothing I
haven’t had before…so far I’m not sold’
Crisp skinned spatchcock
with five flavoured sauce
Dels says ‘Contender for my favorite dish of the night. The
spatchcock was very moist and flavoursome, and the sauce was a great
accompaniment’
DKay says ‘Spatchcock was nice and crisp and cooked
perfectly. Nice end to the meal.’
Kaan says ‘They did the spatchcock really
nice. I haven’t had spatchcock served with Asian flavours before and I thought
it worked really well. The spatchcock was succulent and not dry and the five
sauce concept worked really well.’
Bron says ‘One of the better dishes of the night for me – I
did enjoy this, although I was trying to get the essence of this ‘famous’ five
flavoured sauce, but it’s nothing too special… sorry to say’
OVERALL TEAM
VIEWSSSS
Dels says ‘I came with high expectations and I received a
bit of everything. Loved the look and feel of the place, would definitely be
the place to go with someone one on one. You would expect fantastic service in
a place like this that has a great reputation; I found them less than friendly
and unhelpful with more than one situation. Half the dishes were good and the
other half, not so good… I will give them another chance to redeem themselves
though J
DKay says ‘Expected more to be honest. Place has a nice
ambience for a quiet drink but for a meal, it was little too dark and trying to
fit 4 people around a small square table is ridiculous.
Kaan says ‘In general I did enjoy the
food, even though it was struggle to eat our food on the world’s smallest
dining table for 4 people! I might even go back for some of their dishes and
have them as snacks with their amazing cocktails. You have to have a cocktail
when you visit Bar H as they a proper cocktail bar and know how to make them
properly.
However, the biggest thing that stood out was their SERVICE! It was probably the worst service I have ever had at a
chef hatted establishment in Australia! The waitress was rude from the start
and to top it off at the end of the night she made us fetch our own umbrellas
from a bucket in the darkness where we spent some time trying to figure out
which umbrella was ours. To top this off my very expensive umbrella got STOLEN and the manager on the night was
not even apologetic. They asked me if they could take my umbrella without
informing me that my umbrella would be accessible by anyone in the venue which
was sitting in a bucket next to the toilet! At the end of the day I would have
not trusted them with my umbrella if I was made aware on how they would handle
it and where they would store it. For this reason I will not be going back to
Bar H as they really handled this situation extremely poorly by simply saying “these
sorts of things happen” and they are “not liable” and that this was an
acceptable reason for me.
Bron says ‘This is my biggest disappointment in the history
of Sydney dining… no, it wasn’t bad… this was an OK restaurant, an OK vibe, and
OK food… but that is not what I expected after seeing Hamish on Masterchef… I
was too excited to try the famous Bar H… boy, disappointed deluxe. I would have
gone back for a second try if the service was up to scratch – but there is no
way I will pay someone money to be rude to me’
KAAN WILL SHELVE (i.e. not very good)
1. I will double shelve
the service! If you want to be
treated like you’re dining at a fast food restaurant then this place is for
you! The only difference is that at MacDonalds you will pay $10 for a meal but
here you will pay $80 for the same treatment. At least at Macca’s they are fast
and efficient!
AND THE Stolen Umbrella GOES TO:
Dels says ‘The oldman salt bush for sure!’
DKay says ‘The oldman salt bush!.’
Kaan says ‘I’m going to go with the oldman salt bush with
chilli mayo and their cocktails!
Bron says ‘The oldman salt bush’
Team has already gone to the next experience actually eek –we are
getting bad at putting these up on time… but you see, this is because we have
jobs to attend… the troubles of paying bills in Sydney :D
Hint : There’s a shop for those under the sea
Date we
visited Bar H. 22/05/2013
