Image Credit: Earl Carter
Consider yourself a sweet tooth / chocoholic / separate compartment kind of person? This restaurant guide’s for you. Five confections you really should try next time you’re dining out (and what’s on the last page of the menu is the deciding factor).
BLACK by Ezard: Warm couverture ganache, fresh mint ice cream, raspberry mousse, chocolate cookie
BLACK’s dessert is a true visual spectacle. A delicate orb of chocolate encases delicate ice cream which is revealed by the pouring of warm couverture ganache, melting away the outer casing to reveal the hidden gems within. Beautiful smooth textures of chocolate, mint and raspberry marry together creating pure indulgence. Hats off to anyone who can resist licking the plate!
Sepia: The Golden Egg
Three-Hatted Chef Martin Benn was inspired by the flavours of the Schweppes Orange and Passionfruit Mineral Water when he was struck by a fancy food fight impulse. The result? You can now find ‘The Golden Egg’ on Sepia’s menu. The dish looks like an egg, but sprinkled in gold (and has been moulded from one too). Don’t hesitate – once it lands on your table, tap it confidently with your spoon so the ingredients can ooze out. It’s flavours work in taste-buds symmetry including persimmon, yuzu and coconut.
The Sailor’s Club: Tiramisu
Whatever you do at The Sailor’s Club, don’t skim over Tiramisu if you’re not usually a fan. This is like nothing you’ve ever has before. Think a deconstructed nitrogen-attacked tiramisu crumble that comes to the table smoldering. While your dinner guests oow and ahh with envy, you’ll dig around the cold Valrhona crumble, coffee crumbs, mascarpone, sponge and the perfect amount of espresso.
The Cut Bar & Grill: Deconstructed Cherry Ripe
Grant Croft (ex Aria, Biota Dining) saves his best for last, so moo-ve over steaks, you are about to be trumped by the Australian version of a Cherry Ripe. This dessert is a linear masterpiece of coconut soil, meringue, cherry, sorbet with a heavenly sphere tempered of dark chocolate. Elegance, visual gratification and oodles of fun in one mouthful, the deconstructed Cherry Ripe takes you on a Heston-esque romp around the school yard. Wait for the popping candy once you’ve cracked the chocolate sphere and scooped up the sand bed of coconut, sorbet and mini meringues.
Swine & Co: Donuts
This new restaurant may be all about the pig, but at dessert you get to be the piggy. The sugary hit of three plump donuts is cut by a green apple sorbet and elevated into the realm of fine dining with a paper thin slice of dehydrated skin. It’s the perfect combo of hot, cold, sweet, sour and a crunch.
