René Redzepi takes on Australia: Day 1 - Eating Out

René Redzepi travelled to Sydney, Australia, for the start of the Crave Sydney International Food Festival (until 31 October) during which he also promoted his book Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine. Cookbook editor Laura Gladwin went with him and reports on the days, dinners and foraging that took place out in the bush.

Day 1

René arrived in Sydney on Wednesday 29 September and headed to dinner at Marque Restaurant (recently named Sydney’s best restaurant by the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide and winner of the Breakthrough Award on the S.Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants list).

The fourteen courses were elegant and poised, with clear, pure flavours. Dinner started with a local Pittwater rock oyster topped with grilled sea foam and ended with an ecrasé (‘broken’) chocolate mousse with eucalyptus and coconut.

Standout dishes were the langoustine with lemon curd, vadouvan (an Indian spice mixture from France) and grilled cos lettuce; cod liver with scales (the cod’s own scales, toasted and crispy), langoustine crème anglaise and cucumber; and veal sweetbread with new season morels from Victoria, rosemary and celeriac.  The dishes were intelligently paired with wines including a delicious Viognier and Syrah from Victoria.  

We are off to a good start!