Sydney Eat Street: Truffles become the star ingredient in desserts
Truffles are appearing on more menus in restaurants and cafes around Sydney, with the tasty fungi being used in a variety of sweet dishes.
Eat Street
Don't miss out on the headlines from Eat Street. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Savoury dishes may stake claim to the black diamond of the kitchen, but with more and more menus featuring these fragrant fungi in desserts, it seems that truffles have a soft spot for sweets as well.
Take a tour of Sydney’s best eateries right here with The Sunday Telegraph’s Eat Street. Are you hungry for more inspiration? Follow us on Instagram or Twitter. #SydneyEatStreet
THE GANTRY
Listening to The Gantry’s head chef Thom Gorringe excitedly describe his recent excursion to The Blue Frog Truffle Farm, you can practically smell the damp earth and feel the crisp autumn air.
It’s that moment that Thom has tried to replicate in ‘Truffle Hunt’, the final dish of his four-course truffle menu.
“I wanted to transport people when they’re eating (dessert). Give some insight into what it’s like when you’re finding a truffle. The sights, sounds and smells and things that you’ll see.”
True to its name, you’ll need to borough for this black diamond — a dark chocolate shell filled with truffle-infused mousse — nestled amid hazelnut milk chocolate Gianduja, truffle and vanilla ice cream, caramel crumb, then gently covered bronze fennel, viola, and leaf-shaped biscuits (the Maple leaf is a nod to the winters he spent working — and snowboarding — in Canada), “to make it look alive like the forest floor”.
“This looks so much like the spot where we found the truffle buried in dark soil under a layer of dry autumn leaves that crunched and crackled when you walked,” Gorringe says, adding that within the dessert there are several hazelnut elements “because at the truffle farms generally, the trees of choice are always either hazelnut or oak trees — they’re the easiest to grow in Australia’s climate — so I tried to use flavours of hazelnut to show that link between the truffle and the tree. Just like the old saying, ‘What grows together, goes together’.”
The four-course Truffle Menu is available from July 1 to August 30. $189 pp, matching wines an additional $69pp.
— 11 Hickson Rd, Walsh Bay; thegantry.com.au
THE VALLEY CAFE
Some say that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, but for Jacqui Ektoros, head chef at The Valley Specialty Coffee Cafe, it’s truffle season that warms her heart — and she’s more than happy to share the love.
Inspired by a recent trip to the truffle farms in Western Australia, this year’s menu features five dishes — braised truffle beef cheek, ham hock croquette, crème brulee truffle cake, and the fan favourite, Peking duck pasta.
Of course, it wouldn’t be truffle season with Ektoros’ famous Chocolate Truffle Crumpet — sitting atop an artisanal chocolate crumpet from (Crumpets by Merna), is a hazelnut crème patisserie, fresh mandarins, roasted hazelnuts, thyme, and a generous scoop of truffle-infused ice cream topped with truffle-infused Tasmanian blossom honey, chocolate shavings, and fresh truffle. Just like Santa, it’s well worth the wait.
— Shop 8/35 Coonara Ave, West Pennant Hills; facebook.com/TheValleyWPH/
SOKYO
True truffle lovers would climb every mountain and ford every stream if they knew they’d find their dream dessert.
Fortunately, Sydneysiders need only trek to Sokyo in Pyrmont and order the Truffle Mont-Blanc, head chef Daniel Kwak’s version of the classic Parisian dessert named after the highest mountain of the Mont Blanc Alpine massif.
Traditionally made with vermicelli-shaped chestnut puree swirled to a point around a cake then topped with whipped cream to resemble a snowy-peak.
Kwak’s version, however, has the strands wrapped around a chocolate brownie and rum-infused whole chestnut, but in place of snow-caps, he has crowned it with gold leaf, rather fitting as truffles are often referred to as black gold.
“We find that truffle and chestnut pair very well together and are both in peak season at the moment,” Kwak says.
“We’re thinking outside the box and innovating with putting it in a dessert, pushing the boundaries to create delicious flavours.”
Alongside the Mont-Blanc is a delicate scoop of truffle and vanilla ice cream nestled atop dark chocolate crumbs and finished off with grated black truffle. A dream indeed.
— The Star, G/80 Pyrmont Rd, Pyrmont; star.com.au
TEXTBOOK PATISSERIE
Truffle croissants are back! Chef/co-owner John Ralley brings back his annual Black Truffle croissants, an eagerly anticipated delight that practically sells out the moment the doors are flung open.
This year, he added a few new treats, including a Neenish Black Truffle tart with black truffled custard and freshly shaved black truffle.
“The delicate egg custard allows the fragrance of the truffles to shine while the slight salty housemade puff balances out the richness and sweetness of the aromatic custard and truffles,” he says.
Ralley’s culinary pedigree and imagination are revealed in his creative croissants (which change seasonally and often weekly) and elegant gateaux (petite cakes) that have given Textbook Patisserie a cult-like following no time is it more evident than truffle season.
“We’re always working on innovative ways in which to incorporate and pair fresh black truffle that balances and highlights the rich earthy flavour without overpowering the truffle,” Ralley says.
Another addition to the collection is chef Chris Ranzerbacher’s Truffle Banana cake; Truffled diplomat mousse with truffle meets banana rum gelee.
“The creamy mousse really brings out the vanilla notes and rich flavour in the truffle,” Ranzerbacher says.
During Textbook’s Truffle Weekends (Saturday and Sundays through August), Ralley will be rotating out a variety of treats so fans can look forward to something different (and delicious) with each visit. Definitely, something to put on the calendar.
— 274 Botany Rd, Alexandria; textbookpatisserie.com.au
DEVON CAFE
Around this time in the not-too-distant past, culinary history was being made in a humble cafe off Devonshire St in Strawberry Hills when the ambitious team at Devon Cafe went about bringing truffles to the masses.
Rather than being constrained to savoury dishes at fine-dining establishments, they put more approachable items on the menu such as truffle Egg Sando (omelette, cep emulsion and fresh truffle), Truffle Mie Goreng (fresh egg noodles, Asian mushrooms, porcini bumbu, chicharron, fried shallots, soft egg, fresh truffle), truffle curly fries, and the decadent (and Insta-famous) Truffle Sundae (truffle ice cream, Devon’s truffle honey, Devon’s Sea salt and fresh truffle).
And just like that, a new wave of truffle enthusiasts was born.
— Shop 19, 200 Barangaroo Ave, Barangaroo; 36 Blue St, North Sydney; devoncafe.com.au
KOI DESSERT BAR
The renowned pastry palace, KOI Dessert Bar may have left its long-held location on Kensington St, but their famous Truffle Opera Slice lives on at their new home in Darling Square’s The Exchange.
This work of art is made with seven layers of hazelnut, sea salt, and a coffee jelly topping set with truffle slices, and as befits dessert-royalty, finished off with a glimmer of gold gilding. Head to Haymarket to hunt this one down.
— Darling Square, The Exchange at Maker’s Dozen, Haymarket; koidessertbar.com.au
GOODFIELDS EATERY
Sandwiches may be an easy go-to for lunch but at Goodfields Eatery in Lindfield, they’ve made it a must for dessert as well with the “Egmont Truffle Ice-Cream Brownie Sandwich”.
In collaboration with New Zealand honey company Egmont Honey, this sweet treat is filled with truffle-infused vanilla soft serve wrapped in a brownie sandwich, dipped in truffle-infused chocolate, and topped with Egmont Manuka honey puffed rice. Priced at $18.
— Shop 4/5 23/41 Lindfield Ave, Lindfield; goodfields.com.au
AUVERS CAFE
Art abounds at this chic cafe, appropriately named after the resting place of renowned painter Vincent van Gogh – Auvers-sur-Oise.
From the striking contemporary murals to the artisanal cocktails, Auvers is a hub of creativity so it’s no surprise come truffle season, mid-year two-month window, the celebrated and elusive black gold has inspired its own menu, including Nomnesy Bread and Butter Pudding, truffle cream Anglaise, honeycomb, orange curd, fresh shaved truffle. Tres magnifique.
— Shop 4, 12 Nicolle Walk; auverscafe.com.au
HELLO AUNTIE
As more and more diners begin to appreciate truffles’ culinary versatility, restaurants and cafes have become more inclined to include a larger variety of truffle dishes to their Autumn and Winter menus.
While modern Vietnamese restaurant, Hello Auntie has always offered a truffle menu, in the past, it’s their cocktails and sweeter selections such as the Banh ong nhồi kem nam truffle – a cannoli-shaped fried pastry filled with truffle creme patissiere ($15) garnering much of the attention.
— Darling Square, 16 Nicolle Walk, Haymarket; hello-auntie.com.au
Winter warmers to celebrate the season
Everyone is happy to see the sun peeking through the clouds, but winter’s not all bad. Bid farewell to the colder days with one last hurrah of warming fare.
Sniffing out Sydney’s best truffle desserts
Save the best for last. As truffle season comes to a close, be sure to indulge in some sweet treats featuring the annual earthy gem.