Valentine’s Day eats and treats with Sydney Eat Street
It is the most romantic day of the year and for all those couples out there looking to celebrate Valentine’s Day in Sydney, here are some of the restaurants offering great food and ambience, with a side dish of romance.
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VIZIO CAFFE E CUCINA
Valentine’s Day has a special place in the hearts of everyone at Vizio, but none more so than co-owner Matia Zoffoli and his wife Katia who essentially fell in love over food.
“Love and food is just a part of the Italian culture,” Matia told Sydney Eat Street.
“If it’s a special occasion, food is always a part of it.”
Matia also knows the value of persistence. He tried again and tried again to get Katia out on a date and now, 10 years later he’s just part of a larger family.
Matia says what makes Vizio successful is that they strive to develop a connection with their customers noting that when people see the passion that goes in to the food, the commitment to service and a general love of family, this is what makes Vizio so welcoming.
It’s what also makes it a delightful place to enjoy their seven-course Valentine’s Day degustation, which includes a number of Italian classics that have been given a modern twist by chef Salvatore D’Alierio.
For dinner, guests can expect as spaghettone with zucchini puree, risotto with king prawns and wagyu flank steak and of course, a chocolate dessert. ($145pp, with wine pairing $55pp)
With a menu like that, you’ll be fawning over the food but to Matia “it’s the love and connection that keeps people coming back”.
— 1/52-58 William St, Woolloomooloo; viziocc.com.au
BIBO WINE BAR
“Wow. Just wow.” It’s a lofty goal but it’s the reaction head chef Leonard “Leo” Michaud strives for when customers sit back after an enjoyable meal.
“I want to create a unique experience that balances food and love,” says Leo.
“Something best shared with one another.
“This menu is about caring. Care for one another on Valentine’s Day, care for our own love of food and, most recently, care for our suppliers and their current hardships.”
The attention to detail extends beyond the kitchen with co-owners Jose Silva (former head chef at three-hatted Guillaume at Bennelong), Jonathan Mallet (ex-Guillaume) and master sommelier, Louella Mathews (e-Rockpool) rounding out the team.
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For Valentine’s Day, Leo will be putting forth Pacific oysters, king salmon (gravlax style) with a cucumber, green mustard and horseradish jelly, mouth-watering seared Moreton Bay bugs encased in a zucchini flower topped with sobrassada espuma followed by veal backstrap, and ultimately a ruby red dessert with a raspberry and lychee open macaron and a delicate scoop of strawberry sorbet.
Be sure to save a tiny bit of room for the end, as no meal at bibo is ever complete without chef Jose Silva’s Portuguese tarts.
— 7 Bay St, Double Bar; bibowinebar.com.au
KOI
The stunning desserts normally garner all the attention but for Valentine’s Day, KOI’s savoury side will be vying for attention with a six-course degustation ($120pp).
The menu features dishes that are as delicious as they are creative starting with the Foie Gras Ganache with a potato cream mochi doughnut followed by scallops with coconut dashi, a parmesan bubble with mushroom tea, spanner crab agnolotti, wagyu tri-tip and of course the piece de resistance, dessert.
There’ll be a couple sweet creations to round up the meal – a vibrant red “Rose” made of jasmine gelato, strawberry, lychee and strawberry glass along with the cute and clever “Bee Mine”, a camomile cake with milk gelato, milk chocolate ganache and puffed buckwheat. ($120pp)
For the lovebirds just looking for a treat both those cakes can be enjoyed as part of the Two for Two dessert menu ($50 per couple, February 14-16, bookings required) or go solo and pre-order a limited-edition, heart shaped Valentine’s Cake made with peach, blood orange, rose and mascarpone.($18 each, available at KOI Chippendale, KOI Ryde, KOI Macquarie.
ALIBI BAR & KITCHEN
Valentine’s Day at Alibi is an entire experience in artistry with its next level plant-based dishes delightfully presented in a way that adds, rather than overwhelms the dining experience.
It’s the special occasion menus though where head chef Jordan Brogan excels as evidenced by his eight-course vegan Valentine’s Day meal.
You’ll start off with a glass of bubbles on arrival and finish off the meal with the romantic raspberry and rose pavlova topped with fairy floss, petals, raspberry cream and love hearts.
“There’s nothing that says Valentine’s Day quite like roses,” notes Jordan. ($80pp with alcohol pairing, additional $60pp or non-alcoholic drink pairing $45pp).
Two seatings at 6.30pm or 8.30pm.
— Ovolo Hotel, 6 Cowper Wharf Roadway, Woolloomooloo; alibibar.com.au
FLUFFY CRUNCH
Flowers and chocolate can be so cliche so this year, go for a much more novel pairing with a Long-stem box filled with 10 tiny tubs of gourmet flavoured fairy floss.
A sweet creation from the award-winning producers, Fluffy Crunch, you can indulge in the likes of salted caramel, apple pie and crushed cookies. You’ll win hearts for sure. ($69.95).
CORSO BRIO
Pop in to Bel & Brio for lunch, but for a romantic dinner, it’s the romantic formal dining room, Corso Brio that lures the lovers.
Chef Davide Incardona has curated a five-course dinner featuring some of his favourite dishes including Catalana scarlet prawn crudo, homemade spaghetti with octopus ragu and to finish, a white chocolate and strawberry fondant with black sesame and rose gelato along with a Frangelico gel. ($110pp)
— T3.01/300 Barangaroo Ave, Barangaroo; belandbrio.com.au
FICH PETERSHAM
Show your date your sensible and sentimental side with seafood hotspot, Fich.
For a sweet finish, indulge in a specially made dessert from neighbouring bakery, Sweet Belem. ($140 for two).
— Shop 3, 98-106 Audley St, Petersham; fichpetersham.com
MANLY WHARF HOTEL
While the sandy beaches may be dotted with lovey-dovey couples, the real action is happening at Manly Wharf Hotel at their Swipe Right Party.
There’ll be ‘Traffic Light’ cocktails to get your message across – Yellow is ‘the swinger’, green is ‘ready to rumble’ and red is ‘stop it, I like it’.
Get grabby with a classic burger, thin-crust pizza or chips and wings.
— E Esplanade, Manly Wharf; wharfbar.com.au
BLACK BAR & GRILL
Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate. You’ll want to head straight to finish line for this set-menu’s decadent dessert — a chocolate dome in which hot chocolate is poured over it, melting the top to reveal the secret filling.
— The Star, 80 Pyrmont St, Pyrmont; star.com.au/sydney/eat-and-drink
RESTAURANT MOON
For the gourmands out there that view food as the ultimate aphrodisiac, this meal is for you.
You’ll marvel at the visual appeal of the plating and fawn over the delicate mix of flavours such as with the rice cracker, chicken liver pate and beetroot. So good you just might forget to whip out the camera.
— 346 Liverpool St, Darlinghurst; restaurantmoon.com.au
GELATISSIMO
For your special honeybunch, Gelatissimo has created a flavour worth of the nickname – the Beechworth Honey Crunch. Un-Bee-lievably yummy.
AZUMA
The sleek and refined surrounds of this Japanese restaurant hint at a menu that deftly combines skill with passion, tradition with innovation.
For an elegant dining experience this Valentine’s Day, chef/owner Kimitaka Azuma has created an eight-course meal that is sure to impress even the most particular palette with dishes such as cured Tasmanian salmon, crispy seaweed, avocado with ponzu dressing, blanched tuna cubes with ‘tosazu’ savoury meringue and pickled cucumber seared 2GR Full Blood wagyu, grilled ‘Onigawara-yaki’ lobster tail and finally, a creamy chestnut — chocolate mousse cake. ($165pp)
— Level 1, 2 Chifley Square, Sydney; azuma.com.au