The Cut Bar & Grill (and some birthday wishes)

This post is dedicated to 3 people. Firstly, NfOrCeR as this dinner was for his 30th birthday celebration - hope you had a great birthday my friend! And I am really glad I got to celebrate with you! Secondly is tanash - a big, big thank you, you know why. And last but certainly not least to E because today is his birthday and he loves a good piece of meat. Happy birthday E!! :)

So yes, meat features in this post. And really it should because meat is the absolute star of The Cut Bar & Grill. Now, I have to admit - being an Argyle restaurant I had some doubts. I didn't expect the food to be bad, I expected good food. I just didn't know whether it would be a great meal or whether it would be a case of style over substance. I'm not saying that Argyle is style over substance, just that a few frequenters are (a few, not all, and definitely none of my friends fall in this category). Maybe I think this because one can be refused entry to Argyle if one is not fashionably attired. It's also possible I was one of these said people the same night we came to The Cut to eat.

One last point about style. The Cut does have style. There's the pair of bullhorns overhead as you descend the stairs down to the underground restaurant. Marble tables, exposed sandstone and brick walls, timber ceiling beams and supports. Leather banquettes, leather chairs, leather chairs with cowhide backs. Black and white 'sketch' mural of a bookshelf that tells you which toilet is for which gender. Glass wall that corridors off the toilets with a barely discernable gap as an entry point (and if you miss it, the table nearest to the toilets might just notice and have a little giggle). Little cleavers and chopping boards acting as door handles in the toilets (which of course you don't see until you've made it through the glass wall).

F stands for female, leather abounds, the moody looking bar.

Yes folks, it is one stylish meat house. But it's comfortable too - the temperature is just right - even for the person who is always cold (me!). The lighting is soft but it's not so soft that you can't read the menu or see your food. Noise level is good too - it's quiet enough that you don't have to shout yet noisy enough that you don't have to whisper to avoid sharing your conversation with adjacent tables. And as we were seated on a bigger table with the curved leather banquette on one side, it felt very much like your own dining space.

Hurry up and get to the food you say? Ok. But first I need a drink. How about a "Mrs Robinson" cocktail (Parma Pomegranate Liqueur and Pomme Verte with lychee juice, whole lychees and watermelon cubes, $20)? It's described as young, fresh and fruity - aptly so as it ticks all those boxes. The only complaint is that it's got fruity bits in it which don't travel up the skinny straw too well. But that doesn't stop our table from ordering 3 of them.

Why hello Mrs Robinson.... yummy..

Bread is nice, there's a choice of white or brown (?) and best of all you can butter it or dip in olive oil. Side dishes are nice too, all $9. We got 'Shoestring fries with horseradish aioli', 'Steamed broccoli with almonds and anchovy butter' and 'Fried rosemary potatoes with prosciutto' which was the table favourite. Salads are all $10, ours was a 'Baby cos, red radish, dill creme fraiche and garlic croutes'. All is well in the food department thus far, but there's no wow factor just yet...

Bread olive oil or butter, shoestring fries, mustard.

Glorious fried potatoes with prosciutto, baby cos lettuce salad, steamed broccoli.

That is until the steak arrives and everything sort of fades into the background. The menu indicates that they are all grilled over beechwood and charcoal, then finished under a 650 degree broiler. I chose the '4-hour Slow roast Sher F1 Wagyu standing rib', served from their wagyu beef trolley, opting for the 300gm 'standard cut' ($39). It comes out on a white plate plain and simple, no unnecessary garnishes or adornments - it's all about the meat. It is perrrfectly cooked. It is stupennnndously tender. It tastes absolutely FANTASTIC. There are complimentary mustards or you can order a sauce for $5. Being an Argentinian food devotee, I tried the chimichurri. This was the one and only disappointment of the meal, it's not at all like the chimichurri in Argentina so stick to the other sauces (I tasted the ones my friends ordered and they were much nicer). And if you want real chimichurri then head to Porteño. One friend didn't order any sauce and was given a steak gravy/sauce of some sort, which I think a nice gesture.

E - this one's just for you, happy birthday my friend!

After the amazing steak, it was time for dessert. We placed our orders and NfOrCeR's was served with a candle for his birthday. Aww. I like those kinds of gestures too. I had 'Chocolate coconut mousse, black cherry sorbet with coconut rough soil and cherry liquer bubbles' ($16). Yum - quite a strong chocolate emphasis but a really nice flavour. The black cherry sorbet really cuts through the sweetness and makes for a good pairing. 'Praline crusted meringue with passionfruit curd and campari pearls' ($14) - it's one of their sweeter offerings but very nice and very pretty presentation. And then the 'Apple pie' - apple and blackberry jelly, honey creme, black cumin milk sorbet ($14) - this was very good. So good that the owner of this particular plate had eaten half before I got to take a photo. And I could see why once I tasted it, all the components worked well together in both taste and texture, a perfect combination of fruity and creamy flavours. I felt a little sugared out by the end of dessert so possibly something a little lighter would have been more suitable. But then that's probably because I was in a steak-induced food coma... and it was totally worth it.

Chocolate coconut mousse, Praline crusted meringue, half of the 'Apple Pie'

Hope you had a great birthday NfOrCeR!

What: The Cut Bar & Grill
Where: 16 Argyle Street, The Rocks
How much: Check the online menu for additional prices

Porteño

About three years ago I travelled in Argentina for a month and fell in love with the place. It's a beautiful country full of amazingly good people and to top it off, some of the best meat in the world. I would go so far as to say that it is a carnivore's heaven and a vegetarian's hell. I ate so much meat over there that when I came back to Australia I didn't want to see steak again for several months. It's not just the fact that we ate so much of it, but we were spoiled by the quality and taste. So when I first heard that the talented people of Bodega were going to open Porteño, I knew I would be making a visit to see if I could find a little piece of Argentina here in Sydney.

We arrived at the restaurant after driving countless circles around Surry Hills looking for a parking spot. After placing our names on the waiting list we went upstairs to the bar and were seated. The bar is has got great atmosphere and all the staff look very rockabilly cool which I loved. There were a lot of interesting sounding cocktails and C chose the San Carlos whereas I asked for a mocktail of "something fruity" since I was designated driver. We also ordered a tapa from the Bar Menu - I can't remember the exact name but it was a tartare of kingfish and avocado served with tortilla crisps (about $14 or $18). What I do remember is that it tasted awesome. It can get a bit difficult to scoop up the tartare with the tortilla crisps so one might have to resort to fingers which means you get to lick your fingers too.

Finger licking good tartare, the cool bar area and funky cocktails.

We were then taken to a table downstairs and happened to be seated right near the bar, asador grill pit and parilla grill which made for a nice view of the action. Unfortunately both the Cordero a la Cruz (woodfired lamb) and Chanchito a la Cruz (woodfired suckling pig) were sold out so instead we opted for a few other dishes. Our eyes lit up when our waiter brought out chimichurri and salsa - "just like Argentina!" we exclaimed. And so it was with the Chorizo Porteño ($12), both meaty and juicy. Repollitos de Brusela Frito (Crispy Fried Brussel Sprouts with Lentils and Mint, $14) was like a vegetable epiphany. I'd never been a fan of brussel sprouts but these were crisp with a hint of vegie-bitterness and the mint is a perfect touch. Finally the Tira de Asado (beef short ribs, $34) arrives and it's this dish that takes me back to the land of meat aplenty. They were perfectly cooked and so flavoursome. I could almost say "please sir, I want some more" but the serving size is extremely generous and we are practically bursting at the seams by the time I've eaten the last mouthful (the last mouthful is naturally eaten by me, because I am the slowest eater in existence as all my friends know).


Working the parilla grill in style, the best brussel sprouts ever, chorizo and the downstairs bar.



Estrella beer, Tira de Asado and Chimichurri - 3 things to transport you to Argentina.

Our rockabilly-cool waiter said he was impressed that we finished it all and asked if we could even fit in dessert? During the meal I had seen some desserts wafting past to other tables and knew that I needed to make myself acquainted with at least one of them despite being full. So I told the waiter that I would be making use of my dessert stomach and he understood, saying that we were kindred spirits (heehee). The decision wasn't hard, Leche Quemada (burnt milk custard with cumquat jam, dark chocolate ice cream & salted popcorn, $14). On ordering we were informed that the jam was to be made with cherries instead - no complaints from me as cherries are my favourite fruit! The custard was rich and sweet but perfectly balanced by the bitterness of dark chocolate ice cream (when it comes to chocolate icecream, the bitterer the betterer I say) and the other components of the dish. I scraped every little bit off the plate, the only thing left to do would have been to lick it but I decided to exercise some restraint. And when the waiter came to take the plate away? He simply commented "No words need to be said". And so it was with the entire meal, I couldn't fault a thing even if I tried - the service, the atmosphere, the cool-without-attitude attitude and most importantly the fabulous food.

Leche Quemada - no words need to be said.

What: Porteño
Where: 358 Cleveland Street Surry Hills
How much: It ain't cheap but it's worth the money for what you get.