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Friday 29 March 2013

Cara and Co - 28 March 2013


Cara and Co has been opened for some time and has caught my attention yet I had not dined there until yesterday. My wife and I bought a voucher for a 3 course meal at the quirky half fashion/half restaurant on Westfield Level 4 so we decided to chill out and have a lovely pre-Easter meal.


Whilst I do not care at all for the bits and pieces in the fashion store, I was very much looking forward to eating at the restaurant. The focus here is Flemish cuisine with the menu designed by Belgian Michelin star chef, Dave de Belder. 






Amuse bouche

Olive cake with capsicum jelly and bonito cream
This was a delicious savoury cake and full of Mediterranean flavours from the capsicum and olive. Great way to start off the meal.  

Bread and butter 



The butter was beautifully creamy and the black salt was no ordinary salt, it was just awesome. And of course the sourdough bread roll was nice and crusty.  

Entrees 

Four Lives of a Chicken - Hazelnut, Sherry, Apple
The four lives on the dish are chicken wing, thigh, oyster and crackling. The presentation is just beautiful, as are all the other courses. Definitely reminds me of what you see at Michelin star restaurants in Europe. There is a lot happening in this course, perhaps a bit busy. There were lots of good flavours and textures. The cracker was nice and crispy. Loved the layer of hazelnut on the morsels of chicken. Loved the drops of foie gras to go with the chicken but would have liked a bit more. My only complaint is that the chicken was a bit dry. 

Ten Peas in Soup - Asparagus, Capers

My wife’s entrée was the pea soup is such a pretty dish. Like a work of art. It was a chilled soup so it was a wonderfully refreshing dish on a hot day. This was a very enjoyable course according to the Mrs. 

Mains 

Flemish Vitello Tonnato - Veal Fillet, Tuna, Tomato, Asparagus, Capers
This was by far my favourite course of the night. Absolutely wonderful flavours and textures! The veal was beautifully cooked and tender. I loved biting into the bits of quinoa for that crunchy texture. The vegetables (potatoes, asparagus, peas, tomatoes) were also great. What really brought this dish together was the cream sauce, which was infused with tuna flavour. It was so delicious, an explosion of tuna flavour! Who would have thought that tuna would go so well with veal. On the plate it looks like a massive dollop of cream. I actually ran out! I was trying to scrape every last ounce of cream onto each morsel of veal that I ate. The plate was practically clean after I demolished the dish.

No Animals were Harmed - Risotto, Mushrooms, Truffle, Green Herbs
My wife’s main was a mushroom risotto. It was creamy risotto with lots of cheese flavour. My wife’s assessment: a very well cooked risotto. 

Dessert

Bon Bon Bomb - Macadamia, Lemon, Apple, Chilli

Dessert was so gorgeous to look at. But I can’t say that I am a huge fan of this dessert. I couldn’t see how all the varying flavours come together here. You have macadamia bon bon. Granny smith apples. Raspberry. Lemon. Nuts. Spice…. However, some of the individual elements were good. Like the chilli sorbet which was quite interesting. It was quite chilli indeed!   

Petit Fours 



The petit fours were a satisfying way to end the meal with a cup of coffee. Out of the amuse bouche, the tonka bean madeleines were definitely the most enjoyable: delicious buttery cakes straight from the oven so they were still warm. The passionfruit coated with white chocolate and hazelnut were also very pleasant. The pomegranate marshmallow was very average though. It had a hard chalky texture. Nothing like the marshmallows from Sweetness the Patisserie. 

Verdict
Highlight: The veal main course with the wonderful tuna cream
Lowlight: The busy dessert
Overall: A bit of Europe in Sydney. Beautiful plates of food that resemble works of art. Lots of wonderful flavours and textures in the courses. Cara and Co is a nice place to have a satisfying meal in a relaxing environment. Would be happy to come back and try the other dishes on the menu (at full price). 7/10

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