Slap bang in the middle of the Sydney winter, July has certainly coughed up a cold one for us this year, hasn’t it.
Thankfully, we’ve had plenty to do to keep our minds off the chilly temperatures that somehow feel lower inside than when we’re out and about. In fact, I sometimes feel like someone secretly installed a refrigeration system in our apartment that only comes on during winter.
Anyway, this month has been full of staycations and winery experiences, rum distilleries and whisky panels, not to mention a lovely trip to Orange – one of our favourite NSW country towns – and plenty of food adventures too.
Hope you enjoy this little taste of our July.
Cheers
Jim & Christina xx
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It’s lunchtime and we’re out in the city looking for a feed. Down on the fringe of Darling Harbour, one of Sydney’s best-known waterside entertainment quarters, is the Hyatt Regency.
We’ve been here a few times, but mostly for drinks and nibbles at Zephyr, the hotel’s rooftop bar. Down at street level though is Jackalberry Bar and Restaurant.
Just off the elegant lobby of the Hyatt Regency, the Jackalberry and its botanist/explorer vibes and leafy interior is a clever take on what I’m guessing is an ‘urban jungle’ brief.
But far from offering foraged vegetation or adventurers’ rations, this quirky yet chic bistro has some outstanding food offerings to enjoy.
Even better than that, Jackalberry is currently offering an amazing lunch deal: for $39 you get a two-course meal and a drink!
Those courses can be an entree and main or main and entree… or entree and dessert if you like. As for drinks, you can choose from soft and hot beverages, or house beer and wine if you feel like it.
The offer runs from 11am to 3pm, and if you time it right, you can move from lunch right onto the happy hour (3pm-6pm) for $9 house beers, wines and spirits, and $11 mini cocktails.
Call us old fashioned, but Christina and I opt for the entree and main option for lunch, starting with a rich, sweet southwest corn chowder with vintage cheddar and sourdough cob, and housemade corn fritters with avocado, pomegranate and rocket.
I don’t know why we’ve both chosen corn-based starters, but they’re bloody good either way.
Other options are bruschetta, prawn summer rolls and charred lamb skewers with couscous and olives.
We sit back and enjoy our wines (of course we’ve gone for wine – a lovely Montepulciano from Coriole in McLaren Vale and a zesty Riesling also from from SA) and take in our surroundings.
The warm, interesting interior and comfortable seating make for a lovely lunch venue, though there’s still an element of ‘hotel lobby’ sterility about the place. It’s not a problem, merely an observation, and the staff work very hard to make everyone feel at home and cared for.
We’re also impressed with the serving sizes. All too often, two-course lunch specials come out half the size and with even less than half the effort in plating.
Not here.
Shortly, our mains come out and we realise this isn’t one of those skimpy ‘executive lunch’ deals. This is a proper meal.
My burger is robust and juicy, with plenty of filling and fries. It even comes with onion rings.
Christina’s bucatini carbonara is popular for a reason. It’s not the traditional style – bacon instead of guanciale and cream is involved – but the outcome is excellent. Bucatini pasta is a creative choice; a thicker ‘spaghetti’ style, though with a hollow running through the middle, which maximises contact with the sauce!
We leave Jackalberry feeling full and warm – exactly what you want from a winter lunch. Make sure you don’t miss this special. It won’t be running forever.
This evening, we’re at the London Hotel in Balmain for a mate’s big birthday. Christina’s fighting friend, Matt, is turning 50 and has thrown a party to celebrate. The theme is either come as something beginning with M or as Matt himself.
Thankfully, he also has no hair (when he’s not dressed as George Michael) and wears glasses, so it’s an easy one for me. All I need to do is borrow Christina’s jujutsu gi for the final touch – we know Matt through Christina’s martial arts dojo.
Christina, on the other hand, has dressed as a maths teacher. I thought this was a clever idea, as it’s something that begins with M and is also something she’s quite good at.
I did not know that Matt is, in fact, a maths teacher irl. He’s even invited a few of his friends from his faculty. I feel both stupid and somehow somewhat shamen-esque!
Anyway, happy birthday, Matt. Hope you had a good night.
This evening, we’re out in the city again, but this time we’re here overnight!
We’re staying at the Porter House Hotel on Castlereagh Street and we’re here for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, we’re checking out this hotel, which is part of the Accor group, but is in the MGallery Collection, a boutique subsidiary that has residences in some beautiful heritage buildings all over the world. This one is in a building from the 1860s, though the rooms are in fact in the modern tower next door.
This means you get the best of both worlds: dining and entertainment is in the old building while rooms like our impressive junior suite can stretch out in the new connected premises.
For our review of this lovely hotel, click here. You can also watch our video walkthrough of the Porter House here.
The other reason for our little staycation is to try out what’s going on in the ground floor.
Instead of a lobby bar, the Porter House is home to Handpicked Wines‘ cellar door, Bread and Wine. You can come in here and have a full winery experience, but with none of the effort required to head into wine country.
What’s more, hotel and the winery are working together to bring a stay and sip experience that’s perfect for winter that they’re calling the Red Affair.
With your room, you get a wine tasting downstairs of some of Handpicked’s best reds, but you also have a cheese pairing to go with it all too. An excellent way to start – or finish – a night in town.
Click here to find out more about the specials at the Porter House.
L-R: Brett, Michael, Nim, me
This evening, a few of my mates and I are out in Balmain for dinner! We’re at Dick’s Hotel ostensibly to have a look at the new front bar they’ve installed. In the grand scheme of things, the renovation hasn’t taken that long, but we also haven’t been in for a while.
What do we think of the finished product? A little underwhelmed if we’re honest (and these guys always are!) but I think it was probably time for a bit of a facelift.
It’s a shame that more of the original features couldn’t have stayed, but at least we’re all on one of the last old tables by the wall, which makes us feel better.
What also makes us feel better is a decent parmigiana, schnitty, steak and burger to go with our respective beers.
Not another hotel, you ask! Well, yes and no – we’re out in the beautiful regional town of Orange today – a bit under four hours from Sydney. We’ve come to see the Oriana Motel (told you, not a hotel!), and we’re here for a couple of nights.
The Oriana was built in the ’60s, so it’s got some fabulous mid-century touches. Its original owner built it and named it in honour of the SS Oriana, one of the last great steam-powered cruise ships of the early 20th Century, and he wanted to emulate the glamour and sophistication of cruising in the booming ’20s.
Things went well for the Oriana Motel and it was the place to be until the 1990s, when it went downhill until its reputation was the worst in the area.
But that was before Espen Harbritz and his late husband Ted Marr took over in 2015. With their impressive vision and experience, the Oriana is great once more.
While we’re here in Orange, we decide it would be rude not to check out some wineries. It is, after all, the only place in Australia that has a wine region designated by altitude – did you know Orange is the highest wine region in Australia?
Our first stop is to Ross Hill Wines for a morning tour and tasting.
We’re led around the facility by James Robson himself, the owner of the winery. We’ve met James a couple of times before, but never at his winery, so it’s great to get to see him in his home environment.
After the tour, we sit down to some of Ross Hill’s superb wines. James also treats us to one of the elite wines he makes via the Coravin.
Next time you’re in Orange, don’t miss out on Ross Hill. It’s a lovely cellar door with some outstanding wines.
Our next stop is at See Saw Wines, which have some superb traditional wines, but also natural wines too, which are made in a completely different way.
Natural wines use a carbonic maceration process where whole bunches of grapes are sealed in an oxygen-starved environment for up to a fortnight, relying on yeast naturally within the berries. They’re then pressed and matured with as little intervention as possible. The result is something quite unlike many wines out there.
It’s not necessarily my favourite style, but I understand the attraction, and all the wines here at See Saw are first class. By the end of this fascinating tasting, it’s hard for us to narrow down which bottles to buy without ticking most of them on the list!
It’s lunchtime, so we head back into Orange and to Bill’s Beans East Orange. This corner cafe is an institution here in Orange and for good reason.
The coffee’s sensational, using their own proprietary roast of Seven Miles beans, and the food’s also outstanding too.
My reuben sandwich goes down a treat, and Christina’s roast pumpkin on toast comes with piles of hummus, goat’s cheese and hazelnuts.
Back at the Oriana, it’s time to get Nordic! Norwegian owner, Espen Harbritz, has installed the motel’s very own Scandi sauna, exclusively for staying guests. So we tiptoe through the freezing evening air and sweat it out in the joyfully hot confines of the steam room.
Espen advises us to take a plunge in the cold swimming pool for the full Scandi experience, but we decide it’s cold enough in the outside air. Plus, I’m a massive wimp.
For dinner tonight, Christina and I are at the Oriana’s highly rated Peacock Room.
As with everything that Espen and Ted have put together here at the Oriana, the Peacock Room is artfully crafted, beautifully styled and exquisitely generous.
Everything is so thoughtful and considered. From the wine list, which is home to many of the best of Orange, to things like plenty of complimentary bread on the table, and like my steak coming with not just one sauce, but all three that the kitchen offers.
Nothing’s too much to ask of the staff, the tables are well-spaced and smart, and service is perfectly paced.
If you’re looking for a wonderful, European brasserie-style dining experience with brilliant food and a refined yet relaxed atmosphere, you can’t go past the Peacock Room.
By the way, did you notice the Christmas tree? Espen does the best Christmas in July, but that’s tomorrow night.
Tonight, Christmas has come to Orange! We’re back in the Peacock Room at the Oriana, but the restaurant has completely changed.
There are Christmas hats and crackers on every table, as well as all kinds of decoration, and the party started earlier in the garden, where Espen was serving ‘glogg’ – a kind of mulled wine. It’s less sweet though, and he’s added a load of brandy to it.
We’re served a full Christmas dinner replete with turkey, duck, porchetta and crackling, pistachio and apricot stuffing, sprouts, red cabbage and the richest most indulgent gravy we’ve had.
Dessert is a dense Christmas pudding, flambeed with OP rum and served with warm custard, whipped cream, and rum and raisin ice cream. I’m in heaven!
All too soon, Christina and I are back home in Sydney. She’s out tonight with her mates for dinner at recently opened Cicci’s Wine Bar in Balmain.
This airy eatery doubles as a wine shop, where you can also buy bottles to drink with your food at the table.
It’s tricky to get a booking here at the moment, so they settle with a between-service reservation, where you can still get light bites but nothing substantial. I’m sure they’ll be back as these ‘bar snacks’ look pretty good!
I’ve been trying to get this organised for ages, but tonight it’s finally happening! My mates and I are having a private tour of the incredible setup at Red Mill Rum Distillery in Rozelle.
There’s some real history to this distillery, which actually started in the 1930s. The same family own and run it, and the rum that’s coming out is absolutely delicious.
Thanks to Garth for spending so much time with us. The boys very much enjoyed the experience.
For your own tour of Red Mill Rum, click here.
How does the rhyme go? Red sky and blue at night… nope. No idea. Is the answer ‘tomorrow’s going to be just as cold?’
I thought so.
Today, we’re at the original Archie Rose Distillery site and bar for an exciting Aussie whisky tasting and judging panel.
Christina and I have been judges for industry magazine The Shout and their Buyer’s Guide periodical for a while now, and this is the second Australian whisky session we’ve done, but it’s by far the biggest.
We sit down at the long table with the other judges and work our way through 12 different whiskies from around the country. There’s a real range here, from single malts to corn spirits and blends, and it’s quite challenging, but very interesting.
TL-BR: bartender mixing drinks at Archie Rose; Archie Rose old fashioned; Archie Rose martini; Jim, Kathleen and Christina
After the tasting, we head downstairs and hang out with our chum Kathleen for a couple of cocktails. Well, it’d be rude not to, wouldn’t it!
We finish off the month with a chilled-out pizza dinner at one of the most underrated pizzerias in Sydney: Cappello Ristorante in Balmain East. Right opposite the East Village Hotel, this place turns out some of the best pizzas we’ve had – especially my favourite the diavola – plus cheap corkage if you want to bring your own bottles.
Mind you, their prices on wine by the glass are also very reasonable. But set in a beautiful little sandstone house, this pizza restaurant is one you shouldn’t go past.
