CIAO,BELLA
MauriceTerzinihasembracedfourth-
waveItalianatCicciaBella(above),
withapost-AcmeMitchOrrrunninga
Totti’s-stylesnack-breadline,followed
bypizzette,pastaandmains.Orr,asOrr
does,slipsadropofdashiinhere,a
dustingofkombuinthere,butItalyisthe
lodestar.Arabbitragùshowsnohintof
dryness;andsnacksofbonemarrowwith
gremolataortunawithCalabrianchilliand
atouchofsoymakeclevereatingwitha
garlicpizzafritta.JamesHird’swinelist
celebrateslesser-seenItaliangrapes.
75-79HallSt,BondiBeach,(02) 80906969GUARDIANANGEL
TheDearSainteÉloisecrewhaveopened
apastabar,Ragazzi,inAngelPlace.The
pastaisrighton,ScottWilliamsshowing
thesameformheshowedatBaccowith
nicelyaldentecavatelliwithpipisand
pork,anddaintyagnolottidalplinwith
sweetwhiteasparagus.Crumbedgoat
chopsarecrispandmeaty,thesnacks
fun,ifsometimesclumsy–whysomuch
butterwiththeanchovy?–butthey’re
minorhiccups,especiallywhenthe
trend-drivenwinelistissoalluring.
3/2-12AngelPl,Sydney,(02) 89643062SMALLWONDER
KazuNakatani’smostrecentrestaurant
sat 40 anddidgoodtradeinOsaka-style
kushikatsu.Hislatestproject,OsakaBar,
seatssix,anddoesomakaseonly.The
moveseemstobeworking.Thericework
issolid,andtherearesomeinnovative
flourishesaccentuatingAustralian
seafood:yellowtailtossedwithmisoand
abasilleaf;KingGeorgewhitingwith
sudachijuice;kingfishwithgarlic-soy
jelly.Well-pricedsakeaddstotheappeal.
50 LlankellyPl,PottsPoint,(02) 93311367XOPP
TheExchange,mezzanine
level, 1 LittlePier
St,DarlingSquare,
Haymarket,
(02) 8030 0000,
xopp.com.au
Licensed
OpenLunchMon-Sun
11.30am-3pm;
dinnerMon-Sun
5pm-10.30pm
PricesEntrées$8-$24,
maincourses$16-$88,
desserts$10-$14
VegetarianSeven
entrées,onemaincourse
NoiseFine,withsome
clankingfromdownstairs
WheelchairaccessYes
MinusLimitedfishmenu
PlusSeeingthefutureHave yum cha at dinner, he Details
says, dunk youtiao in the XO,
do what you like.
It’s a surprise to see no live
fish on the menu (it’s lobster,
crab or pipis), but you’re
ordering the pipis anyway. This
is the party piece, the Signature
Dish That Matters, even. The
sweet clams are wok-tossed until
they pop open, sauced in XO,
then served on fried vermicelli
(classic) or with savoury
doughnuts and an extra bowl
of sauce (less classic). It tastes of
the sea and garlic and spice and
funk in the same way it does
at the original. A dish worth
naming a restaurant after? Sure.
Not everything’s a hit; the
typhoon shelter cauliflower is
too oily. But the XO prawn
roll in a fried bun, usually a
bar-only snack, should be a
nailed-on main-menu item.
Ask, and staff might sneak it to your table.
This kind of adaptability works in their
favour, because the rest of the service can
be chaos. It’s improving, and the tone is
right, but there’s a way to go yet.
Jon Obseiston’s wine list, meanwhile,
hits familiar notes: large, mostly French orlocal, with an emphasis on
classic chardonnay, pinot
and benchmark shiraz.
Wines made for Golden
Century – riesling by
Henschke, chardonnay
by Tyrrell’s – have been
designed with matching in
mind. Loose-leaf tea (an ask,
rather than offer scenario)
and Tsingtao keep things
on the straight and narrow.
Dessert is more a curve.
There are no watermelon
slices, but there is a
watermelon granita served
over curd. It’s nothing
special, but it’s fresh and
playful. The lava custard
buns riff on the breakfast-
as-dessert thing, while
the foaming bubble-tea
panna cotta hits on an
enduring classic.
New spins on classics
can be fraught, and it was hard to tell
where XOPP would land. Happily, the
integral parts are in the right spots, and
at its best it manages to take those things
that made the original what it is, but still
forge an identity of its own. If this is the
future, the future is golden. Clockwise from left:
Linda, Eric and Billy Wong;
hiramasa kingfish sashimi
with doubanjiang and finger
lime; prawn mantou roll with
XO mayonnaise and sauce.AND ALSO...
50 GOURMET TRAVELLER
PHOTOGRAPHY JASON LOUCAS
CICCIA BELLA
& STEVEN WOODBURN
XOPP
.