delicious Australia - March 2018

delicious.com.au

BOOKA

TABLE NOW AT

TETSUYA’S

CUISINE

Contemporary Japanese

CHEFS

Tetsuya Wakuda and Josh Raine

VISIT

529KentStreet,Sydney

OPENING HOURS

Lunch Sat; dinner Mon-Sat

BOOKINGS

(02) 9267 2900

tetsuyas.com

PRICE

$$$$$

BYO

Yes (by prior arrangement)

OTHER FEATURES

Private dining rooms

CHILD FRIENDLY

No

CHICKEN TWISTIES.It’s

allIcanthinkaboutwhile

on course three of eight

at perhaps Australia’s

most famous restaurant,

Tetsuya’s. It’s Tetsuya Wakuda’s signature

dish.Confitofoceantroutwithasalad

ofappleandwitlof,andaquenelleofroe,

butthedriedkombu(saltedkelp),chives

andseasaltrubontopofthefishisjust

toodistracting.Otherfoodscribeshave

calledit chicken-in-a-biscuit and

barbecue shapes, but I’m making the call

–ittasteslikechickenTwisties.Either

way, it’s all a little odd, don’t you think?

Tet suya’s signature is toute d as t he

world’smostphotographeddish,making

it nigh impossible to take off the menu.

ButonecanhardlyblameInstagram;the

dish well pre-dates its emergence. It’s

ashame,becauseit’stired.Sure,it’swell

executed,butitseemsstuckinanerathat

Iconcedewasincrediblyimportanttoour

culinary landscape. But our food evolution

hasleftitbehind.It’sespeciallyevident

surroundedbyaswagofnewerdishes

that feel fresh, inspired and crash courses

in restraint. But who can blame Tetsuya?

Perhapshishandsaretied.Asignature

dishisthecatch-22ofthefoodworld:

a drawcard to appease the masses, but

thebaneofachef’sexistence.Fearof

losing an audience combines with guest

expectations to demand it stays put on

the menu, indefinitely.

CanyoueverimagineArmando

Percuoco (Buon Ricordo) canning the

truffledeggfettuccineorPeterGilmore

(Quay)abandoningtheSnowEgg?You

mightthinkthat’dbeheresy,butI’mabit

so-so on signature dishes. They’re a dime

adozenandnotnecessarilyachef’sbest

creation. And, in this instance, it’s far

fromthebestdishofthenight.

Rather,pickleddaikonfashionedlike

flowers, and crisp, thirst-quenching ice

plantaddajoyfuledgetocreamyraw

kingfishandrich,saltyAvrugacaviar.

Slivers of Western Australian pearl oyster

meataddanoceanicoomphtoamoreish

morsel of chicken wing flesh. With a

slippery twang of pickled shiitake thrown

in,it’sthesortofdishyou’dbehappy

tosmashabigbowlof.Thencharred

sugarloaf cabbage hides shimmering

flakesofbassgroper,whileabig,beefy

butterball of Ranger Valley Wagyu sirloin,

with king browns and crisp kale, delivers

aknock-outblow.Aninterludediscof

yuzu sorbet and white chocolate cleanses

thepalatebeforeaglossymilk,darkand

white chocolate cake that eats like dense

mousse has you tapping out before the

petit foursarrive.

Tet suya’sis, rightfully so, an institution

thathadhumblebeginningsinRozellein

1989 before moving to its current Kent

StreetCBDsitewaybackin2000.Itstill

bestowsthatfeelofasecretJapanese

haven – chicken Twisties and all.

delicious.com.au/eat-out

For more of our critic’s dining picks.

@huckstergram @anthuckstep

SIGNATURE WISH

Diners look out on

Tetsuya’s sculpture

garden; (inset) roasted

scampi tail with vanilla.

38 delicious.com.au

EAT OUT.