6

56 GOURMET TRAVELLER

Hartsyard 2.0

33 Enmore Rd,

Newtown,

(02) 8068 1473,

hartsyard.com.au

OpenDinner

Tue-Sat 6pm-11pm

PricesShared

plates $14-$32,

desserts $18

CardsMC V EFT

Vegetarian

Nine dishes

NoiseNoisy

Wheelchair

accessNo

MinusA little rich

and busy at times

PlusFlavour

and character

to the max

Details

ÉTÉ IT UP

WhatÉté(above) lacks in charm,

it makes up for in a smart wine

list, complemented by a very cool

seasonal selection of all-French

reserve wines poured via Coravin.

The food also has its moments, not

least the fine brunoise-cut beef

tartare, flavoured with oyster and

textured with crisp onion rings.

T1.03 Tower 1, Barangaroo Ave,

Barangaroo, (02) 9052 5383

STRAIGHT TO THE TAPAS

The tagline is “unapologetically

Spanish” and if lots of noise

and an atmosphere of barely

contained chaos form any part

of your cherished memories of

eating in Spain, you’ll find much

joy atBar Tapa. It aims to capture

classic tapas with no mucking

around: gazpacho, tortilla,

patatas bravas and mayo-rich

ensalada Rusa. Sherry and ham

options are more approachable

than encyclopedic, and everything

is priced competitively.

78 Stanley St, Darlinghurst

A FEW GOOD MENG

What if Osher Günsberg decided

to leverage his fame hosting

The Bachelorto open a string of

dumpling shops? It hasn’t happened

yet, butMr Meng, the noodle-bar

chain opened by Meng Fei,

Chongqing-born host of Chinese

dating showIf You Are the One

provides a blueprint. The new

branch on the top floor of Market

City is the second in Australia and

the first in Sydney; properly spicy

Chongqing noodle soups are the

focus, but it also does a good

line in dan dan noodles.Level 3,

Market City, 9-13 Hay St, Haymarket

AND ALSO...

Still, this is not a kitchen

that likes to pull its punches. So

there’s quite a lot of sauce and

cheese in evidence, even with all

the greens and seafood. A tartare

of scampi and prawn, for instance,

has the intensity dialled up with

a profusion of dollops of saffron-

tinged rouille, the mayonnaise-like

sauce traditionally served with

bouillabaisse. There’s orange

flying-fish roe sprinkled over

it, too, and is that some sort of

crustacean oil in there as well?

The potato chips on the side are

coated in a dust – this is a pro-dust

sort of place – made of salt and

freeze-dried vinegar. The raw

scampi and prawn end up more

a textural note in the end, rather

than a taste in and of themselves.

It’s a charm-offensive of a dish,

and if it wins you, it’s with

exuberance rather than subtlety.

With the exception of the

effortlessly welcoming Naomi

Hart, service can swing Newtown-

direct rather than engagingly

hospitable, but everyone seems

to have a good handle on the

menu and the smart, concise

wine list. You get the impression

that they’re used to having more

customers than seats.

There are two desserts, one

a chocolate confection involving

tahini and miso, the other cherries

sprinkled among hunks of waffle,

a scattering of pistachio and a scoop

of buttermilk ice-cream. Not quite

your herbal-dryad, produce-forward

options of the now, but a departure

from the old Mr-Whippy-breaks-bad

days of yore.

Reading back over the notes

I made after visiting Hartsyard

1.0 when it first opened I’m

reminded of hoping for a bit more

light and shade on the menu. Now

there are more of those silences that

make the music. The kitchen still

bangs it out loud, but for Hartsyard

2.0 it has changed key and mastered

some new tunes. If you’re looking

for up-tempo dining with abeat

that’s easy to get behind, these

guys are playing your song.●

Tomato and

barbecued calamari

with whipped-sesame

sauce. Below right:

cherry and wales

with buttermilk

ice-cream.

Sydney review