Better than gourmet in Grandfathers
It’s Thursday afternoon and my colleague and I wander through Merivale’s Ivy restaurant precinct before arriving at the corner of Pitt Street and Angel Place in Sydney’s CBD and then disappear quickly through the door onto the rich, red carpet of Grandfathers restaurant.
We’re immediately struck by the distinct mood and vibe of the place. There’s a lot of red. Film buffs might call it soaked in Scorsese red and the interior does exude a certain New York vibe. Think Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, New York, New York and even The Departed (although set in Boston) and Grandfathers would fit in naturally.
It’s from the same team, who are behind Neptune’s Grotto, Clam Bar and Pellegrino 2000.
Formerly the site of chef David Thompson’s underrated diner Long Chim, the new look turns what was once a slightly incongruous space for Thai cuisine into one resonating with a little more mystery, style and sophistication. With its fish tanks filled with ornamental fish and not those for dining matched with the colour palette it’s a more playful space. Kudos to the design team.
More pertinently, it is so distinctly and definitively a Chinese restaurant from first view to last. So much so that I develop an acute sense of nostalgia of my formative years dining in my country town at one of the very few restaurants on the Main Street. The wonderfully named Gourmet Inn.
In those days owner and waiter Anthony would greet my family at the front door with a smile and laugh, before rolling out regional Aussie Chinese favourites like dim sum, beef and black bean sauce or sweet and sour pork, which you’d be happy to know, are also re-produced at this suave downtown Sydney CBD diner. I must admit it’s a fairly significant step-up from the fare at the Gourmet Inn.
This homage to the past, with a dose of goodwill, wit and humour is rather delightful in a world where we all now seem to take everything far too seriously.
We visit on what turns out to be just day two of lunch service and not surprisingly the busy, well-intentioned staff are still on a learning curve but if there’s one thing we know about this team is they learn on the run – and quickly.
We began with a nice refreshing Taiwan beer – not a Tsing Tao in sight which again is different and noteworthy for a Chinese diner. The beer is refreshingly good, and we wonder aloud about the Crown Lager being sold in old school style glasses. For me another flashback to when a Crown and a feed at the local Chinese restaurant was considered the height of regional sophistication.
What wasn’t a flashback was a solid wine list missing country favourites like Ben Ean Moselle or Black Tower. Instead, a super solid global list strong on Riesling although plenty of other varietals.
For food we started with three different types of dim sum and of course some prawn toast. All arrive quickly, are tasty, richly flavoured and in many ways heartwarming. We argue about who will eat the final serving of dim sum so clearly things are on the right track.
Things begin to really heat up when we start on the rather large order of Peking Duck with Mandarin Pancakes. There’s no half portion – only a full duck which is rather pricey at close to $100. So, while we revel in the unctuous flavours of the beautifully cooked duck, it’s way too big for two to share. Quick note to the team… halve it.
It’s a quality serving although not quite Mr Wong level, but darn good nevertheless.
Unfortunately, the duck nearly beat us so we went all retro with Sweet and Sour Crispy Berkshire Pork flavoured with sweet red vinegar and Sichuan pepper. My mind again races back to my childhood and the Gourmet Inn but this is on a different level.
As for dessert, I hankered for a fried ice cream but settled for a shared Sticky Date Pudding featuring steamed sticky rice in lotus leaf, date caramel and vanilla ice cream. As per usual, my sweet-toothed colleague hoovered most of it up.
It was a pretty solid lunch for day two although Grandfathers real aim is to provide Sydneysiders with a proper late-night Sydney-dining option like the city once had during the heyday of Golden Century and BBQ King in Chinatown. There are a few minor glitches but the team know how to create a destination diner and it won’t take long for Grandfathers to hit its straps. Go there before the instagrammers show up filled with dreams of Taylor Swift appearing.
