The younger, light-hearted sibling to two-hatted Assiette, District Dining seemed like a perfect spot to grab lunch with colleagues on a Friday. Although only 9 months in the making, Warren Turnbull's new baby has already had some excellent reviews for it's bistro quality, value and professionalism. As the clean and bright dining room gets busier, it becomes evident that DD is a favourite for the local media and corporate business crowd. It's an ideal place to catch up, share some plates and indulge in a bit of everything for a nice price.
To begin, Crispy school prawns & lime mayonnaise ($16) were going down too easily, with the right balance of crunch and flavour. The steak tartare, aioli, french fries & sourdough ($20) was lovely and fresh and could even be enjoyed by seasoned palettes sans garlic mayo. The Seared scallops(4), jerusalem artichoke, crispy pancetta & prune ($20) were a treat - like most scallops are - although we'd probably forgo them a second time around and just order another serve of those winning crispy prawns.
Soon after to arrive were our more substantial dishes of Sweet potato, gorgonzola, risotto & preserved pear ($25) and Rabbit ragout, parpardelle, green olive & pangrattato ($29). The risotto was a good texture and a fine balance of sharp and sweet flavours, nice for sharing. Though, the star of this show was clearly the ragout and had some of our previously apprehensive fluffy animal eaters totally reformed.
A special mention about the excellent service; the right level of hospitality really helped to enhance our dining experience. Keep up the good work Mr Turnbull and team, and congratulations on your gorgeous new arrival !
Jas.xx
District Dining
17 Randle Street
Surry Hills NSW 2010
Good review and I have to agree. I went here with a few friends last week for a catch up lunch and it was pretty good.
ReplyDeleteJust a note, the servings are pretty small, so if you are hungry order big. Although they are pretty rich, so that might be a factor for you
Keep the reviews coming Jas