Level 2 Star City
80 Pyrmont St
Sydney NSW 2000
Ph : (02) 9777 9000
Eatability reviewers gave warning. Some say that we should stay away. Almost everyone complained about the price. Those who didn’t probably can afford it regardless. Not a good start. I thought I’d get my act ready in case I need to act a certain way to ‘counteract’ the supposedly bad experience. Of course, not everyone reviewed on the website gave the same account. I concluded that everything about the place- the food, the service and the ambience were probably at best inconsistent. The only consistency seems to be the steepness of the price. Since the venue was chosen, I approached with extremely low expectations, hoping that this will, at least, make the place a little more enjoyable.
Considering the high risk involved, I again went for the safe options. In wine and food. A known Pinot Noir can’t go astray, and if you can stuff up a steak, then you really shouldn’t be in the restaurant business. People raved about the duck fat chips. It’s also what I’ve been hearing about. So I suppose ordering one of those was in…ermm… order…
Most of us chose the safe route and ordered the same steak in 3 different settings: medium rare, medium and well down. Just, you know, to test the skills of the chefs. I suppose it’s really just about timing. Something that was a bit lacking- that timing- in the way that the wait was erring on the wrong side of overly delayed. I mean, yes, a well done steak might take longer to cook, but… hmmm… luckily the company was good. Otherwise the wait would’ve felt much longer. Seriously. Cityrail’s delays are a delight compared to what we endured. I suppose it was a good call to have a bit of pinot to calm the emotions.
Logan Pinot Noir 2007 (I believe) from Orange. $55
Perhaps they took all the criticism to heart and made a deliberate effort to improve? Service was friendly, attentive, and the attractive pixie-hair-styled waitress did her very best to sell us more drinks. Kudos. She deserved a raise on efforts alone.
Now this is me nitpicking and just being plain spoilt, but I believe a restaurant like this really shouldn’t be asking, “So… who’s having the steak?” when they bring the food around. I’d expect that from a $10 special with year 10 work experience girls. If places charging 50% less than they are can remember who ordered what, it’s not much to ask, now is it?
The famous duck fat chips $8
The duck fat chips? Well… they’re nice chips. I just don’t think they’re “phat” hehehe… Sure, I’ve had much worse chips in better places, but I really don’t feel the need to advertise the duck fat fact.
All is forgiven when I sliced off a piece of my medium rare steak (which wasn’t all that much different from the medium), chock full of béarnaise sauce and veal jus, and savoured the heavenly moment. The steak was simply heavenly. There are no other ways to describe it. If Jesus has steak, I’m sure it won’t be far off what I had on the night. This was something completely unexpected and I’m not sure that Sean’s Kitchen is known for their steaks. And considering this isn’t some rip off marbled wagu beef. This was a simple angus 400 gram rib eye. It truly was sensational.
Grain fed Angus rib eye 400g $38- I reckon this was the best value dish in the whole place. Delightfully succulent... especially with the bearnaise sauce and veal jus
Of course, I cannot guarantee that you’ll have the same experience. As the restaurant seems to be consistently inconsistent, meaning it’ll be a gamble every time you go. Quite apt too as it’s situated inside Star City Casino.
Price? Yes, it is expensive. Luckily we had both a $50 gift card as well as 10% off the total bill thanks to one of us being a member of Star City Casino. And of course, there are perks being a member too…
The really really expensive prawns. Yes, they peel them for you, and add a little bit of what looks like thousand island and a tiny slice of lemon, which looks to be mostly skin... for the grand o' price of $32 smackeroonies... I don't care how large they are... that is not $32 worth
Steamed Suzuki Jewfish, with what looks like the stem of a giant mushroom, half a ball of some kind of vegetable and some puree; $36
And the perks are that we managed to weasel ourselves some free churros!!!
So that was a real bonus. We didn’t have to order desserts, just the coffees to go with the desserts. Which, were just a little bit overpriced. If it weren’t for the free churros…. And what churros they are!!! So much fat and sugar, but it was soooo good! They went really well with the dark chocolate dip. I can feel it going straight to my waistline and quite frankly, I didn’t care one bit!
And yes... I realise the photo quality is quite poor, even for me. I blame the mood lighting... [Onomatopia]
Too bad about the prawns. Looks like they just went down to the buffet and peeled a handful of them for you!
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