After driving up from Sydney & walking along the beach, we needed a late lunch & the other Yelped-about spots we checked either weren't open or were busy, so we thought, what the hell, let's give the bistro in our hotel a try.
At $23 for fish & chips and $18 for a steak sandwich, it's not cheap, but then, that seems to be par for the course for Newcastle.
The fish was fantastic - good texture, good flavo(u)r, & great batter. Its accompanying tartare sauce was great, if that's your thing, but my partner prefers his fish plain. Since it wasn't my order, I didn't bother asking for malt vinegar, so I'm not sure whether it's available. The salad wasn't dressed, but the vegetables were fresh & crisp & full of flavor on their own.
My steak sandwich, at first glance, looked just like a burger. While the bread left much to be desired - the "toasted Turkish bread" was room temp (even a bit cool) & if you ask me it was just a hamburger bun, & it started to fall apart 2 bites in - the steak was grilled to absolute perfection: tender & juicy and easy to bite into. The tomato chutney was a perfect relish to go with it.
Why only 3 stars? Not the price - as I said, it's what I expect, & really, for a hotel restaurant, pretty reasonable, I think. No, only 3 stars because the bread was pathetic in comparison to the quality of the rest of the sandwich (& the fish!), & moreover, the chips were downright disappointing.
Yes, that's right. Terrible chips (fries or potato wedges to this American). Greasy & undercooked - not inedible, but sort of unpleasant.
That said, the dinner menu looks great & I want to try the Bailey's dessert, so we just may be back for another go. read more