Restaurant Plage, Cremorne

Tomoyuki Usui has worked at many top restaurants in Sydney and has recently decided to opened up his own venue called "Restaurant Plage" in Cremorne. Based on his previous stints, there is incredible technique and creativity in his cooking. So how has he designed the menu at Restaurant Plage?

Restaurant Plage is located on Military Rd on Cremorne. As Matt and I walk in, it's a cosy and casual decore which is inviting. There's laughter at the back in their private dining area and I find out there's a private event being held tonight.

The menu is modern, elegant and simple. A few key things catch my eye on the menu. I also look at the specials board with some curiousity... 

But first... Matt and I cheers with a Blue Moon Beer and a lovely glass of Cabernet Merlot. 

I start out the evening with some entrees to share. The first is smoked cod cream with squid ink wafers. The dish comes out like sharps of the Opera house made from the squid ink wafers. The smooth and thick cream is smokey and the cod flavour is not overpowering. It's a great way to start the meal as it starts to open the senses. The squid ink wafers are thin, fragile and make for a nice sharp crunch.

Next up is the Charred Beetroot which comes out looking like a small  and quite sophisticated garden. The beetroot is a deep purple and is slightly sweet. The beetroot is served up with whipped goat's cheese, buckwheat and basil essence.
The little bits of buckwheat add for a slight crunch and textural composition next to the soft and light goat's cheese and the soft beetroot. 

I'm really enjoying the meal so far and my eyes are absolutely wide open at the next dish. The Gratin is filled with soft potato and pulled beef and is topped with melted cheese. What better to eat on a cold night than this delicious dish. Matt basically devours this dish and I can tell he really likes this dish. 

If you are a fan of scallops then you will fall in love with the Scallop Sashimi which is lightly drenched in the MOST amazing and tasty dressing made from kombu which is light with citrus tones. The burnt butter powder is fluffy like a gentle snow and the mascarpone adds a creamy element to the dish. 

The staff at Restaurant Plage warn me that the dill essence is quite strong and overpowering in this dish so I gently taste a small part. I agree and end up eating this dish without touching the rest of the dill essence. I highly recommend ordering this dish.

This next dish is a MUST ORDER. It's a special which Tomoyuki is looking to permanently put on the Restaurant Plage menu it's the Wagyu Carppacio in Dashi Broth. The dish arrives with the rare wagyu beef on the dish and then the staff pour the hot dashi broth onto the beef.

The beef starts to cook and the smell from the broth is so flavoursome and delicious. I taste a spoonful of the broth. WOW, I am in food heaven as the broth has incredible depth that brings immense flavour and tenderness to the wagyu. I taste the beef which has soaked up that broth and it's heavenly. 

The table next to me are raving on about this dish and commenting on how delicious the broth is. I can also hear them fighting over who gets to eat the last drops of the broth. You cannot leave the restaurant without ordering this dish! I love it so much.

Now to mains. The first main I try is the Market Fish which tonight is the Marrow Fish with finger limes, celeriac puree, greens and a special Japanese root vegetable. The marrow fish is flakey and buttery in texture. The lightly crunchy greens along with the finger lime make for a tasty main. 

I also taste the Roasted Kurobuta Pork which is a special Japanese pork with black soubise sauce, eggplant and black pudding. The pork is served up cleanly sliced with roasted marks. The pork is well cooked maintaining it's moisture and is well matched with the soft bed of eggplant and bolder flavoured black sausage. The black soubise sauce adds further depth of flavour to the roasted pork.

My favourite main of the night is the Roasted Chicken Breast which is a very homely dish. The chicken is served up with caramelised carrot, burnt buttermilk sauce, cherries and greens. It's like a roast sunday chicken but pimped up to be sleek, sophisticated and aesthetically pleasing. Like the pork, the chicken is perfectly cooked to retain moisture and flavour.

There's a separate stomach for dessert but if you are looking for a lighter dessert - there's the mirin sweet sake ice cream with miso crumble. The miso crumble adds a soft crumbly coating to the ice cream. This dessert is simple but very elegant and delicious.

For a more substantial dessert that is full of texture, complexity and flavours - there's the Caramelised White Chocolate with chamomile, nectarine sorbet. Matt tells me this is one of his favourite dishes as it has all the textures of all the dessert groups that he likes. 

Summary: I predict Restaurant Plage to be very popular with the locals of Cremorne and lower North Shore. The food is elegant and simple. It's reasonably priced and absolutely exceeded my expectations.

My favourite dishes were the wagyu carpaccio, the scallops and the roasted chicken although I enjoyed all the dishes. Matt loved the wagyu carpaccio as well and his favourite main was the roasted pork and he loved the dessert of caramelised white chocolate

Price: $30ish for mains

Location: 8/255 Military Rd, Cremorne

Opening Hours: 
6pm to late daily except for Tuesday (closed on Tuesday)

Weekend Food Escapes dined as guests of Tomoyuki. All photos, opinions and words are my own.