Fusion 16, Chippendale

On a quiet Thursday night, I head to Italian venue Fusion 16 with my foodie friends Tomo and Aroundtheclockfoodie. Fusion 16 is located in Chippendale and was formerly known as Dulcis Domus. 

After a few long days at work, we all toast over some cocktails. I enjoy my passionfruit mojito ($14) which has passion fruit liquor, bacardi rum, mint, fresh lime, passion fruit puree and is topped with soda. It's quite refreshing and I love the smell of fresh mint. Cheers! We start chatting away about all things life, work and food blogging.

The group decides to share a number of entrees including the Deep Fried Calamari ($15). The crumbed calamari sits on a bed of aioli and is topped with basil. The calamari disappears pretty quickly as it's a crowd favourite. There's also the Zucchini and goat's cheese Bruschetta ($12) which is a bit lighter with the zucchini and goat's cheese. The goats cheese is the dominant creamy texture that lingers in your mouth. 

There's also the Seared Atlantic Scallops with a cauliflower puree, mushrooms, hazelnut and lemon oil ($15). There are three scallops that are served up on the puree. I quite like the mushrooms and hazelnut flavour combination. 

For mains, we share a number of pizzas. First, there's the Crispy Skin Chicken ($29) with carrot puree, apple, fennel and walnut. The chicken doesn't quite have the anticipated crispy skin but the salad is delicious. The chicken is still very pleasant to eat though. There's a nice fennel and carrot puree salad though.

My favourite dish is the Chilli Fettuccini crab ($27) with garlic, lemon, peas, parsley and a white wine sauce. The fresh pasta fettuccuni with the very simple sauce is very flavoursome with the flakes of crab and peas. I keep going back to this dish. Sometimes the best things in life are the simple things. I'd recommend this dish.

We look at the table next to us which has a number of pizzas. They look good. I watch on with envy and hunger.

The pizzas are wood fired with quite a thin base and thick and light crusts. Above is the Meatballs pizza with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, basil, extra virgin olive oil and italian meatballs ($25).  As the base is thin, it's all about the toppings. Meatballs, cheese on a tomato base - simple but delish.

We also order one of the specials which is the Esotic Mushrooms ($20, below) which has a tomato base, bocconcini, wild mushroom, proscuitto, truffle oil and parmesan cheese. This is my favourite as I love mushrooms, truffle oil and thinly sliced proscuitto.  The pizzas are quite filling so they are ideal to share.

Below is the Fusion Pizza with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, lamb, onion, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese ($22). Lamb and onion is a classic combination. I quite like cherry tomatoes.

Summary: Fusion 16 is a nice Italian restaurant if you're looking for a consistent and reliable pizza joint near Chippendale. I thought the pizzas were nice wood fired pizzas. Simple and tasty pizzas.

My favourite dish was the fettuccini with crab though. The fresh pasta with those flavours were very enjoyable to eat.

Price: Pizzas are $20-27ish

Location: 16-18 Broadway, Chippendale (right across from UTS)

Opening Hours: 
Closed Sunday
Monday to Saturday 5:30pm to 10:30pm

Weekend Food Escapes dined as guests of the venue or their representatives. All photos, opinions and words are my own.