Ocean Room, The Rocks

Highly recommended by a close friend of mine, I “surprised” the hubby with an anniversary dinner at Ocean Room. I was horrible at keeping the location a secret…

The Ocean Room is located at the Overseas Passenger Terminal at the Rocks, a short stroll from Circular Quay station. When we entered the restaurant, the first thing I noticed was the elaborate décor. The ceiling was stunning and unfortunately I forgot to snap a picture of it that night (boo). The ambience was relaxed and intimate. We were ushered to a table right by the windows although in retrospect, there wasn’t that many people dining that night (it was on the Thursday of the long weekend).

There are three menu’s to choose from, a la carte, the petit tasting course and the full tasting course. We went with the full tasting course which had 12 dishes!

My cocktail and the hubby's sake

First Course: “Namagaki” – freshly shucked Sydney rock oyster, spicy sangrita cloud, tomato air.
I actually have never eaten a fresh / natural oyster before. I prefer steamed Chinese oysters. But this oyster was surprisingly delectable!

Second Course: “Ochazuke Modern” – cold-drip dashi and premium gyokuro green tea, Koshihikari rice crust, flamed seared latchet, umeboshi sorbet, wasabi dust.
The presentation was interesting and the rice crust tasted like rice bubbles. I thought the flavours really went well together.

Third Course: “Maguro Tartare” – sea salt cured tuna, sesame scented, dark & white balsamic crystal, toasted nori and ocean pearl. The waiter presented the dish and said we had to wrap our own sushi rolls haha. I couldn’t really be bothered so I ate everything separately. I LOVED the nori and the balsamic crystals with the tuna were very tasty. Surprisingly I enjoyed the ocean pearls, which melt in your mouth.

Fourth Course: “Ocean Shinjo” – house-made fish cake, tiger prawn and calamari bean curd parcel.

Probably an average dish for me. I enjoyed the ginger-ness of this dish but didn’t really like the bean curd parcel itself.

Fifth Course: “Secret Hotate” – steamed Western Australian scallop dumpling, Ocean Room’s XO sauce, red sake vinegar and soy

One of my favourite dishes of the night. Simply nomnom. I could have eaten a full bowl of this!

Sixth Course: “Raita’s Sashimi Collection” – seasonal sashimi selection

If you love sashimi, you’ll love this. I adore the presentation and wide selection.

Seventh Course: “Dobin-mushi Taraba King Crab” – taraba king crab & dashi consommé, young chrysanthemum leaf, char-grilled shimeji mushroom

This was the BEST consomee I’ve ever tasted. I also loved how this was presented. Amazeballs.

Eighth Course: “Saikyo Miso Cod” – signature grilled sweet miso cod fillet, ginger risotto, orange miso sauce

I did not want to share this dish with the hubby (who gobbles up his dishes as soon as they are placed on the table). One of my favourite dishes of the night (and possibly ever). The fish was cooked to perfection and the flavours complimented the ginger risotto. Risotto was nomnom.

Ninth Course: “Agedashi Mapo Artisan Tofu” – golden silken tofu, Japanese inspired mapo sauce, umami-rich flavour.

I thought this was pretty average. The sauce was very salty and flavoursome so definitely needed to eat it with the tofu.

Tenth Course: “Two dimensional Jack’s Creek Wagyu 8+ Marble Score” – table smoked char-grilled fillet, slow braised wagyu meat pie.

Again, another interesting concept. The wagyu steak was char-grilled right in front of you! when you take off the cup and smell it, its very smoky! The wagyu fillet was melt in your mouth goodness. I thought the pie and potato crochet were pretty average.

Eleventh Course: “Edo-Mae Nigiri Sushi” – three authentic Tokyo style nigiri sushi

There was no soy sauce as the fish were already flavoured.

Twelfth Course: “Nori and Shoyu Angel Cake” – vanilla and soy infused cream, soy caramel, spiced vanilla ice cream
Looks can be deceiving.  The presentation was imppecable but it didn't taste good...probably the only disappointing dish of the night.  A pity because I love dessert!

All in all – apart from desert, there are some pretty stunning dishes.  This is my favourite degustation I have eaten, ever! Highly recommended :)