~ Curious Charlie ~

Saint Peter's Trattoria @ Tuesday, August 20, 2013

During the last week on July, on a Tuesday night We went to dinner at St Peter's, a AGFG Hatted Restaurant, opposite the Greater Union cinema near Twisted Toys. It's a $$$ place, worth it? To be determined. With a groupon deal we got a 3 course dinner with a glass of Prosecco each for $65. Limited menu, but it was only a few dishes (mainly desserts that was not available including the salmon I wanted (though they did offer the dish with a white fish instead). Not sure if they were out of salmon or the dish wasn't offered for those who bought the deal. Oh and the menu online/offline is different, there are more dishes & different desserts at the place.

If you're wondering why this post took so long to actually be posted it's cause we were waiting for jas for his half of the review. Which past experiences said ain't going to happen.

Arriving around 7.10pm we were promptly seated. Being a Tuesday night and with the location of the restaurant (an ally/lane way) there was only one other couple, and a man ordering coffee & dessert with a book as his +1.

Drinks. Jas had the Prosecco (sparkling wine) while I had an apple juice. Water was offered, tap or sparkling. The later tastes funny to me, so we went with (hopefully filtered) tap.

Complimentary Bread & Olive Oil

Octopus Salad

Starting off with entrees jas ordered an octopus salad (which isn't on the online menu) he liked it, I expected to see this. Don't know how much it was or anything, jas made notes, though he's not going to share them. By the way lighting was horrible, very dim, extreme lighting adjustments were made to all pictures.

Calamari Fritti 16.00

calamari, dusted in semolina flour & lemon salt, shallow fried,

served on rocket with a garlic & balsamic dressing

After a bit of analyzing I decided to go with the dish I'd planned to order, the Calamari with Rocket. It was very nice, the green balances out the deep fried-ness. I'd recommend this dish, but perhaps not at ($$) it is something we'd try to recreate ourselves though.

Gnocchi di Casa 29.00

Ducklings, Mushroom & Chestnut Ragu with House Made Potato Gnocchi

Mains. Jas had the gnochi which he really liked. In my opinion the serving was tiny, entree sized (though I've seen smaller from other reviewers on urbanspoon), and it's not just because of the huge plate. It actually is a small serving.

Cos ciadi Pollo 26.00

Crispy Skin Chicken Maryland, Grill Lemon, Radicchio, Thyme & Soft Polenta

I had the chicken because the salmon wasn't available *Regrets not ordering what jas had* Chicken & buttery mash, with purple cabbage and caramalized lemon. ~~And some round green unfamiliar leaves~~. Thyme. Really liked the chicken, mash was nice, like but nothing amazing (unlike Julie Goodwin's version). Cabbage was foul! Take note that I don't like most veggies, jas managed to swallow it though. Not recommended at this price.

Panna Cotta 15.00

Vanillla Custard with Spiced Poached Quice & Short Bread Biscotti

If you're wondering why this place is hatted it's because of the dessert. White chocolate & vanilla pan cotta! It was amazing! Top three most amazing things I've ever eaten. We planned on coming back just for dessert.

How much do you think it is? (We didn't look at prices, as it was prepaid.) Jas says $10, I say $12. It was $15, hmm... it was small. Being served on a huge plate made it look even smaller. That's the most $$$ dessert I've ever ordered if you also judge on quantity. Wished it was bigger. But other than that you have to try the pan cotta. At $15 I'd say have it as a special treat, more special than Lux Bite (their desserts are $10 each) and perhaps Koko Black.

I did feel a bit weird about the paper on the linen. As we're not children and this is the most $$$ I've ever been not for a special occasion e.g. our anniversary, promotion at work, birthday, etc. I didn't approve of it.

Do you always tip when you go out? Even though I'm American I don't have tipping as "just something we do" as we never went out. Never. Not to dinner, the pictures, the theatre, anywhere. It is only after I came to Australia that I started exploring things on my own.

Anyway back to the question, do you always tip? After working in hospitality (for like 8hrs - I quit the job) I'd say it's a lot harder than you think to do your job and smile (that or management was just simply horrible) and so yes. But I only tip when with jas (he always insists) or when the bill is near $20/25/etc. and the service is great. The service at St Peter's was good, though nothing amazing. Jas intended to tip, while I didn't. My opinion was influenced by reviews I've read of how those without a deal were treated differently, e.g. cloak "room" (hangers on the right in the picture below).

Would I recommend St Peter's? Overall, no. It's too $$$ and the portions are tiny (with the exception of my entree). But I would recommend that pana cotta, perhaps for a progressive dinner.