Coda

29th January 2011

With parents down for the Tennis, my parents, brother and I decided to catch up at lunchtime over a meal and complete number 8 off my list. Having decided on Coda, we arrived to find an empty dining room with beautifully set out places and large pristine white bowls.

With a menu designed to share, we settled on several small share plates and two large dishes to share.

Starting with Spanner crab, galangal, roasted chilli and lime betel leaf, combining soft cool crab and betel leaf with a hint of chilli.

A further dish of Quail lettuce delight continued to involve soft lettuce casing filled with a combination of meat and mushroom and salad. Great combinations and great flavours.

Next up was herb crusted lamb chop with a lemon zest. Well cooked lamb and a delicious crust kept the meal flowing.

Sweet and Sour spare ribs were a rare miss. Average tasting meat with a very disappointing sweet and sour sauce left you feeling underwhelmed with the dish.

Sugar cane prawn featured prawn meatballs on a sugar cane lollipop and mung bean noodle and deep fired were full of flavour and offered a contrast of different flavours and textures which was extremely enjoyable.

Moving on to the main course, we settled on 2 dishes. The first being a Kung Pao Chicken slightly blackened and strong in flavour and spice with a few nuts and vegetables thrown in for extra flavour. We also went with the highly recommended yellow duck curry. Nicely cooked duck with a pungent and strong tasting curry sauce add an extra level to the flavour. Whilst reasonably spicy, the spice did not overpower the dish. Both excellent main courses that were a step above the smaller sharing plates.

However the star of the meal, very surprisingly in an Asian influenced contemporary restaurant was the desert. Raspberry parfait was smooth and delectable. Combined with a chocolate ball and white chocolate mouse with caramelised almond pieces was a perfect combo and a great way to finish a pleasant and flavour packed meal.

After hearing such rave reviews about Coda, it fell a touch short of those expectations. However well worthy of a 1 Hat rating with some dishes being a little hit and miss but the larger dishes and desert being real winners.