the tilbury

settling into blogger life after journalism, i decided to investigate a zomato meetup at the tilbury. zomato hosts these events for some of the 300-odd restaurants who advertise on their australian platform, allowing them the opportunity to be seen by social media influencers who post about them. by having more activity on their restaurant listing, these advertisers climb the zomato rankings and are thus seen by hungry sydney diners more often. my zomato staffer dining companions tell me this not-quite-organic way of improving visibility on zomato can never beat actually being the next big thing.as someone used to dining as a twosome, group meals are a whole different ballpark. rather than seeing individual entrees, our amicable waitress tells us we’re being served the whole range of them on a platter. when it lands, the awkward sport of sharing them fairly begins, but only after copious insta-worthy photo documentation, with one clever lass peelingbackthe sourdough toast to reveal a visually impressive wild boar terrine ($18)

great building and atmosphere. very laidbackstyle. not just an ordinary pub. food is restaurant quality. will bebackher for dinner again for sure. the best in the area for casual drink and food.

the food here was so bad. we ordered the salt and pepper squid and fries. the fries were extremely small serving for $10. then the squid had not been cleaned properly before deep frying and had gunk and sand all inside them. it was terrible. the service was also very poor and the girl serving drinks and taking our order was quite rude. will not comebackagain or recommend to anyone in the area.

located in woolloomooloo and popular with the locals this is the spot for after work drinks. the interior is sleek and inviting with a front bar area, restaurant dining and abackleafy courtyard. whilst we were only there for drinks the summer grill menu had some enticing options including gyros, nachos and classic beer battered fish and chips. upstairs was blocked off for a private function however i imagine it is as sleek as the rest of the tilbury. drink service from the bar was a little slow - but that's the price of being popular.

the tilbury x zomato meet up started off on an extreme high with the entrée platter consisting of tuna tataki, smoked mackerel, ox tartar, and wild boar terrine. the tuna tataki was so delicious and i really couldn’t get enough. coupled with the wakame, what’s not to love especially when this seaweed brings with it so many health benefits! as much as i didn’t want to, i really enjoyed the ox tartar, it was highly addictive and my fork wentbackagain and again. i stopped at one with the mackerel but the accompanying vegetables were great – really fresh and flavourful.

onto the main, i had the trout with broccolini, almond, broccoli puree, red & white quinoa. plated beautifully, i found the broccolini and puree very tasty but the fish itself was slightly overcooked and salty at times. almonds were a great addition and with the quinoa further brought this dish into the healthy but tasty category.

i wasbackup way way high again after trying the sides especially the truffle chips, because they were insane! really good so needless to say i was a little devastated when i gotbackfrom the bathroom and they were gone! swiftly taken away for the desserts to come, or demolished by everyone else because they were that good. either way, i need thembackin my life! we also tried the eggplant, potatoes, and carrots roasted in cumin caramel, and all did their job perfectly. great sides to have with your main, leaving you extremely satisfied and full.

that’s not to say there’s no room for dessert, because let’s face it there’s always room for dessert. i don’t have much of a sweet tooth but the brain’s in charge and even mine opens up the dessert stomach the majority of the time. we were once again served up a gorgeous platter – this time with 4 different desserts.

on a scale of 1 to 10 i’d say my adventurous level when it comes to food is about 4. meaning i’m not all that into trying strange things. nothing on this platter was completely farfetched, but there were definitely some interesting combinations. at the sound of coriander ice cream i was pretty excited which is a little out of character but a good start nonetheless. this was to go with the carrot & walnut cake which sounded great. we also had the tilbury’s gin & tonic jelly (also sounded interesting), a chocolate brownie with malted barley cream and vanilla pod ice cream, and a pineapple upsidedown cake with pineapple & fennel sorbet.

little did i know i was in for a rollercoaster ride. initially the coriander ice cream was like a kick to the face, i had no idea what hit me and i did not like it one bit. however, strangely enough i kept goingbackto it, each time still not enjoying it but continuing to do so. and you know what? i got used to it and with the carrot cake it became acceptable. i suppose it just takes some time to adjust and also depends on personal preference (although i do love coriander). if you’re up for something a little different, give it a go – you might love it! and also because the carrot cake is scrumptious. the chocolate brownie is a much safer option and the cream and ice cream complemented it well. now to the other highly anticipated treat – the gin & tonic jelly. it’s very pretty with the flowers and fruit, but the jelly was far too strong for me and i suppose the citrus fruits didn’t really help either. for those who love strong, punchy, refreshing desserts, you’ll surely love this. and finally the pineapple cake which is another safe option, and you won’t be disappointed as the sorbet is great together and quite refreshing also.

such a fun night with the food journey and i thoroughly enjoyed trying new and different things. there were some real keepers and also some i’d require a little more courage for, but overall a lot of yummy food with quite the variety so you’re bound to find something you love!

food not bad but the staff really spoilt the experience. shortly after were shown to our seats we notice a big party of ladies started arriving at the long tables right next to us. the rest of the restaurant was empty so we asked if we could move to another table. the staff were inflexible and said all the tables have been reserved. we were merely swapping from a table of 4 to another table of 4. they reluctantly allowed us to move. the waitress was quiet abrupt and unhelpful when my friends was trying to decide on a wine to go with the meal. she brought 2 bottles that matched our request to the table and walked away with a frown leaving us to decide. after we finished our starters which were delicious we were still hungry so we asked for some more bread (later we discovered it was an extra charged to the bill but we were not told). at the end of the meal we asked for the bill. she camebackwith a portable card machine. we were paying by card and each couple presented their card. the machine had the whole total already entered. so then she rolled her eyes and returned to the till and reset the value to split the bill. upon payment our friends discovered they added a transaction fee of 2% but the waitress did not inform us. we were unhappy and said it would have been nice to have been told. unapologetically she pointed out to the fine print at the bottom of the bill. such attitude! will not be returning.

must say i was pretty surprised. for a pub, it's very fancy. they've apparently renovated just recently so it's a fabulous little spot. the front looks like your typical pub but the restaurant andbacksections are gorgeous. food is pretty fancy too. definitely not your every day pub grub. flavours are good, presentation is good. it's the perfect place for a long boozy friday lunch.

this place is great! we've been here a few times and have always found the staff friendly and helpful. we ate for the first time in the restaurant and found the food stunning! it was beyond all expectations. we usually just go for the bar food but decided to hit up the restaurant. so glad we did.
one of our friends has an allergy and can find it hard when dining out, but the staff were truly amazing - nothing seemed too hard or difficult. which was a breathe of fresh air.
this pub has something for everyone. we love it and have never had a drama, we will beback(as often as possible!)

this place is fantastic. a modern and relaxed atmosphere, that's perfect for kickingbackin on a warm summers afternoon. a decent range of beer and wine made for a lovely sunday afternoon. new favourite pub in sydney!

food was fab, service was cold & unpleasant. the food, venue, menu, location are all fabulous the restaurant has so much going for it, except for the waist staff. we had ask for menus & we just felt like such an inconvience to the staff. the restaurant was only 1/4 full so it's not like they were busy. all our meals were brilliant, it's such a shame the service didn't stand up to the high quality of everything else. i wouldn't gobackagain.

tilbury standards. previously the restaurant of choice. easy parking, excellent food but what has happened.
a table for four on a thursday, but all for this day, - non alcohol drinkers. ordered four sparkling mineral water but none was available although it appeared on the menu. had to settle for lemon infused tap water. not a good start.
the slow cooked beef as a main, was ordered "medium".it just fell apart but was only warm and was rare. it was so rare that one gagged with the taste of raw meat.
i normally never send anything back. but this was an exception at $38, and was inedible. it camebackafter ten minutes but was unchanged. still raw and gagging. it remained uneaten and to the credit of staff, they did not charge for that plate.
but it, along with the no sparkling mineral water, put a dampener on the whole meal.
then there was the usual trouble when one sends a meal back, getting any attention at all from the staff. almost had to trip them up to get to order desert and coffee.
normally i don't give a restaurant a second chance to absorb my $120 for a meal, but then perhaps.......three other guests were satisfied.

elegant decor, friendly and unrushed! loved it. really enjoyed the lunch today. we ordered 3 entrees: the fig and prosciutto, the alaskan crab with wet polenta and the confit of pork belly. we also had the following for mains: barramundi with scallops, spaghetti with crab, saffron gnocchi. we didn't have time for desserts as we had to dash. sat down at 12.30. left at 2.15pm. service was faultless and friendly. the meals did take some time to arrive. the table adjacent to ours arrived later, had their orders taken after us and had their entrees arrive before us and their mains at least 5 mins before us... took just a tad too long between entree and mains. the dining room wasn't very very crowded either. if not for our midday appointment, i would have liked to try their dessert as well! a great meal! good flavours, good plating, fresh produce and a very comfortable setting!

i will gobackagain for sure!