So one of the best [if not THE best] French restaurants on the North Shore of Sydney decided that it needed a bit of a tidy up.
They shut their doors on October 1 until October 14 so they could splash on a bit a paint, re-do the 'open to view' kitchen and then invited foodie people and their regular diners to a launch.
So, those of us lucky enough to be part of the La Grillade of Crows Nest re-launch turned up for a wonderful, familiar, different but always enjoyable evening.
The food and wine were superb with the very friendly and expert staff who make you feel like they are really interested in anything you have to comment on or want to ask. And they know their stuff - from the food they serve to the wines they offer and the history of the venue.
The chefs worked like demons, the wait staff worked like they had lit matches in their shoes and needed to keep ahead of the flames, and all those associated with the restaurant were happy to expand on what had taken place to change a wonderful and long-time institution into a continuing to be wonderful institution but with a fresh and innovative outlook.
Not easy for a renowned restaurant that has always managed to be the home away from the office (especially for those in television and others tied into advertising or similar companies - I worked for a television production company in a previous life and we used to swing between La Grillade or the 729 Club as the place to go for food/drink/ideas/synopsis/well any excuse meetings).
We were invited to arrive at 6pm, and naturally I got there at 5.45pm - not a problem as the two of us were greeted, chatted to, informed and then escorted to the undercover garden area at the back of the restaurant with a glass of champers and lots of attentive staff surrounding us.
Then the hoards arrived - stacks of the regulars and foodies surged through to enjoy the high-class drinks and the delicious nibbles.
We had the previous owner and wife there, and former employees, too. You get the feeling that everyone who works there is a valued member of the team and that everyone pulls their weight and gets their jobs done with a large amount of professionalism and (a very pleasant and welcome change from the Ramsay kitchen method) no swearing or raised voices.
The drinks waiters wandered around the whole time making sure it wasn't a dry evening, and of course you could also do an obstacle course through the throng to get to the bar yourself.
They had a three piece band, Martini Club, playing delightful, good music and not so loud that you couldn't hear your own and conversations.
Of course the main attraction - the food!
While it was all delicious, my favourite was the duck rillett with a sour cherry jelly and picked pear, although the wagyu and brioche was terrific, and the braised lamb shoulder melted in the mouth... in other words, they were all wonderful and yummy.
The speeches were very short (not a problem in anyone's book) in fact I think the only problem of the night was the kitchen trying to keep up with all of us wanting more, more, please sir, more! But they did manage to keep sending out plate after plate of all that scrummy food, each individual piece getting the same attention and care so that the eyes were the first to say "wow" long before the mouth got to taste the "wow".
The evening was supposed to finish at 8.30 but there were people still there when we left at 9 and the staff were still serving food and drinks so I'm guessing that the restaurant got the message that people were happy with the freshening up of the decor and equally happy with the food and service.
http://www.aihgroup.com.au/la_grillade