Just when you were told that our coverage for the Sydney International Food Festival 2009 was graciously concluded with none other than the famed panna cotta at Jonah’s Palm Balm blog entry, I could not help but to sneak this final entry in; and yes, it is another Sugar Hit.  As we enter the swinging doors of the Intercontinental Hotel, we spot etch and I remind my partner that we still have to try it. As we approach the elevated lounge area we can see other patrons with their dessert plates, what catches my eye first is the illuminated water feature in the centre of the room, which reminds me of the water feature outside of lumiere in the city, though this one doesn’t change into a vivid range of colours.

Front to back: Gold Leafed White Chocolate Dome, Dark Chocolate Chilli Slice and Chocolate Hazelnut Macaroon with Chocolate Ganache with Nashi Pear Chutney and Vanilla-Honey Syrup

The White Chocolate Dome is soft and fluffy; the flavour is subtle and light with a hint of white chocolate aftertaste that swirls in the mouth after each helping.

Next, I do my best at slicing rapidly on the plate to gather the Vanilla-Honey syrup, by itself it is sweet and the vanilla is smooth. However, when matched with the other pieces on the plate, I find that I like it with the Nashi Pear Chutney as the syrup brings out the sweetness of the pear. I found that this was the part of the dessert plate that I enjoyed the most, however, the fact that it had nothing to do with chocolate was a bit disappointing as this dish was said to be an awed to chocolate.

The Chocolate Hazelnut Macaroon is swiftly lifted from the Ganache and eaten in one movement. I found that it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, but I enjoyed the nutty texture and it satisfied my fondness for Hazelnut.

The three chocolate drops and brittle chocolate stick is next, they too are nothing special in my opinion. Though it did well in simplicity and added an interactive element to the plate – picking up and eating a component.

Finally, the Dark Chocolate Chilli Slice, the chilli doesn’t really kick in until I’m half way through the portion. The ‘kick’ is more like a poke and is tolerable. Perhaps I was expecting a throat-burning sensation or a surprising dosage of chilli hit, which lead to my slight setback in this final piece of the dish.

The InterContinental Cortile Lounge

Cnr Bridge and Phillip Streets, Sydney, NSW 2000
Tel: +61 (02) 92401396

NB: Sugar Hits have concluded for this year.

Sugar Hits that blogged did during the SIFF 2009

Sugar Hit #4 2009 – Jonah’s Whale Beach

Sugar Hit #3 2009 – Sheraton on the Park

Sugar Hit #2 – glass brasserie, Hilton Sydney.

Sugar Hit #1 2009 – Azuma Kushiyaki

posted by D

Impressive awards wall no? And isn’t that the cutest whale hee hee

Wait another sugar hit? … isn’t SIFF over already?

Yes it is but due to my tardiness I still have one final Sugar Hitting at none other than Jonah’s for the notoriously wobbly panna cotta. This humble little panna cotta has received much attention and praise when it first appeared on the blog scene at Taste of Sydney especially when there were even videos made about its wobbliness in all its’ glory. A pleasant drive up north through some windy roads and some residential areas (we thought we were lost :S) but finally the warm illuminated sign of Jonah’s came to light.

We arrived to a warm and welcoming fireplace and was given the choice of having the sugar hit there so of course we accepted! Nothing beats sitting in front a fireplace, munching on a sweet dessert, sipping on a nice hot chocolate and relaxing with some loungey/jazzy music ^^! Now if only they gave us a packet of marshmallows as well hee hee (but then is it a gas fire haha)

Vanilla Panna Cotta with Lavender Honey and Pomegranate Molasses ($20)

It was as good as we remembered from the vanilla ni… I mean, tip to the sweet and sour pomegranate molasses surronding it. The wobbliness is always a pleasant giggle-inducing factor of this dessert as well hee hee. However I wish there was more vanilla flavour at the base of the panna cotta as it was all concentrated at the top. Each bite of the silky smooth panna cotta scraped with the molasses resulted in a initial sweet burst followed by a small zing of sourness which made a beautiful contrast in the flavours. After the sugar hit we had a short look around and it does seem to have a great view that I would like to see during the day to match the already wonderful atmosphere.

I’d hit that Sugar Hit:

Sugar Hit #3 2009 – Sheraton on the Park

Sugar Hit #2 – glass brasserie, Hilton Sydney.

Sugar Hit #1 2009 – Azuma Kushiyaki

Jonah’s Whale Beach

69 Bynya Rd

Palm Beach, 2108

Ph: (02) 9974 5599

Head Chef: George Francisco

FFichiban

I think one of the hardest decisions to make during this period of SIFF is which Sugar Hit to hit up. Unless you are the ES&T crew who have been to every single one of then hee hee For me, reading other blogs and reading the descriptions over and over is how I choose…. But me being me and having a huge weakness for chocolate meant trying Sheraton on the Park.

Warm Chocolate Pudding sprinkled with Golden Almond Splinter, Honeycomb Ice Cream and a drop of Chantilly Cream & Brown Brothers dessert wine

The presentation was picture perfect with the melted chocolate flowing down the side of the beautiful brown pudding mountain while almond splinter dotted along the chocolate waterfall like golden rocks and a touch of sugar snow at the peak. The scoop of honeycomb ice cream is nestled comfortably in its waffle shell and the dollop of cream formed a sort of fluffy cloud.

Chocolate pr0n

When the first spoon sunk into the pudding I myself had a small sinking feeling as I was not greeted by a gooey, chocolatey centered which I oh-so-wished they had. However, the soft spongy pudding when matched with the ice cream and cream created a wonderful harmony of flavours and textures. I do wish there had been more melted chocolate but the ice cream and cream did very well as a substitute. I have to agree with Squishies that it can get a little bit dry when just the pudding but totally disagree on the too much chocolate part as I somehow finished off two of them…

We also spied the cool fish eye mirror and I couldn’t resist a mirror-me shot hee hee

I also enjoyed the atmosphere here which was very relaxed yet sophisticated. Nice cushiony seats and warm lightning made a very pleasant dessert experience. I did hit my head on the lamp as I stood up though haha -_____-

Spotted! Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera

SO SEXYYY ^^!

Overall I found this Sugar Hit worth trying out although I am still longing for that gooey, oozy center.

Sheraton on the Park

161 Elizabeth Street

Sydney NSW 2000

Ph: (02) 9286 6000

http://www.siff.com.au/_webapp_276264/Sheraton_On_The_Park

FFichiban