Picture Menu: Opera Kitchen - Sydney Opera House

I was really excited when I heard a collection of casual food-stalls opened under our iconic Sydney landmark, the Sydney Opera House. To make things even better, it has a full uninterrupted view of our other icon, the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The following weekend couldn't come soon enough and I counted down the days to my Sunday brunch under the sails. One tiny problem - the weather. I was determined to enjoy my brunch under the sun but looks like the Weather god had different ideas. So I waited. One weekend. Two weekends. Three weekends. Can Sydney really rain every weekend for a whole month? The answer is 'Yes'.

My patience finally paid off and I woke up one Sunday morning to clear blue skies. I leaped out of bed with the excitement of a primary school kid on excursion day. Walking along the ferry terminals in Circular Quay, I found myself in tourist territory. I made my way towards the Opera House trying to blend in with our visitors (which wasn't too difficult since I was carrying a camera). The food-hall was quite easy to locate if you actually bother to read the signs. Just go down the stairs to the Lower concourse, easy. There are communal benches and cafe-style tables. I picked a bench and sat down at the end closest to the Harbour Bridge. To my surprise, there are actually menus (without pictures) scattered along the benches. My brunch partner and I decided to pick a dish from each stall, just for variety.

MissChu
Famous for their hole-in-the-wall Vietnamese rice paper rolls in Surry Hills. We tried their Traditional Peking Duck Pancakes and Tiger Prawns and Green Mango Rice Paper Rolls. Unfortunately both dishes were a tad dry and not very flavoursome.

Tiger Prawns and Green Mango Rice Paper Rolls

Peking Duck Pancakes

Charlie and Co. Burgers
I've already tried their burgers previously and they didn't give me cravings for seconds. However, their Parmesan and Truffle Fries is a different story. Super crunchy on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside, topped with parmesan and seasoning. This definitely deserved an encore and they didn't disappoint. In fact, I think there were even better than last time.

Parmesan and Truffle Fries

Cloudy Bay Fish Co.
There was a selection of fresh fish on offer, cooked to order, but one look at the jumbo prawns and I was hooked. The salad was fresh and the prawns were sweet.

Classic Prawn Cocktail

Kenji Japanese
The sushi also looked fresh but $14 for 4 pieces of sushi and $15 for a California Roll? Maybe next time.

Becasse Bakery
What better way to finish the meal with coffee and dessert. I walked along their counter like a kid in a candy store. Finally, I settled for the Bolivian Chocolate Petit Pot. It was a rich and slightly dense chocolate mousse topped with caramelised nuts. With it's richness, it certainly didn't feel 'petit'. A must for all chocoholics.

Bolivian Chocolate Petit Pot

Service was great. The food was brought to the table relatively quickly after ordering from the stalls. A tip for those on a budget, the bar in the middle of the food-hall offers free ice water. I even saw a backpacker refill her 1L drink bottle. Cups are provided so no need to BYO.

So there you go, what a great way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon in Sydney. Although the food wasn't spectacular, the backdrop certainly was. This reminds me of a credit card slogan. Truffle Chips $10, Duck Pancakes $12, Chocolate Pot $7, the View - Priceless.