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When I see “Mediterranean” used to describe a restaurant, my mind usually drifts to Italy and Greece. But The Palomar, they say, takes inspiration from Southern Spain, Northern Africa, and the Levant (all the lands along the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea, including Syria, Lebanon and Jordan). How that translates on a menu: basically, flame-grilled meats, seafoods and veggies, served with colourful, punchy sauces, and made to share. But there’s nothing basic about Mitch Orr’s food. When a chef this exciting gives culinary direction, you know it’s going to be thrilling. At this Oxford Street restaurant – unveiled with the launch of the new 25hours Hotel Sydney The Olympia – Mediterranean food gets a jolt of Orr’s signature intensity and playfulness. It's a genuinely fresh addition to inner Sydney’s restaurant scene.
The Palomar Sydney is the sister venue to a popular London restaurant of the same name, founded by hospo siblings Layo and Zoë Paskin. Orr once worked alongside the pair and, here in Sydney, he’s joined by head chef Luke Davenport, who started his career at The Palomar London a decade ago before working in kitchens including at Noma (Copenhagen) and Franca Brasserie (Sydney). Now, Sydney is lucky to have this formidable duo land together in Paddington.
The vibe
You don’t have to dress up for dinner here, but the place feels effortlessly elegant. Interiors mix warm browns, whites and greys, with touches of brass and gold adding polish. A big wraparound bar lets solo diners or pairs watch kitchen staff in action, while a dining room off to the side hums with energy when it’s full. (If you are in a pair, I’d recommend sitting at the bar, where you get the buzz of the room without missing a moment of the culinary theatre.) Service is highly professional – attentive, but never in your face. Lighting in the room subtly shifts throughout the evening to match the mood. And my favourite thing about the space? Every design choice has been made with acoustics in mind, so even at full tilt, you won’t have to yell. In other words, it’s a place you can take your parents to.
The food
We can’t decide (so much to tempt us!), so we go for the Feed Me menu, which is $85 per person for seven dishes.
Nigella seed-dotted flatbread comes freshly baked and hot, served with a silky whipped tahini. The other starters are an Albrolhos Island scallop, grilled in the shell with zhoug butter. Zhoug is a slightly spicy Levantine sauce made from chilli, herbs and spices like cumin and cardamom. Folded into butter, it’s a rich, aromatic addition to the scallops.
One of my dishes of the night is the other starter – crispy chicken schnitzel goujons served with a rich and slightly spicy “shifka tartar sauce” (shifka is a small, slender green chilli commonly used in Turkish cuisine, so it gives the creamy tartar a kick). The schnitzel/tartar combo is a clever palate tease – you know you’re eating crumbed chicken but the tartar plays with your tastebuds, telling you it’s fish. Either way, it’s very good.
Another big hit: the smashed cucumber chunks, dressed with green tahini, crispy chilli oil and liberal shavings of sugared almonds. I’ve never tasted anything quite like it – a teasing mix of Chinese, Lebanese and even dessert-like flavours all at once.
A whole squid, sliced and grilled until the edges are beautifully charred, arrives topped with a glossy green salsa and paper-thin slices of preserved lemon. It’s delicious, but it’s the vegetable sides that really grab my attention. Grilled green beans come on a bed of ‘Muhammara’ – a rich, smoky, slightly sweet red capsicum dip (a bit like a very flavoursome version of harissa or ajvar) that comes from Syrian cuisine. The dish is addictive – I reach for glossy, charred beans one after the other the way I’d usually reach for fries. The crispy potatoes topped with charred spring onion salsa are equally moreish.
We certainly don’t need dessert after all that, but we’re not bypassing it, because I’ve heard great things – particularly about the tahini custard tart with burnt honey ice cream. But baklava is my favourite dessert, so I go for the baklava pistachio ice cream sandwich ($22 for 2 chunks). Honeyed pastry sandwiches a perfectly straight-edged block of pistachio ice cream. It hits all the right notes.
The drinks
I start with a Garden Spritz ($20), which is Chandon infused with bitters, and navel as well as blood orange – garnished with a sprig of rosemary. It’s a refreshing apéritif that gets my tastebuds going before I move onto wine. You know the wine list is going to be good when sommelier Eleonore Wulf (who has just come from Aalia) has curated it. The mid-sized list features a mix of new and established as well as familiar and adventurous producers – some from the Mediterranean coast, the Iberian Peninsula and West Asia, as well as comfort picks from trusted local Australian and New Zealand producers. I order a glass of 2023 Roseblood Rosé (Côtes de Provence), which is a pale pink rosé that’s bright, crisp and highly drinkable. They have a cool deal where you can BYO one bottle of wine if you also select a bottle from their list.
Time Out tip
While you’re there (before or after your meal), make sure you take the elevator up to Monica, which is the hotel’s rooftop bar. It’s a stylish spot – it’s giving kinda artsy Palm Springs – and the view is surprising. It gives you an outlook on the city and the eastern suburbs that I haven’t really seen from elsewhere.
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