Kensington Street Social – Chippendale

{invite} Bianca: So I’ll preface this little write-up with the fact I religiously watched the Great British Menu when Jason Atherton and Tom Kerridge were kicking around. Fast forward to early 2016 and Atherton opened his first Australian restaurant in Chippendale’s, Central Park. Kensington Street Social is a seamlessly cool restaurant. Floor to ceiling windows bathe diners in all the natural lighting they could want, dark exposed brickwork and my personal favourite. A plethora of bar/kitchen dining stools. There’s a slight exhilaration being so close to all the action. The menu is mostly a nod to his British heritage.

With Team FFS spread far and wide, I recruited Felicity to be my dining partner. And sitting at the rear of the restaurant at the kitchen pass, natural lighting was as rare as a natural hair fibre on president-elect Donald Trump’s head. So excuse the dark images.

Taking full advantage of KSS’s ‘Social Sunday series’ – celebrating food, wine and music at the Old Clare. And then finishing with some live music and drinks from 4pm in the Old Clare Bar. We kicked off our leisurely lunch with a cocktail each. Felicitations with the Vitamin C Vesper $19 that was slightly medicinal in taste. And myself with the winner, the DJ Saved My Life $21. The yuzu curd added a whole other dimension and I happily sipped every last drop. Right down to the frothy end.

Our choices weren’t overly strategic and looking back, it probably wasn’t the greatest representation of KSS’s full strength menu. We went super heavy on the carbs, so much so. One of the chefs even commented on our heavy choices. Luckily he was cute, so we’ll let that slide.

The Social ‘dog’, pork & fennel sausage, green apple, black pudding, cheddar and mustard $15 ea. Though on the exxy side are worth the hefty price tag. The brioche was soft and buttery. The pork & fennel sausage was pure pork(y) flavour. The cheddar drizzle really did aid in creating a creamier bite, not to mention, looked pretty as a picture. Apple and pork go together hand in hand but the addition here, was more for texture and to cut through the richness.Felicity never tends to read menus when I’m around and she completely glossed over black pudding, whoops! Giving me the best one liner of the day “I thought they were fried bread crumbs”!!

How I got the next one pass Felicity was another revelation Tataki Hiramasa Kingfish, dill, vermouth dressing & kale togarashi $19. I must say I do prefer a regular sashimi style when it comes to raw fish opposed to a slightly seared tataki. The kingfish was very silky and tender, though it was on the ‘fishier’ side of things. The shaved fresh kohlrabi added a nice crunch and the kale togarashi tied the dish together.

This is where things got ridiculous, with Felicity clearly being a bad example leading the carb onslaught. Opting for two of the Sourdough Flatbreads. The first being Roast Mushroom, taleggio, salmoriglio, marjoram, parmesan $18. The flatbread itself was perfectly light and crisp. The mushrooms had a gorgeous caramelised note to them. And the salmoriglio, similar to a salsa verde was really the accent topped off by the salty taleggio. This was definitely the favourite.

The second flatbread was the Spiced Lamb Merguez, eggplant, baby zucchini, preserved lemon, yoghurt dressing $18. So this may sound a little trashy but it’s really the highest compliment I could be paying. With the tender juicy lamb tasting like the best kebab meat you can get. Sorry, I had to. The use of the summery veg was a great compliment to the rich lamb, with each element balancing the other perfectly. The combination of the lemon with the yoghurt dressing subdued everything so it was really one cohesive bite, opposed to a meat onslaught.

I was particularly keen to try the Breakfast Rice, slow cooked hens egg, shiitake mushroom, pork belly and bacon dashi $18. I do love the scope of the brunch menu, as you really can take the meal in several directions. I probably couldn’t imagine having something so heavy early in the morning but at 2pm in the afternoon it’s a great alcohol soaker. The dashi was light and didn’t detract from the other elements, rice was soft and the mushrooms were plump and meaty. The pork belly to me, tasted like a quintessential Christmas ham. And was the strongest in flavour in the dish. The light sprinkle of chilli added a hint of heat. But I really would have loved a bit more texture in this dish, I couldn’t help but think a few parmesan crisps would just make this dish soar.

Felicity and I are both two ladies with a sweet tooth and with the dessert menus having been handed over, who are we to deny fate? With both of us instantly drawn to the Chocolate & Peanut bar, caramel & banana ice-cream $16. The bar was rather reminiscent of a Ferrero Rocher, with a crisp biscuity base and a light mouse. I wasn’t a fan of the banana ice-cream but as a whole bite it was a deliciously rich dessert with varying textural elements.

You could easily perch yourself at the bar and spend a good part of the day grazing on food and sipping cocktails.

Bianca

*For Food’s Sake dined as guests of Kensington Street Social, all opinions however are our own and independent.