Sean's Kitchen

A place I have been looking forward to trying since discovering it is Sean's Kitchen. To be quite honest, I didn't know much about the restaurant until it popped up on Urbanspoon and after doing a bit of research, as well as studying the menus, I knew I just needed to try it! The bestie and I decided to treat ourselves to lunch here in celebration of her officially joining the workforce (yay!).

Love what they've done with the space! Lots of natural lighting and I love the warm copper tones.

The bar

Duck fat chips $10

Seeing 'The Signature' next to this on the menu really swayed us to order it. They were delicious while hot - crunchy and perfectly salted - but as they cooled down, they became a little chewy and not as appetising. We did regret not eating them faster because they were great when they arrived at our table! The ketchup wasn't anything special and tasted like just normal tomato sauce.

Mac & Cheese $8

AMAZING.

Perfectly seasoned, creamy and a very indulgent side. Not good for the summer bod but seriously so delicious! This would make the ultimate comfort food dish in winter, but in all honesty I'd happily eat it all year round. For what you get, it's also a great price. Of all the dishes we ordered, this was our absolute favourite. We would've licked the pan clean if it wasn't considered socially unacceptable.  You've really got to try it! 

Crab 'n' Cheese Melt $20

king crab, bechamel, cheddar

My favourite thing about this was that you could actually taste and distinguish real crab meat from everything else. The crab was in a light, creamy and lightly seasoned mixture. It was great with a bit of lemon juice drizzled over the top. A lovely dish with light, fresh flavours!

Orgy of Mushrooms $24
ricotta gnocchi

Being a mushroom lover, this caught my eye the first time I looked at the menu. I loved the different textures of all the mushrooms and the earthy colours on the plate. A+ presentation! The ricotta gnocchi was soft and fluffy, and there were some pieces where the ricotta was still visible. Unfortunately the yellow sauce was quite bland and lacked a punch. I was expecting a light citrusy tang but it was just oily. Another little let down was that I found bits of egg shell in some of the gnocchi (eek!). 

Top: Baked New York Cheese $12
Bottom: Lemon Meringue Pie $12

 The cheesecake had a strange, grainy texture and an unusual flavour which was I thought was overly egg-y, not quite what we'd expected from a cheesecake. Neither of us finished our halves. The base was our favourite part, probably because it had soaked up the syrup from the rhubard and strawberry.

The lemon meringue pie was great at first but eventually I found it a little too sweet. Thank goodness we were sharing everything because I don't think I would've been able to finish the entire slice by myself! I really liked the pastry which had a slight toasted coconut flavour (I think?) and wasn't too buttery. We also thought the dehydrated raspberries on the side were pretty cool! Both desserts were a rather generous serving size.

 The bill + rocket seeds!

Even though the food wasn't absolutely perfect, I still feel like we had a fantastic experience. The service was impeccable, with water being constantly refilled, food taking at most 20 minutes to arrive at the table and staff periodically checking in with us throughout the meal. Given we were there for lunch on a Monday when the restaurant wasn't absolutely packed, I still feel like everything was of a high quality and would remain so even in peak lunch/dinner hours.

Not very kind on the uni student budget, but there's nothing wrong with a treat once in while, right? The service, presentation and overall experience are well worth it. Prices would be considered a little steeper than your average meal but this place isn't average! With that incredible mac & cheese being only $8 and the desserts coming in at the $12 mark (minus the cheese platters), I'd definitely say it's worth a visit.
I can't wait to come back to try out more of the menu as well as some of the cocktails!