buzo Restaurant
Dylan and I first heard about buzo through my bestie, Em, co-owner Traci Trinder’s little sister. Knowing we were foodies, Em tried to put any bias aside and told us how fabulous buzo was and that we just had to go and decide for ourselves. When we made our way to buzo for the first time a few years ago we found it easy to see why it is adored by so many and it quite quickly became a favourite of our very own.
The restaurant is located just off the top end of Oxford Street in Woollahra, in a gorgeous two storey terrace. Traci is the bubbly, friendly and ever so amazing front of house, James Hird and Todd Garrett run the kitchen and Roddy, Jen and the entire wait staff team bounce off each other never leaving customers wanting.
With the endless list of restaurants to try we only ever seem to make it to buzo three or four times a year. We do however always book a table with our close group of friends for our final dinner of the year, just before the restaurant closes for Christmas; it’s become a tradition of ours.
Bowl sicilian green olives, fennel & lemon ($8.00).
While waiting for the rest of our party to arrive we enjoyed a bowl of warm olives, served in a cute terracotta dish, sprinkled with fennel seeds, drizzled with lemon and finished with a stalk of rosemary.
Bowl sicilian green olives, fennel & lemon
Grilled asparagus, fresh mozzarella, lemon & parmigiano ($19.50).
Asparagus is one of my favourites, but I was also drawn to this dish as it sounded a bit lighter than the others, and I knew what was to come later on! The simplicity of this dish was key, fresh produce and a wonderful combination of a few key ingredients, the way all good Italian food should be. One of my favourite buzo entrées.
Grilled asparagus, fresh mozzarella, lemon & parmigiano
Seared Queensland Scallops, parsley, lemon and pangrattato ($20.00).
Dylan was undecided on entrées but as soon as the special of scallops was mentioned that was that. They looked rather pale and not as caramelised as usual, but once we’d taken a bite we found they were cooked nicely and full of flavour, topped off with the lovely crunch of pangrattato (fried breadcrumbs).
Seared Queensland Scallops, parsley, lemon and pangrattato
Sicilian style stuffed, roast leg of suffolk lamb, pangrattato ($31.00).
I’ve tried variations of the lamb on previous occasions but had never ordered it for myself. I absolutely loved it, the lamb was juicy and tender, cooked beautifully and the pangrattato added a nice textural contrast.
Sicilian style stuffed, roast leg of suffolk lamb, pangrattato
Strozzapreti, spincah, chilli, anchovy & ricotta salata, pangrattato ($27.00).
The pasta at buzo is totally scrumptious and I was delighted Dylan ordered some as he ALWAYS orders the beef. Strozzapreti is a hand rolled pasta and we both thoroughly enjoyed this – a perfect flavour combination where anchovy was king, supported well by chilli, a hint of lemon and ricotta.
Strozzapreti, spincah, chilli, anchovy & ricotta salata, pangrattato
Fried potatoes ($8.00) / Green salad ($8.00).
There is not much to say about the fried potatoes other than they are AMAZING and we order them every time we go!
Fried potatoes & Green salad
Sgroppino di rita (a glass of lemon gelato whisked with prosecco) ($11.00).
Our group usually share desserts as they are all so delicious, but we always order a sgroppino each as a pre-dessert (yes yes, the little piggies that we are technically have two desserts each!). Lemon gelato whisked with prosecco, if there is a better pre-dessert out there we would like to know!
Sgroppino di rita (a glass of lemon gelato whisked with prosecco)
Crostata di buzo (preserved berry & almond tart, double cream) ($16.00).
While Mr O enjoyed his usual warm chocolate tart and A & M were sharing, Dylan, Em and I wanted a little bit of everything so we decided to share the tart, cheesecake and waffles (and I’d just steal some of Mr O’s chocolate!). At the end of the evening and knowing I had to squeeze in two more desserts, I found the berry and almond tart a little too heavy. The flavours were all there but I couldn’t enjoy it to its full potential on such a full stomach.
Crostata di buzo (preserved berry & almond tart, double cream)
Baked meyer lemon, treacle & mascarpone cheesecake ($16.50).
Lovely and creamy, the baked cheesecake was gorgeous, served with a tuille biscuit and dollop of mascarpone.
Baked meyer lemon, treacle & mascarpone cheesecake
Toasted buttermilk waffles, apricots, vin santo & vanilla gelato ($16.00).
The final dessert was waffles, but not any old waffles, buttermilk waffles which I’d been looking forward to all night! Almost hidden by the generous mound of gelato, the waffles were thick and fluffy. I found the apricot a little too rich but Dylan loved the intensity and found it difficult to decide a winner between this or the cheesecake.
Toasted buttermilk waffles, apricots, vin santo & vanilla gelato
Another delicious meal with great company, the perfect finish to the year and buzo remains one of our favourites. Thanks as always to Traci, Jen, Roddy, James, Todd and the rest of the crew x
buzo trattoria
3 Jersey Road
Woollahra NSW 2025
(02) 9328 1600
buzo Website
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
zomg that mascarpone cheesecake looks to die for!
zomg indeed, i’m only a recent cheescake advocate and this one was stunning !
Well once i introduced the crew to Buzo they couldn’t get enough. I personally crave the gnocchi when i’m not at the restaurant it just melts in your mouth. We have had the pleasure of being the first one’s in the restaurant so quiet….. The calm before the storm. As the night goes on it gets louder an the reastaurant comes to life, mind you our table is usually the ones making all the noise (well me mostly after all that yummy vino). by the end of the evening we are usually rolling out the door as we are sooooo jam packed full of great food & wine. Then comes the Wine Library a few doors up.
looks like some lovely tasty dishes. i’ve booked for my brothers birthday in April for the family so looking forward to sampling the dishes 🙂
{ 1 trackback }