Just Desserts, Tomislav Darlinghurst

20 October 2010, 10:42


When it comes to creativity, the name that first pops into mind is Tomislav Martinovic. Combining his creativity with his love of desserts, Chef Tomislav has teamed up with Black Star Pastry’s Christopher The to present “Just Desserts” ($125), a six course degustation dinner with 4 desserts and only 2 savouries as part of this year’s Sydney International Food Festival. When the event was first mentioned on Twitter I knew I had to book fast and so after some frantic calls in the space of 8 minutes I rounded up a posse of hungry food bloggers we rocked up to Tomislav (Level 2/13 Kirketon Rd, Darlinghurst).


To kick things off, a pair of test tubes arrive, 1 filled with Violet Granita and the other with Delamotte Champagne. We are told to mix the two together and instantly child-like glee shines on our faces when the mixture bubbles and froths upon contact with each other. The resulting fizzy drink is sweet, zingy and oh so pretty.


First to start off the desserts is Grilled Strawberries with Mint & White Chocolate and the presentation has us gazing in awe. Seriously does this not look like a work of art? Mmm edible art. This dessert had an element of customising one’s dessert to own liking where you dip a grilled strawberry into as little (or as much) white chocolate as you like, a swipe of intense mint powder with a side of cream and a swirl of the yoghurt sorbet.


hee gratuitous chocolatesuze shot nomming!



When I spotted the Goats Curd Cheesecake with Elderflower & Pistachio on the menu I was initially wary as I have issues with goat’s cheese but luckily the taste wasn’t too overpowering as it was only the foam which was goat’s cheese. Under the cloud of ethereally light foam hid a quenelle of creamy vanilla and paired beautifully with the slightly sour cubes of pink elderflower jelly and slivers of grapes. I see Helen sneaking glances at my plate and before she can ask whether I like goat’s cheese I manage to demolish the dessert and scrape the plate clean.


Caramel Ice Cream with Toasted Peanuts. I think there was only 1 stand for these cones in the entire restaurant as we were instructed to select a cone which caused us to moan about photo presentation bahahaha luckily the night was winding down and we got to take some quick snaps with the stand.


This was my favourite dessert of the night! Wafer thin and super delicate, the cornets were topped with nubbins of peanuts and the added hidden surprise of pop rocks! The sounds of crackles and pops filled the air and we laugh at the unexpected flashback to childhood arvos of buying candy from the corner shop. The caramel ice cream was smooth and delicious and at the bottom of the cone was another treasure trove of peanuts. Just like those ads- there’s no boring bits!


Warm Chocolate Mousse with Olive Oil & Sea Salt has me staring dubiously at the brown pile/deposit swirl flecked with salt. I tentatively taste a spoonful of the white powder atop the sorbet to realise gasping, that it was horseradish! Definitely sinus clearing! The chocolate mousse is rich and comforting like a warm hug and the mulberry sorbet is a refreshing but what I loved most were the butter soaked biscuit crumbs hiding beneath! Seriously I could’ve totes eaten a whole bowl of the stuff!


Beef Mince Pie with Grilled Onion & Tomato Sauce. Sadly that was the end of desserts and the beginning of the savoury. I reckon I could’ve kept on going with the dessert onslaught! The pie was good with flaky buttery pastry although the beef innards were a tad on the salty side but was easily tempered with the crazy awesome tomato sauce ‘soil’.


Tomislav’s signature side of Rice Crackers with Sea Salt & Vinegar rounds up our dinner and we happily spritz the paper thin crackers with vinegar till we’re fighting for the last of the crumbs. Side note, they only had 20 slates in the whole restaurant which meant after each course they had to quickly wash and dry them!


The neon glow of the infamous Kings Cross sign shimmers as we leave, clutching a goodie box filled with Black Star pastries. I had fun with the interactive aspect of the dinner and would love to return for the caramel ice cream!

Tomislav on Urbanspoon

 

 

  1. Posse of food bloggers! And I like that you labelled me as ‘hungry’. lol. Appropriate!

    The surprise pop rocks were the best bit :)

    — Helen (grabyourfork)    Oct 20, 10:45 AM    #

  2. My god woman, what time did you sleep last night? I commend your effort and dedication!

    Caramel icecream cone was the best ever! Poprocks are kickass! Every dessert should feature these.

    — Phuoc'n Delicious    Oct 20, 11:19 AM    #

  3. OMG! Amazing!! He is such a genius. That cone with caramel ice cream & peanuts is calling out to me!

    — Betty @ The Hungry Girl    Oct 20, 11:24 AM    #

  4. hehehe, horseradish, hehehe. That would of been an unexpected surprise! All looks so beautifully presented and delicous.

    — Sara @ Belly Rumbles    Oct 20, 11:34 AM    #

  5. Aha ! thought I saw Herecomesthefood as I was leaving, you guys were seated outside yeah ?
    At least you get to take photos of the cones on the stand :)

    — monica    Oct 20, 11:34 AM    #

  6. oh wooh! this looks so interesting!

    — JanJan @ Cooking for My Love    Oct 20, 11:46 AM    #

  7. Great review. Heading there tonight myself! Looks like it’s going to be a great sweet feast!

    — forager @ The Gourmet Forager    Oct 20, 12:02 PM    #

  8. Omgosh, go you for getting those tickets!! The degustation looks beautiful and that mince pie looks too pretty to eat! Typical food bloggers moaning about photo presentation – your tummies’ll be moaning more if you don’t eat it heheheh :P

    — Margaret | fangirlish    Oct 20, 12:07 PM    #

  9. Agreed, I could have done with more desserts, LOL! I loved the goatcheese….

    Soo….. “Do you like Goat cheese?!?” ROFL!

    — billy@a table for two    Oct 20, 12:15 PM    #

  10. Horseradish! Haha, love the reverse aspect of this dinner but it may have done my head in…

    — mademoiselle délicieuse    Oct 20, 12:22 PM    #

  11. all the combinations are so unique! looks so good though, especially the goats curd cheesecake mmmmm…

    — Vivian - vxdollface    Oct 20, 12:57 PM    #

  12. I was impressed by the ice cream and your nails!

    — Michelle Chin    Oct 20, 02:01 PM    #

  13. They should’ve just made it all 100% desserts! Oh man I want those test tubes! ANd <3 to nubbins…

    — Karen | C&C    Oct 20, 02:20 PM    #

  14. Wow, what a clever clever man! The desserts all look amazing and so much fun to eat too

    — Brenda    Oct 20, 03:58 PM    #

  15. wow the Grilled Strawberries with Mint & White Chocolate looks absolutely amazing! and the icecream…. WOW!

    — sporbo    Oct 20, 04:17 PM    #

  16. Man, I always think of dessert before main… if I could just sit through a degustation of dessert and nothing else I would be happy! But I know my body needs some kind of nourishment. Awww it all looks so mind boggling!

    — angie    Oct 20, 05:17 PM    #

  17. Brilliant! I love that guy… but I am not too keen on mint… how did it taste like?

    Great blog, first time here.

    ciao
    A.

    — Alessandra    Oct 20, 07:08 PM    #

  18. Chocolatesuze, this is my kind of night. Sigh, if only these fancy restaurants always had degustation menus of only desserts. I would be a very happy man :)

    — Matthew (Masterchef)    Oct 20, 08:21 PM    #

  19. omg i cant believed i miss out on this

    — julie    Oct 20, 10:06 PM    #

  20. I am really curious about the rice crackers with the spritz. Hmmmmm looks amazing.

    — Katherine    Oct 20, 10:23 PM    #

  21. the strawberries and that cornetto look divine! and the goat’s cheese curd cheesecake, totally my type of thing! : )

    — mireille    Oct 20, 10:29 PM    #

  22. wow edible artwork indeed! that spritz is so weird..like spraying a piece of tissue…haha.

    — Vivienne    Oct 20, 11:14 PM    #

  23. Aah – I saw this event but wasn’t quite sure what it was all about… Although I think I lost my sweet tooth anyway… I think it’s behind the couch.

    — Tina@foodboozeshoes    Oct 20, 11:33 PM    #

  24. More desserts I say! I like the sound of the caramel ice cream cone dessert… much <3 for popping candy!

    — Jacq    Oct 21, 02:09 AM    #

  25. Firstly how weird is it that desserts come before savouries (although I wouldnt complain about that!) and secondly, the caramel ice cream cone looks amazing!!!! I have GOT to try this!

    — catty    Oct 21, 03:00 AM    #

  26. I LOVE goat cheese so that dish would’ve been right up my alley! Elderflower is so lovely as well, yum! And hey, nice nails! ;-)

    — Maria @ Scandi Foodie    Oct 21, 07:24 AM    #

  27. they all looked so pretty to eat! chocolate mousse with sea salt, hmmm.. that sounds interesting! the waffle cone with pop rocks is so attractive.

    — Melissa    Oct 21, 12:01 PM    #

  28. The combination of strawberries, mint, and white chocolate sounds delightful!

    — Jen    Oct 21, 03:26 PM    #

  29. I’m so lucky my boyfriend didn’t know about this dinner that starts with FOUR desserts! Looks so yummy!

    — MelbaToast    Oct 21, 04:52 PM    #

  30. Wow- that looks like it was a cracker of a night. Out of all the things I miss from Sydney, those DIY spritz chips from Tomislav are right up there…

    — Tori    Oct 21, 07:52 PM    #

  31. I was gonnna go to this!!! .. awww looks like i missed out big time!! :( pout

    — Rhonda (TheDaintyBaker)    Oct 22, 11:53 AM    #

  32. i love your grilled strawberry shot! mine was a bit blurry =(

    — lifeis2munch    Oct 22, 08:34 PM    #

  33. AYYY-MAYYY-ZING!! My mouth is WATERING AT THAT OLIVE OIL CHOC DISH!

    — Phoodie    Oct 24, 03:35 PM    #

  34. Everything looks beautiful! I am very impressed with Tomislav now, wow! Anything involving DIY desserts, test tubes and olive oil in desserts sounds good to me :)

    — Amy    Oct 26, 10:59 PM    #

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