Gildas, Surry Hills

@chocolatesuze Lennox Hastie has done it again #gildas #surryhills #sydney #pinxtos #winebar #kangaroo #sydneywine ♬ Melancholia – St. Loreto

Gildas is the newest wine bar in Surry Hills and is the sister venue to Lennox Hastie’s Firedoor. We were lucky enough to be seated at the counter and start off with some Negronis and of course had to get the signature pintos namesake Gilda- a briny olive, pickled guindilla pepper and deliciously salty anchovy. Then the Matilda which was beautifully charred kangaroo with native lemon and sweet onion.

You definitely can’t go wrong with the buttery basque ham and then onto the retired dairy cow tartare with an incredible rock oyster cream and zesty sorrel. The chips are hand cut and made in house.

The oyster mushrooms with smoked egg yolk and buckwheat looks deceptively simple but this dish was perfection, the flavour of the mushrooms are so intense and the yolk just amps up the umami factor.

The gentle sweetness of the charred leeks with romesco and lardo is a winner. The pippies with Alubia beans, jamon broth and Manzanilla sherry are another must order and I loved the featherlight churros stuffed with spanner crab.

Onto the desserts, I had been staring at the tarts all night and finally it was time, the buttery pastry tart is filled with vanilla-sherry custard and topped with caramelised blood oranges. You absolutely have to order the tocino de celo, an incredibly smooth and rich flan that had me in raptures. Last but not least is the smoked buffalo-milk soft-serve with dulce de leche and extra virgin olive oil.