Universal Restaurant for my birthday

We've come to Christine Mansfield's Universal Restaurant in Darlinghurst for my birthday. Universal offers a number of dishes inspired by Christine's travels around the world. It is a sort of build your own degustation from a selection of smallish dishes that are each intensely flavoured and yet still build to a crescendo that really wallops you in the mouth.

Geisha Girl - a cocktail of sake, plum wine, elderberry flower and cucumber.

Spice quail, roasted rice, pomelo and mint.

Hiramasa kingfish cerviche, pickled seaweed, heirloom tomato and green chilli salsa.
08 Naia Verdejo

Steamed whiting, squid and clams, seared sea scallop, black beans, ginger soy broth.

Tea smoke aoraki salmon and pacific oysters, morcilla and green apple salad.
Mukai 'Ine Mukai' Hiire Genshu Sake.

Seared venison, spiced beetroot, pearl barley and parsley walnut salsa.

Sichuan pepper spiced duck, asparagus, lychee and watercress salad.
07 Lost Valley Cortese.

Slow braised wagyu beef shin and bone marrow vol au vent, chestnut mushroom tempura, spinach.
08 Domaine Singla 'La Crinyane' Carignan.

Beautiful pregnant lady - 38 weeks.

Beautiful pregnant lady and birthday boy.

Gaytime goes nuts.
Honeycomb ice cream, caramel parfait, chocolate crunch, salted hazelnut caramel.
It looks a little messy because Michelle couldn't wait to get stuck into it. It was delicious after all. A quick rebuild and it was okay to photograph.

Piccolo latte and blueberry friands.


Universal has been awarded 2 Good Food Guide Hats and is at Republic 2 Courtyard Palmer Street Darlinghurst.