hipster style meets food with flair - ACME nails it

Sweet crab meat punctured with bursts of fresh corn and alfabeto pasta in a buttery, ramen-style soup. This may be the best soup I have every slurped.  It's a stand-out dish on a night of many stand-out dishes in Acme's highly successful Italian-Asian play.

This is a kitchen having a whole lot of fun. The team of four work calmly in the open plan kitchen, smiling at each other as they lean across and share the prep.  It's reflected in the menu with its simple descriptions.

Jatz and salmon - tangy with citrus

Sweet, warm brioche with baloney and a tomato-based sauce provided a comforting reminder of school lunches (but a step up on devon and tomato sauce!)

Beetroot, with ground coffee and macadamia nut butter - earthy accents

asparagus with green tea butter - surprisingly successful

beef tartare, kohlrabi, avocado

Two more sensational dishes. pungently rich black garlic and burnt chilli linguine and chinese-style chilli cucumber

Burrata, apple and bottarga

maltagliati, rabbit, pistachio

quite the twist on carbonara - pig head, yolk, macaroni.  unctuously good

braised octopus is deep fried just before serving - crunchy on the outside and oh so tender - served with fennel and wakame

Interesting food cooked very well, with great floor staff and a very reasonable wine list. Almost every dish caused us to pause and praise. It's lovely to see great ingredients cooked with such skill and style; this isn't a restaurant that takes itself too seriously though!

Definitely worth a visit to Rushcutters' Bay. We ate and drank our fill (and that's saying something) for $130 a head.

http://weareacme.com.au

The four metre terracotta warrior stands guard at the towering front entrance to China Republic in Sydney's World Square.  Distracted by the scale, I turn to be embraced by the shadows and sophistication of one of the newest fine chinese cuisine options in the harbour city.

The interior is breathtaking.  Tactile walls invite caresses.  Projected art works swirl and mesmerise.  But claiming centre stage are the two purpose-built Peking Duck ovens, huge earthen caverns with flames licking at scarlet ducks.  Despite the activity in the kitchen and the army of chefs, there is a calm control.  

Peking Duck is just one of the signature dishes nominated by Chef Yu as worthy of inclusion on his showcase Top 10 Menu.  The Kung Pao chicken is sweet, and tender with the flash of chilli underscored by a complex earthy sauce.  The sweet and sour pork ribs banish thoughts of the battered version served in Chinese takeaway across the country.  The meat is served in bite-size pieces on the bone.  It's juicy in that finger-licking way that ribs should be.

The downstairs space is large - in fact the restaurant has capacity for 250 - but the space is managed well with a diversity of seating options from the kitchen porn bench through to a very grand red table guaranteed to please those keen to be the centre of attention.  

Curve your way up an imposing staircase to the private rooms, each complete with a bamboo handcrafted scale model of part of the Forbidden City imperial palaces.  If you look really closely you might even find a teeny tiny Pu Yi!

I was lucky enough to be there as part of a launch banquet.  From the crunch of cold cucumber salad, and fabulous cold eggplant salad, through to delicate poached white chicken served in a tangy lemon sauce, and spectacular Peking Duck served in the traditional manner, China Republic is a feast for the senses.  

delicate white chicken with tangy lemon sauce

succulent finger-licking sweet and sour ribs

cold eggplant - a tapestry of taste and texture

tofu

Chef Yu working his magic

kapow wow - kung pao chicken

and last but not least - dumplings shanghai style

China Republic is Shop 10.41 World Square Shopping Centre - access via the stairs on the corner of George and Goulburn. Open for Lunch and Dinner 7 days a week