BUSH — Restaurant in Sydney

I’ve been coming to Bush since it first opened around 2019 and was a regular for quite some time. The original owners were genuinely great guys who created a laid-back, welcoming atmosphere—it always felt more like dining at a friend’s place than at a restaurant. It was BYO, the burgers (and everything else on the menu) were excellent and well-priced, and I recommended it to so many people over the years. I returned recently, almost like a reunion after a few years away. I understand that places evolve, and I respect their decision to move away from burgers and focus on other dishes. However, it seems the venue has changed hands, and while I’m not criticising the quality of food itself, the service—particularly from the manager or new owner—left a different impression. It felt like the end of an era.

———- Just read the response to the review. We were polite to the staff. The female waiter was very pleasant to deal with. The tall male manager on the other hand did not explain the menu or provide any guidance how many dishes we should order. I have increased the rating because I didn’t realise you were the same owner. The manager with dealt with was curt and when we asked if we could double the burger he responded abruptly “No” with no explanation offered, which as you have explained makes sense. To us it just came across as weird and we were confused why couldn’t order more food. He looked distracted and didn’t particularly care.

I have literally NO idea what you are talking about us being rude to staff or moving through the kitchen. Unless you have us confused with another table, this is actually a complete lie. Like I said, we know the layout of the venue having dined there many times and didn’t move through it at all. I know you weren’t there because I’ve met you before - hence why I thought it had changed hands. We sat down at a table right near the entrance. We sat down when we arrived and did not move until we left. So unless this is a mix up or you have been told something fabricated by your staff - I am beyond confused.

Like I said, not a complaint about the food quality. The person we dealt with had an attitude that was more catered for a band than hospitality. That’s the reason why our experience deteriorated so quickly. If the manager actually bothered to explain the menu, it would have been a...

UPDATE:

Hi Grant, appreciate the response, and I take your point regarding the price of the burgers, thank you for clarifying. I don't recall your staff offering other dishes unfortunately, and I'm 100% certain there was no negative behaviour or rudeness from anyone at our table, everyone was polite and well mannered. I can assure you that no-one passed through the kitchen, I'm sorry but your staff has mistaken us for another group. I also didn't mention anything about changing ownership in my review. I stand by my comments below regarding the service. I believe it's important to provide honest reviews, and I hope this feedback goes towards making BUSH a positive experience for all customers in future.

In short - poor value for money and poor service. A group of us dined here excited to order the Bush Burger, having last enjoyed it 4 years ago at a good price ($15). We all ordered a burger each, plus some sides. What came out was undeniably a delicious smash burger, but very small. Certainly not sizeable enough to be considered a main on their menu, at $26 a pop. At most restaurants you’d expect your waiter to ensure you’ve ordered enough food - not here. What’s worse was that after finishing the burger in a couple of minutes, two of us asked to order another. The response was simply “we’ve sold out.” What was most surprising about this was the lack of empathy or compassion to recognise that our original order hadn’t satisfied us, nor did they suggest other alternatives on the menu to help. Pretty odd, especially selling out of their infamous burger at 7:30 on a Saturday night. So we left it at that and ordered pizza down the road. All of this plus a $12 can of Reschs (one of only two beer choices) topped off what was a very disappointing...

Food had it's heart in the right place however the execution was not the best.

Rabbit schnitzel while done very well was a bit over salted, mostly crumb (a really good crumb but more than half of the dish was just crumb!) and the schnitzel format didn't really bring out the rabbit flavour. If this was pork you wouldn't be able to taste the difference.

Kangaroo Steaks were nicely done however the portions were disgracefully small! The sauce it was served on had almost no flavour and was quite watered down. When we tasted it with the chips it may as well have not been there.

Chips were fantastic! Nothing to complain here. Big, crispy and chunky! Perfectly cooked!

The spaghetti was definitely undercooked. Great sauce and flavours however it was most certainly far from Al dente.

The Flan dessert had a very good base and flavours however there was a disgusting burnt charcoal flavour that ruined the whole dish. An absolute dish destroyer. This has souch potential but the acrid bitter flavour was just so overwhelming! In a much smaller doses this would have been a lovely addition but it it compete took the dish away!

The pavlovo had lovely flavours and was a miles ahead of the Flan. The sweet red dressing on top really did it for me!

Staff were pushy on starters for a friend (probably because the serving sizes were small, which they didn't explain, just asked us twice if we wanted extras). Also we received a salad that we did not order. We had one steak come very late however we were compent with a "full portion". Which was lovely but did everyone else only get a half portion?

The place was quite packed, some of us couldn't get out to go to the bathroom without bothering neighbouring customers or having a few of us move out to...