Farmhouse Kings Cross — Restaurant in Sydney

It breaks my heart to only give Farmhouse 3 stars. When we went here 7 years ago, we felt very lucky to get a reservation! We happened to get the only 2 seats at the window separated from the single large dining table. It was a wonderful evening & we believe it would have been a great evening whether we had sat at the window or at the large table. We have also told other friends & family about this place and they have also gone and had good experiences.

We also felt lucky this visit that we were able to get a reservation but last night was a very different experience and it made us sad. When we arrived we noticed immediately that there were tables lined up outside. The tables were either 2 or 4 seaters for up to 16 people. The 2 window seats we had sat at on our original visit were blocked by one of the outside tables and they had wine bottles also lining the window ledge so those seats clearly weren’t an option. The original long table was still inside the restaurant. When we arrived there was one couple already seated plus a lady sitting alone at the outside tables. When we checked in, we were told we could pick whatever table we wanted of the remaining 4 options on the sidewalk. I made a slight disappointed look and the hostess/waitress said “it’s good weather, outside is nice ok. And the nail salon will be closed in 30 minutes so those lights will go off and it will be dark then” Honestly, It was clear to us that outside was their preferred option for us and we just assumed that maybe they have a larger group coming for the inside table so we just selected our seat and went with it.

There were only two - 2 seater tables for us to choose from although there was the single female at a 4 seater and another empty 4 seater but we assumed as a 2 person reservation we needed to select one of the 2 seater tables available. The result was that my husband faced directly into the nail salon. He got to watch a couple women get their toes done. I “fortunately” faced the street but that wasn’t anywhere near the ambience of sitting in the restaurant watching & experiencing all the going on’s of a restaurant. The most disappointing part of it was that later we realized that the inside table was completely empty. They chose to put all of us on the sidewalk. My husband ended up being the only one who faced directly into the nail salon because when the next couple arrived, they offered for them to sit at a 4 seater table and both sit on the same side facing the street with the nail salon behind them. I wish we had been offered that was option. We definitely would have selected that on our arrival. The nail salon turned it’s light off exactly one hour from our reservation time rather than the 30 minutes advertised to us when we were seated.

The charm of this restaurant is not only the good food but it’s the cute space, the long table, the little counter, the feeling of being right in the hustle of the preparations, etc. We originally thought that maybe they were trying to recover from covid money loss by booking more seatings and taking advantage of the sidewalk but that wasn’t the case. They chose to seat everyone outside and no one inside. When I asked why no one was seated inside, I half expected them to say it was due to covid and no one was ever seated inside due to covid concerns but that’s not what she said. Her response was “we asked everyone and they chose to sit outside”. I can’t speak for how the others were asked this option but we weren’t really asked. It was clear to us that our seats were outside. Needless to say, it was very disappointing. It was our last night in Sydney and there are so many wonderful restaurants in Sydney so we were really bummed that we had chosen this one. Our waitress was nice, the food was good and beautifully presented but it is a totally different experience than what we signed up for. I am writing this review so that others can be aware of the changes that have been made so they are informed before making a reservation. I gave it 3 star though because the food and service...

Decided to dine at farmhouse on my last dinner before heading back to Toronto. Friends who I was staying with said it was their favourite restaurant in Sydney and it didn’t disappoint. We sat at the end of the communal table, near the kitchen and it was such an amazing experience. Right as we arrived the table was ready and we felt very welcome. Mike(the owner) greeted us and walked us through what to expect. We started with some champagne it went perfectly with the first few bites, the standout for me was the scallops with a charred romesco sauce and the country loaf, being a baker/chef from Toronto the loaf had a really nice crumb and good flavour.

We moved onto our next bottle of wine and asked one of the servers a recommendation on what would go well with the upcoming dishes, she guided us to a nice white that paired perfectly with the fish terrine(this was the highlight of the night), a perfectly cooked terrine with scallops and asparagus in a nice beurre blanc sauce and fresh herb salad.

We got our plate swapped for the mains and my friends mentioned how they loved the rooster plates and Mike overheard so he came and swapped out our black plates for the rooster ones, seamlessly. The mains were aged duck breast and braised duck legs, with braised leeks on top of a creamy puree, and of course the smashed potatoes in a brown butter sauce(I triple dipped). The duck was cooked perfectly and it all paired well together with our bottle of Pinot noir.

Finally the dessert, a classic rhum baba. It was very tasty and light after the very rich meal. Mike brought us over a little taste of something to go with the dessert. We really appreciated the hospitality and this restaurant deserves...

Farmhouse was a wonderful recommendation that we tried out - a farm to table concept, with a menu that changes month-to-month. We were greeted by friendly staff and seated right in the center of the long wooden barn table. We started with a really delicious plate of baguettes and tiny cob loaf, with a pork filling and a spinach and cheese filling. These were accompanied by delicious manchego croquettes. The next dish was gorgeous spanner crab, native lime, roe and broth. The vegetarian option was made with mushrooms instead. This was a really light and flavoursome bowl, and a perfect palate cleanser to be honest. Next up for me was the roast lamb shoulder, onions, a pea and mint condiment, roasted vegetables, and potato mash. The vegetarian option featured charred broccoli which was the only disappointment of the night. The lamb was incredibly tender and flavoursome, and this is coming from someone that normally doesn't enjoy lamb. The vegetables were well seasoned and paired wonderfully with the condiment, mash and lamb. The two desserts were wonderful starting with Chocolate, hazelnut and beetroot which was such a delicious, slightly bitter and a little sweet. The beetroot is such an interesting addition to the dessert and definitely not to everyones taste. The final meal was the apple tart which tasted like an elevated apple pie with delicious cinnamon and warm spices. Overall the experience was really wonderful! I definitely recommend it, but I think it's a great experience if you don't have any dietary requirements - that way you can enjoy...