Infinity at Sydney Tower — Restaurant in Sydney

I really wanted to love this place. Chef Mark Best's Marque was one of our go-to places for many years. I still miss it.

And, admittedly, I was there with a picky eater who can't eat fish, shellfish or anything from the sea (even seaweed), but I told Infinity about that in advance (twice) and was assured the chefs would come up with appropriate alternatives.

When we arrived, however, it was clear they hadn't thought about it at all, and there was some hasty back and forth with the kitchen to see what was available and my guest could eat (and enjoy).

Eventually we decided to ditch the degustation menu and ordered from the carte.

The good bits:

I really wanted to try the signature oysters with grilled sea foam and they happily accommodated that, even though that dish is not available à la carte. The bread was good; the warm, spiced macadamias were pleasant. My dining companion asked for cream with her dessert and they did their best to accommodate that (they bought out crème anglaise).

My apératif (negroni) was nothing to get excited about, but the Arras Grand Vintage (available by the glass) was excellent and the Nebbiolo the sommelier suggested for my main was very nice.

The view is outstanding - even on a cold, wet day.

The not good bits:

The food was patchy and the service almost mystifyingly poor.

I’ve already mentioned the fact the restaurant wasn’t ready with what they intended to propose for my guest, as an alternative to the dishes on the degustation menu.

When the bread arrived, we had to ask for plates and knives.

The oysters were put in front of me with just the name of the dish (“oysters with grilled sea foam”) and no further information. The presentation was lovely, but I wasn’t aware you’re supposed to eat the whole thing, including the “shell” until the waiter told me when she came to clear the plate, after I’d finished. So I don’t think I really got to try the dish as it was intended, which was pretty disappointing.

According to a Broadsheet article, published the day I lunched there, this dish is served in an edible wheat flour and squid ink shell. For me, the fact I was even given an oyster fork – despite it turning out to be unnecessary – underscores how thoughtless the service was.

My starter, the scallops ($38), looked beautiful but the sauce was a weird temperature, somewhere between tepid and cold. I’m not sure if that was the intention but it didn’t work for me. I also felt like it a real lacked depth of flavour.

I chose the duck for my main ($64) and it was a big disappointment. The plum sauce was so overpowering the flavour of the duck was completely lost. The baby corn, barely charred, was cold.

When the mains were served, I asked for the sommelier to recommend a wine pairing. I was halfway through the dish before it came.

My desert was the Sauternes custard ($26) which was lovely, though the crostoli were stale tasting. Certainly not puffy and crisp, as I would have expected.

My dining companion skipped starters. She did like the roast saddle of lamb ($59), served with a wakame-free sauce, even though it was (for her) undercooked. (I’m sure it I would have though it perfectly done.) She wasn’t keen on the chocolate tarte ($26) as she thought it was too bitter, but that came down to her palate, not the dish.

The ambience was slightly off. The place is all dark wood and brass, but the music was loud (making it hard to hear the wait staff who spoke quite softly) and not in keeping with the look if the place.

I get that all new places have teething problems, but I did not expect to be so totally underwhelmed by a dining experience that still left me ~$450 out of pocket. (I didn’t tip, couldn’t...

The overall ambience and environment was spectacular. From the service, to the views, to the music, it was all phenomenal. Our server was amazing (Marten). However, the experience was not "perfect", especially concerning the food.

Comments: The sun. The weather was great, and the building rotates, but that meant there was a period where the sun was on us. It was quite a long time (perhaps 30 minutes). Even on a cool day that makes us uncomfortably hot. I'm unsure of a good solution to this other than blinds, but that would take away from the view. The mains. We ordered the O'Connor steak and the Lamb. The Lamb was good, but the steak was a little disappointing. Flavour-wise, they were both incredible. The disappointment was in the fat and tendons in the meats (mostly the steak, but partially the lamb too). The steak was so chewy at times that I could barely eat it. When paying $90 for a steak, I honestly expected better quality meat. I've paid $40-50 for steaks at other restaurants and have been served far superior cuts of meat. However, the condiments that came with the steak and the sauce on it were heavenly, redeeming my opinion on the restaurant somewhat. As for the Lamb, it was mostly good quality meat. There were only some slices with a bit too much tendon. Overall, a solid dish. Drinks. We ordered 2 non-alcoholic drinks with our meal. Both were good, but nothing mind blowing. Our server knew the drinks very well, so he could guide us in our decision when ordering. There is unfortunately a printing error on one of the non-alcoholic drinks. Starters. We ordered the scallop and the quail. The flavour and presentation of both items were very good, especially the scallop. My only complaint is the portion size was on the small end. This is common with fancy restaurants, but paying $42 for 2 small scallops seems unreasonable. They were tasty and well presented, but not worth $42 in my opinion. The quail was good, but there was nothing astonishing about it. Sides. We ordered the Wagyu fat potatoes. The skin had a crunchy texture, with a soft inside. The serving size was huge, perhaps too large even. It's odd that $17 gets you a full season's harvest of potatoes, but $42 gets you 2 small scallops. The potatoes were also unfortunately flavourless. I'd like to see the quality of that dish improved with a decrease in quantity. Desserts. We ordered the "Caramelia, chocolate tuile, hazelnut, cocoa, hazelnut white chocolate ice cream" and the "Poached pear & chestnut tart, crème patissiere, honey thyme ice cream". Honestly, the Caramelia was astounding, the highlight of my experience at Infinity. It was the perfect balance of sweetness, texture, presentation, and quantity. I highly recommend this dessert. The poached pear on the other hand was a let down. It was presented quite well, but it did not taste like anything special. On top of that, it was difficult to eat. The biscuit it came on was so difficult to cut, I thought I was going to break the plate when I cut it.

Overall, I think the experience was good, but could have been...

We went there for a birthday celebration. We weren't informed in advance that there was no beef and the rest of the dishes were also very bad. When we ordered, no one told us that only one side dish could be ordered per table. Everyone thought that each person could have a snack. Not only was it not mentioned when we ordered, but no one reminded us when we sat down and looked at the menu. First, there was no beef, and the price was already not worth it. Moreover, when we ordered the extra snacks, we weren't told that we needed to pay extra. When it was time to pay the bill, the waiter even had the nerve to say that it was because our English was bad and we couldn't understand. There were two waiters serving us. One of them, who seemed to be from Korea, had a very bad attitude and seemed to discriminate against us for not understanding English. But we also didn't understand her expression. Why didn't she say that her expression was not clear? How could such a rude waiter be trained in such a luxurious restaurant? After overcharging us, we had to argue for a refund. Why should customers pay for something they weren't informed about in advance? The waiter was very vague when settling the bill and deceiving the customers. When we actually checked the bill, they came up with all kinds of excuses. This was my first time dining at this restaurant and it was for a birthday. The cake probably wasn't kept in the fridge because the cream had melted when it was taken out. In the end, when we asked for a refund, they even tried to use the long waiting time as an excuse. Customers can wait, but shouldn't they be informed in advance about the extra charges and the lack of service and dishes? We even had to pay extra when getting a refund. Why should such a waiter who doesn't understand the checkout process be allowed to stay in the restaurant and affect its quality? In short, we were very disappointed with the service, the food, etc. I don't recommend going there for important occasions. If you just want to take pictures, you can do that because of the environment, but the food...