Mister Grotto — Restaurant in Sydney

“If you want vegetables, go next door,” our waiter, Emmanuel, jokes as he takes us through the protein-dense menu at Mister Grotto. There won’t be escape spending either way, with vegetarian spot, Flora on one side, and Continental Deli & Bistro and Osteria Mucca on the other, all co-owned by Elvis Abrahanowicz, Sarah Doyle and Joe Valore. We’ve pulled up at the rope-edged bar in front of the Seafood of Australia map created by Michael Wholley. Staff use it to good effect as dishes land, keeping provenance central in diners’ minds.

With time at Saint Peter under seafood guru Josh Niland, head chef Mans Engberg’s suppliers are top notch. Shane Buckley’s Wapengo oysters ($8/each) are the best around: they eclipse the 4-year old Pambula oysters ($9/each), and inspire us into a second, shucked-to-order plate. The BBQ baby abalone ($20/each) from Red Claw Seafood sauced with its own liver is also divine. The 2024 Miyoshino Jozo ‘Hanatomoe Jun Dai Dai’ ($150/720ml) is a stellar match with the richness of the yamahai brewing style rising to meet the abalone.

What I liked better at Mister Grotto, over seafood-focused fine diners, is the casualness of the sea shanty bar setting and dishes. While dinner here is expensive, I can see myself slipping in for a cocktail and coconut shell of cuttlefish and young coconut ($28) before dinner elsewhere. While hand-cut, nori-salted crisps dusted with bottarga are necessary to get the most out of the mole and tangy fermented pineapple that accompany the grey morwong ($32), they’re not going to make you feel full. Whether you treat it as snacks or dinner, don’t leave without eating the handline-caught Western Australian nannygai ($58). The deboned fillet, served with manchego, macadamia salsa macha and sweet corn, was so beautifully cooked I wanted to...

We went here for a group dinner with friends. It was a really funky and buzzing venue, the whole street was really alive and active.

We had the set menu, given our group size, plus some extras - peppers (stuffed) and oysters. I particularly loved the Bluefin Tuna sashimi, and the main (Bonito)

The food was a work of art and had some amazing and unique flavours - felt like some South American influences crossed with Mediterranean and Asian takes. Some of these flavours are adventurous, so be prepared for something different!

Service was also very good and knowledgeable.

The only consideration is probably value for money. This is a personal point and I get that we are dealing with ultra premium ingredients and techniques, but it ended up a bit over $200 per person (including drinks - a glass of wine and cocktail each, and also group booking service fee of 10%). I personally feel some more generous portions would be welcomed for the price point and relatively less formal setting. The group booking service fee (which is now common in the industry) is also a tough one to understand more broadly given we are on a set menu and there would be economies of scale. There was also a sense from service that we needed to try the extras (such as the peppers and oysters) notwithstanding the set menu.

Great experience, especially for those seeking a very special seafood based experience, however value makes it difficult for me to rush back again soon. Couples and small groups would be perfect for...

Just got back from Mister Grotto in Newtown and honestly, I’m still recovering. Thought I was going out for a classy feed in the big smoke but instead found myself trapped in some kind of hipster-fever-dream.

First of all, the serving sizes are so small I would have been able to see a fart on a plate more clearly than some thing they served in a coconut shell. I’m not even joking – I paid $48 for what looked like the aftermath of a hermit crab’s dinner party. I blinked and it was gone. Hubby Terry asked if I dropped it on the floor. I wish.

Then there’s the table situation. The tables are so low to the ground and the waiter was so tall I thought I was going to pass out from vertigo. Like mate, either give me a barstool or a booster seat because I felt like I was in a daycare centre watching Slenderman take our order. I had to do a full-body stretch just to reach my glass. Back still hurts.

As for dessert – who wants to eat fish flavoured chocolate? Not me. But apparently Mister Grotto reckons it’s culinary innovation to serve something that tastes like someone melted a Freddo Frog over a tin of sardines. Call the police!

To sum up: left hungry, disoriented and emotionally traumatised by seafood dessert. Also with an empty wallet that was very full walking in from a big win on the dishlickers. If you want a feed that doesn’t make you question your life choices, head to the RSL...