Osteria di Russo & Russo Enmore — Restaurant in Sydney

Osteria di Russo & Russo was a revisit, but with good reason. The last time I visited, the kitchen was in the hands of Alex Wong, who has gone on to wow diners at Lana and Martinez. It’s now in the hands of a new young-gun, Jowoon Oh, who applies his Korean knowledge, palate and dining-sensibilities to an Italianate menu. We allow him his head with the tutto bene menu ($75/person), that is designed to be shared. It begins with Aleppo pepper and garlic focaccia ($4/each) with Coppertree butter, then shards of pane carasau topped with Blackmore wagyu tartare ($6/each) spiked with cashew. Nuts also make their way into the brightly coloured kingfish crudo ($27), where pistachio joins blood orange and tarragon for a different take on this popular raw fish dish. Everything so far is packed with flavour.

Thick and chewy casarecce with corn, thin strips of kombu (seaweed) and spanner crab ($34) is a pull-back, but shows off the chef’s skill in incorporating Korean flavours. Crisp skinned with a pleasantly pink interior, the duck breast ($39) with sauce Dianne, grapes and pepperberry is the highlight. It’s served with a bowl of crisp baby cos ($12) leaves dressed in mint and preserved lemon that cut through the richness.

Beyond having a wide-ranging eye for talented young chefs, Pino and son, Marc Russo, know how to make a diner-focused restaurant. It’s not too fancy to make you dress up for dinner on a Tuesday night. It allows BYO ($20/bottle) and accepts substitutions to the set menu based on preference. We’re not big fans of dessert or creamy tiramisu so we switched it with the coconut mousse ($16) with meringue, pineapple and mango, hoping for something light and tropical. I wasn’t quite sold on the creamy concoction we received. It did play well with texture—common in Korean desserts—but cream-based desserts aren’t really my bag. Next time I’d opt...

This place was on my list for a while and finally decided to head here on a date night. First off and this has nothing to do with the venue, parking is a major headache, so definitely plan ahead.

Upon walking in, we were greeted and immediately sat down. The servers are well mannered but definitely struggled to communicate as they didn’t understand a lot of what we were trying to say/ask.

As the restaurant is quite small, it does get very loud in there so if you are someone who likes to dine in peace, this is not the place for you.

We started off with some wine which has a lacklustre selection. Not many by the glass options so opted to go for a bottle.

For entree, we ordered the focaccia which was just cold bread served with butter that was already prepared and sat aside for whomever orders - kinda disappointing as we were expecting something hot and fresh.

Then ordered the Bone Marrow which is served with a cheese croquette. Odd pairing but both tasted great, loved the bone marrow specifically.

For the pasta we ordered the Moreton bay bug pasta which tasted pretty average compared with others but was highly disappointed with the bug serving. They throw you a random piece and dress it up with the shell to make it look like it was scooped out but definitely wasn’t as the bug shell was completely clean and the size of the meat didn’t add up to the size of the shell (see photo attached)

For the main, we ordered the steak which was definitely the star of the show but for some reason was a little cold. Still, taste wise was enjoyable.

Dessert - Tiramisu. Loved it. Can’t go wrong.

Overall I’d say average experience and was rather let down as I did come in with high hopes. Glad I got to try it. Would I...

Blink and you might miss this dark, moody and cost restaurant on busy Enmore road. Dimly lit, the restaurant is decorated with wax dripping wine bottles throughout. Its dark and dim with a buzzy hum to it which suits groups of friends or couples on dates. Staff are so welcoming and friendly with Marc (the son and one of the Russo's) being actively involved on the floor. Service is efficient, friendly but can be a little slower as the night progresses and the restaurant gets busy. The menu is tantalising and a very modern, slightly fusion take on classics. Potato canolo was the perfect appetizer - little spring roll like tubes of super flakey pastry encasing a light, creamy mortadella mousse within. The house made foccacia is excellent - light & springy, beautifully scented with saltbush & addictive when dipped in housemade chilli and rosemary infused olive oil. Straciatella is super creamy & perfect with earthy mushrooms and the mushroom crisp is akin to crispy pork crackling. Tuna carpaccio is a fusion of Italian & Japanese & the seaweed butter highlights the meatiness of the fish. Gnocchi carbonara is light and fluffy and the addition of truffle made it even more decadent. Venison was the heaviest dish and perfect finish - well cooked, the gaminess musked by sweet nutty burnt pumpkin sauce and so tender. The wine list is short, easy to navigate, quirky and interesting. And a complimentary shot of housemade limoncello by father Russo was the perfect sweet pick me up to...