Sagra Restaurant — Restaurant in Sydney

You’ll find Sagra in a humble brick terrace on Stanley Street. The unremarkable white-walled dining space is furnished with marble tables and dark brown wooden bistro chairs, set under exposed light bulbs. I’ve arrived quite late to the Sagra party. While this restaurant was originally owned and operated by Nigel Ward (Lucio's, Sean's Panaroma) in the ensuring years, it changed ownership and now has Michael Otto and Edward Saxton at the helm. Luckily for me these chefs seem to operate from a similar brief, with a short, Italian menu that changes daily and reflects the best of the season's wares.

Over a malty, Birra Messina Lager ($10), I considered the one-page menu, neatly arranged into antipasti, primi (pasta) and secondi (main courses), plus a couple of snacks and sides. Relying upon staff instructions that two antipasti, two primi and a secondi apiece would be sufficient for our table of four, we kick off with Burrata ($22). Adorned with a generous amount of pine nuts, the soft, milky cheese is teamed with Sicilian eggplant and pesto Genovese for a decadent but gentle opener.

A tiny Tomato Salad ($19) takes oxheart tomatoes and pairs them with goat’s curd and basil for another simple dish highlighting the meaty, red-fleshed tomatoes over plating or complex technique.

Sweet Corn and Fontina Tortellini ($20) eat more impressively than a carnivore might think; with the corn’s natural sweetness expertly countered by pine nuts and buttery, nutty cheese. My only regret is not fighting my table-mates for a second one, from the seven-strong serve. Despite their diminutive size, Gnocchi ($22) kept nice bite in an Italian surf and turf of similarly hued scallops, leek and crisp pancetta. While I preferred the tortellini, this sauce did prompt us to request a second helping of their house-made bread and plump, green Sicilian olives, to mop it up with the soft bread.

From the four secondi – two fish, one vegetarian, one meat – our table was equally split between Holmbrae Duck Breast ($36) and Blue Eye Trevalla ($38). I give it to the fish – a juicy fillet turned mossy green with salsa verde upon a tasty bed of cannellini beans. My only regret being, it was gone all too quickly. Glistening in a savoury puddle with anchovy and well-handled Roman beans, the skin-on duck breast has a lovely texture. It’s a light enough dish to suit a vino rosato, (rosé) – the biodynamic 2017 Tenuta d’Antona Dionysus ($60) – from the short, all-Italian list.

Sagra has a nice simplicity that would help it slide easily into nights you don’t feel like cooking. I will say though, my regular dining companion left starving, and was snarky at doing so with the comparatively high main price. Better instruction from floor staff could have prevented that from happening - just tell us we...

This hidden gem of a neighborhood restaurant is an intimate and cozy place offering exceptional service and even superior cuisine. 👍 The only minor drawback may be the slightly slow food service, yet the high quality of the dishes more than compensates for it. 🫥

The Arancini was exceptionally prepared, featuring a wonderfully fried and crispy exterior, complemented by the gooey richness of aged mozzarella. 👍

The Parpadelle ragu was perfectly al dente, and although the sauce wasn't overly thick or heavy, it superbly coated each strand of pasta. 😋

Their smoked eggplant was also notably delicious. 😋

While the Tiramisu was of impressive quality – creamy and not overly doused with alcohol – it was the Pannacotta that truly stole the show. The accompanying raspberry coulis was notably thick and tart, with the perfect touch of sweetness. 👍

The owner and chef mentioned, as we were settling the bill, that they had only added the Panna Cotta to their menu a few days prior – a decision we were utterly thankful for. 🙏

Side note - the owner disclosed that their menu changes almost daily, reflecting the availability and seasonality of produce. This keeps their offerings fresh...

I would not recommend this place, the service was by far the worst I have ever experienced. They for one got the booking time wrong, I booked for 6.30 however booked us in for 6.00. We had a table of 5 where we all really enjoyed the food however accuses us of being late then insisted we leave at 8 when we’d only just sat down. The waiter was hovering around us for the duration of meal encouraging us to order quickly and trying to push us out the door. At the end of our meal, we requested the bill, having been polite but slightly annoyed. The waiter brought us our bill and said we could only pay on 2 cards. While we were trying to sort our payments we asked if we could please split on more than 2 cards. He tossed our cards on the table. He then got very angry and said that he couldn’t care if we didn’t come back when we expressed we were disappointed by the service. We requested to speak with the owner who was apologetic and taken aback. We will not be returning due to the absolute lack of service and rude attitude we experienced by the waiter at this restaurant. Over all very disappointing from a reportable restaurant, the wait staff...