The Nuns' Pool — Restaurant in Sydney

(3.5 stars) While the light, airy, glass-fronted architectural bones remain the same, the outdoor furniture has had a spruce up since my last visit to The Nuns’ Pool. Square ottomans have given way to white wire chairs that suit the indoor-outdoor vibe of the popular terrace.

With the sun beating down and blue skies for days, we kick off with craft brews plucked from the local area. Sunday Road Brewing’s Enigma Ale ($10) is a pale ale brewing using Tasmanian hops less than ten clicks up the road in Kirrawee. I find it light, crisp and refreshing. By comparison, Hairy Man Brewery’s Lawsons Legend Pale Ale ($10) from Caringbah (just five kilometres away) has more malt and bitterness, making it a less attractive proposition on a hot day.

The strong locavore game here allows us to complete all our drinking without leaving the state by moving onto an enjoyable Southern Highlands 2017 Dawning Day Chardonnay ($12/glass) with grapefruit and vanilla notes from the wine list, and an eye-catching Ink Gin ($12) from the short cocktail selection. The latter is based upon a Northern Rivers gin by the same name, which it earns through a clever colour-change from blue to dusky mauve that occurs when it’s combined with tonic (or any drink with a low pH).

Two little bowls of beetroot and feta, and avocado and dukkah, are positioned at either end of three pita pockets on the Hummus Plate ($12). Having spent the morning swimming at the nearby Oak Park rock pool, we arrive hungry, so find the dish tasty but a bit on the stingy side for sharing.

After specifying clearly that I wanted my Swordfish ($30) to arrive rare in the centre, I was disappointed to receive a small, thin and overcooked piece of game fish. Perched on an under-seasoned blend of charred corn, black beans and red rice, it's crowned with a mango salsa topper that isn’t quite moist enough to save the stringy, dry fish.

The Nuns’ Reuben ($15) fares better with pastrami, gruyere, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing cushioned between slices of rye bread, with a fan of house-made cucumber pickles. While it wins on flavour, this American-inspired sandwich is a fair bit smaller than similarly priced city cousins I’ve eaten. Not willing to outlay any more cash, we head over the road to enjoy the real advantage of this venue: the Shelly Beach ocean pool. It’s located in the spot where the Sisters of Mercy nuns used to bathe, which provided this restaurant...

I seldomly ever leave reviews on Google, but I think the owner needs to have the right to know if they don’t already about the level of service my two girlfriends and I received today at brunch. Not 1 but 3 of your staff were continuously making us feel rushed to leave even though we’d only arrived at 11.10am. Post having brunch, we were still hungry and simply requested a menu. The staff acted annoyed (I don’t know at what exactly? At us wanting to make more revenue for the restaurant?), pretended not to hear and only brought one of the two menus we asked for (lunch and dessert), with a passive aggressive attitude. We were very polite so I’m not sure what the issue was. We all have jobs where we need to put our best foot forward, even on the days we may not feel like it. And for patrons coming on the weekend, after having worked all week to allow themselves nice experiences at beautiful locations like this restaurant, the last thing they want is to be made to feel like they are not welcome. There seemed to be confusion about what kind of food was served at which times. Either have staff that know how to manage the period between breakfast/brunch and lunch or just close and re-open at 12pm. No one pays money at a restaurant to be treated as my friends and I were today. We are not asking for anything, just a normal level of respect and service as is suitable in a restaurant. No egos, no eye rolls, no...

👀 This has always been the premium brunch/coffee shop in Cronulla, it is always busy. This day we got lucky and got a table. It is located opposite Shelley Park amongst the apartments. Shelley Beach was where the local nuns once bathed so that’s where the Nuns Pool name came through.

You can see by the photos that this is more upscale and beautifully presented, they even do weddings here!

💥 Very white light palette, including burst of yellow. Very coastal and big lantern style lighting.

💁🏼‍♀️ Service wasn’t that amazing, probably because they are super busy.

☕️ I got a very frothy iced coffee $6.50, it still needed a lot of sugar but it was yum.

They are licensed venue so have plenty of wines and cocktails also.

🍴 AVOCADO TOAST Avocado, poached egg, fresh tomato, feta, chimichurri, hazelnut dukkha, soy linseed toast $23 this looked delicious and healthy

TRUFFLED EGGS Truffle scrambled eggs, jamon, parmesan, chives, croissant $23 I loved my dish, I think they have changed the menu now to be on sourdough instead which is welcomed! Good truffle taste and sharp parmesan made it delicious.

I’d love to try their lunch menu!

✨ Great for a girls brunch or cute date...