SARDINE dining — Restaurant in Victoria

Let's start from the food. Seasalt Khorosan Sourdough with seaweed butter was served complimentary. The bread was good, but served as a big chunk, while a few slices would be more suitable. Wipped cod's row [on] crispy chicken skin: the chicken skin was really well done but the roe's taste disappeared in an indefinite and too salty mayonnaise-like sauce. Zucchini flower with Goat's cheese and Tambo valley honey: as exquisite as this may sound, in reality you could only taste the honey: the flower and the cheese were both almost completely submerged by a lake of honey. Zero balance, cancelled tastes. Hiramasa kingfish crudo with Qukes, Radish and Wakame oil: good raw fish. The fish skin was crispy and its robustness pleasantly enriched the pale taste of the fish. All the rest was unnecessary. Messy presentation. Lakes Entrance Sardine fillets with Sour onion, Pine oil and Smoked garlic: possibly the best sardines ever, just slightly cooked (maybe steam blanched?), perfectly boned, gifted with a very difficult balance between softness and flesh firmness and a sharp, clean taste without the often heavy fat taste of sardines. Absolutely delicious. The presentation, unfortunately, was uninteresting. Duckfish tartare with Shiso Ponzu, edamame and Wanton crisp: compulsorily one bite (not easy) if you don't want the fried wanton disintegrate in your hand. Nice presentation and overall rather good bite. Wagyu bresaola with organic beetroot, compressed watermelon and smoked yougurt: a bit of an imitation of the classic Mediterranean combination of prosciutto and cantaloupe, but too crowded with too many ingredients, not at all well matched. The smoked yogurt, in particular, could cover the delicious savoury freshness of the very delicate bresaola. The Casareccia Spanner Crab with garlic and chilli was a disaster-dish full of mistakes: extremely salty (almost uneatable, even for salt lovers), the garlic was rubbery, so sticky that adered on your teeth and overdominant, so much that could cancel any other taste. And not everyone knows what 'Casareccia' can mean, so better specify in the menu. Fillet of King Dory with Port Arlington mussels, beurre blanc and Samphire: really good, rich and balanced, with well-matched Samphire, a kind of seawater asparagus. Oskar's Peach Melba: a quite ordinary icecream, or maybe not, who knows? Because it has been served half frozen, so much that it was almost impossible to use the spoon. Presentation was ordinary and the presence of a suspicious filament was then revealed as a brush hair. It can happen and it's less important than the fact it was served frozen. Textures of Cuvee Chocolate with Tambo Valley honey: the epitome of messy dishes, this dessert was a hotchpotch of chocolate and random chunks of honeycomb, plus small bits of pear, all arranged on a half of a plate. The glasses smelled of eggs, typical of a dish washing cycle with some plates dirty of eggs. The ambience was so dark that you struggled to see some of the darker foods. The so called 'deck' is in front of a road, with all the vehicle noises, etc. The overall resulting idea of this place is that with the aim of being noticed, and to impress, they experiment without enough study and research, often becoming confused and missing the point, blurring tastes, suffocating them, overloading instead of essentialising, covering instead of revealing. They should follow the inspiration of that simple masterpiece that is the dish of sardines! Was it maybe just a bad day...? Reviews are overwhelmingly appreciative, so let's hope that basking in glory does not prevent the team at Sardines to see where they could improve. Otherwise they can just consider this review a useless and annoying...

Few weeks ago, we took a short break at the coast of Gippsland, I booked Sardine Dining 3 months in advance cause I knew it will be full house on a Saturday evening. This was my second visit to Sardine. Just cannot forget the LAKES ENTRANCE SARDINE FILLETS since I tried it first time few years ago. We reached the restaurant at exactly 6:30pm, and it was full. I booked the Front Room, which should be the space outside the main dining room, with an open view but it was raining a bit, they put us inside which was very considerate of them. My wife wanted to try the DUCKFISH TARTARE, and it was amazingly good - the texture, the taste, and the presentation was inviting. We have the SARDINE FILLETS, of course, and was not disappointed - the standard was exactly like the first time I tasted it. We also ordered a HIBACHI GRILLED BERMAGUI BONITO, a very well cooked and fantastic dish. Two of us, shared the 3 course, and just enough for us. Their service was perfect, even though with a full house, all the staff were very attentive and friendly, AND good knowledge of what's on the menu - the BONITO was suggested by one of their staff who took our order, we were very happy with it. I will find another chance to visit them again, even though it mean I have to spend a night some where in or around Paynesville. Personally, one of the very best restaurant in Australia. I would have given them 10 STARS...

We were lucky to come across Sardine Dining on our road trip to Sydney, a spot clearly loved by locals. The menu changes regularly, highlighting seasonal local produce.

The nibbles were on the smaller side: the whipped chicken liver pate with cherries nicely balanced the richness of the liver, while the pig’s head croquette was filled with tender, slow-cooked pork.

The entrées were definitely the highlight, each served in sharing portions perfect for two. The sardine fillet was a rare treat—paired with sour onion and grapes, it brought a refreshing balance of flavors I usually only associate with kingfish. The kangaroo carpaccio was another standout; though kangaroo can be fibrous, slicing it thinly made it work beautifully, and the horseradish added a clean, sharp finish.

The mains were satisfying but less exciting compared to the entrées. The casarecce with blue crab was clearly handmade and had great potential, but the seasoning leaned too salty. The lamb shoulder with chickpeas and capers came in a generous portion, the skin nicely crisped, the flavors felt more conventional after the creativity of the starters.

The mustard elk salad with Comté cheese was full of flavor, though you might prefer a lighter, more refreshing salad to go with the mains.

Overall, it was still a very enjoyable dining experience, with a relaxed atmosphere that makes it an ideal place for quiet...