The Little Snail, Pyrmont

Another birthday and yet another reason to eat somewhere fancy. This time its French cuisine at The Little Snail. The option we had for lunch is a set 3 course menu (entree, main and dessert) for $36 per person with a variety of seafood, vegetarian, red meats and many more to choose from. This was actually quite worth it considering a average price of mains on the A la carte menu was in the thirties.

Entrées

Paté Maison
Armagnac flavoured duck liver pate with marinated champignons, date chutney and port vinaigrette

The pate was served with both soft baguette slices and toasted garlic slices. The tangy vinaigrette and champignons complemented well with the pate and I personally like the toasted garlic baguettes more as the crunchyness of the toast was a perfect match for the soft pate. Also, the hint of garlic and butter provided more flavour as I found the pate slightly underseasoned and there wasn't enough sauce on the plate. Overall, this was an enjoyable entree.

King Prawns
Fried king prawns with lemon mayo, sweet chilli and petite mesclun

I didn't have this dish but judging by how it was devoured in a minute, it must have been an absolute delight :)

Vegetarian

Crepe filled with baby mushroom, leek, chives, and cauliflower puree served with Breton sauce
The smell of this crepe when placed before me was enough to make my mouth water. The soft, creamy fillings of the crepe complemented the sauce well. The cauliflower puree is an excellent and much healthier alternative to using cheese and is a must-try for all vegetarians or health freaks! However, I would personally prefer more mushroom in the filling rather than just leeks and chives. Overall, a great start to the meal!

Escargot de Bourgogne
Dozen snails marinated in herb-infused court-bouillon, oven baked in garlic butter

Time for the oh so famous snails~! Ok... where do I start.... it was out first time having snails and it was definitely an interesting and unique experience. The texture of it was soft and mushy and it had a "snail taste" (I'm not really how to describe it >.<) exotic? For those that are adventurest and looking for something new, this is the thing for you!

Mains

Seafood Plate
Of grilled salmon, garlic prawns, salt and pepper squid, chilli mussels, beer battered soft shell crab and mesclun salad

This wonderful plateful of seafood delights was definitely worth its value. The grilled salmons and prawns were cooked to absolute perfection. The salt and pepper squid and soft shell crab were lightly fried till golden and had a lovely crisp. Personally, the mussels weren’t a favourite of mine but that’s only because I have never been a fan of mussels - no matter how they’re served. Not only did the generous serve of mesclun salad create the perfect finishing touch to this platter, it was delicious as well, drizzled with a tasty dressing. Who said you couldn’t enjoy eating your veges? :P

Chicken Cordon Bleu
Skin free chicken breast fillet stuffed with ham and swiss cheese, lightly coated with panko and topped with tomato and basil coulis

Shaped like a giant chicken nugget, this chicken fillet was baked to crumbly and tender goodness. Digging into the centre, you find a slab of ham and cheese that adds variety to this otherwise ordinary dish. The potato and boiled broccoli were simple but satisfying sides.

Vegetarian Risotto
Sweet peas, brocolini, mushroom, semi dried tomatoes and grana padano cheese

A healthy mix of vegetables in perfectly cooked risotto that is creamy and rich, making it a very filling dish.

Loin of Lamb
With wilted baby spinach, maple glazed pommes boulangères and thyme jus

Perfectly cooked tender piece of lamb served with a generous amount of sauce and pommes boulangères which is a french potato gratin that was soft and buttery. The spinach however needed a bit of seasoning but since the amount of sauce made up for it I ate it happily :) Definitely a delicious dish worth trying!

Desserts
Now for the best and most awesome part of the meal, DESSERTS~! and of course we had to order every dessert on the menu :P

Classic Crème Caramel

Soft wobbly pudding and a sugary syrupy sauce, yum! At first bite it might taste a bit eggy compared to other creme caramels but I still liked it.

Chef Churned Hazelnut and Praline Ice Cream

A delicously rich and flavoursome Hazelnut and praline ice cream served on a biscuit base drizzled with honey and topped with crunchy toffee. The combination of flavours and textures was perfect, just thinking about it makes my mouth water!

Handmade Profiteroles
With crème patisserie and mint chocolate sauce

The profiterole on the other hand was not what I hoped for. The taste was average, creme patisserie filling was so so and the outside was soft. Like an average profiterole you can get from any average bakery.

Kahlua Infused Chocolate Mousse

Chocolate mousse was another one of its so so desserts, its liqueur was pretty much non existant so its just a plain chocolate mousse that was a bit grainy. Also I don't really like the plating of this dish... its boring and not very nice to look at... (speaking of plating, they all look the same! definitely need to be more creative).

Warm Sitcky Date Pudding
With butterscotch and vanilla ice cream

Now who doesn't love sticky date pudding? Warm dense pudding topped with ice cream and toffee on sweet sweet butterscotch sauce, best pudding ever!


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The Little Snail
50 Murray St  Pyrmont NSW 2009
Ph: (02) 9212 7512
Website: www.thelittlesnail.com.au