Rockpool
Went to Rockpool last week. It’s in the Rocks on George St, although I almost walked past it – the restaurant has a non-descript green storefront, with small frosted writing in one of the windows being the only indicator of the venue’s name. The dishes at Rockpool are primarily seafood, with a very strong Asian influence. Using 41 as a comparison, the flavours are more intense as with much Asian cuisine. We had trouble selecting from the menu (the problem with everything looking so tasty!) and in the end, in addition to our own entrees, we got an extra entree of “wild and tame” abalone (slices of both cultured and wild abalone) for the group. Of course, fine dining servings are already miniscule, and when the abalone arrived, hilarity ensued when we were confronted with the ridiculous task of dividing several tiny, tiny slivers of abalone amongst the four of us. We did it anyway. The service at Rockpool was better than 41 (not that 41’s service was bad). The staff were very attentive and observant (when I took out my camera to take this not-so-good photo, a waitress promptly rushed over to ask if I wanted her to take a picture of our group). They were formal, but also relaxed and somewhat casual in tone, giving the perception that they were not overly worried about making a gaff, although it was evident that they took care not to. The atmosphere of Rockpool has a bit more hustle-and-bustle than 41 (we were sitting close to the kitchen, and the meal was punctuated with the ambient sound of crockery and cutlery clashing), but the decor was pleasing.
Being in the Rocks, we took a pleasant stroll around Circular Quay afterwards to walk off the food (here’s a couple photos I took: coathanger, sails). Along the way we were passed by a rapidly balding man being wheeled in a wheelchair. He had a respirator on and was surrounded by a small entourage. As he passed, I looked at Soph, and Soph looked at me and simultaneously exclaimed, “Hey… that was… Christopher Reeve.” My first reaction was to snap a photo, but I restrained myself out of respect – he probably had enough people gawking at him already.
11:34pm (GMT +11.00) 
