The Apprentice

So about 2 mondays ago? I was invited to go try out "The Apprentice". It's a restaurant inside the Ultimo Tafe building level 7, completely run by the Tafe itself. All the foods are prepared by the student chefs, the dinner bread rolls are baked by the students, the floral arrangements on all the tables are also created by the floristery students and even all the waits staff are the hospitality students.

It was quite strange actually dining here. The doors didn't open till past 6.30, so everyone was seated at the same time, our meals were pre-paid for and also the course meals were all brought out at the same time for everyone. And because each course had more than two different dishes, the dishes were alternated between people, it made for a feeling of being in a private function dinner really.

Appetizer, Tuscan tomato bread pudding. The pudding was served cold, not particularly my thing but the texture was spot on, crispy prosciutto with a light bread pudding. I must note that the tiny square plate made for a strange experience, if you put your knife in the wrong place to cut it would of almost flip the whole plate over! Something I believe was overlooked and shouldn't happen.

Fennel and pink grapefruit salad. A funky salad this was, with not only the rocket adding a bitter sweetness to it but the grapefruit too.

Entrees, Roast pumkin raviolli. The smallest of all the entrees, the walnuts added a nice contrast to the raviolli but I did notice that the walnuts had a harsh unpleasent bitterness to it.
Cream of mushroom soup. Not the prettiest dish at all and it did lack a bit of flavour.

Mains, Seared pork medallions. The pork was great, a smidget on the dry side (possibly because it was left under the heat light for a while) and the bit size bits was a good idea. Although I must say I think that their choice of sides for this dish should be altered, brussels sprouts while a texture full vegetable the bitterness was too much, the pork medallions were just not hearty enough to have such a strong vegetable. The same can be said for the apples (yes, they're apples not potato but they did have potatoes too), the crunch and sour contrast overpowered the pork.

Roasted baby barramundi fillet, Grilled just right, not too dry and the skin still had just a tiny bit of crisp to it.

Balsamic Lamb rump, cooked to a perfect medium rare!! Good job guys, just succulent, soft and tender. Again not too sure about the rice as a choice of side for this dish.

Dessert, dark chocolate mousse. Oh jolly this was good, super rich and dark! I'm not quite dark chocolate fan, but the brown sugar sprinkled on top just made it a fun crunch to eat. This did get passed around the table as it was just too much for me to handle!

Vanilla pannacotta, pannacotta is always a favourite of mine and this was not different. Great texture and it wasn't too sweet at all.

Tiramisu.

All in all it was a unique experience. The waiters some were obviously first timers, nervous and eager but it was quite ambient. For $30 p.p it does make for a good value for fine dining