Deb Carr
2 min
I recently stayed at Novotel Newcastle Beach with my daughter, Emma (read review here). For dinner we chose (on Emma's recommendation) to share plates at a very groovy bar next door to the hotel, Bar Petite.
As soon as we walked in and starting chatting to the bar staff, I knew this was going to be a fab place for share plates and a glass of wine. The atmosphere here is quite quirky with antique chairs surrounding marble tables and has an old world feel. We chose wine by the glass and three sharing plates.
The menu had a nice selection to choose from and we started with Braised Beef Cheeks.
The beef cheeks are served on a bed of polenta. They were super tender and had obviously been stewing for a while. The sauce was sweet and delicious; it was a nice texture combining the meat with the polenta.
Next on our list were the Corn and Haloumi Fritters with Avocado Salsa and Raspberry Vinaigrette. This 'small plate' wasn't that small, because it was a substantial serving and a taste combination that we both raved about.
So how could you beat these first two dishes? Is it possible? Well yes it is, welcome Moroccan Lamb Sliders – slow roasted lamb on warm Turkish bread with Tzatziki and pickled onion, served with sweet potato fries!
These were amazing. The lamb was similar to the beef, very tender and melt in your mouth. The sliders were on Turkish bread but very thin so not overwhelming in bread. We both thought that the sweet potato fries were sensational and they were very crispy.
We enjoyed the night with live music which wasn't so loud that you couldn't talk to each other. In fact it was extremely pleasant, and Jerome, the musician, has a fantastic voice! Emma commented he sang one of Justin Bieber's songs better than the superstar himself.
Bar Petite is great and I hear that it gets very busy on Friday and Saturday nights, which doesn't surprise me at all.
Worth a visit.
This meal was independently paid for.