Kindred is a cosy Italian restaurant tucked into a narrow terrace shopfront in Darlington on the city fringe, bustling with hungry diners on the weekend we visited.
Their seasonal menu has a strong focus on pasta and we found that their hearty style of cuisine worked especially well with the winter chill – we loved the vibrant flavours in the Bucatini with Guanciale, with the strands of hollow, thick spaghetti-like pasta coated in a rich chilli tomato sauce and slivers of delicious cured pork jowl meat that gave it some crunchy texture.
Bucatini, guanciale, tomato, chilli, $25
We also enjoyed the comforting flavours of the tender Lamb Ragu, tossed in amongst the silky and tissue-thin pappardelle pasta for a hearty meal.
Pappardelle, lamb ragu, chime de rappa, $27
Our friends indulged in the pillows of Agnolotti pasta filled with mushroom and spinach, which were cooked with a divine burnt butter sauce, seasoned with sage for a simple yet tasty dish.
Agnolotti of mushroom & spinach, celeriac, butter, sage, $26
For dessert, we chose a selection of three of Kindred’s sweet treats and our favourite was the Semifreddo Ice Cream sandwich which had a refreshing mix of different textures, elevated with a zesty lemon curd, pistachios and strawberries.
Semifreddo ice cream sandwich, pistachios, strawberries, $13
It’s also hard to go wrong with the molten goodness of their Chocolate Fondant which was the decadent option, paired with hazelnut gelato and praline, or their rendition of the classic Italian dessert of Tiramisu with its creamy layers of mascarpone folded in with strong coffee notes infused throughout it.
Chocolate fondant, hazelnut gelato, praline, $13
Tiramisu, $13
Kindred serves up rustic, authentic Italian cuisine in an casual environment that makes it great for small group catch ups, at a reasonable price point. We also thought their wine list had a nice selection of Italian reds that were well-priced and particularly drinkable (especially the Chianti from Tuscany!)
Kindred
137 Cleveland Street, Darlington NSW 2008
Phone: (02) 8937 0530
