Happy birthday to my awesome friend Carina! To celebrate, we are having lunch at The Apollo located at Potts Point. Situated just a short walk from Kings Cross, I’m not too familiar with this area but there are some great eats nearby including the new Bourke Street Bakery just across the road and the Potts Point branch of Cafe Sopra on the next block.
The Apollo is a modern Greek restaurant right underneath the Devere Hotel. It features modern, chic and minimalist interiors in a spacious laid back setting. We’re told that the menu is designed for sharing, so for our party we end up doubling all the portions to make sure there is enough to go around the table.
Slow Cooked Pork with Coriander and Green Tomato – $30
First up is the slow cooked pork. This dish could not have been more perfect to start us off! It was amazingly succulent and literally melted in your mouth – possibly the best pork I have ever had. The sauce and garnish underneath was a bit tangy with apples and tomatoes, reminding me of super supreme pizza which I love!
Greek Winter Salad with Fennel, Carrot, Beans, Feta and Olives – $15
Next up was a salad featuring two oversized wooden utensils…and a colourful assortment of healthy food items. Served with a light vinaigrette, the salad was very crunchy and tasty. However, I wasn’t a fan of the feta cheese and would’ve preferred the salad without it.
Slow Cooked Lamb with Lemon Greek Yoghurt – $34
Usually I am a massive advocate of lamb but this dish was quite disappointing for me. The lamb was not that tender and didn’t have that much taste. Most of the flavour came from the lemon wedge and the yoghurt, which I had to add more of to make up for the lack of flavour.
Wild Weed & Cheese Pie – $18
Following this was a wild weed and cheese pie. I didn’t really know what to expect of this dish given that I had never eaten a dish which featured ‘weeds’ before (I later found out that this dish is called “Spanakopita” and that the ‘weeds’ are spinach). There wasn’t much spinach taste and I found that the cheese was a bit overwhelming in this dish.
Seared Tuna with Parsley and Lemon – $36
Then came the seared tuna, following the trend from the last 2 dishes I was quite disappointed again by this. Although the tuna was seared well with pink flesh in the middle, it had basically no flavour. The parsley and lemon did not do much and I would have preferred this dish to be served with a sauce.
Apollo’s Homemade Pork and Lamb Sausage with Tomato Relish – $16
Thankfully today’s meal does end on a high note. The last dish consisted of a sausage served with relish and pickled onions. The sausage is salty and full of flavour, the relish is slightly tangy and the onions were quite sour. Put together, it makes a very flavoursome dish and I am quite impressed by the flavour of the sausage.
Overall, given that this was one of the first times I’ve eaten Greek food, I would say that it has left a good impression on me and left me intrigued to try other dishes within the cuisine. Although some of the dishes were a hit and miss, there were some wonderful highlights like the pork, salad and sausage. Best to come in groups of 4 in order to maximise the number of dishes you can try.
The Apollo
44 Macleay Street, Potts Point, NSW 2010
Ph: (02) 8354 0888
