The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry | A Sydney Food Blog

Bloodwood, Newtown

March 7th, 2010  |  Published in Restaurants  |  11 Comments

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Sometimes things seem to happen in hyperspeed. You go from never having heard of a place and within a day, countless highly food-savvy people are happily talking it up. The place is Bloodwood in Newtown and though it’s only been open a week, it’s already gotten online endorsement from Gourmet Traveller’s Pat Nourse, TwoThousand’s Alex Vitlin, Australian Gourmet Pages’ Franz Scheurer and Time Out Sydney’s Myffy Rigby.

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And yes, it lives up to its “worth the fuss” status.

The interior is ultra-cool, with birdcage lights, chairs in odd places, and half a door as a shop sign outside. The credit for that goes to Newtown-based designer Matt Woods, whose background in sustainable architecture is warmly reflected in the mix of industrial and reclaimed decor. The highly noticeable lights at the entrance though, were done by Melbourne’s Volker Haug, who has a whipsmart way of christening his work – ‘Rudolf’ is the name of the robotic antlers caught in a grid of yellow squares, and ‘Cool Bananas’ are the slanting pendants that poke out from the opposite wall.

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The food, too, is worth your attention. Will can be a tough judge when it comes to dining out, but the Duck Sausage with Spiced Plum Sauce ($32) earnt an instant “this is amazing!” endorsement from him. And although he backed out of properly trying the Polenta Chips with Gorgonzola Sauce ($9), I can say they’re a golden-fried delight.

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Lots of people walked by Bloodwood, double-taking when they realised it was a new place. Many asked for the menu and then walked out – it seemed like they were willing it to be a cafe with breakfast-heavy offerings. And yes, having Mushrooms in Red Wine with Confit Eschalots ($17) is a pretty heavy start to the day. But Newtown has lots of joints where you can grab eggs on toast; cool, small restaurants with character, personality and a menu with pedigree (thanks to ex-Claude’s chefs Jo Ward, Claire van Vuuren and Mitch Grady) in this area are much rarer. This is an addition to King Street that we’re amped about getting to know a lot better.

Bloodwood, 416 King St, Newtown NSW (02) 9557 7699, www.bloodwoodnewtown.com

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11 Comments

  1. food looks good. will have to keep in mind. what’s the prices like? 🙂

  2. leetranlam says:

    Oops, I forgot to add them. Be right back …

  3. haha! I heard people talking about it at work last week too. News travels so fast! Glad it lives up to hype. Looks like beautiful food.

  4. Great place – lunched there on Sunday, and almost had the place to myself. I actually agree that the lunch menu could be a little more brunch friendly if they’re going to make a success of weekend midday opening – but that’s a very minor quibble.

    I’m looking forward to eating there again.

  5. jaxxx says:

    Very excited to finally see Bloodwood open.King Street South now has the “culinary balls” to start pitching as a real foodies strip with Bloodwood setting up as the Entry Point to the South End that is already alive with interesting small eating places,…..Go Bloodwood!

    I am lucky enough to live in walking distance from King ST Restaurants cafes and bars, and in the week of the its opening have taken part in Eating, nibbling,drinking cocktails and coffee at Bloodwood during various and appropriate times of the days.

    A beautiful menu that obviously comes from chefs who love, truely love,their Art. Excitedly We tasted the Fried Chicken Wings with a tangy Yoghurt Remoulade, Polenta chips with Gorgonzola dipping sauce, Grilled Squid Salad with herb and green olive dressing, Marinated Olives,…a standout was THE Pork, Crab and Shiitake mushroom wrapped in bean curd skin and the delicate lamb kibbe….and no, we didn’t make it to the desert menu yet, but the first part of a menu making us belly-happy and planning for our next dinner at Bloodwood.

    So after also sipping a few of their classic and twisted cocktails, I think Newtown has also found another very cool spot to chill and drink….as well as a really standout restaurant.

    Bloodwood gets the thumbs up and congrats from a Newtown local foodie.Welcome to King ST SOuth. x

  6. Betty says:

    ive had polentachips once before and they are my new favourite!

  7. leanne1966 says:

    sounds great and worth a try!

  8. This place is designed like my dream home. Birdcage lights! woop! woop! I have a thing for birdcages! I don’t like seeing real birds in birdcages though… the food looks lovely. I shall dine there on my next visit to Newtown.

  9. qza says:

    Went there and loved it! Took a bit of time getting used to the name, though.

  10. Madam Wu says:

    Awesome photos! I hope they’re not too busy so I can try to get a table tonight. You had me at polenta chips with a gorgonzola sauce…

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About

Hi, I'm Lee Tran Lam. When not blogging with my mouth full, I'm usually writing, presenting Local Fidelity on FBi radio, making zines, producing podcasts or continually breaking promises about how I really am gonna get through my book pile one day.

All the good pictures on this blog are by photography ace (and patient boyfriend), Will Reichelt, (all the dodgy ones can be credited to me)!

The lovely banner is by friend and ultra-talented illustrator Grace Lee.

This site redesign was made possible by the next-level generosity and expertise of Daniel Boud, whose code-tinkering ways are only outranked by his seriously inspired way with a camera.

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This is a blog I do for pure fun and zero influence – there's no sponsorship, sneaky advertorial or advertising. I pay for all the food mentioned, 'cos it seems the ethical thing to do.


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This is a blog about eating and drinking in Sydney, Australia (with the odd cross-border or off-topic detour). BYO appetite.

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