Koi Dessert Bar & Dining – Restaurant Review

Koi Dessert Bar built its name on, well, desserts. And for good reason. What sort of an establishment calls itself a “dessert bar”? More importantly, what sort of a place does long-winded dégustations for the sole satisfaction of the sweet tooth?

But what sounded like a preposterous idea when the restaurant opened in 2016 turned into a social media sensation, with university kids from across the road Instagramming its devastatingly good-looking cakes and mousses.

As of March 2019, though, the restaurant – in Sydney’s buzzing Kensington Street precinct – has added “& Dining” to its name, along with an eight-course dinner menu. While the ground-floor section of the restaurant continues to operate as the dessert bar, the dégustation dinners unfold on the first floor, with floor-to-ceiling windows framing the Kensington Street goings-on. Ask for the table overlooking the lantern-strung Spice Alley for the best views.

Ex MasterChef alumnus Reynold Poernomo has masterminded the menu, which kicks off with a delicate brik pastry cigar filled with smoked kelp cream and salmon roe. Small pumpkin balls drenched in a rending sauce are next, with the food reaching peak perfection when the braised short rib with sambal and beef jus hits the table.

Dessert, of course, is no afterthought. Jasmine-tea gelato is matched with yuzu in a creation called Binchotan, while banana, caramel and chocolate make up Mon-Yet.

And if you want even more of the sweet stuff, ask for Moss at the ground-floor bar on your way out. Made up for nine different components – matcha crumble, pistachio mousse, apple sorbet, et al – it's Koi’s signature dessert with a cult following.

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