The Sydney Morning Herald logo
Advertisement
Good Food hatGood Food hat16.5/20Critics' Pick

Cafe Paci

Updated ,first published

A spread of crab blini with hollandaise, chips, steak Diane and Skull Island prawns with black pepper butter (clockwise from left).
1 / 9A spread of crab blini with hollandaise, chips, steak Diane and Skull Island prawns with black pepper butter (clockwise from left).Jessica Hromas
Cafe Paci’s central curved bar, where guests can sit for dinner or drinks.
2 / 9Cafe Paci’s central curved bar, where guests can sit for dinner or drinks.Jessica Hromas
The carrot sorbet with yoghurt mousse and licorice cake is one of Cafe Paci’s signature dishes.
3 / 9The carrot sorbet with yoghurt mousse and licorice cake is one of Cafe Paci’s signature dishes. Jessica Hromas
Passionfruit pain perdu (French toast) with salted caramel.
4 / 9Passionfruit pain perdu (French toast) with salted caramel. Jessica Hromas
The industrial-styled dining room features ornately curved tables and long banquettes.
5 / 9The industrial-styled dining room features ornately curved tables and long banquettes. Jessica Hromas
Skull Island prawns with black pepper butter, lime and chives.
6 / 9Skull Island prawns with black pepper butter, lime and chives. Jessica Hromas
The wine list was assembled by Italian wine importer Giorgio De Maria.
7 / 9The wine list was assembled by Italian wine importer Giorgio De Maria. Jessica Hromas
The specials menu is handwritten on a mirror.
8 / 9The specials menu is handwritten on a mirror. Jessica Hromas
Black Angus steak with Diane sauce.
9 / 9Black Angus steak with Diane sauce.Jessica Hromas
Good Food hatGood Food hat16.5/20Critics' Pick

Cafe Paci

Contemporary$$

Smart bistro with big wine-bar energy.

The long dining room, with its peacock blue accents, bentwood chairs and mirrored walls is dominated by a bar and open kitchen. If you came in cold, you’d be forgiven for assuming a menu of French onion soup and duck confit. Rather, there’s chef Pasi Petanen’s soft rye taco, filled with thinly sliced ox tongue, chargrilled till the meat is almost candied around the edges, and finished with chopped egg and a sauerkraut.

Drawn black pepper butter glosses sweet, juicy Skull Island prawns; a delicate Abrolhos Island scallop, nestled in thin layers of pressed potato, is fried until golden then spritzed in salt and vinegar. Petanen’s cooking is as all about deep savour and great length of flavour when you want it, and lightness when it’s needed. The signature dessert embodies that, starting with a base of licorice cake, then carrot sorbet, all hidden under a blanket of aerated yoghurt.

Good to know: It’s a perpetually busy place, and although no one’s rushing you, there’s a certain rigour to the service all the same.

Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant can’t pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide.

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.

Sign up

Continue this series

Inner West and Western Sydney
Up next
Ful madamas at Cairo Takeaway.
  • Review

Cairo Takeaway

Busy BYO favourite for falafel, flatbreads and ful.

Build your meal around the arroz de marisco (seafood rice).
  • Review

Casa Do Benfica

Packed, hall-style club dining room.

Previously
Prawn toast at Bloodwood.
  • Review

Bloodwood

A beloved inner-west standby delivering vibes and smashing signatures.

See all stories

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement