Our quest for new flavours took us to Gloria’s Restaurant in Petersham – one of Sydney’s better known Portuguese eateries.
I love places like this – there’s no pomp and ceremony, just hearty meals with authentic flavours served in a relaxed, casual setting. We shared four tapas style entrees, starting with the Chourico Grelhado na Mesa – a chilli chorizo grilled over a flaming terracotta burner (above).
The Bolinho de Bacalhau, Rissol de Carne/Camarao (codfish, meat and prawn cakes) were light, interesting and moreish – my favourite dish of the evening.
Our mains included an Arroz de Marisco – seafood rice filled with king prawns, mussels and vongole, served with black olives and green capsicums…
…and the absolutely delicious, if slightly less visually appealing, Rojões – fork tender lean pork which had obviously been slow cooked for hours in red wine, then served with salami, liver and rice.
Because we were dining with Cliff and Kathy, the drinks were an integral part of the meal! They included this Portuguese beer – new to Cliff, who is an aficionado…
…and a bottle of sublime Taylor’s 1983 Vintage Port, dragged from the depths of our cellar especially for this occasion. Is there anything better than enjoying wonderful food and wine in the company of good friends?
. . . . .
Gloria’s Restaurant
82 Audley Street
Petersham NSW 2049
Phone: (02) 9568 3966
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Omgoodness…!!
That was my first reaction, when I read this entry, so Portuguese and so “on the other side of the Planet” :-)
Those dishes are very traditional; “arroz de marisco” is a must and, when I’m in Portugal (I’m currently in South Africa), a lot of times I put one of those “rissois” in a bread roll for a quick meal on the go.
Did you try any soup?
Portuguese meals always have soup :-)
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed it.
Felicidades :-)
Sonia
Fantastic! That’s good to know Sonia, thank you! When trying new flavours, it can be hard to know if they’re authentic, but all the reviews of Gloria’s had been glowing…
We didn’t have any soup, but will certainly do so next time – thanks for the headsup. :-)
I didn’t take any photos of this, but there was one dish which amused us – we ordered “bread, olives and pate” for $6, which seemed a bargain. We received a basket with four bread rolls, a small saucer of absolutely delicious black olives and… a small tin of fish paste. It certainly wasn’t bad, but not at all what we expected.. :-)
Cheers, Celia