The Sydney Morning Herald logo
Advertisement

Bayswater Diner (now closed)

Terry Durack
Terry Durack

Down-home fare ... Bayswater Diner in Kings Cross.
Down-home fare ... Bayswater Diner in Kings Cross.Edwina Pickles

13/20

Mum always said to never drink on an empty stomach, and she was right. We all know that when alcohol is served without food, bad things happen, so it's good to see more decent food options edging into night spots such as Kings Cross.

The immediate area attracts up to 20,000 young people between 11pm and 3am every Friday and Saturday, a time when all good (read, old) citizens are tucked up in bed with their Kindles.

It's not a pretty sight, I have to say, unless you're a fan of the nine levels of hell described in Dante's Inferno. They're all here - the Uncommitted, the Outcasts, the Sinners, the Seducers, the Fallen Angels - caught in limbo, swirling between one bar and another. And they need food, as a car needs fuel.

Advertisement

So a warm welcome to Bayswater Diner, which has just opened smack in the middle of Bayswater Road, part of an ''entertainment precinct'' in which people tend to entertain themselves by drinking. It's the latest offering from glamour couple Peter Lew and Nicole Galloway, who already run the popular Barrio Chino restaurant across the road, and the sweet little Fei Jai in Potts Point.

At first glance, the menu is clever. Quebec-born chef Kevin Gosselin, formerly at Oxford Street's popular bar-cafe the Falconer, has ransacked the archives of American regional, down-home, white-trash and diner favourites so thoroughly, you could be at an American county fair circa 1956. That means cheeseburgers, corn dogs (battered and deep-fried frankfurts on sticks), sloppy joes (ground beef in a soft roll), hickory-smoked pork ribs, and bowls of potato salad and slaw. As cuisines go, American diner isn't the most subtle.

There's a strange disconnect here, however, because the sort of people who would like this food the most aren't necessarily the ones coming. It's a classy-looking joint, and it attracts an equally good-looking, high-heeled crowd. Potts Point designer Ian Nessick has given the place a knowing, deco-ish 1920s speakeasy feel, lit with a soft, golden glow from a mishmash of vintage lamps and lights. At the front, large windows open wide to the street and are lined with stools for a fishbowl view.

Kevin Gosselin has ransacked the archives of American regional, down-home, white-trash and diner favourites so thoroughly, you could be at an American county fair circa 1956.

At the heart of the kitchen is a gen-u-wine Tennessee smoker, and there's an enticing smoky, bitter-sweet barbecue-sauce aroma in the air. It's a given that you are going to order the half rack of hickory-smoked pork ribs ($35), first treated with a sweet and spicy rub, then marinated overnight before being smoked for three hours with an amazingly wham-bam barbecue sauce made of smoked tomatoes, bourbon, Tabasco and treacle. There's no dainty way to tackle this monster - just rip the bones apart with your hands and shred the smoky, fatty meat off with your teeth.

Advertisement

It's a better bet than the sloppy joe ($18), a soft, squishy bun filled with a steamy mush of smoked and braised ''burned end'' brisket (barbecue gold, apparently) and topped with a shroud of gloopy Monterey Jack cheese. As with the ribs, slaw and potato salad come on the side.

At $10, a huge order of sweet, sticky buffalo chicken wings is disproportionately good value, and there's a sizzling mac-and-cheese ($9) that's a must. But it isn't all Happy Days teen fodder. A spicy tartare of cured salmon, avocado and tomato ($16) is as fresh as a daisy, while beer-steamed mussels and clams, flavoured with tomato, garlic and horseradish ($18), is a simple, straightforward dish. The cobb salad ($12) is dazzlingly displayed, each ingredient lined up in its own queue.

The wine list is serviceable but tends to be overlooked in favour of the well-made cocktails, with Cherry Cola Long Island Iced Teas and Maple Syrup Manhattans nodding to current fads.

Desserts are a childhood fantasy of build-your-own sundaes, NYC cheesecake, pecan pie, and a surprisingly chic, faffed-up chocolate lava cake, ($14), served on a brush stroke of chocolate that steals a heart or two with its cheeky molten filling of salty peanut butter.

The Diner is a cheery, well-run place, with cool music and a speedy kitchen; handy for those who want non-serious food with a serious cocktail. Whether you think this hyper-sweet, super-sticky, double-cheesy dinner-in-a-bun way of eating is purgatory or paradise probably depends on your age and stage. It's not how I like to eat, but I'm not the target audience. And at least there's food to eat. In Kings Cross, that has to be a good thing.

Advertisement

tdurack@smh.com.au

The low-down

Best thing: Having fun with American food.

Worst bit: Bread and bun overload.

Go-to dish: Half rack hickory-smoked pork ribs, slaw and potato salad, $35.

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

Sign up
Terry DurackTerry Durack is the chief restaurant critic for The Sydney Morning Herald and Good Food.

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement