I had a quick day work trip up to Sydney yesterday, so what better to do than stop into Bodega for lunch in between meetings. And what a great way to spend a couple of hours, some nice drinks, great food and outstanding atmosphere. One of the things I like here is the slight rockabilly undertone, it reminds me of being in my mid 20s, out and about seeing ska, punk and rockabilly bands.

A glass of manzanilla and some boquerones (white anchovies) was just the thing much on while I flipped through the wine list. The guys have one of the broadest lists of Spanish wines getting around, lots of different stuff from all over Spain, plus good stuff from Chile, Argentina and Portugal. While that was impressive, the stand out of the day was the new scallop and morcilla dish that’s in the running for the best thing I’ve eaten this year, and that includes a couple of weeks in Spain. Four little stacks of scallop and morcilla with the thinnest pastry envelope of creamy, yogurhty goodness, plus some finely chopped cauliflower sprinkled over the top. All that on a bed of braised cabbage. The piquillo peppers stuffed with salt cod were rock’n too. Definitely worth getting up at 4am to catch the plane for.