Shopping was the name of the game today. Sydney’s downtown shopping centers are linked through tunnels making for some massive shopping malls, with food courts, subway stations and various stalls thrown in.

The highlight of the day was the Queen Victoria Building, with its great shops and architecture. Photos from walking around the building are here. After six hours spent wandering the stores and buying up the best (and worst) of what was on sale, we came back to the hotel and then headed out to dinner.

Food:

Lunch was a chicken teryaki box grabbed from a stall by Wynard Station

Dinner was at Guillame At Bennelong located in one of the shells of the Sydney Opera House. Australian Gourmet Traveller ranks it as the #8 restaurant in the country. We chose the degustation (tasting) menu, with the wine pairing. The courses were as follow:
• Yellowfin Tuna basil infused with soy and mustard seed vinaigrette. Paired with a 2006 Paul Kubler Breitenberg Riesling from Alsace
• Royale of Asparagus with spanner crab and truffle. Paired with a 2008 Domaine Pichot Coteau de la Biche Chenin Blanc from Vouvray
• Tortellini of Peas with fresh chanterelies, broad beans and light tarragon butter. Paired with a 2007 Chateau Bouscasse Petit Corbu from Pacherenc
• Turban of Scampi with spaghettini and a warm lemon and Sterling caviar sauce. Paired with a 2006 Denis Pommier Chablis from Burgundy
• Blue Eye Trevalla roasted on a etuve of baby spring vegetables. Paired with a 2007 Spring Vale Pinot Noir from Tasmania
• Deboned Rib Eye of Tajima Wagyu Beef with a tombe of field mushrooms, baby spinach, confit of shallot, merlot sauce. Paired with a 2006 Torbeck / Shiraz from the Barossa Valley of Australia
• Soup of Seasonal Fruit with lime marshmallows and pineapple sorbet. The soup was an infused pomegranate base
• Vanila Bean Creme Brule with green apple jelly, green aplle sorbet and doughnut.

All in all, this wasn’t a standout meal or a standout restaurant. The location and the chef are impressive, but that’s about it. The space is way too open and with tables positioned to make the best of the (impressive) views of the harbour, you have this feeling that there is a gigantic restaurant behind you with no intimacy (to say nothing of the austere hard concrete floors and the less than comfortable seating). The only memorable dish of the night was the Soup of Seasonal Fruit, which was very good, but it says a lot when that’s it. Service was slow, with wine courses often arriving well into the course. And the loudness of the space made it very difficult to hear the staff. All in all, not worth the time or the cost.