Coast

Ph: 9267 6700; Cockle Bay Wharf, 201 Sussex St, SYDNEY 2000 www.coastrestaurant.com.au

Italian, $$$, ** for Ambience
Open Lunch Mon-Fri noon-2.30pm Dinner Mon-Sat 6pm-10.30pm, Closed Sat lunch; Licensed; AE DC MC V EFT
Chef (Jonathan Barthelmess, 2007-11-3) Owner (11m Connell & Michael Mccann, 2007-11-3)

Mietta's Review
Modern Mediterranean food with a strong Italian accent, a view of Darling Harbour and an open clean space has made Coast very popular. With most main courses still under $40 (just) the food is reasonable value for Sydney. Probably the last eatery in Cockle Bay to be popular for business lunches. Wine list offers some interesting choices. Also under the ownership of Tim Connell and Michael McCann is Manta The Wharf, Cowper Wharf Rd, 9332 3822.

Other published opinions

Gourmet Traveller 2009 Australian Restaurant Guide "The name is a tad misleading. Coast is not on the coast but it is waterfront, one of dozens of eateries doffed around Darling Harbour and one of the best, too. The Italian-inspired food is of a very high order"

Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2008 Score: 14/20 "Sure, poor old Darling Harbour may be showing her age as you gaze across to her fading 80s glory, but a recent facelift at Coast ensures that it remains refreshingly light-filled, stylish and spacious"

Sydney Eats 2008 "Chef Jonathan Barthelmess continues the tradition of the reborn Coast with simple Italianbased food"

Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2007 Score: 15/20, One Hat "This vintage Cockle Bay restaurant has reinvented itself. British designer Vince Frost gave it an undeniably sexy make-over, with '60s Verner Panton op-art chairs at generously spaced tables, and a luminous yellow, moulded perspex ceiling feature seeming to trace the contours of a coastline."

Sydney Morning Herald By Guy Griffin, 23-2-2006 "Savvy restaurateur Tim Connell has sexed up Coast recently, with a classy makeover courtesy of Hassell architects and British expat designer Vince Frost. The look is more Melbourne than Milan but there's the same commitment to style and visual finesse. In the airy, open-plan dining room overlooking Cockle Bay, the nautical vibe has been subtly turned down. Curvy 1960s Verner Panton chairs have been placed at generously spaced tables and Frost has installed a Perspex ceiling feature that, when it's reflected in the wide glass doors onto the outside deck, seems to trace the contours of a coastline. Connell has lured elusive legend Stefano Manfredi back into chef's whites."

SMH Good Food Guide 2005 Score 13/20 "Some restaurants just know their audience. Some deliver deft service, a worldly wine list and dishes that don't aim so high as to fall with a loud thud. Some are lovable just for being good at what they do, without the fanfare, gloss or a tricksy menu. Thankfully, Coast is such a restaurant, tucked up high overlooking Cockle Bay through full-length timber windows."

Sydney Cheap Eats 2005 "This smart but casual city restaurant causes a stir with floor-to-ceiling views of inner Darling Harbour. The Mediterranean-style menu ranges from oysters and simple entrees such as deepfried calamari with aioli or lobster and duck specialties."

SMH GFG 2004, Score 13/20, Good wine list,'The menu certainly roams the globe in appropriating ingrediants and dishes, and sometimes it becomes a little confused about where it's headed. Stick to simpler dishes, admire the elegant dining room that's regularly full and enjoy the view.'

Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide Australia 2004, Excellent wine list,'Unfussy Mediterranean-style seafood is the speciality at this huge airy restaurant...wine list has offerings in all price ranges and a very broad selection by the glass...staff are friendly and attentive for the most part'