Schwass

It was the evening of my birthday, and the girls decided to have a quiet dinner at Schwass.  This was my third visit to Schwass.  It is a well known restaurant with good decent food and a chef with a strong passion for his food.

There are several dining options, including a 5 course degustation menu with matching wine, and an option for 2 people to dine in the kitchen with Chef Jonny Schwass.  We chose the less indulgent option of a 3 course meal ($68 instead of $75 if ordered individually).

Entree



Oxtail tortellini with blue cheese crumble

I got to try some of the oxtail tortellini.  I didn't order the dish, as I'm not a big fan of blue cheese, and was worried that it might be too strong.  However, the blue cheese crumble was actually quite subtle, so did not dominate the dish.  The tortellini itself was nice, but the pasta unfortunately was slightly undercooked.

Mushroom risotto, pickled oyster mushrooms and parmesan

For my entree, I had the mushroom risotto.  I had a similar dish for entree on my first visit, so I knew I wouldn't be disappointed.  The waitress came to our table to offer me freshly shaven parmesan.  It's a lovely dish with beautifully cooked risotto, mushroom, and fresh parmesan.  A great dish to warm up the stomach for more to come!



Roasted quail, asparagus, buffalo yoghurt and orange salad

I didn't get to try this dish.  The asparagus season have just started, and they looked great on this dish.

Main

Beef sirloin, horseradish, creamed spinach and celeriac

I had the beef sirloin cooked medium rare.  Very nicely cooked steak which went well with the horseradish sauce.  The creamed spinach was delicious.  But I agreed with my friend Wendy, "you can't eat creamed spinach everyday!"  Well, you can, you just shouldn't for the sake of your health!

Free range pork - belly and shoulder, apple, Brussels sprouts and cabbage

You can't go wrong with a nice roast pork belly!  This dish had roast pork belly and shoulder.  I didn't try the dish.  Apparently the belly was nice, but the shoulder was a bit tough.



Roast duck, lentils, ruby chards and rhubarb relish

Duck was my second choice for main.  Also didn't try this.  But my friend enjoyed the dish.

Dessert



Lemon posset, orange brulee, lemon sorbet and cake

By now, we were all pretty full.  There were several yummy dessert options on the menu, but we just couldn't stomach anything too rich.  There was a "Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate" dish that sounded amazing.  Maybe next time.  We had the lemon dish, with 4 diffirent lemon dessets.  The creme brulee was lovely and light.  Of course, it came with the crispy caramel topping, ready for us to crack.  The lemon sorbet was refreshing.  The lemon posset was nice and creamy, although quite rich.  The small piece of lemon cake just completed the dish.  The night definitely ended on a high note.

Overall, it was a great night out.  It was slightly disappointing to see that the choices for main had remained pretty much the same during my 3 visits, although there were a few new entree and dessert options.  However, it's still a place for food lovers, particularly if you haven't been.

It also features in the Entertainment Book, which gives a discount of 25% off the bill (up to$35).

Update:  Unfortunately Schwass has closed following the Christchurch earthquakes.


Restaurant Schwass
190 Ferry Road, Phillipstown, Christchurch
(03) 371 9333
http://www.restaurantschwass.com/