After one of the wettest summers in Sydney, it was wonderful to finally have a nice sunny day in Sydney, and what better place to enjoy the sunshine than at Coogee beach.
Although it was a weekday, the beach was busy with mostly tourists also keen to enjoy the spot of sunshine and white sandy beach. After a stroll on the beach, we found a spot in the beer garden of the Coogee Bay hotel brasserie for a bite and drink. The courtyard reminds me of the beer gardens you would find in Germany (particularly in Munich), a large open space with tables lined up with large umbrellas to shade diners & drinkers from the afternoon sun.
The Brasserie menu includes regular pub dishes, schnitzel, burgers & fish & chips, salads and pizzas as well as a grill menu.
We opted for the specials of the day, the Seafood cioppino (an Italian American dish originating from San Francisco), made with fish, clams, scallops, mussels and squid in a rich tomato and wine sauce and served with a slice of crusty baguette. The dish had a large serve of seafood cooked in the beautiful tomato sauce – I couldn’t stop dunking the baguette in that rich sauce with lovely tomato, wine & seafood flavours.
We also tried to the Grilled swordfish, served with capers, baby spinach and cherry tomatoes and a fried egg on top. I always find it odd when chefs decide to serve a fried egg on top of a perfectly good dish!
Last thing we tried was a Chicken Panini, piri piri marinated chicken on salad with avocado and sour cream mayonnaise with chips, $18.
The meal went down very nicely with a glass of white wine. 🙂
The Seafood cioppino was definitely the highlight of the meal, the other dishes were not overly exciting – I guess you can’t expect too much from a pub meal by the beach. Overall, the beer garden at the Coogee Bay Hotel Brasserie is a nice spot to have a nice nibble and drink in the shade on a sunny day on the beach.
Coogee Bay Hotel, 253 Coogee Bay Road, Coogee NSW 2034
jadorais.wordpress.com 