Li'l Darlin Review - Surry Hills | Live Life Sydney

Food	★★★★✰
Setting	★★★★
Service	★★★★
Total	12.5/15

Personal Favourite: Arancini Balls, Grilled Chilli Prawn Pizza, Warm Spiced Butternut Pumpkin Salad, Char-Grilled Sirloin Steak with home made mushroom sauce, and Oven Baked Original Swirls.

Arancini Balls ($12)

It all started with an invite from Mr Simon Hancock to attend a dinner showcase at Li'l Darlin Surry Hills. I've heard nothing but great things about Simon and the events he organises, so M and I quickly pencilled in a time with Simon to visit Li'l Darlin.

Li'l Darlin Surry Hills is only a short stroll from Central Station, a friendly waiter greeted us at the door and sat us down right in the centre of the restaurant. I looked around and was quite surprised to see a good number of people chatting over drinks on a Tuesday night, the whole ambience was warm and cosy with nice music in the background.

Within a few minutes we were presented with the Gluhwein (Mulled Wine). It's served at just the right temperature for a cold night like this. M loved the sweetness and the aroma of the wine. This was followed by three entrees, my favourite being the Arancini Balls (made with risotto and mozzarella), they were crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside, the Salt & Pepper Calamari were also fried to perfection.

Out of the three pizzas we tried, the Grilled Chilli Prawn Pizza would be my first pick. The prawns were fresh, flavour combination spot on, and they thoughtfully gave us more chilli on the side. Another highlight was the Mushroom Sauce accompanying the Char-Grilled Steak. The sauce was to die for, rich and creamy with that amazing mushroom taste. The Steak went well with the Pumpkin Salad, the pumpkins were fresh, warm, sweet and melt in your mouth.

Then came the cocktails and dessert, Li'l Darlin has a wide range of cocktails and drinks to choose from, most of them look quite spectacular, too bad I am not much of a cocktail drinker. M's highlight of the night was the Oven Baked Original Swirls, she is a huge fan of Nutella and chocolate desserts, and this one taste just as good as a Max Brenner dessert.

Pros: Good food, wide variety of drinks, cosy atmosphere, friendly staff.