Black Penny - Redfern

Black Iris is a Tapas Bar that has taken over the former Black Penny site in Surry Hills. I head here one Saturday afternoon with Matt and fellow influencer the random foodie and her guest. The menu is relatively short for cocktails and tapas which is good for me as I can be quite indecisive at times. Most of the tapa dishes are about $18-20 and the cocktails are also $18.

Iris Black is a new establishment located on the corner of Cleveland Bourke Sts in Surry Hills.<br/ <br/ With its chilled atmosphere relaxing jazz playing in the background it's the perfect after work drinks venue serving unique craft beers on tap enticing cocktails.<br/ <br/ Whilst my partner savoured a Stone Ruination Double IPA beer, my Water Buoy cocktail of Stolichnaya Vodka, watermelon liquor, watermelon, cranberry lime was deliciously refreshing on a hot Summer evening!<br/ <br/ After out initial drinks we stayed on to have dinner. Unlike some other bars Iris Black also has an incredible and innovative food menu.<br/ <br/ All the dishes are designed to be shared tapas style which suited me perfectly as it meant I got to taste more of the exquisite menu!<br/ <br/ The dishes were all beautifully presented and absolutely delicious. <br/ <br/ Service was friendly, unobtrusive and timely.<br/ <br/ The dish of the night for me was the perfectly seared scallops with crispy Parmesan wafers on smooth corn with corn husk ash. Definitely a must try dish, especially if you are a fan of seafood like I am.<br/ <br/ My partner's favourite dish was the heirloom carrots with cucumber, dukkah, orange Persian feta. He loved the combination of flavours and different textures.<br/ <br/ The beef short ribs were melt in the mouth tender and full of flavour. The beetroot, asparagus and quenelle of horseradish cream were the perfect accompaniment to the beef.<br/ <br/ The octopus, chorizo, ink, kifler potatoes and tomato dish not only looked spectacular but also tasted amazing! Such a perfect flavour combination. <br/ <br/ When dining at Iris Black make sure to leave room for dessert! There may only be two choices on the menu but trust me both of them were absolutely mouth-wateringly scrumptious!<br/ <br/ Chocoholics will love the chocolate brownie balanced out beautifully with buttermilk passionfruit! We both did!<br/ <br/ If you want a little less sweetness however then the panna cotta with almonds, coconut, yuzu edible flowers is the dessert for you. It looks pretty and is such a refreshing way to end your meal! The flavours are palate cleansing and fresh!<br/ <br/ Based on my experience of Iris Black I would definitely highly recommend this venue for both it's drinks and food!<br/ <br/ If you don't want a full meal, there's some comfortable leather lounges you can chill out on with your friends, drinks and maybe even nibble on a cheese board or charcuterie board.<br/ <br/ If you enjoyed this review and photos you can find more on my Instagram account @sydneyfoodbites.

A dimly lit and deceptively long bar, @iris_black_bar transitions from day to night without so much as batting an eyelid<br/ <br/ Its cosy-cool interior and street side window seating make for an interesting place to perch and people watch. While the exceptional selection of top quality dishes will have you long overstay your welcome<br/ <br/ The menu consists of only the best tapas-style share plates including seafood, a variety of meats and fresh salads. Choose from scallops, pork belly, beef short ribs, fresh tomato and mozzarella salad and more

We had booked a table in advance but when we arrived they only had the high table facing the window available which was kind of annoying. However they quickly made room for us when we said we would like to sit at a dining table. Anyway, here's what we ordered: <br/ Heirloom Carrots (4/5): This was cooked to perfection (perfect char that was soft on the inside), seasoned well and I loved the crunchy nuts on top. Good flavours and a great mix of textures. I was happy. <br/ Buffalo Mozzarella (4/5): You can't go wrong with a big ball of mozzarella really!<br/ <br/ And my friends had: <br/ Pork Belly (3.5/5): The crackling could have been crispier but my friends did think the dish was tasty and it was a generous serving of pork belly<br/ Octopus (4/5): The octopus looked impressive! The roasted veggies on the side and the sauce went well together but there could have been more octopus. My friends liked this dish a lot.<br/ Scallop (4/5): the scallops were large and juicy and apparently tasted very fresh. I had the crispy parmesan chips and the sauce and they were delicious! <br/ <br/ Would 100% return here to try more!!!! I'm surprised at how much I loved the food!!

Tapas ninja!!<br/ <br/ A Jazz bar serving up fancy tapas dishes which will make anyone happy, drinks are also available and private area as well.<br/ <br/ A lot of care and love goes into the plating and the flavours are unique, I'm surprised I didn't see any fried Chicken on the menu but everything tasted great. <br/ <br/ My favourite dishes was duck parfait, matcha mushroom, hierloom carrots, crispy pork belly and mozzarella salad.<br/ <br/ A few of the meat dishes I'm needs more flavour but overall it was a tasty spread.<br/ <br/ Until next time ... Keep eating!!!