We took a colourful journey through the flavours and aromas of modern Middle Eastern cuisine.
Middle Eastern culture revolves around food and a social style of eating to be shared with friends and family. We couldn’t think of a better venue to highlight this style of eating than Babylon Rooftop and Bar hidden away in the heart of the CBD. Inspired by the hanging gardens of Babylon the venue exports you to the ancient region of the Middle East.
As our guests arrived at the venue they were greeted with a specially designed cocktail called ‘Hookah and Apple’ made with Vida Mezcal to symbolise the smoky flavours of traditional shisha and falernum, lime, apple and bitters, apple being the most popular shisha flavour in the Middle East.
Once seated it was time for our ‘Ottoman Feast’ to begin as our foodies were presented with an endless array of meze. From house-made bread with smoked butter to hummus with seeds, tarama with bottarga and sumac and the mouthwatering lentil kofte as well as much more, this was all perfectly paired with a glass of Bay of Fires 2020 Pinot Gris.
As our guests wiped their meze plates clean it was time for the mains with the Babylon team pulling out all the stops serving a traditional whole wood roasted lamb carved and served to the guests by head Chef Rob Taylor, severed alongside the Lamb were classic Middle Eastern sides made fresh with a unique with a modern twist such as garlic lahna, zhug sauce, green tomato tabbouleh and saffron rice pilaf. The flavours of the mains were complimented by Bay of Fires 2019 Pinot Noir.
While feasting on our mains Babylon’s head chef Rob Taylor spoke of the inspiration behind tonight’s menu which is inspired by the rich flavours and textures of Levant cuisine and his memories of growing up in Turkey where street vendors would make traditional middle eastern snacks fresh to order.
No feast is complete without dessert and as well as Bay of Fires 2020 Riesling our foodies enjoyed small bites of traditional sweets such as Baklava, Turkish Delight and Tulumba, the perfect way to end our night discovering ancient Levant cuisine.
Find out more about Babylon Rooftop Sydney here.
Take a look at more photos from the event here.