You might say that Cirrus, the bustling new seafood restaurant at Barangaroo, had a running start.

Owners Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt managed to snare the coveted site that previously housed Rene Redzepi’s Noma pop-up. Housed on the ground floor of the “Cloud” building, it has picturesque views of Darling Harbour, Birchgrove and Balmain.

A wall of glass delivers harbour vistas, but those facing away from the view get to marvel at one of the most striking recent restaurant fit-outs, from designer Pascale Gomes-McNabb, complete with a suspended speedboat.

With the exception of a few meat dishes, the menu is composed of top quality, sustainable seafood. While it carries a price tag, it is truly revelatory.

One of the signature dishes is Northern Territory mud crab, steamed and served with a marvellous parsley- green sauce of tarragon and green garlic, along with house-made brioche.

There’s an elegant, Japanese-inspired kingfish, with folds of daikon that has been pickled in yuzu. It’s served with a black bean sauce infused with coriander, ginger, garlic and lime, which gives the dish a beautiful zest. Roasted tiger prawns with fried saltbush are also excellent.

The standout fish is a generous Murray cod roasted in paperbark and dressed in a mix of native spices. And, most decadent of all, a seafood platter of tiger prawns, cobia, bugs, strawberry clams and oysters, plus a dipping sauce of seaweed mayonnaise ponzu.

Savage, the chef, and Hildebrandt, the sommelier, are also behind upscale venues Bentley, Monopole and Yellow, so perhaps it’s not surprising that Cirrus has an elegant atmosphere.

This is grown-up food for serious food lovers, albeit with serious money to spend. But if you’re going to splash out on a new restaurant this year, make it this one. You will not regret it.

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