Ester has carved out its own niche with its bold, flame-licked plates of produce, carefully balanced by salt, fat and acid. Clever use of a woodfired oven adds endless nuance to Mat Lindsay’s food, like a touch of char to soft potato bread, served with a thick dollop of kefir cream and sake-cured trout pearls.

Butterflied king prawns are smoking hot; the crustaceans arrive butterflied, dripping in a fermented shrimp butter, flecked with capers, with a squeeze of lemon to cut straight through the fat. Order a side of earthy malted buckwheat bread to mop up the excess butter. Octopus noodles are an inspired combination of thinly shaved Berrima octopus, wok-fried in chickpea flour, thickly coating the noodles in the sauce, and crowned with a foamy chickpea and potato emulsion. The dish is all texture and flavour.

Brined, smoked, then roasted chicken is one of the best roast iterations in Sydney. Lindsay understands you need to do the classics well, or not at all. Order with smoked oyster mushrooms, served hot-pot style in a dashi broth, alongside. Burnt meringue, a Ester signature, is a pillow of just-burnt marshmallowy meringue, lifted by a sour orange marmalade and white chocolate cream, while a syrup-drenched coconut cake is blackened by caramelised sugar and served with a tangy pandan yoghurt foam. The desserts finish the meal on a high. It’s food you’ve never tried, that you’ll want to eat again and again.