Award-winning wine list, check. Award-winning chef, check. Excellent service, check. Monopole ticks all of the boxes, but none of this means anything without consistency, and this sexy Potts Point restaurant continuously delivers, night after night.

Whether it’s a busy Saturday dinner or a cruisy Wednesday evening at the bar, at Monopole you can be assured that the experience will reflect the outstanding nous of the Bentley group, formed by Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt.

The dimly lit restaurant is as much a locals’ lair as a dining destination. House-cured meats served with pickles have cult-status among regulars – the aged charcuterie the perfect complement to Hildebrant’s aperitif menu, which contains the best gin martini with a twist we’ve seen this review season. The long-standing canapé of pastrami with goat’s curd and cucumber pickle is a bold and balanced mouthful of salty, sweet and sour.

A seat at the Pascale Gomes-McNabb designed bar is the ultimate viewing spot to watch the team of chefs skillfully working the pans. It’s a restaurant where flavour is uninhibited, and ingredient pairings are creative, thoughtful and ambitious, from entrees through to desserts. Buttery scampi is paired with a tart vinaigrette, and while a meat and fruit combo of slow-cooked pork neck with spiced prunes sounds retro, the balance of the silky, fatty meat and concentrated fruit works.

A sweet sesame parfait is like frozen halva, the tahini-base paired with white chocolate resulting in an impossibly creamy texture.

Will we go again, and soon? Check.

Must eat dish: pastrami with goat’s curd and cucumber pickle
Instagram: @monopole_sydney