Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse

Some rooms tell you exactly what to order the moment you sit down. Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse, in Sydney, is one of them.

The room is exactly what you want it to be: York Street basement with terracotta walls. We were seated near the back, given menus we hardly needed, and brought a small bowl of olives without being asked.

We started with bone marrow with a small salad of capers and parsley, which set the tone — generous, unfussy, and confident enough not to crowd what was coming. With it we ordered a Napa cabernet old enough to drink itself, and were glad of both.

Then the main event: bistecca on the bone, the dish that puts Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse on every short list. There was a thumb of butter melting into the cross-hatch, and a single sprig of thyme on top, and not one thing more. The signature touch — the dry-aged Cape Grim — is not a gimmick; it is the reason to come.

For sides we asked for buttered haricots verts and broiled tomato with a breadcrumb cap. Both arrived hot, both arrived early, both were exactly large enough to overdo it. We overdid it.

Dessert was crème brûlée with a proper glass crust, mostly because the waiter raised an eyebrow when we hesitated. He was right to.

I will be back. With company, next time, and a longer reservation.