Hellenic Republic

434 Lygon St, Bruswick East

George Calombaris has become a house hold name across Australia as a celebrity chef and host of the hugely popular reality television series Master Chef Australia. But before Matt, Gary and the Master Chef contestants it was all about food and creating a dining experience full of passion, culture and heritage.  After bursting into the Melbourne culinary scene in 2006 when he opened the Greek inspired fine dining restaurant Press Club, in 2008, George took his traditional Greek heritage further and opened Hellenic Republic, a Modern Greek Taverna.

Hellenic Republic serves a mix of deliciously rich sharing dishes inspired by the dinner tables of family’s across Greece and the magical Islands that surround.  Walking into Hellenic Republic on a Sunday evening the place is a buzz with conversation, loud and hectic, with a steady stream of share plates from the open kitchen dispersing across the restaurant.

We are seated by the rotisserie which instantly takes away the chill from the icy winter evening and has us perusing over the menu in silence, eager to share in whatever is filling the restaurant with such inviting aromas.  The menu is large with plenty of options to satisfy but tonight we take the easy way out, opting for the four course set menu for $58 a person.

The service is quick and well-organised and before we know it we are tucking into our starters, a mix of small plates consisting of Tyri saganaki with peppered figs, pita bread, Taramosalata - white cod roe dip and Loukaniko - pork and leek sausages. The peppered figs are soft, sweet and act as a perfect complement to the hot salty cheese. The pita bread is the best I have eaten, soft and fluffy on the inside with a crispy pan fired outer, a perfect spoon for the creamy cod dip which to my delight is not overpowered by the roe. 

Our next course to arrive was the seafood.  The waitress clears our starter and instantaneously places in front of us crispy skin salmon fillets, crumbed hervey bay scallops presented in their shell and a Cypriot grain salad with freekah, coriander, almonds, lentils and yoghurt. The salmon is rich and the flavour delightful although slightly over cooked, missing the plump pink flesh in the centre of the fillet. The Cypriot grain salad is a refreshing combination of mixed herbs, almond, dried currants and crunchy grain. However the scallops are a little on the small side and are lost behind the crumbs in which they are served.

Our third course arrives, ahh, the one we have been waiting for.  The chicken and lamb comes sliced straight from the rotisserie, plated together with lemon and served with hand cut potatoes, cabbage salad and tzatziki.  The meat is tender and when squeezed with lemon comes alive in a burst of exotic herbs and spices with a tang of citrus. The chips are crunchy and perfectly golden; the cabbage salad gives the fresh sweet balance to the meal while the tzatziki ties it all together.

Thinking I couldn’t possibly fit in another mouthful the steaming hot Greek donuts arrived smothered in a sticky attiki honey and sprinkled with crushed walnuts… all of a sudden there is just enough room.

Leaving the Greek Taverna that evening I feel impossibly full but quietly content.  In my eyes Hellenic Republic has succeeded exactly what George set out to accomplish, bringing the traditional Greek family feast to Melbourne and serving it to eager customers with a the heartfelt love of a grandmother.

Rated 16 O's out of 20

The Newmarket

34 Inkerman St, St Kilda

Gone are the days that the Newmarket Hotel on Inkerman St was renowned for its dingy interior, questionable adult entertainment and the rough and ready crowd that it attracted. Today it is an uber modern gastro pub, an intriguing establishment serving their unique take on Central American cuisine to a mix of the hip and trendy, chic and stylish, young and old.

Designers 6 Degrees architects have taken influences from both Mexican and Spanish cultures and added their own personal twist to the mix. Chequered autumn coloured carpet, soft yellow and pink patterned wall paper, tall rough concrete walls, dark wooden tables and modern leather chairs all clash in a way that is dramatically cool.  High concrete pillars shelter the main dining area, drawing on the architectural features of a Spanish cathedral and adding to the powerful structure of the restaurant.

This is my third visit to the Newmarket and today I am accompanied by a small group of friends to celebrate the weekend and I am already looking forward to the spiced lamb, pumpkin hummus, grape and queso fresco cocas, a Latin flat bread pizza which stole my heart on my first visit.

Taking our seats we order Guacamole with native lime salsa fresca, taro, jicama & tortilla chips to share and our first round of drinks for the afternoon.  The wines are poured straight from the barrel and served in carafes with stemless tumblers to drink from; a quirk that adds to the restaurants charm and pulls on the heart strings of typical Spanish tapas bars.

The menu is large and it takes a moment to get your head around the different Hispanic and Latin Street foods on offer. Designed for sharing, we order a mix of soft tacos with prawns, fragrant herbs and jicama slaw; lamb ribs barbacoa, pomegranate mole, avocado and tahini; triple cooked bravas potatoes; baked sweet potato with jalapeños and queso fresco; winter salad with wood fired caramelised onion and fennel tart, quince aioli, walnuts and local goats cheese and of course the spices lamb cocas. It is a feast of rich flavour and textures that transports you to the street stalls of Mexico City and inspires you to visit your local travel agent with this new taste of adventure.

To satisfy the sweet tooth amongst us we also order three deserts to share, chocolate and macadamia pie with kahlua ice cream; pay de queso cheesecake with tequila and native lime sorbet and Latin style chocolate pot with bananas and dulche de leche. Chocolate and macadamia are always a heavenly mix and the pie is the stand out desert of the day; the pastry delightfully buttery and crumbles when spooned. While the modern take on a cheese cake left us questioning the placement of its base and the sharp tang of tequila and lime in the sorbet was somewhat out of place with the smooth creamy filling.  

The wine continued to flow and the conversation grew louder with excitement and laughter as we made our way to the bar area, all the while singing the praises of this new and exciting St Kilda resident.

Rates 15.5 O’s out of 20

Cutler&Co

55-57 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy

Cutler&Co has become somewhat of an institution amongst Melbourne’s fine dining scene, despite its relatively new existence in this wonderful city I call home.  A two hat restaurant run by Andrew McConnell and partner Pascale Gomes-McNabb, it really is a must for anyone that appreciates great food and faultless service combined with an atmosphere that is fresh, modern and intriguing. 

Having booked a table some months ago I would be lying if I said I wasn’t just a tad excited that the evening had finally arrived. Dressed for a special occasion and with enormous expectations, we walked into the Gertrude St restaurant with keen anticipation.

The restaurant itself is a large open area; however despite the abundant floor space, Cutler&Co’s creative design, soft lighting, rusty wine racks and classic wooden and leather furnishings ensure that you have an intimate dining experience. For me the walls are the winning feature. A unique touch that sets a dynamic scene; exposed wall to ceiling bricks that have been roughly white washed to give the restaurant an absorbing industrial feel. The space is sincerely modern and ‘Fitzroy’ to a t.

Greeted at the door we are guided seamlessly to our table, jackets taken, napkins fanned out, water poured and our waitress for the evening introduced, all in a instant. To start we order a dozen natural Rusty Wire Oysters and a glass of sparkling to match. The oysters are deliciously fresh and barely needed the lemon that accompanies them.  Along with the tangy sourdough rolls that I spread generously with soft salty butter, the entree is complete and sets the mood for the evening ahead.   

There is something to be admired about restaurants perfecting the wait between delivering entree and main courses. All too often these day’s kitchens hastily rush out meals leaving you to feel as if they are pushing you out the door to make space for the next sitting, or alternatively talking so much time between courses you often need to remind the wait staff that you are in fact still there! There is no such problem at Cutler&Co who have certainly mastered this understated but none the less important aspect of dining. After ordering a bottle of Tuscan Sangiovese we are lost in conversation and are enjoying the gentle buzz that surrounds us when our mains arrive with a perfect precision, as if the kitchen knows that our taste buds have again begun to salivate.

Roast Suckling Pig

The slow roasted duck breast with confit leg pie, mustard fruit, turnip and cavolo nervo that I have ordered are the perfect combination of soft, pink flesh and the decadent flavour of rich confit that I adore.  Opposite me is the roast suckling pig with mosellia, sweet and sour shallots and almond, again the meat itself was cooked to perfection but the thick salty crackling that crunches loudly in your mouth before melting away was the star of the dish.

With some wine still to finish our waitress kindly suggested the Ossau Iraty to help accompany it; a plate of hard ewe’s milk cheese from the Pyrenees and Basque country. Sliced thinly and served with pickled cherries it was, as it had been suggested, the perfect way to end the meal, allowing us to saviour the flavours that had taken us on the evening’s journey.

Looking back fondly I do not have enough positive praise for Cutler&Co. Although it is a fine dining establishment the atmosphere is refreshingly casual and relaxed having avoided the pretence of some premier restaurants. The food is delectable and the service is second to none that I have come across in my Melbourne dining adventures to date.

Cutler&Co; warehouse dining with a five star rating!!

Rated 18 O’s out of 20

Mandala

133 Commercial Road, South Yarra

This Friday evening took us just up the street and across Commercial Road to Mandala Restaurant in South Yarra. Having lived in the area for almost a year now I have walked past this restaurants façade more times than I can remember and had often wondered what lay within, so when it was suggested for dinner I thought why not, let’s give it a go.

Commercial Road is a colourful street to say the least. With its mix of gay bars and night clubs, adult book shops, the Prahran Market, Lebanese bakeries, up-market hotels and a variety of international cuisines ranging from cosy Korean, quirky Japanese or stylish dumpling houses, it’s a street of extremes. Much like the beloved street that it lives on, Mandala is a scrambled mix of cultures and unfortunately is a restaurant suffering desperately from an identity crisis.  

Walking into Mandala I was hit with the pungent aroma of incense, with the smell transporting me to the streets of Bali and the small offerings found on every door step and shop front. Although it took me back to the warm surroundings of last year’s winter escape, a blessing in this cold winter weather, in this small room it was excessively overpowering.

Our dinner party of six was shown to a table at the back of the restaurant in a little nook overlooking a quaint pebbled courtyard. As the restaurant is BYO we placed our wines for the evening on the table and were lost in an initial hub of conversation until we fell silent, gazing longingly at the unopened wine. Trying to get a waiters attention proved harder than driving down Punt Road at peak hour and after no luck, one of our guests left the table to ask for both wine glasses and menus.

The menu, once arrived, offered a long list of options although the construction of it was confusing. Thai curries, salmon with an Asian twist, Indian goat and roita sitting alongside lamb shanks served with boc choy?

Having to leave the table again to place our entree orders, we settled on Momos - pan fried pork dumplings with sesame tomato dip, Golden Wonton Parcels and Salt and Pepper Squid. Unfortunately the starters did not take the sting off the bad service. The Wontons were soft and lacked the golden crunch we were looking forward too, the squid pieces were large and chewy covered in a thick batter, heavy with oil while the Momos were the best of a sad bunch.

With the entrees behinds us and mains on the way we hoped that Mandala could turn itself around with a stunning grand finale.

For mains we ordered a blend of dishes to share including Peanut Beef, Classic Chicken, Prawns Simmered in Coconut Cream, Cumin Spiced Goat and Chicken Biryani Rice with a serve of crispy roita. Hmm, perhaps this was not going to be our night.

Each dish was pleasant enough in flavour but lacked spice and the intensity of good Thai food. The goat had not been slow cooked to the point the meat was falling of the bone and the sauce that accompanied it was lacklustre. The Chicken Biryani Rice with its mix of Cumin rice, sultanas, cashew and mixed veg added a fresh mix to the curries and the crispy rotia was in fact crispy on the outside and soft and flavoursome on the inside.

Despite the unremarkable dining experience the table was alive with laughter and conversation, proving that good company is the core ingredient to any great night out.

Rated: 8 O’s out of 20

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