Huxtable

21st April 2012

Having traversed the city starting in Malvern, going into the city and ending up in Fitzroy, i decided to complete one of the restaurants on my 2012 list, Huxtable. Having checked the website whilst travelling i saw that they were open from midday until late. Unfortunately when i arrived (at 3pm) they stated that whilst they were open but only offered the bites menu outside lunch (12-3) and dinner hours (6-1030).

I still decided to sit down and grab a selection of bites. The bites menu had about 10 selections and the mains were broken down into sea, land and earth with about 5 options in each.There was also a set menu option for a very reasonable $50 per person. I was then offered a drinks list which was limited but decent and a couple of speciality beers on tap including the Thunder Road pale lager i choose.

I decided to have 4 different bites options.The first to come out was 2 jalapeno and cheddar croquettes. Molten cheese with a strong hint of jalapeno spice encased in a very crisp casing. Amazing flavours and contrast of textures. Amazing and a must have.

The next option was equally as must have. A slightly sweet XO bun filled with a mix of crab, jalapeno and a Thai basil mayo. Warm bun that was superb and the filling had a great flavour and a little jalapeno bite.

These first two came out very quickly and there was a short break between the first 2 and the next 2 options. The next one was a crisp filo log of lamb puttanesca with a lemon yoghurt. This had a nice lamb flavour and crisp stringy pastry. The lemon yoghurt was decent but an interesting mix with the lamb and pastry.

The final bite was a tempura eggplant prawn fritter and served with a sweet chili sauce. Served extremely hot and a good mix of prawn mixed with eggplant covered with a light tempura batter. The chili sauce was mild but decent and worked well together.

They did allow me to have the full selection of deserts. I decided on the chocolate and peanut delice (a choc and peanut set mouse in a semi circle encased in dark chocolate), with a slick of salted caramel, lines of hazelnut praline and peanuts and a chocolate sorbet. Put together in front of me, it was a work of art, looked amazing and tasted equally so.

Overall a bit disappointing that there was no mention of the limited service on the website but the bites and desert were exceptional. A bit of a mix of cuisines and a casual relaxed service and style of food but the food worked well. I would have enjoyed the full menu and may come back to try the main courses. Coming back is made more palatable given the excellent value for money. Well worth a visit and would be a great place for casual lunch or dinner with friends.