For my 32nd birthday i organised for me and friends and family to head out to a new restaurant that i had heard good reviews of and had been awarded a Hat in the latest 2016 Good Food Guide. Located in the back of the recently renovated Astor hotel in the northern part of Lygon street on the corner of Elgin Street, the restaurant was a small section located past the bar in the back corner. Simple and sleek decor, furniture and plates, glasses and cutlery.
After an initial drink in the bar, we headed through to our table in the restaurant. Whilst trying to decide on our approach for our meal, we decided to go with some snacks of Oysters with condiments (which i didn't have) and a Cigars of chicken liver parfait, date and salted peanut. A crisp shell filled with rich chicken parfait and topped with date puree and crushed peanuts, it was a great start to the meal (although my brother Joe would not agree).
After much debate and helpful advice from our waiter, we settled on four different shared dishes with sufficient to share between the 8 of us. We ended up with half of the dish each.
The first dish was Mozzarella 'pasta', peas, chevre & basil. Mozzarella fashioned into fettuccini style pasta with excellent flavour and complemented by the flavours of the peas and peas and basil puree.
The next dish was my personal favourite, expertly cooked pieces of roast duck, roasted brussel spouts and crisp nuts. Warm, rich and decadent with excellent flavours and perfect balance.
The next dish was the Chinese roasted pork belly, perfectly cooked and crispy and covered in a layer of red peppers and red cabbage. It was an excellent dish with perfectly cooked individual components and worked well together.
The final main course was chunks of Cape Grim beef and mixed with slices of sweet onion, turnips and radishes. The beef was cooked perfectly and the dish was homely warm and delicious.
I also finished with a dark chocolate truffle cover with black sea salt. Was very rich and a great mix of sweet and salty and a great way to finish the meal.
All the dishes were a perfect mix of quality ingredients, great cooking with a mix of precise modern techniques and homely warm feeling dishes.Also at $15 for main course they came in at a bargain for such high quality food even if you do need a few mains to fill you up. Combined with a diverse and long drinks list with our bottle of wine coming in at $50 and quality and helpful service this was a rare treat of a night out with the meal all up for my appertisers, mains, desserts and wine coming in at $65.
