(it’s changed several times a day, and
the old oil is recycled), it has satisfying
volume, edifying crunch and a golden
colour the shade of nostalgia. Add it to
your summer to-eat list immediately.
The chips are skin-on fries, bought
in, but cooked to a satisfying crispness
and confidently seasoned.
More good fried stuff comes in the
form of the “Italian doughnuts”, fluffy,
crisp-skinned parmesan and potato
zeppole that are teamed with a robust
white pesto made from roasted walnuts,
garlic and ricotta, and seasoned with
a good amount of white pepper. It’s a
brilliant snack, teaming perfectly with the
two Spritzes (classic Aperol or a Campari
and blood orange number) that are on
tap and can be ordered by the jug.
Booze is another area where Arbory
Afloat succeeds. Sommelier-about-town
Raul Moreno Yagüe is in charge of a list
that dedicates a page and a half
to cocktails and gin, and a snappy,
budget-conscious page to wine.
There are two wines on
tap – Central Victoria pinot
gris and a more-than-decent
grenache rosé from McLaren
Vale – offered alongside
a solid collection of classic
and bio bottles that range
from Sicilian carricante to
Yarra Valley pinot noir.➤“I
talian beach club on the Yarra”
sounds like the punchline to a
joke or maybe an ironic band
name. But it’s also an accurate
description of Arbory Afloat: a 69-metre
850-capacity pontoon that’ll be moored
beside Flinders Street Station until the
weather cools.
Decked out with orange-and-white
and green-and-white-striped furniture and
umbrellas, planters filled with citrus
trees, canopied daybeds, a central bar
and a constant party soundtrack played
at Italian beach club volume, it’s a
surprisingly successful facsimile of the
sort of place you’d find on the Amalfi
Coast. Sure, there’s an absence ofspectacular sea cliffs, and the Yarra is not
quite the same sparkling turquoise as the
Mediterranean, but Arbory Afloat still
manages to channel the magic. Respect.
The food from chef Nick Bennett
plays a major part in its success.
The quality of Arbory Afloat’s
fish and chips, for example, is
remarkable. Even allowing for
the lowered expectations that
come with its semi-permanent
status, this version is outstanding.
The fish is flathead, blue
grenadier or line-caught gummy
shark. The batter just flour,
baking soda and beer. Fried in
scrupulously clean cottonseed oilWith Spritzes on tap, wood-fired
pizzaandaprimespotontheYarra,
Arbory Afloat is an Italo party not to be
missed, writesMICHAEL HARDEN.
Ciao,
bella
Clockwise
from left:
Arbory Afloat
on the Yarra
River; chef
Nick Bennett
(left) and
sommelier Raul
Moreno Yagüe;
parmesan and
potato zeppole
with white
ricotta pesto.GOURMET TRAVELLER 47PHOTOGRAPHY JULIAN KINGMA (ARBORY AFLOAT).
Melbourne review