SYDNEYSure,Maybe Sammy
is Maybe Frank’s newest sibling,
but this spin-off bar in The Rocks
is doing its own thing. There
are theatrical cocktails: Circus
Circus features a pillow that you
pop, revealing one prize-winning
scratchie inside, while Lady Luck
includes a bonus jar of mango
and passionfruit hand-cream that
guests apply in between sips.
Diners can try blue-corn tacos
with salmon and avocado or
sardines with goat’s curd.MELBOURNETake Northcote’s
Estelle Bistro, merge it with
the old Estelle by Scott Pickett
space next door, and you have
the newEstelle. Valentin Barrere(Vue de Monde) will serve ox
tongue, beetroot with smoked
bone-marrow dressing as well
as charred kangaroo, sweetcorn
and begonia, and flounder with
XO mussels and sea grapes.ADELAIDEJock Zonfrillo works
fast:Mallozziopened three
weeks after the Orana chef
signed the Rundle Street lease.
The menu has a brisk pace, too- think toasted mortadella and
cream cheese sandwiches and
cacio e pepe croquettes – while
also tapping into memories
of his Uncle Tony’s Italian
restaurants in Glasgow (credit
him for the fried mozzarella with
white anchovies). Drinks are by
co-owner Shaun Lau and
include a detailed selection of
amaro, Italian and local wines
and, of course, a mandatory
Negroni and Aperol Spritz.BRISBANEAlanna Sapwell
championed sustainability at
Sydney’sSaint Peter, and she
continues to do so atArc. The
restaurant and wine bar at the
new Howard Smith Wharves
precinct highlights underused
meats (kangaroo with candy
melon; venison and spent-
orange salumi with coffee
crack), transforms offcuts into
charcuterie, and showcases a
range of minimal-intervention,
natural winemakers.NEW YORKBāng Baris David
Chang’s smart take on a kebab
joint. Gochujang-marinated pork
and yakitori-glazed chicken
are cooked on the spit, while
vegetarian options include
eggplant dip made with Thai
chilli and basil. Lucky diners
sometimes score free kimchi
stew and mushroom ragù, too.NAPA VALLEYDining at
Thomas Keller’s acclaimed
restaurants (Per Se, The French
Laundry) can cost well over
$400. AtLa Calenda, his new
Mexican eatery, dishes are
around $20. Hits include fish
tostadas, chicken enchiladas in
stone-ground mole, and churros.ROYALTOUROFAUSTRALIA
The Cunard line called on US health-spa specialist Canyon Ranch to design its
“holistic” onboard spa, part of a royal makeover aboardQueen Elizabeth. The
2,081-passenger ship is sailing a record 54 days in Australian waters, until the end
of March, and features several Australian partnerships. Bellboys are dressed by
RM Williams and Akubra, the Australian Dance Theatre performs, and there’s the
guest appearance of a 225-litre barrel of Starward whisky, named The Seafarer and
distilled in Melbourne, which has spent the past year maturing on the open deck
ofQueen Elizabeth. The ship’s Mareel spa (pictured) features sound therapy in
treatment rooms, and a meditation room with vibrating loungers, “binaural
brain-wave music” and “hypnagogic meditative visuals”.cunardline.com.auBlue-corn tacos with salmon
and avocado at Maybe
Sammy. Right: Mallozzi.RESTAURANT NEWSGOURMET TRAVELLER 21PHOTOGRAPHY DAVID ESCALENTE (MAYBE SAMMY), LEWIS POTTER (MALLOZZI) & ROB SHAW(SMALL BATCH FOOD COMPANY). STYLING LYNSEY FRYERS (SMALL BATCH FOOD COMPANY).
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