W
hat’sthepoint
ofdiningoutif
you’relookingfora
restaurantthatfeels
likehome?ThepointBarVincent
makesis thatthefoodmaybetter
thananythingyourmum,husband
ornonnacouldwhipup,andyou
won’tbeforcedtoscrubpotsand
pansafterwards.Theshallowbowl
holdingthemaltagliati,however,
seemstomagicallycleanitself,
albeitwitha littleassistancefrom
a hunkofhouse-madebread.
TheDarlinghursttrattoria-slash-
bistro opened in July last year. SinceAbovefromleft:
whole-roasted
yellowbelly
flounderand
a sidesalad;
spiritsdisplayed
on the bar.then,itsownersSarahSimm(Billy
Kwong)andAndyLogue(Pinotta
andScopri,Melbourne)havebeen
quietlyandconfidentlydoingtheir
thing.Andtheyaredoingit well.
Simm’sthingis onthefloor,
servingguestsinthemulti-room
diningspaceina warmyet
confidentmanner,whileLogue
headsupthecompactkitchen.
Themenu,artfullyhandwritten
bySimm,is tightandmodest,and
heroeswhicheverproduceis best
ontheday.Youcancounton
oystersand,at thistimeofyear,
lighter dishes such as stuffedzucchiniflowers;a saladofblack
Russiantomatoesandbuffalo
mozzarella;andfreshfigs,selected
at theirpeakripeness,slicedand
drapedinsaltyculatello.Three
handmadepastasfollow,plus
a smallhandfulofmainsthat
dancearoundwholefish,stuffed
birdsandsteak.
Logue’scookingstylecan
bebestdescribedas considered
simplicity,andforthemostpart
borrowsflavoursandtechniques
fromFranceandItaly.Whether
it’sa whole-roastedyellowbelly
floundertoppedwithwafersof
potatoandfinishedwitha glorious
glugofextra-virginoliveoil,oran
emulsifiedpastasaucegleaming
withbutter,heknowsthatfat
equalsdeliciousness.Although,an
off-menubattuta,a hand-chopped
Piedmontesebeeftartare,laden
witholiveoilandtoppedwith
rocketandshavedparmigiana,begs
foranacidicortexturalboost.The
flavourofthebeefis there,butthe
dishas a wholemightbetoosimple.
Otheroff-menuitemsarewell
worthyofconsideration,though.
Thistimeit’sgarfish,whichLogue
treatswithutmostrespectand
nimbleknifeskill.Theouterflesh
ofthedelicatebone-in,tail-on
fishis scoredeversolightly,then
oven-roastedforthreeminutes
untiljustopaque,beforebeing
laidovera vibrantsaucemadefrom
greenherbs,anchoviesandcapers.
Sharingis encouraged– the
kitchen will even divide pastas inBarVincentisfastbecominga
neighbourhoodfavourite,andforgood
reason, writesKARLIE VERKERK.
Local knowledge
Slug
38 GOURMET TRAVELLER