I’
mnoexpertonFinnish
cuisine,butif CafePaci
is anythingtogobyit’s
mainlyeggs,potatoes
andthatginandgrapefruitsoda
thingtheyserveinsaunas.There’s
potatointhebread,potatoin
thedumplings,potatointhe
saucedressinga bowlofpotatoes,
eggandpotatoonthekingfish.
Andthekeyingredientinthe
devilledeggs?It’segg.
Sydneyhasbeenanticipating
thereturnofPasiPetänensince
heclosedhisDarlinghurstpop-up
fouryearsago,whichhintsthat
CafePaci’ssecondcomingis a
littlemorethanpotatoandeggs.
Petänenwasheadchefat Marque,
which,if nothingelse,shouldtell
youthathe’sa fiercelyinterested
andskilledcook.AtPaci1.0he
rana twisting,turningMexican-
Finnish(occasionallyVietnamese)
dégustation that made stars ofcarrotsorbetwithliquoriceand
yoghurtmousseanda ryetaco
witheggbutter.Inreopening,this
timeinNewtown,he’sbroughta
morerelaxed,moreuser-friendly,
andyes,morepermanentversion
ofhisrestauranttolife.
Thefit-outfromGeorge
Livissianis,thedesignerbehind
suchvenuesas TheDolphinHotel
andChinChin,evokesa Euro
bar-bistro,withGianlucaCannizzo
winepostersandhandsomemirrors
accentinga roomofconcrete,brick,
bluesandchestnut-brown.A bar
heavingwithbottlessweepsinto
anopenkitchen,whiletheedges
aresoftenedwithcurvedtables
anda grippy,texturedceilingmade
ofrecycledpaperandcardboard
that,apartfromdampeningthe
sound,is thefirstplacetocheck
foryoursocksif theyhappento
getknockedoff.
It couldbetheDutchcreams
inpotatoanglaisethatdoit.It’s
Petänen’s$10PotatoCookedin
theEarthit WasGrown,exceptit’s
morepotatoservedina sauceof
itselfandthewaterit wascooked
in,withbutter.Lotsofbutter.
Simple,sure,butit’sPetänen
showingthatwhilehecanspin
Pacojetswiththebestofthem,
hecanstillwinat thebasics.
Andthisis a placewherethe
basicsareright.Onethathums
withlocalswhocancomefor
dinneroncea weekanddrinks
andsnackstwicemore.Andwhat
snacks.’Ndujaandfermentedcarrot
onryetoastis carrotforward,the
’ndujaplayingspicybackuptoan
acid-drivenpickle.TheParis-Brest
is a beautifulsweet-savouryswitch-
hit,a circleofchouxpipedfullof
chicken-liverparfaitononionjam.
Theleastalluringpartofthe
devilledeggs,featuringa spiced
butterinspiredbyPetänen’stime
at LankanFillingStation,turns
outtobetheeggs,butthey’dstand
proudlybesidea drinkanyday.
Thisis wherethepackage-
dealthingcomesin.GiorgioDe
Maria– wine importer, RootstockLeft:chicken-liver
Paris-Brestwith
onionjam.Below:
chef Pasi Petänen.ThepermanenthomeofCafe
Paciispromisingtobeeven
betterthantheoriginal,
writesDAVID MATTHEWS.
Second
coming
32 GOURMET TRAVELLER
PHOTOGRAPHY JUN CHEN (FOOD & PORTRAIT) & TOM FERGUSON (INTERIORS).