57
AND
ALSO
Bar raising
Cutler & Cohas
reinstated the bar in
its latest revamp and
it’s a beauty. The L-shaped bar area
hugs the open kitchen and feels both
spacious and intimate. The bar menu
includes several potential cult dishes
- abalone katsu sandwich, doughnuts
with salmon roe and sour cream, a
seafood platter. Add the weighty C&C
wine list and smart cocktails and you
get a bar that’s a destination all of its
own.Cutler & Co, 55-57 Gertrude St,
Fitzroy, (03) 9419 4888
Euro smash
Joe Durrant and Mark Protheroe from
Grossi Florentino have teamed up
with chef Steven Nelson (ex-Jacques
Reymond) at Fitzroy North pub,The
Recreation. The result? A smart-
casual bistro with a European-leaning
menu (black pudding and pear tarte
Tatin, grilled garfish with romesco,
suckling pig with glazed peaches),
great service and athoughtful,
well-priced wine list. All this and a
bottleshop, too. Lucky locals.The
Recreation, 162-170 Queens Pde,
Fitzroy North, (03) 9042 2707The Perry principle
Now that the formerUrban Purveyor
Group’s portfolio is under Neil Perry’s
purview, he’s putting his stamp on
Saké. If the Flinders Lane branch is
any guide, he’s purging the menu
of its addiction to crunchy fried bits,
bringing instead a quality raw-fish
vibe. Hits like kingfish with lime and
jalapeño kosho still bring the bling
and there are wagyu and pork
offerings, but Saké’s strength
now is as a solid sake and sashimi
pitstop.Saké, 121 Flinders Ln,
Melbourne, 1300 670 910CUTLER & COAnglesea Surf Lifesaving
Club, 100 Great Ocean Rd,
Anglesea
(03) 5263 2454
captainmoonlite.com.au
Licensed
MC V EFT
OpenThu 5pm-10pm,
Fri-Sun 8am-10pm, Mon
8am-4pm (open for
breakfast, lunch & dinner
daily in summer)Prices
Entrées $5-$21,
main courses $23-$42,
desserts $8-$12
VegetarianOne entrée,
one main course
NoiseGentle
Wheelchair accessNo
MinusA long drive for city
slickers who lunch
PlusThe seaside dining
brief nailedCaptain Moonlitecottonseed oil in a lovely brittle-crisp batter of rice
flour, wheat flour and soda water. The chips, as you
would hope from someone with time at Heston’s pub
under his belt, are also spot on. Made with sebago
potatoes, they’re golden and fluffy and crunchy where
they should be. The fish and chips are served on
baking paper with a lemon cheek and a dollop of
aïoli. Pretty. Simple.
There’s a whole flounder, too, topped with charred
sweet and sour cherry tomatoes and little cube-shaped
chickpea fritters. For vegans and non-vegans alike,
a Greek-inspired orzo and corn dish, cooked to order
like risotto, comes with corn custard, charred whole
corn kernels and crunchy sugarsnap peas. It comes
across as immensely comforting while also keeping
it light and fresh.
The wine list feels fresh, too. It’s a short two-pager
that spends all its time in Victoria with a gentle
emphasis on nearby regions – Geelong, Bellarine
Peninsula, Anakie and so on – and small producers.
There’s rosé from the likes of Save Our Souls and Best’s
Great Western, shiraz from Provenance, Henty Farm
pinot gris and the excellent Holly’s Garden ÜberBrut
sparkling wine. In keeping with the surf-club setting,
prices on the drinks lists are kept under control
(topping out at $65 for a 2014 Craiglee Cabernet
Sauvignon) and there’s a solid collection of beer that
includes Carlton Draught and bottled Corona
complementing the craftier local offerings.
Desserts at Captain Moonlite stick with the beach
theme and emphasise ice-cream. Germanchis has a
Carpigiani machine in his pint-sized kitchen and puts
it to good use. A textured, refreshing coconut sorbet is
teamed with fresh mango and grated macadamia, and a
classic chocolate ice-cream is prettily and successfully
covered in white chocolate mousse without overdoing
the sugar.
The best thing about Captain Moonlite is that it
doesn’t dash your hopes. Seaside dining in Australia,
particularly in coastal towns, should be all about this
kind of site-specific food but it’s almost never done
right. Matt Germanchis and Gemma Gange completely
get the context of where they’ve chosen to do their
seaside thing. The mix of influences they bring –
Australian, European, Asian – reflect an expert
understanding of the current Australian palate, just
as the ingredients reflect a sense of place. They’ve
kept it simple. They’ve done it right.#MELBOURNE REVIEW