Sydney, summer, sand and Shutters

Nothing says a Sydney summer like a long lunch by the beach.

Newly opened this month is Shutters, at the InterContinental Sydney Coogee Beach.

It sounds worth a visit.

The menu, created by executive head chef Stephen Lech, focuses on Mediterranean-inspired flavours.

The venue is promising "bright breakfasts, long lazy lunches and hearty as well as light plates that feel perfect for warmer days".

Shutters has been created with locals just as much as hotel guests in mind and will showcase Spritzes by the Sea -with a dedicated spritz menu.

The reimagined hotel features 198 rooms and suites

“Coogee has such a welcoming energy, and I wanted the food to reflect that,” says Lech.

“For me, it’s about cooking with ingredients when they’re at their best and letting them speak for themselves.

"We’re incredibly lucky to have such beautiful produce, especially seafood right on our doorstep, and with the outlook we have over Coogee Beach, it makes sense to be heroing these flavours.

"Together with the team, we’ve created a menu designed to share and change with the seasons. Coogee has this lovely, easy rhythm to it, and I wanted the food to feel the same - fresh, generous and not over-complicated.

"If you’re sitting here with a plate of burrata, heirloom carrots, barbequed king prawns and a sea breeze drifting in, that’s exactly the kind of experience I hope people have.”

Hotel InterContinental is part of IHG Hotels & Resorts’ luxury & lifestyle portfolio - one of the world’s largest - and joins a growing collection of over 235 InterContinental hotels across the globe.

Images: Jack Tenby

Peppina brings joy on a “quiet” night

Hobart can be very quiet over the winter months. Many locals prefer it that way. 

Early in the week, on Mondays and Tuesdays particularly, many restaurants and bars in the Tasmanian capital elect to close. 

Fortunately for hungry and thirsty folk, Peppina, the buzzy 190-seater Italo-Tasmanian eatery in The Tasman, A Luxury Collection Hotel, Hobart, is open for dinner seven nights at week. 

We popped in for dinner on Monday this week and found the joint was jumping. Star chef Massimo Mele, the culinary director, was conducting the orchestra with his usual panache as they crafted dishes inspired by his Nonna's cooking. 

There was a newly-elected local politician celebrating, while we apparently just missed one very unsavoury, but high-profile, fellow dining with his lawyer after yet another court appearance. 

There was a warm vibe, which you don't always find in hotel restaurants, and a very helpful multi-national waitstaff team. 

Our menu choices had to revolve around one of my favourite all-time dishes; polpette al forno, a dish of wood-fired meatballs made from Wagyu beef and pork, served in a tomato sugo with basil and mozzarella. This dish never fails to impress. 

Our other starters, both daily specials, were truffled Tasmania scallops in the half shell with roes intact; and fresh tuna, tomato and herb crostini. Both vibrantly flavoured and super-fresh tasting. 

We chose a half bottle each of Montevento Pinot Grigo and Villa Antinori Chianti Classico, which were decanted into carafes and added an Italian accent, but the comprehensive wine list also includes local stars like Marco Lubiana and Ricky Evans' Two Tonne. 

For mains we choose the fish of the day, spot-on blue eye trevally on a pumpkin puree, and a hearty pasta dish; cavatelli with a rich goat ragu. 

We were well fed and watered and too full for dessert. Although my wife did find room for a limoncello. Prices were fair for dishes of this quality.  

Peppina restaurant is right around the corner from both Parliament and Salamanca Place. On warmer nights you can dine al fresco. 

https://www.peppinarestaurant.com/       

* The writer paid for his own meals

Fish chef spreads his wings

Renowned Australian whizz kind chef and author Josh Niland is spreading his wings with his first overseas gig unveiled for Singapore.

EDITION Hotels today announced a partnership with Niland - known for his skills with seafood and focus on sustainability - to helm the signature restaurant at the Singapore EDITION.

The ethically-sourced seafood concept will be Niland's first restaurant outside of Australia, and is described as a "sustainable, modern-age, seafood-focused steakhouse".

Niland, 34, worked at some of Sydney's top restaurants, as well as The Fat Duck in the UK, before opening Saint Peter, his first restaurant in Sydney with his wife and business partner Julie Niland in 2016.

The Fish Butchery, a retail market concept selling sustainable fish species, was introduced in 2018. Charcoal Fish, a beachside takeaway, and a second Fish Butchery both followed in 2019.

Earlier this year, the busy couple opened a second restaurant, Petermen.

Niland is the author of award-winning The Whole Fish Cookbook and Take One Fish and has just released his third book, Fish Butchery.

EDITION manages 16 hotels worldwide and the 204-room Singapore property in the upper Orchard Road shopping district will have five restaurant and bar venues, a rooftop pool, spa, and fitness centre, as well as indoor and outdoor meeting spaces.

Image: Allan Benson

Thai capital to welcome a new signature dining experience

Bangkok is about to get a new fine dining restaurant.

Chatrium Grand Bangkok, one of the Thai capital's top hotels, is preparing to unveil Casia, a new fine-dining destination that will present “French finesse in the heart of Siam”. 

This signature French-Mediterranean restaurant will be led by chef de cuisine Jerome Bondaz, an award-winning culinary expert whose stellar career has spanned Michelin-starred venues in Europe, the Caribbean and Asia.

With a passion for using fresh ingredients and classical flavours with contemporary cooking techniques, the chef is promising a gastronomic journey to southern France and the Mediterranean coast.

He has been working with sustainable farms, organic orchards and small-scale fisheries to source the best ingredients. 

Casia’s menus will change with the seasons and feature à la carte dining, as well as a series of degustation offerings. 

Casia will also stage a host a series of culinary events. 

“My culinary influences come from many different places," the chef says.

" When I was growing up I would shuck oysters with my father. This started my love of fresh produce and especially seafood. Since then, I have been fortunate to work with some of the world’s best chefs, including the late Santi Santamaria, with whom I worked very closely during my spell as head chef at El Racó de Can Fabes, the famous Barcelona restaurant that held two Michelin stars.

“In more recent years, my cuisine has been inspired by my global travels. I have been lucky to work in Asia and South America, which introduced me to many exciting and exotic new ingredients and expanded my knowledge. 

"All of these influences, from the Michelin-starred restaurants of southern Europe to the vibrant markets of Asia, will be represented in the menus at Casia."

Casia will be open for lunch and dinner. 

For more information see www.chatrium.com/grandbangkok/dining/casia.

Punchy Asian flavours shine in Melbourne

Asian restaurant Salted Egg has a couple of strikes against it from the start.

First it is in a hotel, which will dissuade some potential patrons, and secondly it is on level one with zero street visibility, meaning some diners might well walk past without even knowing it exists.

Which would be a mistake on their part.

Not only does Salted Egg offer Thai-accented food that is delicious and well priced, it is also obviously on the radar of quite a number of food savvy Melbourne folk.

I'm in house on a Thursday night and even though the weather is not particularly appealing (it's Melbourne folks), the pace is buzzing with a number of large groups clearly enjoying themselves immensely.

The vibe is helped by a helpful and efficient young service team - a welcome rarity in these times of staff shortages.

Salted Egg is located in the Quincy Hotel Melbourne (review later this week), which is also home to The Q rooftop bar - a great spot for a post-work drink, and with spectacular views from above the CBD.

The food in Salted Egg is vibrant and flavoursome - it turns out executive chef Adam Woodfield has worked at both Chin Chin and Jimmy Liks, two of Melbourne's star Asian eateries.

So think Thai-accented, hawker food market-inspired south-east Asian cuisine that rewards those with a an adventurous palate. Pungent and punchy. 

There is even a Thai-inspired breakfast menu - the chilli scrambled eggs on sourdough with crab meat, Sichuan oil and crispy salt bush are exceptional.

For dinner, you can choose from a degustation menu - ideal for groups - or order al a carte.



For fresh, tangy palate cleanser start with a pomelo betel leaf with caramelised coconut, chilli and mint (above). It is delightfully crunchy.

Next up I opted for prawn and ginger dumplings with Sichuan oil and prickly ash salt (second image): funky and filling.

My main course (top image) was a huge and satisfying stir-fried roast duck with crispy egg noodle, yellow bean sauce and pickled chilli Probably not the sort of dish you'd cook at home, but perfect for sharing with friends.

I was urged to try a dessert and the colourful pandan and white chocolate mousse with ube ganache, coconut jelly and coconut crumble (below) transported me to Malaysia, gastronomically speaking.

There is a huge selection of cocktails - as befits the party vibe - but local craft brewers like Moondog, Stomping Ground and Hop Nation are well represented on the drinks list. 

There is also a short, but well curated, selection of wines by the glass with the In Dreams 2021 Pinot Noir a particularly good match for the duck dish.

Salted Egg is on Level one at The Quincy Hotel Melbourne, 509 Flinders Lane, Melbourne, VIC 3000. Breakfast 7am-11am daily; lunch noon-3pm Tuesday to Saturday; dinner from 5pm Monday to Saturday.

For full details see https://saltedeggmelbourne.com.au/

The writer was a guest of The Quincy Melbourme

Hobart restaurant returns with all guns blazing

Hotel restaurants in Australia can be hit and miss affairs. Sometimes the food does not match the hotel experience. 

Likewise pan-Asian restaurants are not always a triumph. Often certain cuisines are done much better than others.

What a pleasant surprise, then, to dine at Mr Good Guy, the recently reopened Asian eatery that is part of the ibis Styles in Hobart. 

For much of the pandemic period, Mr Good Guy was shuttered and the hotel was used as a Covid isolation facility.

Earlier this month, however, both hotel and restaurant reopened after a thorough clean - and the kitchen has come out with all guns blazing. No wonder Mr Good Guy was close to full on a chilly Tuesday evening. 

Not only is the food here very good - and well priced - the service was excellent at a time when hotels across the board are struggling to find good staff. 

The vibe here is decidedly casual but the food - which spans influences from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Singapore and Vietnam - is well considered. 

You can choose from an a la carte menu, or the "Trust Mr Good Guy Banquet", where the kitchen sends out what it thinks is seasonal and good. The banquet can also be matched with wines by the glass from Tasmanian labels like Frogmore Creek, Nocton Vineyard and 42 Degrees South. 

We began in Vietnam with Goi Ga (above); shredded chicken and cabbage salad with herb, lime, spice and crushed peanuts. Delicate and delicious. 

Then followed more Vietnamese flavours: crisp pork and crab spring rolls, melt in the mouth textures served with nuoc cham and peanut hoi sin dipping sauces, both of which carried a serious flavour kick. 

Next was one for the vegetarians; a very tasty Thai-style crispy spiced eggplant dish with a fragrant sauce and jasmine rice. 

The "Borneo-style" beef rendang failed to deliver the required palate punch, but the kitchen was quickly back on form again with crispy cinnamon banana roti pancakes; a caramel-powered Thai/Indian mash-up that worked as a sweet treat.

There are plenty of fresh and flavoursome hawker-style dishes between $12-$18 on the a la carte menu, while the banquet costs $59 per head with a minimum of two people. 

The prices are more than fair and there are vegan and gluten free options. We will definitely be back. 

See www.mrgoodguy.com.au/hobart