Photo - australiandesignreview.com
Rating
Food - 8.5
Ambience and room - 7.5
Service - 5
Overall - 7.5
I'll admit, I'm not a big fan of Jamie Oliver. So when I walked past a dozen empty tables after being made to wait for 30 mins in the bar, I seriously wasn't impressed. I love the comprehensive view of flavour that they extend to the bar, with fantantic flavourful cocktails. I just don't like waiting in a bar to generate cash. But as I got upstairs and settled in, I got much more comfortable in what is a very comfortable atmosphere. There's noise, but calm noise. Not so much that you can't hear one another talk.
We stopped here for a late lunch / early dinner to escape the rain. After the initial annoyance was out of the way, the complimentary breads arrived, which were absolutely spot on. Amazing, bright, rosemary flavours made it the best house bread I've had in a very long time.
I think a menu should always be simple and short. The best menu I ever saw was in a tiny restaurant in Venice, with a simple list cranked out from a type writer. You got the impression that they tapped it out on an ancient type writer 5 minutes before you sat down. Jamie's menu fits on a single page, which is a good start, but that one sheet happens to be an oversized A3 sheet. It conjures memories of cheap themed restaurants, and feels a little cheesy. The table is crowded, and the place settings are nothing to write home about. Overall, the decor and menu leave you a little suspicious about whether you picked the right place.
Next, the smoked mozzarella and porcini arancini arrived. I've been on a quest to find smoked mozzarella for years, so when I saw it on the menu it was a no brainer. I've read a lot of complaints about these online, but I thought they were tasty. The crust had a slight note of what reminded me of a commercial cool room, which I hadn't smelt\tasted since my stint as a pizza boy in a past life. Otherwise, great start.
I had the truffle pasta for main.
N.B. I would eat pasta for every meal of the day if I could, and I like to think I know good pasta. I can tell you if pasta is cooked by smell standing on the other side of the room. I eat a lot of pasta, and this was good pasta. I honestly can't think of a better pasta dish in my life. It's like shooting fish in a barrel when you put a huge shaving of truffle on any dish, but I'm not gonna hold it against him. For the price, I don't think anyone could possibly complain. It puts every restaurant that thinks its acceptable to charge over $20 for packet pasta to shame.
My wife had the mint ravioli, which was equally as good.
Overall, it's simple food executed incredibly well. If they iron out the bad service, and put some originality and character into the decor (and reduce the wait times), this would be a regular for me.
