JAPANESE SUPERSTAR
BRISBANE LOCALS are flocking to an INCONSPICUOUS ALLEY for one of the QUEENSLAND capital’s brightest new dining stars, HÔNTÔ. Celeste Mitchell tracks it down.
I’M HOLDING MY PHONE with Google Maps open and doing that dorky move where I’m twisting and turning, trying to figure out exactly which direction I’m facing, wondering where the entrance can possibly be. Hôntô’s opening in August 2018 was as discreet as its unnamed entrance – next to a loading dock behind the Matt Blatt store in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley. Having secured an early-bird booking – no reservations are taken after 6.30pm – my friend and I creep in through the black doors into a low-lit world dripping with chandeliers. It’s the pedigree of the food, known to be turned out by co-owner Tyron Simon – also behind LONgTIME and part-owner of the Gold Coast’s Rick Shores – that has Brisbane flocking to the Japanese-led eatery, but the interiors are just as showstopping. Walls are caked in charred black wood, created with shou sugi ban – a traditional Japanese wood-burning technique. We’re seated quickly at the raw bar where we can watch the precision knife skills show and order a glass of wine. The menu is broken down into Raw, Bites, Bigs and Greens, with the idea being to mix and match, and is perfect for an after-work catch-up. I’m the world’s most indecisive orderer so, when we announce we’d like the banquet, our waiter suggests a combo of his choosing, if we’ll let him, since the banquet is quite a hefty serve for two. Happy to leave things in his expert hands, my friend and I gossip our way through courses, as light raw bites like lemon cured salmon with wasabi mayo atop a taro cracker bleed into grilled Hervey Bay scallops slathered with nori butter and bonito flakes. Midway through, it’s time to road test the lobster katsu sando – an undeniably hipster crusts-off sandwich with crispy lobster, salted cabbage and dill slaw. It’s delicious – like a prawn sanga on steroids. Suitably stuffed with wagyu and twice-cooked Brussels sprouts, we turn down dessert but are convinced the macerated strawberries with shiso sorbet is a refreshing note to end on. Again, he’s right. With a soundtrack of ’80s electro pop, slick service and unconventional Japanese flavour hits, Hôntô is a good time that looks set to be popular for a long time.