A taste of...
Egmont St Eatery
We’d heard... That the CBD favourite was now under the guidance of Rob Essenburg, a chef from Chicago with a penchant for making vegetables the star of the show.
We ordered... A trio of savoury, slightly firm profiteroles ($10), stuffed with taleggio. We suggest popping a whole one in your mouth to get a burst of creamy cheese and honey. We were offered an extra one so we wouldn’t fight over the third ($2), which was definitely a good decision.
A glass ramekin of creme fraiche ($12) came topped with an umami-smashing, texturally exciting combo of fragments of crispy potato, salmon roe and capers.
Cucumber and mint complemented the lamb, without being overwhelming. The pool of the sauce was set to the side, and it’s as if someone had read my mind - I like nothing better than to dip in at will, and not have my meat drenched.
However, my partner and I agreed the winning dish was the main of grilled octopus ($28). Perfectly tender, balanced out with thin slices of jersey benne potato, and refreshing slithers of radish.
Sides, usually an afterthought in far too many places, lived up to the main dishes. Slightly sweet, soft slices of eggplant ($10) were married with crunchy tobacco onions. The potatoes ($12) swam in black garlic, which just the right amount of saltiness.
The service... Impeccable. Coats taken, polite chat made. The staff here are intuitive, fast and friendly.
The vibe… Slick New York style meets hole-in-the-wall. A long, narrow space slotted into the side of Egmont St, it feels like a Narnia-esqe, glass-clad badly-kept secret. It was absolutely buzzing midweek with pre-theatre dates.
If you go... have a cheeky tipple. I’m a martini-lover and was impressed with the OE martini, made with cucumber and a drop of rosewater to match the botanicals of Hendricks Gin. Because a good martini is always made with gin. Word is their brunch game is pretty strong, too.
Rating out of 5: 5 – Janan Jay