SA Weekend restaurant review — Kuti Shack at Goolwa Beach

A seafood-loving eatery on the beach pulls a big summer crowd – as do the shenanigans on the path below, writes SIMON WILKINSON

Kuti Shack - Goolwa Pipi Co. Photo: Jacqui Way

The windows at Kuti Shack open to the frothing waves and surfing allsorts of Goolwa Beach but this colourful seaside scene isn’t the only thing that has people leaving their seats for a look.

Below the restaurant, a sandy track provides the only beach access and, despite a warning it is only for four-wheel drives, all manner of vehicles are heading down.

Every so often, one is bogged to the chassis, its owners’ plans for a summer day trip ending in humiliation before some kind soul agrees to drag it free, rubber-neckers offering their two cents’ worth.

Beyond the wonders of the Murray Mouth, the attraction for many of those making the risky crossing to the sand are the pipis buried in the shallows that can be located by digging with hands or feet.

Many of these collectors will call them cockles and throw them in the freezer for bait. But as the Goolwa Pipi Co has shown with its vacuum packs that are sent around the country, they can be exceptional to eat.

Mulloway wings at the Kuti Shack, Goolwa

It was this company that took over the site in the dunes that was the original Bombora, turned it into the Kuti Shack and gave the lease to co-owners Vanessa Button and Brendan Roach, who opened the doors at the end of 2019.

During the summer holidays, the business does a roaring trade, starting early in the morning with takeaway coffee from a hatch that also sends out fish and chips and ice creams later in the day.

Outdoor tables shelter in the lee of the building, while the main dining area is an enclosed deck that has recently been revamped, including the installation of sliding windows to replace the old plastic blinds that would slap and whine in the southerly bluster.

Kuti is the word for pipis/cockles in the language of the Ngarrindjeri people, who have been harvesting them in this area for 10,000 years and are partners in this project. The relationship extends to employment opportunities for the community, including as part of the sunny-faced young crew who handle the service.

No surprise then that pipis feature, in two different guises, on a reasonably priced (nothing over $30), breezy summer menu in which seafood stars – on skewers, in salads, crumbed and floating about in a laksa. Breakfast specials even include a lobster-stuffed omelette.

Later in the day, the crustacean is served ceviche-style, its shredded tail meat soaked briefly in a lime-based cure, so it is still glossy and translucent, a few edges starting to whiten, the eating pleasure more in the silken texture rather than anything special in its citrus/chilli flavour.

Prawn and pipi laksa at the Kuti Shack, Goolwa

Blue fin tuna is another prized commodity from our waters becoming more easily available as a silver lining to the turmoil in overseas markets. The loin meat has been rolled in crushed pepper and coriander seed, scorched quickly in a hot pan and cut into thick pucks that reveal the raw dusky pink flesh in the middle. Like the lobster, it comes with a corn and tomato salsa.

Wedges of kingfish sashimi are simpler still, laid out like spokes on a wheel, with edamame, blobs of aioli and a dried chilli dust. Small, young farmed abalone (known as abalini) from Kangaroo Island are shucked, encased in panko crumbs and fried, then dropped back into their shells, a preparation that somewhat obscures the key ingredient. It’s a niggle I have with a few of these dishes.

Mulloway “wings”, however, work a treat in their KFC-style crust, replete with secrets herbs and spices. The meaty portion, taken from around the fin, has been buttermilk-soaked to enhance its natural juiciness.

Pipis with XO sauce at the Kuti Shack, Goolwa

The pipis? One batch has been wok-tossed with an XO sauce, bolstered with a little extra chilli.

Others are part of a tomato-based pasta that includes chorizo and caperberries, along the lines of a puttanesca. It’s a bold alternative to the white wine, olive oil and chilli of a classic vongole.

Don’t want seafood? Chunks of eggplant and zucchini fried in a salt-and-pepper crust fragrant with five spice are laid on a sticky soy dressing and scattered with sesame seeds. A pork belly burger and seared beef on a Thai salad of noodles and slaw-like shredded veg are more substantial alternatives.

A slice of orange and almond cake is the pick of the desserts. Better still, grab a Magnum from the takeaway outlet and check if there is any action back on the beach track.