SA Weekend restaurant review: Why the dessert at Good Gilbert spin off really takes the cake

Our SA Weekend food reviewer had high expectations of this new restaurant offering Modern Australian with a Middle Eastern twist in the ‘burbs. Here’s how it rated.

Port Lincoln sardines are on the menu at Asha. Picture: Supplied

Asha is making a name for itself with a high-end modern Australian twist on Middle Eastern cuisine.

When we arrive at the Goodwood restaurant on a busy Thursday night, we literally move up in the world too.

We are seated on high chairs.

They would be tricky to navigate for anyone who has an injury, arthritis or is simply vertically challenged.

And, once you’re perched, it is also difficult to shift your chair backwards or forwards without assistance. It also doesn’t help that the table these high chairs are teamed with has a top that is on the small side.

Asha has traditional booths, tables and chairs to choose from, but they are all taken. A couple of late diners, are also seated at the bar.

Asha’s on-trend decor. Picture: Supplied

You can sit at the bar at Asha. Picture: Supplied

Many appear extremely comfortable, as though they are regulars, which is always a good sign. Narrow and long, Asha is only a 34-seater and the place is buzzing.

The mostly wooden and concrete fit-out in Asha amplifies every sound in the place and we really have to raise our voices to be heard by one another.

We note that while the decor is on-trend, the only discernible reference to the Middle East is a painted frieze above the door and windows.

My partner also observes that there doesn’t appear to be much wine behind the bar, but it turns out we have access to the huge wine offering at Good Gilbert two doors down, of which Asha is a offshoot.

The waiter’s recommendation of Vinteloper Nebbiolo – a savoury rather than fruity red – is a great drop.

Some of the dishes at Asha, including the chook. Picture: Supplied

We order as we go from the single page menu, which has a glossary of Middle Eastern ingredients, dishes and sauces on the flip side. It’s helpful, as are the friendly staff.

The meal starts with snacks. If the lachuch – which is like a pikelet – with mushroom salsa, eggplant and coriander, is underwhelming, our other choice more than makes up for it.

Similar to a spring roll, the pastilla, with a duck filling and sprinkled with sugary, spicy almond powder is tastier.

I have food envy as I eye off another couple’s thick, fluffy Turkish bread, but we choose a small dish, Port Lincoln sardines.

The four fillets are accompanied by mechouia (a spicy, garlic-y salsa of grilled tomatoes, peppers and onions) and fennel, both pickled and pureed.

But those flavours are lost on us because the fishy taste of the sardines is overpowering. It is a dish that would, no doubt, be appreciated by those who like their sardines with a distinct “ocean to plate” flavour.

Asha’s Port Lincoln sardines. Picture: Supplied

Cocktails at Asha. Picture: Supplied

Of the three large dishes, we opt for a house specialty, the glazed half roast chicken, which is smaller than we expected. More spatchcock in size, it comes with pistachio dukkah, pickled fennel and cabbage slaw. Perfectly cooked and seasoned, it melts in the mouth and we wish we had ordered a side, such as a salad or mujadara, to extend our enjoyment.

Sweets on the menu include a tempting aged manchego cheese served with a sherry and fig paste and pita crackers, but, again, we ask for a recommendation.

Asha’s delicious olive oil cake. Picture: Supplied

The olive oil cake sounds to good to resist, so we order it to share. We should have treated ourselves to one each.

The cake is moist, with a crust that’s candied. It alone would be delicious, but it has delicately decadent toppings that make it divine.

We cannot get enough of the cream with orange blossom water, sweet sliced fragments of blood orange and a pistachio paste with a taste we recognise and have to know more about (our waiter tells us it’s tahini).

Asha saved the best for last. The dessert takes the cake and we will be back for seconds.

But next time we will be sure to state our seating preference when we make the booking.