Simon Wilkinson reviews Africola
DUNCAN Welgemoed brings new respect for veggies and a different spice vocabulary to the revamp of his popular city restaurant.
A GOOD restaurant will usually yield one, maybe two things that are real surprises, that are new benchmarks, or that are so damn delicious they stand out from the rest.
The trouble with writing about the new and improved Africola is that there are at least half a dozen dishes that fit the bill.
So where do we start? The dips that are as smooth as an Adele power-chord? The addictive fried eggplant? The transformation of humble cauli and cabbage into super-veg? Or the joy of dunking chunks of fluffy white bread into a pippi broth that is indecently delicious.
Better, perhaps, to begin with an explanation of what happened at Africola a few months back when a small fire prompted larger-than-life owner/chef Duncan Welgemoed and designer James Brown to rethink the original concept inspired by the backstreet braais and bars of South Africa, and explore the culture and cuisine of the continent’s north.
While the key personnel and raffish spirit of the place remain, changes are far-reaching. Gleaming white tiles now cover much of the bold color scheme, providing a clean backdrop for a collection of photos and paintings that will continue to evolve.
The kitchen footprint has grown but the fire pit, where so much of the food previously finished cooking, has gone. It’s part of the shift in emphasis from grilled meats to veggies, pickles, breads and a new vocabulary of spices.
So where the dress circle of diners lined up around the kitchen would have oohed at Welgemoed and his cohorts cleaving gnarly beasty bits or delivering a cow’s head on a platter, it’s now roasted heads of cauliflower or wedges of pumpkin that get the rave reviews. I’ll put it out there early. Adelaide vegetarians will not find a more exciting place to dine than this.
The latest visit has a few extra firsts for me: eating at a conventional table for a start, and on one of the rare occasions that the bearded buccaneer isn’t at the helm.
Coincidentally, perhaps, it is also the first time I’ve noticed the normally seamless operation show some signs of strain. Nothing serious – just an occasional break in the flow of service and a toning down of the usual joie de vivre. But when the dishes start cranking out from the “Feed Me” menu, that’s all forgotten. It’s an extraordinary quantity (and quality) of food and generously priced. Be careful not to overdo it early on, easier said than done given the silkiness of hummus and baba ganouj dips that are taken from staples to a real indulgence, especially with the grilled “injera”, a fermented flatbread which is also, we’re told, gluten free. The blackened (by batter, not burning) peppers might have lost the element of surprise but are still a salty snack of the highest order.
Port Lincoln sardines are grilled until their slim fillet of dark flesh is barely ready to lift from the bone, and slathered in a tangy chermoula the colour of green kelp.
Goolwa pippis are bouncy little morsels of sweetness but it’s their broth, enhanced with fermented chillies (a recipe from Welgemoed’s mum) and smoked garlic, that will have you squirming with pleasure and wondering what could possibly be in this crazy voodoo juice.
The signature peri-peri chicken is moist of breast and spicy of skin but doesn’t have the impact of some other dishes. Same goes for the lamb kofta.
The four veg plates, on the other hand, are a revelation. A roasted cabbage heart goes from the crunch of the core, to tender inner leaves to toasted crisps made from the outer leaves that have been tossed with salted plum powder. The whole glorious thing is then doused with a cabbage beurre blanc. Brilliant. The cauliflower is more savoury, meaty almost, roasted in tumeric butter and finished with a pomegranate and tahini sauce. And the eggplant, fried in a tapioca and rice batter that gives a lovely crunch before you hit the squidgy innards, is topped with a sweet-sour onion and chilli jam and grated sheep cheese. No one else I know is doing anything approaching this.
To finish, a “strawberry mess” has the fruit macerated in a tart pomegranate and sumac syrup and served with shards of meringue, while a burnt milk pudding, similar to a crème caramel but spiced with cardamom, is topped with cubes of nashi pear.
Africola is a rare beast. It has always been Adelaide’s most original dining experience but, in this new guise, is better than ever.
Go there, even if it’s only for a drink at the bar and a bowl of those pippis. You won’t look back.
THE SCORE
AFRICOLA
4 East Tce, city, 8223 3885, africola.com.au
OWNERS Duncan Welgemoed, James Brown, James Hillier
CHEF Duncan Welgemoed
FOOD North African DIPS $12 VEGETABLES $15-$17 MEATS/SEA $22-$28 SWEET $14 FEED ME MENU $65 ($35 for matched “booze”)
DRINKS The naturalists of the Adelaide Hills and other like minds still feature strongly but there is now more balance among the two dozen wines listed.
OPEN Dinner Tue-Sat
Score 8.5/10