Montrachet in Bowen Hills scores a perfect 10 for food
A RESTAURANT in Brisbane’s inner north has scored a perfect 10 from QWeekend food critic Des Houghton, who describes the dishes as nothing short of “bliss on a plate”.
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ON my plate was a strip of salmon that glistened like orange neon.
It was a brand of salmon known as Ora King, sustainably farmed in New Zealand’s Marlborough Sounds and especially prized for its stripes of marbled fat. Wagyu of the sea, perhaps?
King salmon has a high oil content and so delivers a rich flavour and a buttery texture. I also noted a little sweetness and a riff of umami, the furtive fifth taste. I could have eaten it raw. I could have eaten it all night.
Mercifully, chef Shannon Kellam didn’t mess with it too much. It was lightly cured in a little apple cider and presented on the plate with a cube of seared salmon belly, a glutinous juxtaposition set in a tiny garden that includes chilled broccoli and red onion for crunch. And there was a blob of lemon myrtle sabayon to remind us we were in Australia. Bliss on a plate, part one.
The salmon was my preferred “entree” in a four-course degustation, which I thought was good value for $80. Those with a heartier appetite might accept a marathon seven courses for $110.
The next plate was a modern take on coquilles St-Jacques, with Hervey Bay scallops, sweet corn, crispy cereal and a sauce nantua, Escoffier’s béchamel sauce invigorated with a shellfish reduction.
Kellam, the boy from Bundaberg, has dared to dream. And he has brought his French fantasy to life.
He is a chef well versed in haute cuisine, having twice represented this great nation at the Bocuse d’Or culinary Olympics. And he got there after intensive training in Michelin-starred establishments across France.
His new restaurant in King St, Bowen Hills, in Brisbane’s inner north, effectively relocated from its former home in inner-west Paddington, is set in a swank residential and dining precinct of wide, wide footpaths in the European tradition, in contrast to the ockerish Ekka showgrounds around the corner.
I drank a glass of Chablis from an all-French wine list. We also ate fat, succulent Carnarvon Gorge lamb ($46, a la carte) with mustard pan juices, pickled spring onion and sweet potato glazed with molasses.
Another dazzling dish was a plump zucchini flower filled with saffron risotto and sheep’s milk cheese with a sweet pepper and tomato salad.
Our sweet treat was a white chocolate and hazelnut praline mousse with mango and grapefruit ($16), a work of precision and joy. People get on planes and go to Lyon for food of this quality.
Diners selecting from the a la carte menu may choose French classics such as confit duck ($42.50), bouillabaisse ($49.50), eye fillet steak frites ($39.50), lambs’ brains ($19.50) or garlic snails ($24).
If the food is splendid, the setting is even more so. There is an air of luxe grandeur courtesy of European oak floors, banquettes handcrafted in Moderna leather, tiles from Italy and lighting from Germany.
The service is perceptive and unstarchy. In an era of gourmet burgers and “small plate” convenience, Kellam and partner Clare Wallace have turned the restaurant world on its ear.
MONTRACHET
1/30 King St, Bowen Hills
OPEN Lunch Tuesday-Friday, noon-3pm; dinner Tues-Sat from 6pm.
BOOK Ph: (07) 3367 0030
SCORE OUT OF 10
Food 10
Ambience 9
Service 8
VERDICT C’est bon
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