Noosa’s new dining hot spot on the water

It took over from one of Noosa’s most famous fine diners, but does this swanky new Noosa restaurant live up to its beautiful waterfront setting?

Alison Walsh

@AlisonAWalsh

3 min read

January 14, 2021 - 3:00PM

Winston’s aged Maleny beef tartare and leaves from the garden. Picture: Darcy Starr

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On a hot, steamy summer’s evening puffs of grey cloud hang huffily above the burnished glass of the Noosa River reflecting the last of the light and providing a dramatic backdrop to the Sunshine Coast’s northern tourist hub’s newest restaurant.

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Winston, on the site of the much-awarded Japanese restaurant Wasabi that closed last year and was most recently home to Esmay, a three-month pop-up by chef Alannah Sapwell, gives something of a nod to former British wartime prime minister Churchill with the name, but beyond the Pol Roger Winston Churchill 2008 ($500) and a Churchill martini, it’s not immediately obvious why.

Churchill, reportedly fond of fare such as roast beef and jugged hare, might have rather raised one aristocratic eyebrow at the modern creations turned out here by former chef Cameron Matthews, whose first solo venture opened last month and is set to continue until Easter at this stage.

ON the waterfront: Winston at Noosa Picture: Darcy Starr @wearedarcystarr

However, apparently Matthews, who spent 11 years with the Spicer’s group and put Montville’s Long Apron on the map, had a particular fondness for Winston, given he won a Churchill Scholarship in 2016 to work and learn at restaurants in Europe and the US.

The fitout remains almost exactly the same as Wasabi days with big water views (ours somewhat obscured by a cupboard topped with a battalion of wine glasses), white linen cloths, a restrained, understated decor and, thankfully, decent airconditioning.

An array of starters is the first of four courses on the set dinner menu ($90pp) with concoctions such as a couple of triangles of thin, toasted prawn sandwich served in conjunction with shellfish broth, a dice of yellow fin tuna enhanced by tiny dobs of curd, roasted tomato and peas, a bowl of rather glorious and deeply flavoured glazed pork, with onions, mojama (cured tuna) and yolk and then grissini with a rather overwhelming creamy cheese dipping sauce. It’s a substantial line-up.

Winston Noosa’s aged Maleny beef tartare and leaves from the garden Picture: Darcy Starr

The global wine list offers about a dozen whites and a similar number of reds, with by the glass choices ranging from $16 to $25 with drinks pairing available for $65.

There’s a choice of two dishes for each of the next three courses.

Subtle Fraser Isle spanner crab dressed with oyster cream and a hint of lemon jam hidden beneath a lily pad of cabbage topped with a sprinkling of dehydrated kale dust is a gentle giant, slaying with the lightest of touches, while the other option, tartare of aged beef, with dried leaves, porcini and dehydrated vinegar is like diving headfirst into a packet of salt and pepper crisps, it’s a full-on, chest-beater of a dish that demands attention and gets it. Wow.

Main event: Winston’s coal-grilled flank. Picture: Darcy Starr

Next, a large wedge of snapper, prawn and kingfish “sausage” sits over smoked brown butter and a bed of greens from Falls Farm and it’s terrific but again the other option, charcoal grilled flank with miso béarnaise and onions braised in Heads of Noosa lager, goes in hard and knocks it out of the park too.

Milk ice cream, honeycomb and whipped crème fraiche with fennel pollen is an elegant dessert, while cherry ripe, a chocolate mousse, chocolate “soil”, cherry compote and coconut sorbet composition is more robust, completing a trifecta of contrasting courses.

Elegant ending: Milk and honey dessert at Winston. Picture: Darcy Starr

It’s lovely food with multiple components and intricate elements, distilling premium local produce into one busy dining experience. Service is superior and warm and informative without being intrusive.

It’s great to see an outbreak of fresh restaurant activity in a town where there hasn’t been much new at the top end in recent years, particularly with the trials of operating in the COVID era. Churchill triumphed in the Blitz, hopefully Winston thrives in the plague.