‘Roll the dice at the casino to afford the food’: Star Brisbane’s luxe new restaurant
The Star Brisbane’s new French restaurant is fancy but you nearly need a mortgage to afford its offerings like the $38 burgers and $150 beef fillet or $200 eye fillet and half lobster combo.
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A glance at the menu of Pompette, the French newcomer at The Star in Brisbane’s CBD, and it seems like we might need to stop and roll the dice at the casino to be able to afford the food.
Oysters, caviar and snacks aside, entrees range from a $32 souffle to $42 for steak tartare, while main courses begin with a $38 burger (there’s foie gras in there and a wagyu patty) up to $85 steak frites, with large plates including a whole duck a la orange for $136, 400g beef fillet en croute for $150 or $200 for a 250g eye fillet, half lobster thermidor and a side. Add the 10 per cent weekend surcharge and 20 per cent for public holidays and the bill bulges further.
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However, there are a couple of cheaper options and Pompette belongs to Michael Tassis, whose hefty portfolio also includes lamb-focused Mediterranean restaurant Dark Shepherd, also at the Star, Yamas at West End, Fosh at Portside, Fatcow on James St and Opa and Long Wang in the CBD, and the eatery includes his signature value set menus with a $68pp multi-course lunch and several dinner versions from $88pp.
Pompette, which opened mid-December, is on the fourth-level dining terrace right at the entry to the Neville Bonner Bridge, and boasts a long, marble bar with its line-up of leather stools running beside the pedestrian walkway, an inside dining room with yellow chairs, rust-coloured banquettes and hints of French styling in fluted glass walls and curtains running along the bottom half of the windows.
There are private dining rooms, an al fresco area at the back, and an array of tables in an attractive plant and umbrella-adorned outdoor space opposite the bar, with stunning up-river and South Bank views, although we stick with the indoor table we’re allocated.
Some entree options sound a little odd, such as scallops with blue cheese and creamed quinoa and octopus with anchovies and cream. Budget and simplicity in mind, we opt for the ratatouille tartelette ($18) from the snack list, which turns out to be two small pastry cases stacked with the flavoursome vegetable stew and topped with blobs of olive tapenade, and a sturdy souffle ($32) pepped up with gruyere and lapped by a pond of lush, creamy sauce.
Our waiter is knowledgeable and chatty but glitches occur, like the souffle being delivered from the kitchen and then a fair delay before the arrival of the tartelettes.
Red wines by the glass (from $18) arrive pre-poured, and chilled, from an extensive, French-heavy list.
Main course choices also include a half chicken with mushroom sauce, salmon, toothfish with bouillabaisse sauce or gnocchi.
A 250g portion of slow-cooked lamb shoulder ($52) wearing a cap of soft, ratatouille-like vegetables and a scatter of chives and slouching in generous amount of jus is the dish of the night, all big flavours and tender meat.
Duck a la orange is also available in a half portion ($68) and includes a complimentary side. The meat, although slightly overcooked, is delicious and teamed with an appealing, not-too-sweet orange-accented sauce.
We share the side, choosing asparagus and broccolini from a list that includes truffled fries, roast or mashed potatoes, and tomato salad with goat’s cheese.
Desserts stick to crème brulee, crepes Suzette, rhum baba and glace au nougat ($19) – and we share this pleasant frozen mix studded with orange peel and enhanced by Grand Marnier and raspberry coulis, fresh strawberry and blackberry and a tuille biscuit.
While Pompette’s main restaurant area is inside and suits the full dining experience, the other sections of the venue appear well worth exploring. The bar looks like a fine spot to dally for a sundowner and a couple of the oysters kept on ice in front of drinkers, while the outdoor tables offer a premium location to soak in a river outlook with a snack or the full menu.
Pompette
The Terrace, Level 4
The Star Brisbane
pompette.com.au
Open
Seven days 11am-late
Must try
Lamb shoulder
The verdict
Food
Service
Ambience
Value
Overall
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