‘Walk straight in without a booking’: The excellent Noosa restaurant that nobody is going to
This hidden gem is a welcome addition to Noosa’s culinary landscape. Now it just needs customers to come off the beach to enjoy it.
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It’s just gone lunchtime on a bright, sunny Saturday and one of the main dining precincts around Noosa is dead.
The restaurants are empty and the streets around Sunshine Beach Rd are bare as it seems almost everyone is at the beach. But the surprising lack of patronage works in our favour, as we’re able to walk straight into contemporary Peruvian eatery Coya without a booking and score our choice of indoor or outdoor tables in the breezy and bright, softly adorned restaurant.
With the sun beaming down on the alfresco seats, we choose a rust-hued banquette inside underneath a nest of hanging ferns and a bloom of jellyfish-esque pendant lights. It’s a beautiful fit-out of pale pinks, mossy greens, neutrals and pale timbers and it’s a shame it’s just us who are there to enjoy it.
However, as the only table in the venue, we have the full and undivided attention of our knowledgeable waiter, which means our order is taken swiftly, our drinks arrive promptly and our waterglasses never run dry. This level of care is maintained throughout our visit, even as the space gradually welcomes in more patrons.
Drawing us in is the fresh and flavour-focused menu, rooted in Peruvian classics but elevated through presentation and quality local ingredients. What that means is an assortment of snacks such as marinated lamb cutlets and baos stuffed with suckling pig, skewers cooked on the charcoal grill, tacos, salads, an array of ceviche; plus the traditional stews known as cazuelas, as well as meat and fish dishes.
First to hit the table is the Peruvian classic causa de cangrejo ($18) – a kind of hybrid of a pimped-up potato salad and a vegetable terrine. Here cold mashed potato comes piped on a plate like a hot dog, crowned with a scattering of crabmeat, sliced avocado, drizzles of coriander pesto and mango coulis and a snow of grated cured egg yolk. It’s as odd as it sounds, but somehow addicting.
More mainstream but perhaps the dish of the day is the atun saku ($25) – one of five ceviches featuring various proteins available. In this version, tuna and watermelon have been diced into cubes of the same size and dressed with a tangy blend of citrus, soy and sesame. It makes for a beautifully crisp and cool mouthful that might be rooted in Peru’s Nikkei cuisine, but tastes distinctly like Queensland.
There is a trio of tacos, and we pick the beef ($18). “It’s actually raw beef – like tartare,” our waiter advises, revealing customers have often overlooked this menu note and been caught off guard. And that’s what it is – tartare inside a tortilla with diced, uncooked cow, red onion, spring onion and dried capers topping a soft corn disc. With a loose charcoal mayonnaise to bring the flavours together, it’s a fun fusion twist on two classics.
Next up is the rack of lamb, which seems shockingly cheap at $37. The three cutlets come sweet, sticky and caramelised from a marinade, resting on a bed of roast potatoes and an extremely mild version of the Peruvian chilli sauce uchucuta. The entire plate is then dusted in a blend of maca, smoked paprika and pistachio powder, giving a subtle sweetness and smokiness to the dish.
It pairs well with one of the restaurant’s classic pisco sours, but would no doubt go equally well with a glass of pinot from the diverse wine list which favours smaller, more boutique producers but no South American wines. There are four beers from Peru, however.
Our pick of the four simple desserts is a Peruvian classic – tres leche cake ($16). Translating to “three milk cake”, this creation is my favourite type of cake. It’s moist, luscious and as fresh as the Andes Mountain air thanks to a scattering of lime zest.
Coya is a welcome addition to Noosa’s culinary landscape. Now it just needs customers to come off the beach to enjoy it.
Coya
14 Sunshine Beach Rd, Noosa Heads
5324 0090
coyanoosa.com.au
Open
Daily noon-2pm
and 5-9pm
Must eat
Tuna and watermelon ceviche
Verdict
Food
Service
Ambience
Value
Overall
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