Restaurant that has flavour down to a fine art

Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art draws visitors from all over the world for its exhibitions but they will have plenty to talk about if they stop for a meal there too.

Qweekend restaurant review combo art

It was as though a bush python had slithered across the crisp, white tablecloth on my table at Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art restaurant.

However, it turned out to be the decoratively tattooed arm of a muscular young chef, reaching out so daintily, and incongruously, to pour a liquid from a tiny pot onto my glistening saku tuna.

The pot contained a “sauce” made from some kind of reduction featuring the Japanese koshu grape, tropical Queensland finger limes, edamame beans and seasoning. The saku, a Japanese-style cut from the loin of a yellowfin or blue eye tuna, was resting on a puddle of whipped tofu with a scattering of micro-herbs.

CORN AND CAPSICUM FOR DESSERT?

I LIKED EVERYTHING EXCEPT THE FOOD

The saku, a Japanese-style cut from the loin of a yellowfin or blue eye tuna, was resting on a puddle of whipped tofu with a scattering of micro-herbs. Picture: Mark Cranitch.

It was a feast for the eyes and the tastebuds; a bowl of pure joy that set the tone of a meal that seemed to get better and better. The fish did not die in vain. It didn’t say so on the menu, but the tofu was flavoured with tahini to add another rewarding taste dimension.

We elected to sit down to a five-course degustation ($140 each) and chose our own wines by the glass.

Next came a fascinating plate – Cone Bay barramundi, “tandoori” style.

After the fish, a hay-smoked, burnt lettuce and celeriac “salad” with dukkha, featuring a parmesan and hazelnut crumble and slivers of green grapes.

Next came a fascinating plate – Cone Bay barramundi, “tandoori” style. It was a magical bit of cooking with artichokes, yoghurt and a spoonful or two of curried tomatoes complementing and not overpowering the fish. It was a showstopper.

And then came another showstopper, with a thrilling AACo steak matched with burnt broccoli, fermented chilli, and a black bean espuma enriched with beef fat.

Brisbane-based AACo, or the Australian Agricultural Company, is one of the country’s oldest continuously operating companies and one of the world’s great beef firms. There wasn’t any detail about the meat on the menu but I’m guessing it was a wagyu or an Angus-wagyu cross, with a marble score of six or better. No doubt it was a sirloin, or what is also called a porterhouse or New York cut.

From the first bite there was a rush of intense, juicy, beefy flavour followed by a satisfying mineral aftertaste.

From the first bite there was a rush of intense, juicy, beefy flavour followed by a satisfying mineral aftertaste. The flavours lingered on the palate like an old wine.

This is a restaurant committed to the avant-garde but faithful to the first commandment of cooking, that flavour must always triumph over artifice. But that is not to say the dishes lack humour.

Another flavour bomb to finish: a lovely coconut and mango pudding with yuzu and liquorice flavours.

A lovely coconut and mango pudding with yuzu and liquorice flavours. Picture: Mark Cranitch.

We drank from a wine list that had strong connections to Queensland producers. A glass of Golden Grove vermentino had citrus, white pear and peach flavours with a zippy acidity.

And a Witches Falls pinot noir, matured in new and used French oak, added cherry and strawberry flavours to the meal.

On a second visit, we enjoyed a glass of the glorious Ballandean Estate saperavi, a wonderful match for yet another superb cut of beef.

On that visit we also devoured blackened chicken and a zany camel milk cheesecake (yes camel, not caramel) that had been injected with a caramelised pear puree and served with a pecan brittle and crystallised Manuka honey.

GOMA Restaurant at South Bank scores a 9/10. Picture: Mark Cranitch.

GOMA RESTAURANT

Stanley Place

South Bank

BOOK [phone]

[e-mail]

OPEN

Lunch noon to 3pm, Wednesday-Sunday;

dinner 5.30pm to late, Friday & Saturday

VERDICT

Food 9

Service 9

Ambience 9

Value 9

OVERALL: 9/10