Labart’s food is so good it could spark a divorce

Couples will need to be on their best behaviour when faced with the outstanding share plates at a new Gold Coast restaurant.

THE beach! The surf! The OMG outlook across the swell to the distant Gotham skyline of Surfers Paradise!

Burleigh Heads at the southern end of the Gold Coast has such an arsenal of geographically blessed charms that diners have trouble keeping their eyes on their plates when visiting oceanfront culinary hotspots such as Rick Shores and The Tropic, and Fish House across the road.

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But at Labart, modestly lodged amid a nondescript strip of shops at the back of the suburb’s business centre, it’s all about the food.

Chef Alex Munoz Labart, who undertook part of his apprenticeship on the Coast and whose wife Karla grew up there, spent years in Sydney stuffing his CV with roles at high-profile restaurants including Monopole, Marque and Est, before the couple moved back north last year to go out on their own.

His menu is a single list moving from smaller to larger dishes that makes the most of the restaurant’s charcoal grill and the chef’s classical training.

Produce is sourced as locally as possible, the wine list is a two-pager with a minimal-intervention focus, and the drinks offering includes local craft beers such as Balter and Black Hops.

Labart is modestly lodged amid a nondescript strip of shops at the back of Burleigh Heads business centre. Picture: Russell Shakespeare

The interior is dressed in an elegant, faintly Parisian bistro style, fashioned from bare wooden tables and chairs, navy linen napkins, sage green and taupe walls, a tan leather banquette and a mirror-backed bar adjoining the open kitchen.

Our agreeable waiter, who’s more than up to the task of doubling as lunchtime sommelier, constantly refilling glasses with iced water and answering questions about the food, suggests we share our selections.

This seems like a reasonable plan when the spanner crab entree arrives looking like an unprepossessing bowl of orange foam.

Labart at Burleigh Heads.

But once our forks pierce this frothy blanket of roasted prawn broth, we uncover a mound of sweet spanner crab meat and thin slices of charred roasted leek ($26), and it takes restraint from us both to share nicely.

The waiter says bread rolls ($3 each with caramelised butter) will be necessary to mop up every last vestige, and he’s right.

Fortunately, the four lightly charred barbecued king prawns coated in prawn butter and scattered with capers and parsley ($28) are able to be divided easily to maintain table harmony.

Lightly charred barbecued king prawns coated in prawn butter and scattered with capers. Picture: Russell Shakespeare

Of the larger dishes, barbecued lamb ribs ($34) have had just the right amount of time on the grill, their smoky softness enhanced by vadouvan (a Frenchified curry mix), smoked yoghurt and crisp curry leaves.

Tuna-like bonito fillets from Mackay ($36) also arrive perfectly cooked beneath a froth of yuzu kosho (a Japanese condiment combining chillies and yuzu citrus fruit zest) butter, lying amid a forest of broccolini and pickled onion.

Perfectly cooked fish beneath a froth of yuzu kosho (a Japanese condiment combining chillies and yuzu citrus fruit zest) butter. Picture: Russell Shakespeare

Although we selected several buttery dishes, options abound such as kingfish tartare, grilled chicken and sirloin with witlof, onion and anchovy.

The kitchen crew keeps the foot to the floor with desserts: popcorn ice cream topped with salted popcorn is terrific with chocolate mousse and hazelnuts ($15).

Popcorn ice cream topped with salted popcorn at Labart, Burleigh Heads. Picture: Russell Shakespear

Also featuring a touch of the savoury is smoked ricotta ice cream teamed with sliced, ripe peach, the lot given an agricultural finish with a scattering of barley and thyme ($15). Brilliant.

This is seriously delicious food and service is exceptional. As a Brisbanite, a beach view seems wonderful on trips to the Coast, as if to prove we haven’t accidentally parked in Pimpama or Helensvale or some such landlocked outpost. But Labart proves that it’s far from a necessity.

RESTAURANT LABART

8 West St, Burleigh Heads

restaurantlabart.com

BOOK [phone]

OPEN: Dinner Wed-Sat from 5.30pm; lunch Fri-Sun, noon-3pm

MUST TRY Spanner crab, charred leek, roasted prawn broth

VERDICT

Food 9

Ambience 8

Service 9

Value 8

OVERALL: 8.5/10