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Good Food hat15/20

Underbar

Beef with beetroot,blackberry and horseradish.
1 / 5Beef with beetroot,blackberry and horseradish.Simon Schluter
Ama ebi, prawn bisque.
2 / 5Ama ebi, prawn bisque.Simon Schluter
Pork belly with hoshigaki persimmon.
3 / 5Pork belly with hoshigaki persimmon.Simon Schluter
Pork belly with hoshigaki persimmon.
4 / 5Pork belly with hoshigaki persimmon.Simon Schluter
Assorted duck snacks including duck parfait pani puri.
5 / 5Assorted duck snacks including duck parfait pani puri.Simon Schluter
Good Food hat15/20

Contemporary$$$

Communal fine dining that subverts expectations.

The first challenge is finding it, hidden behind filmy curtains on an unexciting strip. This is a fine diner with an edginess that’s felt beyond the punk-rock soundtrack.

Derek Boath is on tweezer duty. His precise cherry tomato, avocado and chevre tart – close to a Caravaggio still-life – belies bold flavours. Ditto the cornbread madeleines with crab-infused sweetcorn custard.

Sommelier Tony Schuurs drives the drinks: a broad sweep of the region’s top producers and global gems. Sparkling mead from Byron Bay is pitch-perfect with butter-poached scallops and salty guanciale in a frou-frou almond sauce. Lamb rump hums with smoked yoghurt, charry onion and the glossiest, curry-inflected jus.

Warm cinnamon doughnuts with a trio of molten hazelnut, salted caramel and peanut butter are spot-on in their simplicity. Making it from the opening snacks to the four-dessert encore is a commitment of three hours or more, but fortune flavours the brave.

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Dessert bread and butter pudding with vanilla ice cream.
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Tansy’s

Classic cooking brims with country charm.

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Original URL: https://www.smh.com.au/goodfood/vic-good-food-guide/underbar-20240618-p5jmsi.html