Intimate Hobart restaurant Dier Makr is full of surprises
When approaching dining at this up-market Hobart eatery the best thing to do is arrive with an open mind and you will be amply rewarded, advises food writer Alix Davis.
Food and Wine
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There’s a sense of occasion when you arrive at Dier Makr – maybe it’s the imposing heritage building, maybe it’s the three sets of doors you pass through or maybe it’s the moodily light dining room furnished with leather-covered tables for two.
Whatever it is, it made me glad I’d dressed up as an evening here is definitely date night territory.
It’s a set menu, so we can relax and enjoy the evening as dishes are brought to us by friendly and efficient staff who are happy to explain each dish and offer wine suggestions.
While they’re informative, they’re never overbearing and, as with every other element of the meal, they’ve gauged it perfectly.
Owner/chef Kobi Ruzicka, who opened the restaurant in 2016, says, “the goal of the menu is to use the best Tasmanian produce on offer, to create a menu that could only be served in Tasmania on that day. A crossover of an early autumn, or a random cold snap could make for a combination of ingredients that may not otherwise happen.”
As a result, the menu changes frequently, meaning that every visit will be a new adventure.
Our meal begins with a selection of snacks, or canapes.
A meaty Boomer Bay oyster is topped with a sweet/tart pickled pear mignonette and slips down easily.
A petite swirl of a cruller is stuffed with duck liver parfait and devoured in two bites.
And a tiny cob of corn that has been roasted in its husk and then slathered in wakame jam is flavour-filled perfection.
A chef’s degustation is not usually my husband’s natural habitat but he’s loving every element so far, including the sign in the open kitchen that clearly states: “No Van Morrison.”
Instead, a turntable with a stack of vinyl albums next to it is changed by staff throughout the evening and ranges from Elvis to Icehouse.
Given the restaurant is named for a Led Zeppelin track (“D’yer Mak’er” from the 1973 album, Houses of the Holy), the commitment to vinyl should come as no surprise.
“I want to serve thoughtful dishes in a way that isn’t stuffy, with music that might be a bit too loud, but it definitely sets a mood,” says Ruzicka.
“Just because we’re actually having fun serving our guests doesn’t mean we’re not taking what we do seriously, it’s quite the opposite.
The serious food, and plenty of fun, continue with a dish of striped trumpeter, line-caught by local fisherman Aidan, and ever-so-lightly seared and served over creamy eggplant and almond cream. Delicate flavours and the all-white colour palette make this an arresting dish and it’s a pleasure eating something so local.
The wine list leans towards the natural and a wine room in the corner is stocked with bottles from around the world.
You can match paired wines ($100), or alcohol-free drinks ($60), with the menu, or order by the glass.
“The cellar is maybe a more personal pursuit, but the guidelines are the same, only fruit from vineyards practising organics or biodynamics,” explains Ruzicka.
“Natural wine has been a love of mine for around 15 years now.
“We have a list that contains more than 150 different grape varieties, wine can be so much more than pinot and chardonnay.”
One of the larger dishes is finely diced raw beef topped with eel mousse and an assortment of mushrooms, with a potato bread roll on the side. It’s not something I would have ordered off a menu but it’s absolutely delicious and I think it’s a witty take on a steak with mushroom sauce and fries.
A wonderful benefit of a degustation is that you are able to try dishes you might not have ordered – we all like to stay in our comfort zone after all – and be pleasantly surprised when you discover you love it.
Arrive at Dier Makr with an open mind and you will be amply rewarded.
A small scoop of palate-cleansing nectarine sorbet is a precursor to a wonderful dessert of sweetcorn gelato.
This has been topped with a thick rope of caramel made from pumpkin seeds and served with a biscuit made from dried and ground corn kernel fibres.
It’s a pleasing note on which to end the evening and I look forward to being surprised all over again on our next visit.
DIER MAKR
23 Collins St, Hobart
Opening hours: Thursday – Saturday, dinner from 6pm. Bookings essential
On the menu
$150pp set menu. Boomer Bay oysters, duck liver cruller, tomatoes with strawberries and basil, mushrooms, beef and eel, corn gelato with pepita dulce de leche Note this is just a selection of what was served.
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