Latest news with #Tsimpidis'
The Age
5 days ago
- General
- The Age
This restaurant within a sleek Claremont development reinterprets Mediterranean cooking for the western suburbs set
Not every dish sticks its landing, however. The pasta dough in the UFO-like tortelli filled with roasted pumpkin was too thick for purpose. Striploin steak had little of the char, crust or smoke that one hopes to enjoy on cow grilled over charcoal. Soggy, under-salted chips make baby Jesus cry. Every kitchen has off nights, sure, but when you're talking about a restaurant spruiking mains north of $40, these misfires can jar, especially when the dining room isn't especially busy. Service can also waver. One moment, dapper waiters will materialise tableside offering, unprompted, a taste of a wine that they think you'll enjoy. (They're right!) Another, they'll become oddly defensive when you ask whether the beef Wellington is a single slice cut from a bigger portion or a smaller, individual pastry for one: all fair questions, I think, when considering dropping $73 on your dinner. While I personally reckon Avalon would be a more compelling prospect if the food leaned harder into Tsimpidis' Greek heritage, I accept that such a narrow focus mightn't work for what is essentially an upmarket neighbourhood restaurant servicing some of Perth's most desirable postcodes. Still, the menu feels big and tricky to navigate. Could trimming the carte improve things for guests and the kitchen alike, I wonder? But perhaps sharply composed plates gleaned from the Mediterranean nations and served in a fancy room is precisely what well-heeled locals want. While some of us yearn for meals to tide us over until that next Japanese holiday, others crave edible postcards that conjure sunny memories of July getaways to Nice, Santorini, Positano and the like. (And should they happen to share an address with the restaurant and live in the apartments above, even better.)
Sydney Morning Herald
5 days ago
- General
- Sydney Morning Herald
This restaurant within a sleek Claremont development reinterprets Mediterranean cooking for the western suburbs set
Not every dish sticks its landing, however. The pasta dough in the UFO-like tortelli filled with roasted pumpkin was too thick for purpose. Striploin steak had little of the char, crust or smoke that one hopes to enjoy on cow grilled over charcoal. Soggy, under-salted chips make baby Jesus cry. Every kitchen has off nights, sure, but when you're talking about a restaurant spruiking mains north of $40, these misfires can jar, especially when the dining room isn't especially busy. Service can also waver. One moment, dapper waiters will materialise tableside offering, unprompted, a taste of a wine that they think you'll enjoy. (They're right!) Another, they'll become oddly defensive when you ask whether the beef Wellington is a single slice cut from a bigger portion or a smaller, individual pastry for one: all fair questions, I think, when considering dropping $73 on your dinner. While I personally reckon Avalon would be a more compelling prospect if the food leaned harder into Tsimpidis' Greek heritage, I accept that such a narrow focus mightn't work for what is essentially an upmarket neighbourhood restaurant servicing some of Perth's most desirable postcodes. Still, the menu feels big and tricky to navigate. Could trimming the carte improve things for guests and the kitchen alike, I wonder? But perhaps sharply composed plates gleaned from the Mediterranean nations and served in a fancy room is precisely what well-heeled locals want. While some of us yearn for meals to tide us over until that next Japanese holiday, others crave edible postcards that conjure sunny memories of July getaways to Nice, Santorini, Positano and the like. (And should they happen to share an address with the restaurant and live in the apartments above, even better.)
