Rick Stein's Place in Australia - reviewed for Great British Chefs
published by Tim DickinsonOur Great British Chefs bloggers are globe trotters. Wherever they're based they're on the hunt for the UK's finest chefs who might not necessarily be cooking in the UK. TV Chef Rick Stein is a perfect example of that & Tim Dickinson aka @Timinator (a Canadian currently living in Sydney) went along to Rick's place over the festive break to discover what Mr Stein was up to in Australia.
Photography by Tim Dickinson
Rick Stein said it himself: he's dreamed of south coast New South Wales seafood since he was here in the '60s. But it was only a handful of years ago that he found Mollymook, the place where he felt happy to open a restaurant serving that same food. Bannisters is a quality (but relaxed) hotel and spa, and Rick's fish place is a perfect fit. It's the right balance of buzzy and romantic, and the service is on the professional side of easygoing.
This was my second visit to the restaurant but it was just as good this time as it was more than a year ago. Rick has come up with a menu that fits in perfectly with the notion of "Mod Oz" cuisine: fresh Australian ingredients with southeast-Asian-influenced flavours. There are a couple of token non-seafood options available, but you'd have to be completely anti-fish to even think about it.
I had a hard time deciding but settled on a starter of Stir-Fried Mussels with Black Beans, Garlic, Ginger, and Coriander. I did not regret this choice. I come from eastern Canada, known for its mussels, but these were the biggest, plumpest, sweetest bivalves I can recall having. The savoury black bean sauce pooled at the bottom of the bowl, and I was able to dunk each fat mussel in it before popping it in my mouth.
The desire for big flavours hadn't deserted me, so my main course was the Indonesian Seafood Curry with Ling, Squid, and King Prawns with Green Bean and Fresh Coconut Salad. This really had it all: the pieces of ling (the Australian kind) were firm, the strips of squid were tender, and the prawns were big. It turned out to be more fish than it had, at first, appeared to be.
Likewise, partway through the dish I fretted that the rich, earthy curry sauce wasn't going to be enough to go around, but I was wrong. It all mixed together to create warming bites of intense flavour.
Our choice for wine - a local white, 2009 Coolangatta Semillion - was the perfect counterbalance to all this spiciness. It was cool and fresh and wiped the palate clean after every bite, making each new mouthful taste like the first one.
The only thing that didn't sit right were my sides for the curry: a bowl of steamed rice with crispy fried onions, and a salad of green beans and shaved coconut with...crispy fried onions. Both were nice, but if they'd left the onions off the salad it would have made each a little more unique. But that's a pretty small complaint after the meal I'd just had.
My companion claimed to be just as happy as me with her food choices. She started with the Oysters Charentaise (from the menu: "A seemingly odd combination - freshly opened oysters with some hot, spicy sausages. The idea is that you eat an oyster, take a bite of the sausage, then a good gulp of cold white wine."), and finished with Bannisters Fish Pie (with just the right amount of creamy filling and parmesan topping).
We didn't see Rick in the restaurant this time. But we couldn't help noticing, on leaving, a painting of his irascible former canine companion Chalky.
I'll likely keep going back to Rick Stein at Bannisters every time I'm in the area. It just goes to show you that great British chefs aren't just doing their thing in Britain.
Review of Rick Stein at Bannisters for Great British Chefs by Tim Dickinson
What's the best fish or seafood dish you've eaten? Where was it? We're discussing this over on Great British Chefs Facebook Page.
