Our understated country waitress is effortlessly beautiful. She gestures casually out one window to show where the 2014 Logan Sauvignon Blanc ($12/glass) comes from, then the other to indicate the origins of the Pressed Duck ($36) with lentils and heirloom carrots.
Chef Roy McVeigh marches to the sound of his own beat – and to be honest, it’s refreshing in a culinary world seemingly dominated by cronuts, overfilled doughnut milkshakes, and meals served on anything but plates.
“Pho is a beef noodle broth,” says Mylisa Nguyen (ex-LuMi Dining) emphatically, before continuing: “there’s nothing vegetarian in Vietnamese food.”
Salty, sweet, sour and... not. Fried Chicken Ribs ($10) with chilli-lime glaze were touted as the entrée to choose if you like it hot, but they lack any sort of real chilli kick.
Your hipster pub life needn't stop when you have kids! You can bring your beard, your Kindle, your tatts, your children, yes, even your dog (true story) and save on funky Mac & Cheese ($14). It’s rippled with silver beet, cauliflower and leek, and baked in an old-fashioned enamel-coated tin plate (very on-trend), making it super tasty and vegetarian-friendly.
I was warned: categorise this restaurant and whatever it is, will vanish in a puff of steaming chai, rather like their steamy yet elegant dessert: Hot Tea, Iced Tea, Aaah Tea featuring rhubarb, cranberry and raspberries. But I’m going to have a crack using Owner/Chef Adam Humphrey’s own words: “We’re very serious about what goes on the plate, but we’re taking the piss.”