Attica - Ripponlea - review

Name: Attica

Address: 74 Glen Eira Rd
Ripponlea 3185 VIC
Phone: (03) 9530 0111

Food: ModOz,
Average price: Degustation menu: 5 courses, $120, 8 courses: $160, $270 with matched beverage

Complimentary: Bread with cultured butter & olive oil emulsion with volcanic salt

The bread was absolutely delicious. All four of us couldn't help ourselves from asking for more. Most enjoyed the cultured butter but I preferred the slightly tangy oil emulsion.

Mr.M: bread was fantastic

Silken tofu

I can't quite remember what was in these appetisers but they were quite bland and unmemorable.

White chocolate eggs with caramel

Modelled on pekeko eggs these little morsels were filled with a gorgeous salted caramel that went wonderfully with the white chocolate. Yum.

We ordered: Textured cauliflower with horseradish

Delicious and complex. I can't recall the sequence in which everything revealed itself but the strongest contenders were the horseradish with its peppery bite, the calming, exotic coconut and the sharp tang of the crimson barberries. This dish is fun. It also contained puffed wild rice.

Snow Crab

Same as above but with crab instead of cauliflower.

Mr.M: a complex mixture of flavours...so many flavours that sometimes you are unsure if you like the dish or now. Jury is out on this one.

Cress stems, cucumber, pumpkin seeds

This was delicious. I loved the sweetness of the leeks and pear with the salty cucumber and samphire. The seeds added a nice crunch.

Marron, leek, egg yolk

Mr.M: best dish of the night. You would expect the marron to be a cold fish like texture when you sink your teeth into it. This dish was warm, and maybe is because I was expecting not to like the dish...but it made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Everything goes together perfectly, and everyone on the table with this dish loved it

A simple dish of potato cooked in the earth it was grown

The potato, which is sightly sweet and butter was tender but still firm - perfectly cooked. The smoked goat's cheese with coconut husk ash gave a wonderful tangy, smoky element to compliment the potatoes starchy creaminess. The crunchy fried saltbush leaves also worked well.

Mr.M: I've had this dish a couple of times and out of all the dishes it was my least favourite. I seem to be the only person that doesn't think its a great dish so there is probably something wrong with my taste buds

Shiitake broth, sea vegetables, osmanthus

Lovely Asian flavours.

Shiitakes & meat from the Pearl Oyster

Mr.M: great dish. Once again, lots of flavours that went together really well. Almost licked the plate clean.

Raw chestnuts, salt baked celeriac, Pyengana

Fantastic dish; it was salty but excellent. The chestnuts added a soft sweetness along with the nutty celeriac to balance the sharp cheese and rich egg yolk. Everyone loved it.

Mr.M: Another table favourite. Very warm inviting plate.

Beef tongue, vanilla, myrtus, lettuce stems

One diner wasn't keen on beef tongue so they substituted a 5+ Waygu rump for her.

Mr.M: the main meat dish of the night was served about 3 hours in, by this time everyone was pretty full. However this dish was 'light' on filling your stomach but potent on flavour

Wild mushrooms, mulled wine, pearl onions

This was my least favourite dish of the night. The wine sauce was too strong for me.

Winter apples

The vine leaves were soaked in juices (I believe one of which was beet?) and went well with the apples soaked in granny smith apple juice. Overall the flavours are tart and sharp. I enjoyed it.

Mr.M: loved it.

Mandarin & honeydew honey

The caramelised Sauternes cream was delicious and despite the mandarins (both fresh and freeze dried) being very acidic I enjoyed them. What felt out of balance to me was perhaps the honey? There was a strong herbal like element (more akin to a tree like eucalyptus or tea tree) that was really strong and overpowered the other flavours.

Mr.M:  liked it.

Violet crumble

Mr.M loved this dish so much he asked if it were possible to make one up, luckily for him it was. The flavours of the violet fromage frais and crystallised flowers to the chocolate dust, house honeycomb crumble and butterscotch syrup are delicious, although I still feel that a creamier ice cream, rather than tangy, would work better.

Mr.M: I've had this dish before but it was taken off the ever evolving menu. We asked the Chef is he would make it again and he did. A personal favourite of mine!

Service: OK. Whilst the waiters were great the kitchen was really behind and we didn't receive the first appetiser until at least 45mins in. In total, despite us scoffing down our food really quickly, our last dish wasn't served until after 1am (we had an 8:30pm seating). We were all quite tired by the end and a few of us chose to take the eggs home as we had passed the eating stage and just wanted to sleep.

Atmosphere: Mellow. The lighting is definitely dark, with the overall room decorated in dark, woody hues. The noise level isn't very loud and the tables are spaced apart well. It has a stylish casual feel. There was also a lovely view into the courtyard, I would recommend being seated in this area rather than the front.

Parking: Ample - the main street doesn't get much traffic after hours.

Website: http://www.attica.com.au/

Hours: Tues-Sat: 6pm til late

Would I return: Yes, this was the best food experience here yet with almost all of the dishes being fantastic. Hopefully next time the service won't be as slow.


Mr.M: Attica has definitely undergone some changes in the last time we visited. Last time I was at Attica I loved the creativity of the food, but that didn't necessarily translate to me enjoying the dish. Upon arriving we looked at the menu, and noticed that the price was up for the 8 course to $160, making it probably in the top 5 most expensive places in Melbourne. "It better be worth it" I thought in my head. Well, it was. The service was a little slow to get going  (Attica seems to  be known for this), however the place is very relaxed and  the waiters where extremely knowledgeable without being snobby (like many other 2~3 chefs hat restaurants we have been to). Attica proves that Winter food does not have to be boring! We will be back again!

Attica - Ripponlea

Name: Attica

Address: 74 Glen Eira Rd
Ripponlea 3185 VIC
Phone: (03) 9530 0111

Food: ModOz,
Average price: Entree: $20-$30, Mains: $30-$45, Dessert: $18
Degustation menu: 6 courses, $95, 8 courses: $140, $235 with matched beverage

Complimentary:2 slices bread with almonds, olives, butter and smoky tomato relish with olives.

The bread was lukewarm but easily tear able. The assorted olives and almond are a nice touch. The butter is slightly tangy but its the relish that wins the day with it flavourful punch.

Carrot cooked in its own juices.
This was ok, a touch boring.

Pineapple jube
This was actually really strong and pina-colada-esque, also quite sticky and dense too. 

We ordered:

textured cauliflower with horseradish

Delicious and complex. I can't recall the sequence in which everything revealed itself but the strongest contenders were the horseradish with its peppery bite, the calming, exotic coconut and the sharp tang of the crimson barberries. This dish is fun. It also contained puffed wild rice, leek, and witlof.

snow crab 

This dish was like mine except it included crab and roe. R loved it also.

young peas, grains and natural pea juices

The peas are cooked at a low temperature, therefore they still have that firmness as if straight from the pod. The mixture of grains added a nice textural element as did the house-made fromage frais with its soft coolness. The dish did lack a little 'oomph' and was slightly monotone in flavour but overall it was a nice, light dish.

A simple dish of potato cooked in the earth it was grown

The potato, which is sightly sweet perhaps from being cooked in cabbage, was tender but still firm - perfectly cooked. The smoked goat's cheese with coconut husk ash gave a wonderful tangy, smoky element to compliment the potatoes starchy creaminess. The crunchy fried saltbush leaves also worked well. R's also had dried Spanish tuna.

bass groper, chorizo, smoked jasmine flowers, almond

Unfortunately R did not enjoy this at all and barely ate half - it just didn't personally appeal to him.

chilled cream of antonello garlic and green grapes

The cream was thick and the dish was cold. The garlic was the key note and tended to mute everything else.
It was nice. It also had chives, carrots and mustard cress.

beef, sour milk jam, dandelion salt, asparagus

R found this a little too salty.

crispy tofu, braised kelp, spring onion, pickled cucumber

I'm not one for fried or pickled foods really so I wasn't a fan of this. It also had sweet maple glazed witlof and white onion puree, nasturtium leaf with kipfler potato chips. The braised kelp was lovely though and I liked the texture of the tofu - it was just a little heavy for me.

pork loin, morcilla, wild fennel pollen

R thought this was ok - but he hated the relish, he didn't feel it went at all. He liked the pink lady apple reduction though.

spice crusted tomato, hazelnut, zucchini, shanklish

Similar to the dish I had last visit - and once again I just didn't enjoy the texture or taste of the tomatoes. The other elements were nice though.

terroir

This time around the waitress suggested we mix everything together - I liked it a little more than last time but it still isn't a winning dish for me. R thought it reminded him of cheap cereal with dehydrated fruit. It's interesting. This is a combination of fromage frais, beetroot and almond cake, freeze dried raspberries, brewing malt, flowers, white pepper, golden kiwifruit, vanilla avocado jelly, & sorrel granita.

Violet crumble

 
This made R's Top 10 last year and I am fairly certain it will again - he tried to scrape every drop from his AND my glass. I don't like icy treats like sorbet or ice-cream but for a cold dish, it's nice - the flavours of the violet fromage frais and crystallised flowers to the chocolate dust, house honeycomb crumble and butterscotch syrup make a dynamite team.
Cost: $280 - two 8 course degustations.

Service: Great. We had different staff each time but they all knew about the dishes and our water was always filled.

Atmosphere: Mellow. The lighting is definitely dark, towards the end of the evening it began to make us tired as the restaurant is also decorated in dark, woody hues. The noise level isn't very loud and the tables are spaced apart well. It has a stylish casual feel. The view this time was into the kitchen to a very strange looking and most likely expensive contraption, but there was also a lovely view into the courtyard, I would recommend being seated in this area rather than the front.

Parking: Ample - the main street doesn't get much traffic after hours (we went at 6:30).

Website: http://www.attica.com.au/

Hours: Tues-Sat: 6pm til late

Would I return: Maybe - only for the violet crumble (R).

Attica - Ripponlea

Name: Attica

Address: 74 Glen Eira Rd
Ripponlea 3185 VIC
Phone: (03) 9530 0111

Food: ModOz,
Average price: Entree: $20-$30, Mains: $30-$45, Dessert: $18
Degustation menu: 6 courses, $75, 8 courses: $130, $215 matched beverage

Complimentary: Bread with eggplant, tomato relish, olives, almonds & butter


The bread was really lovely and fresh and the relish was lovely - salty, sweet and bitter.

Salted cod in grapeseed oil with watercress, nettle puree


This was light, fresh with saltiness and a hint of sweet bitterness.

We ordered:

Fresh trout with smoked trout broth, pork crackling and basil seeds, with fresh hickory smoke - $23


This dish has been talked about in almost every blog and review so I shall keep it short - Ryan enjoyed it, however, he said he would have liked the pork crackling more had it not been soggy.

A simple dish of potato cooked in the earth it was grown - $20


The potato was tender, creamy and went well with the sour sauce (fromage blanc?), salty shaved trot, and crispy saltbush leaves which still allowed the potato to shine through. It was a little on the small side though.

Lamb shoulder brik with mint manuka honey, lamb spice with Jerusalem artichoke puree - $38


Ryan said the shoulder was tender and flaky, the sliced lamb on the other hand was a little cold. He loved the minted honey with the Moroccan spiced brik. There were also fried Jerusalem artichoke skins which he liked as well as baby leeks. He felt like there were two separate dishes on the one plate which he didn't like.

Heirloom tomatoes in a Moroccan crust, celery sticks, apple disks, smoky tomato, celeriac puree, leaves - $30


The crust was loaded with black pepper, it made me cough and my eyes water so I had to scrape it off. The tomatoes were mushy and overwhelmed the subtle celeriac, walnuts, apple and celery, only the smoky tomato jam managed to come through. It left me hungry.

Terroir -$18


This was a combination of fromage frais, beetroot and almond cake, berries, brewing malt, flowers, white pepper, golden kiwifruit, vanilla avocado jelly, & sorrel granita.

Each mouthful interchanged between pleasure and somewhat yukky tastes. The first taste reminded me of eating moist earth - not pleasant. Then the sharp, tangy berries came in as well as the sweet fruit and it became lovely but overall this didn't really do anything for me, hubby liked it a little more though.

Violet crumble - $18


Both of us liked this, hubby adored it. I wish the violet fromage frais had been a violet ice cream as I was hoping for something creamy to go with the honeycomb, chocolate dust and caramel, not something with a lemony tang. It was nice overall, but I would have loved creamy over tangy/icy.

Cost: $147 - 2 entrees, 2 mains, 2 desserts.

Service: OK. There was a bit of a mix up, I originally called to book on a Saturday for a degustation (one vegetarian) but they wanted a credit card and we were in the process of cancelling ours (overseas fraud situation) so I said we'd go on the Friday instead. Upon arriving we are informed that they only do vegetarian degustation a Saturday night, so my husband was a little disappointed. There was quite a long wait in between the entree and main meals.

Atmosphere: Mellow. The lighting is definitely dark, towards the end of the evening it began to make us tired as the restaurant is also decorated in dark, woody hues. The noise level isn't to loud and the tables are spaced apart. It has a stylish casual feel. The only downside was that I could see straight into a washing room, so I spent most of the evening watching a waitress unload a dishwasher and polish cutlery etc, which just reminded me of the housework I left behind at home.
Parking: Ample - the main street doesn't get much traffic after hours (we went at 8:30).

Website: http://www.attica.com.au/

Hours: Tues-Sat: 6pm til late

Would I return: Yes. Hubby wants to give it another try.