Rockpool Bar & Grill Melbourne December News
All is going very nicely down at Bar & Grill in Melbourne. After a wonderfully busy Spring Racing Carnival, we are now prepped and ready for Christmas and a celebratory swing into the new year. The racing season is always an incredibly busy time for us as well as being plenty of fun with all manner of people walking through the doors – from celebs and VIPs to extremely jolly diners after a long hard day of punting. Who can blame them!
The bar has proved incredibly popular throughout 2008, as an elegant space for a pre-dinner drink – or for what has to be one of the best value lunches in town – David Blackmore’s full blood Wagyu hamburger with bacon, gruyere cheese and Zuni pickle for a tidy $18. The punters are absolutely loving every mouthful.
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Rockpool Bar & Grill’s wine list continues to shine as what we believe to be one of Australia’s best. Sommelier David Lawler has recently spent some time developing our offering of Barolo and Barbaresco (Nebbiolo grape) as “I feel this is a particularly good match with the more robust beef choices”. Through my partner, David Doyle, we have achieved great vintage depth and a selection of producers that are extremely hard to find, & often not available in Australia at all.
The Rockpool Bar & Grill private room is the perfect space for your Christmas functions. The Highland Dining Room, which is named after the gorgeous prize bull who sits on the wall and stares over your shoulder as you eat can sit up to 34 guests in an exclusive space. Alternately, the room can be closed off in part to form a more intimate room for up to 16. Give the Melbourne crew a call for further details on 03 8648 1900 or visit the website to book online.
As with Rockpool in Sydney – Bar & Grill offers gift vouchers – the perfect Christmas, birthday or wedding gift – or just for that random moment of kindness! The forms can be downloaded off the website – too easy.
New Year’s Eve is business as usual at Bar & Grill. Our full menu will be on offer and the restaurant is filling quickly – so don’t miss out. What better excuse than a slide into 2009 to indulge in a little Sevruga caviar and vintage champagne…or perhaps a plate of the divine Joselito Iberico, freshly shucked oysters or an abalone steak. Why hold back….see the old year out on a high and full steam ahead for a great 09!
And if you haven’t done a tasting of our steaks recently- I seriously recommend you order a few to share and enjoy the difference – it’s a fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable experience. This is our beef philosophy…enjoy the read.
Our beef is sourced directly from the producers and dry aged on our premises. That means we have total control over the quality of the beef and when our butcher cuts the meat for the chefs to cook over open flame, this is our decision and nobody else’s. This is quite different to the norm here in Australia.
The dry aging process is important as it brings a better flavour to the beef than that of the more common wet aging in cryovac, which in essence is really preserving the beef. This however takes a big commitment as we have up to 5 tonnes of beef aging at any one time.
We believe that the four types of beef we have are representative of the best of their type in Australia and they all fit into the strict Rockpool philosophy of humane treatment to the cattle. There are no growth hormones used and no antibiotic feed supplements. This is a rare thing in Australia today, particularly with the standard lot fed cattle. It is why we feel that Rangers Valley is the only grain fed cattle we could fit within our Rockpool philosophy.
The reason we have the four types of beef – grass fed yearling, grass fed 36 month old, full blood Wagyu and grain fed beef, is simple, they all have different texture and flavour attributes and to my mind, all represent a certain style of beef. It is interesting to see which you like the best, as people do tend to have preferences. I love them all, as I think these 3 brands that represent the four types are the best on offer of their style in the country and have great flavour and integrity.
The grass fed yearling beef tends to have a cleaner, more pure beef flavour; the 36 month has an intense flavour because of it’s age and is more like the older beef that is eaten in Europe; the Wagyu has a rich caramel and popcorn flavour with great tenderness and fine texture; and the grain fed, a wonderful richness with big beef flavour because of its’ extra age and of course the tenderness that grain feeding promotes.
I believe this restaurant offers a great opportunity for you to taste the beef types and different cuts to see which you enjoy most. Perhaps, like me, you will love them all. To do so is easy – share steaks across the table for main course with some side dishes and really taste the difference. This is what I call family style service and it is to my mind the best way to enjoy this restaurant and make a real experience out of it. The staff on the floor and in the kitchen are very familiar with this style of service. So whether you want to look at different cuts or grass versus grain versus Wagyu – here is the best place to do it. This is the way I always eat at Rockpool Bar & Grill.
Neil