162 Elgin St, Carlton - ph: 03 9347 9838
I was so excited to go to Esposito!!! Have been meaning to come here forever and finally had the chance a few weeks ago.Esposito is famous for seafood and their modern Asian twist on Italian food.
Service was really good and hospitable. We were greeted with an 'amuse bouche' of seaweed with sesame seed.
Seaweed pre-entreeFor entree, I chose a platter of shasimi. The fish was really fresh and delicious.
Sashimi plate ($21)My partner chose this beautiful quail dish. The sauce was really good and sweet and contrasted well with the bitterness of the radicchio.
Quail wrapped with pancetta: caramelised pear tart, radicchio; vincotto sauce ($24)For some reason, I thought the menu had more interesting entree options than mains, so I picked two entrees instead.
My second course of pumpkin 'gyosas' (or ravioli, really) was well executed, but a bit blend.
My second course of pumpkin 'gyosas' (or ravioli, really) was well executed, but a bit blend.
Roasted pumpkin Gyoza: burnt butter and sage with red and yellow tear drop tomatoes (main $26)Desert (as usual, I guess) was the highlight of the night for us. The menu mentions that it is cooked to order and may take a bit longer to arrive, but is was definitely worth the wait. The tart was warm, fluffy and just melted in my mouth.
Hot date tart with spiced frangipane and vanilla bean ice cream ($18)It gets my tummy rumbling just to write about it now... I am certainly coming back :)
What a cute little fork for the amuse bouche!
ReplyDeleteI don't blame your tummy for rumbling, I think that tart is looking at me seductively..
I often worry about dining in fusion-type places. Did you find the meal to 'flow' well, or not?
ReplyDeleteHi Conor - I really liked this restaurant; Esposito and La Luna are my recommendations for you next time you visit Melbourne :)
ReplyDeleteHi MD - I hear what you are saying. Thought the mean did flow very well, even though I started my first course with chopsticks and then moved on to knife and fork for the pasta! I guess all dishes had some sort of Asian 'influence', keeping the menu consistent.
It's funny how different our experience was - our dessert took close to 1hour & 30mins to arrive after the main (we ordered it at the start when we ordered our entrees and mains) and when it got there it wasn't fluffy and melt in your mouth like yours was :(
ReplyDeleteOn the plus side I enjoyed that seaweed starter.
But I won't be going back there.