Welcome return of a Perth institution, The Subiaco Hotel
The dining room suggests bistro, but the kitchen is overwhelmingly eclectic. Pic: Supplied
THE Pitch:
A pub can be anything you want it to be. Breakfast cafe. Family diner. Restaurant. Bar with tucker. Late night lounge. Just take a look at the Subi, a bona-fide Perth institution. The return to trade of this pub after a long renovation is a much-needed shot in the arm for Subiaco.
The cuisine: Locals assure me the earth will be declared flat before pappardelle with slow-cooked lamb and Japanese crumbed tiger prawns come off the menu here. That tells you something of the kitchen’s eclectic tendencies. This is cuisine sans frontieres yet carried off without the muddling and ham-fistedness such an approach often suggests.
Highlights: The steamed crab custard with pork larb and puffed pork crackling is an enticing dish with Japanese overtones and great raw materials. But whatever you go for here, there’s a pride in the cooking and quality of produce that puts a lot of so-called Perth restaurants in the shade.
Lowlights: Very few. Missing a drink in the bar, perhaps, as we did. You mustn’t. Desserts are a bit basic.
The damage: By Perth standards, entirely reasonable. Starters about the $16.50 mark, mains about $34 with sensible wine prices.
Source : The Australian John Leathlen November 11th, 2014
