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Thursday May 17, 2012

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Loam

Posted by: Ela Carte | 6 October, 2010 - 11:41 AM

LOAM – 650 Andersons Road Drysdale 03 5251 1101

I’m going to say it – the meal at Loam was my eating highlight of the year to date. There. Done.

The accolades have been coming thick and fast for this 14 month old operation on the Bellarine Peninsula, and after a four hour dinner on the weekend, I can confirm they are well deserved.

Loam has a menu that isn’t quite a menu, it’s a list of seasonal produce, and you’re asked to peruse it and declare if there’s anything that doesn’t tickle your fancy. After that, it’s simply a decision of having two, four or seven courses for lunch; or four, seven or nine for dinner, and whether you’d like to indulge in wine matching. We went for seven dishes with matching wines and so prepared for our five savoury, one cheese, and single dessert dish.

The single room at Loam perfectly reflects the restaurant’s ethos, it’s simple but stylish, it’s warm and full of fresh produce. It looks out across a sprawling olive grove to the picturesque Swan Bay, and the stunning view makes it worth booking for at lunch or at least so you’re there to catch sunset.

Our meal started with a surprise "amouse bouche"– simple breakfast radish with coffee soil which perfectly excited the palate, so we were well and truly ready for the first course of sand crab atop horseradish cream, with broccoflower and nashi pear balls. Despite an array of flavours, the flavour of the sand crab burst through, as did the fresh, spring-like taste of broccoflower.

Course two proved that uncomplicated can still be impressive, in this case dutch carrots on pine needle yoghurt with the unusual addition of brazil nut shavings that somehow 'made' the dish; while the third dish beautifully evoked the bays just beyond Loam’s property borders - consisting of kingfish with sesame seeds, beetroot puree, mussel foam and beach herbs sourced from the local area.

But without a doubt the dish of the day was the Wagyu tartare, featuring thin slices of spiced fresh wagyu beef, smooth hen’s egg yolk, strips of squid and divine garlic flowers. It was hard to prepare for the absolute clout of those flowers, a mouthful with the blooms was a completely different experience to one without.  Paired with a brilliant Beechworth Gamay, this was a combination that alone would bring you back.
And so the meal continued, with veal rump rounding off the savoury dishes, and an ‘in your face’ Dancing Brolga buffalo cheese from Shaw River punching out of the cheese plate.

We were then surprised by an extra dessert that our waitress informed us chef Aaron Turner was trialling, a breakfast-like creation of stewed rhubarb, puffed wild rice and rye milk, didn’t knock your socks off with sweetness, but there was certainly something homely and warm about it.

The real dessert was another thing entirely, we learnt later that Aaron is a self-confessed savoury man, so sweet isn’t his favourite course, perhaps this is why we were presented with a Rosemary pannacotta with thyme granita, blood orange, and an amazing, zinging white vinegar meringue. I know there’s a fair chance the description may make some wince, but it was a terrific dish, I loved it.

The food at Loam speaks for itself, it’s innovative, it’s fresh, and it’s even challenging at times, but will do just as much to bring patrons back is the passionate, friendly, informed service on offer. It feels like you’ve stepped into someone’s front room, and they’ve spent the week planning a menu for you, the day cooking it, and just can’t wait for you to enjoy it. Boasting two hats from the Age Good Food Guide, one of Loam’s most redeeming qualities is its complete lack of pretension. It’s almost impossible to believe these guys have only been open for 14 months, we can only hope they plan on sticking around for a while yet.

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