Have heard so many friends give really good recommendations for Rosmarino, the new Italian place in the Valley. I made a reservation and checked it out with Iron Fist last Friday after a long week's work. It's situated at the top of McLachlan Street in the Valley at the new Stewart and Hemmant Centre. Bookings are definitely recommended.
I really liked the exposed brick walls and the rustic vibes of the restaurant. It added a lot to the ambiance of the place. Staff were attentive, perhaps too much so. Ironfist had come 5 mins late, but there was considerable pressure from staff to order drinks and food quickly.
The menu was quite interesting and had a variety of options I was keen to try. We ordered a selection to share.
My drink came first as I had ordered whilst waiting. This was the Regina Gitana which contained Absolut Vodka, D.O.M.and Benedictine Sicilian Infusion. It was small, but strong and with a very delicious citrus twist that I liked a lot.
Our first entree was the Ocean Trout Crudo cured with limone and extra virgin olive oil. It was quite a disappointing dish for me as the portions were small given the price. The flavours were also quite subdued, with not much taste to the trout. It was also very oily, without anything acidic to cut through the grease. I also noted that for a restaurant at this price point, they had a marked lack of complimentary bread which would have been a nice hospitable touch.
Our next dish came highly recommended by some friends, this was the Culurgiones cacio nduja, a Sardinian ravioli filled with potato, pecorino cheese and mint with cacio and pepe. The ravioli skin was quite thick and hard. The potato was soft but bland and there wasn't enough pecorino to elevate the taste of the potato. We had to rely very heavily on the sauce to provide flavour to each ravioli. I'm very surprised that this was the most recommended dish, at the price point of a main (at cheaper Italian restaurants), this was a huge let down.
We interluded with a second round of drinks before mains. I had the Aperol Spritz and IronFist had his favourite Dirty Martini. These were strong and refreshing, whetting our appetites for dinner.
It didn't take too long for mains to arrive and soon our table was full.
My favourite of the night was the Risotto agli scampi with Riserva San Massimo risotto with Sharks Bay WA scampi, white bisque, marscapone and Cremant De Bourgogne emulsion and lardo. The risotto was perfectly tender and mixed in a rich creamy white sauce with delicious scampi meat. The portion was definitely smaller than I would have imagined for a main, especially given the price point, but at least it was delicious, I only wish it was a little less oily.
Iron Fist's main of choice was the Anatra, a 7-days dry aged Maremma duck breast served with mashed
potato, orange sauce, orange segments and amaretti crumble. This was also quite delicious with a very flavoursome duck meat infused with spices, a crisp skin whilst retaining its juiciness. The mash was silky smooth and the orange helped cut into the decadence of the dish. I definitely recommend this.
As a side, we had the patate, which were some crispy triple cooked potatoes seasoned with garlic, rosemary oil and anchovies. Whilst the top pieces were crisp, the ones at the bottom literally sat in a pool of oil. The alleged seasoning was lacking in flavour and I cannot recommend this side.
Our dessert was the Macinamisù, comprised of macina mulino bianco, zabaione, coffee pastry cream,
merengue and marscapone. This was surprisingly generous in size, I liked the crisp meringue in the middle, offering an innovative take on Tiramisu. The coffee taste could have been a bit stronger, but it was an enjoyable dessert.
All in all, my experience at Rosmarino was very mixed. The entrees have room for a lot of improvement, the mains were delicious, the side was also lacking but the dessert was enjoyable. If the price point was more reasonable, I'd be more forgiving, but for what we paid, we could have gone to Otto and had a far more pleasant and consistent experience. Whilst I satisfied my curiosity, I don't think I'll be back.
Taste: 7/10
Value: 3/10
Service: 7/10
Environment: 8/10
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