Arriving at Brunello on a Saturday night, we feel like we could have just stumbled upon a stunning little wine bar in a holiday destination such as Majorca or the Amalfi coast.
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The restaurant exudes a modern, sleek design, featuring stylish terazzo top tables, comfortable chairs, and an impressive Enomatic wine system adorning one entire wall. Thoughtfully placed lighting, emanating from seven different types of light fittings set the perfect ambience, with particular focus on the show kitchen where the chefs perform their culinary magic.
Three couples, who look like they have done some modelling for Wallpaper* magazine perch at the round table, washing down salumi with negronis and I'm feeling a bit "Amalfified", even if I haven't even had a drink yet.
Brunello is a lovely mix of Italian and Spanish in style, with an extensive wine list and progressive food, with the odd nod to tradition. As noted in other reviews, it would be great to be offered a pre-dinner drink, other than water, but when our Brunello lager (from Japan) and the copper-hued Provenance Golden Plains rose ($17) do finally arrive, I can start to feel my toes uncurl in the imaginary sand beneath my feet.
Our very friendly waitress announces there is a beef cheek special tonight. We ask how it's served but she's not sure and checks with chef. She returns to tell us that it's sous vide. We ask if it comes with a sauce? She checks again and returns to inform that it comes with salsa verde and truffle oil.
A little notepad inside each staff member's apron would not go astray. Specials should really be made to sound ... well, special.
Pasticcino alle alici are Ortiz anchovies on housemade duck fat pastry with compressed celery ($6 ea). These big fat salty anchovies are pretty special, and are hand-filleted on the north coast of Spain. They sit spiralled on the crumbly pastry to deliver a delicious taste bomb and start the party. If you don't like anchovies, you probably haven't tried these.
Crispy fried prosciutto croquettes ($10) have exceptional texture and a golden crunch to them. It suddenly doesn't feel like winter anymore.
Wagyu tartare cannoli, is fried potato cannolo with finely chopped wagyu beef with grated bottarga ($26). It's well executed, but my discussion with chef might get heated over the fact that it's not a true tartare. The texture is rather a fine paste, piped into the crispy potato casing. The flavours work, but whatever quality wagyu goes into this mix appears to be lost in translation, via the execution.
Melanzane di nonna Maria - lightly fried eggplants, black and white tahini and goat's cheese mousse ($18) screech onto the table next like a Lamborghini. Aesthetically stunning, the light and dark toned tahini dollops pop from the lightly fried eggplant slices, scattered with finely grated lemon rind and just a few tiny teardrops of chilli. It sounds like there is a lot going on here, but the addition of the goat's cheese mousse on the side takes it to another level. Double cheek kisses to nonna Maria for this one.
These dishes are all served on high-quality, mostly round plates where the cutlery doesn't bobsled into the middle and the food looks brilliant on them. Stemware is striking, including the Riedel winewings glasses which look exquisite. You can expect to drink out of these should you order an exceptional burgundy, barolo, brunello, or even a super Tuscan. Prices are high, but value can be found if you happen to be an astute oenophile.
Knowing that there is duck in flight, I go for a glass of 2018 Monsanto chianti classico, but it takes a good 10 minutes to arrive. The wine is mid-weight and carries notes of raspberry-like, lifted sangiovese fruit. It is delicious with the second half of my Anatra - roast duck, parsnip, lentils, amarena jus ($52). The two plump duck legs come in hot to the table and the classic base of braised lentils works a treat.
Ragu di coniglio is house-made farfalle with braised rabbit ragu and cavallo nero ($36 sml). The portion is generous for the entree size and the "bow tie" pasta is perfectly formed to hold the comforting rabbit ragu. It's probably more ragu than pasta, but the cute little sweety drop peppers pick it up with a pop that makes me wonder why we don't see more bunnies on menus around town.
Heirloom carrots come chargrilled with chestnut foam and labneh ($14) but they don't quite do it for us. The carrots are overly firm and the chestnut foam could do with more air.
Petit fours ($22) are well made, but not overly exciting. They include a rose water marshmallow, caramelised almond truffle, dark chocolate pistachio and a salted macadamia chocolate cluster. Pasticceria sbagliata ($16) is a fine concoction of sourdough gelato, honey-glazed breadcrumbs and home-made preserved nectarines. It is a beautiful dessert.
The house made icecream is luscious and intense, without being too sweet and the creative addition of tiny pink peppercorns scattered through the nectarines explode like mini bombs of delight.
We depart from our little mid-winter holiday at Brunello feeling content and relaxed. The second half of winter won't feel as brutal now.
Given the current price of airfares to both Majorca and the Amalfi, we shall no doubt book a return trip to Brunello in spring.
Brunello
Address: 222 City Walk, Canberra
Phone: 61520101
Website: brunello.com.au
Hours: Monday and Tuesday, 5.30-9.30pm; Wednesday to Saturday, lunch, noon til 2.30pm, dinner 5.30-9.30pm. Piatinni, drinks and Enomatic wine tasting, from noon Wednesday to Saturday.
Chef: Leonardo de Marchi Bueno
Noise: No problem
Dietary: Plenty of options
Score: 14.5/20
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