Aubergine/Andreotti's
Chef Chris Black, who spent his youth cooking and backpacking his way around Australia, is at the helm of this modern venue with clean lines and simple décor, taking good food way beyond the traditional rack of lamb or fillet en croute.
Black also likes to have some fun with his food. It’s a short, seasonal menu that changes often as he experiments with new textures, flavours and ideas. His kitchen takes what’s new in the shops, tries it, plays around with it, and produces dishes that will keep regulars coming back, but to try something new. It was these twists of fresh flavours that saw him scoop national honours in WINE magazine’s dine restaurant guide.
Think of spiced beef tartare with caperberries, mayo and toast, or charred calamari, sweet peppers, toasted peanuts and Nahm Jim dressing, or a prawn, smoked tomato and basil risotto with shellfish emulsion. On this occasion, McKeown went for the warm gorgonzola tart with caramelised onions, roasted aubergines and thyme. He enthused.
I set the kitchen a challenge with the twicebaked goasts cheese soufflé with apple and candied nut salad. The challenge was whether it could beat housekeeper Elsie Ngcobo’s heavenly sky-high creation with its texture of almost moist aerated scrambled egg. It’s an unfair comparison. It’s cooked in her own kitchen without the pressure of banks of sauce chefs slaving over hundreds of orders on a busy Tuesday night. Change the bowl, the oven or the kitchen and poor Elsie would probably be at sixes and sevens.
Well, this might not have been quite as light as hers, but it was very, very good, with an incredible depth of flavour that came from the use of the Midlands’ best goat’s cheese. And the salad was inspired, cutting through the almost obscene richness of the soufflé. Delicious.
Mains had McKeown talking about the pick of the evening. His char-grilled escalopes of veal cooked to perfection, blushing pink inside, in an intensely flavoured mushroom spinach and sage sauce. And there was enough for his meal the next night.
I passed on the slow braised lamb shank, not being a fan of the polenta accompaniment, but deboned quail stuffed with cous cous, pistachios, pine nuts and raisins with a quail liver spring roll certainly tempted. And roasted duck with a traditional cinnamon and orange sauce was flying out the kitchen.
Instead a take on fish curry found my fancy. This was an intricate medley of onion, chilli and tomato salsa, fish rubbed in all the warm spices like cardamom, cumin and cinnamon, coconut milk and tweeked with garam masala. There were at least 14 different spices that really complemented simply poached Red Roman. A heart-warming dish.
The humble panna cotta is the most underrated dessert. After a rich meal it slides down effortlessly. Livened up with a fruit compote it is a perfect end to a meal. “Like mother’s blancmange on a good day,” McKeown quips.
Well, his honey and rosemary variety served with tart stewed plums definitely got the nod He demanded the recipe. There’s also a liquid-centred chocolate pudding with pecan nut brittle that sounded good, while Frangelico and chocolate bread and butter puddings sounded decadent but undoable.
My warm pear and ginger creation with a toffee caramel sauce was the only mild quibble of the evening. A shade dry, the flavours didn’t blend. A selection of ice-creams and the crème brûlée completed the picture. You couldn’t eat out in Durban without it. The coffee’s good and worth ordering for the choc biscuits.
The winelist is substantial and its connoisseur collection takes in some of South Africa’s best and many of the wines less travelled. Black avoids the big co-op winelist in favour of the boutiques, offering wines customers might like to try out; wines that they might choose first and then pair with his cooking.
There are some luminaries like most of the Springfield range, and some French bubbly, Spanish whites and new-style dry rosé wines. But also some surprises. Wine by the glass is limited, but there’s a good selection of brandies and liqueurs.
Average cost of a three-course meal without wine: R175.
By Frank Chemaly
Address: 20 HILLCREST CENTRE, OLD MAIN
ROAD, HILLCREST, DURBAN
Tel: (031) 765-6050
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