Ramblr
Thanks to a recommendation from a foodie chef Johann he knows that we love creative fusion food, here we are at Ramblr on Chapel Street. It is difficult to categorise the type of cuisine that Ramblr falls into - Modern Asian fusion or simply the unique Melburnian fusion? Chef Nick Stanton incorporating French cooking techniques with the use of Japanese, Chinese and Korean ingredients. The resulting dishes are delicious East meets West fusion cuisine no doubt.
Such a discrete facade of Ramblr which we nearly walked past without noticing the tiny engraving on the door handle. A long and narrow restaurant filled with dim light and the smell of delicious food from the open kitchen that's the first impression as we stepped in. The atmosphere is cosy and warm while upbeat music playing in the air.
The one-page menu has a good selection of creative fusion dishes to keep the meat eaters, pescetarian or vegetarian happy.
Here is the selection of dishes we chose for the dinner date.
Raw Kingfish, white balsamic pickled daikon, burnt butter & prawn oil vinaigrette - Kingfish sashimi or crudo is very popular amongst Melbourne restaurants. This combination of pickled daikon, burnt butter and prawn oil vinaigrette is unexpectedly exciting to the taste buds. Love the intense tangy, fishy and buttery flavours. I have to admit, it is a novelty of eating the white balsamic pickled daikon.
Sticky eggplant, shiitake & black bean sauce, sweet corn veloute, basil - this is a new twist of the traditional miso glaze grilled eggplant. The use of thinly sliced shiitake added the extra texture to the soft eggplant. Who could think of the marriage of Chinese black bean sauce with the French classic veloute sauce? Definitely a happy marriage of deliciousness! The presentation is beautiful with the crispy green basil instead of nori.
Ray's Bream seared on charcoal, burnt butter & miso bearnaise, pickled apple, fries - the grilled bream fillet is so tender. Again love the new fusion bearnaise sauce with miso. The pickled apple added the tangy flavour and texture to the dish. A very enjoyable poisson et frites.
Crab noodles, master stock, garlic butter, bottarga - the house-made fresh noodles served with soft crab meat in the utterly delicious seafood bisque. The deliciousness doesn't end here... topped with grated bottarga. Voila! What a bowl of noodles with all the complex flavours. Amazing dish!
Shio koji egg custard brulee - this is an interesting dessert. The use of shio koji infused the lightly saltiness and savoury taste to the sweet vanilla egg custard. Shio koji is traditionally a natural Japanese seasoning used in seafood and meat dishes. The incorporation of saltiness and sweetness in this dessert is well-balanced. The soft egg custard is topped with the contrasting layer of hardened caramelised sugar. Another new creation of the French classic creme brulee which I really enjoyed.
Pear tart tatin, vanilla ice cream - always so excited to see tart tatin on the menu. Served straight out of the oven on the pan, rustic pastry topped with caramelised soft pear and vanilla ice-cream. Oh Yes, Heavenly delicious! We don't need to say more... just keep eating!
The one-page wine list at Ramblr has an interesting selection of wines from Australia and continental Europe - France, Italy, Spain & Germany. We chose a bottle of red from Sicily - Cos Frappato 2016. We never tried the grape frappato before. This red has the aromas of cherry, raspberry and orange peel. It is smooth, well balanced, red fruit notes with light spices and has a lengthy finish. Nice vino!
My favourite savoury - Crab noodles, master stock, garlic butter, bottarga
My favourite dessert - Pear tart tatin, vanilla ice cream
The cosy table for two at the corner - moody lighting for a perfect romantic dinner.
The open kitchen with bar sitting - you can see all the kitchen rules by the masterchefs.
If you a fan of modern fusion food and love the adventurous flavours then Ramblr certainly is a must-try for you. Chef Nick Stanton incorporating his experienced French cooking techniques with the East Asian ingredients in creating his unique dishes. One of the very exciting meals we have so far this year. We will return soon to try other dishes and be ready to tantalise our taste buds again. Hope you will enjoy the delicious food as much as we do at Ramblr. Bon appetit!
Ramblr
363 Chapel St, South Yarra VIC 3141
(03) 9827 0949
