Taking over a space formerly occupied by a much-loved icon was always going to be tricky. What stays? What changes? Annoying a few former regulars is inevitable but, if the packed house and a queue forming most nights are anything to go by, Bar Carnation’s refashioning of the former Gerald’s Bar has been met with unambiguous approval.
And so it should.
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The dining room at Bar Carnation shares the same rustic DNA as Carnation Canteen. (Credit: Coco and Maximilian).
Sleeker and more minimal than its predecessor, Bar Carnation has swapped charming clutter for a pared-back palette of dark timber panelling, sculptural light features and space-expanding mirrors. This might initially read as austere but Audrey Shaw, owner, chef and former architect, has already demonstrated her skill at imbuing pared-back spaces with warmth and buzz at her Fitzroy restaurant Carnation Canteen.
While the changes are most noticeable – including turning the backroom into a bottle shop with a tasting table and fridges stocked with bottles from the well-priced, Italian-leaning wine list – Shaw also embraces the familiar, most notably by retaining the same bar, opening hours and well-trafficked smoking area. It’s a deft balancing act of old and new.
Vitello Tonnato features paper thin slices of pink poached girello with tuna mayonnaise and fried capers. (Credit: Coco and Maximilian).
The menu is similarly well-balanced and familiar, a short, sharp collection of skilfully cooked Euro-bistro hits. It lists a textbook, blushing vitello tonnato, oysters (perhaps scintillatingly briny numbers from southern WA) and a trio of fat and juicy meatballs –two poached, one fried – with lightly charred ciabatta emphatically doused in garlic and parsley butter and good enough to attract a cult following. Steak frites makes use of Cape Grim bavette with Diane sauce, punchy with white, black and green peppercorns, and superb, skin-on, hand-cut, double-fried chips.
The plan is for the menu to remain largely static, but with changes as ingredients go in or out of season. Pasta of the day, for example, is a stalwart. In the warmer months that might be sauced with a vibrant River Café-based recipe of yellow peppers, basil, garlic and a smidge of cream that’s heaped with crunchy pangrattato, while in cooler weather it may get swapped out for a seasonally appropriate combo of garlicky cavolo nero, olive oil, lemon zest and parmesan.
Pull up a stool at the bar. (Credit: Coco and Maximilian)
Carnation’s version of fritto misto changes too, driven by the fishmonger’s recommendations. It might include lacily battered flathead fillets or scallops, but will always be teamed with surprisingly addictive battered and fried half-moon slices of lemon.
An intensely satisfying chocolate mousse, on the other hand, needs no adjusting. Dense and intense, it’s made with dairy-free dark chocolate, finished with olive oil and salt flakes and may inspire cult-like devotion.
Add notably excellent service from a calm and personable team, and Bar Carnation becomes the kind of neighbourhood watering hole that dreams are made of. Little wonder there’s a queue.
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Photo: Coco and Maximilian
