A class act at The Grain

It was a stunning meal tonight at The Grain in New Town, the previous Maypole pub. We couldn’t find one single thing to fault, except if you wanted to be mega picky you could say the Laksa was a bit too creamy/saucey and could have done to be a tad more watery, but that really is being picky as its flavour and contents were very good.

Chris, Naomi and I ate the most fabulous food tonight, and all agreed at the end of the meal that we couldn’t think of anywhere else in Hobart that we could have had a pub (or restaurant) meal of that standard, at that price. We all sampled each others food so we had a good cross section of the menu.

For entrees, Chris had the Laksa (above), and Rita had the Mushrooms with baked ricotta on harissa sauce – both around the $14 mark, and both great but we all agreed the mushrooms rocked.

I ordered the mushrooms (pictured below) on our waitress Camilla’s recommendation. Camilla is Karen Goodwin-Roberts’ daughter and also waitresses at Karen’s Taste café in the Bahai Centre. It was lovely having such a familiar person serving us at The Grain, and I like Camilla a lot anyway. Coincidentally, she explained us her brother was one of the chefs at The Grain too, so it really was a family affair there. She also said that (mum) Karen and husband Michael (fine food eaters from way back) eat there frequently and love it, so yet another fine advertisement for the food out there. In my book, if Karen Goodwin-Roberts loves the food, it genuinely is great.

For mains, Naomi had the Porterhouse Steak with mushroom sauce and assorted side sauces served separately (all of which were beautiful in their own right). Chris selected the Cape Grim Bolognese with house made pasta, and I had the Confit Duck with stacked potato and buttered spinach.

Naomi’s steak was perfectly cooked with a predominant chargrill-y flavour. It was gorgeous, and came with Christina’s controversial Potato Gratin, which we all tasted with much curiosity! We all agreed we liked it, but it wasn’t as good as the stacked potato which accompanied my duck.

Chris’ fettucine Bolognese was different, sweeter than you would expect, and equally beautiful.

My duck dish was perfect. Every component was faultless, and every mouthful to-die-for.

We ordered a Raspberry Crème Brulee with biscotti and house made vanilla bean ice cream – a nice dessert to finish off with but more for you guys with a less sweet tooth than Rita’s. The raspberry in the base of the brulee took the traditional sweetness from the dish, but the crunchy toffee top made you forget about that anyway.

Chris wanted a glass of sticky to finish off with but they didn’t do stickies by the glass, so he ordered a Galway Pipe Port, after pooh-poohing the waiter’s suggestion of a Pedro Ximenez sherry. Said waiter bought the Galway but accompanied this with a half glass of the sherry, to prove his claim about it being a superior sherry and not your traditional old woman’s sherry. Chris had to eat his words after he tried it. Both he and Naomi loved it, and were appreciative of the waiter doing that.

I could rave about this place till the cows come home, but will resist. I was truly, genuinely impressed with everything there – the fitout, the service, the menu, the food, the ambience – everything. It was fabulous and you’re a mug if you don’t go there and eat. I can see why so many people whose opinions I respect have told me to go there.