Since my first visit to The Rum Bar at the Kingston Foreshore, I’ve been back a few times for drinks and tapas with friends. When I heard that 2 for 1 Tapas had been introduced on Tuesday nights (Toofer Tuesdays), and there was a new chef AND a new summer menu, I couldn’t wait to try it out. I pretty much forced my partner to go with me before his Tuesday trivia night, as you do.
The one page menu splits the tapas into three categories – ‘designed for one’, ‘to share’, and ‘dessert’. We only had about an hour to eat before heading to trivia (otherwise I probably would’ve tried more items on the menu; gluttony is my nemesis). Orders are taken and paid for at the bar. From the ‘designed for one’ list, we ordered a mini lamb kebab, chicken skin, chicken vols-au-vent and the spicy fried school prawns. The first three came out together on one long slate platter.
The mini lamb kebab (usually $6) is served with a nice thick juicy piece of lamb, hummus, tabouli, yoghurt and harissa. Big enough for a few yummy mouthfuls, there was lots of flavour in this little kebab.
Spicy fried school prawns served with aioli ($7) are deep fried whole – eyes, tails and all. You are meant to pop the whole thing in your mouth but I took the head off first. The prawns are tiny but crunchy and I loved the spicy seasoning on them. If you shut your eyes, they’re kind of like spicy prawn chips. My partner did not like these very much (more for me!).
The chicken skin with bacon jam and mascarpone (usually $4) were literally crunchy pieces of skin. Served at room temperature, this was surprisingly tasty with both the bacon jam and mascarpone. A different take to chips with sour cream and sweet chilli maybe?
The chicken vols-au-vent (usually $6) had candied carrots (?) on top and soft creamy chicken hidden inside the pastry casing. This was a neat little parcel like a mini chicken pie.
From the ‘to share’ list, we chose the flank steak with potato and horseradish foam, poached egg and potato crisps (usually $18). This was a superb dish. The steak was cooked medium rare, just the way I like it. Tender and full of flavour. We broke the perfectly poached egg and let it mix in with everything else. I couldn’t taste much of the horseradish foam (I was expecting wasabi-like spice) but the potato mash was airily light and buttery. A more sophisticated take on your regular steak and mash with crunchy potato crisps. Yum!
The pork belly with pumpkin, walnuts and ricotta salata (usually $18) really popped against the grey platter. Soft pork belly with very crispy crackling on top. I liked the different textures of pumpkin – from the puree, pickled slices and seeds that added to this dish. Pork belly and pumpkin is such a good pairing.
Then for dessert, I chose the chocolate collar filled with chocolate cake, vanilla rum mousse and raspberries (usually $14). It took about half an hour for this to come out and I think it’s because our order was lost. Wrapped inside the thin sheet of pastry is the mousse and a layer of chocolate cake on the bottom. It also comes with a bit of coffee rum on the side which was very strong on its own but okay when mixed with the mousse. The fresh raspberries were a lovely touch but very sour and there didn’t seem to be enough sweetness to balance everything out. Not my favourite dessert but it was presented beautifully.
The mini cheesecake with shortbread crumbs, coffee rum puree, mandarin and salted caramel popcorn (usually $14) was nicely presented as a deconstructed version. I was happy that the cheesecake didn’t taste cheesy, rather more like vanilla mousse. A blob of the same coffee puree lies on the plate which I found works very well layered thinly on top of the cheesecake, turning it into a coffee cheesecake. My favourite part was the salted caramel popcorn – crunchy, salty and sweet. A very simple and minimal dessert but not something I’d likely order again.
Overall, I enjoyed the tapas at The Rum Bar, especially the flank steak which I could easily order again. I’m definitely making another trip to try out the other ‘to share’ items on the menu like the tortellini and the cheese fondue. The vanilla brulee with quinoa wafers and spiced rum pineapple sounds pretty good too.
Toofer Tuesdays is available Tuesday nights only. Great value for money!
Foodgasm 7/10
Price 10/10
Service 7/10
FPJ score 24/30
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