A few weeks ago, my friend organised a group dinner at Temporada for a Monday night. I always hear good things about Temporada and hadn’t been back since it first opened so I was really excited to try it out again. As we were seated and waiting for others to arrive, drink orders were taken. I asked if they made mocktails and our waiter told us they could certainly create one for me. I asked for a berry-like mocktail and out came a delicious strawberry and muddled berry drink. One of the better mocktails I’ve had! I think it was about $10 but can’t remember exactly.
Some house made sourdough with cultured butter was ordered ($2.50). Yum!
I started with the zucchini flower with spanner crab and lemon ($9). I was a little disappointed at how tiny it was, and it doesn’t help that I now measure everything to Soju Girl’s enormous stuffed zucchini flowers. The zucchini flower slid off the wooden plank it was served on onto the table and our waiter placed it back on. Two second rule. I could taste some delicious crab in a creamy sauce but wished there was more of it.
J ordered the marinated olives ($8) and was happy he didn’t have to share with me since I don’t like olives.
Everything is designed to be shared at Temporada but everyone decided to have their own mains. A few of us chose the roasted duck breast, grilled corn and miso emulsion ($32). The duck was cooked perfectly with a beautiful shade of pink and was so easy to chew. The juicy corn worked well providing some natural sweetness to the dish. I felt like there was a bit too much creaminess and there could have been another item on the dish, maybe another vegetable, but I’d go back for that perfectly cooked duck in a heartbeat.
J and another friend both ordered the BBQ mackerel, gazpacho, basil and tomatoes ($20). Great colours on the plate! However, we thought the mackerel was over-barbequed and the charcoal taste ruined the flavour of the mackerel. J certainly didn’t like it.
The wood fired wagyu rump cap with horseradish minus the roasted beetroot ($38) looked fantastic with juicy slices of pink wagyu.
A friend ordered the braised pork belly with mushrooms and black garlic ($28) which looked so pretty on the plate.
Another ordered the herb and garlic gnocchi, pepita cream and zucchini ($26).
A side of fennel and herb salad ($9) was also ordered which looked fresh and crunchy.
After we had finished our mains, I noticed that J had turned a bright sunburnt shade of red and wasn’t feeling well so he left dinner early. He ended up having food poisoning from the mackerel as well as my other friend at the table who ordered the same thing. I immediately rang the restaurant to let them know in case anyone else in the restaurant ordered the dish. So it was not a good night for the mackerel. The restaurant staff were apologetic and J did get his money back after recovering and visiting the restaurant manager. Other than that, everyone except the mackerel eaters seemed to have enjoyed their meals. I would definitely go back for that duck but I might just stay away from the seafood for the time being, though this did take place a few weeks ago.
On a Monday night, noise levels were low. Service was efficient with our orders taken promptly, tap water refilled, and a short wait time on food. A breakfast service was recently introduced but only available weekdays so I haven’t had a chance to check it out yet.
Temporada is located at 15 Moore Street in Civic, and is open Monday to Friday for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and Saturdays for dinner only.
Foodgasm 6/10
Value for money 6/10
Service 8/10
FPJ score 20/30
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