The newest eatery to open at the Kingston shops, is Onzieme, headed by Louis Couttoupes who had a pop-up a few doors down. I dined there with a friend for dinner and the earliest that they could fit us in was a Wednesday evening. Weekends were solidly booked out for the next few weeks.
It’s a nice cosy bistro-style setting inside. I’m completely taken aback when I’m led past the seating area and kitchen, and down the stairs to the basement level where there are more tables and a small bar. I didn’t even realise there was a basement level – the previous cafe that was here for years must have used it for storage. It’s surprisingly well-lit for a basement (great for photos!).
Dinner is a $60 prix fixe with 6 share plates. There are 4 dishes to choose from on a chalkboard separated into entrees, sides and mains, where we could pick 2 from each category to share. We also added another side and dessert to share.
Both entrees arrived on the same plate – lamb skewers with chilli oil and silver trevally with umeshu and lemon myrtle. The trevally was my favourite out of the two. Served diced up on a cracker ceviche style – so fresh and light, with a nice sweet and sour from the umeshu.
The octopus with mojo verde and garlic was my favourite of the mains. I love a perfectly cooked octopus that isn’t rubbery, and still has a slight bouncy texture. This was a good light summery seafood dish.
The simple dish of beets with macadamia cream and dukkah was outstanding. The beets are clearly the hero of the dish, the perfect texture, light and easy to eat.
The duck with sour plums and beet leaves isn’t particularly easy to share as a share plate. I’m not big on sour foods, so I didn’t particularly like these flavours. The duck is tender and there were plenty of greens on the plate.
The half broccoli head with smoked oyster cream and pangrattato had a slight smokiness and char. It paired well the cream, with crunch from the pangrattato elevating it to something better than I can do at home.
The potato galette ($12) with aioli is made with several thinly sliced potatoes layered on top of each other, then cut into chunky pieces. Deep fried and crispy, this would make the perfect snack food (like chips!)
Dessert is a chocolate ganache, whey caramel and sorchum ($12). I didn’t realise that it would literally be a scoop of ganache. While it was a darn good ganache, I needed something extra, like a bit of sponge or biscuit in the dessert to satisfy me.
The vibe between upstairs and downstairs seems quite different – you’ve got cosy and dark upstairs, and minimalist and well-lit downstairs. If you want a particular ambiance, best you give your preference when making a reservation. Portion sizes are small. If we hadn’t ordered the extra side dish and dessert, I don’t think the prix fixe would have been enough to satisfy my hunger. However, the ingredients are fresh, in-season, and complement everything else on the plate. I like that the menu changes regularly (daily?) so there’ll be something different each visit.
Onzieme is not trying to be upmarket with formal uniforms and menus, instead staff are casual cool in jeans, the bistro is relaxed, and the food speaks for itself.
Onzieme
35 Kennedy St, Kingston
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