Local News: Spice Temple

Sugar and spice and almost all things just right.

It’s not all brightness and lights on the ‘bank. Yes, the majority of Southbank restaurants choose to capitalise on their riverbank frontage, with floor to ceiling (often retractable) windows and plenty of alfresco tables. But who says you can’t do dark and mysterious in the midst of shiny and bright and come up with something so hot it’s cool?

Not Neil Perry, that’s for sure.

There’s been a lot of talk about Perry’s latest Southbank venture Spice Temple – and for good reason. The “modern Chinese” menu is nothing short of spectacular, but I have to admit to being thrown when walking from the hustle and bustle of Southgate in summer, into the dark and muted den of the “temple”. Experiencing an Alice-in-Wonderland-type moment where I felt as though time slipped from 7pm to 2am in the time it took to approach reception, I had to literally feel my way along the walls and down a stairwell to the bathroom while I stopped and waited for my eyes to adjust – and I’m not sure they ever fully did.

Yet, like the best of movies, I’m still thinking about the originality and boldness of the design a week later – the way each table had its own drop-down spotlight, sitting barely noticed above diners’ heads, ensuring one thing at least was clearly visible – the food.

Ahhh … the food. You won’t find much in the way of the traditional Cantonese style on this menu, but I don’t want to dwell on its origins a second longer. I just want to talk about how good it is.

Designed to share, the dishes are split into small and large plates, with one of each recommended per person. If you need to sample more than that (which I’m guessing many do), the banquet at $69 a head also looked to be pretty good value.

We opted for the individual dishes, starting with the Guangxi-style roast pork belly with tofu, coriander, peanuts, red onion and sesame seeds ($16). Consisting of four bite-sized pieces cooked to perfection – crispy on top, silky in-between and slightly chewy at the base – a smokiness permeated throughout while the condiments danced a tango on the tongue, as both flavour and texture fought to lead.

Six generous king prawn wontons followed ($18), resting in a sweet-yet-sharp aged black vinegar, some tiny fresh chillies on top, elevating the dish to one of the menu’s hottest.

A larger plate of Dong’an chicken ($29) contained a little too much skin for my liking, with the chicken itself sufficiently sweet, silky and juicy. The fruitiness of the ginger was kept in check by the Sichuan pepper so the extra skin was easy enough to dodge.

The star of the night was easily the stir-fried wagyu brisket, with baby eggplant and fresh chilli ($39). This proved yet again that I do love my fat, just as long as I can’t see it. The brisket had been cooked down to a melt-in-the-mouth almost creamy consistency that, when combined with the eggplant, tasted like soft golden butter.

From the elegant wine list of 100 wines, I chose one perfect glass – the “off dry” Grosset Riesling from Clare Valley ($13) – I think produced with Asian food in mind.

And somehow – there was still room for dessert. The brown sugar, banana and white chocolate Swiss roll ($10) was sampled more out of curiosity than desire, but again I was impressed by how such a perfect balance of fruity, sweet and savoury even made its way into dessert.

My only complaint? That damn “tables-for-two-nudged-so-close-it’s-four” syndrome. Lucky I was too busy eating to talk – we just sat back, ate, drank and eavesdropped on the couple two millimetres away. Whatever – both food and conversation were way better than anything I’d ever get at home.

Location: Base of Crown complex, next to Rockpool (enter via Crown or off Southbank Promenade).