My husband and I are celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary this year. It has been a journey but a really good one. And like we always do, we decided to celebrate our wedding anniversary at Bentley’s. Well, we weren’t going back to The Gantry, that’s for sure. If you want to know why, here’s my review of the place.
One thing we decided to do differently this time round though is that we went for premium wine matching. Yes, it was extra money but how many times do you celebrate your 15th anniversary?
So, let’s talk about the food, shall we? Here’s the current vegetarian tasting menu:
Current Vegetarian Tasting Menu
Sugar Loaf Cabbage + Kohlrabi + Desert Lime + Cucumber
Heirloom Cauliflower + Lemon Aspen + Pistachio
Salt Baked Celeriac + Shiitake + Salt Bush
Broad Beans + Broccolini + Kelp Butter
Sweet Corn + Job’s Tears + Pickled Golden Beetroot
Jerusalem Artichoke + Bayleaf + Burnt Pear
Yoghurt + Mandarin + Parsley
Sake Lees Ice Cream + Tonka + Macerated Strawberry
$130 + matching wine $90
Premium wine match $150
Non-alcoholic match $60
The night started with some complementary nibbles and bread and butter. I am so happy that they still make these guys. I absolutely love them and this time the photos are better, too.
Sugar Loaf Cabbage + Kohlrabi + Desert Lime + Cucumber (below)
First course of the night had this incredibly fresh—almost Thai—flavours even though the dish is made with native Australian ingredients. It was crunchy with its kohlrabi and cucumber filling and a blanket of sugar loaf cabbage on top, not to mention the desert lime underneath all of that. What a refreshing start!
Because it was our wedding anniversary and they knew it, our sommelier for the night, Chiara, matched this dish with a glass of champagne (NV Gosset) instead of whatever they had on the premium wine pairing list. It was incredibly light and refreshing with an interesting nose and citrus on the finish. It was dry yet not yeasty at all. A very good match, I have to say.
Heirloom Cauliflower + Lemon Aspen + Pistachio (below)
The second beauty of the night. The flavours of Heirloom Cauliflower + Lemon Aspen + Pistachio were very well balanced. You could taste the raw, natural state of vegetables. And it was matched with a white burgundy made by a natural wine producer from France. It was quite intriguing because we had to take some time to define this wine. Here’s the verdict: it is savoury, it almost evaporates, there is a hint of sweetness on the nose, not tart; almost cherry-like with beautiful acid balance and a subtle mushroom or woodiness. I could be wrong with the mushroom part but I absolutely loved it!
Salt Baked Celeriac + Shiitake + Salt Bush (below)
The whole dish had all the textures in one go like, creamy, crunchy, tart, soft, chewy and leafy or you may say herbaceous. Shiitake mushrooms were cooked to perfection; they were soft, a little bit of the chewiness was retained but they were not rubbery. Celeriac was crunchy (I love the way they roll them up), buttermilk sauce at the bottom of the dish was creamy and quite tangy. Celeriac leaves on top just freshened the whole thing. Just beautiful. And this beauty was matched with an orange wine: Matassa Cuvee Marguerite. This was an exceptional wine. It was citrusy, peachy and tarty with a funky nose and fruity yet dry/astringent finish. Again, exceptional match.
Broad Beans + Broccolini + Kelp Butter (below)
I love the fact that this dish was made with fresh broad beans. Dried beans are always more floury and starchy so there is a huge difference. My husband is not a huge fan of broad beans but the fresh ones are always a different story. As in this dish, broad beans are in a green, creamy base (kelp butter) and I could taste some kind of aniseed somewhere but I could be wrong. The dish was paired with a glass of natural, organic Montenidoli Vernaccia from Tuscany. We thought it was an unusual wine with spritzy, dry, light and fresh notes. It had a big, savoury nose but not heavy.
Sweet Corn + Job’s Tears + Pickled Golden Beetroot (below)
The crunchy texture of job’s tears in a soft, creamy environment creates a surprising contrast in this dish. Not to forget the tangy crunchiness of pickled golden beetroot. I also noticed some çağla in the mix which is unripe almonds. We add them to our fruit platters back in Turkey. I love their fuzzy green skins. The dish was paired with a glass of gamay (Descombes Brouilly) which was the first red of the evening.
Jerusalem Artichoke + Bayleaf + Burnt Pear (below)
I absolutely love the way they do their Jerusalem artichokes at Bentley’s. There is a raw egg yolk in the middle of that parcel you see in the photo, guys. It sits on top of a bed of pureed Jerusalem artichoke and when you cut it, the yolk oozes out nicely. Pear sticks, when you bite into them, are like unexpected doves being released during an already pleasant event. As for the wine pairing, the dish was paired with a glass of savoury Nebbiolo (Barbaresco Fletcher). Flavours just work together at Bentley’s.
Yoghurt + Mandarin + Parsley (below)
This was the first dessert of the night and it was one citrusy, creamy and herbaceous dessert. As for the wine: it was paired with a glass of Spatlese Clemens Busch. The dessert wine was shy initially but it opened up nicely. When it did, it was fruity with well-balanced sweetness and a long-lasting finish.
Sake Lees Ice Cream + Tonka + Macerated Strawberry (below)
The second dessert of the night was absolutely divine and it was paired with a glass of stunning Domaine Pichot Moureaux. However, that wasn’t it for the night: we got this plate with “Happy Anniversary” written on it and it came with more divine nibbles.
Thank Yous
Thank you, Chiara, our sommelier for the night. Your knowledge and experience in wine is spectacular; it was one of the best wine pairings we have ever experienced. And also, thank you for writing down the wines on my menu so that this review would happen.
Thank you, Max, for great service and your hospitality. Enjoy the rest of your time in Australia.
And lastly, thank you ‘Team Bentley’ for making our wedding anniversary celebration so special. You are fantastic food artists!