1 Penny Red, Summer Hill, Wednesday 1 May 2019

The members were in for a treat at the well known Summer Hill restaurant, 1 Penny Red, who opened especially for our May lunch. The numbers attending reflected the good reviews of this restaurant, 36 in total which included 9 guests.
On arrival the aperitif was a 2014 Albert Mann Cremant from Alsace – a blend of pinot blanc and pinot gris.

Aperitif

This starter set the tone for the lunch. The Cremant’s bubbles were fine and delicate and citrus fruit notes were detected from a well balanced wine.

The three entrees were :

Pepper berry cured hiramasa kingfish, new season kanzi apple, shiso
Vitello Tonnato – poached veal, confit tuna, lemon, caper, anchovy
Kabocha squash, stracciatella, sorrel, marjoram, quinoa dukkah

Cured hiramasa kingfish

Vitello Tonnato

Grilled Kabocha squash

These entrees were served with three interesting wines :
2017 Nick Spencer Gruner Veltliner, Tumbarumba NSW
2017 Thymiopoulos atma Malagousia, Xinomavro, Noussa, Greece
2018 Schmolzer & Brown pret-a-rose Sangio & Pinot Beechworth Victoria
The three entrees all rated fairly highly. The kingfish was a delicate dish and the addition of the sweet seasonal kanzi apple and shiso matched well.
The veal in the vitello tonnato was cooked to perfection at the right temperature to maintain the rareness of the meat.
The squash had plenty of flavour with good spice from the dukkah and fresh cheese garnish.
The Greek wine was the more favoured of the three as it presented with more depth of flavour than the Gruner Veltliner which was considered too young and the Rose was on the bland side.

The main dish was:
Wood roasted Thirlmere free range Chicken, oregano, charred corn served with a side of crispy spiced salt potatoes

Platter of wood roasted chicken

Crispy spiced salt potatoes

The chicken dish was served as a reasonably dry dish and a comment was that it needed more sauce, although the meat was very tender with a delicate smoke flavour. A few comments on why not some green vegetables with the main dish ? The crispy potatoes were a hit amongst all. They had been cooked twice to retain crispness even when cold.
The matching wine was a 2017 Telmo Rodriguez LZ Tempranillo, Rioja Spain
This Tempranillo matched perfectly being unoaked, flavours of fresh fruit, herbs and dusty tannins.
We were fortunate to have two desserts to finish off the meal :
Banana & salted caramel beignets, chocolate fudge sauce
Quince and French paste tart

Banana Beignets

Quince and French paste tart

The Banana Beignets were rich and decadent and the Quince tart base had too much short crust pastry and appeared too thick.
The desserts rated overall very acceptable.
All agreed the restaurant served a high standard of fresh produce presented superbly with unobtrusive service and wines matched well.
Let were a lot of comments “I will return” which is what restaurants want to hear.
The three owners talked to us about their responsibilities, the character and endeavour of the restaurant, the produce and the wine.
It was evident they are keen foodies and wine buffs.