Citigate Perth; 707 Wellington St, Perth
Ph: (08) 9327 7032
www.starwoodhotels.com
Style, atmosphere and value
Looking for a dining experience with style and sophistication without costing an arm and a leg? Encore Restaurant and West End Bar may just have what you’re looking for. On the ground floor of the Citigate Perth hotel on Wellington Street in the CBD, Encore and West End offer an array of choices for the corporate crowd and discerning diners alike.
Hotel bars and restaurants have been seeing a resurgence in popularity in recent years; what was once considered expensive and stuffy is now attracting a more stylish, sophisticated and money-conscious crowd. “There is a misconception about hotel dining,” said Citigate’s General Manager Gail Deary. “Our fare is up there with the best local restaurants with better value for money”. With entrees ranging from $7 – $29 and mains from $25 – $49, Encore Restaurant is indeed comparable with other CBD restaurants.
For weekday lunches West End Bar is a popular choice, offering meals for $15 or less and coffee and cake specials for $6. “That’s our focus (value for money) as well as providing consistency of quality and service,” says new Food and Beverage Manager Harry Francis.
On our visit we sampled two entrees: fresh and plump Coffin Bay oysters, available by the ½ dozen or dozen, served natural or Kilpatrick and ‘Risotto with prawns’ served with baby spinach, cherry tomatoes, saffron, cream and parmesan.
Mains were a real highlight with well-balanced flavours, generous serves and plenty of choice. For pork lovers the succulent and meaty ‘Crispy skin oven-roasted pork belly’ with apple barbeque jus and fresh coleslaw is a great choice. Our ‘Fish of the day’ was pan-fried salmon served on a pumpkin puree, French-style herb and garlic eggplant with a cream and lemon foam. This was a delicious dish. The ‘Lamb rack’, with crispy oven-baked baby potato and sweet roasted pumpkin on beetroot, greek yoghurt and peppercorn sauces was tender and beautifully marinated.
If you’re looking for something to drink, the Dean De Bortoli Vat 9 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, a dry full-bodied red, complemented the pork, salmon and lamb nicely but was also an easy drinking wine.
Believe it or not, one of the most popular dishes is unconventionally the ‘White wine tripe’ served with vegetable julienne and buttered potato. The dish is a big favourite with the resources crowd. Another popular dish and a carnivore’s delight is the 450g ‘Porterhouse steak’ which just “walks out the door” according to Harry.
If you have a craving for something sweet the desserts ($9.50 – $15) are to die for. We sampled the ‘Peanut parfait ice cream’ with sweet bitter handmade chocolate truffles and butterscotch sauce, and ‘Orange panna cotta’ with glazed rhubarb and almond croccante. Both came artistically presented in martini glasses. The taste definitely matched the presentation and would be an ideal treat with afterwork drinks or afternoon coffee.
Encore Restaurant and West End Bar cater various food and beverage events including corporate and private functions as well as special-event dining on Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. Harry is also in the process of organising Martini Master Classes and other exciting events so watch this space.
West End Bar is open Monday to Friday 11am till late and weekends from 4pm. Encore Restaurant serves breakfast from 6.30am – 10am (7am till 10.30 on weekends), lunch from 11am till 3pm and dinner 6pm – 9pm. So there are plenty of ways to sit back, relax and enjoy good quality food and drink at anytime of the day or night.
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By Lauren Norton
