20 John Wilkie Tarn, Hillarys
Ph: (08) 6285 5260
www.hillarysbeachclub.com.au
Indian Ocean Gastronomy
We could not have picked a better day to eat at Hillarys Beach Club. The weather warm and sunny with a gentle sea breeze, the Fremantle Doctor, making its nurturing presence known. The location features several eating venues including The Heart located upstairs and Bar Cicchetti on the ground floor.
On our visit, we headed upstairs to the Heart which offers lunch and dinner. At the top of the stairs, you pause momentarily, as your eyes are drawn to the clear views of the Indian Ocean. The Heart’s décor features parquetry flooring, some cultured stone, different styles of seating, quirky mirror balls, and art deco ceiling fixtures and lamps. The crowd of diners are as eclectic as the décor, some straight from the beach, business people entertaining, multi-generational family gatherings or people just enjoying a quiet drink with friends. You get a feeling that the intent behind the Heart, first and foremost, is to make diners feel welcome.
The team at Hillarys Beach Club promote the Heart as ‘a contemporary twist on a classic English restaurant and pub experience’, but it is so much more than that. Glancing through the menu, you note English pub and Italian classics, alongside Japanese fusion and contemporary dishes based on our abundance and variety of delicious, fresh West Australian produce prepping the taste buds well for eating.
The first dish we tried was Kingfish Crudo served with a yuzu soy dressing, jalapeno and coriander. The Kingfish was thinly sliced with freshness apparent as it fell apart on your tongue. The citrus saltiness of the dressing was a good accompaniment while the jalapeno and coriander provided the heat and herbaceous dimensions to the dish.
Our next dish was Mini Australian Lobster Tacos featuring Broome slipper lobsters. The lobster meat was blended with a spicy creamy mayo, fennel, coriander and served in a lightly puffed taco shell. The togarashi spice topping added extra savoury pop to the dish. It is easy to see why this is one of their most popular dishes; I could have easily smashed down several without pause.
Both dishes came from the Hillarys Beach Club Japanese inspired Ubon menu and were appropriately matched with indulgent Laurent-Perrier La Cuvee Brut NV Champagne from the Champagne Region in France. The chardonnay content of the champagne lends creamy white peach aromas and taste across the palate, and finishes with crisp lemon zest which paired well with the seafood.
We next tried the Market Fish which is served with a sweetcorn velouté and a fresh seasonal salad. Heart’s Head Chef, Naveen Kumar, personally designed this dish and it was a showstopper with fresh Goldband Snapper from Shark Bay. The snapper was cooked perfectly to bring out its natural sweetness, flesh flaking apart with umami flavours imparted by the crisp savoury skin. The sweetcorn velouté was rich and creamy matching the sweetness of the fish. The fish was served atop fresh tomato, ribboned courgettes, fresh basil and coriander which lifted and freshened the palate. The dish is finished with 101 spice oil and a sweet corn crumble. It was well paired with Wills Domaine Eightfold Chardonnay 2023 from Western Australia’s Margaret River wine region. The chardonnay offers a creamy palate complementing the velouté and fish with enough acidity to balance the rich flavours.
Shark Bay Blue Manna Crab Linguini was the next dish featuring fresh house-made linguini, generous chunks of sweet crab meat, cherry tomato butter, fermented chilli oil, and topped with a pangrattato, fresh chilli, dill and a wedge of lemon. The pasta was cooked al dente retaining some structure to carry the delicate sweet crab meat and zingy flavours of tomato, chilli and lemon, while the dill added a fresh herbaceous, anise note to the dish. Nikola Estate Vermentino 2023 from Western Australia’s Geographe Region was served with this dish. This Italian varietal provided a playful summery feel showcasing some stone fruit characteristics with a clean light, citrus finish.
Our next couple of dishes were a departure from the ocean as we strode confidently into the paddock and tried Ubon Margaret River Sirloin served with truffle teriyaki/kombu butter and oyster mushrooms. As a lean cut of meat, the sirloin was flash fried to preserve the moisture content of the meat which was served finely sliced to ensure tenderness, while the teriyaki/kombu butter provided an umami flavoured, rich glaze complementing the beefiness of the meat. Oyster mushrooms added further earthiness to the dish.The final dish we tried was the Wagyu Steak Sandwich featuring a whiskey mushroom sauce, pickled shallots, rocket and parmesan served on a panini. The cognac in that kitchen’s sauce was replaced with cinnamon infused Fireball Whiskey and the steak substituted with medallions of Wagyu tri-tip cut of sirloin. Steak sandwich aficionados are bound to impress as the steak is unctuous while the sauce is full of depth and flavour. It was a finalist in the 2024 AHA steak sandwich competition.
Our journey to the paddock required a wine with enough punch to counter the strong beef and umami savouriness of the dishes, and Amelia Park Cabernet Merlot 2023 took up the challenge. The nose exhibits dark berry and earthy aromas, while the medium tannins provided a good counter to the beef.
Feeling completely sated we went downstairs to check out Bar Cicchetti where you can enjoy full table service for breakfast or Italian style antipasto, small plates, pasta and pizza for lunch and dinner. Where the Heart is open and airy with ocean views, Bar Cicchetti provides a warm, casual but intimate dining experience. Hillarys Beach Club also offers alfresco dining areas with plenty of lawn for families to enjoy. If you are looking to organise a function, private dining areas are available, including Bert’s Ballroom.
Executive Chefs John Evans and Samson Brent are the creative brains trust behind the menus at Hillarys Beach Club and, together with their teams, have developed exciting menus worthy of this premium beach side location. Also look out for the team’s new culinary venture Bar Ole, a Spanish style tapas bar, located upstairs at Iluka Plaza, O’Mara Boulevard in Iluka.
By Chris O’Halloran
