Restaurant Guide

Essa: Restaurant review

Details matter here in this split-level dining room, with its swish marble bar and hard-working wood-fired grill.

REVIEW

Details matter here in this split-level dining room, with its swish marble bar and hard-working wood-fired grill. Like the butter, churned with Jersey cream from the Scenic Rim. Or the thick-cut sourdough, made with sustainable wheat. You'll want an extra slice to mop up the citrusy macadamia milk and lemon-myrtle oil used to dress pristine snapper crudo swathed in black-edged slices of kohlrabi. Charred sweetcorn and ricotta ravioli is similarly adventurous, coated in grated mortadella and a smoky, buttery corn-husk sauce enriched with kombu and parmesan. Rolled organic Longreach lamb saddle, meanwhile, arrives stuffed with the trimmings and served over spinach, pepitas and zingy gremolata. Desserts lean savoury, too – perhaps a play on pumpkin pie featuring pumpkin curd and piped meringue dusted in chilli. Factor in attentive service and a wine list that balances new-wave locals and old-world prestige, and it adds up to a satisfyingly grown-up experience.

ABOUT

Essa
Australian
181 Robertson St, Fortitude Valley
(07) 3177 1011
essa.restaurant
Chefs Phil Marchant & Fin Burgess
Price guide $$
Bookings Recommended
Wheelchair access Yes
Open Lunch Fri-Sat; Dinner Tue-Sat
This review was written independently for the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide. The guide's reviewers visit unannounced and pay their way. To learn more about the process, head over here.