Press Food and Wine, Adelaide

On our last night in our recent trip to Adelaide, we thought we’d visit one of the finer restaurants in town and were recommended Press Food and Wine. As we walked there, the surrounding area of the CBD was highly reminiscent of Melbourne – many alleyways with artwork on the walls with hidden bars and trendy looking restaurants, except with less crowds and lines. Nevertheless, on a Wednesday night Press Food and Wine’s upstairs dining room was fully booked, but thankfully they leave the ground floor for walk-ins.

We were seated on a communal long table with other patrons and it was moderately busy throughout the night – not busy enough to form a line but there was a constant flow of customers even up until we left (9pm-ish). The menu looked very interesting featuring a mix of Modern Australian with some Asian influences and even an offal section for the more adventurous!

Yellowfin Tuna, Avocado Puree, Wasabi – $21

To kickstart the night, we got the yellowfin tuna sashimi which was a refreshing starter with the chopped nori (seaweed) and micro herbs for texture. The avocado puree was light and delicate and along with the horseradish cream, complementing the tuna perfectly.

Mum’s Dutch Veal Croquettes – $9.5 for 2x pieces

The other entree we got were the croquettes and we requested that they adapt it for our table of three (I assumed they’d just add an extra piece and charge us a bit more) but instead they tripled the portions, a bit disappointing on the waiter’s interpretation of my request! Despite this, they were cooked perfectly and were super crispy on the outside with a soft centre containing a curried veal. Underneath the croquettes was also a spicy mustard-flavoured mash which was a nice addition.

Spice rubbed Quail, Daikon & Green Bean Salad – $23

After this was the quail salad, featuring four pieces of quail on a crunchy salad. It was beautifully grilled and the tenderness paired well with the salad. I found the soy marinade drizzled throughout a bit salty though, which overpowered the quail.

Calves Tongue, Pickled Cauliflower, Horseradish Cream – $16

I wanted to be a bit more adventurous by getting something off the offal section but my friends refused to go for the lamb brains or sweetbreads, so the more conservative option was the tongue which is prevalent in Korean, Thai and Laos cuisines. The tongue was presented whole, similar to a steak with some crunchy vegetables. I’m not sure how they cooked it but it didn’t taste like the usual chewiness you would expect from tongue; instead it was super soft similar to braised meat and just melted in your mouth. The horseradish cream added some sourness but I preferred the tongue by itself with the smoky flavours.

House-made Pappardelle, Blue Swimmer Crab, Tomato, Cream, Chilli, Garlic – $34

For our last dish we got the pappardelle which was cooked al dente and coated in a creamy sauce. I loved the flavour of this dish and especially loved how the chilli was quite strong; I find a lot of Western restaurants tend to make the chilli quite mild so it was a very tasty surprise! The chilli and garlic suited the small chunks of crab scattered throughout and it was a great hearty dish to end the night.

I am beyond impressed with Press Food and Wine. They tick all the boxes for me – awesome location and interiors, adventurous menu with tasty flavours to match. The prices are reflective of the amazing quality and service you’ll get here and I’ll definitely be back when I return to Adelaide.

Press Food and Wine
40 Waymouth St, Adelaide SA 5000
Ph: (08) 8211 8048

Press Food and Wine on Urbanspoon

3 Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.