Trak Restaurant — Restaurant in Adelaide

This is my third time coming…..new review….

✨ This time we came for the spring menu at Trak — super excited, ordered a bunch of new dishes. My girlfriend can only really handle Italian food among all the “white people food”, so I thought we’d be safe. Honestly though… maybe I had set my expectations for Italian food way too high.

🍈 Tried the classic melon & prosciutto combo — should be a foolproof dish, right? But here… it just didn’t hit. The bread was super fragrant but totally overcooked, kind of pretty but empty vibes.

🐙 The real highlight (or lowlight) was the octopus. They switched up the whole combo this season, but again… overcooked. Bitter aftertaste. The sides were all on the sour note — roasted grapes and pickled artichokes were actually nice — but the bitterness of the octopus ruined it.

🍝 Tried the new pasta too — anchovy, pine nuts, and I swear I tasted dill in there. Even the roast chicken had dill creeping in. I don’t get it, but okay, respect. 😅 The chargrilled beans though… nah, just not it.

At some point I honestly wondered if they changed chefs. The whole experience was… let’s just say, not what I was hoping for. The restaurant’s name is Trak, located in Burside, and it has a rating of 4.9. You can make reservations in advance without any extra charges, and there are usually plenty of available seats on weekdays.

🥹 Currently, they are offering the summer menu, but I’m really looking forward to the fall dishes! 🍞 The appetizer recommended by a friend – this focaccia bread – was absolutely delicious! The outer crust was crispy, crunchy, and slightly chewy, while the inside had perfect air pockets and a mochi-like texture. It was so chewy! Paired with the cold mascarpone cheese, it was just heavenly! The added honey, crispy garlic, and chili toppings made it even more perfect. We even ordered an extra serving of bread for $8!

🐙 I had seen an octopus dish online but couldn’t quite recognize it when it arrived. There was also something called “occy” (which Google Translate turned into “eyeball”), but the staff recommended this one, and it turned out to be octopus! It was incredibly tender – the tenderest octopus I’ve ever had! Though it wasn’t overwhelmingly amazing, I think that’s because I expected it to be crispy. However, the hummus paired beautifully with it, and the roasted chickpeas complemented the dish perfectly. The tangy, slightly brown sauce added a rich flavor, and when combined with the focaccia bread, it was just so delicious!

🍝 As a Chinese person, I guess I’m a sucker for tomato-flavored pasta! The pasta was cooked just right, with a bit of bite—not too soft, not too hard. The only downside was that there wasn’t quite enough cheese; a little more would have made it perfect. The chili oil balanced the acidity beautifully, making for a great combination!

🥩 As for the main course, it was fine but nothing special. It had a charcoal-grilled flavor, and the green sauce, which looked like butter, had a hint of mint. But I was already so full that it felt a bit underwhelming in the end.

🍮 I saw that the pistachio dessert had pepper in it, so I didn’t dare to order it. But when I saw it on the table next to us, it looked so beautiful! I regret not ordering it—so...

5 pax for Wednesday night. When we were seated the restaurant (inside) was already at capacity or pretty close too which is a great sign for during the week. Before I stepped foot in I had to be one of those customers who had to call to make changes to my reservation a night before. They were very lovely about it and accommodated the request - thank you. I know it's not always possible especially since restaurants get booked out and when you confirm the booking they've already allocated the space etc. I was apologetic but they didn't make me feel like a criminal which is always a plus. I know how how it is for the hospitality industry so I was extremely grateful.

We ordered the whipped mascarpone and chargrilled octopus for entree. I know, why would you fill up on bread? Well that whipped mascarpone is why. So light, creamy but airy with enough sweetness from the honey smothered on warm bread whets your appetite. There is something to be said about chargrilled octopus that really hits the spot when it's done well - in this case it was done perfectly. The flavours with the bitter greens, whipped white bean just balanced it out nicely.

For pastas we had the malfadine, spaghetti, pippies. The pippies were truly spectacular and kind of made me wish I came myself so I didn't have to share it. If you love pips it will definitely feel moreish and the bread to soak up the sauce was the cherry on top.

After lining our stomach with carbs we had te porterhouse, chicken, autumn salad and potatoes. The chicken was juicy and the salsa verde was paired perfectly of the charred of the chicken.

Ended the night with semi freddo and sorbet which was a sweet note to end on.

Service, food, ambiance - top notch, couldn't fault it!

Next time I'm in Adelaide I...

This was my fourth time here. The food is still good, but the service was really disappointing.

We booked a table for 7 people from 6:00 to 8:00 pm last Saturday. Three of us arrived before 6:00 pm, and while waiting for the others, one waitress came over 4 times between 6:10 and 6:25 pm to remind us to order food and drinks early and that our booking ends at 8:00 pm.

Then around 7:30 pm, while we had almost finished eating and were just chatting, she came again and reminded us several times that we needed to finish before 8:00 pm.

This made all of us feel uncomfortable, like we were being rushed to order quickly and eat quickly. For a restaurant like Trak, I think the service should be much better. Unfortunately, I won’t be...