IDES — Restaurant in Melbourne

I had the 12-course degustation.

The night started with a strawberry tea refresher, which was a nice gesture.

The beef tartare was served along side bone marrow. The tartare was topped with crispy tarragon, which added a subtle fragrance to the dish. The beef was exceptionally tender and well-seasoned and the fat from the wagyu cut created a really rich flavour profile. The accompanying bone marrow was unbelievable but extremely rich, and it was a bit too much on its own after the first mouthful. If you tried to pair it with the tartare, it would overpower the subtle flavours of the beef and tarragon.

Second was the celeriac soup (with swimmer crab and egg yolk) with sour dough and honey butter. I thought this was the dish of the night. The soup was unbelievably well balanced, with fresh flavours, and the egg yolk mixed through it created a creamy and smooth texture. The honey butter was also amazing, and presented well – the balance of the honey flavour has clearly been perfected and hits the perfect level to complement the butter.

Third was a whiting wrapped in nori with a shitake mushroom broth. This was probably my least favourite of dishes we were served. I thought that the whiting was a little dry and I don’t think that the umami flavour of the nori plus the umami flavour of the mushroom broth necessarily complimented it as much as other flavours could. This dish was complimented with a scallop and shitake mushroom dumpling which was presented really well, the dumpling was nice, but there was a very strong ginger flavour that overtook the dish and overpowered the subtle scallop flavour.

Next came the lamb loin which was served with a cold asparagus cream (that I would describe more as a custard in terms of texture). This dish was exceptional and on par with the soup. The lamb was cooked perfectly and was very tender, the cut was beautiful and the gamey flavour that can sometimes develop with lamb fat was no where to be found. I was very impressed. The asparagus cream was also exceptional. I thought that it was another highlight of the night – it had such a refreshing flavour that beautifully contrasted the rich savory flavour of the lamb.

The final savory dish of the night was the duck liver parfait tart. I thought that this dish was too salty which made it difficult to appreciate the flavours of the dish. I also tried the mushroom version of this dish which was served as an alternative for vegetarians and much preferred that. The tart was served with a dish of plum jelly, which I think was supposed to cut through the richness of the duck liver, but unfortunately the sour/tart flavour of the plum wasn’t strong enough to provide that relief.

The desserts consisted of: a green apple tart, a coconut and dark chocolate semi-fredo/icecream and a mint cream puff. I thought that the green apple tart was a bit disappointing, it was very well presented, but boiled down it was really some pureed apple with some puff pastry and yogurt ice cream (which was very nice). I think this dish let down the rest of the set menu in terms of calibre and flavour profile. The coconut and dark chocolate semi-fredo/ice cream and was very nice and had a good flavour profile and the richness of the chocolate paired nicely with the smooth and mellow coconut. There was also a really nice caramel that was found in this dish that was really well balanced and didn’t suffer from the overpowering flavour that caramel often comes with. The mint cream puff was probably my favorite of the three desserts, with a real mint flavour shining through and a very smooth cream filling.

Overall: I thought this was a great experience and the dishes were all of a high standard. The degustation was $290 – I thought this was slightly overpriced for the experience. I think that price gap was far more for the vegetarian option when charged the same price but swapped out high quality ingredients like wagyu beef for carrot and bone marrow for lettuce. Wine pairing...

3s (Melbourne eateries with good solid tucker that I wouldn't mind eating fairly regularly. Food is competent)[63]: Allegro (CBD) Alma (Geelong) A Minor Place (Brunswick) Bar Idda (East Brunswick) Bekendales (Croydon) Bellarine Estate (Bellarine) Bistro Guillaume (Southbank) Bistro Thierry (Toorak) Boire (Collingwood)[RIP] Brunswick Flour Mill (Bunswick) Cafe Terroni (Yarraville) Carlton Wine Room (Carlton) Carsons (Yarraville) Chapelli's (South Yarra) Cheeky Monkey (Richmond) Chez Bob (Armadale) Chez Olivier (South Yarra) Chris's Beacon Point Restaurant (Apollo Bay) Cicciolina (St Kilda) Collins Kitchen (CBD) Cornershop (Yarraville) Di Palma's (East Kew) D.O.C. Mozzarella Bar (Carlton) Donnini's (Carlton) Dragon Boat (CBD) Emerge (Geelong) Empire Cafe Gallery (Brunswick) En Izakaya (Balaclava) Enoteca Vino Bar (Carlton North) Feast Of Merit (Richmond) Fiorelli (Hawthorn East) France-Soir (South Yarra) Grossi Florentino: The Restaurant (CBD) Ides (Collingwood) Izakaya Chuji (CBD) Kinya (Docklands)[RIP] Kofi Beans (Croydon) Laurent Boulangerie Patisserie (Toorak) Lau's Family Kitchen (St Kilda)[RIP] Lindt Chocolat Cafe (CBD)[RIP] Little Creatures Dining Hall (Fitzroy)[RIP] Miss Marple's Tearoom (Sassafras) Monsieur Truffe (East Brunswick) Mr. Wolf (St Kilda) Orange (Windsor)[RIP] Pumphouse Hotel (Fitzroy) Punch Lane (CBD) Reunion Cafe And Dining (Surrey Hills) Sapa Hills (Footscray) Secret Kitchen (Doncaster) Shujinko (CBD) Thanh Phong (Richmond)[RIP] The Carlisle Wine Bar (Balaclava)[RIP] The Green Refectory (Brunswick) The Hardware Societe (CBD) The Kent Hotel (Carlton North) The Perch At Lavers Hill (Lavers Hill) Tim Ho Wan (CBD) Truffles Patisserie (Balaclava) Vines Restaurant at Helen's Hill (Coldstream) Wing Loong (CBD)[RIP] Zelena Cafe Bar & Restaurant (Croydon) Zen (Hawthorn)

4s (Melbourne eateries with great food. Food is a strength[32]): APTE Cafe (Alphington)[RIP] Attica (Ripponlea) Bamboo House (CBD) Biagio's (Niddrie) Brae (Birregurra) Chin Chin's at Koto Moon (Carlton North) Choi's (Hawthorn) Cumulus Inc. (CBD) El Mirage (Brunswick) Estivo (Kew)[RIP] Ezard (CBD)[RIP] Flower Drum (CBD) I Carusi (East Brunswick) Igni (Geelong)[RIP] Jack Rabbit (Bellarine) Junior Tan Hawker Kitchen (Bayswater) Ladro (Prahran)[RIP] Le Petit Bistro (Kooyong) Locale at De Bortoli (Dixons Creek) Mule (Brunswick)[RIP] Papa Goose (CBD)[RIP] Paris Go Bistro (Carlton) Pioneer Kitchen @ The Grovedale (Grovedale) +39 Pizzeria (CBD) Ribs & Burgers (Hawthorn) Riche (Richmond) SUD Food And Wine (CBD) Tao's (Bulleen)[RIP] The European (CBD) The Grand Dining Room (Richmond)[RIP] Vue de Monde (CBD) Wall Two 80 (Balaclava)

5's (The Best Melbourne Eateries. Food is very much a strength)[5]: La Fantaisie (Richmond)[RIP] LeTAO (CBD) L'uccellino (Yarraville) Rockpool (Southbank) Tulip (Geelong)

Eatery of the Year 2011: Tao's (Bulleen) [RIP] Eatery of the Year 2016: Ladro (Prahran) [RIP] Eatery of the Year 2017: The European (CBD) Eatery of the Year 2022: Paris Go Bistro (Carlton) Eatery of the Year 2023:...

Oh my gosh. After dining at IDES on a Sunday night, experiencing their Sunday menu, I was left absolutely speechless.

Walking into this hidden little restaurant - which was only really noticable by the illuminated sign - I could see that I was in for a good time. The ambiance was like nothing I've experienced before: the small little (30?) seater restaurant has leather lined tables, quaint bench seating, a dark but artsy vibe and cute little bronze statues of shellfish that I wished I could take with me.

Sitting at my table, I was presented with a glass of a welcome tea which was a nice way to relax myself into my seat. The gorgeous leather bound drink menu were amazing and although I did not try any cocktails, their wine list was excellently curated to help assist with the taste and flavours of the food they served. The staff showed amazing knowledge of the wine they had and I ended up settling on a bottle of fiano, which after the staff suggested to let it decant; really opened up and developed from an excellent wine to an even better selection.

For the food menu, it was a set menu, meaning that unless you had any dietary requirements, you would be pretty much experience everything, with the option of adding a few other courses, such as chorizo vinegar oysters and their smashable black box for dessert. As I was there to treat myself, I opted to get the extras. The food did not disappoint. From the moment they opened a little box on my table which contained my first course, to when I ate the last bite of dessert: I was in heaven. I have not experienced the flavours I tasted ever before and I was so clearly evident that the head chef spent a long time discerning the flavours and curating the menu. I won't say too much, because it is something that must be experienced to fully understand but do know that you will not be disappointed: especially with their smoked wagyu fat butter. If I could bathe in it, I would.

The service was absolutely second to none. The floor staff were attentive, down to earth but still professional and you could see that they enjoyed working there. Having good food at a restaurant is great but the staff are the ones you interact with the most so their role is key to the restaurant's success and my, was IDES successful. The staff were absolutely lovely and alongside their amazing wine knowledge, they showed incredible knowledge in the food being served. They were patient when I wanted a little break before my dessert, as I was full and wanted a moment, and made me feel so welcomed and comfortable in the restaurant.

I cannot recommend visiting IDES enough: it truly is not just a restaurant but a whole experience that you must go through yourself at some point when in Melbourne. I am already recommending this place to everyone I know and will definitely be coming back as...