A new season for Louis
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The warmer weather has ushered in a new menu and new approach for Louis.
Since opening last June in Barton’s Realm Precinct, Louis has become known for its inviting approach to European bistro dining. With a focus on bold flavours and generous dishes, it offers a welcoming experience for all.
When we visited last autumn, we commented that the moody deep-toned interiors felt like the perfect complement to the weather. What’s surprising on the balmy November night we reacquaint ourselves with the restaurant is how well the space suits the warmer seasons – diners fill the main and private dining rooms, and the expansive outside terrace is dotted with couples enjoying snacks and cocktails.
We’re greeted by Andrea Galdo, last seen working as Temporada’s restaurant manager, and he’s as knowledgeable and charming as ever. DOMA Culinary Director Ben Willis (of Aubergine fame) is in the kitchen tonight, joined by Alisdair Brooke-Taylor who has recently returned to Canberra after running his own restaurant in the UK.
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Louis’ new summer offering sidles away from the traditional menu structure of appetisers, entrées, mains, desserts, sides and cheeses to one more suited to sharing. There are snacks, a selection of small dishes perfect for starters, an impressive range of vegetable-first dishes, classic main dishes with a modern twist, and of course, desserts and cheese. It’s an offering that caters for those who love to share equally as those who prefer to keep their choice to themselves.
While there is change, however, some things reassuringly stay the same. We start with our favourite Natural oysters with mignonette dressing – the sharpness of red wine vinegar and eschalots atop briny oysters priming our tastebuds for the Prawn croustillant – plump, pastry-wrapped prawns with a moreish creamy rouille.
The rest of the menu is entirely new. Guided by our delightful French waitress, we select one item from the ‘starters’ section, three vegetable dishes, and two mains.
The cured Marlin, horseradish cream, citrus oil, lemon balm is fresh and zesty, and teams perfectly with the first two vegetable dishes of Zucchini, pecora dairy sheep’s cheese, basil velouté (perhaps my favourite dish of the night) and Asparagus, yeast mayonnaise, hazelnut, crisp chicken skin (creamy and crunchy all at once). We love that the vegetables are heroed and not just treated as sides to the meat protein dishes to come.
The third vegetable dish of Heirloom tomatoes tarte fine, goat’s curd arrives with our next shared course of Red snapper, kipler potatoes, bottarga hollandaise and 250g beef rib eye, English spinach, Montpellier butter. These dishes are like chalk and cheese – the fish is light yet decadent, while the beef is rich and savoury yet not too heavy. Both are cooked perfectly and we argue over which we enjoyed more.
We’re running out of space by now but manage to squeeze in two shared desserts (for research, of course). The Vanilla flan, blood orange, passion fruit is a study in balance – the tartness of the fruits the perfect contrast to flan’s silky vanilla-caramel flavours. Tradition is thrown out the window with the Buttermilk panna cotta, strawberry fool, elderflower granita which encourages you to dig beneath the intriguing top layer of ‘snow’ to the fruity centre and creamy base. The perfect refreshing way to end a meal.
We like this new, more relaxed Louis. We love to share dishes (but also love that we can choose not to), and with the promise of a regularly changing seasonal menu, we can’t wait to visit again.
