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106-112 Hardware Street, Melbourne, 9602 2111
My score: 3.5/5
If only we’d stop throwing those shrimps on the barbie for a second, we’d realise that Americans have much to teach Australians about barbecue. That is, the slow, smoky barbecue that’s an obsession in the United States’ deep south, using cheap cuts like ribs (from pork, beef and lamb) and beef brisket (from the chest). You can tell Nieuw Amsterdam is a fan because there’s a good chance you’ll stumble into a fragrant smoky fug when you arrive.
The handsome upstairs restaurant is the fetching gentleman to the basement’s speakeasy sleazebag. Both have their allure; the restaurant is bright by day with large arched windows and semi-secluded nooks. The bar throbs all night. On either floor the drinks list is so creative and expansive that it would seem churlish to leave sober. If you don’t fall for the lamb-fat-washed mint julep then you’re made of stronger stuff than I. (Fat-washing entails steeping alcohol in butter or lard then filtering it to create flavoured liquor. In this case lamb, whisky and mint are kookily logical bedfellows.)
Chef Nick Stanton (ex-Woods of Windsor) brings high-art appreciation to lowbrow food to create enjoyable dishes that are more about indulgence than authenticity. Beef brisket, cooked for two days in a water bath till it gives up all resistance, is smoke grilled then placed on a lunch tray with oozy mash, thick gravy and peppered slaw. There’s a fancier dinner version of the brisket with carrot salad.
Nieuw Amsterdam isn’t just about the south, nor indeed Amsterdam (the name recalls the 17th century Dutch settlement on Manhattan’s southern tip). The menu is peppered with New York classics like Reuben sandwich and clam chowder. There’s a Japanese inflection to the excellent shrimp salad with sesame, soy beans and miso mayo, and a vaguely Vietnamese view from the vehemently victorious pork sandwich with pate and crackling. The kitchen’s outlook is freewheeling but the food is rock solid and free of pretension. In fact, the only pretense on my visit was when I imagined I could fit in dessert, but it was a chocolate delice with molten centre so you can see why I had to try.
See their website.
More American barbeque:
Le Bon Ton, 51 Gipps Street, Collingwood, 9416 4341
Melbourne’s cheapest ticket to New Orleans leads to this welcoming ode to the south. Try the crab cakes, the fried green tomato brioche and the pecan pie. Open all night on weekends.
Meatmother, 167 Swan Street, Richmond, 9041 5393
The sides and extras are as much a drawcard as the 12-hour smoked meats. Go the jalapeno poppers, gravy mash and sprouts with lardons alongside your ribs, pulled pork or brisket.
Big Boy BBQ, 764 Glen Huntly Road, Caulfield South, 9523 7410
It looks like a fast food joint but the food is cooked long and slow. Try the dry-rubbed spicy chicken wings and saucy glazed lamb ribs. Also Hardware Lane, Melbourne.
First published in The Age, May 4, 2014.
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