Esposito @ Toofeys - Carlton

Date: 12th May 2010

Restaurant: Esposito @ Toofeys

Address: 162 Elgin Street, Carlton

Phone: 03 9347 9838

Commentary : Sarah Andrew

If you are after fine seafood dining then Esposito @ Toofeys is the place to go. A big effort is placed on offering only sustainable fish species. Owner / chef Maurice Esposito has gained a loyal following over the last few years and whilst seafood is definitely the specialty, other great offerings including duck and steak keep everyone happy. The hard part is narrowing down the selection!

I have only ever dined here for dinner, so was eager to return and experience not only the ambience during the day but the seasonal menu currently available. At the time I made the booking the pressure was on me as I had two restaurateurs from Sydney joining me for lunch and I wanted them to be impressed with the venue, food and service. I so made the right choice on venue!

Michelle Louis was front of house yesterday and was seamless with her service and suggestions. We started the experience with a generous pour of 2003 Kreglinger Vintage Brut. The explanation of the size of the pour from Michelle was gorgeous: "I like to pour wine the way I like to be served".

The dining experience started with a little complimentary taster, followed by 2 Coffin Bay oysters each. This gave us enough time to decide on entrée and main. I opted for a selection from the ‘Loaves & Fishes’ menu which consists of 2 courses for $35.00 in which the portion sizes are smaller than the a la carte and a glass of house wine plus tea or coffee is included in the price. My selection was:

  • Seared Sashimi Tuna with a salad of smoked tomato, fennel and black olive mayonnaise
  • Wild Barramundi with cauliflower puree, prosciutto, anchovy fritter and pancetta vinaigrette

My dining companions ordered from the standard menu including:

Entrée:

  • Crayfish Tortellini in a corn and crustacean broth
  • Seared Sashimi Tuna – same as my entrée but a more generous portion

Main:

  • Mud Crab Tian with grated green apple, avocado, garlic mayonnaise and spinach essence – this was a special
  • John Dory Fillets, calamari ragout with artichokes watercress and lemon

We selected a bottle of Moorooduc ‘McIntyre Vineyard’ Chardonnay 2007 to accompany both our entrée and main courses. We all agreed that the food selection was spot on and each dish was presented with restrained elegance, pure & fresh flavours that lingered on the palate in the most delightful way.

As we were in no rush to move on, it seemed appropriate to finish with a cheese selection that included the following cheeses from around the world:

  • Berry Creek Tarwin Blue – Gippsland
  • Comte Reserve – France
  • Holy Goat la Luna – Central Victoria
  • Brillat Savarin – France
  • Fontina Va d’Aosta – Italy

This was accompanied with a glass of R Wines Chateau “Skulls” Grenache / Mataro 2007 and was the perfect conclusion to a most enjoyable luncheon. We enjoyed ourselves so much that we were still in the restaurant at 5pm as staff were laying the table for evening service!

So when you are next contemplating somewhere to dine in Carlton I would highly recommend Esposito @ Toofeys for either lunch or dinner. Bookings are essential as this venue has loyal following and gaining a strong reputation as one of the best seafood restaurants in Melbourne. I must pass on my thanks to Michelle for providing such a delightful dining experience.