Spontaneous dates are the best when the food is good. Thankfully my Instagram analytical skills paid off because Lana turned out to be an amazing gastronomy-focused restaurant. This is a newly-opened Italian restaurant with an Asian tweak, thanks to Chef Alex Wong.
The set menu was $79 per person.
The set menu was $79 per person.
We started off with complimentary yuzu shots 🤩. Any place that gives out free alcohol is instantly cool to me HAHAHA. Cheers!
Entrée
Starting this delicious menu with an add on: Sydney rock oysters, mignonette for $6 each. This was flavoured with a refreshing kumquat and chardonnay vinegar, making it a unqiue, acidic bite.
The kingfish crudo, ‘ginger shallot’, kalamansi (left photo) and the raw scallop, grape, umeboshi (right photo) arrived together on a bowl of ice.
The kingfish was a refreshing two biter. There was a lot of textures from the roasted puff rice to the squishy, cold kingfish. There was no strong fishy stench either, just a smooth bite held together by the crunchy lettuce. And the kalamansi, an elusive cross of lemon, tangerine and passionfruit, added a gentle tarty finish.
The raw scallop topped this and was a fantastic bite. The shellfish was cooked perfectly with, again, no overwhelming fishy/ocean taste. It was a creamy bite with sweet notes from the sliced grapes and our favourite of the two 🤤.
The kingfish was a refreshing two biter. There was a lot of textures from the roasted puff rice to the squishy, cold kingfish. There was no strong fishy stench either, just a smooth bite held together by the crunchy lettuce. And the kalamansi, an elusive cross of lemon, tangerine and passionfruit, added a gentle tarty finish.
The raw scallop topped this and was a fantastic bite. The shellfish was cooked perfectly with, again, no overwhelming fishy/ocean taste. It was a creamy bite with sweet notes from the sliced grapes and our favourite of the two 🤤.
Since the menu was a lot more affordable, we decided to treat ourselves to 10g of Ars Italica Oscietra caviar with condiments for an extra $85. We haven’t had caviar straight from the tin since March so when this delicacy touched our tongues… *insert Homer Simpson’s drool sounds* 🤤🤤.
The caviar was served with adorably small potato blinis and creme cheese, virgin oil and chives. Every bite was amazingggg!! The blinis were fluffy and warm, melting the creamy dip. And the caviar was perfect salty accents, enjoyed both on the blinis and as caviar bumps.
The caviar was served with adorably small potato blinis and creme cheese, virgin oil and chives. Every bite was amazingggg!! The blinis were fluffy and warm, melting the creamy dip. And the caviar was perfect salty accents, enjoyed both on the blinis and as caviar bumps.
When this crisp potato, caviar arrived, we were blown away by the potato more than anything else. It was like eating a soft potato-flavour sponge cake with a perfectly fried outer layer.
It tasted like the potato had been sliced thinly and then layered back together before being fried, giving it this light and delicious mouthfeel. This was followed by a flavour takeover from the caviar which elevated the taste with its luxe saltiness, leaving us in potato heaven 🥔😍. We would come back for this dish.
It tasted like the potato had been sliced thinly and then layered back together before being fried, giving it this light and delicious mouthfeel. This was followed by a flavour takeover from the caviar which elevated the taste with its luxe saltiness, leaving us in potato heaven 🥔😍. We would come back for this dish.
Lastly on the entrée list was the zucchini flower fritto, cheddar, honey. The use of cheddar was so much better than other restaurants’ use of risotto. The cheddar had a mild taste that rode out well with the honey, almost like an undertone of cheese. This gave more spotlight to the zucchini flower, which had an enjoyable, lightly battered coat.
Main Course
HOLY MOLY THIS WAS AMAZING! 12/10 WE WOULD COME BACK TO THIS 😍.
This Fregola, corn, macadamia, stracciatella was absolutely delicious. It looked deceivingly sweet but was a savoury corn flavour. A creamy and smooth bite that melted our tastebuds to bliss. Each bite had a different intensity too because of the spread of ingredients (black garlic, oregano, stracciatella). The black drops of garlic enhanced the savoury notes. And the added oregano tasted like walking through a fresh garden into pasta heaven 🤤. Everything about this dish was perfect.
The pasta was served with their freshly made sourdough, vannella ricotta, ALTO novello. The bread was airy and enjoyable, with a crispy crust. It was not at all carb-heavy either. It was so good pairing it with either the whisked ricotta dip or the creamy pasta.
This Fregola, corn, macadamia, stracciatella was absolutely delicious. It looked deceivingly sweet but was a savoury corn flavour. A creamy and smooth bite that melted our tastebuds to bliss. Each bite had a different intensity too because of the spread of ingredients (black garlic, oregano, stracciatella). The black drops of garlic enhanced the savoury notes. And the added oregano tasted like walking through a fresh garden into pasta heaven 🤤. Everything about this dish was perfect.
The pasta was served with their freshly made sourdough, vannella ricotta, ALTO novello. The bread was airy and enjoyable, with a crispy crust. It was not at all carb-heavy either. It was so good pairing it with either the whisked ricotta dip or the creamy pasta.
Finally the Aquna Murray cod, tamari butter, finger lime, caper with a Witlof, fennel, nectarine salad was simply wow. The fish was cooked to perfection. It was creamy and moist, with a delectable crispy skin. Without any of the extras, the fish had a mild taste but when hit with the caper and finger lime, there were explosions of flavours in our mouths 😍.
The salad was refreshing and the use of nectarine gave it a different, sweet touch.
We felt comfortably full by the end of this menu but the extra items; saffron spaghetti with WA scampi $36, and the Maremma duck breast $42 all sounded appetising and would have been perfect if shared in a bigger group.
The salad was refreshing and the use of nectarine gave it a different, sweet touch.
We felt comfortably full by the end of this menu but the extra items; saffron spaghetti with WA scampi $36, and the Maremma duck breast $42 all sounded appetising and would have been perfect if shared in a bigger group.
Dessert
Ranking the desserts based from least exquisite to most, we had the blackberry, lemon myrtle, meringue. This was still good but was outshined by the other desserts. It was a light and sweet almond cream with tart berry flavours and delicate meringue chunks. We loved the presentation.
The chocolate and passionfruit gelato bun was nice and light, which was so surprising for a rich milk chocolate flavour. We loved the light crunch of the top bun. It started melting after a few minutes so we had to stuff our face with these immediately.
THIS WAS MAGIC ✨The Piel de Sapo, yuzushu was a compressed melon with popping raspberry candy. It tasted like an intense, melon flavoured ice block. The gastronomical thing about this one was how translucent the melon appeared in the light. Hands down, one of the best desserts we had in 2021.
Service
The service was magnificent. Everyone was attentive and fast. They also had lively, humorous personalities that made the dinner a lot more fun and enjoyable. The moment Mick opened up the cocktail menu, a server stopped mid-walk to attend and get his order.
Review
All the flavours were on point 💘. Mick enjoyed the play of textures and mouthfeel in each of the dishes, something often ignored in other restaurants. The service was great and the interior design was beautiful.
The best thing about Lana is their affordable set menu, with plenty of optional add-ons for those wanting to splurge more. We felt like they really thought of every customer when they created the menu.
Thank you for reading! Hope you get a chance to eat at Lana, which only opened in July 2021. Happy eating 😆!
The best thing about Lana is their affordable set menu, with plenty of optional add-ons for those wanting to splurge more. We felt like they really thought of every customer when they created the menu.
Thank you for reading! Hope you get a chance to eat at Lana, which only opened in July 2021. Happy eating 😆!
