Anchorage

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34 The Strand, Williamstown, 9397 7799

My score: 3.5/5

It’s always a pleasure to see an undercapitalised neighbourhood landmark given new life. Built in the 1940s as a boatshed and rebuilt in the mid-noughties when the adjacent floating marina was constructed, Anchorage always toddled along but the dining rooms were a little stuffy and the food somewhat staid. The view carried it: sparkling water, sleek swans, big skies and the sweep and swoosh of the West Gate Bridge are easy to love and, because it’s the west, cranes and shipping containers are part of the tableau too.

The restaurant, a weatherboard hut with spacious deck, has freshened up both inside and on the plate. It has the flexibility and facilities to work for coffee catch-ups, business lunches, afternoon nibbles, romantic dinners and family celebrations, all with those bay views. The interior is dotted with tasteful nautical knickknacks without the full fishing net froufrou. Service is friendly and generally efficient, if a little stilted.

Over the past six months, new chef Dylan Roberts has shaken up the menu and is delivering appealing food that’s less focused on big slabs of protein and more about gentle finesse. Roberts is Welsh but has been in Australia since 2003. At Anchorage, he’s melding classic European technique with the modern Asian flavours he schooled up in during five years at Ezard, including a period as head chef. Roberts continued the contemporary Asian focus at the briefly white-hot Claremont Tonic before spending a few steady years at Windsor’s Charlie Dumpling. As a western suburbs local he’s taken on Anchorage as something of a community service. Why aren’t there more nice restaurants in this pretty waterfront village?

The menu reads nicely, and is a balance of the safe (seafood pasta, beer-battered fish, steak) with more dashing dishes. Prawn toast is given an irresistible makeover – I would return just to have it. Sourdough bread is smeared with a mousse of blended and chopped tiger prawns, then fried, baked and drizzled with a truffled yuzu mayonnaise. It’s a crunchy flavour bomb that stops conversation.

The Italian classic vitello tonnato (cold poached veal smothered in tuna mayonnaise) is given a Japanesque update. The veal is poached to medium rare and thinly sliced as usual but the tuna is replaced by bonito flakes, a dried fish flake that lends a smoky, deeply fishy funkiness. Compressed rock melon adds juicy texture, basil oil brings brightness. It’s a smart and satisfying dish: one simple twist opens up a conversation with a classic in a way that’s respectful and fun.

A snapper fillet is gently nudged towards China by coating it in a crumb made with XO sauce, the Hong Kong condiment based on dried scallop and shrimp. The fish is baked under the crumb, its sweet flesh tickled with extra flavour. It’s served with a fancy Eurasian stir-fry of snow peas dressed with a ginger and black bean emulsion, again cleverly adding power and perspective but keeping the overall flavours restrained and approachable.

That’s not quite the case with a dramatic, rich squid ink rice. Octopus tentacle is simmered for an hour or so in a Japanese dashi broth. That same fishy broth is used to finish off risotto rice that’s been dyed a deep black with squid ink. Chorizo plucks out a jaunty bass line, then there’s the trill of lemon juice and salsa verde. It’s intense, possibly too much for one person but wonderful as part of a shared spread.

Melbourne has a lot of water but a lack of excellent waterfront restaurants. It shouldn’t be like that. Anchorage is good now but it’s exciting to think about how good it could be. Williamstown – and Melbourne as a whole – would be well served if the crew pulls up the anchor and sets sail for greatness.

See their website.

More Seafood:

Bacash, 175 Domain Road, South Yarra, 9866 3566.
Melbourne’s consistent seafood star is now open for Sunday lunch and dinner. Recent dishes include snapper with sumac-braised silverbeet and coriander salad.

Marion, 53 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy, 9419 6262.
It’s a wine bar but the food is great, and there’s always nice seafood on the menu, none better than freshly opened premium oysters.

Tommy Ruff, 121 Chapel Street, Windsor, 9521 7195.
The Elsternwick and Mordialloc fish and chip bar has a new outlet in Windsor. Drop by for classic fish and chips, fancy grills and fishy burgers.

Secret Kitchen, 222 Exhibition Street, Melbourne, 9988 7778.
The largest aquarium in town means you can be sure the seafood is fresh. Pick, point, choose the way you want your critter cooked and get your chopsticks ready.

First published in The Age, 19th March 2017.