The Court House

Location: The Court House, 86-90 Errol Street, North Melbourne
Link: http://www.thecourthouse.net.au/
Cuisine: Modern European

After hearing so much about The Court House from wine-loving friends who had gone on and on to me about their extensive wine list and amazing food, I decided to go there with someone who is quite passionate about wine. I thought this was a good idea since my palette for wine is so unrefined, I am happy to drink out of a cask. I'm going to do you a favour and not go into any detail about what I thought about the wine. I just found it delicious but I'm not sure why... I had a Pinot grigio because ..erm..well, the waitress told me it would match what I was having... and I trusted her.

ANYWAY... the bread was freshly baked and arrived at our table. I love sourdough bread. This was delicious! We were told it came straight out of the oven. MmMMm complimentary bread never tasted so good.

My Entree:

Grilled Asparagus Salad with White Truffle Oil

A simple dish done well. The crunchy macadamia nuts worked very well with the rest of the dish and the beautiful aroma of white truffles permeated the dish. Very refreshing dish =)

Dinner date's entree:

Braised Globe Artichokes and Celeraic Velouté

I tried a spoonful of this and it was sooo light! Creamy and yet not too heavy. Beautiful balance of flavours.

My main:

Confit Duck leg

caramelised onion, pumpkin and thyme jus

This was far too salty for my liking. The duck skin was beautifully crisp and everything else was cooked quite well but as a whole, I wouldn't recommend this dish.

Dinner date's main:

Pan Fried Atlantic Salmon Fillet
roasted Tuscan red onion, watercress, olive and caper salad

I tasted a bit of this and the fish was cooked to perfection. Crispy skin, beautifully tender inside. I've had bad experiences with Salmon where chefs have overcooked it but this was perfect. The roasted Tuscan red onion, watercress, olive and caper salad accompanied this dish harmoniously. Very pleasant.

Dessert:

Both my dinner date and I decided to order the Orange Cremé Caramel. Beautifully presented, and the taste certainly didn't dissapoint. The Cremé Caramel just melted in my mouth.

Overall Impression: 5.5/10

Extremely helpful staff. The staff had great knowledge on all the wines on offer. Gave us lots of advice on what would be appropriate for our meal. Excellent service - great attention to detail. Food was pleasant but quite average for a 1 hat restaurant.