Red Spice Road
27 McKillop Street
Melbourne CBD
http://www.redspiceroad.com/
I credit Red Spice Road for turning me on to pork belly. Having never had it before, I went to a friend’s birthday party there some years ago now and couldn’t believe how delicious their famous crispy pork belly with apple slaw and chilli caramel was. I remember I ate altogether way too much of it and as the fat hit my bloodstream I was essentially comatose on the couch for the rest of the afternoon.
Oh God Yes.
So I’m back this year with a work crew for lunch, and we’ve got a vegetarian-who-eats-seafood (pescatarian?) in the mix. Pork belly is definitely on the agenda, as others have visited and agreed with me that it is The Pork Belly Dish Of Melbourne (that crispy exterior! the zingy, herby slaw!), but we order a few other things to counterpoint.
Unctuous deliciousness in the crispy pork belly
A surprise hit was the deep fried salt and pepper tofu. Following the same formula as the pork belly (crispy on the outside, smooth on on the inside), it was very very good. Tofu is not something I’m drawn to ordering, being firmly of the meat eating persuasion, but this is so good that I’d be tempted to go back and just order it. All by itself. No meat to counterpoint. There – I said it.
Salt and pepper tofu
I must point out that they change their mains around a bit, so what we had here a few months ago may no longer be on the menu. Below is a prawn dish which was good, but not memorable, so I can’t tell you what was in it (I may have been distracted by the pork bellly). Sorry – reviewer fail.
Prawns
We also ordered a pleasingly scallop-heavy yellow curry dish which was well received by all at the table. Creamy and spicy with a good kick from the fresh chillies.
Scallop yellow curry (also appears not to beon the menu any more).
Red Spice Road is a little more expensive than most of the Asian joints in the city, but certainly delivers a higher standard of service, presentation and food. If you’re looking for somewhere for a nice, reasonably priced work lunch, or to take a client*, they are very good at getting you in and out within a reasonable amount of time and the food is excellent, as evidenced by my colleague’s hand in the photo below. Recommend!
*One thing to note that at Mackillop Street (RSR is also now located at QV as well) the seating arrangements are a very long, communal table, so perhaps confidential conversations may be better suited to elsewhere!
Thumbs up to Red Spice Road
If you liked this post, why not try out my reviews of other work lunch venues:
- Work lunches at Fugazza and the Workers Food Room
- Work lunch at Father’s Office
- Express lunch at Grossi Florentino
Fresh Bread 