Over the last 12 months, Sage Dining Rooms in Braddon has been undergoing a steady yet transformative change, which has seen it welcome a new head chef and back-of-house team, refine its dining concept, and renew its focus on seasonality, sustainability and celebrating local produce.
For head chef Damian Brabender, who joined Sage in late 2014, it’s been a challenging but immensely rewarding process. “We had to start fresh and look back at all of the Taste and Test events to see what our clientele’s expectations were, and from there it’s been a gradual process of stepping forward, moving back, and making plenty of changes in between”, he says.
With Sage, Damian’s focus is on providing a level of accessible fine dining that’s more than just about feeding people. “First and foremost, we deliver honest food. We’re not experimental – everything we serve has been tried and tested. But at the same time, we really want to entertain people, grab their attention with our food, and encourage conversations about it.”
On most nights, Damian will encourage those conversations by doing a lap of the dining room to speak to diners and answer any questions they might have – whether it’s to do with where his ingredients are sourced (and many are from Sage’s very own organic farm in the Majura Valley), or the techniques used for a particular dish. It’s a true sign of his commitment to delivering a holistic dining experience, and the importance he places on getting to know and understanding his customers.
All of the hard work is certainly being recognised, with Sage recently taking home the ‘Restaurant of the Year’ and ‘Best Contemporary Australian Restaurant’ awards at the 2015 ACT Savour Australia Awards. But Damian is quick to recognise that Sage’s success is a reflection of the whole team, including his long time associates and sous chefs Steve Hartert and Adam Wilson. “People always mention me, or think it’s just me”, he says, “but those guys are the ones working away to come up with many of our dishes, and making trips out to the farm to do the gardening. Everything we do is a result of the team.”
Speaking of the team, Sage has just recruited an exceptional pastry chef, Kotesh Khandala, to add to its ranks. Kotesh brings a wealth of international and local experience to Sage, having worked at Hakkasan and Nobu in London, Vue de Monde in Melbourne, and Neil Perry’s Spice Temple and Rosetta Ristorante. Kotesh’s creativity and panache are sure to bring a new level of excitement to Sage’s dessert menu as he makes his mark on Canberra’s dining scene.
With the change of seasons, Sage’s new Spring menu has just been launched, and many of its dishes make reference to classic flavours, while incorporating a creative and playful approach and a few ‘tricks of the eye’. The tasting plate, containing three different items, is a great way to start proceedings and leaves you eager for what’s to come. The Tuna Tartare Taco is well paired with a subtly sweet ABC mayonnaise, the wafer-thin squid ink prawn cracker has the delicate beauty of a young cherry blossom flower, and the pea marshmallow with shaved jamon iberico brings new textures to the familiar flavours of pea and ham soup.
The Pickled Vine leaf Cigar with wallaby and fermented black beans has a decidedly simple presentation, leaving the complex textures and flavours do the talking. A sprinkling of burnt onion accentuates the earthy, smoky flavours of the dish (reminiscent of whiskey and tobacco), while the soft yet crisp vine leaves contrast well with the succulent pieces of wallaby that they envelop.
One of Damian’s latest creations, inspired by a trip to his community garden, is a play on something you’d find in every supermarket freezer – crumbed Chicken Duets with broccoli and cheese. His ‘deluxe’ version includes tender pieces of chicken breast, young broccoli florets and their vibrant yellow flowers, garlic crisps, Morbier cheese, and a broccoli stem aioli to bring it all together. It’s a dish that celebrates the arrival of Spring and cleverly uses all parts of the humble broccoli.
The next dish of Poached Snapper is served with a boat of charred gem lettuce, shaved jamon iberico, woodland sorrel, and a gin, juniper berry and oyster juice dressing, all of which are subtle hints towards a Caesar salad. The snapper itself is topped with a thin piece of crisp-baked honeycomb tripe and parmesan salt, which provide a happy sensation of crunchy pork crackling.
One of the features dishes of the new degustation menu is the Pork Jowl with smoked mussels. “It might seem strange to pair pork and mussels,” says Damian, “but we tested the pork with a whole range of ingredients and mussels just worked the best!”. And indeed, the soft, gelatinous pork jowl and the firm, springy texture of the mussels work harmoniously, with puffed black rice adding some crunch and strips of nori seaweed providing salty and umami flavours.
For dessert, one of Kotesh’s first creations for Sage is an imaginative expression of Strawberries and Cream. Here, strawberries are prepared 3 ways and served with a roasted white chocolate crumb, caramelised pistachios, and creamy mascarpone. The contrast of fresh strawberry flavours and its more robust accompaniments fill each mouthful, providing a well-rounded end to the meal.
It’s an exciting time for Canberra as Damian and his team continue to nudge the boundaries at Sage and introduce us to new ideas and experiences. There’s plenty to look forward to over the next few months too – along with the new Spring menu, Sage will be celebrating Floriade by delivering an range of floral-themed dishes, the Mint Garden Bar will once again be a prime location for afternoon drinks, and word on the street is that there’s an afternoon ‘sausage sizzle’ in the works (which will undoubtedly be nothing like any other sausage sizzle you’ve been to before!).
