With its glass exterior, plush leather couches, and urban-chic wall mural you could be forgiven for assuming you were in a celebrity’s dining room rather than that of a pub. But Tongue&Groove (T&G) is in fact Canberra’s newest dining experience and as I found out upon visiting, a fantastic place to head for after work drinks and dinner.
Paul Kelly Design of Sydney has managed to design a restaurant that’s different, modern and fresh. But don’t worry; this isn’t the kind of pub that gives off that sterile environment-vibe. (We’ve all been to those restaurants where it feels as though we’re dining in a hospital cafeteria.) But T&G is quite the opposite, and when you enter the glass doors you’re immediately welcomed, seated to your table and promptly offered a drink. There’s no waiting, no awkward small talk; you’re made to feel like an old friend.
With winter on its way, now is the perfect time to visit for a great meal, as let’s face it pub meals are the greatest when it comes to value for money. But don’t rush T&G’s new menu will be around for a few months yet.
If you’re pressed for time, just meeting friends, or a snack is all that’s on your mind, you can’t go past their slow-roasted lamb Sliders. Served in threes these ‘mini burgers’ are just enough to accommodate that beer or glass of red.
The slow roasted lamb leg is cooked to perfection overnight to the point where it breaks cleanly in your pallet. Placed on top of homemade mint sauce this ‘snack’ really is delectable, and filling!
Speaking of beer, the manager won’t give me the ingredients but their beer battered onion rings are best served next to your cold beverage. Coated with a James Squire beer batter, there are enough of them to fill you, but they remain light enough to stop that guilty, “I’ve done something bad” feeling upon consumption.
Wood-fired ovens will always remain the traditional (and only) way to cook pizza but finding a place that does it correctly is next to impossible. T&G has managed to incorporate their traditional wood-fired pizza oven into the industrial design of the building. You know what you’re getting is that traditional Italian taste. Further to the authentic recipe each pizza base is made fresh and rolled upon order. So no more of that pre-prepared frozen pizza dough that ruins a good night out.
If you are looking for something sweet, T&G’s sticky date pudding is a perfect end to your dining experience. Gently warmed to perfection and presented with a side of ice cream, this family recipe is a great winter warmer.
But the selling point with Tongue&Groove isn’t the exceptional food, or fantastic Tapas (some of which are fixed at $5 on a Monday) it’s the fact that each and every recipe from their menu comes from their staff’s family cookbook. It adds that traditional element that home cooked feeling, that for me, is worth every penny.
