RAB Bar & Restaurant @ The Grand Hotel

RAB Lounge Restaurant & Bar is located within The Grand Hotel, a four and a half-star, heritage-listed apartment hotel. One of the most impressive buildings in Melbourne city, the building is beautifully restored to retain the style of the 1880’s, making the dining experience quite special.

The menu boasts an array of traditional dishes that pay homage to rustic Italian cooking. The winelist on the other hand features a fine selection of Victorian boutique wines that are available by the glass. There is also a vast range of regional beers and international lagers, along with a tempting cocktail list. 

The dining room is surrounded by photographic images of the hotel’s Railway history and other Railways of the 1910s.

Left: Spring Gnocchi - au gratin gnocchi with sautéed diced spring vegetables, basil dressing and buffalo mozzarella cheese

Right: Smoked Tuna Fillet - on shaved pineapple with cucumber, toasted almond, crunchy celery and wasabi yoghurt dressing

Whilst not earth shattering, the entrées were unpretentious and generous.

Chicken Roulade

pan seared chicken roulade filled with Parma ham, Provola cheese and sage, served with red wine demiglace and creamy potatoes au gratin

The Chicken Roulade was a standout dish. It was well flavoured, having absorbed much of its filling of parma ham, Provola cheese and sage. The accompanying potatoes au gratin was deliciously creamy and full of flavour.

Beef Tenderloin

with Smoked Foie Gras, Gorgonzola D.O.P. served with oyster mushrooms and red wine reduction

The beef tenderloin was cooked on the rare side of medium ensuring that it was both tender and juicy. The beautifully cooked oyster mushrooms complemented the steak well and the decadent red wine reduction brought the whole dish together. Overall, a superbly executed dish, this was our favourite dish of the evening.

Left: Lemon Ricotta Cannoli with mix berry sorbet

Right: Gelati - Baileys & coffee, pistachio and roasted hazelnut gelati topped with warm chocolate ganache and white chocolate pearls

The desserts were a lovely end to our meal at RAB. The lemon ricotta cannoli was decadently rich, contrasting nicely with the slightly tart mix berry sorbet.  The selection of gelati was also very enjoyable. Our favourite was the pistachio gelati which had a beautiful underlying earthy tone and was delectably creamy.

At the end of the day, the food is but one reason to visit RAB. It is a great spot to unwind in the presence of the hotels’ attentive staff while basking in the unique ambience of this historic building.

Gastrology bloggers dined courtesy of The Grand Hotel.