Hemingway’s Wine Room
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Nestled in East Melbourne, Hemingway’s Wine Room revitalises the elements of service, style, elegance and grace of the 1920’s Brasseries of New York, London and Paris to Melbourne’s foodscape. Offering part French brasserie, part wine bar, it has been a welcome addition to the local area.
The concept for Hemingway’s Wine Room was loosely assembled over a couple of bottles of Chablis one late afternoon and further developed and refined from mid-2019. Combining their expertise in the kitchen, front of house, bars and hospitality PR, this venue is a joint venture between Glen Bagnara (Launch Pad H, Tazio, Northern Light), Stephan Mauer (Galah), and Ashleigh Dyer (Pinch of Salt PR).
The kitchen is headed by Chef David Yuan (hailing from five-star hotels Waldorf, Peninsula, Hilton Sanya Resort in China). With simplicity and elegance Hemingway’s Wine Room has created a European inspired menu that celebrates Australian produce with meticulously selected ingredients.
We enjoyed the three course option (from their stunning two to five course a la carte menu) and were incredibly satisfied. To start, the octopus terrine and grilled tentacles served with pickled kohlrabi and romesco sauce was absolutely delicious. The house smoked salmon with salmon spring roll, horseradish cream and pickled cucumber was similarly delightful.
For mains the whole grilled calamari was a standout. Perfectly cooked and stuffed with an addictive medley of chorizo, prawn and risoni and finished with a decadent saffron and seafood bisque.
For something heartier, do not go past the 200gram Angus Porterhouse served with an ox tail and pastrami shepherd's pie, parsnip puree, king oyster mushroom and aromatic truffle sauce.
Dessert time continued to please at Hemingway’s Wine Room. We tried the 'Basque style' burnt cheesecake and pear tarte tatin – both arrived looking picture perfect and tasted utterly delicious.
As expected, Hemingway’s Wine Room offers a well curated wine list which highlights both the old and new world. A passion project of owner Glen Bagnara who has previously worked as a sommelier in Europe, the list provides some fantastic expressions of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from Victoria and Burgundy and a constantly changing selection of premium options by the glass.
For cocktail afficionados, you can indulge in five of Ernest Hemingway’s most loved cocktails that has Hemingway’s Wine Room’s own flair added to it. These are made using only quality spirits, house made vermouths and cordials to create incredible flavour profiles that strike a wonderful balance of personality and versatility.
Location: 150 Wellington Parade, East Melbourne
Phone: (03) 9416 5064
