Aru

Good Food hat Good Food hat 16 / 20 How we score Contemporary $$$ $ Visually, little has changed since Aru opened to enthusiastic oohs and aahs in 2021. The catwalk-like room still exudes a sparse but welcoming elegance. But chef Khanh Nguyen, who established the ethos of Asian meets native Australian flavours, left last year, replaced by inside hire Nico Koevoets.

Nguyen’s influence lives on in dishes such as banh mi pâté en croute, but embrace the new through spanner crab toast spiked with wasabi and pickled fennel. Duck remains one of the great dishes to fly from the hearth: 14-day aged, its crack-crisp skin foiled by red cabbage and muntries. Don’t neglect claypot-baked rice with mushrooms, braised pork cheek and an egg yolk enveloping all.



Let intuitive staff guide you through both the leather-bound wine tome and the dessert list. Flaky millefeuille piped with cheesecake and yuzu curd is a sure bet..