Every few years there’s an astonished pronouncement about a “bistro revival” even though solid Australian bistros are a decades-long constant and, as Bistra demonstrates, a cause for ongoing celebration. Located in a crisply renovated Carlton shopfront – curtained front door, whitewashed bluestone walls, immaculate linen on the tables – and tended by excellent floor staff in white aprons, this casually chic, double-storeyed diner further deepens its user-friendliness with a menu that alleviates the worry of bad decisions. Chef Alex Nishizawa’s food is not, in the best Aussie bistro fashion, afraid of playfulness; deftly pan-roasted red emperor and vongole, for example, is fragrant with ginger and Chinese cooking wine. But classics are also a strength, be it fluffy spinach and ricotta dumplings; a potato rösti with crème fraîche and smoked trout roe; or a dreamy baked apple with vanilla crème anglaise. The wine list, a sure-footed Old and New World creature, similarly nails the brief. Timeless.
Becca Crawford
