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Diners' hunger grows for one-dish menus

Michael Harden
Michael Harden

Restaurateur Bruno Carreto in his Brunswick taqueria Los Hermanos with a selection of his taco dishes.
Restaurateur Bruno Carreto in his Brunswick taqueria Los Hermanos with a selection of his taco dishes.Pat Scala

Whether it's a sign of lean economic times or just another part of Melbourne's ever-evolving food culture, the one-dish restaurant is marking out its territory on Melbourne's dining scene.

And while it's true that food businesses concentrating on doing one thing really well have been with us for quite some time - dumpling houses, creperies, pizza joints - that repertoire has noticeably swollen in recent times with bao, meatballs, tacos, banh mi, hot dogs, fried chicken, roti, pho, laksa and ramen all getting the specialist treatment.

Simone Egger, co-editor of The Age Good Food Under $30 guide, says that one of the trends she noticed while putting together the guide was an ''increasing taste for specialisation''.

''As diners, we're craving authentic tastes, and reimagined takes on the authentic,'' she says. ''We've noticed that more eateries are specialising: offering small menus with just a few dishes, or characteristic variations on just one dish.''

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Matteo Bruno, owner of The Meatball and Wine Bar in Flinders Lane, says that his original idea to open a business centred on meatballs came from Italy where ''there are two-week festivals devoted to a particular type of lettuce or bean or salami''.

''I really liked the idea of having a singular product because you have to focus on the ingredients and make sure they are the best they can possibly be,'' he says. ''There's nowhere to hide when all you have is one primary product on the menu.''

There is variety on the menu at The Meatball and Wine Bar with chicken, pork and beef versions, various sauces and sides, balls in buns and so on. But is there a danger of people getting quickly jaded with such limited choice?

''I think with a singular offering, there's something comforting about knowing what you're going to get,'' says Bruno. ''You go expecting a certain level of quality and familiarity and so it represents something like going to your parents' place for a meal.''

The concise menu at Brunswick taqueria Los Hermanos is all about authenticity, according to owner and chef Bruno Carreto. The low-key tavern-like bar has a menu limited to seven or eight items, mainly tacos, with a couple of other dishes, like an excellent cactus salad adding variety.

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''The concept here is very similar to what you would find in a taqueria in Mexico,'' Carreto says. ''I like the idea that you can come in and eat at all hours. We have people coming in here after the theatre to eat a few tacos and that's exactly the way things are in Mexico too.''

Carreto says that while keeping the menu compact is easier to maintain authenticity, it's also a good way to keep costs down.

''With this kind of street food I don't need to employ chefs and go through elaborate preparations in the kitchen,'' he says.

''Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of slow cooking with all the tacos but it's stuff that I can manage with a kitchenhand and so I'm able to offer things at cheaper prices.''

Andrew Wong, the man behind the city's wildly popular bao (steamed bun) joint Wonderbao, agrees that specialising is a way to keep prices down. But price, though a factor, was not Wong's inspiration.

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''Having a simple menu was inspired by the coffee shops in the city that only do coffee,'' he says.

''It was that idea that if you only do coffee then our coffee must be pretty good. That was the idea I had with steamed buns.

''There are places in Hong Kong and Singapore that sell steamed buns,'' he says. ''But they don't serve it the way I do. This place is all about specialising but done with Melbourne style.''

The Age Good Food Under $30 (formerly Cheap Eats) is available for $5 at your newsagency with today's Saturday Age. It's also available in bookshops and at The Age online shop (theageshop.com.au) for $10.

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