Sloaney Pony

There is a pub in Parsons Green, near Chelsea in inner London, called The White Horse. In the 1980s, it became a magnet for Sloane Rangers (upper-middle-class young twits from London's south-west educated at private schools) and so, in witty English fashion, the pub was nicknamed the Sloaney Pony.

The nickname is still in use, though these days with an affectionate rather than derisive tone.

What any of this has to do with a pub in Port Melbourne formerly known as the Fountain Inn Hotel is anybody's guess. But less than a year ago, the Fountain Inn emerged from an extensive makeover renamed the Sloaney Pony, despite there being nary a Hooray Henry or Princess Diana clone in sight. Mysterious.

There is nothing particularly Sloaney or equine about the pub that would shed any light on the mystery. Outside, it has those mottled faux aged walls that have been in fashion at pubs since the early '90s, and a clutch of tables for alfresco imbibing. A rooftop bar is on the way for those averse to drinking in the street. Inside, generously proportioned leather couches are strewn about shiny wooden floors under a collection of contemporary chandeliers that show everybody in the best light.

It is a good-looking, flexible space that owes more to a modern Melbourne pub than a themed English relic.

The Sloaney Pony's dining room is separated from the main bar area by a pair of large iron gates festooned with fake vines, but is still very much part of the room. It is always nice to feel part of the action, but when the live acts kick in at 9pm on Friday and Saturday nights you may have to shout to make yourself heard above the warbling and repartee. It could be construed from this that the Sloaney Pony cares more for its fresh-faced drinkers than its diners, but the obvious level of effort put into the restaurant indicates it wants its patrons to chow down as much as get down.

The dining room continues the theme of flattering, chandelier-driven lighting and upholstered comfort, but cozies things up with deep booths, cushions, carpets and candles. There are chunky wooden tables, framed French advertising posters and ornate mirrors on the walls, large flower arrangements and a colour scheme of deep maroons and browns. It has a carefully constructed glamorous-luxurious feel.

Care has also been taken with the wine list that democratically juggles popular labels from the New and Old World with more expensive, boutique labels that say something about the ambitions of the Sloaney Pony.

Service, too, is aimed beyond the usual pub dining room standard, and while the young staff are incredibly friendly and attentive, they may want to put a cap on how many times they ask you how everything is within the space of a single course. Their knowledge of both the menu and the wine list can be patchy, too, but there is certainly no doubting their enthusiasm for the food.

The kitchen, too, needs to turn down its enthusiasm a notch.

There is no doubting that Lachy Cashman is a talented chef, and he is particularly skilled when it comes to cooking meat. But some of his modern European dishes suffer because there is just too much going on. Good flavours sometimes get lost among an overabundance of ideas; there is a tendency to cartwheel when walking is the better option. That said, you can eat well at the Sloaney Pony, although it needs to be restated: a more liberal adoption of the "less is more" doctrine could work wonders.

A complimentary appetiser was a case in point. A lovely, just salty enough dab of confit chicken came topped with excellent quality baby leaves (or "micro cress"), and with just a bare whiff of truffle about it. But it was served on an edible pastry spoon that might have been a nice idea if the spoon didn't have the flavour and consistency of cardboard.

Much better was a beautifully balanced dish of fresh, sweet and juicy crystal prawns ($17.50/$36), peeled but with heads and tails left on, teamed with a tangy salad of rocket, preserved lemon and fish roe and a very good pinkish "tomato dust" aioli.

There were also good moments with the tian of nice-quality salmon gravlax wrapped around a mix of excellent smoked eel and so-so crab meat ($17.50). On the same plate there was a tiny crunchy pastry cornet filled with salmon roe and goat's cheese, a textured, just spicy celeriac remoulade, dobs of balsamic vinegar and lines of "dust". Busy.

The roasted lamb rump ($32) proves that this is a chef with a fine instinct for cooking and resting meat. The textbook medium-rare lamb could have easily held its own despite the action in the bowl in which it was served (fondant potato, cakey goat cheese souffle, green pea "cappuccino") but for the powerful, dark, salty jus that soaked into everything and, sinfully, overpowered the delicate flavours of the lamb.

There was more heavy-handed work with jus in an otherwise excellent pork belly dish ($28). Again, the meat was tender and juicy, not too fatty, with a perfect ring of crackling and nicely teamed with colcannon mash. But the jus (apparently apple brandy-flavoured) was too hefty and too loud and, in the end, made everything taste the same.

Desserts are ideal for those with sweet teeth and, like the other courses, tend towards the busy. A good, firm-textured passionfruit panna cotta ($13.50) was rich and fruity and sat next to a slightly icy but refreshing buttermilk and vanilla sorbet that had four irregular pieces of clear toffee stuck in the top of it. A thick, very sweet "strawberry jam" sat underneath the sorbet, pushing the sugar levels of the dish to another level.

You can't fault the ambition and the enthusiasm at the Sloaney Pony. It obviously wants to position itself as one of Port Melbourne's better eating and drinking venues, and it has many of the right elements in place. But a little restraint would go a long way, particularly when there is a good enough chef in the house to make a virtue of simplicity. A dish does not need a million elements to make it successful, just as a name does not need to make sense in order for it to be memorable.

John Lethlean is on leave.

Please note all information in this review is correct at time of printing. Restaurant menus, staff and locations change over time.