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The Graham

Dani Valent
Dani Valent

Fagottini with shiitake mushrooms, wombok, hazelnuts and citrus.
Fagottini with shiitake mushrooms, wombok, hazelnuts and citrus.Pat Scala

Contemporary$$$

If expensive consultants brainstormed and blue-skied to create the perfect neighbourhood restaurant, they'd come up with something like The Graham.

It's a 19th-century corner pub so it feels like it's meant to be here. It's contemporary too: brothers Tony and Peter Giannakis​ have run the place for 15 years, adjusting course as befits their changing neighbourhood and their own ideas of welcome and value.

The offering is flexible. Plan restaurant lunches either discreet or rollicking. Keep it casual with steak sandwiches in the bar. Take a date for degustation dinner. Confidently book a special occasion in a private room. Whatever it is, you're in safe hands.

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Aromatic: Mud crab broth with seafood boudin blanc sausage and roasted flounder.
Aromatic: Mud crab broth with seafood boudin blanc sausage and roasted flounder.Pat Scala

Three years into the gig, chef Perry Schagen​ has taken the French technique he bedded in at Circa and the Asian dash he picked up at Taxi to find his own delightful, modern style. The ideas are clever, the cooking is excellent.

Take the mud crab broth, a modestly named but outstanding seafood dish that nods politely to both bisque and tom yum. The soup is redolent of lemongrass and kaffir lime but it's spiked with saffron too. Also in the bowl are mussel and scallop boudin blanc (white sausage), roasted flounder, sweet crab meat tossed with crunchy freekeh​ and verdant parsley oil for herby lift.

The pasta list is seductive: fagottini ("little bundles") steer towards Japan with their shiitake filling seasoned with sake and mirin; they paddle in yuzu (citrus) butter. Are they luxe dumplings or ravishing ravioli or is it enough to know they're really good?

You're in safe hands at The Graham in Port Melbourne.
You're in safe hands at The Graham in Port Melbourne.Pat Scala
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Stick around for buttery baked-to-order friand. Leafy green with pistachio flour, it's served with preserved mandarins and whipped honey ricotta.

Whether savoury or sweet, each dish is purposeful, sparky and satisfying. This might be the archetypal local restaurant but the food would fly anywhere.

Rating: Four stars (out of five)

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