Marble & Pearl serves surf and turf with retro flourish

It's the sound that got me first. Stepping from the front bar of The Kingston pub, down to the fancy new dining room that is Marble & Pearl, a happy hubbub reeled me in, an enveloping aural hug that suggested it wasn't going to be too hard to have a good night.

Cheerful chiacking spilled from a horseshoe booth. Chit-chat bubbled from the table by the central brick fireplace. The hees and haws of friendly catch-ups threaded through the room in ribbons of laughter. Patching in the gaps: FM rock on the speakers, cutlery chirp-chirping and the industrious clang and sizzle of a fire-driven semi-open kitchen.

When I think about how much I missed restaurants – this time last year, this time the year before – it was recalling this kind of hospitality symphony, this choir of comfort and hope, that gave me the most pangs. And it was pubs I went to after every lockdown.

Publicans Chantal and Jon de Fraga have owned The Kingston for 20 years. They have two other Richmond boozers, both on Church Street: there's Public House, a vodka-soda party palace, and Swan Hotel, a classic place for a parma and a pot. The Kingston, in a residential pocket behind West Richmond station, was a pivotal live-music venue in the 1970s, a famed lesbian hangout in the 1980s and is gastro-pubbing its way through the 21st century.

Now, after a plush million-dollar-plus renovation, it's the de Fragas's pitch at fine dining. Meat and seafood are twin focuses, presented with fond retro flourish. Imagine Rockpool went to the pub, or Grill Americano loosened its tie, and you're not far off.

Head chef Yallambar Bantawa is the meat maestro, using a parrilla charcoal grill on which to cook Argentinian-style. Bantawa is an experienced chef, originally from Nepal, with expertise in multiple cuisines. In preparation for Marble & Pearl, he travelled to Argentina and Brazil to learn about asado (South American barbecue) from grill king Carlos Lopez and to intern at famous Sao Paulo steak restaurant A Figueira Rubaiyat.

His co-head chef, Paul Muir, schooled up on seafood with meticulous, demanding fish chef Michael Bacash at his South Yarra restaurant. Together, Bantawa and Muir are pumping out food with consistency and flair.

Marrowbone ($22) is caramelised under miso for scooping onto charcoal-hatched toast. It's rich and indulgent. Sydney rock oysters ($6 each) are baked under vermouth-tangy spinach and parmesan: they're daggy and delicious.

Prawn cocktail ($28) is a thrilling throwback, a layered, Tabasco-tickled adventure of lime-spiked avocado, shredded cos and prawns poached in crustacean oil.

The meat menu is mostly hero prime cuts, but I went for hanger steak ($36), a textured, flavourful cut taken from the rib cage. It's cooked beautifully, well-crusted, juicy and judiciously seasoned. The green peppercorn sauce ($5) is a paragon, built over house-made veal stock, flambeed with brandy and finished with cream.

Beef Wellington ($68) is a showstopper. Perfect, medium-rare eye fillet is the treasure encased within truffle-threaded mushroom paste, lacy crepe, ham and glossy puff pastry. It's a dish that shows the kitchen's skill, but it's a pleasure to eat as well as a feat of finesse.

There's polishing to be done. As with just about every restaurant right now, the team is stretched and very green. Our servers were cheerfully amenable, but expert advice was scant, particularly around wine, and the drinks list lacks the annotations that help steer non-buffs towards the right drop.

The food was irreproachable until it came to dessert: the crust on the creme brulee ($16) was chewy rather than shatter-crisp and the custard underneath was hot rather than offering a cool contrast to the shell.

It's best to book for the restaurant, but the elegant front bar is a drop-in space, offering the Marble & Pearl menu as well as fish 'n' chips, burgers and schnitzels to which you can add cheese, napoli sauce and ham ("Sshhh, it's a parma," nudge-winks the menu). As spring gets underway, the bar and adjacent courtyard will get busier and louder.

I predict challenges in maintaining Marble & Pearl as an urbane, fine-dining destination where it feels reasonable to spend $160 on a 500g wagyu scotch fillet. But with experienced and passionate hands at the helm and a clear vision to create something special, I do know I trust it enough to go back.

Vibe: Upmarket steakhouse nestled in a vintage pub

Go-to dish: Beef Wellington ($68)

Drinks: Good wines on offer, but the list and accompanying service need work

Cost: About $180 for two, excluding drinks

This review was originally published in Good Weekend magazine