The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay

A well-glassed pavilion perches over the bay, water on three sides, decor attractively muted, tables clothed, service friendly and professional, the ambience finely balanced between informal and special occasion. The food, too, shows a lovely balance of refinement and excitement, complexity and clarity of flavours. Creamy buffalo burrata with tomato and bread salad and almond puree is an inspired textural partner for sweet, faintly smoky octopus. Red peppers, almonds and chorizo give a piquant lift to an impeccable chunky carpaccio of seared kingfish. Prettily presented, pristine white, roasted Spanish mackerel is garnished with baby squid rings and sparked by olive tapenade and the merest hint of mustard. A slow-cooked chook egg brings together the nuances of asparagus, pumpkin and oyster mushrooms with fluffy gnocchi. A seamless evening from booking to bill closes with honey mousse, crunchy with honeycomb, and batons of rhubarb, mellow and soothing as the view.