Fico – Restaurant Review
At Fico, one of only a pair of two-hatted restaurants in Tasmania, the “let us cook for you” option changes daily and has dishes you won’t find on the à la carte menu.
Oskar Rossi heads the kitchen (his father is artist Tom Samek, whose playful works adorn the walls) while you’ll see co-owner and chef Federica Andrisani on the pans or front of house. Launch into seven courses starting with three delicious tastes that might include a soft-boiled quail egg rolled in sesame with toasted nori, kingfish marinated in soy with wasabi cream and fresh coriander or a short caraway sable topped with a light goat’s curd and finely chopped herbs.
Housemade sourdough follows, served with fragrant fig leaf oil and drops of aged balsamic – this alone is worth a visit. Subsequent dishes may be a steamed zucchini flower stuffed with flathead mousse and mussel sauce, potato tortelli with Tamar Valley black truffle or tomato and marjoram risotto. Dessert is designed around the best seasonal fruit (this time a strawberry “aero” with purple basil and aged balsamic) and there are a dozen wines by the glass to match.
151 Macquarie Street, Hobart; (03) 6245 3391; open Sunday for lunch and Wednesday-Saturday for dinner.
