More than just a restaurant, Fat Prince lives and breathes with those who run it. In the hands of Chef de Cuisine, Simon Bell, modern Middle Eastern is fresh and vibrant. Over at the bar, Bar Manager Agnes Kuan and her team dream up koktails, ranging from the familiar to bizarre, all in the name of fun and exploration. Fat Prince is a place where cultures, histories, and stories meet, and where everyone is welcomed to create their own.
In the hands of Chef Simon, “Modern Middle Eastern” marries with his Contemporary Australian background, and becomes as familiar as it is unrecognisable. His approach builds on the journey Fat Prince has made to date, by taking the cuisine and lifting it, making it feel lighter, brighter, and fresher.
Agnes and her team have also rethought the entire approach to Koktails, creating a list that gives equal showcase to drinks that have full alcohol, lower alcohol, and zero alcohol. Now everyone —whether one is looking for a big night out, choosing to live an alcohol-free lifestyle, or anything in between — has amazing options to choose from.
In developing the Mezze section of the menu, Simon does not stick to the script. Pick any mezze at random (never a bad idea) and one will find a whole lot of rich flavours with herbs, citrus, and pickles to freshen things up—an invigorating start to the evening.
Take the Chilled Oysters pictured above ($16), a starter that recalls scenes of the Aegean Coast merging with those of South Australia’s Riverland region. Simon has opted for toppings of saffron, coriander cress, and charred orange segments, juxtaposing ocean fresh and salty against sweet, earthy, and grassy.
And as the evening turns into night, a lone piece of spare rib, darkened with spices after a four-hour roast, should be found on most tables as well. The Smoked Wagyu Beef Rib pictured above ($32) arrives with just a wedge of lime and a saucer filled with a sweet, sharp, barbecue sauce-like date & pickled onion ketchup.
The larger sharing plates have had their sizes retained, a feature that is particularly important to the communal dining experience at Fat Prince. Guests may spot a familiar condiment or two, but other than that, things are new.
With the Pit Roasted Pumpkin pictured above ($16 per 100g), the sweetness of slow cooked pumpkin meets with rich, creamy coconut that is in turn, lightened with parsley, thyme, dill, and mint. For crunch and acidity, lightly pickled cucumbers and a squeeze of lime does the job. For this dish, creative pairings of the main with its various condiments are highly encouraged.
Other highlights include Battered Cod pictured below ($25 per 100g) and Pit Smoked Pork Ribeye pictured above ($31 per 100g). For a different experience, Simon wanted specially made condiments—one for flavour, the other for freshness—just to go with each protein. With the cod, chermoula and a fennel slaw; and with the pork, black garlic sauce and a cabbage slaw.
Simon and the team have expanded the dessert selection to five (from three), all of them new and refined, all of them delicious. The Housemade Ice Cream Sandwich ($15) is exciting for the child in all of us, but it has a grownup edge to it in the form of Turkish coffee ice cream, sandwiched between gingerbread cookies
For those with dietary limitations (or not; excuses to indulge not required), the Flourless Chocolate Cake ($15) and vegan Olive Oil Sorbet ($15) are sublime. Shaped like a candy bar, the latter is creamy and freckled with pink peppercorns, which add a citrus bouquet that accentuates the fruity notes of olive oil.
Over at the bar, Agnes and Fat Prince’s Bartender, Scarlet, started off rethinking Fat Prince’s koktail menu hoping to become more closely connected to the kitchen as a way of creating a fuller, more holistic guest experience.
Fez Finds a New Butler ($18) makes way for a Negroni that has all the right notes—herb, citrus, and the classic juniper tang, but none of that triple spirit-induced hangover thanks to the use of housemade zeroproof spiced Gin and sweet Vermouth, mixed with a proper swig of Campari.
With The Way to Wicked ($12), the kiwi fruit finds itself in Gimlet territory, adding texture and a fruity note to the classic pairing of Gin (in this case, housemade and zeroproof) and lime juice.
Mary’s Clearly Mythical Cure ($12), on the other hand, presents a ‘cleaned up’ Bloody Mary—the concoction includes clarified tomato juice, agave syrup, and a drop of truffle oil.
