The Cotton Duck

I have to admit I was pretty excited about finally getting to the Cotton Duck.  I was a fan of Danks Street Depot when it opened, not just cause the food was good but because Jared dared to go where noone else had - Waterloo.  When my friend Kate and I decided our Christmas get together would be at the Cotton Duck I was really pleased.

My first impression wasn't great. I phoned to make a booking and there was no answer. Not a voicemail or recording or a busy signal. Just rang out. I hate restaurants that don't answer the phone, it's frustrating if you can't speak to someone in business hours to organise your booking. Simple.  After a run of emails, calls and initial rejection (restaurant fully booked) we ended up getting a seat for 7:30pm.

I arrived bang on 7:30pm.  Kate was late (they rhyme for a reason I've learned over the years). I had a great cocktail of rhubarb soda, aperol, gin and lemon. I got water and wine lists and the service was attentive.  Having been told when trying to book how busy they were that night I was surprised to find a pretty big restaurant almost half empty. (Bodega by contrast when I walked past en route was bursting at the seams).

I've got to say I was underwhelmed by the decor. It reminds me of Bird Cow Fish. I was expecting something a bit more upmarket. I feel genuinely concerned about the prospect of a law suit on their hands the way the chairs slip around on polished floor. Hold on tight folks!

Kate arrived, my cocktail was downed and the great service kicked in again. We were offered menus, the delightful and knowledgable sommelier Laiana had our glasses full and we were given enough time to peruse the menu and chat. I had questions about this that and the other and all were answered efficiently by the waitress. We ordered.

Amuse bouche was served which was a slice of cucumber and some sort of whipped goats cheese. To me it seemed upside down with the soft cheese on the bottom mostly left behind on the plate. It was unseasoned. It was better than nothing I guess. Let's move on.

I started with the Borscht served as a salad with a tomato tea. It's cutely served in a clear tea cup and they pour the broth on at the table which was a nice touch.  It was under seasoned, a sprinkle of salt cured that.  Whilst it was good - the dish had no wow factor. There was no outstanding taste, nothing that made my taste buds sing.  I hadn't given up - let's move on again.

The next course I had chosen was the Corn Pudding roasted corn and popcorn shoots in a corn broth. Weird thing to choose I thought when I ordered it but what a treat it was! An amazing and cleverly concocted dish which was an absolute delight to eat. It reminded me (visually) of Mark Best's "lemon tart". I enjoyed every morsel. This is a real stand out and I hope Jared things outside the box like this on more in future.

Mains arrived and I had the Free Range Pork with sweet vinegar tomatoes, fennel seed and soubise. The pork was over cooked - there was no doubting it. It was dry as the Sahara. Theres a large section of skin attached which you cannot carve through or eat (I tried both) and I found this unappealing. The tomatoes were much more vinegar than sweet (WOWZERS!) and well put simply the dish needed some veg!

It came time to order dessert, I am a glutton for frozen anything so it was toss up between 3 sorbets or a poached fig with elderflower ice cream.  I asked the lovely guy serving us Tristan if the fig was hot - he confimed with the kitchen it was room temp (happy face). He also confirmed that the ice creams are all made on site (which I think is awesome). I went with the fig. Funnily this room "temp dish" was served on an ice cold plate - I found this a bit odd but you know! Not a deal breaker. The fig was ok. It was just cooked in syrup. There was no wow factor. Yet again. Nice - but not quite hitting a high note. The ice cream tasted like vanilla. Perhaps noone else notices cause we don't really do elderflower in Australia anyway. Oh well.

Look - in all - The Cotton Duck is not Bodega, its not Universal, heck it's not really even Tabou. But I think these guys are still finding their feet. The service was standout and I rate it top notch. I would go back for that alone. Great job guys! I reckon a bit of creativity (and correct seasoning) in the kitchen would push it along and I think someone with surpreme experience in restaurant reservations who can pack the place out from 6-midnight every night rather than turning diners away would really turn things up a notch. The foods good - not amazing. Theres a lot of competition in the new bar/restaurant scene in the Cotton Ducks 'hood' and I think we will see survival of the fittest in play over the coming months!