LOCATION
Melbourne CBD (Opposite Hardware Lane).
DETAILS
Head Chef John McLeay has designed an exciting menu based on south eastern Asian cuisine and taking into account the communal sharing concept of the region.
With this in mind, John has a fantastic lunch menu with your choice of three courses for $25 or for dinner a sumptuous six course dinner banquet menu for $55. If set menus are not your thing, a varied a la carte menu operates for both lunch and dinner.
If that’s not enough, we have created an extensive cocktail list to tempt your taste buds. This, along with an eclectic wine list that won’t break your hip pocket and a rarely seen range of Asian beers, our soothing bar area is the number one destination for you and your colleagues after work.
Restaurant open Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner. Bar open until late Monday to Saturday with bar snacks available.
FUNCTIONS
The architecturally designed restaurant boasts five different areas, which can be convenient divided up for separate function spaces. The centerpiece is a round table capable of seating 60 guests, with a backdrop of floor to ceiling David Bromley originals. Off to the side, a courtyard is nestled under the gaze of the city skyline and 2 private rooms dubbed "The Lotus Rooms". Lotus Room 1 is capable of seating 36 on one table and Lotus Room 2 can accommodate up to 18 on one table.
Profiled by de Groots Media
This is a big change for McKillop Street, one of those narrow roads that run from north to south, linking the smaller streets (Little Collins) with the main ones (Bourke). Cafes are the norm in such streets; Red Spice Road is contrastingly big and bold, and rather beautiful in a red way. There’s nothing low-key about it. The space is cleverly designed, with a long bar and a number of areas that can be used for dining, or for sitting around over a drink and a chat. Mostly the tables are large and communal, although there are a couple of smaller ones for a more intimate gathering. There are two nice surprises – a real courtyard, open to the sky and with living plants in it, and a fabulous large room dominated by an immense red lantern over a ring table. Two crescents form the ring, which can seat dozens side by side.
The food is Thai, with some enterprising modern influences. The menu is designed around dishes to share although, at a pinch, you could order on your own. There are also really good tasting menus (minimum of two to share) for lunch and for dinner. If not the tasting menu, consider scallops with smoked trout, coriander and kaffir lime to start, and a salad with shredded chicken, mint, bean noodles, lemongrass and coconut to follow. The choices are many and the flavours are zingy, each dish having lots of lovely flavour bursts, though most are not too chilli-fierce. The drinks list includes lots of cocktails, a good range of beers, and a smallish wine list well-chosen to match the food.
Rita Erlich, February 2008