Universal Restaurant
Editorial
Food is one thing that unites us the world over, and Christine Mansfield’s menu of her restaurant Universal, knows no cultural boundaries. Looking as though jars of spices exploded their bright colours through the design concept, the vibrant décor is a mere reflection of its food. The hot pink, red, yellow and orange are spliced through the black setting, like her eclectic culinary influences.
An edible result of her travels, teaching, writing and her career as a well-known chef, the menu of small plates features salads, soups, raw dishes, seafood and meat. Whilst each dish is a taste of exotic combinations to mix with others, they are complete to stand on their own. A few ambiguous names speak only of the flavours to be served which causes even more curiosity to what Mansfield will create next.
Tonight, sticky rice is served with salted duck egg cakes, and a brightly coloured salad of green mango, ruby grapefruit and roasted cashew nuts to add zesty edge. Earthier tones come through the fennel falafel with spiced yoghurt and red quinoa salad holding globe artichokes and chickpeas. Chilli squid has been stir-fried to tenderness in XO sauce with sweet Chinese sausage and spicy green bean sambal making it a meatier meal. Whilst the mains honour the cultural inspirations from which they were drawn, the desserts names play tongue in cheek on human attraction, such as the pear and pastry Double Take, or Bite the Pillow which leads to kaffir lime tapioca curd with lemon marshmallow, grapefruit granita and lychees. The Gaytime is deconstructed and Goes Nuts to become a caramel parfait with honeycomb ice cream finished with crispy textures of chocolate crunch and salted hazelnut caramel.
Mansfield is renowned for her creative cooking that is influenced by her culinary cultural explorations, and Universal is a vivacious and delicious creation of these journeys.
Edwina Storie, March 2011
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