It’s exciting to see new-season menus on Canberra’s dining scene, says dining reviewer WENDY JOHNSON.
Queenies’ seasonal menu is entirely gluten-free without compromising on presentation or taste.
Although gluten-free dishes are increasingly common, it can still be challenging for those with dietary requirements to be able to select anything their little heart’s desire.
Queenies at Kingston, has invested great effort into designing creative dishes loaded with flavour – dishes that are easy to share and feature lovely textures and intriguing ingredients (some native). A couple of dishes, such as Korean fried chicken, remain… no doubt Queenies didn’t dare remove them due to popular demand.
An exciting explosion of flavour and colour, the citrus-poached prawns were cool and refreshing, with cucumber consommé, compressed pineapple, sea grapes, red drop peppers and smoked salt ($27).
Although we weren’t expecting it to be cold, the butternut ravioli was a star dish, featuring a thin layer of lemon-scented ricotta in between perfectly rounded pasta. Crispy basil and a sprinkling of salted caramel walnuts were perfect additions ($22).
Our generous kebabs of spiced lamb were moist and placed on top of smooth, sexy sumac labneh ($25). Cherry tomatoes, pickles and greens added a burst of colour.
The favourite main was the tender, juicy juniper and pink-pepper-infused steak, cooked to perfection and featuring a mound of thin, tasty parsnip chips ($48). We loved the dauphinoise potato and greens on the day were a generous serve of vibrant broccolini.
Humble carrots were masterfully glazed and cooked to hold crunch. They arrived on a bed of more of that yummy sumac labneh and topped with wonderfully nutty pistachios ($9.50). Queenies’ pomme puree is decadent ($9.50).
Tomatoes are coming into their own with the warmer weather. Queenies creates its caprese salad with small heritage tomatoes cut in half and carefully plated with slices of baby bocconcini, fried basil and smoked salt ($23).
While the Palak Kaju Chhena immediately caught our attention, it was our least favourite ($40). The cashew and cottage cheese croquettes were lovely, the spinach sauce spicy and the puffed rice fun, but we felt the dish overall was too “soupy”. For us, it was a poor choice with the other mains we had selected.
Next time, we will be specific about the order and timing we want our dishes to arrive. All three entrées emerged at the same time. We ate the more intensely flavoured hot one first (for obvious reasons) but would have preferred to be kinder on our palate by enjoying the more delicate cold dishes first.
Queenies’ wine list celebrates loads of local labels and is carefully considered. Service was efficient, attentive and friendly. Queenies is to be applauded for working super hard to make customers feel comfortable and at home.
Leave a Reply